As a result of amendments to its Articles of Agreement in 1969, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was empowered to create new international reserve assets in the form of special drawing rights (SDRs). SDRs were created with the aim of supplementing global liquidity. They are reserve assets which, although not traded in any market, can be transferred between central banks in exchange for currencies needed for market intervention. The first allocation of SDR 9.3 billion took place between 1970 and 1972. Following a recommendation by the Interim Committee of the IMF in September 1978, it was agreed that there should be a second allocation of SDR 12 billion, in three equal annual instalments over the years 1979-81. The first of these instalments was allocated in January this year, and the United Kingdom received SDR 304 million.
Special drawing rights some recent developments