BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors issued a joint statement on the 11th calling for reforms to the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, with greater influence for emerging and developing economies in global economic governance. They pledged stronger coordination to improve the representativeness, transparency and accountability of international financial institutions, while criticizing unilateral trade and financial measures, including tariff increases and non-tariff measures, as distortive and inconsistent with World Trade Organization rules. Ahead of the BRICS summit opening in New Delhi on the 12th, the group also urged progress on interoperable payment systems capable of supporting fast, low-cost, accessible, efficient, transparent and secure cross-border payments. India intends to promote digital-currency cooperation among BRICS members, according to people familiar with the matter. The group’s push for institutional reform and an alternative payments network comes as global trade frictions, tensions in the Middle East and higher oil prices weigh on emerging economies, while markets assess whether deeper cooperation could accelerate de-dollarization.