Liberia's amended Central Bank Act 2020 makes the Liberian dollar legal tender and grants the bank sole issuance power. It also retains US currency as legal tender at market rates and requires prices in Liberian dollars and cents, defining a framework where both currencies coexist.
TL;DR:
- Defines the Liberian dollar as 100 cents and requires prices in local dollars and cents.
- US currency also remains legal tender at prevailing market rates under section 22.
- The Central Bank alone issues Liberian-dollar notes and coins, subject to the Constitution.
Summary
Liberia’s national currency
Part V of the Amended and Restated Central Bank of Liberia Act 2020 establishes the currency framework. Section 22 identifies the Liberian dollar, divided into 100 cents, as the currency and legal tender. It also requires transaction prices to be indicated in Liberian dollars and cents, linking the monetary unit with amounts presented in the domestic economy.
Coexistence with United States currency
The same section retains United States currency as legal tender at prevailing market rates. The framework therefore recognises coexistence of the Liberian dollar and US currency rather than treating every lawful payment as denominated in one unit. The currency in which a price is indicated and the currency used to discharge a particular payment need to be understood within those statutory provisions and applicable directions. Coexistence of two legal-tender currencies does not make them a single unit of account. A payment record still needs to identify which currency denominates the amount and how any conversion is applied.
Exclusive issue of Liberian-dollar cash
Section 23 gives the Central Bank sole authority to issue Liberian-dollar banknotes and coins, subject to the Constitution. This issuance power is distinct from the continued legal-tender status of United States currency. It also differs from the role of a bank, wallet or money-service provider holding customer balances and executing transfers in one or both currency denominations.
Currency rules and payment services
The 2020 Act supplies the public monetary foundation beneath Liberian payments. The separate Payment Systems Act and the framework for financial institutions address infrastructure and providers. A service supporting US dollars and Liberian dollars therefore needs to be understood through its legal provider, funds flow and applicable rules, not simply its currency menu. The currency provisions identify monetary status and public issuance authority without granting an individual payment business all permissions to operate.
Keywords
- Liberian dollar
- US currency
- dual tender
- market rates
- price indication
- 100 cents
- CBL issuance
- Section 22
- Section 23
- monetary coexistence