Ordinary Capital Resources (OCR)

ADB’s OCR operations are diverse, covering agriculture and natural resources, education, energy, finance, health and social protection, industry and trade, public sector management, transport and information and communication technology, multisector, and water supply and other municipal infrastructure and services. Regular market-based OCR loans are generally made to developing member countries (DMCs) that have attained a higher level of economic development while concessional OCR loans are made to lower-income DMCs. Regular OCR also supports ADB’s private sector (nonsovereign) operations in all DMCs.

An innovation to combine concessional lending operations with OCR balance sheet to enhance ADB’s lending capacity took effect on 1 January 2017.

OCR Funding

Funding sources for OCR include paid-in capital, retained earnings (reserves), and proceeds from debt issuance. To finance its OCR lending operations, ADB issues debt securities in the international and domestic capital markets.

ADB's debt securities carry the highest possible investment ratings from major international credit rating agencies.

ADB's Classification and Graduation Policy determines the eligibility of developing member countries (DMCs) to borrow based on two main criteria, (i) per capita income and (ii) creditworthiness. DMCs are classified into:

• Group A (Concessional assistance-only): those in need of greatest concessionality and eligible for Asian Development Fund (ADF) grants
• Group B (OCR blend): those that need some concessionality, and
• Group C (Regular OCR only): those in need of least concessionality.

DMCs within these groups are further differentiated to determine the mix of funds and lending terms they can access, based on ADB’s (i) concessional assistance policy and (ii) policy on diversified financing terms.