Cryptocurrencies Take Center Stage at BRICS Summit as Russia Pushes Bitcoin for Imports

• As the BRICS Summit enters the third day, crypto has been a major talking point, with Russia pushing for crypto payments for imports amid sanctions.
• Just as important for the Summit is the show of unity between Russia, China, and India, the three countries best positioned to challenge the US at an international level and threaten the US dollar dominance.

The BRICS Summit this week was bound to be a big one, and it hasn’t disappointed. The event brought together some major economic powers and powerful leaders from the BRICS nations and beyond to discuss pertinent economic and geopolitical issues affecting them and possible solutions. Crypto has emerged as a major talking point, with host Russia among its biggest proponents.

The Summit, which kicked off on Tuesday, was held in the city of Kazan and brought together over 30 nations. It was the first to be hosted in Russia since BRICS expanded from the original five to include Egypt, UAE, Iran and Ethiopia.

According to multiple reports, crypto was one of the main talking points. Russia has especially been vocal about using digital assets to enhance trade with its allies in the face of crippling sanctions over its conflict with Ukraine. One source claims that at the Summit, Russian legislators pushed the idea of local miners selling BTC to local investors who can then use it to pay for goods from global partners.

As the BRICS Summit Kicks Off, Top Lawmakes Are Pushing the Idea that Russian Miners Could Sell Their #Bitcoin to International Buyers, Who Would Use BTC and Other Crypto to Pay for Imports, Effectively Bypassing Western Sanctions.

🧵 pic.twitter.com/AyI8Km64Y1

— matthew sigel, recovering CFA (@matthew_sigel) October 23, 2024

The push for Russia to use crypto for international payments isn’t new. Since the Ukraine conflict started, Russia has been slapped with over 15,000 sanctions, overtaking Iran to become the most sanctioned nation by a country mile. This has strangled the local financial and payment systems, restricting the ability of Russian companies to trade with global peers.

President Vladimir Putin’s response has been to turn to systems that are much harder to control, and crypto tops this list. The government has even launched two national crypto exchanges for easier trading of crypto to fiat and vice versa and is encouraging more mining activities to boost local crypto reserves.

BRICS’ Threat to the Dollar

Beyond crypto, BRICS presents the biggest threat to the US dollar and its global dominance. The key members of the coalition have longstanding feuds with the US and have been struggling under the weight of the USD, which the American government continues to use as a tool to impose its will and interest on others.

As it stands, the nine members of BRICS account for 26% of the global economy and 45% of the population. In GDP terms, it’s lower than the G7’s 44% share of global GDP. However, G7 only accounts for 10% of the population, a clear indication of the inequality that lets a few elite nations dominate the global economy.

BRICS has been hammering this point home and is attracting interest from more countries. Over 30 nations have applied to become members, including Turkey, the $900 billion Eastern European nation currently allied to NATO, an American-led alliance.

The implications for the US dollar are massive and could be the beginning of the long-coming de-dollarisation movement. In a world where the USD is dethroned, crypto could rise to fill the void, as we have previously reported.