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Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

एसियाली पूर्वाधार लगानी बैंक

4% of Nepal's external debt

Fast-growing creditor since 2017. Infrastructure-heavy. USD-denominated.

Outstanding

USD 350M

as of FY 2024/25

Share of ext. debt

4%

cited

Currency

USD

FX exposure

Major loans

3

cited

How it works

AIIB began lending to Nepal in 2017 and has scaled quickly across power transmission, urban infrastructure, and roads. Terms include a market-linked element above SOFR for ordinary financing, with concessional windows for eligible operations. The stock is small relative to WB/ADB but growing fastest.

The short version

AIIB is a newer infrastructure bank, mostly funded by China and Asian member states. It started lending to Nepal in 2017 and is growing fast. Its loans are in US dollars.

Typical loan terms

Concessional and ordinary blend; market-linked spread above SOFR for non-concessional

Headline terms — individual loans may vary. Per-loan detail follows.

Major loans

  • Power Distribution System Upgrade

    2018

    USD 90M

    Distribution network

  • Power Transmission and Distribution Efficiency

    2019

    USD 119M

    Transmission backbone

  • Upper Trishuli 1 Hydropower (private-sector)

    2019

    USD 110M

    216 MW hydropower

What to watch

  • ·AIIB is the marginal additional lender Nepal has scaled up most quickly post-2017 — terms tighten as Nepal moves toward Lower-Middle-Income graduation.
  • ·Project execution rate inside Nepal's system is the binding constraint here too.

Sources · cited verbatim

  • Ministry of Finance Nepal — PDMOPublic Debt Bulletin — multilateral creditors

    Open release checked 2025-01-15
  • Asian Infrastructure Investment BankNepal — country page and projects

    Open release checked 2025-01-31

Other multilateral lenders