The World Bank and International Monetary Fund were designed by delegates at the Bretton Woods conference in 1944.
The World Bank, then consisting of only the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, became operational in 1946.
Robert L. Garner joined the World Bank in 1947 as a senior executive and expressed his view that private business could play an important role in international development.
In 1950, Garner and his colleagues proposed establishing a new institution for the purpose of making private investments in the less developed countries served by the World Bank.
The U.S. government encouraged the idea of an international corporation working in tandem with the World Bank to invest in private enterprises without accepting guarantees from governments, without managing those enterprises, and by collaborating with third party investors.
When describing the IFC in 1955, World Bank President Eugene R. Black said that the IFC would only invest in private firms, rather than make loans to governments, and it would not manage the projects in which it invests.

The concept was nonetheless controversial in the US, where some business interests were uncomfortable with the public ownership of private firms.
 Nonetheless, in 1956, the International Finance Corporation became operational under the leadership of Garner.
It initially had 12 staff members and $100 million (equivalent to $940 million in 2019) in capital.
The corporation made its inaugural investment in 1957 by making a $2 million (equivalent to $18 million in 2019) loan to a Brazil-based affiliate of Siemens & Halske (now Siemens AG).

In 2007, IFC bought 18% stake in the Indian Financial firm, Angel Broking.
In December 2015, IFC supported Greek banks with 150 million euros by buying shares in four of them: Alpha Bank (60 million), Eurobank (50 million), Piraeus Bank (20 million) and National Bank of Greece (20 million).
The World Bank and International Monetary Fund were designed by delegates at the Bretton Woods conference in 1944. The World Bank, then consisting of only the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, became operational in 1946. Robert L. Garner joined the World Bank in 1947 as a senior executive and expressed his view that private business could play an important role in international development. In 1950, Garner and his colleagues proposed establishing a new institution for the purpose of making private investments in the less developed countries served by the World Bank. The U.S. government encouraged the idea of an international corporation working in tandem with the World Bank to invest in private enterprises without accepting guarantees from governments, without managing those enterprises, and by collaborating with third party investors. When describing the IFC in 1955, World Bank President Eugene R. Black said that the IFC would only invest in private firms, rather than make loans to governments, and it would not manage the projects in which it invests.
The concept was nonetheless controversial in the US, where some business interests were uncomfortable with the public ownership of private firms.  Nonetheless, in 1956, the International Finance Corporation became operational under the leadership of Garner. It initially had 12 staff members and $100 million (equivalent to $940 million in 2019) in capital. The corporation made its inaugural investment in 1957 by making a $2 million (equivalent to $18 million in 2019) loan to a Brazil-based affiliate of Siemens & Halske (now Siemens AG).
In 2007, IFC bought 18% stake in the Indian Financial firm, Angel Broking. In December 2015, IFC supported Greek banks with 150 million euros by buying shares in four of them: Alpha Bank (60 million), Eurobank (50 million), Piraeus Bank (20 million) and National Bank of Greece (20 million).
International Finance Corporation