BRICS countries are setting up their own system of banks, a process that accelerated sharply after Western sanctions against Russian companies beginning in 2022.

However, BRICS on the whole still enjoy large trading surpluses of USD and Euro. They need to buy and sell using these currencies, but without the risk of having their assets frozen or even monitored by US and EU banking regulators.

Tether is a cryptocurrency stablecoin, which means that its value does not fluctuate wildly in trading markets, as do Bitcoin and Ethereum. Its value is pegged to US Dollars, which are held in custody at Tether's primary bank in Hong Kong. BRICS countries now regularly useTether to make large trades, such as in crude oil and metals. This allows the traders to do business quicklyin only minuteswith transaction costs that are a fraction of using traditional banks. Most important, funds are never exposed to the SWIFT financial system, and therefore subject to being frozen or seized.

Resources and links:
Russian Firms Turn to Crypto for China Commodities Trade
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...

Companies Turn to Crypto for Payments as G7 and EU Mull Sanctions on Russian SWIFT Equivalent
https://news.bitcoin.com/companiestu...

A comprehensive guide to Tether’s stablecoin
https://transak.com/blog/whatisusdt...

Tether (USDT): Meaning and Uses for Tethering Crypto
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/...