National payment systems are proliferating

In February 2022 protesters of Russian warmongering daubed their faces with paint, draped themselves in Ukrainian flags, and clutched signs bearing passionate messages about, of all things, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT). It made sense. As Russia attacked Ukraine, the West searched for ways to punish Vladimir Putin. Removing Russian banks from the primary network used to make large cross-border payments was an easy call. It would sever a crucial artery connecting the world to Russia’s financial system, adding to a battery of sanctions that would crush its economy.