The first franc was minted in Compiegne on December 5th 1360. The currency was named “the franc on horseback” The king was represented on his steed with, in the caption the term “Francorum Rex” (King of the Franks)
In 1437 was born the “gold franc” which became the most important currency in Europe ahead of the italian Florin. In 1640, Louis the XIII reformed the monetary system and minted a new gold coin bearing his name, le Louis d’or. Francs became obsolete. Nevertheless the name “franc” stayed strong in people’s minds.
After the great revolution of 1789 the formal currency of France became the franc. The “franc germinal” or “gold franc” is created in 1803 under Napoleon the 1st. France built a vast empire in and outside Europe, in which the franc circulated widely. Belgium, Switzerland and northern Italy were integrated. The gold franc remains a notably stable currency for more than 100 years.
After the franc Poincaré in 1928, Charles de Gaulle announced the creation of the “nouveau franc” willing to restore the prestige of nineteenth century’s franc. The currency is abolished in 2002.
The franc carries Renaissance, births. Liberations and revolutions. FPC could perpetuate this tradition at the forefront of new technological developments for a new century.