Asian Development Bank (ADB): Mandate, Members, and Philippine Impact
The ADB is the region’s leading multilateral development bank, financing infrastructure, climate action, and private sector growth across Asia and the Pacific. This guide covers what it does, who owns it, how it is funded, and the honest answer to whether there is an ADB office to visit in Tagum City.
The Bank at a Glance
ADB was modeled closely on the World Bank and uses a weighted voting system in which votes track each member’s capital subscription. Here is the institutional record.
Asian Development Bank
Regional multilateral development bank for Asia and the Pacific
- Full name
- Asian Development Bank (ADB)
- Established
- 19 December 1966
- Headquarters
- 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, Philippines
- President
- Masato Kanda, in office since 24 February 2025
- Membership
- 69 members, 50 regional and 19 nonregional
- Staff
- About 3,769 people from more than 60 countries
- Credit rating
- AAA, reaffirmed by Moody’s in April 2025
- Reach
- 42 field offices in Asia and the Pacific, plus representative offices in Washington, Frankfurt, Tokyo, and Sydney
The Six Focus Areas
About 80 percent of ADB lending is public sector work concentrated in five operational areas, with private sector development running alongside them.
Education
Enrollment in the region has climbed sharply, yet learning outcomes and skills gaps still hold back growth. ADB funds schools, teacher training, and higher education, including the ADB Japan Scholarship Program that enrolls about 300 students a year.
Climate and Environment
ADB brands itself the Climate Bank for Asia and the Pacific, with a target of $100 billion in cumulative climate financing from 2019 to 2030 across renewable energy, resilient cities, and coastal protection.
Finance Sector
Capital market development, microfinance, and small business credit. Trade finance is one of the busiest parts of the private sector arm, which backs billions of dollars in letters of credit across Asia each year.
Infrastructure
Transport, energy, water, sanitation, and urban development. This is the largest slice of the portfolio and the reason ADB touches ports, railways, power grids, and water systems across its member countries.
Regional Cooperation
Programs such as CAREC, the Greater Mekong Subregion, and BIMP EAGA connect economies through shared roads, power, and trade rules, lowering the cost of moving goods across borders.
Private Sector
Through debt, equity, guarantees, and mezzanine finance, ADB supports companies whose projects have clear social benefit. It usually holds no more than 25 percent of any single transaction so commercial lenders follow its lead.
How ADB Is Funded and What It Offers
ADB raises most of its money by issuing bonds in the world’s capital markets, then lends at two speeds: market terms for middle income members and concessional, lower interest terms for poorer ones.
Portfolio shape, end of 2021
Sovereign lending of $104 billion against a private sector portfolio of $14.2 billion. Sovereign includes 713 loans, 392 grants, and 915 technical assistance projects.
Hard and soft loans
Hard loans carry commercial terms and go mainly to middle income countries. Soft loans sit at lower interest rates for the poorest members. Since 2017 both are sourced from the bank’s ordinary capital resources.
Five funding sources
Bond issues on international markets, member country contributions, retained earnings from lending, loan repayments, and cofinancing tapped from official, commercial, and export credit partners.
Green, Blue, and Theme Bonds
ADB is one of the largest issuers of green bonds in Asia. It also issues blue bonds for ocean and marine projects and theme bonds tied to specific development goals, all backed by its AAA rating.
Cofinancing and guarantees
Beyond direct lending, the private sector arm provides guarantees, equity, and mezzanine finance, and mobilizes partner capital. In 2021 it committed about $13.5 billion for the pandemic response and drew a further $12.9 billion in cofinancing.
Regional Growth Slows but Holds Up
Developing Asia and the Pacific is expected to grow 5.0 percent in 2026 and 5.1 percent in 2027, down from 5.5 percent in 2025. ADB flags a strengthening El Niño and renewed conflict as the main risks.
2026 growth forecast
| Economy | GDP growth |
|---|---|
| Vietnam | 7.8% |
| India | 7.0% |
| Indonesia | 5.2% |
| Malaysia | 4.9% |
| Kazakhstan | 4.8% |
| People’s Republic of China | 4.6% |
| Bangladesh | 3.7% |
| Pakistan | 3.7% |
| Philippines | 3.3% |
| Thailand | 2.0% |
| Türkiye | 2.8% |
2026 inflation forecast
| Economy | Inflation |
|---|---|
| People’s Republic of China | 0.9% |
| Malaysia | 2.0% |
| Thailand | 2.5% |
| Indonesia | 3.3% |
| Vietnam | 4.3% |
| India | 5.0% |
| Philippines | 5.9% |
| Pakistan | 7.1% |
| Bangladesh | 8.7% |
| Kazakhstan | 10.4% |
| Türkiye | 31.5% |
Source: ADB, Asian Development Outlook, September 2026 update. Figures are forecasts and can change with each edition.
Who Owns and Runs the ADB
The highest policy making body is the Board of Governors, one representative per member. It elects a 12 member Board of Directors, eight from the region and four from outside it, and the president, who chairs that board.
| Member | Share of votes |
|---|---|
| Japan | 15.571% |
| United States | 15.571% |
| People’s Republic of China | 6.429% |
| India | 6.317% |
| Australia | 5.773% |
Japan and the United States lead
Both hold the largest single blocks of shares at about 15.57 percent each. Traditionally the president has always been Japanese, reflecting Japan’s founding role and continued financial weight.
A regional bank, not a retail bank
ADB is owned by governments. It has no depositors, no retail branches, and no customer accounts. It lends to member states, to private companies, and to public private partnerships, and reports publicly through an annual report.
Sixty Years in Six Moments
From a contested vote for its host city to a pandemic era surge and a new president in 2025, these are the turns that shaped the bank.
-
Manila wins the seat, Japan wins the presidency
Eight cities wanted the headquarters. In three rounds of voting at the Manila ministerial conference, Manila edged out Tokyo by nine votes to eight, and the bank opened on 19 December 1966. Takeshi Watanabe was elected its first president.
-
Poverty reduction becomes the goal
After the 1997 Asian financial crisis, ADB pivoted toward social safety nets. It approved its largest single loan, a $4 billion emergency facility for South Korea, and in 1999 adopted poverty reduction as its overarching goal.
-
Capital tripled to $165 billion
Responding to the global financial crisis, the Board of Governors agreed to triple ADB’s capital base from $55 billion to $165 billion, the largest increase in its history and the first since 1994.
-
Pandemic response and vaccines
ADB committed about $13.5 billion to help members fight COVID-19 and mobilized a further $12.9 billion in cofinancing. A $9 billion facility, APVAX, funded vaccine procurement, logistics, and distribution.
-
Masato Kanda becomes president
Kanda succeeded Masatsugu Asakawa as the 11th president of ADB and chairperson of its Board of Directors, taking office on 24 February 2025.
-
60 years, a Philippine package, and a Malaysia office
ADB marks 60 years in 2026. It approved $1.5 billion to help the Philippines cushion the impact of the Middle East conflict, and confirmed a new Malaysia office expected to open in the first quarter of 2027. Its 2025 results reached 77.4 million people, installed 1,500 megawatts of renewable capacity, and supported 1.5 million jobs.
Is There an ADB Office in Tagum City?
Short answer: no. ADB has no retail branches anywhere, and no office in Tagum City or anywhere in Davao del Norte.
The honest answer
ADB is a multilateral institution that lends to governments and companies, not a commercial bank with tellers and accounts. If you are searching for an ADB branch to visit, there is nothing to visit. Its Philippine work is coordinated from its headquarters at 6 ADB Avenue in Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, and through 42 field offices across the region.
How members actually engage
Governments borrow and implement projects. Companies take part by bidding on ADB funded tenders, or by borrowing through accredited financial institutions that on lend ADB lines, including under its trade and supply chain finance program.
Where Philippine operations sit
The Philippines is a founding member and host country. Country strategy, projects, and the country office are managed from Metro Manila, so all formal ADB business in the Philippines runs through that channel rather than a provincial desk.
What a Tagum business can do
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Questions About the Asian Development Bank
Short answers to what people ask most about the ADB.
What is the Asian Development Bank?
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional multilateral development bank that promotes economic growth and cooperation in Asia and the Pacific. Founded in 1966 and headquartered in Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, it provides loans, grants, technical assistance, and equity investments to its member countries.
Is there an ADB branch in Tagum City?
No. ADB is not a retail bank and has no branches for the public to visit. There is no ADB office in Tagum City or in Davao del Norte. Its Philippine operations are managed from its headquarters in Metro Manila.
Who owns the ADB?
ADB is owned by its 69 member governments, 50 from the region and 19 from outside it. Japan and the United States hold the largest voting shares at about 15.57 percent each, followed by China at 6.43 percent, India at 6.32 percent, and Australia at 5.77 percent.
Who is the president of the ADB?
Masato Kanda has been president of ADB and chairperson of its Board of Directors since 24 February 2025. He is the 11th president in the bank’s history and, following tradition, is Japanese.
How is the ADB funded?
ADB raises capital mainly by issuing bonds in international markets, and it also draws on member contributions, retained earnings from lending, and loan repayments. Its senior debt carries a AAA credit rating, reaffirmed by Moody’s in April 2025, which lets it borrow cheaply and pass the savings to developing members.
What is the ADB growth forecast for 2026?
In its September 2026 outlook, ADB projected growth in developing Asia and the Pacific at 5.0 percent for 2026 and 5.1 percent for 2027, down from 5.5 percent in 2025. For the Philippines, it forecast 3.3 percent growth and 5.9 percent inflation for 2026.
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