AIIB pledges to do more solo lending

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank pledged to embark on more projects as the sole lender, as it boosts its membership and manages an investment pipeline of up to $7 billion, Bloomberg reports.  The fledgling development bank, now in its second year, has already taken on projects by itself and it will do more going forward, AIIB President Jin Liqun said on Saturday in Jeju, South Korea, following the institution’s second annual conference. Still, working together with other lenders is better particularly on large infrastructure deals, he said. Of the 16 projects approved by the AIIB since it started in January 2016, around three quarters have been co-financed with other development lenders including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The China-led lender is now stepping up efforts to strengthen its credibility as a partner and alternative to the Japan-led ADB and the Washington-based World Bank.