All eyes are on Jin Liqun, the man tasked with leading the establishment and operations of the newest development institution to date: the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
Pitched by Chinese President Xi Jinping in October 2013, the Beijing-based institution has attracted its fair share of criticism and skepticism. With an announced capital of $100 billion, the bank is still arguably a step or two away from completion but bank operations, supported by 57 member nations, are expected to start by the end of the year. Even the consultations with stakeholders for the institution’s embattled safeguards draft — usually a multiyear process for other institutions like the World Bank — have been fast-tracked and will conclude this week to ensure that the projects can start rolling out on schedule, by the second quarter of next year.
Even the man from Jiangsu himself, in charge of launching a bank with the financial muscle to go toe-to-toe with the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, admitted that “things moved very fast.”
About the author
Lean Alfred Santos@DevexLeanAS
Lean Alfred Santos is a former Devex development reporter focusing on the development community in Asia-Pacific, including major players such as the Asian Development Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. He previously covered Philippine and international business and economic news, sports and politics.
