Currency of the West African States
The West African States are a currency union of the independent countries of Mauritania (withdrew in 1973), Mali (withdrew 1962-84), Burkina Faso, Niger, Senegal (country code "K"), Guinea, Guinea-Bissau (country code "S", joined 1997), Ivory Coast, Togo and Benin. The notes bear a letter code indicating for which country they were intended to circulate ("K" for Senegal shown here). The first two digits of the serial number indicate the year of issue ("23" for 2023). The series of 2003 also included 1,000, 5,000 and 10,000 notes. Some allege that France uses the bank to maintain its colonialism but the member countries are too weak economically to go it alone. The bank, formerly based in Paris, is now headquartered in Dakar, Senegal.
Catalog reference: Pick-716K, Pick 919Sa.
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