BRICS Digital Currency: Cryptocurrency On A Public Blockchain
The article “Digital Money Options for the BRICS” proposes a shared digital currency for the BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The BRICS currency aims to integrate with the existing monetary systems of the member nations, creating a unified economic area and exchange market. The value of the BRICS currency is derived algorithmically by combining various economic factors of the member nations. While the article suggests the impossibility of realizing such currency as a cryptocurrency, in this text we challenge this claim. We explore how using a public blockchain with smart contracts is not only feasible, but a natural match. By further combining this with Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) protocols like zkSNARKs and zkSTARKs, an additional layer of privacy, legal compliance, and interoperability is added. Although ZKPs can be used outside of the blockchain, their practical value is maximized when combined with the blockchain.
Moreover, integration with protocols like zkLocus enables a programmable cryptocurrency that can leverage geolocation as a real-world asset (RWA), enabling features like associating each transaction with a geolocation while fully preserving end-user privacy. This also enables geolocation-based value incentives for the currency, such as location-based fees and taxation, which can further be used to incentivize participation within the economic network.
