10 000 Francs

The Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale — the BEAC — replaced the earlier BCEAEC structure in 1972, and this high-denomination note falls squarely in the transitional years when the new institution was establishing its own visual identity across six member states. Each country received notes with identical reverse designs but country-specific face printings, a cost-sharing arrangement that kept production economical for smaller economies like Gabon while maintaining the prestige of Banque de France manufacture.

At 10,000 francs, this was the ceiling denomination for the series — serious money in Gabon during the mid-1970s oil boom years, when Libreville's economy was transforming rapidly but banking infrastructure remained thin outside the capital.