Iran is looking east.
As its war with the United States and Israel continues to place enormous pressure on the Iranian economy, Tehran is moving to deepen its financial and monetary relationships with the expanding BRICS bloc—potentially opening another front in the global struggle over who controls the world’s financial system.
Iranian Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati announced this week that Iran is expected to join the New Development Bank, the multilateral lender established by the BRICS nations. Hemmati made the announcement while in India for BRICS financial meetings.
But there is an important distinction: Iran has announced its intention to join, while the New Development Bank has not yet publicly confirmed that Iran has completed the accession process. The bank says membership is open to UN members and that both borrowing and non-borrowing countries can join.
That distinction matters.
Nevertheless, Tehran’s direction is unmistakable.
Iran is attempting to build deeper economic connections with nations that are less dependent upon the American-led financial system—and that could have enormous consequences if the current conflict continues.
Iran Wants an Economic Lifeline
Hemmati said Iran is seeking greater monetary cooperation with BRICS members.
“We are seeking to establish bilateral and trilateral monetary cooperation with member states,” he said, according to Iranian state media.
That statement reveals the larger strategy.
Iran has spent years living under American and international sanctions that have restricted its access to Western financial markets.
Now war has added another layer of economic pressure.
The Iranian rial has been battered.
Inflation has surged.
Economic activity has been severely disrupted.
And ordinary Iranians are increasingly feeling the consequences.
Recent reporting has described a dramatic deterioration in purchasing power, with Iranian consumers cutting back on basic necessities as prices continue to rise.
For Tehran, the answer is increasingly obvious:
Find economic partners outside the Western system.
What Is the BRICS New Development Bank?
The New Development Bank was created by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to finance infrastructure and sustainable-development projects in emerging and developing economies.
The bank has subsequently expanded beyond its original five members.
Uzbekistan became the institution’s tenth member in June 2026, according to the NDB. The bank says its purpose is to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable-development projects.
For Iran, membership could provide access to another potential source of development financing at precisely the moment Western sanctions are making traditional international financing extremely difficult.
Potential projects could include:
- Transportation infrastructure
- Water and sanitation
- Digital infrastructure
- Urban development
- Energy and other development projects
Iran would still have to complete the formal accession process before becoming an official NDB member. Reuters reported that the bank itself had not confirmed Iran’s membership when Hemmati made the announcement.
That means headlines declaring Iran has already become a full member go too far.
But Tehran is clearly moving in that direction.
BRICS Is Becoming a Much Larger Economic Network
The significance of Iran’s move becomes clearer when the size of BRICS is considered.
The expanded BRICS grouping now includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
These nations represent an enormous portion of the world’s population, energy production, manufacturing capacity, commodities and emerging-market economies.
Iran is therefore not simply seeking another bank account.
It is attempting to embed itself more deeply into an alternative network of international economic relationships.
And that is where this story becomes much larger than Iran.
The Dollar Is Part of the Battle
For years, BRICS nations have discussed increasing the use of national currencies in trade and reducing dependence on the U.S. dollar.
Iran is now openly talking about monetary cooperation with other BRICS members.
That is significant.
The United States possesses enormous economic power partly because the dollar occupies a central position in global finance.
International trade, energy transactions, banking, investment and reserves have historically relied heavily upon the dollar-based system.
If nations under U.S. sanctions increasingly develop alternative mechanisms for settling trade, financing infrastructure and moving money, American economic pressure could become more difficult to enforce.
This does not mean the dollar is suddenly disappearing.
It does mean that the infrastructure for a more multipolar financial system continues to develop.
BRICS itself describes the organization as a forum for cooperation among Global South countries and explicitly identifies strengthening the influence of those nations in global governance as one of its objectives.
China Remains Critical to Tehran
Iran’s relationship with China is particularly important.
China has become Iran’s largest trading partner and a critical purchaser of Iranian oil.
That relationship gives Tehran an economic lifeline that Western sanctions have struggled to eliminate completely.
The growing financial relationship between Iran and BRICS therefore has a natural center of gravity:
Beijing.
China has enormous industrial capacity, enormous energy demand and a strategic interest in maintaining access to Middle Eastern energy.
Iran, meanwhile, needs buyers for its oil and partners willing to conduct business despite American sanctions.
The two sides therefore have powerful incentives to maintain their relationship.
The question now is how far that relationship can go.
Russia and Iran Are Also Moving Closer
Iran’s relationship with Russia adds another layer.
The two countries have increasingly cooperated economically, militarily and diplomatically.
And Russia has its own long-running confrontation with the United States and Europe.
That creates a powerful convergence.
Iran is under American sanctions.
Russia is under extensive Western sanctions.
China is increasingly challenging American economic and technological dominance.
All three have reasons to develop systems that reduce their vulnerability to Washington.
This does not mean that Russia, China and Iran constitute a single unified military or economic alliance.
Their interests are not identical.
China has enormous economic relationships with the United States.
Russia competes with China in some areas even as the two cooperate in others.
Iran has its own regional ambitions.
But their shared opposition to aspects of the U.S.-led international order creates opportunities for cooperation.
And those opportunities are expanding.
The War Is Accelerating the Realignment
The timing of Iran’s announcement is particularly important.
Tehran is not making this move during a period of peace and economic stability.
It is doing so while facing severe economic pressure from a prolonged war.
That changes the calculation.
Every month of war increases the importance of alternative sources of financing, trade and investment.
Every additional sanction increases the incentive to find alternative payment systems.
Every disruption to Iranian exports makes relationships with willing buyers more valuable.
And every financial transaction conducted outside traditional Western channels potentially demonstrates that sanctions are not an absolute wall.
This is why the BRICS relationship matters so much to Tehran.
It provides Iran with another avenue.
Washington Faces a Complicated Problem
The Trump administration has repeatedly viewed BRICS expansion with suspicion.
President Donald Trump has previously warned countries that align themselves with BRICS policies could face additional U.S. tariffs, while his administration has maintained intense pressure on Iran.
That creates an obvious strategic dilemma.
Washington can increase economic pressure on Tehran.
But greater pressure may also push Tehran deeper into the arms of Moscow and Beijing.
This is the classic problem of sanctions.
They can make an adversary weaker.
But they can also make an adversary more determined to build alternative networks.
Iran now has a powerful incentive to develop exactly those networks.
The Strait of Hormuz Makes This Even More Dangerous
There is another factor Washington cannot ignore.
Iran sits astride one of the most strategically important energy corridors on earth.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
Any prolonged disruption there can affect oil markets far beyond the Middle East.
That means Iran’s economic survival is not merely an Iranian problem.
It can become a global problem.
If the war continues and Iranian oil exports become increasingly constrained, Tehran will have even greater incentive to use every available relationship to maintain trade.
At the same time, any serious disruption of energy flows could increase inflationary pressure around the world.
Recent financial reporting has already linked the prolonged Iran conflict to higher borrowing and energy costs in the United States and Europe.
The economic battlefield therefore extends far beyond Iran’s borders.
News Watchmen Analysis: This Is Bigger Than One Bank
The most important thing to understand about Iran’s move is that the New Development Bank itself is not some magical financial rescue package.
Iran still has to complete the accession process.
The NDB is primarily an infrastructure and development lender.
Membership will not suddenly eliminate American sanctions or restore Iran’s economy overnight.
But that misses the larger point.
The significance is strategic.
Iran is attempting to place itself inside a growing network of countries capable of providing trade, investment, financing, energy markets and alternative monetary relationships.
That is precisely the direction Washington has been trying to prevent.
The world economy is becoming increasingly divided between competing spheres of influence.
The United States and its traditional allies remain extraordinarily powerful.
But China, Russia, Iran and other BRICS members are simultaneously building deeper relationships among themselves.
The result could be a world where economic warfare becomes increasingly difficult to separate from military warfare.
From Sanctions to Financial Warfare
The next stage of the conflict may therefore not be fought exclusively with missiles.
It may be fought through:
Banking.
Currency.
Oil.
Shipping.
Tariffs.
Payment systems.
Investment.
Supply chains.
And access to international capital.
The country that controls the financial channels can exert enormous power without firing a shot.
Iran understands that.
Russia understands that.
China understands that.
And Washington understands it as well.
This is why Iran’s effort to join the NDB deserves attention.
It is another piece of a much larger geopolitical puzzle.
The BRICS Alternative Is Still Developing
It is important not to exaggerate what BRICS has accomplished.
BRICS is not a NATO-style military alliance.
It does not have a unified army.
It does not have a single currency replacing the dollar.
And its members frequently disagree with one another.
The organization itself is primarily a political and diplomatic coordination forum rather than a traditional treaty-based alliance.
Nevertheless, its economic footprint is substantial.
The group is increasingly attempting to coordinate trade, finance, development and global-governance positions.
Iran’s participation adds an important Middle Eastern energy producer to that network.
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are also members.
China and India are members.
Russia is a member.
Brazil is a member.
That combination represents an extraordinarily diverse collection of nations with enormous economic and energy resources.
A New Global Economic Order?
This raises the question that Washington policymakers increasingly have to confront:
Are we watching the early stages of a genuinely multipolar financial system?
Perhaps.
But the transition would take years, not weeks.
The dollar remains deeply entrenched in global finance.
The United States remains the world’s dominant financial power.
American capital markets remain enormously important.
And BRICS countries themselves continue to conduct substantial trade and investment in dollar-denominated markets.
Still, history shows that financial systems can evolve gradually.
Institutions are built before they become powerful.
Trade agreements are signed before trade patterns change.
Payment mechanisms are developed before companies begin using them at scale.
Banks are created before capital begins flowing through them.
That is why the New Development Bank matters.
It is part of the infrastructure.
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A Prophetic Perspective: Iran and the Nations
For students of Bible prophecy, Iran’s growing relationships with Russia and other major powers deserve particular attention.
The Bible identifies ancient Persia—commonly associated with modern Iran—as one of the nations mentioned in the prophetic conflict described in Ezekiel 38.
Ezekiel 38:5 specifically names Persia among the nations participating in the coalition against Israel.
That does not mean every modern Iranian economic agreement is a direct fulfillment of Ezekiel 38.
We should be careful not to force every headline into prophecy.
But something is undeniably interesting.
Modern Iran is increasingly connected to Russia and other powers in precisely the kind of broad geopolitical realignment that makes the prophetic coalition described in Ezekiel 38 imaginable in today’s world.
The passage describes Persia, along with other nations, moving against Israel.
Meanwhile, Iran continues to make Israel one of the central objects of its foreign-policy strategy.
Russia remains deeply involved in Middle Eastern affairs.
Turkey occupies a strategic position between Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
And the international order is becoming increasingly fragmented.
Again, none of this proves that Ezekiel 38 is being fulfilled today.
But for Christians watching the Middle East, these developments deserve serious attention.
Jesus warned His followers to watch.
He also warned them not to be deceived.
That means Christians should neither ignore geopolitical developments nor turn every event into an exaggerated prophetic prediction.
The Bigger Picture
Iran’s potential entry into the New Development Bank is about far more than infrastructure financing.
It is about survival.
Tehran is under extraordinary economic pressure.
Its currency has suffered.
Inflation has surged.
Western financial access remains severely restricted.
And the war with the United States and Israel continues to consume resources.
Iran therefore needs alternatives.
BRICS offers one possible avenue.
China offers another.
Russia offers another.
Regional trade offers another.
And national-currency settlement offers another.
Taken together, these relationships could make Iran considerably more difficult to isolate economically.
What Happens Next?
The next question is whether Iran actually completes the New Development Bank accession process.
The bank has not yet publicly confirmed Iran as a member.
That process matters.
But regardless of the final paperwork, Tehran has already announced its strategic direction.
Iran wants deeper financial cooperation with BRICS.
Iran wants monetary cooperation with member nations.
Iran wants access to alternative financing.
And Iran wants to reduce its vulnerability to Western economic pressure.
That should get Washington’s attention.
Because the longer this war continues, the more incentive Iran has to build an economic infrastructure designed to survive without the West.
News Watchmen Bottom Line
Iran may be under enormous pressure, but Tehran is not sitting still.
It is adapting.
The announced move toward the BRICS New Development Bank is another indication that Iran is attempting to transform its economic relationships while the war continues.
The immediate financial benefits may be limited.
The long-term geopolitical consequences could be much larger.
If Iran successfully integrates more deeply into BRICS financial and monetary networks, Washington could discover that economic isolation becomes increasingly difficult.
And if China, Russia, Iran and other nations continue developing parallel financial institutions, payment systems and trade relationships, the global economy could slowly become less centralized around the American-led system.
That would not mean the end of the dollar tomorrow.
It would mean something more subtle—and potentially more consequential:
The construction of an alternative.
And once alternatives exist, the balance of economic power can begin to change.
The war in the Middle East is therefore no longer merely a military confrontation.
It is increasingly becoming a struggle over energy, finance, trade, currency and the future shape of the international order.
Related News Watchmen Coverage
Readers following Iran’s expanding relationships with Russia, China and the changing global order may also want to read:
- Pentagon Confirms Russia and China Are Helping Iran as Missile Attacks Raise New Questions About U.S. Air Defenses — Examines growing Russian and Chinese support for Tehran as the Iran conflict continues.
- Trump Pauses Iran Strikes as U.S. Interceptor Stockpiles Dwindle — Fragile Calm Descends Over Middle East — Looks at the military pressure facing Washington as the conflict drags on.
- China Sends Warships Toward Iran as Tehran, Moscow Plan Joint Naval Drills — Examines the expanding strategic relationship among China, Russia and Iran.
- Report: China Conducts Rapid Military Airlift to Iran — Explores reports of expanding Chinese-Iranian military cooperation.
- U.S.–Iran Talks Collapse as Military Options Move to the Forefront — Reviews the diplomatic breakdown that helped push the confrontation toward a military phase.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Iran joining the BRICS New Development Bank?
Iranian Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati says Iran will soon join, but the NDB had not publicly confirmed completion of Iran’s membership process when the announcement was made.
What is the BRICS New Development Bank?
The NDB is a multilateral development bank established by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to finance infrastructure and sustainable-development projects in emerging and developing economies.
Why does Iran want to join the NDB?
Iran wants additional access to development financing and closer monetary and economic cooperation with BRICS countries while Western sanctions restrict its access to traditional international capital.
Is BRICS creating a new currency to replace the U.S. dollar?
BRICS countries have discussed greater use of national currencies and reducing dependence on the dollar, but there is currently no single BRICS currency that has replaced the U.S. dollar.
Why is Iran’s relationship with China important?
China is a critical economic partner for Iran and a major buyer of Iranian oil. Stronger Chinese-Iranian economic ties could make U.S. efforts to economically isolate Tehran more difficult.
Does Iran’s BRICS relationship have prophetic significance?
Iran is commonly associated with ancient Persia, which is named in Ezekiel 38. Iran’s growing relationships with Russia and other major powers are therefore noteworthy to students of Bible prophecy, although current economic developments should not automatically be declared fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
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