IMF (International Monetary Fund)

Internationalab 13 J.

An international organisation with 190 member countries that safeguards global financial stability. It grants emergency loans to countries in financial distress (e.g. Greece in 2010).

The IMF (International Monetary Fund) is an international organisation for safeguarding global financial stability. Founded in 1944 in Bretton Woods, headquartered in Washington.

What does the IMF do?

• Emergency loans: grants loans to countries in financial difficulty (e.g. Greece, Argentina, Pakistan)
• Surveillance: monitors the economic policy of all 190 member countries
• Advice: recommends economic policy measures (often controversial)
• Special drawing rights: its own reserve currency for international payments

Criticism: IMF loans come with strict conditions (austerity programmes, privatisation), which often hit the poorer population hard. In Greece, the conditions led to massive pension and salary cuts.

Did you know? With about 5.3% of the votes, Germany is the IMF's third-largest shareholder (after the USA and Japan). The USA, with more than 16%, has a de facto veto.

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