Chávez revives regional fund plan

[Judi Lynn]

Chávez revives regional fund plan

By Benedict Mander

Published: March 25 2009 02:00 | Last updated: March 25 2009 02:00

Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's president, is spearheading the revival of stalled efforts to establish the Bank of the South, a regional development fund aimed at softening the blow of the global economic downturn in Latin America.

The bank, which is intended to reduce dependence on traditional sources of credit such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, could be launched as soon as May with a start-up capital of $10bn (€7.4bn, £6.8bn), seven of the region's finance ministers agreed at a meeting in Caracas on Monday.

Although the speed of the bank's creation has been disappointing since Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela first agreed to set up the bank in late 2007, growing fears of the scale of the global recession have helped to reignite interest.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cd31898a-18ea-11de-bec8-0000779fd2ac.html

[Judi Lynn]

1. Venezuela Fin Min: Bank Of The South Talks Are Advancing

Venezuela Fin Min: Bank Of The South Talks Are Advancing


CARACAS -(Dow Jones)- The Bank of the South, a long awaited multilateral lender promoted by President Hugo Chavez, still plans to start operations with a $6 billion capital infusion divided equally between Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela.

The Bank of the South, which was officially created in late 2007 but which is yet to start operations, will also have as its members Bolivia, Ecuador, Uruguay and Paraguay, which will allocate $4 billion, to be divided in $100 million deposits, according to a press release from the Venezuelan government.

The finance ministers of the member countries met Monday in Caracas, where " several pending items were resolved," said Venezuelan Finance Minister Ali Rodriguez.

A new meeting to resolve technical issues was scheduled for May in Buenos Aires.

Under Chavez, Venezuela has sought to create a series of multilateral financial organizations as an alternative to institutions like the International Monetary Fund or the World Bank.

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20090324\ACQDJON200903241143DOWJONESDJONLINE000433.htm&selected=9999&selecteddisplaysymbol=9999&StoryTargetFrame=_top&mkt=WORLD&chk=unchecked&lang=&link=&headlinereturnpage=http://www.international.na

[Peace Patriot]

2. Thanks for this info, Judi! I didn't know the Bank of the South had been stalled.

This is such an important institution! Especially now,
after the Bushwhack Financial 9/11, which is being used
to try to get the World Bank/IMF vulture clutches back
into the hides of South Americans.

South American (and Central American) countries NEED to
establish local/regional control of finance and development,
or they will be sucked dry by our bloodsucking corporations
and uber-rich once again.

-------------------

(Note: You need to fix the url in your comment. It is
screwing up this thread--making it too wide to read.)

[Dave From Canada]

4. It's ok, nobody wants their ultra-inflated currencies anyways. It's like monopoly money. n/t

[EFerrari]

5. You're right about that. The vultures at World Bank are looking to

use this event as a way to further enslave us. I hope the bank is up and running soon.

[magbana]

3. From Venezuelanalysis

"South American Nations Meet in Venezuela to Lay Foundation for Bank of the South

March 25th 2009, by James Suggett - Venezuelanalysis.com

Mérida, March 24th 2009 (Venezuelanalysis.com) -- Top government officials from seven South American countries met in Caracas Monday to draft constitutive plans for the Bank of the South, an international initiative launched in 2007 to improve regional integration and invest national reserves in social and economic development on the continent.

Venezuela, Argentina, and Brazil agreed to contribute $2 billion each as initial capital for the bank, while Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay will contribute $1 billion each, bringing the total capitalization of the bank to $10 billion, according to Venezuelan Finance Minister Ali Rodríguez.

Rodríguez said Monday’s agenda also included discussions about the integration of regional energy production, infrastructure, and finance.

“We are called to fulfill an increasingly important role in the concert of nations, that is why it is indispensible to advance processes of regional integration,” said Rodríguez following the marathon meeting Monday.

The leaders scheduled a follow-up meeting in Buenos Aires in early May to finalize plans for the regional bank.

Since the global financial crisis erupted in banks in the United States and Europe last year, South American leaders have touted the Bank of the South as a method of insulation from the crisis and as a safer depository of their national reserves.

The Bank of the South was originally proposed by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez as an alternative to the U.S.-based International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which are considered by many South American nations to have trapped the region in debt and then used this as an excuse to impose policy conditions dictated by the U.S. government.

The Bank of the South would be headquartered in Caracas, and was endorsed in 2007 by Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel Prize-winning former chief economist of the World Bank.

Tags: Bank of the South"
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/4323