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SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 17 – Before the International Monetary Fund's February 13 embargoed briefing, Inner City Press asked the IMF to confirm or deny something in the crypto-currency media, that "IMF ADVISES EASTERN CARIBBEAN STATES TO TRIAL DIGITAL CURRENCY." See below.

 Now on April 17 amid the Coronavirus crisis on Cote d'Ivoire the IMF has announced, "The IMF approves the disbursement of US$886.2 million to Côte d’Ivoire to be drawn under the Rapid Credit Facility and the Rapid Financing Instrument.  · The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to be substantial, with the near-term outlook deteriorating quickly.  · The authorities’ policy response to the pandemic has been swift, drawing on a health emergency plan and an ambitious economic package to provide targeted support to vulnerable populations and firms affected by the pandemic. The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a disbursement under the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) equivalent to SDR 216.8 million (about US$295.4 million, or 33.3 percent of quota), and a purchase under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) equivalent to SDR 433.6 million, (about US$590.8 million or 66.7 percent of quota), to help Côte d’Ivoire meet the urgent balance of payment needs stemming from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Côte d’Ivoire is feeling the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic. The 2020 economic outlook is expected to deteriorate substantially owing to the sharp slowdown in activity among Côte d’Ivoire’s trading partners, the hit to investors’ confidence, and the adverse economic impact of the needed containment and mitigation measures deployed by the authorities.  The government’s response to the pandemic has been swift, with strong social distancing and containment measures and an emergency health plan supported by the World Health Organization. The authorities also announced an ambitious economic plan of about 1½ percent of GDP for 2020 to prop-up the income of the most vulnerable segments of the population through agricultural input support and expanded cash transfers, provide relief to hard-hit sectors and firms, and support public entities in the logistics sectors to ensure continuity in supply chains.  The deteriorating macroeconomic outlook and fiscal policy response to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on Côte d’Ivoire are generating fiscal pressures and creating an urgent BOP need. The IMF support through RCF/RFI financing would help fill part of the financing gap and catalyze other concessional financing." More than the UN of Antonio Guterres,  now spreading COVID-19 in South Sudan with a UN bus with no social distancing, ever did.

   On April 15 to the IMF and World Bank's Annual Meetings Inner City Press posed these questions, after it got an IMF answer on Morocco, here: "On the IMF's CCRT debt service relief, please explain why Tanzania is not among the 19 African countries on the list. Also, please comment on public reports Kenya is not on because over-income, and the Zambia is off due to "corruption" issues. What about Cameroon's Paul Biya, not seen in public for weeks? Does the IMF have a view on how countries should address their prison systems as the Coronavirus spreads in them?"

  The Director of the IMF's Africa Department Abebe Aemro Selassie replied, diplomatically as ever, that thirty two countries have made requests, and that the IMF envisions $11.5 billion, with an initial focus on the poorest 25 or so, more if more money comes in, citing the UK and Japan and the IMF's speed on Madagascar. More to follow.

  The other issues were not addressed, nor have some of Inner City Press' other pending questions been answered. But we remain hopeful.

 For now, the IMF has said, "the countries that will receive debt service relief today are: Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, D.R., The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Togo and Yemen."

Inner City Press covers not only the IMF but also all things crypto in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, for example SEC v. Telegram and the prosecution of Virgil Griffith formerly of Ethereum.   Inner City Press asked the IMF, "It is reported that to the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, the IMF suggests to experiment with a common digital currency, on a blockchain. Can you elaborate?"  

 While IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice during the briefing answered Inner City Press' Somalia and Egypt questions, it was afterward that this answer arrived by e-mail, "attributable to Gerry Rice, IMF Spokesman and Director of Communications:    

'The IMF did not suggest to experiment with a common digital currency. In March 2019, the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) launched a central bank digital currency pilot project, using blockchain technology, on its own initiative.

  As noted in the IMF Concluding Statement of the 2019 discussion on the common policies of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) member countries, the digital currency could expose the ECCB and the financial system to various risks, including for financial intermediation, financial integrity, and cybersecurity. Given these risks of the digital currency, the IMF stressed that the ongoing pilot project should proceed cautiously.”   

So there. (A OneCoin / Bulgaria question remains outstanding). We appreciate the IMF's answer. Watch this site, for IMF news and... all things crypto, good, bad and ugly.

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