Asian Development Bank Institute

What Asian Development Bank Institute does

The Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) is a Tokyo-based research and capacity-building institute established in 1997 as an integral part of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) institutional structure. Its mandate is to produce actionable research, deliver capacity-building programs, and provide knowledge solutions that support sustainable and inclusive growth across ADB's developing member countries in Asia and the Pacific. Core outputs include books, working papers, policy briefs, and case studies; structured programs such as the "Shaping Asia's Future Prosperity with Quality Growth" flagship, the ADBI-ADB Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, the Asian Policy Dialogue for Resilience and Prosperity, and the City-wide Inclusive Sanitation initiative (with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation); and digital dissemination channels including the ADBI E-Learning platform, Asia Pathways blog, ADBI Podcast, YouTube channel, ThinkAsia open-access knowledge hub, and a research database portal. ADBI also convenes in-person workshops, virtual webinars, and training courses (such as the recurring AMRO-HKMA-ADBI-SEACEN Financial Leadership Training Course) and leads or contributes to the Think7 (G7) and Think20 (G20) policy engagement tracks.

ADBI does not operate as a commercial enterprise. It is funded institutionally through ADB member-country contributions and provides all knowledge products and capacity-building services free of charge to developing member countries. Its competitive positioning rests on its institutional affiliation with ADB, its 28-year accumulation of region-specific development research, and its formal roles within the G7 and G20 think tank ecosystems. The customer base is governmental and intergovernmental — policymakers, central bank officials, and development practitioners — rather than commercial buyers.

Name

Asian Development Bank Institute

Legal name

Asian Development Bank Institute

Website

https://adbi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) is the Tokyo-based research and capacity-building arm of the Asian Development Bank, producing policy research, publications, e-learning, and training programs for ADB's developing member countries across Asia and the Pacific since 1997.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Institutional Funding and Research Services: ADBI is a subsidiary institute of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), established to support developing member countries through research, capacity building, and knowledge solutions. As an ADB institute, it operates primarily through institutional funding from ADB's member country contributions and does not operate on commercial revenue models.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ADBI provides actionable development research, capacity building programs, and knowledge solutions for ADB's developing member countries across Asia and the Pacific. The institute produces multi-format publications (books, working papers, policy briefs, case studies), delivers training through the ADBI E-Learning virtual platform and in-person workshops, and operates the ThinkAsia open-access knowledge hub. Its outputs cover topics including climate change, digital technology, finance sector development, regional cooperation, governance, and sustainable development goals.

Product overview

Asian Development Bank Institute operates as a knowledge and capacity-building institution offering a multi-format research and learning portfolio. The core offerings include research publications (Books, Working Papers, Policy Briefs, Case Studies), e-learning platforms (ADBI E-Learning), knowledge hubs (ThinkAsia, Asia Pathways Blog), and multimedia content (Podcasts, Videos). These are complemented by flagship programs addressing specific development challenges such as quality growth, alternative dispute resolution, climate finance, sanitation, and risk resilience. The institution functions as a platform-plus-programs model where research outputs and learning tools support developing member countries in Asia and the Pacific.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Asia Pathways Blog: The official blog of The Asian Development Bank Institute.
• ADBI E-Learning
• ThinkAsia

Products and services

• Research Publications

Quantifiable outcome

• Shaping Asia's Future Prosperity with Quality Growth flagship program launched to help developing member countries overcome structural bottlenecks

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Asian Development Bank (ADB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerADBI is the research institute of the Asian Development Bank, established to support ADB's developing member countries. ADBI collaborates with ADB on flagship programs including the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, Asian Policy Dialogue for Resilience and Prosperity, and quality growth initiatives.
• Bill & Melinda Gates FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerADBI and Gates Foundation partnership for capacity building and research on sanitation delivery, non-sewered sanitation, and the sanitation value chain in developing member countries.
• GAIP (Global Action on Aging Programme)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerADBI-GAIP Capacity Building for Risk Resilience Program to promote awareness of protection gaps and risk management among developing country stakeholders.
• AMRO (ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office)flagshipImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAMRO-HKMA-ADBI-SEACEN Financial Leadership Training Course 2026 - annual training program for financial sector professionals in the region.
• HKMA (Hong Kong Monetary Authority)flagshipImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-organizer of the annual AMRO-HKMA-ADBI-SEACEN Financial Leadership Training Course for financial sector professionals.
• SEACEN (South-East Asian Central Banks)flagshipImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-organizer of the annual AMRO-HKMA-ADBI-SEACEN Financial Leadership Training Course for central bank and financial sector officials.
• ThinkAsiacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership with ThinkAsia to provide free, open-access global knowledge hub for ADBI research and publications, expanding reach to development practitioners globally.
• Think7flagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerADBI leads the Think7 (T7) initiative, the think tank track of the G7 process, providing policy recommendations to G7 leaders on development issues.
• Think20flagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerADBI participates in Think20 (T20), the think tank engagement group of the G20 process, contributing research and policy advice to G20 discussions.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Overseas Development Institute (ODI): UK-based independent think tank working on international development and humanitarian issues. Comparable as a development-focused research and policy institute with similar knowledge dissemination channels, though more focused on Africa and conflict-affected states.
• International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD): Independent policy research organization focused on sustainable development. Comparable research focus on sustainable development, climate finance, and policy advisory work, with overlap on several ADBI thematic areas.

Direct peers

• China Development Research Foundation (CDRF): Chinese policy research organization focused on development strategy and economic reform. Directly comparable as a national development policy think tank engaged in research, consulting, and policy dialogue for developing economy transformation.
• Institute of Developing Economies (IDE-JETRO): Japan-based research institute under JETRO conducting social science research on developing economies. Direct peer as another Japanese-based Asia development research institute with overlapping regional focus and research publication model.
• Korea Development Institute (KDI): Korea's leading policy research institute, established to support evidence-based economic and social policy. Directly comparable to ADBI as a national/regional development policy think tank focused on Asia, with similar research and capacity building mandates.
• Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA): Regional think tank supporting ASEAN and East Asia economic integration through policy research. Comparable mandate of regional economic policy research and capacity building for developing Asia, with similar institutional structure.

Others

• Brookings Institution: Major US-based public policy think tank with significant Asia policy programs. Adjacent peer with comparable policy research and publication model, though broader in geographic and thematic scope and not focused on ADB's developing member country mandate.

Broad incumbents

• World Bank Group: Global multilateral development institution conducting development economics research and capacity building. Overlapping mission with ADBI in development policy research and knowledge dissemination, but at a vastly larger global scale.
• OECD Development Centre: Part of the OECD focused on development policy research and emerging economy analysis. Comparable mandate of policy research and capacity building for developing countries, though operating within the broader OECD institutional framework.
• United Nations University (UNU): Global research and postgraduate teaching institution of the UN system conducting research on pressing global problems including development economics. Comparable as a multilateral institution with research and capacity building mission, though with broader global scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCLBWdbj1xsBk52uCh3TkBhg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/adbinstitute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Asian Development Bank Institute