Unit (currency)

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Unit is the name of a planned payment system for the BRICS+ countries based on a new international currency, backed by gold (40%) and different currencies (60%).[1][2]

History

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The plans became public in 2022 with the war in Ukraine, after Western sanctions imposed since 2014 were significantly tightened and Russian banks were excluded from participating in the SWIFT payment system. Media, such as Al Jazeera, reported that Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov called for a new global payment system.[3]

In March 2024, Yuri Ushakov, foreign policy advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced that a working group of the BRICS+ Business Council was working on concrete plans.[4][5] The Unit Foundation is overseeing the project.[6] The Unit is not a cryptocurrency, but rather a benchmark token—or index token—backed by real assets: 40% gold by weight, not by nominal value, and 60% in the national currencies of the BRICS+ nations. Major bank JP Morgan called The Unit “perhaps the most thoroughly developed de-dollarization proposal in the area of cross-border transactions for BRICS+.”[3] However, other voices doubted the viability of the project.[7]

References

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  1. ^ The BRICS’ New Unit Currency Is A Good Step Forward Forbes
  2. ^ "BRICS Move Forward 40% Gold-Backed 'Unit' Proposal | The Jerusalem Post". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2025-12-08. Retrieved 2025-12-19.
  3. ^ a b Agencies, News. "Russia urges BRICS nations to integrate payment systems and cards". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2025-12-19. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  4. ^ Zeise, Simon (2024-03-07). "Schutz vor US-Sanktionen: Brics kündigen digitales Zahlungssystem an". Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2025-12-19.
  5. ^ Zeise, Simon (2024-05-27). "Sanktionen treiben Dedollarisierung voran, Brics stoßen in Lücke des Finanzsystems vor". Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2025-12-19.
  6. ^ "BRICS Launched a Gold-Backed Currency — Here's How "The Unit" Works". CCN.com. 2025-12-08. Retrieved 2025-12-19.
  7. ^ Squashing Fears of the BRICS Launching a ‘Unit’ of Account Fisher Investment