At a glance
BRICS is an informal grouping of large emerging economies that coordinates on trade, finance, development and reform of global institutions. It began with Brazil, Russia, India and China, added South Africa in 2010 and expanded sharply from 2024. It has no charter or secretariat; a rotating chair hosts the year's meetings and the leaders' summit. India chaired BRICS in 2026 and hosted the 18th summit in New Delhi.
Key facts
- Term "BRIC" coined: 2001, by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill
- First foreign ministers' meeting: September 2006, New York (on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly)
- First summit: 16 June 2009, Yekaterinburg, Russia
- South Africa joined: December 2010 (BRIC became BRICS); first summit as member: Sanya, China, 2011
- New members: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE from 1 January 2024; Indonesia from 6 January 2025
- Full members (10): Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, Indonesia
- Saudi Arabia: invited in 2023 but has not formally confirmed membership
- Partner-country tier: created at the Kazan summit, 2024 (includes Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Nigeria, Vietnam)
- New Development Bank (NDB): HQ Shanghai; treaty signed at Fortaleza, July 2014; President Dilma Rousseff (Brazil)
- Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA): USD 100 billion pool to help members facing balance-of-payments stress, signed with the NDB in 2014
- Chair 2026: India; Chair 2027: China
How it works
BRICS works through annual leaders' summits, ministerial meetings and many sectoral tracks (such as the Parliamentary Forum, Business Council and Think Tank Council). The chair rotates broadly in the order of the acronym B-R-I-C-S (Russia and Brazil swapped turns in 2024–25), and decisions are taken by consensus.
The NDB funds infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member and other emerging economies. Its first president was India's K.V. Kamath (2015–2020). Membership of the bank is wider than BRICS: Bangladesh, the UAE, Egypt and Algeria have joined. Its regional offices include Johannesburg, São Paulo, Moscow and GIFT City in Gujarat.
| Summit | Year | Host city |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2009 | Yekaterinburg, Russia |
| 6th | 2014 | Fortaleza, Brazil (NDB treaty) |
| 8th | 2016 | Goa, India |
| 13th | 2021 | Virtual, India chair |
| 15th | 2023 | Johannesburg, South Africa (expansion agreed) |
| 16th | 2024 | Kazan, Russia (partner tier created) |
| 17th | 2025 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| 18th | 2026 | New Delhi, India |
India has chaired BRICS in 2012 (New Delhi summit), 2016, 2021 and 2026.
Recent developments
- 25 Oct 2026: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil's presidential runoff against Flávio Bolsonaro (about 51.8% to 48.2%) and will begin a fourth term on 5 January 2027.
- 12–13 Sep 2026: India hosted the 18th BRICS summit at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, under the theme "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability". The New Delhi Declaration backed UN Security Council reform, a WTO-centred trading system and local-currency settlement, and condemned the 2025 Pahalgam attack.
Exam traps
- The first BRIC summit was in 2009 (Yekaterinburg), not 2006; 2006 was a foreign ministers' meeting.
- The NDB is headquartered in Shanghai; its India office is in GIFT City, Gujarat.
- Indonesia is a full member (2025); Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam are only partners.
- The CRA is a reserve-pooling arrangement, not a bank; do not confuse it with the NDB.
- Saudi Arabia's membership is unconfirmed; count 10 full members.
Quick check
- Q: Where is the New Development Bank headquartered? A: Shanghai, China.
- Q: Which country joined BRICS as a full member in January 2025? A: Indonesia.
- Q: Where was the 18th BRICS summit held? A: New Delhi, India (September 2026).
In the news
Every time this topic has appeared in our current affairs, newest first:
- 26 October 2026Lula wins Brazil's presidential runoff for a fourth term
- 26 October 2026India hosts the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum
- 25 October 2026Brazil votes in presidential runoff between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro