UPSC 2014 CDS II GK Paper

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was conceived at a UNconference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States, in July1944. The IMF’s primary purpose is to ensure the stability of theinternational monetary system – the system of exchange rates andinternational payments that enables the countries (and their citizens) to transact with each other. The Fund’s mandate was updated in 2012 to include all macroeconomic and financial sector issues that bear on global stability. The IMF as part of the United Nations system has a formal relationship agreement with the UN, but retains its independence. The IMF is governed by and accountable to the 189 countries that make up its near-global membership.