Just a few coins.
Benin gained independence from France as the Republic of Dahomey on August 1st 1960. The name was changed to Benin on 30th November 1975.
There are no circulation coins directly attributable to Benin (nor Dahomey). All coins in the name of Benin (and those earlier coins of Dahomey which all happen to be dated 1971) are non-circulation coins and distinctively all word the denomination as “FRANCS CFA”. This fuller wording of the denomination (including “CFA”) isn’t often used by those countries using the CFA Franc.
The currency used in Benin is a common currency - the “CFA Franc (West)”.
The “CFA Franc (West)” is the common currency of Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. These eight countries form the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), whose common central bank is the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO). The coins circulating in these countries are issued by the BCEAO are are inscribed in French “BANQUE CENTRALE DES ETATS DE L’AFRIQUE DE L’OUEST”. The catologues list these coins under “West African States”.
WEST AFRICAN STATES
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