The correlation bias refers to the fact that claim subordination in the capital structure of the firm influences claim holders’ preferred degree of asset correlation in portfolios held by the firm. Using the copula capital structure model, it is shown that the correlation bias shifts...

Analyses of debt relief that focus on the behavior of debtors and existing creditors understate the incentives for collective action by creditors. It is well known that debt relief could benefit existing creditors by providing incentives for domestic investment by residents of debtor countries....

This paper discusses key findings of the Detailed Assessment on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) for Bahrain. The assessment was based on the 2003 Financial Action Task Force (FATF) 40 Recommendations. The assessment identifies recommendations on how...

This paper presents an assessment of Hungary’s antimoney laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism measures. The Hungarian authorities have made significant progress in strengthening their AML regime. The most important step has been the passage of a revised AML Act of 2003,...

In recent years, the IMF has become deeply involved in the international movement to prevent the abuse of financial systems and to protect and enhance the integrity of the international financial system. The IMF’s involvement has been expanded beyond anti-money-laundering efforts to include...

Low-income countries (LICs) face significant challenges in meeting their development objectives while maintaining a sustainable debt position. The international community's main answer to this dilemma has been to promote recourse to concessional external resources. The Fund's recommendations to...

Two years ago, citizens in the Arab world—fired by their ideals and visions of a better life—ignited a social movement that inspired people around the globe. In Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, and Yemen—the so-called Arab countries in transition—people embraced change, ushering...

By combating malaria with mosquito nets or building schools and providing basic sanitation, philanthropy is helping transform the developing world. Rich donors are devoting fortunes—many of them earned through computer software, entertainment, and venture capitalism— to defeating poverty and...

The IMF Working Papers series is designed to make IMF staff research available to a wide audience. Almost 300 Working Papers are released each year, covering a wide range of theoretical and analytical topics, including balance of payments, monetary and fiscal issues, global liquidity, and...