Policy-based lending is an important element within the toolbox of multilateral development banks to assist countries that need budget support and/or that are embarked on institutional changes or reforms. This Technical Note reviews different aspects of policy-based loans (PBLs) to gain a fresh perspective on their structural and financial features. It examines policy-based loans through the lens of their dual goals of providing beneficiary countries with flexible, liquid, and timely funding to meet their financing needs and of supporting policy reforms or institutional changes in a sector or subsector. The discussion identifies general trends in policy-based lending in Latin America and the Caribbean, explores the sectoral allocation of the policy-based loans of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and examines how policy-based loans are combined with other instruments as they provide liquidity and support reforms. It also explores how the IDB compares to other multilateral development banks in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of policy-based lending.