2  BIS Review 105/2006  Since its creation in 1944 the International Monetary Fund has enlarged its membership from the original 40 countries to the present 184, thereby becoming the world’s largest multilateral financial institution. Its traditional functions (of “surveillance”, lending and technical assistance) have undergone significant changes. The IMF’s financial function remains hinged on its original structure as a “credit cooperative”.
Basically, the capital paid in by the member countries (their “quotas”) is used to grant loans to members with temporary balance-of-payments difficulties. Over the years, the stock of IMF loans to members has fluctuated widely around a trend that was rising until the beginning of the present decade.