Special drawing rights (SDR)

Definition

Special Drawing Rights (SDR) are an international reserve asset created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to supplement its member countries' official reserves. SDRs can be exchanged among governments for freely usable currencies in times of need.

Related terms

International Monetary Fund (IMF): An international organization that aims to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, and reduce poverty around the world.

Bretton Woods Institutions: The collective name for the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), established at a conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in 1944 to help rebuild the shattered postwar economy and promote international economic cooperation.

Freely usable currency: A currency that the IMF determines is widely used to make payments for international transactions and widely traded in the principal exchange markets