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International Monetary Fund

The international monetary fund (imf) is an international financial institution created to assist member states to resolve their short-term monetary, exchange, and balance-of-payments problems. It was founded along with the World Bank at the Bretton Woods conference of 1944 by representatives of 44 of the world's core economies, after contentious negotiations chaired by the United States.

Purpose and Makeup

The IMF formally came into existence in 1945, when 29 countries signed on to the IMF's six-point Articles of Agreement:

  • To promote international monetary cooperation.
  • To facilitate the expansion and balanced growth of international trade.
  • To promote exchange stability.
  • To assist in the establishment of a multilateral system of payments.
  • To give confidence to members by making the general resources of the Fund temporarily available to them under ...
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