- The Vice President of The New Development Bank debunks claims that the BRICS is launching a new U.S. Dollar rival.
- Leslie Maasdrop maintains that the alliance is solely focused on strengthening its reach across other African countries at this time.
As the BRICS prepares for its August Summit, members of the alliance have laid out their plans for the next few years, while responding to claims that the alliance is working on a new currency to compete with the U.S. dollar.
In a recent interview with Bloomberg TV, Leslie Maasdrop, the Vice President of the New Development Bank explained that the BRICS is more focused on expanding its reach across other African nations.
He asserted that the BRICS alliance is made up of countries that each have emerging markets that have different economies with very unique features. He noted that China still remains the largest nation within the BRICS block that comes second, in terms of GDP size, on a global scale. However, he explained that the BRICS are not making any move to form an alternative currency at this time.
“All we are suggesting is that we need to deepen the use of local currencies of our member currencies and overtime, that is going to strengthen our ability to immunize or insulate our economies from the devaluation of our currencies if we borrow in dollars, for example. But there is no suggestion right now to create a BRCIS currency in that sense.” Leslie Maasdorp stated.
Saudi Arabia prepares to join UAE, Egypt, and Bangladesh, as newest BRICS member
Leslie maintains that the BRICS will continue to open its doors to new members. Back in 2020, at the height of the Cobid-19 pandemic, the BRICS welcomed UAE, Egypt, and Bangladesh, while Uruguay is currently in the final stages of ratification. Recently, many other countries, including Saudi Arabia, are showing interest in joining the BRICS.
The path of opening up and broadening and expanding the global footprint of the bank will be ongoing, Leslie remarked. The goal of the bank is to focus on becoming a global emerging market bank, while it also works towards increasing its membership and driving in fresh capital in the long run.
“Right now, the New Development Bank has $50 billion of subscribed capital that comprises of $10 billion of equity or paid-in capital that came from members. By expanding, we get fresh capital into the bank, which enables us to lend more and grow our balance sheets.”
Also, new members are expected to join the alliance in 2023, it could take up to 9 months for the decision-making process to be concluded. As such, the entrance of new members will properly be rectified in the following year.
In the long term, the BRICS seeks to normalize the use of local currencies amongst members of the alliance, so as to strengthen the structure of their local economies.
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