Archive · 11 Sep 2026
Goyal Urges BRICS to Link Payments and Expand Trade
BRICS countries met in New Delhi to discuss making trade easier and safer.
Indian minister Piyush Goyal asked members to connect their digital payment systems.
He also encouraged countries to use their own currencies when trading with one another.
India said its UPI system handles more than 250 billion transactions each year and is accepted in 11 countries.
Goyal said countries should open their markets and build supply chains that work in both directions.
He also called for simpler rules, faster customs checks and easier movement of professionals.
Russia supported using fewer dollars and euros for trade and suggested creating a BRICS grain exchange.
Iran also supported greater use of national currencies and proposed financial support and insurance initiatives.
Officials said businesses worldwide face a trade-finance shortage estimated at USD 2.5 trillion.
The proposals are intended to strengthen trade and reduce vulnerability to political and economic disruptions.
Piyush Goyal urged BRICS members to link payment systems, use local currencies and make digital trade more accessible.
India said its Unified Payments Interface processes more than 250 billion transactions annually and is accepted in 11 countries.
Officials called for open markets, resilient two-way supply chains, simpler regulations, faster customs clearances and easier movement of professionals.
Russia backed reducing dollar and euro reliance, citing an alternative financial system and proposing a BRICS grain exchange.
Officials highlighted a USD 2.5 trillion global trade-finance gap and discussed support for exporters, small businesses and digital commerce.
- Who
- Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal addressed or contributed to the forum.
- What
- BRICS officials discussed linked payment systems, local-currency trade, digital commerce, market access, supply chains, trade finance and proposed agricultural and financial mechanisms.
- When
- The BRICS Business Forum was held on Friday, September 11, 2026, ahead of the summit scheduled to begin on September 12.
- Where
- The forum took place in New Delhi, India.
- Why
- Participants sought to strengthen trade, diversify supply chains, improve market access, expand digital commerce and reduce exposure to financial and geopolitical disruptions.
Reducing Financial Dependence
Maintaining Existing Trade Mechanisms
Currencies and payment systems
Reducing Financial Dependence
India, Russia and Iran supported linking payment systems and expanding trade in national currencies to reduce vulnerability to political shocks and reliance on a limited number of currencies.
Maintaining Existing Trade Mechanisms
The articles do not quote officials defending continued dependence on dollars or euros, but they describe the current international financial system and existing currency-based trade mechanisms as the backdrop to the proposed changes.
Agricultural price mechanisms
Reducing Financial Dependence
Russia argued that BRICS countries need independent mechanisms because existing international price benchmarks may not reflect their market conditions, and it proposed a BRICS grain exchange.
Maintaining Existing Trade Mechanisms
The articles report that BRICS countries currently continue to rely on international price benchmarks; no specific official defense of those benchmarks was provided.
- UPI transactions
- India’s Unified Payments Interface processes more than 250 billion transactions annually, according to Goyal.
- UPI reach
- UPI is accepted in 11 countries, according to Indian officials.
- Trade-finance gap
- The global trade-finance gap was estimated at USD 2.5 trillion.
- Russian export settlements
- Russia said the share of its exports settled in US dollars and euros fell from 85% three years earlier to about 11%.
- BRICS exports
- Goyal said BRICS exports increased from about USD 900 billion in 2003 to USD 6 trillion in 2024.
- Proposed grain exchange
- Russia proposed a platform allowing agricultural producers, traders and buyers to transact directly.
- BRICS economic scale
- The articles describe BRICS as representing about 49.5% of the global population, around 40% of global GDP and roughly 24% to 26% of global trade.
Sources
Piyush Goyal calls for linked BRICS payment systems, trade in local currencies (Lead)
Piyush Goyal Urges BRICS Nations To Link Payment Systems, Make Digital Trade More Accessible
BRICS should link payment systems, boost local currency trade: Goyal - Economy News
BRICS Summit: Piyush Goyal Urges Nations To Link Payment Systems, Expand UPI Reach