Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) President Jin Liqun has announced changes to the Bank’s Senior Management Team effective Feb. 1, 2022.

AIIB’s Board of Directors has appointed Dr. Urjit Patel to the position of Vice President for Investment Operations Region 1—South Asia, the Pacific Islands and South East Asia— succeeding Dr. D.J. Pandian. Patel, a former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, also served as former Chair of the Governing Body of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi, a leading think tank on fiscal policy and tax matters. He was also Executive Director and member of the Management Committee of the Infrastructure Development Finance Company Ltd.

Dr. Patel has a PhD in Economics from Yale University and has extensive experience in both infrastructure and energy sectors. He is the recipient of the Wilbur Cross Medal from Yale University in 2019 and has authored many scholarly publications and papers in the areas of public finance, infrastructure, regulatory economics, monetary policy, global financial safety net, economics of climate change and theory of international trade.

“I am delighted to welcome Dr. Patel as the newest member of my management team,” said President Jin. “His extensive experience at the national and international levels across various public and private sectors will help the Bank better embrace its growth phase and will support AIIB’s vision of investing in Infrastructure for Tomorrow.”

Patel’s predecessor, Dr. Pandian, was AIIB’s first Chief Investment Officer and was with the Bank since the initial days after it started operations in 2016. More than USD17.8 billion financings proposed under his leadership have been approved by AIIB’s Board of Directors during the past six years, successfully delivered in 14 members.

“D.J.’s contributions to the Bank, particularly his role in building the Investment Operations team, have been crucial to our operations,” said President Jin. “His experience in infrastructure development helped AIIB build capacity in end-to-end project identification to implementation, which was critical particularly in our startup years. We thank him for his work and for helping the Bank grow to where it is now.”

About AIIB

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank whose mission is financing the Infrastructure for Tomorrow—infrastructure with sustainability at its core. We began operations in Beijing in January 2016 and have since grown to 105 approved members worldwide. We are capitalized at USD100 billion and Triple-A-rated by the major international credit rating agencies. Working with partners, AIIB meets clients’ needs by unlocking new capital and investing in infrastructure that is green, technology-enabled and promotes regional connectivity.