Deutsche Bank, one of the largest banking institutions in Europe and the world, has recently linked BRICS to a significant percentage of cross-border transactions. The bank states that the bloc has been driven to cryptocurrency due to geopolitical tensions.
Deutsche Bank: BRICS Countries Accounted for 28% of All Cross-Border Crypto Transactions
Deutsche Bank, a German financial institution with over $1.45 trillion in assets, has recognized the leading role of cryptocurrencies as an alternative for sanctioned countries and their allies to continue developing trade settlements.
In a recently issued article quoted by Vaneck’s Head of Digital Assets Research Matthew Sigel on X, the company linked BRICS with a significant part of the international crypto settlements made. Deutsche Bank assessed that BRICS nations, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are now involved in 28% of all cross-border crypto transactions.
While there are no official numbers for cryptocurrency settlements from the BRICS bloc, reports indicate that companies could have been resorting to using crypto to alleviate payment difficulties in international settlements between China and Russia. These difficulties include the risk of secondary sanctions to Chinese banks, that have opted out of receiving payments from Russian counterparts, hindering trade relations in some cases.
Read more: Bilateral Settlement Between China and Russia Worsens Due to New Sanctions
In addition, the bank stated that recent geopolitical tensions, including the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict and its consequences, have driven these countries to crypto.
The institution highlighted the relevance of crypto as part of this alternative settlement system, remarking that these transactions had been growing by 147% year over year. Deutsche Bank also underscored the possibilities of crypto for reducing dependence on the U.S. dollar, which several analysts have alleged is being used as a political tool. According to Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, digital assets are being considered to be part of the upcoming BRICS payment systems.
Read more: BRICS Payment System a SWIFT Substitute? Network to Implement Digital Assets and Financial Messages
In this sense, the institution argued that Russia’s increased interest in crypto might be a consequence, revealing that the number of cryptocurrency users in the country had dramatically increased from close to 3 million in 2020 to over 24 million in 2024.
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