Ecuador and the First AIIB Project in Latin America

Ecuador became the first Latin American country to benefit from AIIB’s vast capital base as a non-regional member in November 2020, with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) approving $50 million in financing.

Project 000435 is a $50 million sovereign-guaranteed loan to Corporación Financiera Nacional B.P., Ecuador’s largest national bank. The goal is to alleviate the liquidity limitations that micro, small, and medium-sized businesses (MSMEs) are experiencing as a result of the COVID-19-induced economic crisis. The World Bank is also helping to fund the project.

“CFN is a development bank that as an instrument of public policy allows channelling resources to companies for investment and working capital,” Pablo Patiño told ReporteAsia.

Patiño served as CFN’s general manager from August to November 2020, as well as an advisor to the Board of Directors. He was in charge of the AIIB’s transaction process and approval.

“Prior to the talks with AIIB, the CFN had finalized a $260 million financing with the World Bank, so the strategy of both parties was to allocate AIIB resources to the financing program previously set up with the World Bank, which facilitated approval by the AIIB,” Patiño noted.