5 lats coin Bank of Latvia has issued two collector coins featuring the imagery of the 5 lats coin. The first was struck in 2003 as part of the international series "The Smallest Gold Coins of the World". The second was struck in 2012 to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the bank. The Bank of Latvia worked with the British Royal Mint, which minted the original coins, to recreate the coin using electrotypes used in minting the original coins. In 2004, after a nationwide idea contest, the design was selected for the national side of Latvian Euro coins, and approved as a design
Baltic states housing bubble was unsustainable; many banks in the Baltic states found themselves "trapped" with high debts denominated in euros. When the housing price in the Baltic states crashed, banks in the Baltic States were unable to re-pay their debts due to high non-performing loans and lacked of liquidity to sufficiently cover their debts to the parent banks. Following the integration with the European Union, the Baltic States enjoyed strong economic growth and subsequently among the fastest economic growth in Europe. Thus, the Baltic States emerged as the top destinations for foreign direct investment (FDI). Generally majority FDI into the Baltic States was