Senior officials from BRICS nations have intensified efforts to expand trade in local currencies, moving away from dependence on the US dollar, an Iranian central bank official revealed on February 26.

The BRICS bloc comprises the original countries, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and, more recently, Iran, the UAE, Indonesia, Ethiopia, and Egypt. The countries have been tentatively looking at alternatives to the American dollar to reduce exposure to Western financial sanctions and enhance economic sovereignty in light of the US’ new leadership under Donald Trump and his tariff-led and maximum-pressure campaign on multiple countries.

Asghar Abolhassani, deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), spoke with Revolutionary Guard-backed Tasnim, saying the bloc was also working to integrate payment networks and “enhance financial cooperation.”

He noted Iran and Russia are already implementing such initiatives, with Russian and Iranian banks already conducting local currency exchanges through the ACUMER payment system, which is a copy of the Belgian-based system, IntelliNews previously learned.

Earlier in mid-January, the central banks of Iran and Russia signed a joint action plan to facilitate bilateral trade in national currencies, integrate their domestic financial messaging systems, and connect their card payment networks.

At the first BRICS Sherpas meeting on February 25-26, held alongside the G20 summit in Cape Town under Brazil’s presidency, Abolhassani outlined Tehran’s vision for reinforcing local currency settlements.

He called for the full rollout of the Iranian alternative financial messaging system to SWIFT, the merger of payment frameworks across BRICS nations, and the potential use of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).

The meeting followed discussions among BRICS central bank governors in Moscow in May 2024, where members reached agreements on settling trade in national currencies, and Iran proposed a new unified currency between the countries.

Abolhassani called for an "independent financial body," arguing that the bloc’s economic weight justified institutional mechanisms to sustain and expand its role.

He also proposed the creation of a non-banking development institution within BRICS, leveraging the expertise of member nations to research economic and financial challenges.

Such an institution, he suggested, "could play a key role in providing policy recommendations and facilitating technical cooperation."

"The adoption of these strategic and operational solutions will undoubtedly transform the international monetary and financial system, fostering deeper banking, financial, and trade ties within BRICS," Abolhassani added.

Central Bank spokesperson Mostafa Ghamari Vafa said on February 26 on social media that "Dr Abolhasani announced Iran's practical solutions for using national currencies in trade settlements, creating a domestic financial messaging system as an alternative to SWIFT, integrating payment systems, and the potential for creating central bank digital currencies among BRICS members."

The meeting aimed to implement agreements from the recent Moscow gathering of BRICS central bank governors, with Abolhasani stating that "BRICS' success in developing practical monetary and banking relations would be a major step towards efficiency, cohesion, and global impact."