The International Monetary Fund will focus on Moldova's financial system in reviewing Chisinau's request for a loan after the disappearance of more than $1 billion from Moldovan banks.
Ivanna Vladkova-Hollar, the head of an IMF fact-finding mission to Moldova, said on May 23 that her visit is the first step toward negotiating a loan that Moldova desperately needs. She said Moldova's banks need to operate within a regulated system, without outside interference.
Vladkova-Hollar met with Prime Minister Pavel Filip, who said his government would continue reforms in the finance, banking, and judicial systems, to fulfill IMF demands.
The IMF exited Moldova in September after the central bank governor resigned amid weeks of protests over the money, which went missing prior to November 2014 parliamentary elections.
The IMF's current visit to Moldova will continue until the end of the week and include meetings with the leadership of the National Bank, the National Commission on Financial Markets, the Finance Ministry, and the chiefs of several commercial banks.