Interledger Foundation Public Policy Activation Grant Will Support Research Into How Emerging Economy Governance Models Shape Financial Access, Consumer Protection, and Open Payment Protocols

The Center for Technology and Society at Fundação Getulio Vargas Law School (CTS-FGV) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will lead a new research project funded through an Interledger Foundation public policy activation grant examining how governance models in BRICS countries shape end-user outcomes in national digital payment systems and financial digital public infrastructure.

BRICS is a grouping of major emerging economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa and recently expanded to Ethiopia, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Together, these countries represent more than 40 percent of the global population and are home to some of the world’s most ambitious national payment infrastructure programs. The governance choices embedded in these systems will have consequences for financial inclusion, consumer protection, and digital sovereignty that extend well beyond their borders.

Working across two initial jurisdictions, Brazil and India, the project will assess how leading BRICS economies are using governance, regulation, and industrial policy to shape payment infrastructure from the perspective of end-users. It will examine what those models can teach the global policy community about financial access, inclusion, market concentration, interoperability, and the degree to which they support open payment protocols such as the Interledger Protocol (ILP).

Governance Shapes Who the Digital Economy Serves

Open, interoperable payment protocols are a prerequisite for genuine financial inclusion. But technical standards alone do not determine who gets access to the digital economy. The policy and governance choices that shape how payment infrastructure is built, regulated, and governed are just as consequential as the protocols themselves.

“The Internet of Opportunity is built from policy decisions,” said Chris Lawrence, Chief Program Officer at the Interledger Foundation. “Who governs payment infrastructure, how they do it, and whether they design for openness or control, these questions determine whether digital finance serves everyone or caters only to the already served. CTS-FGV brings the analytical depth and institutional credibility needed to produce research that can meaningfully inform policymakers.”

The importance of this work is also reflected in its global relevance. “At a time when digital payments are becoming central to the global economy, and more countries are experimenting with digital public infrastructures (DPIs), our partnership with Interledger is particularly strategic,” said Dr. Luca Belli, Professor of Digital Governance and Regulation at FGV Law School and Director of CTS-FGV. “It enables us to fully explore DPIs' potential for payments to build digital sovereignty, promote consumer-centric innovation, and ensure system interoperability, with a particular focus on the leading emerging economies of the BRICS grouping.”

About the Center for Technology and Society, FGV Law School

The Center for Technology and Society at FGV Law School (CTS-FGV), founded in 2003 in Rio de Janeiro, was Brazil’s first research center analyzing technology’s societal impacts. Its mission focuses on the legal, social, and cultural implications of information and communication technologies. Over 20 years, CTS-FGV has shaped Brazilian, Latin American, and global digital policy through research and multistakeholder dialogue with governments, regulators, international organizations, businesses, research centers, and civil society. For more information, visit: https://cts.fgv.br.

Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) is a world-renowned institution of research and quality education, as well as a think tank, ranked the most influential in Latin America for 15 years and third globally since 2021, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Global Go To Think Tank Index.

About the Interledger Foundation

The Interledger Foundation is a US-based nonprofit that stewards open payment technologies, including the Interledger Protocol, the Open Payments API, and Web Monetization standard, to advance financial inclusion and equitable access to the digital economy. For more information, visit: https://www.interledger.org.