World Bank boosts private capital mobilization to record $112 billion
WASHINGTON: The World Bank on Thursday said it attracted $112 billion in private capital in the year ended June versus $69 billion a year earlier, and more than triple the amount in fiscal 2022 before former Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga became president. The bank said the record figure committed for projects it facilitates is in addition to the $123 billion from its own resources for that year, for…
The World Bank announced on Thursday that it attracted $112 billion in private capital during the year that ended June, up from $69 billion the previous year. This represented a significant increase from the $123 billion that the bank itself committed for that year, bringing the total commitment to $235 billion. The bank aims to more than double private capital to over $200 billion within two to three years.
World Bank President Ajay Banga has made attracting private capital a top priority, noting that much of the financial needs of developing countries are not covered by official development assistance, which is dropping. Banga has worked to streamline the bank's work and assign a single manager as country liaison to address concerns related to regulatory uncertainty, political risk, and challenges with local currencies.
The bank has also tightened ties with development institutions and reduced project approval times from a year or more to nine months. Private capital flows have risen sharply for lower-middle-income countries, upper-middle-income countries, and across Africa, while remaining steady for low-income countries. The bank's efforts helped fund projects like a Rio Tinto greenfield lithium project in northwestern Argentina, which received a $400 million loan from the IFC and attracted $775 million from other lenders.
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