This text is an automatic translation from Русский. It was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Read original →Russia and India Discuss Launching Mir Cards
Russia is in talks with India about mutual recognition of the Mir and RuPay payment systems. How the new payment corridor could reduce dollar dependence and what risks the project poses for BRICS.
AI summary
Russia and India are negotiating mutual recognition of their national payment systems "Mir" and RuPay to create an alternative payment corridor. The initiative aims to reduce dependence on dollar settlements and aligns with the BRICS strategy to develop its own payment infrastructure. The project could become a foundation for integrating central bank digital currencies, but is associated with sanctions-related, regulatory, and technological risks.
Negotiations between Russia and India on mutual recognition of the Mir and RuPay national payment systems should be viewed as an important milestone in building an alternative retail payments architecture across the Global South. In essence, this involves creating a bilateral payment corridor designed to reduce dependence on the traditional dollar-based correspondent banking model—a critical consideration given the sanctions pressure on Russia's financial sector.
More broadly, this initiative fits within the BRICS strategy to develop its own payment infrastructure and settlement mechanisms in national currencies, including projects based on the BRICS Pay platform and the development of national instant payment systems.
Mutual integration of Mir and RuPay, along with potential linkage of Russian and Indian instant payment systems (SBP and UPI), could reduce transaction costs for tourism, trade, and services operations while accelerating settlements.
Looking ahead, Russian-Indian cooperation in this area could become the foundation for subsequent integration of central bank digital currencies—the digital ruble and digital rupee. Pilot projects are already underway, and announced plans for scaling create the groundwork for establishing a full-fledged CBDC corridor between the two countries, capable of reducing settlement risks and expanding the use of national currencies in bilateral trade.
At the same time, implementing the project carries a number of significant risks. Foremost are sanctions and legal risks. A second set of risks relates to regulatory and supervisory mismatches. The third layer involves operational and technological risks. Finally, market and competitive risks cannot be ignored.
Given these constraints, the Russian-Indian project for mutual recognition of Mir and RuPay represents not just a technical but a strategic move. With proper regulatory calibration and phased rollout, it could become one of the first practical steps toward creating a multipolar payment architecture for the Global South, within which countries seek simultaneously to strengthen financial sovereignty and ensure balanced mutual settlements and current account operations.