Date Time IMF Executive Board Discusses Adequacy of Fund’s Precautionary Balances WASHINGTON, DC: The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on October 30, 2020, reviewed the adequacy of the Fund’s precautionary balances.[1] Precautionary balances, comprising the Fund’s general and special reserves[2]and the Special Contingent Account (SCA-1), are one element of the IMF’s multi-layered framework for managing financial risks. These balances provide a buffer to protect the Fund against potential losses, resulting from credit, income, and other financial risks. Thereby, they help protect the value of reserve assets represented by member countries’ positions in the Fund and underpin the exchange of assets through which the Fund provides financial assistance to countries with balance of payments needs.