Thailand has joined 20 prospective founding member countries in establishing the Chinese-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which is to fund infrastructure projects in the region.
Finance Minister Sommai Phasee signed a non-binding multilateral memorandum of understanding (MoU) yesterday at the Apec Finance Ministers' meeting in Beijing to set up the AIIB, said ministry spokesman Kritsada Jinavijarana.
Other signatories included Malaysia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Singapore.
The planned bank is to have start-up capital of US$50 billion, half of which will be come from China and the rest from other Asian countries.
The AIIB will use commercial funding from financial markets to raise the necessary resources to provide competitive loans to member countries developing infrastructure projects for transportation, telecommunications and energy.
As Thailand kicks off its 2.4-trillion-baht infrastructure development plan, spanning eight years through 2022, the AIIB could be used as a source of funding.
The bank was proposed by China as part of its efforts to extend its clout in the region.