South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has revealed that he personally tested the use of local currencies during his visit to India, using his card to purchase books in Indian rupees with the payment converted into South African rand.
Ramaphosa said he had shared the experience with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as discussions continue on expanding the use of local currencies in international trade.
“I told PM Modi that I tested our trade in local currencies. I bought some books here and I paid in local currency. My payment on the card went through in rupees and it translated in South African rand. It doesn’t get any better than that,” Ramaphosa said.
His remarks come amid efforts by BRICS countries to encourage greater use of local currencies and strengthen cross-border payment mechanisms, reducing reliance on third-party currencies for transactions between member states.
Ramaphosa is in India for the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, where economic cooperation, trade and reforms to the international financial system are among the key issues being discussed.
South Africa and India are both founding members of BRICS alongside Brazil, Russia and China, with the grouping having expanded in recent years to include several additional countries. (Newswire)