Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister has stated that discussions on a single currency for the BRICS economic bloc are premature due to differences in financial regulation among member nations. Instead, the focus remains on enhancing financial sovereignty and exploring national currencies for trade. Ryabkov highlighted ongoing efforts to strengthen the bloc’s economic independence, with authorities actively working on interconnected financial markets.
BRICS Unified Currency Deemed Premature by Russian Official
This article was published more than a year ago. Some information may no longer be current.
WRITTEN BY
SHARE
Unified BRICS Currency: Ryabkov Calls It Premature
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov spoke on October 3 at a press conference in Moscow, where he addressed the idea of a single currency for BRICS, calling such discussions premature. Ryabkov explained that the BRICS nations currently have significant differences in how they regulate payment balances, financial markets, and inflation. He opined:
It is somewhat early to talk about any single currency [in BRICS] in the strict sense of this word. The reason is that our country have significant difference in approaches to regulation of the payment balance, national financial markets, and inflation targeting.
These differences make the immediate development of a unified currency challenging for the bloc.
Instead, Ryabkov noted that BRICS countries have been focusing on strengthening financial sovereignty and creating payment mechanisms that can support growing trade among members while reducing vulnerability to external risks. He emphasized that finance ministers and central bank governors were assigned at the Johannesburg summit to explore how national currencies and payment systems could be used for mutual trade.
Ryabkov said:
Finance ministers and central bank governors were tasked at the [BRICS] summit in Johannesburg to consider issues of using national currencies, payment instruments and platforms in mutual trade operations.
He added that relevant authorities and working groups are actively collaborating on connecting financial markets, and “specific results are already in place.”
What do you think about BRICS’ approach to focusing on national currencies rather than rushing into a unified currency? Let us know in the comments section below.
