The International Monetary Fund, the IMF is primarily a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN), headquartered in Washington DC, USA. It is worth noting that although the IMF was created with the support of the UN, it is an independent organization.

The International Monetary Fund was created relatively recently - at the Bretton Woods Conference, on monetary and financial issues on July 22, 1944, the basis of the agreement was developed ( IMF charter).

The most significant contribution to the development of the concept of the IMF was made by John Maynard Keynes, who led the British delegation, and Harry Dexter White, a senior official of the US Treasury. The final version of the agreement was signed by the first 29 states on December 27, 1945 - the official date of the creation of the IMF. The IMF began operations on March 1, 1947 as part of the Bretton Woods system. In the same year, France took the first loan. Currently, the IMF unites 187 states, and 2,500 people from 133 countries work in its structures.

The IMF provides short - and medium-term loans with a deficit in the balance of payments of the state. The provision of loans is usually accompanied by a set of conditions and recommendations aimed at improving the situation.

The policy and recommendations of the IMF in relation to developing countries have been repeatedly criticized, the essence of which is that the implementation of the recommendations and conditions is ultimately aimed not at increasing the independence, stability and development of the national economy of the state, but only tying it to international financial flows.

international monetary fund lending

1. The Fundamental Purposes and Functions of the IMF and the Structure of Governance

The main objectives of the International Monetary Fund are:

1. "the need to promote international cooperation in the monetary and financial sphere";

2. "promoting the expansion and balanced growth of international trade" in the interests of developing productive resources, achieving high level employment and real incomes of Member States;

3. "Ensuring the stability of currencies, maintaining orderly monetary relations among member states" and striving to prevent "depreciation of currencies in order to obtain competitive advantages";

4. assistance in the creation of a multilateral system of settlements between member states, as well as in the elimination of currency restrictions;

5. temporary provision of foreign exchange funds to Member States, which would enable them to "correct imbalances in their balance of payments".

The main functions of the IMF are:

1. promoting international cooperation in monetary policy

2. expansion of world trade

3. lending

4. stabilization of monetary exchange rates

5. advising debtor countries

6. development of international financial statistics standards

7. collection and publication of international financial statistics

The supreme governing body of the IMF is the Board of Governors, in which each member country is represented by a governor and his deputy. Usually these are finance ministers or central bankers. The Council is in charge of resolving key issues of the Fund's activities: amending the Articles of the Agreement, admitting and expelling member countries, determining and revising their shares in the capital, and electing executive directors. The Governors meet in session, usually once a year, but may meet and vote by mail at any time.

The authorized capital is about 217 billion SDR (special unit for the right to draw) (as of January 2011, 1 SDR was equal to approximately 1.5 US dollars). It is formed by contributions from member countries, each of which usually pays approximately 25% of its quota in SDRs or in the currency of other members, and the remaining 75% in its national currency. Based on the size of quotas, votes are distributed among member countries in the governing bodies of the IMF.

The largest number of votes in the IMF (as of June 16, 2010) are: USA - 17.8%; Germany - 5.99%; Japan - 6.13%; UK - 4.95%; France - 4.95%; Saudi Arabia- 3.22%; Italy - 4.18%; Russia - 2.74%. The share of 15 EU member countries is 30.3%, 29 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development have a total of 60.35% of the votes in the IMF. The share of other countries, constituting over 84% of the number of members of the Fund, accounts for only 39.75%.

The IMF operates the principle of "weighted" number of votes: the ability of member countries to influence the activities of the Fund by voting is determined by their share in its capital. Each state has 250 "basic" votes, regardless of the size of its contribution to the capital, and an additional one vote for every 100 thousand SDRs of the amount of this contribution. In the event that a country bought (sold) the SDRs it received during the initial issue of SDRs, the number of its votes increases (reduces) by 1 for every 400,000 purchased (sold) SDRs. This correction is carried out by no more than 1/4 of the number of votes received for the country's contribution to the Fund's capital. This arrangement ensures a decisive majority of votes for the leading states.

Decisions in the Board of Governors are usually taken by a simple majority (at least half) of the votes, and on important issues of an operational or strategic nature - by a "special majority" (respectively 70 or 85% of the votes of the member countries).

Despite some reduction in the share of US and EU votes, they can still veto key decisions of the Fund, the adoption of which requires a maximum majority (85%). This means that the United States, together with the leading Western states, has the ability to exercise control over the decision-making process in the IMF and direct its activities based on their own interests. With coordinated action, developing countries are also in a position to avoid making decisions that do not suit them. However, reaching agreement is difficult for a large number of heterogeneous countries, so the intention was expressed to "enhance the ability of developing countries and countries with economies in transition to participate more effectively in the decision-making mechanism in the IMF."

An essential role in organizational structure The IMF plays the International Monetary and Financial Committee. It consists of 24 IMF governors, including from Russia, and meets in its sessions twice a year. This committee is an advisory body of the Board of Governors and does not have the power to make policy decisions. However, it performs important functions:

ь guides the activities of the Executive Council;

l develops strategic decisions related to the functioning of the world monetary system and the activities of the IMF;

b Submits proposals to the Board of Governors to amend the Articles of Agreement of the IMF.

A similar role is also played by the Development Committee - the Joint Ministerial Committee of the Boards of Governors of the WB and the Fund.

The Board of Governors delegates many of its powers to the Executive Board, a directorate that is responsible for the conduct of the affairs of the IMF, which includes a wide range of political, operational and administrative matters, in particular the provision of loans to member countries and the oversight of their policies. exchange rate.

The IMF's Executive Board elects for a five-year term a Managing Director who leads the Fund's staff (as of March 2009, about 2,478 people from 143 countries). He must be a representative of one of the European countries. Managing Director (since November 2007) - Dominique Strauss-Kahn (France), his first deputy - John Lipsky (USA).

Head of the IMF Resident Mission in Russia - Neven Mates.

Manager. Elected by the Executive Board, the IMF Governor chairs the Executive Board and is the organization's head of staff. Under the direction of the Executive Board, the Governor is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the IMF. The Governor is appointed for five years and may be re-elected for a subsequent term.

Staff. The Articles of Agreement require staff appointed to the IMF to demonstrate the highest standards of professionalism and technical competence, and reflect the international nature of the organization. Approximately 125 nations are represented among the organization's 2,300 employees.

General information

International monetary fund(IMF) is the leading organization for international cooperation in the monetary and financial sphere.

The IMF was created by decision of the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944 in order to increase the stability of the world monetary and financial system. The USSR took part in the creation of the IMF, but for a number of reasons of a political nature refused to become one of its founders.

• The Governor from the Russian Federation in the IMF is the Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation A.G. Siluanov.
• Deputy Governor from Russia in the IMF - Chairman of the Bank of Russia E.S. Nabiullina.
• Executive Director from Russia in the IMF - A.V. Mozhin.

Goals and objectives

The purpose of the activity is to maintain the stability of the global financial system.

The tasks of the IMF, in accordance with the Articles of Agreement (Charter), are:

• expansion of international cooperation in the monetary sphere;
• maintaining a balanced development of international trade relations;
• ensuring stability exchange rates, orderliness of exchange regimes in member countries;
• facilitating the creation of a multilateral settlement system and the elimination of currency restrictions;
• assistance to member countries in eliminating imbalances in the balance of payments through the temporary provision of funds;
• reducing external imbalances.

The main issues discussed during the regularly held Annual Meetings of the IMF Board of Directors and meetings of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) are: reform of the international financial architecture and, first of all, the management system, quotas and votes, changes in the monetary policy of developed countries and their impact on world economy in general, increasing the role of emerging market countries, reform of financial regulation, etc.

Financial resources

The financial resources of the IMF are formed mainly through contributions from member countries' quotas to the capital of the Fund. Quotas are calculated according to a formula based, among other things, on the relative size of the member countries' economies. The size of the quota determines the amount of funds that member countries are committed to provide to the IMF, and also limits the amount of financial resources that can be provided to a given country as a loan.

Cooperation of the Russian Federation with the IMF

The IMF currently has 189 member countries (including Russian Federation). Russia has been a member of the IMF since 1992. During the period of membership, Russia has attracted funds from the IMF to maintain the stability of its financial system, totaling about 15.6 billion SDRs. In January 2005, Russia paid off its debt to the Fund ahead of schedule, as a result of which it acquired the status of an IMF creditor. In connection with this decision of the Board of Directors of the IMF, Russia was included in the Financial Operations Plan (FOP) of the Fund, thereby entering the circle of IMF members whose funds are used in the financial operations of the IMF.

In connection with the Fourteenth Quota Review held on February 17, 2016, the quota of the Russian Federation in the IMF was increased from 9945 to 12903.7 million SDRs.

Given the permanent nature of the Bank of Russia’s operations to provide IMF funds within the Russian Federation’s quota, and in view of the indefinite nature of the obligations of the IMF member countries to provide IMF funds, the course for maintaining IMF financing by the Russian Federation remains, and the terms of the credit mechanisms (new borrowing agreements (NAB ), as well as bilateral agreements on borrowing) are extended on the terms proposed by the IMF.

The cooperation of the Russian Federation with the IMF is characterized by the active consulting activities of the Fund and the conduct of work with its participation to provide technical support (within the framework of the thematic missions of the Fund's experts, seminars, conferences, training events).

Cooperation between the Bank of Russia and the IMF

IMF Governor from Russia - Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Bank of Russia is Deputy Governor of the IMF from Russia. In 2010, the functions of financial interaction with the IMF were transferred by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation to the Bank of Russia. The Bank of Russia is the depository of the IMF funds in Russian rubles and carries out operations and transactions stipulated by the Fund's Charter.

The Bank of Russia acts as a depository of the IMF funds. In particular, two IMF ruble accounts No. 1 and No. 2 were opened with the Bank of Russia. In addition, several depo accounts have been opened with the Bank of Russia, on which promissory notes of the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Russia are registered in favor of the IMF. These bills are collateral for the obligations of the Russian Federation to make contributions to the capital of the IMF.

Currently, the Bank of Russia, on behalf of the Russian Federation, participates in the provision of financing to the IMF under loan agreements, information on which is given in the certificate posted at the following link: On loan agreements with the IMF.

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation cooperates with the IMF on various tracks of international work. Representatives of the Bank take part in sessions and annual meetings of the IMF, interacting at the expert level as part of a number of working groups, as well as during working meetings, consultations and videoconferences with IMF experts.

Since 2010, Russia (as a country with a globally systemically important financial sector) has been assessed for the state of the financial sector under the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP), implemented by the IMF jointly with the World Bank. The role of the Bank of Russia is key in carrying out evaluation activities of the program. In this regard, it should be noted that the FSAP 2015/2016 has become the largest program since the beginning of its implementation in the Russian Federation. With the participation of the Bank of Russia, work is underway to prepare assessments of compliance with international standards and codes (ROSCs), in particular, in the area of ​​monetary policy, banking supervision and corporate governance. In this regard, the most relevant ROSCs for the Russian Federation at present are the assessment of the compliance of Russian banking regulation with the principles of the BCBS (ROSC BSP) and the assessment of the compliance of financial market regulation with the principles of the IOSCO (ROSC IOSCO) in 2016.

Representatives of the Bank of Russia take part in annual consultations with IMF missions under Article IV of the Fund's Charter, as well as in the preparation of the relevant final reports of the Fund.

An important area of ​​work is the participation of the Bank of Russia in the preparation of the IMF Annual Report on Foreign Exchange Regimes and Foreign Exchange Restrictions (AREAER).

In addition, it is necessary to note the participation of the Bank of Russia in the implementation of the G20 Initiative to eliminate information gaps in financial statistics and interaction with the IMF to implement the recommendations of this initiative in Russia.

In accordance with the Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS), the IMF provides data on the balance of payments, external debt, and the dynamics of foreign exchange reserves.

In cooperation with departments and organizations, the Bank of Russia ensures participation in the analytical and research activities of the IMF, in the preparation of IMF publications and in the holding of specialized seminars and conferences.

Currently, the Bank of Russia seeks to attract the expertise of the Fund in order to implement a number of recommendations following the results of the 2015/2016 FSAP program in the development of stress testing methods in the Bank of Russia, as well as to improve the quality and efficiency of the Bank of Russia’s monetary policy and the level of training relevant professionals.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

An intergovernmental organization established to provide financial assistance in the form of foreign currency loans, as well as providing financial advice.

The IMF was formed at the end of 1944 during the Bretton Woods conference, but actually began to function only in 1946. The purpose of creating the fund is to increase the stability of the monetary and financial system, as well as to strengthen trade relations between the economies of different countries.

The financial resources of the IMF are formed through systematic monetary contributions made by member countries of this organization, and the size of the quota is determined by the level of development of the economy of a particular state. The same parameter affects the maximum volume Money, which can be issued by the fund as a loan to a specific country. The number of votes that a participating country receives when voting directly depends on the size of the quota (the amount of money contributed to the fund).

Features of the provision of financial assistance

Acting as a guarantor of the stability of the global financial system, the IMF provides assistance to those countries whose economies are unstable for one reason or another. Along with consultations and meetings, the IMF provides financial assistance in the form of loans that are issued for a period of 3 to 5 years at a certain percentage. The entire loan amount is divided into certain parts - tranches, which allows the IMF to better control the fulfillment by the borrower of the loan obligations assumed.

Before issuing a loan, the representatives of the Fund must verify the reality of the threat of a crisis in the country, for which they analyze economic indicators: unemployment and inflation, prices, tax revenues, and so on. Based on the results of the statistical data, a report is drawn up, which is discussed at a meeting of the IMF Executive Board. The decision to issue a loan is made on the basis of an open vote of representatives of the countries participating in the Fund.

The task of the International Monetary Fund is to maintain the stability of the world financial and economic system. Along with this, the IMF is also entrusted with the collection and processing of statistical data relating to international payments, foreign exchange reserves, inflation, public finance, money circulation and foreign exchange resources. The fundamental objectives of the International Monetary Fund are:

• Expansion and balanced growth of international trade, which improves the economic performance of each of the member states of the fund.
• Development of international cooperation in the field of monetary and financial relations through consultations and meetings with the aim of solving international monetary and financial problems.
• Maintaining the stability of the world's leading currencies, preventing devaluation and other negative aspects in different countries.
• Creation of a multilateral system of international settlements for trade transactions in order to eliminate restrictions and obstacles in the development of the world economy.
• Correcting imbalances in the balance of payments of emerging economies by providing them with loans from common resources Foundation.

Currently, the IMF includes over 180 states, including the Russian Federation, which became a member of the fund in 1992. In 2005, Russia paid off its debt to the International Monetary Fund ahead of schedule, thanks to which it acquired the status of a creditor, at the same time increasing the contribution quota and strengthening its influence in the organization.

IMF Goals

• Promoting cooperation in the monetary sphere
• Expansion and growth of trade in the world
• The fight against unemployment
• Improvement economic indicators IMF member countries
• Assistance in convertibility of currencies
• Financial advice
• Providing loans to IMF member countries
• Assistance in the creation of a multilateral system of settlements between states

The Fund's financial resources are derived primarily from money paid by its members ("quotas"). Quotas are determined by the relative size of member economies. ) received by a member country during their next distribution. million SDR)

The IMF fulfills its tasks by distributing short-term loans to countries experiencing financial difficulties. Countries that take funds from the Fund, in turn, agree to implement political reforms in order to eliminate the causes that caused such difficulties. IMF loans are limited in proportion to quotas. The Fund also provides assistance on concessional terms to member countries with low level income. The International Monetary Fund provides most of its loans in US dollars.

IMF requirements for Ukraine

In 2010, the difficult economic situation in Ukraine forced its authorities to resort to the help of the IMF. In turn, the International Monetary Fund put forward its requirements to the government of Ukraine, only upon fulfillment of which the Fund would provide a loan to the country

• Raise the retirement age by two years for men and three years for women.
• Eliminate the institution of special pension benefits that are allocated to scientists, civil servants, managers state enterprises. Limit pensions for working pensioners. Set the retirement age for army officers at 60.
• Raise the gas price for municipal enterprises by 50%, twice for private consumers. Increase the cost of electricity by 40%.
• Remove benefits and raise transport taxes by 50%. Do not raise the cost of living, balance the social situation through targeted subsidies.
• Privatize all mines and remove all subsidies. Cancel benefits for housing and communal services, transport and other things.
• Limit the practice of simplified taxation. Cancel the practice of VAT exemptions in countryside. Oblige pharmacies and pharmacists to pay VAT.
• Cancel the moratorium on the sale of agricultural land.
• Reduce the composition of ministries to 14.
• Limit excessive pay for public officials.
• Unemployment benefits should only accrue after a minimum period of six months of work. Pay sick leave at the level of 70% of wages but not below the subsistence level. Pay sick leave starting only from the third day of illness

(Thus, the Fund determined the path for Ukraine to overcome the imbalance in the financial sector, when the state's expenditures significantly exceeded its revenues. Whether this list is true or not is unknown, on the Web as well as "on the ground" there is a war, but since 5 years have passed since then, and Ukraine has not yet received a large IMF loan, it may be true)

The governing body of the IMF is the Board of Governors, in which all member countries are represented. According to Wikipedia, 184 states are members of the International Monetary Fund. The Board of Governors meets once a year. The day-to-day operations are managed by an Executive Board of 24 members. IMF Center - Washington.

Decisions in the IMF are made not by a majority of votes, but by the largest "donors", that is, Western countries have an unconditional advantage in determining the Fund's policy, since they are its main payers.

International Monetary Fund, IMF(International Monetary Fund, IMF) is a specialized agency of the United Nations, the decision to establish which was made on monetary and financial issues in 1944. The agreement on the establishment of the IMF was signed by 29 states on December 27, 1945, and the Fund began its work on 1 March 1947 As of March 1, 2016, 188 states are members of the IMF.

The main objectives of the IMF are:

1. assistance international cooperation in the monetary and financial sphere;
2. promoting the expansion and balanced growth of international trade, the achievement of a high level of employment and real incomes of member states;
3. ensuring the stability of currencies, maintaining orderly monetary relations and preventing the depreciation of national currencies in order to obtain competitive advantages;
4. assistance in the creation of multilateral settlement systems between member states, as well as in the elimination of currency restrictions;
5. provision of funds in foreign currency to the member states of the Fund in order to eliminate imbalances in their balance of payments.

The main functions of the IMF are:

1. promotion of international cooperation in the field of monetary policy and ensuring stability;
2. lending to member countries of the Fund;
3. stabilization of exchange rates;
4. advising governments, monetary authorities and financial market regulators;
5. development of international financial statistics standards and the like.

The authorized capital of the IMF is formed by contributions from member countries, each of which pays 25% of its quota in or in the currency of other member countries, and the remaining 75% in national currency. Based on the size of quotas, votes are distributed among member countries in the governing bodies of the IMF. As of March 1, 2016, the authorized capital of the IMF was 467.2 billion SDRs. Ukraine's quota is 2011.8 billion SDRs, which is 0.43% of the total IMF quota.

The supreme governing body of the IMF is the Board of Governors, in which each member country is represented by a governor and his deputy. As a rule, these are finance ministers or heads of central banks. The Council resolves key issues of the Fund's activities: amending the Articles of Agreement on the IMF, admitting and expelling member countries, determining and reviewing their quotas in the Fund's capital, and electing executive directors. The session of the Council takes place, as a rule, once a year. Decisions of the Board of Governors are taken by a simple majority (not less than half) of votes, and important issues- "special majority" (70 or 85%).

The other governing body is the Executive Board, which determines IMF policy and consists of 24 executive directors. Directors are appointed by the eight countries with the largest quotas in the Fund - the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Great Britain, China, Russia and Saudi Arabia. The rest of the countries are organized into 16 groups, each of which elects one executive director. Together with the Netherlands, Romania and Israel, Ukraine is part of the Dutch group of countries.

The IMF operates the principle of "weighted" number of votes: the ability of member countries to influence the activities of the Fund by voting is determined by their share in its capital. Each state has 250 "basic" votes, regardless of the size of its contribution to the capital, and an additional one vote for every 100,000 SDRs of the amount of this contribution.

An essential role in the organizational structure of the IMF is played by the International Monetary and Financial Committee, which is an advisory body of the Council. Its functions are to develop strategic decisions related to the functioning of the world monetary system and the activities of the IMF, the development of proposals for amending the Articles of Agreement on the IMF, and the like. A similar role is also played by the Development Committee, the Joint Ministerial Committee of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank and the Fund (Joint IMF - World Bank Development Committee).

Part of its powers the Board of Governors delegates to the Executive Board (Executive Board), which is responsible for the current work of the IMF, decides wide range operational and administrative matters, including granting loans to member countries and overseeing their policies .

The IMF's Executive Board elects a Managing Director for a five-year term, who leads the Fund's staff. As a rule, he represents one of the European countries.

In the event of problems in the country's economy, the IMF can provide loans, which, as a rule, are accompanied by certain recommendations aimed at improving the situation. Such loans, for example, were provided to Mexico, Ukraine, Ireland, Greece and many other countries.

Loans can be provided in four main areas.

1. On the basis of the reserve share (Reserve Tranche) of the IMF member country within 25% of the quota, the country can receive a loan almost freely on the first request.
2. On a credit share basis, a country's access to IMF credit resources cannot exceed 200% of its quota.
3. Based on Stand-by Arrangements, which have been provided since 1952 and provide a guarantee that, within a certain amount and subject to certain conditions, a country can freely receive a loan from the IMF in exchange for the national currency. In practice, this is done by opening the country. granted for periods ranging from several months to several years.
4. Based on the Extended Fund Facility, since 1974, the IMF has been providing loans for long periods and in amounts exceeding countries' quotas. The basis for a country's application to the IMF for a loan under expanded lending is a serious imbalance caused by unfavorable structural changes. Such loans are usually provided in tranches for several years. Their main purpose is to assist countries in implementing stabilization programs or structural reforms. The Fund requires the country to meet certain conditions. The obligations of the borrowing country, which provide for the implementation of appropriate financial and economic measures, are recorded in the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies and sent to the IMF. The progress of fulfillment of obligations is periodically monitored by evaluating the provided target criteria for the implementation of the Memorandum (Performance Criteria).

Cooperation between Ukraine and the IMF is carried out on the basis of regular missions of the IMF, as well as cooperation with the representative office of the Fund in Ukraine. As of February 1, 2016, Ukraine's total debt on loans to the IMF amounted to 7.7 billion SDRs.

(See Special Drawing Rights; Official website of the IMF: