China to contribute $41 billion to BRICS fund

China will contribute $41 billion to the $100 billion currency reserve of the BRICS countries, according to a media note handed out after an informal meeting of leaders of the BRICS countries Thursday.

The leaders of the BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — agreed to create a $100 billion pool of currency reserve to guard against financial shocks as they met on the sidelines of the G20 summit in St Petersburg, Russia.

According to the media note, distributed in the summit center after the informal meeting, China committed $41 billion to the reserve, with Brazil, India and Russia each committing $18 billion. South Africa committed $5 billion.

The media notes also said the five countries have achieved consensus on many key aspects and operational details regarding the establishment of the Contingent Reserve Arrangement.

The meeting also sees progress in negotiating the capital structure, membership, shareholding and governance of the BRCS-led New Development Bank, with will have an initial subscribed capital of $50 billion from the five countries.