The Bretton Woods Conference, officially known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference was organised in 1944 at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire (USA).
About Bretton Woods Conference
- Purpose: To agree upon a series of new rules for the post-World War II international monetary system.
- Delegates from 44 nations participated in it.
- Key Outcomes:
- Creation of the Bretton Woods Institutions: International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), now referred as World Bank (WB).
- Fixed exchange rate regime: Each member country was to set a fixed value the par value -of its currency in terms of gold or US dollar.
- However, after the crisis of dollar exchange crises of 1971 (when USA suspended the dollar's convertibility into gold) and 1973, floating exchange rates was promoted.
- Promotion of Free Trade: To ensues international prosperity and international peace.
Comparison of Bretton Woods Institutions
Sphere | IMF | World Bank |
| Mandate |
|
|
| Membership and Headquarter |
|
|