The Djiboutian franc
Currency · DJF · 1 country
Every Djibouti franc issued must be covered by its value in US dollars, a currency board rule set by a French decree of 20 March 1949. The Banque Centrale de Djibouti, created on 3 December 1977, keeps the rule today. The parity has stood at 177.721 francs to the dollar since 13 February 1973, after two revaluations against it.
No sign of its own
The Djibouti franc has no sign of its own in Unicode. Amounts are written with the ISO code DJF or the abbreviation Fdj, and the ISO list gives the franc no decimal places, because the centime it was once divided into is no longer used.
- ISO code
- DJF
- ISO number
- 262
- Fraction
- None, amounts are whole units
An amount, written out
DJF 1,234
- DJF 1,234English
- ١٬٢٣٤ FdjArabicDjibouti
Where the Djiboutian franc is the official currency
Djibouti uses the franc under a currency board: its central bank holds US dollar reserves covering more than every note and coin in circulation.
About the Djiboutian franc
What circulated before the Djibouti franc
When France set up the protectorate of French Somaliland in 1884, the French franc circulated there beside the Indian rupee and the Maria Theresa thaler. Two francs bought a rupee. From 1908 the local franc was fixed by law at the value of the French one, and from 1910 the Bank of Indochina issued banknotes for the colony. The Chamber of Commerce added its own paper money and tokens between 1919 and 1922, some of them hexagonal or octagonal. The first coins struck for the territory alone came in 1948.
How a French decree pegged the franc
Decree 49/374 created a local currency for the Côte Française des Somalis and named it the Franc de Djibouti. It was valued in fine gold and started at 214.392 francs to the US dollar, which the central bank traces to the French franc's own gold value on the Paris exchange market at the time. It was convertible on demand, for residents and non-residents, with no restrictions and no paperwork. Under the French exchange rules of the day the territory then left the franc zone.
The researcher Moustapha Aman, speaking about the 1949 decision in 2025, links it to a French currency reform of 1943 that had made residents exchange notes at a loss of 50 to 90%. He also points to competition with the port of Aden.
What the board holds behind each note
The right to issue passed from a private bank to the Public Treasury, which opened an account at the French American Banking Corporation in New York. Dollars equal to the notes in circulation sat in it as a guarantee. Anyone wanting francs paid the dollar value into one of the Treasury's accounts; anyone selling francs received dollars. The money supply grew and shrank with those sales.
The Banque Centrale de Djibouti works to the same principle. It covers more than 100% of the notes and coins in circulation, holds its reserves in US dollars and does not refinance commercial banks. The commercial banks in turn must hold foreign currency in proportion to their deposits in francs.
Why the parity moved twice
The franc stayed pegged to gold while the dollar's gold value fell. On 18 December 1971 the parity went from 214.392 to 197.466 francs to the dollar, and on 13 February 1973 to 177.721, where it has not moved since. After independence on 27 June 1977 the new government left the system in place and gave the Treasury the issue until the central bank opened.
Which coins took over from notes
The 50 and 100 franc notes gave way to cupronickel coins in 1970, and a 500 franc aluminium bronze coin replaced the note of that value in 1989. The National Bank of Djibouti took over note production in 1977 and added a 10,000 franc note in 1984.
Common questions
Questions about the Djiboutian franc
Why is the Djibouti franc tied to the US dollar?
France pegged the territory's currency to the dollar by a decree of 20 March 1949 and took it out of the franc zone. Every franc had to be covered by dollars held in a Treasury account in New York. The Banque Centrale de Djibouti keeps the same currency board rule, covering more than the full value of the notes and coins in circulation with US dollar reserves.
Has the Djiboutian franc ever been devalued?
Its dollar parity has moved twice, both times upward. The franc was valued in gold, so when the dollar lost gold value the franc gained against it: from 214.392 to 197.466 francs on 18 December 1971, then to 177.721 on 13 February 1973. The central bank reports no change to that parity since.
Are there centimes in the Djiboutian franc?
Centimes existed under French rule. The Chamber of Commerce issued centime tokens and notes around 1919 to 1922, in zinc, aluminium, bronze and aluminium bronze. The ISO code list now gives DJF no decimal places, and the coins run in whole francs from 1 franc upward.
Who prints Djibouti's money?
The Banque Centrale de Djibouti issues it, and the National Bank of Djibouti took over banknote production in 1977, the year of independence. Before that the notes came from the Bank of Indochina from 1910 and from the Public Treasury after 1952. The coins date from 1948 and later, with a 500 franc coin replacing the 500 franc note in 1989. A 10,000 franc note followed in 1984.