At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Petr Fradkov, president of PJSC Promsvyazbank, articulated a vision for a globally interoperable financial framework grounded in national currencies. He described a future where reconciliation and clearing platforms operate across borders, anchored by domestic payment rails that can serve international trade. In his view, such a system would solidify cooperation among nations by reducing dependence on external intermediaries and easing the friction that arises when cross-border settlements pass through multiple currency regimes.
Speaking during the session titled “Transformation of cooperation chains: new opportunities and prospects,” Fradkov addressed a core hurdle in modernizing supply and value networks. He noted that banks often become the decisive gatekeepers in commercial transformations, potentially slowing or constraining how business partners restructure agreements. This bottleneck can hinder timely settlements and the fluidity of trade, especially in times of sanctions and heightened regulatory scrutiny.
According to Fradkov, businesses frequently reach mutual arrangements that withstand sanctions constraints, but the real challenge emerges when banks in different jurisdictions must process and settle those agreements. The strict sanction controls and regulatory regimes governing cross-border payments can impede execution, complicating the reconciliation of multi-country supply chains and eroding the speed of collaboration. In such a climate, the industry seeks alternative mechanisms to ensure continuity of payments without compromising compliance.
Fradkov proposed a milestone: the creation of a substantial domestic payment infrastructure with robust international reach. He imagined a system that remains rooted in national payments architecture while enabling efficient, trust-based international participation. This dual character would help stabilize transactions during periods of geopolitical tension and provide a reliable backbone for cooperative chains by guaranteeing settlement reliability within a familiar domestic framework that can still accommodate cross-border activity through standardized interfaces.
He drew a parallel to Russia’s experience in 2014, when the central bank introduced a suite of domestic tools designed to keep the payment ecosystem functioning under sanctions. The NSPK, SPFS, and related technologies were cited as pivotal elements that maintained the continuity of financial operations when external channels were constrained. Fradkov argued that without such domestic systems, the national payments landscape would look markedly different, potentially freezing critical flows of funds and disrupting everyday commerce across the country.
Beyond stabilizing domestic operations, Fradkov emphasized the strategic importance of cultivating an international payment framework built on friendly nations and partner economies. The goal is to exchange payments in native currencies where feasible, reducing exposure to foreign-exchange risks and aligning settlement practices with the operational realities of a multipolar global economy. In his view, this move would support faster, more predictable settlements and help reorganize cooperative chains in a manner that is both resilient and scalable.
In his assessment, the current priority is to advance reconciliation capabilities and to test a range of options for conducting financial transactions. This involves exploring interoperability standards, risk controls, and regulatory harmonization that would allow diverse institutions to participate in a common, secure settlement ecosystem. The emphasis is on practical pilots, rigorous testing, and phased implementation, ensuring that any new framework can be scaled without compromising compliance or financial stability. This approach, he suggested, could lay the groundwork for a coherent, border-spanning payment environment that serves as a backbone for modernized economic cooperation and trade facilitation .