International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Headquarters 1 (HQ1):, International Monetary Fund, 700 19th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20431, Headquarters 2 (HQ2):, International Monetary Fund, 1900 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20431, United States

Phone : + 1 (202) 6237000 / Fax : + 1 (202) 623-4661

Web site : www.imf.org

The IMF, also known as the “Fund,” was conceived at a United Nations conference convened in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States, in July 1944. The 45 governments represented at that conference sought to build a framework for economic cooperation that would avoid a repetition of the vicious circle of competitive devaluations that had contributed to the Great Depression of the 1930s.

The IMF’s primary purpose is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system—the system of exchange rates and international payments that enables countries (and their citizens) to buy goods and services from each other. This is essential for sustainable economic growth, increasing living standards, and alleviating poverty.