In 2025 the NDB marked its 10th anniversary. Throughout this time, being essentially the first major global multilateral development bank founded exclusively by developing countries, it has been mobilising resources for the projects of the Global South in the areas of clean energy, transport infrastructure, water supply, environmental protection and more. At the same time, the NDB also provides financing in national currencies. What exactly are these funds allocated for?
What does the NDB finance?
The main purpose of the NDB, unlike many other financial institutions, is not to generate profit for shareholders but to foster the development of the countries of the Global South, according to TV BRICS. The task is to reduce the gap between the availability of financial resources and the needs of the founding members (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) and other investor states of the New Development Bank (Algeria, Bangladesh, Egypt, the UAE, and Uruguay). Primarily, financing is directed towards projects in the fields of infrastructure and sustainable development. Key areas:
clean energy and energy efficiency;
transport infrastructure;
water and sanitation;
digital infrastructure;
environmental protection;
social infrastructure.
The total amount of projects approved by the New Development Bank has already reached US$39 billion. All these funds have been allocated to increase clean energy production capacity by 2400 megawatts, reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 14.7 million tonnes per year, and build 35,000 housing units, 43 schools, 1,400 kilometres of tunnels and canals, and 40,400 kilometres of roads. In total the NDB has approved around 120 such infrastructure projects. Statistics presented on the bank’s website show that most funds until 2022 were allocated to transport infrastructure and the fight against the consequences of COVID-19, with the main recipients being China, India, and South Africa.
Delhi–Ghaziabad–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System Project
One of the most illustrative and large-scale projects financed by the New Development Bank has been the Delhi–Ghaziabad–Meerut transport corridor.
The National Capital Region of India was literally suffocating from traffic congestion. Just imagine densely populated India, the 43 square kilometres occupied by New Delhi, plus the adjacent territories of the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Experts estimated the daily passenger flow along the Delhi–Ghaziabad–Meerut corridor at 0.69 million, with 63 per cent of commuters using private vehicles to reach their workplaces. Due to traffic jams, the journey between Delhi and Meerut in Uttar Pradesh could take 3–4 hours. The rapid growth of car traffic made India’s capital region one of the most polluted regions in the world.
Meanwhile, the pressure on India’s capital region continues to grow. By 2030, the Delhi area is expected to become the most densely populated urban agglomeration in the world. This poses a significant challenge not only for the transport system but also for water supply, electricity supply, and housing.
In 2020, an agreement was signed under which the New Development Bank would allocate US$500 million to India for the creation of the 82-kilometre Delhi–Ghaziabad–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System corridor, 62 kilometres of which are planned to run underground. High-speed trains are expected to reduce the travel time from Delhi to Meerut to one hour. In October 2025, the first section of this high-speed route was launched, with the mission of significantly improving infrastructure and the environmental situation in India’s capital region.
LNG terminal in the Nangang port area in Tianjin, China
In March 2021, the New Development Bank approved a financing project for a major terminal in northern China designed for receiving, handling and storing liquefied natural gas. Today this terminal plays an important role in supplying the Chinese market with natural gas delivered by sea, including from Russia.
Experts describe the Tianjin LNG terminal project as one of the most significant from an environmental standpoint, since China’s transition to gas is associated with greater use of clean energy and abandonment of coal. Thus, in Beijing by 2019 gas consumption amounted to about one-third of the city’s total energy balance, a significant increase compared with 2010, when gas accounted for only 15 per cent. The new LNG terminal will help maintain and increase the use of natural gas, thereby significantly improving the environmental situation.
Qingdao Metro Line 6 Project
Another major project in the New Development Bank’s portfolio is Qingdao Metro Line 6 in China. The NDB allocated about US$457.7 million for its implementation. The first phase of Line 6 was opened in April 2024 and immediately received an award from the International Tunnelling Association in the category of “green metro construction technology in complex coastal geological conditions”.
The first phase of Line 6 is more than 30 kilometres long and includes 21 underground stations. It is the largest metro line in China using prefabricated structures and the first driverless metro line in Qingdao. Most importantly, this line is intended to solve the problem of growing traffic congestion, which has become a serious obstacle to the growth and development of the New West Coast Area of Qingdao in Shandong Province. Three rapidly developing economic zones in this part of China lacked environmentally friendly public transport, resulting in road congestion and environmental risks from exhaust emissions.
Other NDB projects
The metro and LNG terminal in China and the transport corridor in India – these are only striking examples of structural projects financed by the NDB in developing countries. All such initiatives address several challenges at once: they improve the economy and the environment and, crucially, significantly enhance the quality of life for millions of people.
One of the most important tasks of the NDB is solving the problems of its member states, contributing to economic growth and improving the living standards of the population to achieve a better future. Today the role of this bank as a special financial institution promoting the development of its members is especially significant,” political commentator of the media of the Islamic Republic of Iran Rouhollah Modabber told TV BRICS in an exclusive interview.
In 2023 and 2024, the New Development Bank approved 10 projects with a total value of US$2.06 billion. The largest number of projects was approved in Brazil and India. The biggest share belonged to initiatives aimed at developing transport infrastructure. In second place were programmes to improve water supply.
I find the Indian ‘Piramal Finance Affordable Housing Project’ very interesting, as it provides housing access through concessional and affordable loans for vulnerable groups in society, as well as the Brazilian ‘Pará Sanitation Development Project’, focused on water supply and sanitation. It is clear that the driving force of the New Development Bank is support for development,” professor of the Faculty of Economic, Business and Communication Sciences at the European University of Madrid Guillermo Miguel Rocafort Perez emphasised in an exclusive interview with TV BRICS.
Experts also note the high approval rate of NDB projects – 62.5 per cent. This demonstrates the feasibility of a large number of such programmes in BRICS countries and their economic justification. These two factors are exactly what the NDB takes into account when approving projects.
As of April 2025, the New Development Bank had examined 3 projects in 2 countries – Brazil and China. At the same time, in 2025 the NDB continued the trend of financing in local currencies.
The NDB also provides financing to Russia. Thus, in 2024 it was announced that US$1.2 billion would be directed towards infrastructure projects in the areas of supporting the development of the judicial system, water supply and sewerage, as well as two additional projects aimed at developing small historical settlements to enhance their tourism potential. For Russia, as for other countries, cooperation with the NDB means access to long-term financial resources on more favourable terms than those offered on the commercial market.
Challenges in the NDB’s work
The NDB specialises in infrastructure projects in the field of sustainable development, and such operations do not always provide the bank with a sufficient level of profitability. Experts say that at times financing such programmes may even contradict sound banking principles. This may limit the Bank’s ability to finance all the projects that shareholder countries would like to receive funding for.
Future challenges for the NDB: establishing a clearing centre and a single currency
The creation of a single currency could put an end to debates about the optimal means of settlement between BRICS countries and NDB investors. However, this issue is still under discussion.
A single currency is undoubtedly needed, but it is technically difficult to implement. Moreover, China is clearly interested in making its national currency, the yuan, the world’s second reserve currency, and it is gradually succeeding. The use of the yuan in trade and investment is expanding, and the digital yuan is advancing particularly well in Asia. This should also be taken into account when introducing national digital currencies,” believes Catherine Gospodarik. Head of the Department of Analytical Economics and Econometrics at Belarusian State University.
As an alternative option for settlements, experts also mention a so-called two-circuit system, in which “transfer roubles”, “transfer rupees”, “transfer reals” and so on would be used as international units of account. To service the “foreign-trade circuits” of national currencies, the creation of a clearing centre could be useful. It should act as a buffer between buyers and sellers, a platform for converting and securitising the currency assets of all participating countries. In such a scenario, the clearing centre could function as a counterparty in the financial market. Transactions could be concluded not between buyers and sellers but with the clearing centre.
A clearing centre can provide flexibility and guarantees in banking processes and be an effective instrument, but it is extremely important not to compromise the banking and financial sovereignty of each country. In any case, if progress is achieved in this direction, it must be very balanced to ensure proper monitoring of any potential challenges,” emphasises Guillermo Miguel Rocafort Perez.
In such a development scenario, specialists say, the New Development Bank could serve as part of this large mechanism, alongside BRICS Pay and investment platforms whose establishment has already been announced. Another important future task could be the creation of an exchange centre with transparent currency rates and new settlement systems with simple transactions between countries. All of these are essential objectives that BRICS and the NDB have yet to tackle.
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