The BRICS is not merely an economic bloc. It expresses a fundamental idea: no single country should dominate global political and economic life.
The BRICS coalition — once underestimated as a loose alliance of emerging economies — is evolving today into one of the most defining forces of the 21st century. With the cross-border payment system CIPS now expanding to 185 countries, allowing global trade in the Chinese Yuan without any contact with the dollar, the signs are clear: the monopoly of Western economic dominance is beginning to crack. For decades, the dollar has been both the tool and the "leash" of US global power. It provided the ability to impose sanctions and surveillance, under the guise of stability. Today, however, that exclusivity is collapsing. The BRICS alliance — Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and now with new members like Egypt, Iran, UAE — is reshaping not just trade but the "geography" of global power.
The weakening of the dollar
CIPS, established by China in 2015, is evolving into a parallel financial system. It allows settlements in local currencies, circumventing the dollar and consequently, American surveillance and sanctions. Its spread to 185 countries reflects growing confidence in the Yuan and in a multi-currency global economy. "De-dollarisation" is not rebellion. It is self-defence. After decades of dependence on the dollar, many countries in the Global South have learned that the global financial order can be weaponised by the powerful. The BRICS offers a way out of this manipulation. Concurrently, the New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai, funds infrastructure and development without the ideological dictates and political conditions of Western lenders. Thus, states can borrow and build without "democracy lessons."
Towards a multipolar world
The BRICS is not merely an economic bloc. It expresses a fundamental idea: no single country should dominate global political and economic life. The expansion into West Asia and Africa signals a profound geopolitical shift. The participation of oil powers like Saudi Arabia and Iran shows that even traditional US allies are redefining their priorities. Africa, often treated as a pawn, is gaining a rare platform for voice and equality through BRICS.
Three possible scenarios for the next decade
The best version: A fair, multipolar system
The BRICS institutionalises strong economic cooperation, creates a unified currency for settlements, and reduces dollar dependence. The voice of the Global South becomes strong in climate and development policies.
The middle path: Parallel systems
The world is divided into two parallel economic ecosystems: the West on one side, BRICS on the other. Internal contradictions limit the effectiveness of the bloc.
The dark version: Economic war
The West retaliates with secondary sanctions and trade barriers. The CIPS and SWIFT systems become symbols of a new Cold War. Global stability is tested.
India's role
India is at a pivotal point. It is a major power but also vulnerable to external shocks. It gains much from BRICS participation — new markets, alternative financing. However, it is called upon to balance: to cooperate closely with the bloc, without breaking its Western relations. China's hegemony within the BRICS is both an opportunity and a risk. India must ensure that the alliance remains genuinely multilateral and not an extension of Chinese influence.
A new ethical geography
BRICS challenges the narrative that development and democracy have a single, unique "Western" form. It denounces the hypocrisy of countries that speak of equality but maintain hierarchies of power in the Global South. But here, too, the danger of power applies: if the BRICS reproduces the old injustices under new names, it will fail morally. A quiet revolution is underway. Power is ceasing to be one-dimensional. The Western monopoly — founded for centuries on economic dominance — is now being challenged by a new alliance seeking dignity instead of domination. The BRICS is not a magic solution. It is a new system under construction. But for the first time in decades, the Global South can design its future on its own terms. And that is historical.
www.bankingnews.gr
The weakening of the dollar
CIPS, established by China in 2015, is evolving into a parallel financial system. It allows settlements in local currencies, circumventing the dollar and consequently, American surveillance and sanctions. Its spread to 185 countries reflects growing confidence in the Yuan and in a multi-currency global economy. "De-dollarisation" is not rebellion. It is self-defence. After decades of dependence on the dollar, many countries in the Global South have learned that the global financial order can be weaponised by the powerful. The BRICS offers a way out of this manipulation. Concurrently, the New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai, funds infrastructure and development without the ideological dictates and political conditions of Western lenders. Thus, states can borrow and build without "democracy lessons."
Towards a multipolar world
The BRICS is not merely an economic bloc. It expresses a fundamental idea: no single country should dominate global political and economic life. The expansion into West Asia and Africa signals a profound geopolitical shift. The participation of oil powers like Saudi Arabia and Iran shows that even traditional US allies are redefining their priorities. Africa, often treated as a pawn, is gaining a rare platform for voice and equality through BRICS.
Three possible scenarios for the next decade
The best version: A fair, multipolar system
The BRICS institutionalises strong economic cooperation, creates a unified currency for settlements, and reduces dollar dependence. The voice of the Global South becomes strong in climate and development policies.
The middle path: Parallel systems
The world is divided into two parallel economic ecosystems: the West on one side, BRICS on the other. Internal contradictions limit the effectiveness of the bloc.
The dark version: Economic war
The West retaliates with secondary sanctions and trade barriers. The CIPS and SWIFT systems become symbols of a new Cold War. Global stability is tested.
India's role
India is at a pivotal point. It is a major power but also vulnerable to external shocks. It gains much from BRICS participation — new markets, alternative financing. However, it is called upon to balance: to cooperate closely with the bloc, without breaking its Western relations. China's hegemony within the BRICS is both an opportunity and a risk. India must ensure that the alliance remains genuinely multilateral and not an extension of Chinese influence.
A new ethical geography
BRICS challenges the narrative that development and democracy have a single, unique "Western" form. It denounces the hypocrisy of countries that speak of equality but maintain hierarchies of power in the Global South. But here, too, the danger of power applies: if the BRICS reproduces the old injustices under new names, it will fail morally. A quiet revolution is underway. Power is ceasing to be one-dimensional. The Western monopoly — founded for centuries on economic dominance — is now being challenged by a new alliance seeking dignity instead of domination. The BRICS is not a magic solution. It is a new system under construction. But for the first time in decades, the Global South can design its future on its own terms. And that is historical.
www.bankingnews.gr
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