BRICS Common Currency May Be Discussed At Summit In August - Russian Deputy Prime Minister

The idea of creating a common currency for BRICS member states may be discussed at the group's summit in South Africa in August, with the work on the issue already started, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk said on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2023) The idea of creating a common Currency for BRICS member states may be discussed at the group's summit in South Africa in August, with the work on the issue already started, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk said on Wednesday.

"It is important to understand that the work has begun, but it will take time. We don't exclude that the issue will be touched upon during the BRICS summit in South Africa," Overchuk said during a speech in the Russian parliament.

At the same time, the Russian deputy prime minister stressed that the final decision on the issue must be taken by all member states on a consensus basis.

"The idea is currently being reviewed by finance ministers and central banks of the association. This issue, of course, requires detailed evaluation by professionals, since creating supranational payment mechanisms is a very complicated task," he added.

Overchuck's statement came despite Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov saying last week that it was premature to talk about a common BRICS currency. To achieve transition to a common currency, the member states need to create a currency issuing institution, agree on its authorities and coordinate the potential transfer of money issuing licenses to a transnational institution. This would mean that BRICS member states will have to adjust their micro- and macroeconomic and monetary policies to each other, Ryabkov explained.

BRICS unites the world's largest developing economies � Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. A number of other countries intend to join the economic bloc, including Argentina, Iran, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. South Africa, which assumed the rotating BRICS presidency in January, will host the 15th BRICS summit in August.