5000 Francs / 1000 Ariary

Madagascar's dual-denomination system — Malagasy Francs alongside Ariary — dates to 1961, when the newly independent republic introduced the Ariary as a notional sub-unit at five francs to one Ariary, rather than replacing the CFA franc outright. The arrangement persisted for decades, producing notes that carried both values simultaneously, a constant reminder that the monetary transition was never quite finished.

Thomas De La Rue printed the P#66 series throughout the mid-1970s, a period when the Malagasy government was nationalizing key industries and distancing itself from French economic structures — a political posture that coexisted, somewhat awkwardly, with continued reliance on a London printer for its currency.