BRICS Must Prioritise New Development Bank

Source: Hindustan Times | Original Published At: 2026-09-11 01:09:33 UTC

Key Points

• BRICS expansion since 2023 has increased the bloc's political outreach, while the New Development Bank has expanded separately and does not have automatic membership links with BRICS.
• The New Development Bank originally had five founding shareholders with equal subscribed capital and has since added Bangladesh, the UAE, Egypt, Algeria, and Uzbekistan, with Uruguay admitted as a prospective member.
• New Development Bank rules keep the founding members' combined voting power at a minimum of 55% and cap non-founding members at 7% of total voting power.
• The bank has set a target to provide 30% of its financing commitments in member countries' national currencies and has raised funds in renminbi and South African rand, with an Indian issue planned.
• The 2025 BRICS Leaders' Declaration agreed to incubate the BRICS Multilateral Guarantees initiative within the New Development Bank and encouraged dialogue with the BRICS Interbank Cooperation Mechanism.
• The New Development Bank's collaboration with private capital is growing, including discussions with India, because infrastructure needs in the Global South exceed what the bank can finance alone.
• The article argues that BRICS should use the New Development Bank as a central institution for financial innovations to avoid fragmented parallel mechanisms and strengthen durable economic and financial capacity.