Jin Liqun (C, back), president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), attends a press conference in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 17, 2016. This was the first press conference of the AIIB, a China-initiated multilateral bank, after it started operational on Saturday. [Photo: Xinhua/Li Xin]

The new president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Jin Liqun has led the first meeting of the bank's board of governors.

After the meeting, Jin met with media to outline some priorities of the bank going forward.

Jin Liqun, the new president of the AIIB, welcomed the formal inauguration of the bank after the first meeting of its board of governors.

"We have just concluded, very successfully, the inaugural meeting of AIIB's first board of governor's meeting and I'm delighted to advise you the bank is open for business. I'm deeply committed to run this institution according to the highest possible standard, according to the principles outlined in the bank's articles' remit: transparency, openness, accountability, and independence."

He said it was critical to address Asia's infrastructure needs in order to boost economic growth in the region.

"We plan to bring the first loans for approval before the end of this year. As we all know, Asia faces severe connectivity gaps and significant infrastructure bottlenecks. It is critical to address this need because good infrastructure is a foundation for robust economic growth and expands economic opportunities and improves the quality of life for everybody."

The president also gave a brief introduction on its "oversight" mechanism which will watch over its business operations.

"We must build a very good corporate culture. According to the design of the bank, we will have (a) very good system. There will be division of power and responsibility between the board and the management. The board would exercise oversight of the management in addition to the designing, approval of the major policies."

As to the currency used for financing in the bank, Jin Liqun said it will offer loans in the U.S. dollar.

The AIIB is expected to lend 10 to 15 billion dollars a year for the first five or six years and will start operations in the second quarter of 2016.

Jin said that the bank's capital would include a number of currencies.

"For the sake of raising capital from the international market, we may raise capital in U.S. dollars, Euro, RMB, and some other currencies, to benefit the borrowing countries."

Jin also revealed that 30 of its 57 founding members have approved the charter domestically and become "full members".

The 30 represent more than 74 percent of shares in the bank.

Formally known as the Articles of Agreement, the charter is a crucial condition for the bank to be legally valid and member countries have to pass it in their domestic legislatures to become full members before the end of this year.