Banknote Billet Réunion 1000 francs 1971

This 1000 Francs / 20 Nouveaux Francs banknote was issued in 1971 for Réunion, a French overseas territory in the Indian Ocean. It belongs to series C.3 and is distinguished by the presence of an overprint, a particularly notable feature that makes it a specimen of interest for collectors specialising in colonial and French overseas numismatics.

The overprint applied to this banknote reflects a common practice in French overseas territories, consisting of adapting existing notes to a new denomination or a new monetary system. In this specific case, the dual face value inscribed ? 1000 Francs and 20 Nouveaux Francs ? bears witness to the monetary transition carried out in French overseas territories, where the conversion between old and new francs required this type of adaptation on banknotes in circulation.

This banknote was issued under the authority of the Institut d'Émission des Départements d'Outre-Mer (IEDOM), the institution responsible for managing fiduciary currency in French overseas departments at that time. Réunion, which became a French department in 1946, was directly subject to this monetary authority for the issuance and management of its banknotes.

Belonging to series C.3 allows this banknote to be precisely identified within the production of the era, with each series corresponding to a distinct issue identifiable by its associated numbering and references. This type of overprinted banknote constitutes direct evidence of the economic and monetary changes experienced by Réunion in the second half of the 20th century, and represents a historical document of the highest order for understanding the monetary history of this French overseas department.