Which organization manages the Special Drawing Rights (SDR)?

The International Monetary Fund manages the Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs.

SDRs are international reserve assets created by the IMF in 1969 to supplement member countries’ official reserves. They are not ordinary currency, do not circulate as cash, and are not held by private individuals. Instead, IMF member countries and certain authorized institutions can hold them and exchange them for usable currencies when needed.

The value of an SDR is based on a basket of major currencies rather than on a single national currency. Since 1 October 2016, that basket has contained the US dollar, euro, Chinese renminbi, Japanese yen, and pound sterling. The IMF reviews the basket periodically, reflecting changes in the importance of currencies in global trade and finance.

The acronym can cause confusion because “SDR” describes the asset, while XDR is its ISO 4217 currency-and-funds code. The European Central Bank, Bank for International Settlements, and World Bank may use or discuss SDRs, but the IMF defines, allocates, and administers them.