1. The Basel Accords are a set of evolving international standards designed to:

   		promote the stability of banks by standardizing capital maintenance ratios.
   		increase the competitiveness of large banks in the global environment by standardizing capital maintenance ratios.
   		increase competition among banks internationally by giving them greater flexibility in determining what might be considered bank capital for the purposes of financial statement reporting.
   		provide a uniform approach to evaluating banks operating in different countries.

1. When it comes to exchanging one currency for another, there are several different approaches a country may adopt. The United States uses:

   		a fixed exchange rate system where exchange rates are held constant.
   		a pegged exchange rate system where the dollar is pegged to the Euro.
   		a managed float exchange rate system where the U.S government directly intervenes if the exchange rate against other currencies gets too high or too low.
   		a free-floating exchange rate system where the U.S. government does not directly intervene to alter exchange rates.