The Burundian franc
Currency · BIF · 1 country
The Bank of the Republic of Burundi issues the Burundian franc, a currency Burundi has printed for itself since 1964. The franc itself arrived in 1916, when Belgium occupied the former German colony and put the Belgian Congo franc in place of the German East African rupie. A shared Rwanda and Burundi franc followed in 1960.
No sign of its own
The Burundian franc has no sign of its own in the character set. Amounts are written with the ISO code BIF or with the abbreviation FBu, which Wikipedia gives for the currency, placed beside the figure.
- ISO code
- BIF
- ISO number
- 108
- Fraction
- None, amounts are whole units
An amount, written out
BIF 1,234
- BIF 1,234English
- FBu 1,234EnglishBurundi
Where the Burundian franc is the official currency
Issued by the Bank of the Republic of Burundi, the franc serves Burundi; Rwanda, which once shared a franc with it, is not on this list.
About the Burundian franc
How Burundi came to count in francs
Belgian occupation in 1916 brought the franc. The German East African rupie went out and the Belgian Congo franc came in, and Burundi used the currency of the Belgian Congo until 1960. A Rwanda and Burundi franc then served both territories for four years.
Separate money began in February 1964. Until 31 December 1965 the notes of the Banque d'Émission du Rwanda et du Burundi, the issuing bank the two had shared, circulated in Burundi overprinted with the word BURUNDI in hollow diagonal letters. The Banque du Royaume du Burundi, the Bank of the Kingdom of Burundi, followed with regular notes in 1964 and 1965 in the same values, from 5 to 1,000 francs.
Which bank took over when the kingdom ended
In 1966 the Bank of the Republic of Burundi overprinted the notes of 20 francs and above, putting Republic where Kingdom had stood. Its own regular issues followed in values from 10 to 5,000 francs, and in 1968 the same bank took over the coinage as well.
Why the centime exists only on paper
The franc divides nominally into 100 centimes, and Burundi has never struck a centime coin of its own; centime coins circulated only while the country used the Belgian Congo franc. ISO lists the Burundian franc with no minor unit at all.
Which coins Burundi has struck
The Bank of the Kingdom issued a brass 1-franc coin in 1965. Three years later the Bank of the Republic brought in aluminium 1 and 5 francs and a cupro-nickel 10 francs, and the 5 and 10 were given continuous milled edges. New versions of the 1 and 5 francs, carrying the coat of arms, appeared in 1976. The 10-franc note had already given way to a coin in 1968. New 10 and 50-franc coins came in 2011.
How the banknotes have changed since independence
The 2,000-franc note arrived in 2001 and the 10,000-franc note in 2004. The back of the 10,000 used a photograph of schoolchildren by the photographer Kelly Fajack. A new series followed in 2015.
The old 10, 20 and 50-franc notes lost their legal tender status, and the 100 francs is the one note of the old series still in circulation.
In a release dated 12 September 2023, the printer Crane Currency announced that the bank had finished upgrading every note from 500 to 10,000 francs with a micro-optic security thread. Tilted, the thread shows bands moving behind the static letters BRB and the head of a cow, which Crane describes as a symbol of wellness and beauty in Burundi. The notes are printed on cotton paper.
What became of an East African shilling
The East African Community planned a common currency, a new East African shilling, for its five member states by the end of 2015. By March 2025 the plan had not come about, and Burundi still issues the franc.
Common questions
Questions about the Burundian franc
Does Burundi have coins smaller than a franc?
No. The franc is nominally divided into 100 centimes, but Burundi has never issued centime coins since it began making its own money in 1964. The only centime coins that ever circulated there belonged to the Belgian Congo franc, before independence. ISO 4217 lists the franc with no minor unit.
What currency did Burundi use before the Burundian franc?
Under German rule the territory used the German East African rupie. Belgium replaced it with the Belgian Congo franc when it occupied the colony in 1916, and that franc stayed until 1960. From 1960 Burundi shared a Rwanda and Burundi franc with its neighbour. In February 1964 notes of the shared issuing bank were overprinted with the word BURUNDI, and the Bank of the Kingdom of Burundi then brought out regular notes of its own in 1964 and 1965. The present issuer, the Bank of the Republic of Burundi, took over in 1966.
What is on the security thread of Burundian banknotes?
Since the upgrade Crane Currency announced on 12 September 2023, every note from 500 to 10,000 francs carries a micro-optic thread. When the note tilts, bands move behind the letters BRB and the head of a cow, an animal Crane calls a symbol of wellness and beauty in Burundi.
Which Burundian banknotes are still legal tender?
The series launched in 2015 runs from 500 to 10,000 francs. The old 10, 20 and 50-franc notes have lost their legal tender status, and the 100-franc note is the one note of the old series still circulating. Crane Currency's 2023 upgrade covered the five values of the current series.