Australia will join the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank as a prospective founding member, Mathias Cormann, Australia's finance minister, said at a panel discussion during the Boao Forum for Asia on AIIB.

He said he had met China's finance minister, Lou Jiwei, on Friday and will formally announce the decision on Sunday.

The announcement followed Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov's announcement to join the bank Saturday morning. South Korea also announced its decision to apply. The application deadline is March 31.