The Belgian Congo was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 to 1960. It is currently known as the Democratic Republic of Congo.
As a colony of Belgium, Belgian Congo used the franc as its currency. The franc was subdivided into 100 centimes.
The coinage of Belgian Congo portrayed Belgian heads-of-state— Leopold II, Albert II, and Leopold III—and their monograms. The denominations issued were 1 centime, 2 centimes, 5 centimes, 10 centimes, 20 centimes, 50 centimes, 1 franc, 2 francs, and 5 francs. The 1- and 2-centime coins were made of copper. The 5-, 10-, 20-, and 50-centime and 1-franc coins were made of cupro-nickel. The remaining franc coins were made of brass.
In the 1940s, the designs of Belgian Congo coins changed. The portraits of the heads-of-state and their references were replaced by local fauna like elephants. These coins circulated until 1965.
