Will BRICS Succeed in Long Run?

The 18th Summit of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) will be held in Delhi, India, on 12 and 13 September 2026. BRICS is an alliance of non-Western economies, established to minimise dependence on the US dollar and financial system for executing economic activity, business deals and financial transactions. In addition to the five founding member countries, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Egypt and Ethiopia have joined the summit. It is expected that the BRICS summit may emerge with some promising decisions.  

Since its formal establishment, almost one and a half decades have passed, yet this forum could not make good headway in the international arena. Although its main objective was to develop a strong stance against the dominance of the Western economy, BRICS is far from achieving this objective. However, the Western world’s role, particularly the US one in weaponising the US dollar and financial system against Russia after the war with Ukraine, has stirred the other big economies, especially China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Saudi Arabia. These nations fear the risk of becoming the target of financial weapons. So, they decided to move ahead with the BRICS alliance, which was reflected at the South African summit.

This year’s BRICS summit will be held at a time when the entire world is in a very chaotic situation due to the Middle East crisis and trade war resulting from higher tariffs unilaterally imposed by US President Donald Trump indiscriminately against all countries, regardless of foes and friends. The world’s supply chain and business networks might break down because of Trump’s whimsical decision to advance with his tariff weapon. Even the US’ allied nations, particularly NATO members and Canada, have also become the victims of Trump’s higher tariffs. All these burning issues will definitely get well covered in the BRICS summit.

In the changing scenario, BRICS may have the scope to emerge as a strong platform against the Western economy, especially the US dollar and financial system. However, the US dollar and financial system have successfully deep-rooted their strong position over the last half century, against which setting up a counter-platform is not an easy task at all but rather almost absurd. History has proven that no financial power can persevere against the US dollar and financial system. During the post-World War II era, there was a basket of currencies that included the Great Britain Pound (GBP), Deutsche Mark (DM), French Franc (FF), and Japanese Yen, which was widely accepted in settling international transactions. However, these currencies lost their worldwide acceptability, giving free field to the US currency. In the 1990s, Europe established Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM), which worked well for years but eventually collapsed. The European Union’s single currency, the euro, once gained popularity for denominating international trade and settling transactions. However, it could not sustain due to Brexit and other problems. These phenomena suggest that establishing a platform as a substitute for the US dollar and the economy is challenging.

Given the way the world economy is evolving, it is apparent that the overall situation is in favour of BRICS to advance with bright prospects. However, BRICS must establish fundamentals and undertake comprehensive measures to succeed in the long run. Firstly, a high-power BRICS governing body needs to be formed comprising representatives from each member country, placing the status above all political and bilateral issues, and those decisions must be binding on all member countries. Secondly, its membership must be increased, bringing many countries under its umbrella. Thirdly, a BRICS court is required to resolve trade disputes likely to arise among the member countries, and its decision must be binding for all. Fourthly, the BRICS bank must play the role of a central bank with the option to introduce a common currency, retain reserves, establish a payment system for settling transactions, and move funds among members.

Last but not least, a wider network and nexus need to be developed among the businessmen and investors of all member countries so that they can share ownership of corporate businesses and large commercial enterprises of all countries. Western economic system is built on this maxim, as investors and businessmen across Canada, America and Europe have the option of owning the business of any country, although their survival is now in question because of Trump’s unfriendly actions.

Whether the BRICS summit will produce the desired result or its journey will succeed in the long run remains to be seen. However, if the US does not reverse its course in tariff policy, not only BRICS but many other economic forums may emerge. In that situation, BRICS will have a broader scope to establish a strong alternative platform against the Western economy if its founding members desire to move ahead with firm commitment and action.