Ahead of the New Development Bank's annual meeting here, the multilateral institute's president, K V KAMATH, says it plans to issue $300-500 million worth of 'masala bonds' by August. A talk with Arup Roychoudhury on its priorities for the year ahead and some policy issues. Edited excerpts: What is the New Development Bank's plan for the year and which sectors in India will it focus on?Last year, we did $1.5 billion of lending. This year, we plan to lend $2.5-$3 bn. We raised money last year through renminbi bonds worth roughly $450 million. So, we have got our feet wet and got cracking. This year, we will also look at issuing masala bonds (issued abroad but denominated in rupees) worth $300-500 mn. That will happen by July-August, once we have these rated by international rating agencies.Our focus is on sustainable infrastructure. Within that, we have prioritised 'green' projects. Other areas we are focusing on include water projects and roads. Areas which will open up are various ...
