BRICS+ countries are preparing to unveil a new public electronic database designed to track anti-corruption activities and enhance transparency in cross-border financial flows, according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Dmitry Lyubinsky.
The initiative signals a further step by the bloc toward building parallel legal and banking frameworks outside traditional Western-dominated systems.
Speaking on December 15 on the sidelines of the 11th session of the Conference of States Parties to the UN Convention against Corruption in Doha, Lyubinsky confirmed that the platform will be openly accessible.
“In the near future, an open electronic database on BRICS activities in the anti-corruption direction will appear, which will allow the general public to familiarise themselves with it and preserve the legacy accumulated by the association in this area,” he said.
The move aligns with broader BRICS efforts to increase financial sovereignty, including expanded trade in local currencies and discussions around a potential common settlement currency. Russia, which chaired BRICS in 2024, has played a central role in shaping the bloc’s anti-corruption agenda, particularly through the BRICS Anti-Corruption Working Group.
Under Moscow’s leadership, the group developed a joint action plan focused on asset recovery and stronger cooperation among member states. Lyubinsky noted that Russia is “energetically working on developing anti-corruption cooperation” within BRICS and across multilateral platforms, including the G20, APEC, and the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as in partnership with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.
A dedicated BRICS event aimed at encouraging private-sector adoption of anti-corruption standards is also scheduled alongside the Doha conference, which runs from December 15 to December 19.
The planned BRICS+ database mirrors, in some respects, centralized monitoring mechanisms already in place in Western economies. In the European Union, regulators rely on bank account registers, beneficial-ownership databases, and the emerging EU Anti-Money Laundering Authority. In the United States, FinCEN’s Bank Secrecy Act framework and its beneficial-ownership registry provide authorities with extensive oversight of transfers and ownership.
By making its system public, BRICS+ aims to differentiate its approach while reinforcing transparency, accountability, and trust among members and partners.
