Public Information Notice: IMF Executive Board Concludes Review of Policy on Exceptional Access to Fund Resources
May 13, 2004

Access Policy in Capital Account Crises
July 29, 2002

Report on Access to Fund Resources During 2003
February 5, 2004

Access Policy in Capital Account Crises—Modifications to the Supplemental Reserve Facility (SRF) and Follow-up Issues Related to Exceptional Access Policy
January 14, 2003

Review of Access Policy Under the Credit Tranches and the Extended Fund Facility
January 14, 2003

Review of Access Policy in the Credit Tranches and under the Extended Fund Facility
August 8, 2001

Review of Access Policy in the Credit Tranches and under the Extended Fund Facility—Background Paper
August 9, 2001


Review of Exceptional Access Policy

Prepared by the Policy Development and Review and Finance Departments
In Consultation with other Departments

Approved by Mark Allen and Eduard Brau

The views expressed in this paper are those of the staff and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Board of the IMF. The Executive Board's assessment is summarized in the Public Information Notice. Some country-specific or market-sensitive information may have been deleted from this paper, as allowed by the IMF's publication policy.

March 23, 2004

Use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the full text (369kb PDF file).

Contents
I.   Introduction
II.   Review of the Experience with the New Framework
  A. Applying the Exceptional Access Criteria
  B. Experience with the Four Criteria, Early Board Involvement, and Increased Burden of Proof
  C. The Presumption to Use the Supplemental Reserve Facility
III.   Circumstances of Repurchases of Exceptional Access
  A. Current Levels of Exposure
  B. Repurchases in Past Exceptional Access Cases
  C. Strategies in Place for Repaying Exceptional Access in Current Cases
  D. Lessons from Past and Present Cases
IV.   Next Steps
V.   Issues for Discussion
Tables
1. Argentina, Brazil, and the Four Substantive Criteria for Exceptional Access in Capital Account Crises
2. Formal and Informal Board Meetings, and Documents Related to Exceptional Access for Argentina and Brazil, 2003
3. Factors Contributing to Repayment of Fund Credit
4. Domestic Savings-Investment Adjustment in Exceptional Access Cases
5. Capacity to Repay Indicators for Selected Current High Access Cases
Figures
1. Developments in Fund Credit in the GRA, 1980-2003
2. Capital Account Crises: Fund Credit Outstanding as a Share of Quota
3. Past Exceptional Access Arrangements: Balance of Payments Financing
4. Past Crises: Capital Account Flows
5. Capital Account Crises: Openness and Financing Packages
6. Selected Current Exceptional Access Arrangements: Projected Balance of Payments Financing
Boxes
1. The Exceptional Access Framework
2. Exceptional Access When the Need is Potential Rather than Actual
3. Institutional Arrangements for Use of Fund Resources: Argentina and Turkey
4. Uruguay-Accounting and Use of Fund Credit