Policy Papers

October 21, 2024

Review Of Charges And The Surcharge Policy—Reform Proposals

Description: On October 11, 2024, the IMF’s Executive Board concluded the Review of Charges and the Surcharge Policy. The review is part of a broader ongoing effort to ensure that the IMF’s lending policies remain fit for purpose to meet the evolving needs of the membership. Charges and surcharges are important elements of the IMF’s cooperative lending and risk-management framework, where all members contribute and all can benefit from support when needed. Together, they cover lending intermediation expenses, help accumulate reserves to protect against financial risks, and provide incentives for prudent and temporary borrowing. This provides a strong financial foundation that allows the IMF to extend vital balance of payments support on affordable terms to member countries when they need it most.

Against the backdrop of a challenging economic environment and high global interest rates, the Executive Board reached consensus on a comprehensive package of reforms that substantially reduces the cost of borrowing for members while safeguarding the IMF's financial capacity to support countries in need. The approved measures will lower IMF borrowing costs by about US$1.2 billion annually or reduce payments on the margin of the rate of charge as well as surcharges on average by 36 percent. The number of countries subject to surcharges in fiscal year 2026 is expected to fall from 20 to 13.

Key reforms include a reduction in the margin for the rate of charge, an increase in the threshold for level-based surcharges, a reduction in rate for time-based surcharges, an alignment of thresholds for commitment fees with annual and cumulative access limits for GRA lending facilities, and institution of regular reviews of surcharges.

The series of three papers informed the Executive Board’s first and second informal engagements (July and September 2024) and the formal meeting (October 2024) on this review.

September 27, 2024

Annual Update on SDR Trading Operations

Description: This paper provides an update on the status of the SDR trading market and operations. For more than three decades, SDRs have exclusively been exchanged for freely usable currencies in transactions by agreement, primarily through the Voluntary Trading Arrangements (VTAs). A small fraction of transactions by agreement—sales or acquisitions of SDRs—has been arranged directly between parties. VTAs are bilateral arrangements between the Fund and SDR department participants or prescribed holders, in which the VTA participants agree to buy and sell SDRs within certain limits. The paper covers SDR trading operations during the period September 2023 to August 2024.

September 13, 2024

Renewal of And Modifications To The New Arrangements To Borrow

Description: The Fund’s decision on the New Arrangements to Borrow (the “NAB Decision”) is subject to renewals not later than 12 months before the end of each NAB period. The current NAB period became effective on January 1, 2021 and is set to expire on December 31, 2025. Pursuant to paragraph 19(b) of the NAB Decision, the Executive Board is to take a decision on the renewal no later than twelve months before the end of the current NAB period, i.e., by December 31, 2024. Once a decision on renewal is taken, the new NAB period would become effective on January 1, 2026. Modifications of the NAB Decision may also be made at the time of renewal. This paper presents, for Executive Board approval, a proposal for the renewal of the NAB Decision for five years until end-2030, along with proposals for targeted modifications to the NAB Decision.

August 23, 2024

OIA Report on Progress Assessment of the Implementation of the Recommendations of the Institutional Safeguards Review

Description: This paper, prepared by the Fund’s Office of Internal Audit’s (OIA) in July 2024, provides the results of its independent assessment of the implementation progress on the Institutional Safeguards Review (ISR) actions.

August 9, 2024

FY2024—Budget Outturn

Description: The paper presents highlights from the FY 2024 budget, followed by a discussion of outputs based on the Fund Thematic Categories and of inputs.

August 5, 2024

Supplement to 2018 Guidance Note on the Bank-Fund Debt Sustainability Framework for Low Income Countries

Description: This Supplement provides additional guidance to IMF and World Bank staff on the implementation of the Bank-Fund Debt Sustainability Framework for Low Income Countries (LIC-DSF) approved in 2017 by the IMF and World Bank Boards. It complements the 2018 Bank-Fund Guidance Note on the LIC-DSF. Since the publication of the 2018 Guidance Note, several issues have increased in significance, requiring more tailored guidance on the implementation of the LIC-DSF to address these issues, including: • Greater prominence of risks from climate change. • Further increase in borrowing on commercial terms and in domestic markets. • Increased number and complexity of debt restructurings. This Supplement to the 2018 Guidance Note on the LIC-DSF provides further guidance on how to address these issues within the current framework. All aspects of the 2018 LIC-DSF Guidance Note remain in effect, except as modified in this Supplement.

Notes: Guidance Note on the Bank-Fund Debt Sustainability Framework for Low Income Countries

August 5, 2024

Debt for Development Swaps: An Approach Framework

Description: The aim of this note is to help stakeholders optimize their decision-making on when, where, and how to use debt-for-development swaps (“debt swaps”), ensuring they bring the intended benefits to all parties involved. It also proposes new approaches to structure these mechanisms, making them less transaction-heavy and more sustainable while maintaining accountability for fulfilling policy and spending commitments. Debt swaps are agreements between a government and one or more of its creditors to replace existing sovereign debt with one or more liabilities1 that include a spending commitment towards a specific development goal. These goals may include nature conservation, climate action, education, nutrition, support for refugees, among others. The spending commitment is often associated with the country's decision to pursue an important development policy.

August 2, 2024

2024 Revised Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision

Description: The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) recently revised the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision (BCP). The BCP are the de facto minimum standards for the sound prudential regulation and supervision of banks and banking systems and are universally applicable. This comprehensive update, the first since 2012, reflects the evolving financial landscape and incorporates feedback from a wide range of stakeholders including BCBS members, nonmember countries, the IMF, and the WBG. After extensive consultation, the revised BCP were approved by the BCBS in February 2024, and endorsed by the International Conference of Banking Supervisors in April 2024. The revised BCP document is a response to regulatory developments and structural changes within the banking industry over the last decade. It addresses the lessons learned over the last 10 years, including from the pandemic and the March 2023 banking turmoil; key findings from assessments under the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP); and new challenges posed by ongoing structural transformations, notably digitalization and climate change. The revisions emphasize the importance of operational resilience, systemic risk management, and the adoption of a proportional approach to supervision, catering to the global diversity of banks and banking system.

July 29, 2024

Key Trends In Implementing The Fund's Transparency Policy

Description: At the time of the 2005 Review of the Fund’s Transparency Policy, the Executive Board requested regular updates on trends in implementing the transparency policy. This report provides an overview of recent developments, reflecting information on documents considered by the Board in 2022 and updating the previous annual report on Key Trends. Deeper analysis of these trends is undertaken in the context of periodic reviews of the Fund’s Transparency Policy.

July 25, 2024

List Of IMF Member Countries With Delays In Completion Of Article Iv Consultations Or Mandatory Financial Stability Assessments Over 18 Months

Description: In line with the framework for addressing excessive delays in the completion of Article IV consultations, the following table lists the IMF members for whom the Article IV consultation has been delayed by more than 18 months as of June 15, 2024.