BRICS Pushes Cross-Border Payments, Local Currencies

New Delhi: BRICS countries are set to deepen cooperation on cross-border payments, local-currency settlements, development finance and financial resilience, with the grouping’s finance track under India’s 2026 Chairship laying the groundwork for more practical financial integration among member economies.

According to the BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Joint Statement, the grouping will continue work on cross-border payment interoperability and explore trade settlements and investments using local currencies, as members seek to strengthen economic resilience amid geopolitical tensions, trade fragmentation, protectionism and policy uncertainty.

The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, who met in Jaipur on August 12-13 and in Mumbai on September 10, said the expanded BRICS membership had enhanced the diversity and representativeness of the grouping. They reiterated their commitment to strengthening economic and financial cooperation under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”.

The statement said BRICS members would continue exploring practical solutions for efficient cross-border payments, including interoperability of payment and messaging channels and trade settlements and investments using local currencies.