AIIB president ‘patient in waiting’ for US
Print Edition
JIN Liqun, president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, said yesterday that he was “patient in waiting” for the United States to decide on whether to join the bank.
“Even if you decide not to join, that does not mean we cannot work together,” Jin said in a panel discussion with other multilateral bank leaders on the final day of the Boao Forum for Asia in south China’s Hainan Province.
The AIIB, a not-for-profit multilateral development bank initiated by China, was officially established in December last year with 57 founding members. Jin said more than 30 countries are waiting to join and that “the new members problem will be solved by the end of this year.”
Hong Kong may also be allowed to become a member, he said.
“Hong Kong is an international financial center,” Jin said. “We believe Hong Kong has a role to play in facilitating the financing of the AIIB. For instance, the AIIB can issue bonds in Hong Kong and can also have currency swaps with Hong Kong.”
The AIIB has good cooperation with other multilateral development banks, said Jin, adding that the world economy is big enough to support new development banks.
He compared the establishment of the AIIB to the opening of a new restaurant to meet growing demand.
“I strongly believe the AIIB should not be a new hotspot for friction between China and the United States. It is actually just the contrary. The AIIB should be a new platform for China, the US, Japan and many other countries to work together,” he said.
Jin said there were concerns over issues such as governance when the bank was first proposed, but China had earned the trust of others and cooperation was good.
“You cannot talk people into believing you. You have to convince people by your performance,” Jin said. The AIIB will adopt the practice of universal procurement to create a level playing field for all, he added.
Leaders of other multilateral development banks agreed there was room for new development banks. Leslie Maasdorp, vice president and chief financial officer of the New Development Bank, said the new institutions had adopted a more democratic way of working together, with no one having the power of veto.
Maasdorp said the emerging market is under-represented in terms of governance at large multilateral institutions, but that did not mean that the institutions are rival bodies, as they all have similar objectives such as supporting infrastructure and sustainable development.
“We are working closely together with the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank because, as you know, there is such a big demand for infrastructure. There is not enough capital to fill all the gaps in terms of funding,” he said.
The ADB estimates that Asia alone needs US$800 billion of infrastructure investment a year to 2020.
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