By Clifford Hwang

The reception to the proposal for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has been highly divergent.  The United States and Japan are currently “non-committal” in regards to membership. Europe was wary at first; Germany will be one of the AIIB’s largest shareholders. China viewed it as a “diplomatic triumph.” Ultimately, the AIIB’s success will determine how it should have been viewed.

Chinese President Xi Jinping first proposed the launch of a China-led investment in 2013, and after two years of development, the AIIB is now expected to launch at the end of the year. The AIIB, in addition to institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, is expected to provide funding for various infrastructure projects in Asia with its capital of $100 billion. With the growing need of infrastructure investment coupled with previous inadequate funding levels, the AIIB is expected to partially fill the investment gap in Asia, which is estimated to be around $800 billion a year. 

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November 11, 2015

By Derek Hunter

In October 2014, China launched the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) -- an Asia-focused, and less United States-dominated, version of the IMF, or World Bank. As one might imagine, the United States was skeptical of the AIIB and viewed it as an attempt to displace American economic influence in the region. But, as the Economist reports, the AIIB would help to quench the nearly inexhaustible demand for infrastructure investment in Asia. As more of the United States’ European and Asian allies opt to join the AIIB, it appears that it will become a financial force in Asia, with or without the United States.

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April 29, 2015