Lesson 2 of 5

The Chiang Mai Initiative: the region's swap arrangement, how much a member can draw and the IMF link

The Chiang Mai Initiative is the ASEAN+3 arrangement under which members can obtain US dollars from each other when they face a shortage of foreign currency. This lesson explains how it grew from bilateral swaps into one arrangement of 240 billion US dollars, who contributes how much, how to work out the most a member can draw, why most of that amount is tied to an IMF programme, and how it compares with the financing arrangements of other regions.

Published 21 October 2026