WASHINGTON, April 19 (Reuters) – The World Bank on Friday said that 11 countries have pledged to contribute over $11 billion to new hybrid capital and portfolio guarantee instruments designed to expand the bank’s financing capacity by $70 billion over a decade to tackle climate change, pandemics and other global challenges.
The voluntary contributions, announced at World Bank and International Monetary Fund spring meetings in Washington, form the largest single enhancement to the World Bank’s balance sheet since the U.S. and other shareholders expanded its mission beyond fighting poverty in 2022.
In April 2023, World Bank shareholders endorsed an increase in the bank’s leverage ratio to boost lending capacity by some $40 billion over 10 years and expanded bilateral guarantees to unlock another $10 billion in financing.
The bulk of the latest funding pledge, around $9 billion, was made by the U.S. to the new Portfolio Guarantee Platform which backs private loans and equity investments in qualifying projects.
Source: REUTER
