Representatives of the five BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa - are gathering in the Russian city of Ufa Thursday for their annual summit, amid tight security.
The group is to begin this month operating a $100 billion currency pool seen as an alternative to the International Monetary Fund.
The BRICS New Development Bank is expected to start financing infrastructure projects in the five BRICS nations next year. Representatives from the five nations finalized their plans and contributions at a pre-summit meeting on Tuesday.
The BRICS nations have in common the fact that they are relatively newly industrialized nations with fast-growing economies and considerable clout on the international stage.
Attending the summit are Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and South African President Jacob Zuma.