BRICS nations are accelerating a bold push to upend dollar dominance as Putin and the BRICS Bank leader discuss digital payment platforms and national currency systems reshaping global finance.
Putin and BRICS Bank Head Discuss Payment Platform to Undercut Dollar Dominance
As global economic blocs accelerate de-dollarization efforts and seek to reduce dependence on the U.S. dollar, BRICS nations are intensifying efforts to establish independent payment and investment frameworks. Reflecting this trend, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with head of the BRICS New Development Bank, Dilma Rousseff, on June 18 during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, where he addressed the ongoing collaboration on a BRICS digital payment and investment platform.
During their discussions, Putin emphasized the importance of enhancing financial cooperation among BRICS nations through the expansion of national currency payment systems and the development of a unified digital platform. The Russian leader stated:
Certainly, there are issues requiring particular attention, I mean the expansion of opportunities for payments in national currencies and further joint efforts to create the digital platform of payments and investments. We also talked about that in detail at the latest summit of BRICS leaders.
The most recent BRICS leaders summit took place in 2024 in Kazan, Russia. He added: “I strongly expect that we will work jointly in these areas.”
Putin also extended his congratulations to Rousseff on her reelection as head of the BRICS New Development Bank, highlighting her leadership and the institution’s recent accomplishments. Rousseff’s renewed mandate comes at a time when the bank is actively seeking to diversify financing away from traditional global financial systems, aligning with broader BRICS ambitions to establish more autonomous financial structures. Supporters of these initiatives argue that such moves could reduce exposure to external economic pressures and foster greater financial sovereignty for BRICS member states.
Noting that all the bank participants hold her work in high regard, Putin stressed:
Indeed, 120 projects worth $39 billion were approved and financed lately.
The BRICS nations are actively pursuing strategies to reduce their reliance on the U.S. dollar for international trade and financial settlements. Currently, Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia are BRICS members. This de-dollarization effort is driven by a desire for greater financial sovereignty, to mitigate exposure to U.S. economic policies and sanctions, and to foster a more multipolar global financial system. Initiatives include promoting trade in national currencies, developing alternative payment systems to bypass Western-dominated networks such as SWIFT, and increasing gold reserves. While a common BRICS currency has been discussed, the primary focus currently remains on strengthening bilateral and intra-bloc trade using local currencies, with some members like Russia and China actively increasing their use of the ruble and yuan in trade with other BRICS partners. This collective push aims to gradually reshape global finance and diminish the dollar’s long-standing dominance.
