Currency swaps between central banks of the major economies constituted one of the most prominent instruments in the mitigation of the global financial crisis. Swap agreements have been signed on a regular basis after the crisis as well. The purpose of this article is to assess the significance of currency swaps in the provision of official international liquidity. The thesis of the article assumes that currency swaps play a significant role in the creation of official international liquidity and constitute one of the key elements of the post-crisis international monetary system. The methods applied include an analysis of statistical data concerning swap arrangements, official reserve assets and international use of national currencies as well as comparative analysis and literature study. The analysis demonstrates that currency swaps reduce the malfunction of the contemporary international monetary system in the field of international liquidity provision and, as a consequence, contribute to its greater stability.

Currency swaps between central banks of the major economies constituted one of the most prominent instruments in the mitigation of the global financial crisis. Swap agreements have been signed on a regular basis after the crisis as well. The purpose of this article is to assess the significance of currency swaps in the provision of official international liquidity. The thesis of the article assumes that currency swaps play a significant role in the creation of official international liquidity and constitute one of the key elements of the post-crisis international monetary system. The methods applied include an analysis of statistical data concerning swap arrangements, official reserve assets and international use of national currencies as well as comparative analysis and literature study. The analysis demonstrates that currency swaps reduce the malfunction of the contemporary international monetary system in the field of international liquidity provision and, as a consequence, contribute to its greater stability.