China's Evolution from "Rules Taker" to "Rules Maker" in Development Finance

As China's economic influence expands, so does its ambition to shape the very system that once constrained it.

In this episode of The China-Global South Podcast, Eric speaks with Greg Chin and Kevin Gallagher from Boston University's Global Development Policy Center about their new book that details China's transformation from a "rules taker" within the Bretton Woods system to a "rules maker" who's now reshaping the international development finance architecture.

Greg and Kevin explore the country's growing role in the IMF and World Bank, its creation of new institutions like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the New Development Bank (NDB), and what this means for developing nations navigating between Western and Chinese-led finance.

CHAPTERS:

• Introduction – A brief calm in U.S.–China tensions
• Rule Taker → Rule Maker – China's rise inside global finance
• Building Alternatives – Creating the AIIB and NDB
• Two-Way Countervailing Power – Leveraging inside–outside influence
• Green Finance and "Next Practices" – Raising the bar on development norms
• Debt and Diplomacy – How China handles restructuring
• Institutional Layering – Shaping without dismantling
• Washington's Dilemma – Anxiety over losing control
• The Global South's New Agency – More options, more leverage
• A New Multilateral Moment – Uncertain future for global governance

SHOW NOTES:

• 📚 Read the book (free download)

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