BRICS Business Forum: Piyush Goyal Proposes Linking BRICS Payment Systems with India’s UPI

Source: Navabharat | Original Published At: 2026-09-11 08:30:52 UTC

Key Points

• At the BRICS Business Forum 2026, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal called on BRICS members and partner countries to connect their payment systems with India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
• He said UPI has crossed 250 billion annual transactions, accounting for more than half of global transactions, and is accepted in 11 countries.
• Goyal urged BRICS countries to increase trade in local currencies, make digital trade more globally accessible, and cooperate on emerging technologies.
• He noted that BRICS accounts for about one-fourth of global trade and that India is a key pillar of intra-BRICS trade.
• India highlighted engineering goods and electronics as major components of its manufactured exports and described itself as the world's pharmacy.
• He appealed to BRICS member and partner countries to open markets, simplify regulatory processes, and accelerate shipment clearance.
• The forum was held during a two-day BRICS summit hosted by India amid global economic uncertainty linked to geopolitical tensions and tariff policies.