India has officially ruled out the introduction of any BRICS currency scheme, with **Sudhakar Dalela, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, confirming there is no proposal in the BRICS for a BRICS currency, as of now during the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi. This definitive stance comes after Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal's August 2025 rejection of the common currency idea, stating that India opposes the introduction of any such BRICS currency scheme. The rejection follows Trump's January 2025 threat to impose 100% tariffs on BRICS members if they created a common currency or backed another currency designed to replace the dollar. As reported by Zee News, Dalela emphasized that discussions on settling trade in local currencies had been underway in BRICS for some time and were not a new subject, describing local currency settlement as a practical mechanism to reduce transaction costs in bilateral trade.
BRICS nations are moving to make cross-border payments easier and expand the use of local currencies for trade and investment, as the grouping seeks to strengthen economic ties and facilitate greater intra-BRICS trade. According to Zee News, Dalela described local currency settlement as a practical solution to reduce cost of trade, stating that this has been encouraged as complementary to global payment and settlement system, improving overall global trade across nations. The New Delhi Declaration acknowledged ongoing discussions on promoting trade settlements and investments using BRICS local currencies, while respecting national priorities and recognising that there is no one-size-fits-all approach. The BRICS Payment Task Force (BPTF) has been studying the cross-border interoperability of payment and messaging channels and encouraged to continue working towards practical payment solutions that are fast, low-cost, more accessible, efficient, transparent, and safe. The focus is primarily on facilitating greater intra-BRICS trade rather than creating a common currency, officials said, with the grouping developing a framework to boost trade and settlements in local currencies.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday called on BRICS member states to open their markets to each other and address non-tariff barriers, speaking at the BRICS Business Forum in New Delhi. According to Zee News, Goyal said trade among partner countries should be "deep, resilient, with diversified supply chains," and should never become an impediment to growth or the well-being of citizens in member states. He emphasized that "We should open our markets for each other's products, including for raw materials and critical minerals. Our supply chains will be resilient when they run both ways." Goyal noted that non-tariff measures were imposing significantly higher export costs than tariffs for 88% of countries, and urged BRICS members and partner countries to simplify regulatory procedures and speed up clearance of consignments. He urged BRICS nations to link payment systems, trade in local currencies, and build shared capabilities in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, engineering, electronics, automobiles and startups. At the Brics Business Forum leaders' session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had also stressed greater economic cooperation and the wider use of local currencies, with Pezeshkian making a strong pitch for increasing national currency use in trade among BRICS members.
The New Delhi Declaration raised serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures which distort trade and are inconsistent with WTO rules. As reported by Zee News, Brics leaders said the multilateral trading system "has long been at a crossroads" and warned that the proliferation of trade restrictions could disrupt global supply chains and create uncertainty for international economic activity. The grouping opposed unilateral, punitive and discriminatory measures such as carbon border adjustment mechanisms, saying they could disproportionately affect developing economies. Brics reaffirmed its support for reform of the World Trade Organisation and called for a non-discriminatory, open, equitable, transparent, fair, inclusive, predictable and rules-based multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core. It also advocated the immediate restoration of a fully functioning two-tier binding WTO dispute settlement mechanism. The New Delhi Declaration also acknowledged ongoing discussions on promoting trade settlements and investments using BRICS local currencies, while respecting national priorities and recognising that there is no one-size-fits-all approach.
The 18th BRICS Summit followed eight months of work under India's chairship, involving more than 350 meetings across thematic clusters, ministerial meetings, working groups, business sessions and other initiatives. According to Zee News, Dalela said summit discussions also covered the impact of ongoing conflicts and economic uncertainties, with leaders underscoring the importance of dialogue, diplomacy and peaceful resolution of differences. He described it as a "whole-of-nation effort," with BRICS engagement taking place in more than 30 cities across the country. There were 150 practical outcomes across four pillars from the BRICS Summit, with key highlights including strengthening food and health security, BRICS cooperation on mental health, and cooperation on global value chains and logistics frameworks. The BRICS group of emerging economies on Saturday unanimously adopted the New Delhi Declaration, which strongly supports Ethiopia and Iran's bid for accession to the WTO and acknowledges China for expanding its zero-tariff treatment to cover 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic ties. The BRICS bloc — which includes China, Russia, India and South Africa — has been working toward linking members' payment systems in ways that could reduce reliance on the global SWIFT network, which is dominated by Western nations.
