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Russia's Ministry of Finance published a proposal to develop a distributed ledger technology (DLT) based cross-border payment infrastructure that serves the interests of the BRICs countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates). The BRICS Cross-Border Payment Initiative (BCBP) project is aimed at circumventing the U.S. dollar dominated global financial system, and sanction-proofing member countries. The report was co-authored by the Bank of Russia and Yakov & Partners, as Russia prepares to host leaders for the annual BRICS summit, in Kazan from October 22 to 24. https://minfin.gov.ru/common/upload/press_center/2024/10/BRICS_Research_on_IMFS_20241008.pdf https://pdfupload.io/docs/e1231f66

The BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - are reportedly planning to develop a single payment transaction system between the member countries, which could be carried out in a still-to-be-developed "BRICS" cryptocurrency.

Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov announced that Belarus, Bolivia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan will become BRICS partners on January 1, 2025. These would be in addition to the existing member countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. In addition, over two dozen more countries have shown interest in a systemic dialogue with BRICS: Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chad, Colombia, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Honduras, Laos, Kuwait, Morocco, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Palestine, Senegal, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Syria, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe. https://tass.com/politics/1892171

The five-nation BRICS group Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) is reportedly working on a blockchain-based digital payment system. Development work will also continue on the Contingent Reserve Arrangement, aimed at reducing reliance on U.S. dollars. https://tass.com/politics/1755521

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has handed the mBridge central bank digital currency (CBDC) based cross-border payments platform over to the central banks of China, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). According to BIS General Manager Agustín Carstens, this was not because of "political considerations" but because after the project's four years it is "at a level where the partners can carry it on by themselves". This has happened already with other projects such as the Swiss National Bank's Project Helvetia. By "political considerations", Mr. Carstens was referring to stories that during discussions among central bankers and finance chiefs at the October 2024 International Monetary Fund and World Bank Annual Meetings, concerns were expressed about the fact that China is supplying the platform's key technological backbone, and that China and the UAE are BRICS members. (In that regard it is notable that the U.S. Federal Reserve has not joined the project.) https://www.bis.org/speeches/sp241031.htm

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has proposed creating a cryptocurrency for Muslim countries as an alternative to the US dollar. Rouhani said the U.S. has used economic sanctions as the "main tools of domineering hegemony and bullying" of other nations. Last month, BRICS nations also proposed creating a cryptocurrency for settling payment transactions between the group "

The proposed two models would be modest contributions to introducing digital currencies for the sole use of cross-border interbank clearing and settlement. The concerns about verification of AML, CFT, KYC and tax evasion would be addressed as participating banks are properly supervised by their respective supervisory authorities. Transactions in 'bricks' would be authorized and executed by them. This would be a China designed and operated cross-border payments infrastructure, first for BRICS countries and later for partner countries of the Belt and Road Initiative. Like this, China and its partner countries could wean themselves off an outdated USD based system, which needs to face the digital age in a reform of its own before long.

"mBridge stands out as an attractive choice for developing countries, especially due to its capability to support economic sovereignty, facilitate integration with existing financial infrastructure, and garner geopolitical support from BRICS countries. However, this does not diminish the value and importance of the SWIFT project, which, with its focus on interoperability and a long track record in the global payment system, provides a solid foundation for countries preparing to transition to more advanced and complex technologies."

On September 1, 2024, Russia will reportedly soon start trials of cryptocurrency exchanges and the use of digital tokens for cross-border transactions to help firms circumvent international sanctions. It will use Russia's National Payment Card System (NPCS) to swap between rubles and cryptocurrencies. The NPCS already features infrastructure for functions like interbank settlement and clearing, and it is overseen by the central bank. According to Ledger Insights, stablecoins pegged to Chinese yuan and a BRICS currency basket will feature in the trials.

"A Russian plan to break the grip of the U.S. dollar through a new international payments network met a cool reception at the BRICS summit in Kazan a few days ago. Despite all of the excitable talk of new reserve currencies and gold-backed BRICSbucks, the greenback's position is actually strengthening because of an entirely different monetary innovation: dollar-backed stablecoins." (David Birch)