CARACAS, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela and three other members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) have been mulling over the establishment of a new development bank, a top Venezuelan official said on Friday.

    Related topics about the bank will be discussed on Saturday as Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez hosts a summit with leaders from Nicaragua, Bolivia and Cuba, members of the ALBA.

    According to Bolivarian News Agency, the bank will be launched with start-up capital of 1 billion to 1.5 billion U.S. dollars.

    In December 2007, Chavez and the leaders of six other South American countries launched a similar venture, the Bank of the South, which is projected to offer loans with fewer strings attached than those given by the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    The ALBA, first proposed by Chavez in 2001, is aimed at strengthening trade and economic cooperation among countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, while snubbing U.S.-backed free-trade deals.