The Central Bank of West African States will raise to 4 million FCFA, effective from 2 November 2026, the maximum amount that an identified customer may hold in electronic money with a single issuer within the West African Economic and Monetary Union. The current limit of 2 million will therefore be doubled, according to the instruction signed on 8 October in Dakar by Governor Jean-Claude Kassi Brou.
The text also raises the cumulative limit on authorised top-ups over one month from 10 million to 15 million FCFA. This second limit covers the sums loaded during the period, not the available balance or the amount of a single transaction. Like the balance ceiling, it applies to all instruments held with the same institution.
A user who holds several wallets with the same issuer will therefore not be able to multiply the ceilings by spreading their funds. Balances will be added together to check compliance with the 4 million FCFA limit. The measure applies to identified customers, while distributors and merchants acting in the course of their professional activity are not subject to these ceilings.
The BCEAO provides for exemptions, but they must be authorised in advance. The issuer will have to justify the amount requested, the duration of the excess and the enhanced controls put in place. The central bank may limit or withdraw its approval if the conditions that justified the authorisation are no longer met.
For small shops and self-employed workers who regularly receive payments by phone, the new thresholds will reduce the risk of a wallet being blocked as payments accumulate. They may also make it easier to settle larger expenses without systematically reverting to cash. However, the practical effect will depend on the limits each operator applies to individual transactions and on the quality of customer verification systems.
The instruction also changes the management of the funds that back electronic money in circulation. Issuers must permanently hold at least 65% of this backing in the form of sight deposits. The remainder may be placed in term deposits or in certain authorised categories of debt securities, under the supervision of the BCEAO.
The reform comes as the Union rolls out its interoperable instant payment platform, PI-SPI, and progressively connects private and public players. Raising the ceilings does not replace the rules on anti-money laundering, traceability and the protection of funds, which continue to apply to issuing institutions.