The New Development Bank

The New Development Bank (NDB) established by the BRICS countries (Brazil, China, India and South Africa) in 2015 has the potential to assist in reducing the global development finance deficit. This chapter examines the structure, funding and contributions of the bank to sustainable development in the Global South. The study also looks at the evolution of NDB’s portfolio regarding loan disbursement, borrowing by country, financing currency and area of operation. The chapter also analyzes the alignment of the bank’s portfolio to the United Nations’ sustainable development goals and portfolio by type of operation. NDB’s financial risk safety net, the Contingent Reserve Arrangement, is also briefly assessed. NDB has made significant contribution to development financing in the five founding member states. Nearly a quarter of its USD 81 billion portfolio as at December 31, 2022 has gone into financing transport infrastructure. Clean energy infrastructure accounts for 18% of the portfolio. Urban development (11%) is among the areas the bank has paid great attention to. The chapter identifies a few challenges that NDB has to address to enhance its contribution to development financing and to complement the existing multilateral development financing institutions. Among the challenges is over-reliance on dollar-denominated financing and disbursement. NDB has to expand its membership to increase its reach and capital base.