BRICS Set to Reveal De-Dollarization Roadmap at 2024 Summit: Will Crypto Be Included?

• The BRICS summit is about a month away, and a potential de-dollarization update is set to be unveiled.
• Whether the role of cryptocurrency among BRICS nations will be amplified will be known at the summit.

There are speculations that the BRICS economic alliance will unveil its de-dollarization roadmap at its upcoming 2024 annual summit. Amid these speculations, questions have been raised about whether the BRICS de-dollarization strategy will make provision for cryptocurrencies.

Expectations of the BRICS De-Dollarization Roadmap

The expectations of the BRICS de-dollarization roadmap this year are based on the fact that the bloc traditionally announces big developments at the annual summits. For instance, during the 2023 summit, the BRICS introduced five new nations to join the alliance. 

The move was the group’s first growth drive since welcoming South Africa in 2010. Subsequently, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Iran, and Ethiopia joined in January, as reported by Crypto News Flash. The BRICS alliance is an intergovernmental organization with Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa as its founding members. The recent addition brings the total number of member countries to nine. 

With 54 countries expected to attend the BRICS 2024 Summit, this year’s announcement should rival previous events in scope and impact. Notably, the event is expected to be crowned by the presentation of key developments that will see it forgo the utilization of the US dollar, more specifically, in support of local currencies and group initiatives. 

According to reports, the bloc will introduce a multicurrency payment platform and a roadmap for a gold-backed BRICS trading currency at its upcoming event. Both revelations would be monumental for the group and pose serious problems for the US dollar.

Key industry stakeholders will attend the 2024 Summit from October 22 to 24. According to Russian aide Yury Ushakov, 36 heads of state have received invites, and 18 states have already confirmed their attendance.

Will Crypto Be Included in the BRICS De-dollarization Roadmap?

The BRICS de-dollarization roadmap is likely to include cryptocurrencies. There are reports that the bloc’s summit is looking into a blockchain-enabled payment system that employs a digital asset known as the Unit. According to the Whitepaper, each Unit would be backed by a reserve basket with certain characteristics, as revealed by Ritesh Jain, Founder of Pinetree Macro.

Since introducing the Russian sanctions in 2022, the Global South has facilitated a move away from the US dollar. These countries have embraced greater local currency trade to great effect. For instance, the Chinese yuan’s prominence in global payments and trade surpassed the US dollar as China’s most used currency in cross-border payments.

According to the Atlantic Council’s Dollar Dominance Meter, the global share of US dollar reserves has fallen since 2002, the first full year of the BRICS alliance. 

Meanwhile, a BRICS native currency to facilitate trade within the bloc is still being considered. If introduced, this would make US dollar usage unnecessary, opening the door to the potential adoption of crypto.