Mali

Money & costs

Money

The unit of currency is the West African CFA franc.

Most of Mali’s banks change foreign cash. Outside Bamako you may have difficulty with travellers cheques, and when banks do change them commission rates vary wildly. Bank of Africa, Ecobank and Banque Internationale du Mali (BIM) usually charge around 2%.

Euros are the best currency to carry. US dollars are OK, but commissions are quite often higher and nonbank exchange rates are grim.

At the time of writing, only Banque de Développement du Mali (BDM) was offering cash advances for Visa cards. There were also no functioning ATMs, but Visa card is accepted in a few ritzy hotels, restaurants and businesses in Bamako.