Abstract

A financial transaction does not spring out of a vacuum. It is a decision that comes out of the procedures followed by financial institutions and a discussion between individuals (eventually with diverging interests) inside these institutions. At the core of this process, the “country note” is used to summarize/measure a country’s economic state of health whenever a committee examines the limits to set on the institution’s financial commitments to a country. Focus is placed on how such committees use this note at several levels. This note measures a complex object and enters into the creation of conventions between parties. At the center of both conflicts and negotiations, it has a “procedural” function. This tool helps impart a common momentum to those who use it, and it is a means for sharing liability.