AfroFX — Live African Currency Rates

AfroFX provides live exchange rates for all 42 African currencies, from the Nigerian Naira (NGN) and South African Rand (ZAR) to the Comorian Franc (KMF) and Sao Tomean Dobra (STN). We also include 9 major global currencies (USD, EUR, GBP, CNY, AED, INR, CAD, AUD, JPY) for cross-rate calculations and conversions, giving you comprehensive coverage of every currency pair that matters for African trade and commerce.

Our exchange rates are refreshed every 5 minutes from multiple institutional-grade data providers. The dashboard displays a live countdown showing exactly when the last update occurred. If data becomes older than 30 minutes due to any connectivity issue, a warning indicator appears so you always know the freshness of the rates you are viewing. For API users, the same 5-minute cadence applies with timestamps in every response.

The CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria) rate is the official exchange rate determined by the Nigerian central bank through its managed float system. The parallel market rate, sometimes called the black market rate, is the price at which USD/NGN actually trades in informal currency markets across Nigeria. The spread between these two rates reflects market confidence, dollar liquidity, and monetary policy effectiveness. A widening spread often signals increased demand for dollars or reduced supply in official channels.

The heatmap displays the 24-hour percentage change of each of the 42 African currencies against the US Dollar. Blue-shaded cells indicate appreciation (the local currency gained value against USD), red-shaded cells indicate depreciation (the local currency lost value), and neutral-colored cells represent minimal change. The intensity of the color corresponds to the magnitude of the change, making it easy to spot which currencies are moving the most on any given day.

Cross rates are exchange rates between two currencies derived indirectly through a common base currency, typically the US Dollar. For instance, to find the NGN/KES exchange rate, we divide the USD/NGN rate by the USD/KES rate. This method is standard in forex markets and provides accurate conversions even for exotic pairs that are not directly traded. Our cross-rate matrix computes these in real time for the top African currencies, saving you from manual calculations.

Yes. The AfroFX API provides RESTful endpoints for live rates, historical data, and currency conversion. The free tier includes 1,000 requests per month with 5-minute data freshness. Pro and Enterprise plans offer higher limits, sub-minute updates, and webhook support. Visit our API documentation page to generate your free API key and start integrating African forex data into your applications, trading bots, or financial models.

Measured by unit value, the Libyan Dinar (LYD) and Tunisian Dinar (TND) are typically the strongest African currencies against the US Dollar, each requiring fewer than five units per dollar. However, unit value alone does not indicate economic strength. The heatmap on this page shows real-time relative performance, letting you compare which currencies are gaining or losing ground on any given day regardless of their absolute value per dollar.

Absolutely. The Crypto in Local Currency section lets you select any of the 42 African currencies to see live prices for Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Tether (USDT). These are computed by multiplying the USD crypto price by the latest exchange rate for your chosen currency. This is especially useful in markets like Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana where crypto adoption is high and users need to know exact local-currency equivalents before buying or selling on local exchanges.