NDB moves into new building in Shanghai

The New Development Bank on Tuesday moved into a newly constructed office building in Shanghai, becoming the first major multilateral organization to set up its permanent headquarters in the Chinese metropolis.

The 30-floor headquarters building covers more than 120,000 square meters.

"Today is a very important day for the New Development Bank and is also a very important day for the city of Shanghai," said Marcos Troyjo, the president of the bank, on the headquarters building handover and move-in ceremony.

"As the first multilateral institution headquartered in Shanghai, the NDB contributes a shining star to the constellation of Shanghai's profile in the global financial universe."

The development bank was established in 2015 by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and has a financing portfolio of $30 billion for 80 projects in areas such as clean energy, water sanitation, transportation, and digital infrastructure in emerging economies as of September.

On Sept 2, the bank announced its first membership expansion to include the United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and Bangladesh as its new members.

"When we have these new members coming in, we have more realities on which we can touch, and more good that we can bring to those populations. And they contribute to our capital structure, ideas, projects and experiences," Troyjo said.

He added the bank's membership expansion will continue gradually in a balanced manner.

Finance Minister Liu Kun said in a congratulatory video speech the new headquarters building is a symbol of unity and collaboration of the BRICS countries and other emerging economies.

"We will continue supporting the New Development Bank, and work with other members to make it an important global platform of multilateralism," said Liu, adding the bank's achievements in the past six years have earned it more recognition and increasing global influence.

"China will hold the rotating presidency of the BRICS countries in 2022, and hopes the bank can actively organize and participate in related activities," he added.

Troyjo said 2022 is a very important year as people look for economic recovery.

"Many countries around the world face very tough challenges that need international cooperation," he said. "We're looking forward to the leadership of China in the next round of the BRICS presidency."

Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng said the municipal government will step up its cooperation with the bank to inject vitality to global recovery, support financing green and digital projects, and strengthen the city's position as an international finance hub.