Regional bank in the works: Finance Ministry

China has begun preparations to set up a multilateral bank to fund infrastructure projects in Asia, the Ministry of Finance said on Friday in an online statement.

The ministry said the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank would have an initial paid-in capital of $50 billion, contributed by its members.

The amount and proportion of capital contributed by each member will be decided through discussions, and the capital can be increased as needed, the statement quoted Finance Minister Lou Jiwei as saying.