Danny Alexander appointed as AIIB vice president

The Beijing-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has appointed five vice presidents as it prepares to implement its investment strategy in the Far East, according to a statement. 

Among them is the UK’s Danny Alexander, who's also been named corporate secretary and member of the executive management team at the Chinese-led lender. 

Alexander, a former Chief Secretary to the UK Treasury, has played an active role in efforts to foster international cooperation on tax, trade and transparency during the UK G8 presidency. 

His tenure in the UK government saw him focus on infrastructure policy and delivery, leading to the country's first National Infrastructure Plan. He also helped establish the Green Investment Bank, a clean energy-focused lender, as well as the UK Guarantee Scheme for infrastructure projects. 

His primary role in AIIB will be to manage communications between and among the bank’s management, the board of directors and the board of governors. 

The UK Chancellor this week also confirmed that the country, leading a constituency of AIIB members from wider Europe, will have one of the twelve seats that make up the AIIB’s board of directors. 

Kyttack Hong, chairman and chief executive officer of the Korean Development Bank (KDB), will oversee the bank’s risk management activities, including operational and financial risk. In his 30-year career, Hong led the merger of KDB, KDB Financial Group and the Korea Finance Corporation into a consolidated KDB. 

With 30 years of experience in Indian Administrative Services, DJ Pandian will take the role of chief investment officer. Pandian's previous role involved working on liberalising Indian infrastructure policy to attract international investment to sectors including power, airlines, ports and telecoms. 

Joachim von Amsberg, a German vice president for development finance at the World Bank, will be vice president for policy and strategy. During his 25 years at the World Bank, he served as country director for Indonesia and the Philippines and managed the World Bank’s operational portfolios and analytical work programmes. 

Indonesia’s Luky Eko Wuryanto, appointed as chief administration officer, currently serves as Deputy Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure Acceleration and Regional Development as well as Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs in the Indonesian government. He is leading a committee that oversees 225 strategic projects worth over $100 billion and 22 priority projects totalling $85 billion. 

With a starting capital of $100 billion, AIIB seeks to finance infrastructure projects across Asia under the One Belt One Road initiative proposed by China’s President Xi Jinping. The bank is expected to offer loans to its first batch of projects by mid-2016.