Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, July 29 - Title: Always jointly sharing along the way to go - Interview AIIB President Jin Liqun
Xinhua News Agency reporters Liu Hongxia and Yu Qiongyuan
In midsummer, the vegetation is lush. Beijing, in the Olympic Central Area, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank welcomes a new president: Jin Liqun was successfully re-elected after the election of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s Council on the 28th.
How has the AIIB been doing for more than 4 years? Looking to the future, where is the AIIB going? On the 29th, Jin Liqun met with reporters from Xinhua News Agency at the headquarters of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and accepted an exclusive interview.
Every member has a say, every voice will be heard
On January 16, 2016, the AIIB officially opened. How has the AIIB been doing in recent years? Jin Liqun said that we might as well observe from several sets of data.
"Our number of members has grown from 57 when it opened to 103 now." He said that the AIIB has been widely recognized by the international community, which is the most direct proof.
"We always insist on one point, that is, to discuss, build and share, and everyone's affairs are discussed and handled." Jin Liqun said that China is the AIIB’s advocacy and the largest shareholder, but China firmly supports the AIIB's multilateral development bank model. Operate in harmony and adhere to international, normative and high standards. The continuous growth of the AIIB fully demonstrates China's international credibility.
He further said that any decision made by the AIIB comes from collective discussions and democratic consultations; every member, regardless of the size of the economy, has a voice and will be respected and listened to.
As of July 29, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank has approved 87 projects covering 24 economies, with a total investment of over US$19.6 billion.
Jin Liqun said that since its opening, the AIIB has maintained good cooperation with multilateral development banks such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. About 53% of the projects have been co-financing. "Other institutions are willing to work with us, which also proves that we are a high-standard bank."
He said that facing the future, the AIIB will focus on common development, be brave to innovate, create best practices, adhere to openness and inclusiveness, and become a new platform to promote the common development of members and build a community with a shared future for mankind.
Has the ability to provide loans in 13 currencies, anchoring the "two struggles"
In May 2019, the first global US dollar bond was issued; in June 2020, the first 3 billion yuan panda bond was issued... In recent years, it has received the highest credit ratings from three international rating agencies: Standard & Poor's, Moody's, and Fitch. The AIIB has gradually emerged in the international capital market.
Jin Liqun told reporters that the AIIB will continue to pay attention to the US dollar bond capital market. At the same time, "we can consider other capital markets, such as the euro and the yen."
He said that many members hope to obtain financing in local currencies. Up to now, the AIIB can provide loans in 13 local currencies.
Speaking of future plans, Jin Liqun said that the AIIB is formulating an institutional strategy. He told reporters “two struggles”: By 2025, the AIIB’s annual loan will reach US$10 billion, and the proportion of financing for climate change will reach 50%; By 2030, cross-border interconnection financing will account for 25% to 30%, and sovereign and non-sovereign financing will be evenly divided.
He said that the organization’s strategic plan for work from now to 2025 also looks forward to work for 2030. "I look forward to getting the board's approval in September this year so that it can be implemented at the beginning of my new term."
Regarding the "two fights", he emphatically explained that it is necessary to examine the issue of climate change with a long-term perspective and develop new technologies to deal with climate change. "For example, the board of directors has adopted a digital strategy to help relevant countries develop digital technology. Digitalization can also reduce emissions."
He also said that it is necessary to better mobilize private capital investment. "For those who can use private capital to invest, use private capital as much as possible, and don't put all the pressure on the government's account. This is also something we will promote in the future."
The AIIB’s door is always open
With the AIIB’s growing circle of friends, more good partners, and higher quality of cooperation, many people are concerned about whether the United States, Japan and other countries will “join the group”.
“As long as you recognize and follow the AIIB’s articles of association, the door will always be open!” Jin Liqun said that whether a sovereign country joins the AIIB depends first on its own wishes and decisions; if it joins, it must act in accordance with the rules of the AIIB.
"In fact, we have very close cooperation with American financial institutions." He said, such as the Bank of New York Mellon, Goldman Sachs, etc., among them, Goldman Sachs is the lead underwriter of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank's first global dollar bond issuance.
Jin Liqun introduced that although the United States and Japan are not members of the AIIB, there are many employees from these two countries. "Our principle is to hire only by quantity, regardless of nationality."
(Subhead) Expanding the Crisis Recovery Fund again to respond to the epidemic
In early April this year, the AIIB announced the launch of a US$5 billion crisis recovery fund to respond to the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic. In the second half of the month, the AIIB increased the fund size to US$10 billion.
Jin Liqun told reporters that the AIIB has once again "overweighted" and the fund size has expanded to US$13 billion.
"The AIIB does not provide policy loans, but because of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, according to the needs of members, a crisis recovery fund will be established through financing." He said that the epidemic knows no borders and countries must be controlled as soon as possible. The AIIB has approved 6 billion yuan. US dollars help some countries fight the epidemic.
China has the conditions to achieve good economic performance
In the first half of this year, China's economy turned from a decline to an increase, and the growth rate turned from negative to positive, showing a recovery growth trend. In the second quarter, GDP grew by 3.2% year-on-year, an increase of 10 percentage points from the first quarter, showing great resilience and potential.
Jin Liqun believes that from a global perspective, China's economic performance in the first half of the year is impressive, which is based on timely and solid efforts to prevent and control the epidemic.
He believes that although the global economy is still facing great instability and uncertainty, the Chinese economy has the opportunity to maintain a positive momentum in the second half of this year, and is able to achieve good economic performance throughout the year.