The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), together with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is supporting Pakistan’s inaugural renminbi-denominated Panda Bond issuance to diversify external financing sources, expand access to international capital markets and mobilize private capital for sustainable infrastructure development.
The CNY1.75 billion (about USD258 million equivalent) issuance is Pakistan's first such sovereign bond in the offshore capital markets and aims to support the development of sustainable and climate-resilient infrastructure across the water, energy and health sectors.
AIIB’s partial debt guarantee helps enable the transaction by enhancing investor confidence and facilitating market access for Pakistan. The guarantee structure is expected to help mobilize private investment while supporting the government’s broader strategy to diversify its funding sources across international capital markets.
“This transaction demonstrates the important role multilateral development banks can play in mobilizing private capital and helping members access innovative financing solutions,” said Konstantin Limitovskiy, AIIB’s Chief Investment Officer, Public Sector (Region 2) & Project and Corporate Finance (Global) Clients. “By supporting Pakistan’s first Panda Bond issuance, AIIB is helping unlock a new funding channel for sustainable infrastructure investments while contributing to the country’s long-term economic resilience and development objectives.”
This guarantee-backed structure establishes a potentially replicable model for future sovereign sustainable financing transactions across AIIB members by enabling sub-investment-grade sovereign issuers to access offshore bond markets through a multilateral development bank-supported partial guarantee structure.
The project aligns with AIIB’s thematic priorities of green and technology-enabled infrastructure, as well as private capital mobilization. It also contributes to Pakistan’s national strategies on climate resilience, energy efficiency, water security and improved access to essential public services.
About AIIB
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank whose mission is Financing Infrastructure for Tomorrow in Asia and beyond – infrastructure with sustainability at its core. AIIB began operations in 2016, now has 111 approved members worldwide, is capitalized at USD100 billion and is AAA-rated by major international credit rating agencies. AIIB collaborates with partners to mobilize capital and invest in infrastructure and other productive sectors that foster sustainable economic development and enhance regional connectivity.
