South African President Cyril Ramaphosa emerged as one of the more vocal supporters of local-currency trade on Sunday as he recounted how he bought books in Delhi using his card and paid in Indian rupees (INR), with the transaction ultimately settled in South African rand (ZAR). Around the time of the BRICS Summit, ₹1 was worth roughly 5.93 South African rand, though the actual card conversion would depend on the applicable bank or card-network rate.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Ramaphosa said he had personally tested the system during his India visit.
“We have discussed our interest to have local currency payment systems, and our central banks have been in discussion about this. I do believe that we are going to reach an agreement on this matter.
It’s crucial because it’s important to enhance trade, rather than be against another payment system or another currency. We see this as enhancing trade amongst us as countries,” he said.
The New Delhi Declaration adopted at the 18th BRICS Summit also backed greater use of local currencies for trade settlements and investments. It said the BRICS Payment Task Force had been studying the interoperability of cross-border payment and messaging systems and encouraged further work towards making such payments faster, cheaper, accessible, efficient, transparent and secure.
At the same time, the declaration stressed that such efforts would respect national priorities and that there could be “no one-size-fits-all approach” to cross-border payments.
Ramaphosa said his own experience in India had convinced him that such a system could work in practice.
“I told Prime Minister Modi that I’ve actually tested it. I bought books, and I paid in local currency. I’ve already tested that, and I see it works. My payment on the card went through without any hiccup,” he said.
VIDEO | Delhi: Addressing a press conference, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says, "We have discussed our interest to have local currency payment systems, and our central banks have been in discussion about this. I do believe that we are going to reach an agreement on… pic.twitter.com/2xPlACsPf9
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 13, 2026
“I paid in Rupees, and so the transaction will be in South African Rands. So, we must, and we are moving in that direction,” he added.
Ramaphosa also praised India’s leadership as BRICS chair, saying New Delhi had successfully brought the grouping’s members together to adopt the New Delhi Declaration despite the challenges involved in reaching consensus.
Addressing a press conference after the conclusion of the 18th BRICS Summit, he described the gathering as an “extremely well-organised summit” and said India had provided leadership throughout the process.
“What India has done well was to organise an extremely well-organised summit. Organising summits is always a touch-and-go type of process. There are many things that could go wrong; nothing went wrong. So we congratulate India for doing so,” Ramaphosa said.
He said the host country played a crucial role in guiding discussions and helping members arrive at decisions.
“When a host convenes a summit, they take the reins of leadership. They direct the discussions, and they also cajole everyone towards a decision. So that’s what India has done extremely well,” he said.
Ramaphosa added that India had acted as the focal point in the effort to achieve consensus among BRICS members.
“Whilst all countries have to cooperate and reach consensus, they need a focal point, and India was the focal point and the lead, bringing light to all this. So we really congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi and all his various ministers; they have done extremely well,” he said.
