Africa's Best Circulating Banknote in 2026: An Inside Look at the Award from a Jury Member

On August 31, 2026, the official announcement concluding the first edition of the Best African Circulating Banknote 2026 was released. This international competition, organized by the IBNS Mosaic Chapter, aims to recognize the best African banknote currently in circulation. The winner is the 2000 Cape Verde Escudo banknote.

I am writing this report from a somewhat unique position: I was part of the expert panel that evaluated the sixteen finalists, alongside ten other specialists from nine countries. At Iberoamericana Banknotes, we have been working with African issues for years—one of the most creative and least understood areas of current paper numismatics—and participating in this jury has been both an honor and an opportunity to see firsthand how the production of an entire continent compares, banknote by banknote. The truth is that I do not consider myself an expert in African banknotes, and there are many collectors with infinitely more knowledge than me, but sometimes the most important thing is to be proactive to get invited to things, and I am a bit hyperactive, :).

What is the Best African Circulating Banknote 2026

The call for entries was announced on May 25, 2026, Africa Day, organized by the IBNS Mosaic Chapter, one of the chapters of the International Bank Note Society (IBNS), the international society of banknote collectors.

The award has a dual objective: to recognize an outstanding African banknote that is currently in circulation—not a commemorative issue or a historical piece—and to draw attention to the quality of design and banknote production on the continent. It is an award that celebrates living paper money, the kind people carry in their pockets.

42 banknotes from 42 African countries were selected, one per issuer, and all entered an open voting process that took place in two rounds between June and August 2026.

The Procedure: Two Rounds, Public Vote, and Expert Panel

One of the things I liked most about this competition is that the procedure was designed to avoid the two common pitfalls of such awards: either the country with the most votes on social media wins, or a closed committee decides without popular input.

Round 1: June 15 to July 14, 2026

In the first phase, only the public voted. Participants chose, from the 42 nominated banknotes, the 16 best, which advanced to the final. The jury was not involved here: the initial selection was made entirely by the community.

It is worth emphasizing who this "public" is. Although the voting was open, dissemination was done through IBNS channels, its national chapters, and specialized numismatic press, so the vast majority of voters were banknote collectors, IBNS members, researchers, and industry professionals. This gives the popular vote a much greater technical weight than a random open survey would have: those who voted knew how to distinguish intaglio from offset and recognized a windowed security thread.

Round 2: The Sixteen Finalists

In the final round, two scoring sources were combined:

1. The public vote, again open, on the 16 finalists.
2. The expert panel's score, issued independently.

The public voting system worked as follows: each voter selected three banknotes from the sixteen and ranked them by preference, giving 3 points to the first, 2 to the second, and 1 to the third. Voting was hosted on an external platform (Fillout) with authentication via a magic link sent to the email, precisely to ensure that each registered participant voted only once. This is seemingly a minor detail, but it is what separates a serious award from a manipulable popularity contest.

The Jury's Evaluation Criteria

The expert panel scored each finalist according to a set of predefined professional criteria:

• Excellence in design
• Cultural relevance
• Technical execution and security features
• Innovation
• Production quality

The final score for each banknote was the sum of the jury's assessment and the points obtained from the public vote. In other words, to win, it had to convince both the community and the technical evaluators. No banknote could win simply by being very popular or just well-printed.

The Expert Panel

The jury was chaired by Serhiy Trushyn (IBNS #LM-259, Germany), coordinator of the IBNS Mosaic Chapter and the project's driving force, and comprised the following members:



I represent Spain on this panel as head of Iberoamericana Banknotes and an IBNS member with number 12582-R. Having a Spanish evaluator on an international jury for African banknotes is unusual, and I think it's good news for enthusiasts in our country: the collection of African banknotes is growing in Spain, and it's worthwhile for us to have a voice in forums where excellence in this field is determined.

The Winner: Cape Verde, 2000 Escudos

With a final score of 80.85 points, the 2000 Cape Verde escudo banknote was declared the Best African Circulating Banknote 2026. It was a clear winner: more than three points ahead of the second-place finisher, and with very solid support from both collector votes and the technical panel.



Design

The obverse is dominated by the portrait of Cesária Évora (1941-2011), the "Queen of Morna" and the voice that brought Cape Verdean music to the whole world. The composition incorporates musical notes on a staff and, as an extraordinary nod, barefoot footprints which also function as a registered coincidence element: a direct reference to the singer's nickname, who always performed barefoot on stage. Rarely do a security element and a cultural symbol merge with such elegance.

The reverse shows a violin—an instrument associated with morna—and a sun over the ocean, alluding to the archipelago's island landscape. The entire Cape Verdean series is built on the same idea: paying tribute to figures from the country's literature, music, and politics.

Security Features and Technical Specifications

The awarded version corresponds to the issue dated August 27, 2024, and put into circulation on April 15, 2025, by the Bank of Cape Verde, which updated the previous design while maintaining its iconography. Its notable features include:

• Holographic stripe with demetalized images of a microphone and musical notes.
• 4mm windowed security thread, with demetalized text "BCV 2000" and a microphone.
• Watermark with the portrait of Cesária Évora and a microphone electrotype.
• Vertical microtext "MORNA2000", a new element compared to the previous issue.
• Embossed turtle and registered coincidence using the footprints.

The banknote is printed by Thomas De La Rue (London), one of the world's leading security printers, on paper. The previous issue of this same denomination measured 142 x 71 mm. For the collector, the existence of two issues with almost identical iconography but different dates and microtext makes this banknote an interesting piece to collect by variants: it is advisable to check the date and the presence of the vertical microtext before purchasing.

Distinguished Mention: Congo (DRC), 20000 Francs

With 77.61 points, the 20000 franc banknote from the Democratic Republic of Congo (dated 04.01.2022) achieved the second-best overall result and received the special recognition of Distinguished African Circulating Banknote 2026.



This banknote represents an aesthetic school completely different from the winner. Its obverse features two giraffes and a carved head from the Bashile tradition, with a registered coincidence device "RDC" and a holographic patch. The reverse displays palm trees with fruit clusters and two crowned cranes. It incorporates a windowed security thread with demetalized text "RD CONGO", and its watermark reproduces a leopard head. It measures 151 x 72 mm and is signed by Malangu Kabedi Mbuyi.

In contrast to Cape Verde's cultural minimalism, Congo opts for naturalistic iconography and saturated color. That both have been so highly ranked speaks volumes about the breadth of criteria among voters.

Final Ranking of the 16 Finalists

 



It is worth noting the third and fourth places. The 200 dobras of São Tomé and Príncipe (2020) and the 200 pula of Botswana (2016) were separated by merely 26 hundredths, and both represent very different approaches: the new generation Luso-African polymer versus a classic and consolidated issue from the southern continent. The fifth place of the 20 South African rands of 2023, with its new fauna series and updated security features, confirms that South Africa remains a technical benchmark on the continent. 







The 42 Participating Banknotes

Here is the complete list of banknotes nominated in the first round, a good map of current African production and an excellent buying guide for anyone wanting to start a thematic collection from the continent:

Algeria 500 Dinars (01.11.2018) · Angola 200 Kwanzas (April 2020) · Botswana 200 Pula (2016) · Burundi 500 Francs (18.10.2023) · Cape Verde 2000 Escudos (27.08.2024) · Central African States 10000 XAF Francs (2022) · Comoros 10000 Francs (2025) · Congo DRC 20000 Francs (04.01.2022) · Djibouti 10000 Francs (2009) · Egypt 200 Pounds (12.03.2017) · Eritrea 50 Nakfa (24.05.2011) · Eswatini 200 Emalangeni (06.09.2023) · Ethiopia 200 Birr (2020) · Gambia 200 Dalasis (2023) · Ghana 100 Cedis (2022) · Guinea 20000 Guinean Francs (2024) · Kenya 1000 Shillings (2024) · Lesotho 100 Maloti (2024) · Liberia 500 Dollars (2024) · Libya 1 Dinar (2019) · Madagascar 20000 Ariary (2017) · Malawi 5000 Kwacha (01.01.2024) · Mauritania 500 Ouguiyas (28.11.2020) · Mauritius 1000 Rupees (2024) · Morocco 50 Dirhams (2023) · Mozambique 200 Meticais (16.06.2024) · Namibia 200 Namibian Dollars (2025) · Nigeria 100 Nairas (2024) · Rwanda 2000 Francs (28.06.2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe 200 Dobras (2020/2021) · Seychelles 50 Rupees (2016) · Sierra Leone 10 Leones (27.04.2022) · Somaliland 5000 Shillings (2016) · South Africa 20 Rands (2023) · South Sudan 50 Pounds (2019) · Sudan 1000 Pounds (2024) · Tanzania 5000 Shillings (2025) · Tunisia 50 Dinars (2022) · Uganda 20000 Shillings (2025) · West African States (Guinea-Bissau) 5000 Francs (2003) · Zambia 500 Kwacha (2024) · Zimbabwe 10 ZiG (2026).

What This Award Tells Us About Collecting African Banknotes

After having scored each of the sixteen finalists, I am left with three conclusions that can be useful to any collector:

Africa has ceased to be a secondary market in design. Issues like those from Cape Verde, São Tomé, or South Africa compete on par with any recent European or Asian series in print quality, integration of security features, and narrative coherence.

Cultural content scores points. The banknotes that won are not the most ornate or the most expensive to produce: they are the ones that tell a story. A meaningful portrait, a well-resolved symbol, and an idea of a country behind it are worth more than twenty unrelated graphic elements.

It's an excellent time to get started. Many of these pieces are still affordable in uncirculated quality precisely because they are current issues. In ten years, some of those that now cost a few euros will be hard to find in uncirculated condition. The award will shine a spotlight on several of them.

The IBNS Mosaic Chapter has already announced that the Best Circulating Banknote competition will continue as an annual initiative of IBNS Region #5, which covers Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Therefore, there will be a 2027 edition.

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my sincere thanks to Serhiy Trushyn, chairman of the expert panel and driving force behind the IBNS Mosaic Chapter. Organizing an international competition with 42 nominated countries, two rounds of voting, a platform with individual authentication, and a jury spread across nine countries is no easy task, and the result has been impeccable in terms of transparency and rigor. Thanks also to the other jury members for the high level of discussion, and to the hundreds of collectors who dedicated their time to vote in both rounds. Without them, this award would not have the value it does.

Do you want to start your collection of African banknotes?

At Iberoamericana Banknotes, we work with issues from across the African continent, including several of the pieces that competed in this contest. If you want to get the winning banknote, the Congolese finalist, or build a thematic collection of current African banknotes, you can view our complete catalog by clicking here.

If you have questions about variants, issue dates, or conditions, write to us: we will be happy to advise you.