Russia will present a new plan for an international financial system to the BRICS countries at the group’s summit next week, Reuters reported, citing a document distributed by Moscow to journalists before the event.
According to the news agency, the proposed system would be immune to Western sanctions and could end the dominance of the US dollar in international markets and transactions. The report states that the new payment platform is based on blockchain technology and uses digital tokens backed by the participating countries’ national currencies.
This format would enable the simple and secure exchange of such currencies without the ubiquitous dollar transactions. The new platform reportedly would also rely on a network of interconnected commercial banks through the central banks of the BRICS countries.
The proposal allegedly includes the creation of a “BRICS Clear” platform for securities trading settlement. It also encourages member states to establish a common rating methodology but does not mention the creation of a common BRICS rating agency. The document reportedly accuses existing international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, of serving the interests of the US and its allies.
Moscow has not commented on Reuters’ report and has not made public documents quoted in it. Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov presented a proposal for reforming the international financial system to the other finance ministers and central bank governors of the BRICS countries last week.
This time, he also criticized the West for trying to use the international financial system and the US dollar as tools for political pressure. Siluanov stated that the BRICS countries discussed alternatives to the Western-dominated global payment system, settlement deposits, and credit rating agencies.
The minister also suggested using new financial digital assets for international settlements. “It is faster, cheaper, and more reliable. Transactions take place without involving banks and infrastructure from third countries,” he explained. However, the specific details of the proposal remain unclear.
Russia is actively reducing the use of the dollar in international transactions.
“The mutual settlements between Russia and its largest trading partner, China, are conducted using national currencies (rubles and yuan) in more than 95% of cases,” said Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in August.
Siluanov believes that the BRICS countries will further reduce the share of the US dollar in mutual transactions in favor of national currencies.
The BRICS summit will be held next week in Kazan, southwestern Russia. Moscow currently chairs the organization, whose members include Brazil, India, China, and South Africa, as well as Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Ethiopia. Russian officials say that more than 30 countries, including NATO member Turkey, have requested to join the economic alliance.
