India drove Brics talks on cross-border payments: DEA Secretary Thakur

DEA Secretary Anuradha Thakur said BRICS discussions include interoperability of payment and messaging channels and the use of local currencies for trade and investment

India has advanced discussions within Brics on developing more efficient cross-border payment mechanisms, including interoperability of payment and messaging channels and the use of local currencies for trade settlements and investments, Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) Secretary Anuradha Thakur said here on Thursday. She was speaking at the SBI Banking & Economics Conclave 2026.

 

“We have also advanced discussions on exploring pragmatic solutions for efficient cross-border mechanisms among Brics countries, including work done to study the cross-border interoperability of payment and messaging channels, and discussions on promoting trade settlements and investments using Brics local currencies,” Thakur said. She added that the discussions recognised national priorities and that “no one-size-fits-all”.

 

 

Thakur said the initiatives were part of India’s broader transition from seeking a greater voice for emerging markets and developing economies to playing a role in shaping the global economic order.

 

“We encourage the BPTF (Brics Payment Task Force) to continue discussions, building on the ongoing work, to facilitate practical solutions for cross-border payments among Brics countries, which are fast, low-cost, more accessible, efficient, transparent, and safe,” a joint statement by Brics finance ministers and central bank governors stated on September 10.

 

India’s economic strength has provided the foundation for this expanding global role. Its gross domestic product (GDP) had grown from $2.5 trillion to $4.3 trillion, while the country had also maintained disciplined management of inflation and public debt, Thakur said. The World Bank has also recognised India’s progress in poverty reduction, with the share of people living in poverty falling from 57.7 per cent to 16.1 per cent, and extreme poverty declining from 27.1 per cent to 2.6 per cent, she said.

 

Meanwhile, on the sidelines, Thakur said the buildup in liquidity in the system due to the inflow through FCNR (B) deposits is not concerning from the government’s point of view. Liquidity had peaked at ₹11.16 trillion during the first week of September, but has since come down to ₹4.34 trillion as on September 23.

 

Thakur also highlighted the growing global relevance of India’s financial system, saying the banking sector was combining domestic scale with increasing influence in international digital infrastructure. State Bank of India and HDFC Bank rank among the top 100 banks globally by asset size, and Indian equity and derivatives markets are of world-class standards, she said.

 

India’s trade engagements had also become more diversified, with nine free trade agreements (FTAs) covering 38 countries signed since 2021. Thakur said the country’s economic diplomacy was increasingly extending beyond trade and investment to financial cooperation, digital payments, technology, energy transition, resilient supply chains, and development finance.

 

She also pointed to India’s efforts to build strategic resilience in areas such as semiconductors and critical minerals, as well as its role in food security and global development.

 

At the global level, the Brics New Delhi Declaration 2026 reaffirmed the bloc’s commitment to reforming global governance and called for greater voice and representation for emerging markets and developing economies in international financial institutions.

 

“India’s trajectory in global economic governance can be seen as a transition from greater voice to greater shaping of global agendas,” Thakur said.

 

She said India was increasingly contributing ideas, policy solutions, and institutional reforms to the global economic architecture, including through its work on multilateral development banks, private capital mobilisation, development finance, tax transparency, and digital public infrastructure.

 

“Because we come on the back of a sound macroeconomic situation and a very disciplined fiscal order, we are heard and we are respected,” Thakur said.