Russia’s SWIFT exclusion in 2022 spurred different system planning.
BRICS members search autonomy in worldwide settlements.
XRP’s velocity and cost-efficiency seen as best for institutional use.
A brand new concept circulating amongst cryptocurrency and geopolitical analysts means that BRICS nations—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—could also be working behind the scenes to develop a gold-backed monetary system utilizing Ripple’s XRP Ledger.
This comes because the bloc continues efforts to scale back dependency on the US-led SWIFT community and the dollar-dominated international economic system.
Whereas unconfirmed by any authorities, the idea is gaining consideration resulting from mounting proof of BRICS cooperation on forex independence and blockchain innovation.
How the US maintains dominance in international finance
The worldwide monetary system is essentially underpinned by three core levers of Western affect: the dominance of the US greenback, the SWIFT interbank messaging system, and the liquidity framework ruled by Western central banks.
SWIFT permits worldwide banking communication and has turn into a device for implementing sanctions. In 2022, Russia was ejected from SWIFT as a part of coordinated Western sanctions, prompting the Kremlin to speed up efforts to create different channels for cross-border funds.
By slicing off entry to greenback reserves and freezing foreign-held belongings, the US has demonstrated the strategic energy of monetary infrastructure.
Nations seen as politically adversarial or non-aligned are more and more cautious of this technique, viewing it as a vulnerability fairly than a impartial platform for commerce.
Why BRICS needs out of the greenback system
Every member of BRICS has its personal incentive to scale back publicity to the greenback. Russia’s exclusion from SWIFT and asset seizures have pressured it to pursue monetary independence. China is in search of to insulate its rising economic system from Western monetary strain.
India and Brazil need to improve autonomy in worldwide settlements, whereas South Africa has expressed curiosity in strengthening regional currencies.
This shared goal has sparked renewed calls throughout the bloc for a brand new system of worth trade—one that doesn’t depend on Western mechanisms.
BRICS nations have already mentioned launching a shared forex backed by commodities, and gold is seen as probably the most viable asset for such backing resulting from its stability and international acceptance.
XRP Ledger as a bridge for gold-backed commerce
In response to the idea, Ripple’s XRP Ledger might function the digital bridge between native currencies and a gold-backed reserve system. XRP was designed for high-volume institutional transfers, with a transaction time of 3-5 seconds and low charges.
In contrast to Bitcoin or Ethereum, XRP provides scalability and predictable prices—key for governments and central banks processing massive transactions.
On this mannequin, BRICS wouldn’t challenge a brand new public token however as a substitute use XRP’s present infrastructure to settle trades. Gold may very well be held in nationwide vaults or regional repositories, and XRP could be the mechanism by way of which worth is transferred rapidly and securely.
This might enable BRICS international locations to bypass SWIFT and the greenback, whereas sustaining compliance and auditability by way of the XRP Ledger.
Strategic alerts and unconfirmed strikes
Though no official affirmation exists that BRICS is actively testing or adopting XRP, a number of developments have drawn hypothesis. Russia has already proposed a gold-pegged stablecoin for cross-border commerce with pleasant nations.
China continues to develop its digital yuan pilot. Ripple has additionally been increasing its presence in Asia, the Center East, and Latin America—areas aligned with BRICS pursuits.
The speculation stays speculative, however it’s rooted in a broader pattern of de-dollarisation and rising curiosity in blockchain-based infrastructure for sovereign monetary techniques.
Analysts argue that if BRICS succeeds in deploying a decentralised, asset-backed settlement mannequin, it might reshape the way forward for worldwide finance and problem the prevailing energy constructions dominated by the West.
