Iran’s prospective NDB membership and BRICS discussions on interconnected payment systems point toward deeper financial cooperation among member economies and greater use of alternative channels for cross-border trade and development financing.
Iran is moving closer to joining the New Development Bank (NDB), the multilateral development institution established by the BRICS countries. Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said Iran would soon become a member of the bank while attending a BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors meeting hosted by India.
The move could deepen Iran’s financial integration with BRICS economies and provide another institutional channel for financing infrastructure and sustainable-development projects. Iran has also advocated expanding trade and financial transactions in national currencies and pursuing bilateral and trilateral monetary arrangements with other BRICS members. However, the NDB had not formally confirmed Iran’s membership at the time of Reuters’ report.
The development comes as BRICS countries explore broader financial connectivity. Discussions include potential links between national fast-payment systems and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), with the aim of lowering the cost and complexity of cross-border payments. These proposals remain at the discussion stage rather than an implemented BRICS-wide payment system.