BRICS bank gets new member

Russia Today

23-05-2025

Algeria has officially become a member of the New Development Bank (NDB), the financial institution established by the BRICS group of nations.
The announcement was made by the NDB's press service on Thursday, citing the bank's president, Dilma Rousseff, who welcomed the North African nation's accession as a significant milestone for both Algeria and the bank.
'Algeria plays an important role not only in the economy of Northern Africa, but also at a global scale, and will definitely contribute to enhancing NDB's position in the global financial arena,' she noted.
Rousseff emphasized the institution's commitment to co-financing development projects aimed at improving living standards and promoting economic progress.
Algerian Finance Minister Abdelkrim Bouzred also welcomed the decision, saying: 'This membership is a testament to our belief in this institution's vital role in financing global development, and its status as a key player capable of providing alternative and innovative solutions to promote the growth and resilience of its member countries' economies.'
In 2023, Algeria became one of four countries to move up in the World Bank rankings from low-income to upper-middle-income status. According to President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Algeria has nearly eliminated its external debt, does not need loans from external organizations, and is actively diversifying non-hydrocarbon production to achieve self-sufficiency in various sectors. Both the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank classify Algeria as the third-largest economy in Africa, after South Africa and Egypt.
Commenting on Algeria joining the NDB, Andrey Maslov, head of the Center for African Studies at Moscow's Higher School of Economics, told RT: 'For the BRICS, Algeria joining the bank is great news. The country has a good credit history, a trade surplus, and few debts. Algeria's ambitious export diversification program, as well as its infrastructure projects, require significant investments, and they can be good business for the bank.'
'However, the New Development Bank itself still has a long way to go before it becomes a viable alternative to Western-oriented financial institutions. For now, it is too dependent on the dollar and is acting cautiously to avoid secondary anti-Russian sanctions,' Maslov noted.
The NDB was founded by the BRICS group in 2015 to address the needs of developing countries which, according to its members, are not equally represented in the international financial architecture. The NDB welcomed Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as members in 2021, while Egypt joined in 2023.
BRICS was established in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining two years later. In 2024, the bloc extended full membership to Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates. Nigeria and Uganda became BRICS partner states in January 2025.