An announcement will take place next month at the 2026 New Delhi summit kicking off what some would consider the structural take off for BRICS and the beginning of the end for the U.S. dollar. What is that? BRICS Pay. 

First, let’s start with what BRICS Pay is not. Russian Senator Vladimir Dzhabarov says that this is not a single currency, but rather a payment system. The purpose behind the platform is to link national payment systems and potentially, and in the future, link digital currencies of the central banks. This idea was initially made public by India’s central bank in January, to make tourism and trade easier between BRICS countries. This news of course was received negatively by the Trump administration, which has warned against any moves to bypass the dollar. The administration has also previously called the alliance anti-American and has threatened to pose tariffs.

The current western dominated network is SWIFT, a global financial messaging network for international payments. If BRICS Pay is successful, this could be a blow to the U.S. dollar which would mean our bargaining chips, like threatening sanctions, could become weakened. SWIFT excluded Russia from its system after the invasion of Ukraine and there was an immediate shock, but it wasn’t the extreme blow that the West hoped it would be. They had already created a workaround system after the 2014 sanctions and were able to continue to trade in other local currencies. The Russia example gives some fuel to the idea of BRICS weakening the dollar and surviving U.S. sanctions.

The alliance has also grown significantly recently, with the 11 nations now comprising 45 percent of the world’s population and 35 percent of GDP. With Saudi Arabia and the UAE, BRICS controls a good chunk of the energy market. These member nations are also projected to grow more than the G7. The group’s combined GDP in PPP also exceeds the G7, but the G7 still leads in nominal GDP. These are real threats that the U.S. should keep on their radar, but there are some notable challenges that cannot be overlooked.

First, take a look at who makes up BRICS. China and India are rivals which include border disputes. Iran is also a member, but they also have continuous clashes with the Gulf States. In one example, Iran wanted to have a consensus message condemning military aggression on Tehran as the United States and Israel war on Iran continues. But, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia representatives denied this push in order to not anger Western partners. There are also internal divisions over relations with Ukraine.

Second, SWIFT’s current global dominance across banking institutions is significant and won’t be overthrown in the short term. SWIFT connects over 11,000 banks across 200+ countries built up over 50 years. The main roadblock to BRICS pay is integrating the different payment systems into one regulatory system. Plus, some framing of what BRICS Pay is messaged as a diversification and equality player so sanctioned heavy nations can have some “fair” way to moderate their economy.

BRICS Pay technically is available now and foreigners can use it to pay in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, and Kazan, with apps published on Google Play and the App Store. Substack writer Renaud Adorno points out a number of technical issues with the payment system, breaking down the “working rails” of the system and the challenges facing these countries.

Overall, the system is something to be wary of in the long term. No doubt Russian tourists will start using it in order to buy things as they travel, but in the short term, given global conflicts, not to mention the dragging weight of Russia’s war with Ukraine, it is unlikely to impact the U.S. dollar anytime soon.