Statistical Terms Glossary

Monetary aggregates measure the stock of money in circulation outside the banking system.

The IMF’s Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual (MFSM) provides guidelines for the presentation of monetary and financial statistics. The MFSM is harmonised with the System of National Accounts 1993 (1993 SNA)

The monetary authorities sector includes the central bank institutional unit (or currency board, monetary agency, etc.) and certain operations that are usually attributed to the central bank but, in some cases, are carried out by other government institutions (or, in some instances, by commercial banks). Such operations include the issue of currency, maintenance and management of international reserves—including those resulting from transactions with the IMF—and the operation of exchange stabilization funds

See Environmental accounting

Financial institutions which together form the money issuing sector of the euro area. These include the European Central Bank, the national central banks of the euro area countries, and credit institutions and money market funds located in the euro area.

Monetary gold is gold owned by the authorities (or by others who are subject to the effective control of the authorities) and held as a reserve asset. Other gold (non-monetary gold), possibly including commercial stocks held for trading purposes by authorities who also own monetary gold, that is owned by any entity in this Manual as any other commodity. Transactions in monetary gold occur only between monetary authorities and their counterparts in other economies or between monetary authorities and international monetary organizations. Monetary Gold is a reserve asset for which there is no outstanding financial liability

Monetary operations are actions taken by a central bank to implement monetary policy, such as influencing overall money market and credit conditions in the economy. These consist of using the monetary policy instruments according to prescribed monetary policy operating procedures.

Monetary policy instruments are the various tools that a central bank can use to influence money market and credit conditions and pursue its monetary policy objectives.

Monetary statistics consist of a comprehensive set of stock and flow data on the financial and non- financial assets and liabilities of an economy’s financial corporations sector.

See Open market operation

A monetary transaction is one in which one institutional unit makes a payment (receives a payment) or incurs a liability (receives an asset) stated in units of currency

If authorities add to their holdings of monetary gold by acquiring commodity gold, e.g. newly mined gold or existing gold offered on the private market, they are deemed to have monetised gold

The interest rate charged by banks for call loans.

Bank based in a large financial center (e.g. New York or London).

The attempt to conceal or disguise the ownership or source of the proceeds of criminal activity and to integrate them into the legitimate financial systems in such a way that they cannot be distinguished from assets acquired by legitimate means. Typically this involves the conversion of cash-based proceeds into account-based forms of money.

A money market is a market where debt securities, issued with maturities of one year or less, are traded

A mutual fund specializing in high yield short-term instruments of credit such as Treasury Bills, certify-cates of deposit, commercial paper, bankers' acceptances and repurchase agreements. For the difference between FCP and SICAV, see mutual fund.

Money market instruments are debt securities that generally give the owner the unconditional right to receive a stated, fixed sum of money on a specified date. These instruments usually are traded, at a discount, in organized markets; the discount is dependent upon the interest rate and the time remaining to maturity. Included are such instruments as treasury bills, commercial and financial paper, banker’s acceptances, negotiable certificates of deposit (with original maturities of one year or less), and short-term notes issued under note issuance facilities.

The rate of interest in the money market. In the U.S., there is no single rate but a series of rates, including the prime rate, the Federal Reserve discount rate, the Federal Funds rate, the 1 month commercial paper rate and the 3 and 6 month Treasury Bill rate.

A pension plan providing benefits on a money purchase basis (i.e. the determination of an individual member’s benefits by reference to contributions paid into the scheme in respect of that member, usually increased by an amount based on the investment return on those contributions).

Money purchase pension plans are those for which the level of contributions to the fund is guaranteed, but benefits are directly dependent on the assets of the fund; (money purchase pension plans are also known as “defined contribution pension plans” in some countries).