During the COVID-19 pandemic, the debate on monetary financing has been reignited and several economists have called for governments to borrow from their central banks to finance larger deficits. This column looks to sub-Saharan Africa, a region where ‘fiscal dominance’ has long been widespread, for useful insights into this debate. It finds that central bank financing of government does have an inflationary impact through the exchange rate channel. Numerical legal limits on central bank financing can be an effective way to mitigate the risks, even if they are not always binding.