Financial and economic institutions

Find out more about the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Financial Stability Board, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

Bank for International Settlements (BIS)

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is the oldest international financial institution. It was founded in 1930. It promotes cooperation between the major central banks, which are its shareholders and form its Board of Directors. It also acts as a bank for central banks.
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The annual general assembly, which brings together the 55 shareholding central banks, meets once a year. The Board of Directors has 17 members.

The BIS currently performs four main roles:

  • forum for central banks
  • counterparty to the central banks in their financial operations
  • centre for research into economic and monetary issues
  • agent or proxy in certain international financial operations

The BIS Basel Committee on Banking Supervision acts as an authority for its recommendations relating to capital standards (Basel Agreement I of 1988, replaced by the Basel Agreement II in 2004). The standards currently apply in more than 100 countries.