Press Release No. 20/109

Statement on The United States Congress Move to Strengthen the IMF’s Resources

March 27, 2020

Washington, DC – the International Monetary Fund (IMF) welcomes today’s expedited approval by the United States Congress of the U.S. commitment to strengthen the IMF’s resources.

As part of a package of measures on IMF financial resources and governance, the IMF Executive Board gave its approval on January 16, 2020 , to a doubling of the IMF’s New Arrangements to Borrow (NAB) credit lines. This measure requires legislative or other domestic approvals in some participating countries.

“The U.S. decision to speed up approval of its substantial new contributions to the IMF is a powerful message to the international community and helps solidify the IMF’s US$1 trillion lending capacity. It comes at a crucial time as the whole world fights COVID-19 and demand for IMF resources is high” said IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. She added, “Now that the U.S. has taken this important step, I am confident that other NAB contributors who have not yet done it will also expedite their commitments, so the IMF can continue to play its essential role as a lender of last resort at this time of crisis.”

Modifications in the NAB

On January 16, 2020 the IMF Executive Board approved the doubling of the NAB, from the current SDR 182.4 billion (about US$ 252 billion) to SDR 364.7 billion (about US$ 504 billion), for a new NAB period from 2021 to 2025, and a few additional amendments to the NAB decision. The changes will become effective once NAB participants have secured the necessary domestic approvals and provided the required consents, or on January 1, 2021, whichever occurs last.