BRICS central banks sign CRA mutual assistance agreement

The central banks of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have signed an operating agreement on mutual support as part of the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA). The document was signed after a meeting of BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors in Moscow, the Russian Central Bank press service reported.

The agreement specifies the procedures to be followed by the central banks of BRICS countries as part of the CRA and defines their rights and obligations.

The CRA is a framework for the central banks of the BRICS countries to provide mutual support (monetary funds in US dollars) in the event that national financial systems encounter dollar liquidity problems. Its purpose is to maintain financial stability in the BRICS countries.

The total committed resources of the CRA are 100 billion US dollars, with individual commitments as follows: China - 41 billion; Brazil - 18 billion; Russia - 18 billion; India - 18 billion; South Africa - 5 billion.

The CRA Treaty will come into force on 30 July, Head of the Russian Central Bank Elvira Nabiullina said, adding that several other documents will be adopted to regulate the operation of governing bodies - the Governing Council and the Standing Committee.

Ms Nabiullina told reporters after the meeting that the mechanisms that are being created within the BRICS framework (the New Development Bank and the CRA) are conducive to long-term financial stabilisation.