In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.

This paper presents Detailed Assessment of the United States’s observance of Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision. The U.S. financial system is large and highly diversified. At the end-2007, total U.S. financial assets amounted to almost four and a half times the size...

This paper argues that an optimal deposit insurance scheme would allow the level of insurance coverage to be determined by the market. Based on this principle, the paper proposes an insurance scheme that minimizes distortions and embodies fairness and credibility, two essential characteristics...

This paper considers the implementation challenges facing the Basel Committee’s new proposals on bank capital standards. When compared with the existing Capital Accord, the proposals represent a shift across two intersecting dimensions—regulatory versus economic capital, and rules-based...

This paper presents a Financial System Stability Assessment Update for Slovenia, including Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes on Banking Supervision and Insurance Supervision. The Slovenian financial system appears sound overall but faces new challenges and risks with European...

Drawing from a unique data set comprising 2,893 banks and 152 countries over the period 1987 to 2000, we test whether the adoption of the Basel Accord by Latin American and Caribbean countries was responsible for the serious slowdowns in credit growth experienced by these countries. We find...

This paper seeks to draw lessons from the IMF’s experience in handling financial crises around the globe over the past ten years that are relevant to the challenges faced by countries in Latin America, especially in the wake of the recent crisis in Argentina. Experience suggests that...

This 2005 Article IV Consultation highlights that macroeconomic developments in Madagascar in 2003 and 2004 were dominated by the sharp depreciation of the national currency, and rising inflation pressures, with year-over-year consumer price inflation reaching 30 percent at end-February 2005. At...

This paper reviews of Sector Regulation and Supervision for Seychelles. Regulation and supervision of the banking sector and foreign exchange bureaus in Seychelles is carried out by the Bank Supervision Division of the Central Bank. Supervision of the credit union and the insurance companies is...

This 2002 Article IV Consultation highlights that the economic activity in Tonga rebounded modestly in 2001/02, as real GDP growth accelerated from about ½ percent in 2000/01 (fiscal year July–June) to 1½ percent in 2001/02. Conditions in agriculture improved owing to record-high...