For Baroness Fairhead, a minister of state at the UK’s department for international trade, the perceived benefits of China’s Belt and Road Initiative are clear.
“Through our leading financial institutions, we can add real value in a way few, if any, countries can match,” she said in May, pointing to ambitions to establish a central role for London in “funding and facilitating” projects.
Similar sentiments reverberate across the global financial industry. The Chinese strategy, which is expected to ultimately involve close to $1.12tn of infrastructure deals across 87 countries, is seen as a vast opportunity for international capital. However, given the funding capabilities of the Chinese banking sector, it remains unclear how much business will be left for western financial institutions.