The surge in globalization for the past two decades has exacerbated the gaps between rich and poor. It has also pointed out
imbalances in rule-making, with those that favor market expansion becoming more robust and enforceable; among these are rules concerning intellectual property rights and trade dispute resolution. This paper explains that it is arguable that the Bretton Woods agreement was successful. It could easily be
argued that it served to minimize the disparity, not enhance it, by virtue of the loan provisions. It could be argued that while the poor are always with us, so are the rich. The paper argues that the Bretton Woods
agreements, in themselves, might be regarded as an unqualified success in the history of world economics; what has failed, however, is the construction of a world philosophy that would allow nations to enter into such agreements in the true sense of global prosperity Bretton Woods-in the waning days of the world's worst war following the world's worse economic era-sought to foster. Introduction Promoting International Monetary Cooperation Maintaining Orderly Exchange Arrangements Facilitating Multilateral Payments Conclusion