BRICS backs faster, cheaper cross-border payments in New Delhi Declaration

BRICS leaders have endorsed a push to make cross-border payments between member countries quicker, cheaper, more accessible and safer, while supporting closer links between national payment and messaging systems.

The position was set out in the New Delhi Declaration adopted at the 18th BRICS Summit. The declaration encourages the BRICS Payment Task Force (BPTF) to press ahead with its work on cross-border payment mechanisms, building on the BRICS Cross-Border Payments Initiative outlined in the earlier Kazan and Rio declarations.

According to the declaration, the task force has been examining cross-border interoperability of payment and messaging channels, as well as discussions on promoting trade settlements and investments in BRICS local currencies. It stressed that national priorities would be respected and that no single approach would fit all members.

The leaders said the BPTF should continue its discussions, building on ongoing work, to help deliver practical payment solutions that are fast, low-cost, more accessible, efficient, transparent and safe.

The emphasis on local currencies comes amid broader calls within the grouping for reduced reliance on dominant currencies. Speaking at the BRICS Business Forum in New Delhi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged steps to expand the use of national currencies in trade among members, alongside instruments to manage currency risks and reciprocal settlements.

Pezeshkian also called for a larger role for the New Development Bank in financing infrastructure and energy projects through local-currency financing and guarantees aimed at drawing in private capital. He proposed a BRICS joint reinsurance company with initial capital of USD 10 billion to cover risks tied to major infrastructure and energy projects.

The New Delhi Declaration also set out wider steps to strengthen trade and investment within the grouping. It backed efforts to build more resilient and predictable global value chains, digitise trade documentation and improve connectivity and trade facilitation.

For smaller businesses, leaders welcomed guiding principles for credit assessment of export-oriented MSMEs and the Jaipur Consensus to study an invoice discounting mechanism that could help firms unlock working capital and take a more active part in international trade.

The declaration further welcomed continued technical work on a New Investment Platform, discussions on settlement and depositary infrastructure, and measures to strengthen BRICS insurance and reinsurance capacity.

Taken together, the measures point to a broader effort to build financial and trade infrastructure that can support deeper economic integration among BRICS members, while allowing countries to pursue cooperation in line with their own national priorities.