The BRICS’ New Development Bank – aimed at mobilising infrastructure and sustainable development projects in developing nations – was officially launched in Shanghai on Tuesday, Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

BRICS refers to a bloc of five emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

China’s Finance Minister, Lou Jiwei, said – as quoted by Xinhua – that the new bank was a BRICS initiative created to encourage “all-inclusive co-operation” among developing countries.

“Its creation is to meet the urgent demand of such countries in infrastructure construction and beyond,” Mr Lou said.

The Minister stated the bank would complement the existing international banking system, instead of challenging it, Xinhua reported.

The President of the New Development Bank, K.V. Kamath, pledged – as quoted by the Chinese news outlet – that the bank would “listen carefully” to its members and “try to offer tailor-made services for them”. Mr Kamath, who is a former official at the International Monetary Fund, also stressed that “countries should closely co-operate”.

According to Xinhua, China’s accumulated investment in the other four BRICS member-states surpassed US$55 billion at the end of last year. China, it reported, is currently the largest trading partner of Brazil, Russia and South Africa, as well as being India’s second largest trading partner.

The combined gross domestic product (GDP) of the five economies of the BRICS accounts for about one fifth of the world’s total GDP, the report added.