BRICS Plans a New Investment Platform that Could Change How Money Moves Across Borders
The BRICS group is exploring a new investment platform that could change how businesses access capital and how money moves between countries. The proposed system would use financial technologies such as central bank digital currencies, tokenised instruments and stablecoins to simplify cross-border payments and investment across different banking and legal systems.
The initiative is intended to connect businesses, investors and financial institutions, potentially making it easier for companies to secure funding and pursue projects beyond their home markets. While the platform is still being developed, its ambitions extend from infrastructure and logistics to artificial intelligence and renewable energy, with a particular focus on expanding investment opportunities across the Global South.
Why does the group need a new financing mechanism?
The BRICS investment platform was first discussed in October 2024 at the summit in Kazan. Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed launching the platform on the basis of the New Development Bank (NDB). The aim was to support the national economies of BRICS countries and provide financing using electronic resources. In the summer of 2025, the initiative was developed further, with a proposal to create a fully fledged digital platform for settlements and investment.
The NDB has a long track record of financing infrastructure projects in BRICS countries and other developing economies. However, it is a conventional intergovernmental financial institution that provides large loans, whereas the proposed investment platform is intended to be a flexible, multifunctional digital mechanism for attracting private and long-term capital.
While the NDB operates through conventional interbank financing channels, the platform is expected to use modern financial technologies and digital assets. The scale and geographical reach of the projects may also differ. Unlike the NDB, the investment platform is intended to extend beyond the core BRICS countries, focusing on countries in the Global South, emerging markets and partner countries with high population growth.
Experts describe the proposed platform as a potential link between businesses and financial institutions. It could operate like a marketplace or ecosystem where project portfolios are presented, enabling participants to assess risks and identify suitable sources of capital.
“Such a model could be particularly useful for small and medium-sized businesses. Not every company has its own international team, but many have competitive products, technologies and ideas. They need access not only to money but also to information, expertise and reliable contacts,” Abed Amiri, a representative of BRICS Hub in Iran and Russia and an expert in economic and technological cooperation within BRICS, digital transformation and the use of AI in business, said.
If the proposal is implemented, the NDB could serve as the financial and institutional foundation of the new ecosystem. Amiri believes the platform should not be viewed as a replacement for the bank. Instead, it could help prepare projects, while the NDB could assess their financing potential and attract partners.
The process could unfold over the coming years, although the entire system would not be introduced at once. The unified digital platform and interactive map of BRICS special economic zones, Invest Navigator, have already been launched, while the wider ecosystem is expected to be developed in stages, Lavlish Taneja, deputy chairman and head of the India Desk of the Russian-Asian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RAUIE), told TV BRICS.
The New Delhi Declaration also commits BRICS members to continuing technical work on the platform.
“We reiterate our encouragement to continue technical-level efforts on the New Investment Platform (NIP) and building on the guidelines finalised under the Brazilian Chairship. We also welcome the progress achieved under the Indian Chairship in advancing discussions on the NIP,” the declaration states.
Supporting home-grown technologies and speeding up the implementation of ideas
According to experts, the main task of the proposed investment platform is not simply to provide financing but to shorten the path from an idea to implementation.
Amiri said identifying a promising project was only the first step. Partners must then be vetted, terms agreed, legal issues resolved, financing secured and settlements organised.
There is a strong need for this kind of cooperation among BRICS countries. Local technology and business platforms have emerged in response, including BRICS HUB Moscow, which describes itself as a platform connecting start-ups and venture capital funds from BRICS countries.
Experts argue that effective cooperation now requires greater scale and speed, as well as simpler communication. These are among the functions the proposed BRICS investment platform is intended to provide.
“A multilingual environment is needed where language and geography do not become obstacles to business interaction. An entrepreneur should be able to present their project, find a partner and discuss the terms of cooperation regardless of the language they work in,” Amiri said.
Experts also believe the platform should direct resources towards developing science and intellectual property in BRICS countries, rather than reinforcing dependence on technologies developed elsewhere. This includes the technologies needed to operate the platform itself.
According to Taneja, its launch and successful operation will require the integration of digital and electronic assets, the use of tokenised instruments, stablecoins and national digital currencies, and alternatives to traditional settlement mechanisms.
“In addition, work will be required to create sustainable mechanisms for cross-border settlements, which implies developing settlement systems (such as BRICS Pay or alternative clearing mechanisms) to convert funds directly into the currency of the recipient country,” Taneja, deputy chairman and head of the India Desk of RAUIE, said.
BRICS countries are already working to improve the interoperability of their payment systems.
“I consider improving the interoperability of national payment systems to be a necessary area of work. The practical priority is to make cross-border settlements more understandable, predictable and convenient for businesses, including in national currencies,” Amiri said.
Ahead of the summit in India, BRICS countries considered the possibility of integrating fast payment systems and central bank digital currencies. According to Sanjay Malhotra, governor of the Reserve Bank of India, whose comments were reported by Brasil 247, this could reduce the cost of cross-border transactions.
The group’s members discussed several options for financial integration, focusing on improving the efficiency of transfers between countries. However, a specific model and implementation timeline have yet to be determined, and the technical parameters of any potential shared infrastructure have not been disclosed.
The New Delhi Declaration nevertheless sets out continued work on joint settlement centres, the investment platform and a platform for settlements in national currencies. BRICS finance ministries and central banks are also discussing the creation of a dedicated working group under the NDB. Its task would be to develop the technical, regulatory and operational parameters of the proposed investment platform.
Prospects for the investment platform and its significance for the Global South
The investment platform could become a tool for supporting the national economies of BRICS countries while potentially providing alternative sources of financing to countries across the Global South and the East.
“Many countries in the Global South have talented researchers, entrepreneurs and young innovators, but access to financing, infrastructure, computing capacity and international markets remains uneven. The BRICS platform could help narrow this gap by financing solutions relevant to local conditions and bringing together the innovation ecosystems of different countries,” Noorbhai said.
The platform could also create opportunities for developing solutions that reflect local populations, data, natural conditions and national priorities. In artificial intelligence, for example, this could strengthen technological sovereignty and encourage the development of models trained on local data that better reflect the diversity of populations, experts believe.
Ultimately, the platform could help countries move from being consumers of advanced technologies to becoming their developers, owners and exporters. This is particularly important for countries in the Global South, the article argues.
Once BRICS countries agree on the conceptual model for the proposed platform, the group is expected to move towards technological design and regulatory and legal integration.
Possible next steps include creating a digital framework, establishing interoperability between participating countries’ central bank digital currencies, harmonising national legislation, and integrating exchanges and banks. These measures would be needed not only to facilitate intergovernmental lending but also to create mechanisms connecting projects, public institutions and private capital.
“Technology is important here, but it does not replace institutions. It is impossible to create a single interface and thereby eliminate differences in the banking and currency regulations of BRICS countries. What can be done is to hide this complexity from the user and turn international operations into an understandable process,” Amiri said.
According to Taneja, developers could face practical barriers, including cultural and legal differences and variations between markets. Alignment would therefore need to be approached selectively and in stages.
The platform’s success will ultimately depend on how effectively it overcomes these barriers. Experts argue that its performance should be measured not by the sophistication of its technology but by the number of projects it helps bring to fruition.
“BRICS needs an environment where business contact becomes cooperation, cooperation becomes investment, and investment becomes production, innovation and new jobs,” Amiri said.
TV BRICS / IOL