One acronym that has been notably absent, so far, from the global financial crisis is the IMF. The International Monetary Fund has drawn up a code of conduct for sovereign wealth funds and issued to profligate countries mild rebukes that have, for the most part, been ignored. While a few IMF technocrats have been spotted in Georgia, propping up the country's banks, the organisation has otherwise slumbered among Washington's dogwood trees. That is perhaps about to change.

The reason for its quietism is less middle age - although, now 64 years old, the IMF's purpose is increasingly questioned - than the lack of any need for cross-border intervention (most of which has been military of late). Only four years ago, before the credit boom properly accelerated, the IMF had $38bn of loans on its $141bn balance sheet. Now, crowded out of international lending by a half-decade of abundant bank credit, outstanding IMF loans have dropped to just $4bn. Net interest income has plunged and profits have turned to a loss.