EDITORIAL: Brics bank new player in town
The New Development Bank funded projects worth about $1.5bn in its first year
The New Development Bank (NDB), previously known as the Brics bank, opens its first office outside of its Shanghai base in Johannesburg on Thursday. Other offices are planned in the other Brics countries — Brazil, Russia and India — but they might take some time. It’s a small step forward for the bank, which is having a moment and is also in the midst of the tricky process of finding its feet. It’s having a moment because it got off to a flying start, with its capital in high demand for projects, particularly in India and China. The bank funded projects worth about $1.5bn in its first year of operation and is likely to fund about the same amount in the second. Its thumping competitor, the World Bank, typically funds projects worth about $25bn a year, but then it has been going for about 70 years. The NDB has found a great niche, funding renewable energy projects and about 75% of its total funding has gone towards solar, wind and hydro projects. This has been a happy hunting ground f...
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