The growing strength of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and other powerful emerging economies raises thequestion whether the world is facing the emergence of a more multilateral era of governance. In other words, has a newmultilateralism been launched? With regard to Brazil, as one of the BRICS pillars, its strong economic performance sincethe turn of the century has been overshadowed by China’s and India’s. Yet Brazil has been an excellent place to investover the first decade of the 21st century. Questions remain, however: How does Brazil stack up against the other BRICSmembers? What is the key to unlock its growth potential? This article adds a voice to this debate. The fundamental issueshere are whether Brazil’s relatively slow rate of economic growth compared with the breakneck growth rates in India andChina and its deep infrastructure deficiencies allow for including it in the same category as the other BRICS (especiallyChina and India). Is Brazil economically mature enough to increase its role in global governance institutions such as theWorld Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the G20, or is it an economically overestimated regionalpower with high ambitions? Has Brazil any other comparative edge over both western and non-western competitors? Is it“underestimated” politically? This article is divided into several sections. First, it gives an overview of BRICS developmentand explains the research problem. Second, it points to the simultaneous economic, “external” expansion of the Brazilianeconomy and the underinvestment in its “internal” infrastructure, which, instead of unlocking the economy and its potential,serve de facto as an impediment. Third, it analyzes the “quest for power” in global governance institutions by both Brazil andthe BRICS. The concluding section presents the main findings.