Central African Republic - Central African Franc - Currency Guide

General Currency Info - Central African Franc

The Central African CFA franc (XAF) is the currency of six independent states in Central Africa - Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. The currency was introduced to the previously French colonies in Equatorial Africa in 1945, replacing the French Equatorial African franc. The currency continued in use when these colonies gained their independence. Equatorial Guinea, the only former Spanish colony in the zone, adopted the CFA franc in 1984.

In several west African states the West African CFA franc (currency code XOF) is in circulation, such as Benin - West African CFA franc. The West African CFA franc is of equal value to the Central African CFA franc.

Both XAF and XOF currencies are referred to as the CFA franc.

XAF News, Forecasts and Trends

The Central African CFA franc has a fixed rate of exchange with the euro (and previously the French franc) set at 1 euro = 655.957 CFA francs.

The CFA franc is characterised as a credible and stable currency, a significant virtue given the experience of most currency-issuing African nations.

The below interactive chart shows the USD to XAF exchange rate, trend and recent alerts for the last 90 days.

U$1,000 USD
=
FCFA580,056 XAF

Converted at USD/XAF wholesale exchange rate, compare foreign transfer and spend/travel exchange rates.

Travel, Currency and Money saving tips for Central African Republic

Travel money for Central African Republic

Save money and time by Ordering your Central African Franc online from Travelex, you get better rates and can pick up the XAF cash locally or even on travel day at the airport.

Another popular option is to use a Pre-paid Travel Card. Your Debit/Credit Card provider will charge you 2% from market mid-rate, but your bank may also charge an extra 3% as an “Overseas Transaction Charge” plus “Overseas ATM” fees for withdrawing cash.

For card purchases if offered a choice of currencies always select to Pay in Central African Franc otherwise you may get much worst exchange rates.

Sending money to Central African Republic

When searching around for information on how to get a good exchange rate when sending money to Central African Republic you need to start with finding out the latest Central African Franc exchange rate for foreign-transfers, which can be very different to the wholesale rate.

Then compare your bank's exchange rates to several licensed FX providers exchange rate and fees to see how much you can save - we make that calculation easy in the below table.

Get a better deal for foreign transfers to Central African Republic

When sending money to Central African Republic it’s important to compare your bank’s rates & fees with those we have negotiated with our partner money transfer providers. To get a better deal you should follow these 4 simple steps :

1. Open an account with a BER reviewed FX provider (id docs may be required)
2. You specify the local or Central African Franc amount you want to transfer
3. Make a local currency domestic transfer for the requested amount to the provider's bank account in your country
4. Once your funds are received by the provider the converted XAF amount will be transfered to the recipient account you specify in Central African Republic.

Use the above Send to Central African Franc calculator to compare the exchange rates of FX specialist providers rates versus your bank's standard rates you can hopefully save around 5% and maybe more - end result is more Central African Franc deposited into the recipient bank account and less margins and fees kept by the banks!