Senegalese tech startups with French and European clients: euros and the CFA franc

Dakar has a growing scene of software, design and digital services companies, many serving French clients. Because the CFA franc is pegged to the euro, euro invoices carry no exchange rate risk. Payments still travel through banks under BCEAO rules.

Rashidatou K.Payments editor

Published: 29 October 2026
Reading time: 1 min read

A Dakar web development agency builds sites for a retailer in Paris, an NGO in Brussels and a startup in Lyon. It invoices in euros. The money arrives at its Senegalese bank in two to four days and is credited in CFA francs at the fixed rate. The agency never worries about the exchange rate; it worries about late payments.

The euro peg

The West African CFA franc (XOF) is pegged to the euro at 655.957 francs per euro. A €10,000 invoice is always worth 6,559,570 francs. For a Senegalese company with euro clients and franc costs, there is no exchange rate risk.

Payments under BCEAO rules

Payments from abroad arrive through Senegalese banks under the WAEMU exchange regulation. Banks may ask for contracts or invoices to classify receipts. Clear purpose details on each transfer help.

Collections

French and Belgian clients pay on terms, often 30 to 45 days. Send invoices promptly, quote purchase orders, and follow up before due dates. French commercial law caps business payment terms; it helps to state them on invoices.

VAT

Services exported to clients abroad can be exempt from Senegalese VAT when the conditions are met. Keep contracts and evidence that the services are used abroad.

Where Rivet fits

Rivet opens business accounts for registered companies after verification. Senegal-registered companies receive payments through Senegalese banks under WAEMU rules and generally need authorisation for accounts abroad, so check with your bank first. Where available, partners abroad who bank with Rivet can pay Senegalese bank accounts through Rivet's payouts. Rivet is not a bank; regulated partner institutions hold the funds.

Questions people ask

Is the CFA franc pegged to the euro?

Yes. The XOF has a fixed parity of 655.957 francs per euro, guaranteed under the monetary cooperation arrangement.

How do French clients pay Senegalese companies?

By international transfer in euros to a Senegalese bank, which credits francs or a foreign currency account under the rules.

Do Senegalese companies charge VAT to French clients?

Exports of services can be exempt from Senegalese VAT when the conditions are met. Check with your accountant.

Can Senegalese companies hold accounts abroad?

Generally only with authorisation under WAEMU rules.

Sources

Written by

Rashidatou K.

Payments editor

Rashidatou writes Rivet's guides to how money moves between countries: the payment rails, what each one costs, and the account details a company needs to get paid in another currency. Every figure in Rashidatou's articles is traced to the scheme rulebook, the regulator or the provider's published price list, and those sources are listed at the end.