Created in the aftermath of the Second World War, the International Monetary Fund began financial operations on this day in 1947. The purposes of the IMF were to assist in the reconstruction of the world’s international payment system and to stabilise exchange rates. The first managing director of the IMF was Camille Gutt, a Belgian economist who is regarded as having saved the Belgian Franc after the war by stabilising the currency and forestalling inflation.
British and US forces invaded France on D-Day, 6th June 1944, and although the war did not end until the following year it was apparent by mid-1944 that the Allies were likely to win. Thus in July 1944 representatives from 45 countries met at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire, US, for the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference to discuss economic co-operation. The IMF and the World Bank both had their origins at this meeting.
The IMF has been largely successful in its work with developed countries, but its work amongst developing countries has come in for considerable criticism. IMF funds intended to assist countries experiencing economic difficulties have been used to prop up military dictatorships. Structural adjustment programs imposed by the IMF on countries in need of financial assistance have resulted in widespread poverty.