Archive · 12 Sep 2026
BRICS 2026: Five Facts About the Expanding Global Bloc
BRICS is a group of countries that work together on important economic and global issues.
The name BRIC was first created by economist Jim O’Neill in 2001.
Brazil, Russia, India and China later began meeting as leaders.
South Africa joined in 2010, adding the “S” to BRICS.
The group is not a military team like NATO.
Its members can disagree about world events while still cooperating.
BRICS also created a bank to help fund development projects.
In 2026, its 11 members include almost half of the world’s population.
The term “BRIC” was coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in a 2001 research paper.
The first BRIC leaders’ summit took place in 2009, and South Africa joined in 2010, creating BRICS.
BRICS is an intergovernmental cooperation forum, not a military alliance or formal political bloc with a shared foreign policy.
The New Development Bank finances infrastructure and sustainable-development projects and is headquartered in Shanghai, China.
In 2026, BRICS has 11 full members representing approximately 4.01 billion people, or 48.3% of the global population.
- Who
- BRICS members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.
- What
- BRICS is an intergovernmental forum for cooperation on trade, finance, development, technology, health and global governance.
- When
- The term BRIC was coined in 2001; the first leaders’ summit was held in 2009, and South Africa joined in 2010.
- Where
- The grouping includes countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America; the New Development Bank is headquartered in Shanghai, China.
- Why
- The group was created to increase cooperation among emerging and developing economies and support development projects.
- Original term
- “BRIC” was coined by Jim O’Neill in a 2001 research paper.
- First summit
- The first BRIC leaders’ summit took place in 2009.
- Current membership
- BRICS has 11 full members in 2026.
- Population
- The members have an estimated combined population of approximately 4.01 billion.
- Global share
- The grouping represents roughly 48.3% of the world’s estimated 8.30 billion people.
- Development bank
- The New Development Bank was established by the five original members to finance infrastructure and sustainable-development projects.
- BRICS Sherpa
- A senior government official who handles negotiations and preparatory work before leaders’ meetings.