AIIB looking at investing in NIIF;decision to be taken in 2018

Newly-established multilateral funding agency Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) today said its is considering investing in India's sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF).
"We are actively looking at it. We are considering whether we should invest in it and decision will be taken sometime next year," AIIB vice president and corporate secretary Danny Alexander told PTI.
He, however, did not give more details, saying the AIIB board will take a final call on this.
India is the second largest shareholder of Beijing-based AIIB with 7.5 per cent share after China which holds 20.06 per cent in the bank.

It is to be noted that NIIF last month signed an investment agreement worth USD 1 billion with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
The government has set up NIIF with the aim to attract investments from both domestic and international sources for infrastructure development in commercially viable projects.

The corpus of the NIIF is proposed to be Rs 40,000 crore (USD 6 billion) wherein the government will invest 49 per cent. It will raise third party capital for the remaining Rs 20,000 crore (USD 3 billion), from long-term international investors, such as a sovereign wealth funds, insurance and pension funds, and endowments.

The Fund is expected to play the role of a catalyst for supporting investments in infrastructure with the objective of maximising economic impact through its investments.
Alexander further said the multi-lateral funding agency has already made investment in six projects including a USD 335 million (Rs 2,159 crore) loan for a 100 per cent electric metro project Bangalore Metro Rail Project-Reach 6 (R6) since its inception in January 2016.
The project is AIIB's first metro project and its first joint financing partnership with the European Investment Bank (EIB). EIB is the project's lead financier with Euro 500 million in funding.

Various other projects are under pipeline and those are at different stages of consideration, he said.
He also said India will host the third annual meeting of the Board of Governors of AIIB at Mumbai on June 25-26 next year.
The theme of the meeting will be 'Mobilising Finance for Infrastructure: Innovation and Collaboration, he said.