The BRICS trade and economic partnership group is made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa {GO DEEP}. The alliance was originated in part to explore alternatives to the dollar as a global trade currency. They discussed several options in their prior meetings long before Russia took action into Ukraine.
With western sanctions against Russia now in place, there are increasing reports that China and India have developed alternatives. This is one such example:
(Via LiveMint) – Russia, many of whose banks have been cut off from the Swift financial network, is exploring opening alternative payment channels with India, including linking Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with the Faster Payments System (FPS) of the Bank of Russia, to continue cross-border trade.
According to Dmitry A. Solodov, a spokesperson for the Russian embassy in New Delhi, his government has also asked Indian lenders to connect to the financial messaging system of the Bank of Russia to facilitate interbank transactions. In addition, the two sides are discussing accepting RuPay and MIR Cards within national payment infrastructures, Solodov said in an emailed statement.
“All these options are on the table and are being discussed by the two governments, the Reserve Bank of India and the Bank of Russia,” said a senior Indian government official, requesting anonymity. (read more)
