500 Francs

The Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi was itself a short-lived institution — created in 1952 to replace the Banque du Congo Belge, it was dissolved in 1960 when Congolese independence forced a rapid restructuring of the entire colonial currency apparatus. This 500 Franc note falls squarely in the middle of that brief operational window, a high denomination issued for a territory whose monetary administration Brussels was already quietly reconsidering.

Bradbury, Wilkinson's involvement is unsurprising — the New Malden firm printed for numerous colonial issuers across this period and had long-standing relationships with Belgian authorities.