September 2009

IMF Reform in the Aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis

Let the IMF Speak Truth to Power

Many current proposals to expand the IMF mandate, for example, by having the IMF supervise global financial markets, appear unrealistic. This policy brief argues instead for a more modest approach. The IMF appears to be the only international institution that has the analytical capacity and political standing (potentially at least) to hold all national governments accountable to the same benchmarks and standards for macroeconomic policies and financial market regulation. Thus the IMF has a crucial role to play in the international coordination of macroeconomic and financial market policies that will be key to preventing global financial crises in the future. Therefore, the current momentum should be used to strengthen the stature of the IMF, make it more independent from member state governments, and achieve substantial but realistic reforms

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