ADB boosts financing amid sweeping institutional reforms

$29.3b commitment targets jobs, growth and private investment

FE Team | Published: April 23, 2026 22:47:12

FE REPORT
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sharply increased its financial support to Asia and the Pacific, committing record resources in 2025 as the region faces mounting economic and structural challenges.
Alongside the expanded funding, the lender has introduced major institutional reforms aimed at strengthening its capacity to support development, attract private investment and respond more effectively to evolving regional needs.
The ADB committed $29.3 billion from its own resources in 2025, while advancing key institutional reforms to help Asia and the Pacific navigate change and turn challenges into opportunities.
The ADB Annual Report 2025, published on Thursday, highlights the bank's operational, institutional and financial performance in a year marked by complexity and uncertainty.
"In 2025, ADB delivered unprecedented levels of support, with a 20 per cent increase over 2024 and expected impacts of more than 3.3 million jobs and benefits for over 180 million people," ADB President Masato Kanda said in a statement.
"This shows ADB's ability to deliver at a scale and with the speed that matches the demands of Asia and the Pacific."
Loans, grants, equity investments, guarantees and technical assistance extended to governments and the private sector rose 20 per cent year-on-year to $29.3 billion, supported by an additional $14.7 billion from partners.
Private sector development was a key priority for the ADB in 2025, accounting for $5.5 billion of its commitments, while half of its public sector financing directly supported infrastructure, reforms and institutions aimed at unlocking private investment.
The ADB noted that it is uniquely positioned to support private sector development, as its public and private sector operations are integrated under a single institutional framework, sharing one legal structure and balance sheet.
The Manila-based development partner committed $8.3 billion in Central and West Asia, $1.4 billion in East Asia, $680 million in the Pacific, $9.7 billion in South Asia and $9.0 billion in Southeast Asia, with $302 million allocated to regional projects.
Finance, transport and public sector management were the top three sectors receiving funding, according to the report.
The ADB also approved major institutional reforms in 2025 to enhance its support for developing member countries.
These included an amendment to its charter removing lending limitations, enabling a 50 per cent increase in financing capacity without a general capital increase from shareholders; an updated energy policy to strengthen energy access and security; streamlined procurement procedures to improve quality, sustainability and value for money; and a new approach to support critical minerals-to-manufacturing value chains for renewable energy and digital technologies.
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