The stack as policy: Rethinking financial infrastructure governance in the age of global instant payments

Abstract

Despite decades of reform, cross-border payment systems remain fragmented, slow and reliant on institutional trust and manual compliance processes. Existing infrastructures depend on layered correspondent networks and ex post verification rather than embedding regulatory logic into the transactional fabric. This paper introduces the RELEVANT framework, a policy architecture for programmable compliance-by-design. Drawing on initiatives such as the BIS Innovation Hub’s Projects Agorá and mBridge, the paper shows how programmable and interoperable architectures can shift governance from rule enforcement to protocol execution. Within this construct, the programmable stack is outlined as the operational layer enabling shared logic for settlement, identity and regulatory conformity across jurisdictions, transforming legal enforceability and finality into programmable outcomes. By shifting the analytical lens from institutions of trust to protocols of trustworthiness, the paper argues that a global, programmable architecture can advance payment system modernisation while preserving accountability and systemic resilience. This article is also included in the Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at http://hstalks/business.