African Paper Money

I am a collector, not a dealer - although I can supply a list of wholesale and duplicate items. I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service several years ago following assignments in Canada, Caracas, Mexico, Bogota, Rio de Janeiro, Milan, and Oslo. I now devote much of my time to the banknote hobby and specialize in CFA francs of the West African States and Central African States. My primary interest is 1) to develop and disseminate information concerning CFA banknotes, and 2) to find items for my own collection. I have done most of the published research on CFA notes and previously did most of their numbering and pricing in the PICK catalogs. (*See below for comments on most recent editions of World Paper Money.) I welcome all inquiries and new information.

First, for those of you curious as to why these notes are called CFA francs:
While notes for French African colonies have always been designated in francs, the "CFA" appellation was formally adopted in 1945 to signify "Francs des Colonies Francais d'Afrique." In 1959 the French government developed a plan under which the newly-independent African countries would be members of a French-African Community and the currency thus designated "Francs de la Communaute Franco-Africaine." The Africans rejected the Communaute arrangements, but when regional monetary unions were finally negotiated in 1962 the West African States formally named their currency "Francs de la Communaute Financiere Africaine" thus preserving the CFA designation. The Central African States followed suit in 1972 with a slight variation: "Francs de Cooperation Financiere en Afrique-Centrale," ignoring the last "C."

Even if you are an experienced collector, I recommend you first review the following pages for information on CFA notes, their history, and identification of varieties:

Basic Data on West African States Banknotes (includes images of the three series);
Basic Data on Central African States Banknotes  (includes images of the three series).

For more detailed information, you should then proceed to the following sections:

Inventory and Want List, West African States  (list of all confirmed signature and date varieties);
Inventory and Want List, Central African States  (including a list of confirmed current issue varieties).

If you still have questions, all it takes is an E-mail inquiry and I will respond as quickly as possible. E-mail:   wburson@earthlink.net

I strongly urge membership in the International Bank Note Society (P.O. Box 1642; Racine, WI 53401). At $20 per year it is a fantastic bargain. Then attend some shows and get to know dealers and other collectors; this is by far the best way to get a feel for the hobby, the people, and the market. You will soon find out who has what, how they grade, who is reliable (and whom to avoid), etc.

* Please note that I am not responsible for the numbering systems in World Paper Money Vol. II 8th edition and Vol. III 3rd edition. In my opinion much of the numbering has been so screwed up and contains so many errors as to make these volumes almost unusable. Henceforth, I will report new varieties and perhaps offer rarity information, but no numbering data.