India's Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, in his opening speech at the BRICS Business Forum, urged member and partner countries to establish interconnected instant payment systems, trade in each other's local currencies, promote digital trade, and collaboratively develop emerging technologies. The forum is taking place in New Delhi as India holds the rotating presidency, just before the leaders' summit this weekend.

He cited the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as a model: with an annual transaction volume exceeding 250 billion transactions, accounting for over half of global transaction numbers, it has been accepted in 11 countries and is integrated with the UAE's rapid payment system Aani, while discussions are ongoing with Russia regarding local currency settlements. A joint statement from finance ministers and central bank governors acknowledged the research on cross-border interoperability of payment and messaging channels, as well as discussions on settling trade and investment in BRICS local currencies, while emphasizing respect for each country's priorities without a one-size-fits-all approach. The Russian Minister of Economic Development noted that the share of exports settled in US dollars and euros has dropped from about 85% three years ago to around 11%. The head of Sberbank in India stated that approximately 96% of India-Russia trade is conducted through the rupee-ruble mechanism; trade between Russia and China is almost entirely settled in renminbi and rubles.

New Delhi is charting a course for interconnectedness rather than starting anew. Sources told Reuters and Bloomberg that India is willing to promote the use of central bank digital currencies for cross-border payments among members but does not support a unified BRICS clearing network that could be seen as a challenge to the US dollar or a replacement for SWIFT, and it is unlikely that a single system agreement will be reached this weekend. India has signed local currency trade arrangements with central banks in the UAE, Mauritius, Maldives, and Indonesia. Reports suggest that India and Russia plan to connect UPI with Russia's rapid payment system through a memorandum from the BRICS Business Council, adopting a federal approach where countries retain their own infrastructure and central bank oversight. The common currency discussed three years ago has been sidelined due to US opposition and tariff threats.

Obstacles have been directly written into the agenda. India is cautious about deepening financial connections with China and had previously suspended cross-border integration of Alipay+ with UPI on national security grounds. The global penetration of digital currencies is limited, and trade surpluses still require currency swaps to roll over. Experts suggest that the realistic window for comprehensive integration is a decade of incremental bilateral links. Sanctioned countries like Russia and Iran create a continued functional demand for alternative settlement channels within the group. Goyal also called for mutual market access, including raw materials and critical minerals, stating that for 88% of countries, the export costs of non-tariff measures have exceeded those of tariffs.

Market mechanisms are diverting settlement channels. Buyers are member companies that need to continue exporting under sanctions and tariff environments; sellers are India exporting UPI and digital rupee interfaces as replicable interconnected standards. Funds are shifting from dollar messaging to local currency and digital currency pairs, putting pressure on banks and card organizations' transit fees. Beneficiaries include India, which has established instant retail channels, and sanctioned exporters needing to receive payments in local currencies; pressured parties are the agent bank networks that default to dollar settlements. The event drivers are the business forum speeches and finance ministers' statements, not a new common currency treaty.

The common currency has been set aside, while interconnectedness has taken center stage. The dollar remains, but it is no longer written as the only legal toll.

Source: Public Information