The economic and social dynamism in the BRICS countries combined with their diplomatic and political rise has underpinned the shift in the global balance of power. Although the transformation of the BRICS from concept to practice must be taken seriously, with the extended summit process illustrative of a new found status of emerging countries within the international system, it must be acknowledged that the members of the BRICS (China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa) have as many differences as commonalities in terms of national outlooks. With such contradiction in the background, we explain the informal institutional development of BRICS. This paper argues that the key to the BRICS' institutional success has been its deployment of 'club-like' diplomacy. Such an approach is tested, however, when the focus of attention shifts from externalized demands to collective action as a group. We develop a conceptual framework of club dynamics observed in the BRICS based on three key elements: international status, loose alliance and membership size. We use the recently establishment New Development Bank to further test our framework. In terms of a conclusion the article points to the tensions between the club style that allows the BRICS to project a confidence about their rise and the need to stretch this model in the next stage of evolution. In elevating itself beyond a lobby group to the role of a forum with the power of autonomous agency of its own the instrumental delivery of the BRICS with regard to the Development Bank proposal is crucial.
BRICS; Club Diplomacy; Institutional Development; Global Balance of Power