Eurasian Development Bank gains access to China Interbank Bond Market

ASTANA. June 23 (Interfax) - The Eurasian Development Bank has obtained a license to operate on the China Interbank Bond Market (CIBM) gaining direct access to one of the world's largest debt markets and opening a new channel for yuan-denominated project financing.

The license, confirmed on the official website of the People's Bank of China, allows the EDB to trade cash bonds, including government and corporate securities, conduct bond repurchase transactions and trade derivatives on the China Interbank Bond Market, the bank said in a statement Tuesday.

"Obtaining the CIBM license is an important step for the EDB. We are not only diversifying our securities portfolio and gaining a flexible tool for managing yuan liquidity," said EDB Chairman Nikolai Podguzov. "This also opens up additional opportunities for financing the bank's investment projects in yuan, especially in countries and sectors where the Chinese currency is becoming increasingly significant. In essence, this is another bridge between our projects and one of the world's largest capital markets."

The CIBM is among the largest and most dynamic bond markets globally. According to the Bank for International Settlements and the People's Bank of China, outstanding bonds on the market exceed 160 trillion yuan, or roughly $22 trillion, second in size only to the U.S. market.

The EDB is a multilateral development bank investing across the Eurasian region. By the end of December 2025, its accumulated portfolio comprised 326 projects with total investments of $19.6 billion, focused on transport infrastructure, digital systems, green energy, agriculture, industry and mechanical engineering.

Under its 2022-2026 strategy, the bank is pursuing three flagship initiatives: the Central Asian Water and Energy Complex, the Eurasian Transport Framework and the Eurasian Commodity Distribution Network.