International financial institutions

International financial institutions (IFIs) are financial institutions that have been established (or chartered) by more than one country, and hence are subjects of international law. Their owners or shareholders are generally national governments, although other international institutions and other organisations occasionally figure as shareholders. The most prominent IFIs are creations of multiple nations, although some bilateral financial institutions (created by two countries) exist and are technically IFIs. Many of these are multilateral development banks.

Types

Bretton Woods institutions

The best-known IFIs were established after World War II to assist in the reconstruction of Europe and provide mechanisms for international cooperation in managing the global financial system (Cf. Bretton Woods system). They include the World Bank, the IMF, and the International Finance Corporation.

Founded	Name	www Address	Notes	HQ
1944	IMF International Monetary Fund	http://www.imf.org	Specialised agency of the UN	Washington (District of Columbia)
1944	IBRD International Bank for Reconstruction and Development	http://www.worldbank.org	World Bank Group, Specialised agency of the UN	Washington (District of Columbia)
1956	IFC International Finance Corporation	http://www.ifc.org	World Bank Group	Washington DC
1960	IDA International Development Association	http://www.worldbank.org/ida	World Bank Group	Washington DC
1966	ICSID, International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes	http://icsid.worldbank.org/ICSID/Index.jsp	World Bank Group	Washington DC
1988	MIGA Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency	http://www.miga.org	World Bank Group	Washington DC
30/10/47	GATT General agreement on tariffs and trade, basis for the creation of World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995	http://www.wto.org/english/docs_e/legal_e/06-gatt_e.htm http://wto.org	The GATT is not an organisation. The WTO is not a United Nations agency	Geneva for the WTO

Regional development banks

The regional development banks consist of several regional institutions that have functions similar to the World Bank group's activities, but with particular focus on a specific region. Shareholders usually consist of the regional countries plus the major donor countries. The best-known of these regional banks cover regions that roughly correspond to United Nations regional groupings, including the Inter-American Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank; the African Development Bank; and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Founded	Name	www Address	Notes	HQ
1959	IDB Interamerican Development Bank	http://www.IADB.org	Works in the Americas, but primarily for development in Latin America and the Caribbean	Washington
1964	AFDB African Development Bank	http://www.afdb.org	Africa	Abidjan
1966	ADB Asian Development Bank	http://www.adb.org	Asia	Manilla
29/5/91	EBRD European Bank for Reconstruction and Development	http://www.ebrd.com		London
16/4/56	CEB Council of Europe Development Bank	http://www.coebank.org	Coordinated organisation	Paris
14/11/73	BOAD Banque ouest-africaine de développement West African Development Bank	http://www.boad.org	Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine, Cf.BCEAO Banque centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest	Dakar?
1975	BDEAC Banque de développement des États de l'Afrique Centrale, DBCAS Development Bank of Central African States	http://www.bdeac.org	Communauté économique et monétaire de l'Afrique centrale (CEMAC), Cf. BEAC Banque des États de l’Afrique centrale	Brazzaville, Congo

Bilateral development banks and agencies

Bilateral development banks are financial institutions set up by individual countries to finance development projects in developing countries and emerging markets. Examples include:

• the Netherlands Development Finance Company FMO, Headquarters in The Hague; one of the largest bilateral development banks worldwide.
• the DEG German Investment Corporation or Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft, a Development Bank.
• the Agence Française de Développement, Caisse des dépôts

Other regional financial institutions

Several regional groupings of countries have established international financial institutions to finance various projects or activities in areas of mutual interest. The largest and most important of these is the European Investment Bank.

Founded	Name	www Address	Notes	HQ
1998	ECB European Central Bank	http://www.ecb.int		Frankfurt am Main
17/5/1930	BRI Banque des règlements internationaux / BIS Bank of International Settlements	http://www.bis.org	The bank of central banks	Bâle
	Central African Central Banks Association, Association des Banques Centrales Africaines (ABCA)
	EIB European Investment Bank	http://www.eib.org	Institution created by the members of the European Union, to finance projects in the EU	Luxembourg
24/1/97	BSTDB Black Sea Trade and Development Bank	http://bstdb.com	Governed by United Nations registered treaty - Region covered corresponds to the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation
10/7/70	International Investment Bank of Comecon		established by the countries of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe	Moscow
1975	Islamic Development Bank			Djeddah, Saudi Arabia
	NIB Nordic Investment Bank	http://www.nib.int	The NIB has lending operations in its member countries and in emerging markets on all continents.	Helsinki, Finland

See also

• Bretton Woods system
• Multilateral development banks
• Financial Stability Board
• Global financial system

References

Belgian Foreign Ministry policy note