The Union of Comoros is a sovereign island nation in the Indian Ocean west of Madagascar's northern tip, east of Mozambique, and off the east coast of the African continent. The Comorian franc (KMF) is their official currency, nominally subdivided into 100 centimes, although centime denominations are yet to been issued. In 1920, the first Comorian paper money was issued. An emergency issue of Madagascar postage stamps was fixed to it, which allows them to be circulated as money. Article 12 of the Loi Ordinaire 62-873 du 31 Juillet 1962 allowed the continuation of issuing notes in Comoros by the Banque de Madagascar et des Comores to continue after Madagascar began issuing its currency. Starting 1 April 1962, the notes had "COMORES" overstamped on them, and on 31 December 1964, banknotes with no overstamp stopped being legal tender.
The overstamped notes continue to circulate until 1976. Then, 500, 1000, and 5000 francs were introduced by the Institut d'Émission des Comores. The bank took over the production of paper money in 1984. In 1997, 2500 and 10,000 franc notes were introduced, and in 2005, 2000 francs. The Banque de France prints the Comorian banknotes at their paper mill. Franc notes dated 2005, and 2006 (500, 1000, 2000, 5000, and 10,000) contain the EURion constellation, along with further improved security features making them more difficult to counterfeit.
