The Exchange Equalisation Account (EEA) is a fund of
His Majesty's Treasury
His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and e ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. It holds the country's the
special drawing rights
Special drawing rights (SDRs, code ) are supplementary foreign exchange reserve assets defined and maintained by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). SDRs are units of account for the IMF, and not a currency ''per se''. They represent a claim ...
(SDR) held at the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
as well as reserves of foreign currencies and gold. It was set up to provide funding which if necessary can be used to manage the exchange value of
pound sterling
Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and ...
on international markets.
The EEA was established by
Neville Chamberlain's budget of 19 April 1932 following the pound's exit from the
gold exchange standard the previous September.
The
Exchange Stabilization Fund is a similar fund operated by the
US Treasury
The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and ...
since 1934. It was created as a response to the EEA.
See also
*
Gold reserves of the United Kingdom
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
References
;General
''JMK and the Fourth Grand Monetary Discussion'' by Geoff Tily (2005)
*
' by Anna J. Schwartz
External links
at HM Treasury website
HM Treasury
Gold standard
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