BRICS+ launches its own payment system and trades $450 billion without touching a single dollar

Finance ministers of the BRICS+ bloc, an economic alliance made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and its newly admitted members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, closed their preparatory summit in Durban with a bombshell announcement: the operational launch of the "BRICS Pay" platform.

This cross-border commercial settlement system, based on blockchain technology, allows direct exchanges in national currencies without using the Western banking network SWIFT.

Trade volume within the bloc conducted in local currencies is projected to reach the equivalent of $450 billion by the end of the year, without using a single dollar.