Why BRICS Is Exploring Cross-Border Payments

Source: The Hindu | Original Published At: 2026-09-05 20:46:00 UTC

Key Points

• The 18th BRICS summit in New Delhi, with India as chair, is expected to push for mechanisms to facilitate cross-border payments among members.
• Finance ministries and central bank representatives from BRICS countries met in Jaipur on August 12-13 to discuss financial cooperation, payments, and wider use of national currencies in trade settlement.
• Current cross-border payments often rely on correspondent banks and SWIFT, with multiple currency conversions and fees that can raise transaction costs.
• BRICS discussions include linking national payment systems and using central bank digital currencies to settle transactions more directly and reduce settlement risk.
• Some existing initiatives, such as Project Nexus and mBridge, are not BRICS initiatives, though mBridge involves central banks of China and the United Arab Emirates.
• India has framed the payment-system discussions as a way to cut transaction costs and speed settlement, while some Russian and Brazilian proposals have emphasized reducing dependence on the U.S. dollar.