Asian Development Bank (ADB)

About Asian Development Bank (ADB):

• It is a multilateral development bank established on 19th December 1966.
• It is the principal international development finance institution for the Asia-Pacific region.
• It envisions a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty in the region.
• Functions:
  • It provides assistance to its developing member countries, the private sector, and public-private partnerships through grants, loans, technical assistance, and equity investments to promote social and economic development.
  • ADB maximizes the development impact of its assistance by facilitating policy dialogues, providing advisory services, and mobilizing financial resources through cofinancing operations that tap official, commercial, and export credit sources.
• Headquarters: Manila, Philippines.
• Membership:
  • Membership in the ADB is open to members and associate members of the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East.
  • It's also open to other regional countries and non-regional developed countries that are members of the U.N. or of any of its specialized agencies. 
  • From 31 members at its establishment in 1966, ADB has grown to encompass 68 members, of which 49 are from within Asia and the Pacific and 19 outside.
• Control:
  • ADB is run by a board of governors, which represents the member countries of the ADB. 
  • The ADB was modelled closely on the World Bank and has a similar weighted voting system where votes are distributed in proportion to members' capital subscriptions.
  • As of 2022, ADB's five largest shareholders are Japan and the United States (each with 15.6% of total shares), the People's Republic of China (6.4%), India (6.3%), and Australia (5.8%).
• Source of Funding:
  • It raises capital regularly through the international bond markets.
  • The ADB also relies on member contributions, retained earnings from lending, and the repayment of loans for the funding of the organization.

Q1: What is the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)?

AIIB is a multilateral development bank that aims to improve economic and social outcomes in Asia. It is headquartered in Beijing, China. All powers of the Bank are vested in our Board of Governors, which is the highest decision-making body under our Articles of Agreement. AIIB has 105 members. China is the AIIB’s largest shareholder with a 26.5% voting share. India is the second-largest, with 7.5%, followed by Russia, which has a 5.97% voting share.

Source: ADB retains India growth forecast at 7% for FY25