Abstract

The economic crises in the 1990s have galvanized international support for strengthening the international financial system. This task includes developing financial sector risk assessments and policies to lessen the likelihood of crises and reduce their severity when they do occur. Meeting these objectives for fostering sound financial systems calls for national authorities, international financial organizations, regulatory and standard-setting bodies, and the private sector to pool resources and expertise as part of a broad-based, international cooperative effort.