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International Monetary Fund

(Encyclopedia)International Monetary Fund (IMF), specialized agency of the United Nations, established in 1945. It was planned at the Bretton Woods Conference (1944), and its headquarters are in Washington, D.C. Th...

international monetary system

(Encyclopedia)international monetary system, rules and procedures by which different national currencies are exchanged for each other in world trade. Such a system is necessary to define a common standard of value ...

monetary agreement

(Encyclopedia)monetary agreement, attempt by two (bilateral) or more (multilateral) nations to regulate and coordinate their financial relations by treaty. The objectives are usually to promote trade by facilitatin...

European Monetary Agreement

(Encyclopedia)European Monetary Agreement (EMA), international governmental facility (1958–72) for the settlement of balance of payments accounts between member states. The EMA, which was administered by the Orga...

International Fund for Agricultural Development

(Encyclopedia)International Fund for Agricultural Development(IFAD), specialized agency of the United Nations with headquarters in Rome, Italy. IFAD grew out of the 1974 World Food Conference; it was established in...

European Monetary System

(Encyclopedia)European Monetary System, arrangement by which most nations of the European Union (EU) linked their currencies to prevent large fluctuations relative to one another. It was organized in 1979 to stabil...

World Wildlife Fund

(Encyclopedia)World Wildlife Fund (WWF), international organization formed to raise money for conservation projects, est. 1961. The international organization, believing that its name no longer reflected the scope ...

Commonwealth Fund

(Encyclopedia)Commonwealth Fund, foundation established (1918) by Anna M. Harkness, wife of Stephen V. Harkness, an early Standard Oil investor, “for the welfare of mankind.” Its headquarters are in New York Ci...

hedge fund

(Encyclopedia)hedge fund, in finance, a largely unregulated investment device with a relatively small number of investors that aims to outperform the markets. Originating in the 1950s, the funds “hedge” by offs...

sinking fund

(Encyclopedia)sinking fund, sum set apart periodically from the income of a government or a business and allowed to accumulate in order ultimately to pay off a debt. A preferred investment for a sinking fund is the...