500 Francos / Francs

The Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale — the BEAC — issues a single note series circulating simultaneously across six countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. Each note carries a letter code identifying the issuing member state, which means the same Pick number can represent notes from entirely different countries, a deliberate structural feature that has complicated catalog attribution since the bank's reorganization in 1972.

Oberthur had supplied BEAC notes consistently through this period, with production handled at their Rennes facility. The 500 Franc denomination was among the most heavily circulated in the zone, and survivors in clean condition are notably harder to find than the higher values.