Central African CFA franc
The Central African CFA franc (French: franc CFA or simply franc; ISO code: XAF; abbreviation: F.CFA) is the currency of six independent states in Central Africa: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. These six countries have a combined population of 55.2 million people (as of 2020), and a combined GDP of over US$100 billion (as of 2021).
| Franc CFA de l'Afrique centrale (French) فرنك م ف أ وسط أفريقيا (Arabic) Franco CFA de África Central (Spanish) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
| ISO 4217 | |||||
| Code | XAF (numeric: 950) | ||||
| Unit | |||||
| Symbol | F.CFA | ||||
| Nickname | céfa, franc | ||||
| Denominations | |||||
| Subunit | |||||
| 1⁄100 | centime theoretical (unused) | ||||
| Symbol | |||||
| centime | c | ||||
| Banknotes | 500, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000 francs | ||||
| Coins | 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 500 francs | ||||
| Demographics | |||||
| User(s) | Cameroon Central African Republic Chad Equatorial Guinea Gabon Republic of the Congo | ||||
| Issuance | |||||
| Central bank | Bank of Central African States | ||||
| Website | www | ||||
| Valuation | |||||
| Pegged with | €1 = F.CFA 655.957 | ||||
CFA originally stood for Colonies françaises d'Afrique ("French colonies of Africa"); following the independence of these states, its name was changed to Coopération financière en Afrique centrale ("Financial Cooperation in Central Africa"). The currency is issued by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC; Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale), located in Yaoundé, Cameroon, for the members of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC; Communauté Économique et Monétaire de l'Afrique Centrale). The franc is nominally subdivided into 100 centimes but no centime denominations have been issued. The production of CFA franc notes has been carried out at Chamalières by the Bank of France since its creation in 1945.
In several west African states, the West African CFA franc, which is of equal value to the Central African CFA franc, is in circulation.