The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank and international financial institution, headquartered in Beijing, China. It was first proposed by China in October 2013 and formally established on December 25, 2015, beginning operations on January 16, 2016. The bank was created to address the significant infrastructure development needs in Asia and to offer an alternative to existing institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), where China felt its influence was disproportionate to its economic strength.
The AIIB is capitalized at US$100 billion and aims to foster sustainable economic development and improve infrastructure connectivity in Asia. Its purpose, as outlined in Article 1 of its Articles of Agreement (AoA), is to invest in infrastructure and other productive sectors. Governance is managed by a Board of Governors and a Board of Directors. A key mechanism for accountability is the Policy on the Project-affected People's Mechanism (PPM), which took effect on March 31, 2019, allowing individuals to file submissions if they are adversely affected by a failure to implement the bank's Environmental and Social Policy. The AIIB was initially linked to China's "One Belt, One Road (OBOR)" initiative and often co-finances projects with other MDBs.
Recently, the bank has updated its focus through a revised Corporate Strategy in 2025. Under this strategy, the AIIB aims to double its annual financing to US$17 billion by 2030 and target over 50% of its own financing toward climate-related investments. Furthermore, all AIIB financings since July 2023 are aligned with the Paris Agreement. The bank's Accountability Framework was also revised in 2023.