How much gold does the IMF hold and how was it acquired?
• The IMF holds 103.4 million ounces (3,217 metric tons) of gold, making it the third largest official holder of gold. The gold is valued on its balance sheet at SDR 5.9 billion (about $9.2 billion) on the basis of historical cost. The market value of this gold was $95.2 billion as of February 20, 2008. • Most of the IMF’s gold was acquired prior to the Second Amendment of the IMF’s Articles of Agreements in April 1978. The main source was members’ initial quota subscriptions and subsequent quota increases, of which 25 percent were to be paid in gold. Other sources were payments of charges (i.e., interest on members’ use of IMF credit), repayments to the IMF for credit previously extended, and sales of gold to the IMF by members wishing to purchase the currency of another member. • The IMF also acquired a portion of its gold holdings after the Second Amendment, amounting to 12.97 million ounces (403.3 metric tons), with a market value of $11.9 billion as of February 20, 2008. This gold
