Europe > Ireland
Burcu Hacibedel
and
Mariusz Jarmuzek
International Monetary Fund. Policy Development and Review Dept.
Against the backdrop of a challenging economic environment and high global interest rates, the Executive Board reached consensus on a comprehensive package of reforms that substantially reduces the cost of borrowing for members while safeguarding the IMF's financial capacity to support countries in need. The approved measures will lower IMF borrowing costs by about US$1.2 billion annually or reduce payments on the margin of the rate of charge as well as surcharges on average by 36 percent. The number of countries subject to surcharges in fiscal year 2026 is expected to fall from 20 to 13.
Key reforms include a reduction in the margin for the rate of charge, an increase in the threshold for level-based surcharges, a reduction in rate for time-based surcharges, an alignment of thresholds for commitment fees with annual and cumulative access limits for GRA lending facilities, and institution of regular reviews of surcharges.
The series of three papers informed the Executive Board’s first and second informal engagements (July and September 2024) and the formal meeting (October 2024) on this review.
International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
Mantas Dirma
and
Jaunius KarmelaviÄŤius
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
International Monetary Fund. Monetary and Capital Markets Department
Mr. Fabio Comelli
and
Ms. Sumiko Ogawa
Katharina Bergant
and
Thore Kockerols
Dunhong Jin
,
Marcin Kacperczyk
,
Bige Kahraman
, and
Felix Suntheim