AIIB approves two new applicants, expands membership to 86

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) announced Wednesday that its board of governors has adopted resolutions approving applications from Papua New Guinea and Kenya to join the bank, bringing its total approved membership to 86.

"We're very happy to welcome Papua New Guinea and Kenya as prospective members of AIIB," AIIB Vice President and Corporate Secretary Danny Alexander said.

"AIIB now has 86 approved members from six continents. This shows a strong commitment to promoting infrastructure development through rules-based multilateral cooperation with high standards of governance," Alexander said.

The two prospective members will officially join AIIB once they complete the required domestic processes and deposit the first installment of capital with the bank.

The shares allocated to the new prospective members come from AIIB's existing pool of unallocated shares, according to AIIB.

With 57 signatories at its launch in January 2016, the Beijing-headquartered AIIB aims to improve social and economic outcomes in Asia and beyond by investing in sustainable infrastructure and other productive sectors.