The franc is the currency of French Polynesia. It is subdivided into 100 ''centimes''. Since 1945, it has been part of the

CFP franc The CFP franc (French: , called the ''franc'' in everyday use) is the currency used in the French overseas collectivities (, or COM) of French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna. The initials ''CFP'' originally stood for ('Frenc ...

History

Until 1914, the

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 ...

circulated in French Polynesia. That year, banknotes were issued specifically for use on in the colony which circulated along with French coins. In 1945, the

was introduced, with coins issued for French Oceania (''Etablisements Français de l'Océanie'' as the colony was then known) from 1949. From 1965, the name French Polynesia (''Polynésie Française'') has been used. The CFP franc is also issued in New Caledonia and was used in the

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group ...

until 1983. Since 1985, banknotes have been issued common to both French Polynesia and New Caledonia, although separate coinages continue.

Coins

In 1949, aluminium 50 centimes, 1 and 2 francs were introduced, followed by aluminium 5 francs in 1952. The 50 centimes was only issued in 1949. These coins carried the name Océanie. From 1965, the name changed to Polynesie. In 1967, nickel 10, 20 and 50 francs were introduced, followed by nickel-bronze 100 francs in 1976. The overall design of the coins has not changed since their introduction and the obverse has always been identical to that of the coins of the New Caledonian franc. The only notable changes were the removal of the text "Union Française" and the change of name from "Établisements Français de l'Océanie" to "Polynésie Française" after 1952 and the addition of the initials "I.E.O.M" (

Institut d'émission d'Outre-Mer An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes can ...

) to the obverse in 1972.

Banknotes

In 1914, the ''

Banque de l'Indochine The Banque de l'Indochine (), originally Banque de l'Indo-Chine ("Bank of Indochina"), was a bank created in 1875 in Paris to finance French colonial development in Asia. As a bank of issue in Indochina until 1952 (and in French Paci ...

'' in Papeete (the capital of French Polynesia on

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austra ...

) introduced notes for 5, 20 and 100 francs. In 1919, the Chamber of Commerce introduced notes for 25 and 50 centimes, 1 and 2 francs. The ''Banque André Krajewski'' also issued notes for these denominations in 1920. The Banque de l'Indochine introduced 500 franc notes in 1923, followed by 1000 francs in 1940. Wartime emergency currency was issued during both

World War I 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 ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in denominations ranging from 25 centimes to 2½ francs. The illustrated notes (right) are from the 1943 issue of Bons de Caisse des Etablissements Français de l'Océanie. In 1969, the ''Institut d'Emission d'Outre-Mer, Papeete'' took over the issuance of paper money, introducing notes for 100, 500, 1000 and 5000 francs. The 100 and 1000 franc notes have two variants. The earlier issue lacked the state title " République française". The 500 and 5000 franc notes have had the state title since their introductions. The 100 franc notes were replaced by coins in 1976. In 1985, 10,000 franc notes common to all the French Pacific Territories were introduced. These were followed, between 1992 and 1996, by 500, 1000 and 5000 franc notes for all of the French Pacific Territories. The overall design has not changed since 1969.

History

Coins

Banknotes

See also

References

Notes

Sources

External links