The franc (
ISO 4217
ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) that defines alpha codes and numeric codes for the representation of currencies and provides information about the relationships between individual cu ...
code ''MGF'') was the
currency
A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins.
A more general def ...
of
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
until January 1, 2005. It was subdivided into 100
centime
Centime (from la, centesimus) is French for " cent", and is used in English as the name of the fraction currency in several Francophone countries (including Switzerland, Algeria, Belgium, Morocco and France).
In France, the usage of ''centim ...
s. In
Malagasy the corresponding term for the franc is ''
iraimbilanja
The iraimbilanja (singular and plural) is the divisory currency unit of Madagascar, being equal to one fifth of an ariary.
Etymology
Iraimbilanja means literally "one iron weight" and was the name of an old coin worth of an ariary.
Value
The ...
'', and five Malagasy francs is called ''
ariary
The ariary (currency sign, sign: Ar; ISO 4217 code MGA) is the currency of Madagascar. It is notionally subdivided into 5 ''iraimbilanja'' and is one of only two non-decimal currencies currently circulating (the other is the ''Mauritanian ouguiya' ...
''.
History
The first francs to circulate in Madagascar were
French franc
The franc (, ; sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money. It w ...
s. These were supplemented during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
by emergency issues, including issues of
postage stamps
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...
fixed to pieces of card in denominations of 0.05 up to 2 francs.
The
Banque de Madagascar
The Banque de Madagascar, from 1946 the Banque de Madagascar et des Comores, was a bank established by the French government in 1925 to issue currency and provide credit in French Madagascar. As such, it fulfilled many of the functions of a cent ...
was created on July 1, 1925, by the
French government. The currency was issued by the government-owned ''Banque de Madagascar'' and was pegged at par to the French franc. Only banknotes were issued with French coins continuing to circulate. When the
Comoro Islands
The Comoro Islands or Comoros ( Shikomori ''Komori''; ar, جزر القمر , ''Juzur al-qamar''; french: Les Comores) form an archipelago of volcanic islands situated off the southeastern coast of Africa, to the east of Mozambique and northw ...
became a separate French territory, the name of the issuing bank was changed to
Banque de Madagascar et des Comores
The Banque de Madagascar, from 1946 the Banque de Madagascar et des Comores, was a bank established by the French government in 1925 to issue currency and provide credit in French Madagascar. As such, it fulfilled many of the functions of a cent ...
. The Madagascar-Comores
CFA franc
The CFA franc (french: franc CFA, , Franc of the Financial Community of Africa, originally Franc of the French Colonies in Africa, or colloquially ; abbreviation: F.CFA) is the name of two currencies, the West African CFA franc, used in eight Wes ...
(XMCF) replaced the franc of Madagascar on December 26, 1945, with the creation of the other CFA francs. The CFA franc was worth 1.7 French francs until 1948 when a devaluation of the French currency increased the rate to 1 CFA franc = 2 French francs. When the new French franc was introduced in 1960, the rate became 1 CFA franc = 0.02 French francs.
After independence from France, the privilege to issue banknotes was transferred to the
Institut d'Émission Malgache on December 31, 1961. The CFA franc was replaced by the Malagasy franc on July 1, 1963. It was pegged to the French franc with the same value as the CFA franc (1 FRF = 50 MGF), guaranteed by the French treasury. Denominations were given both in francs and
ariary
The ariary (currency sign, sign: Ar; ISO 4217 code MGA) is the currency of Madagascar. It is notionally subdivided into 5 ''iraimbilanja'' and is one of only two non-decimal currencies currently circulating (the other is the ''Mauritanian ouguiya' ...
, with 5 francs = 1 ariary. Madagascar left the
CFA franc zone in 1972 and the Malagasy franc was declared
inconvertible. Banknotes were issued by the Institut d'Émission Malgache until 1974 when the
Banque Centrale de Madagascar
The Central Bank of Madagascar ( mg, Banky Foiben'i Madagasikara; french: Banque Centrale de Madagascar, BCM) is the central bank of Madagascar.
The bank's mission is to, in collaboration with the general government, and in observation of the laws ...
(Central Bank of Madagascar) took over that function.
The peg to the French franc was kept until 1982 when a series of
devaluation
In macroeconomics and modern monetary policy, a devaluation is an official lowering of the value of a country's currency within a fixed exchange-rate system, in which a monetary authority formally sets a lower exchange rate of the national curren ...
s began. Finally, the franc was
floated freely in May 1994. On June 1, 1995, the exchange rate had dropped to 1 FRF = 777 MGF. On January 1, 2005, it was replaced by the
ariary
The ariary (currency sign, sign: Ar; ISO 4217 code MGA) is the currency of Madagascar. It is notionally subdivided into 5 ''iraimbilanja'' and is one of only two non-decimal currencies currently circulating (the other is the ''Mauritanian ouguiya' ...
at a rate of 5 francs to the ariary. By then, the exchange rate was 1 EUR = 11,531 MGF (with one
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
= 6.55957 FRF).
Coins
The first Malagasy coins were issued in 1943 by the
Free French
Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...
. These were
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
50 centime and 1 franc coins bearing the
Cross of Lorraine
The Cross of Lorraine (french: Croix de Lorraine, link=no), known as the Cross of Anjou in the 16th century, is a heraldic two-barred cross, consisting of a vertical line crossed by two shorter horizontal bars. In most renditions, the horizont ...
symbol. In 1948,
aluminum
Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...
1 and 2 franc coins were introduced, followed by aluminum 5 francs and aluminum bronze 10 and 20 francs in 1953.
From 1965, coins were issued denominated in both francs and
ariary
The ariary (currency sign, sign: Ar; ISO 4217 code MGA) is the currency of Madagascar. It is notionally subdivided into 5 ''iraimbilanja'' and is one of only two non-decimal currencies currently circulating (the other is the ''Mauritanian ouguiya' ...
.
Banknotes
Following emergency issues between 1914 and 1917 related to the availability of 5, 10 and 20 franc notes, distinct Malagasy notes were introduced in 1925 in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 1000 francs. The lower three denominations were replaced by coins in the 1940s and 50s, with 5000 franc notes introduced in 1950.
From 1961, banknotes were issued denominated in both francs and ariary. Following France’s switch to the euro, Madagascar decided it was time to phase out the franc as well. While still denominated in both ariary and francs, on notes issued since 31 July 2003, the former is emphasized with larger fonts and predominant placement. Beginning in 2007, new notes no longer contain references to the franc as a currency and are instead denominated solely in ariary, which replaced the franc as the official currency of Madagascar on 1 January 2005, at a rate of 5 francs per ariary.
References
External links
Central Bank of Madagascar web siteHistory of Malagasy currencies Les Monnaies à Madagascar(PDF)
{{Franc
Currencies of Africa
Currencies of Madagascar
History of Madagascar
Modern obsolete currencies
1925 establishments in the French colonial empire
2005 disestablishments in Madagascar