In August 2023, the 15th BRICS Summit took place in South Africa. Led by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – whose initials give this group of nations its name – the event happened against the backdrop of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

But geopolitics wasn’t the only key issue on the agenda: the other hot topic was the creation of a new common currency.

In economic terms this could be a bombshell, not least for the United States dollar. A rival global currency could seriously undermine USD as the international currency of choice.

BRICS countries could launch the currency before the end of 2024. As that might to lead to a global economic power shift, we wanted to consider the potential impact on other currencies, but also the effect on gold.

Why are BRICS countries creating a common currency?

After the First and Second World Wars the US was at the height of its political power, enjoying global dominance in international relations.