IMHO the most interesting thing about SWIFT (whose official line is that they are just a messaging service and carry no money) is that it is an effective global

IMHO the most interesting thing about SWIFT (whose official line is that they are just a messaging service and carry no money) is that it is an effective global monopoly on international inter-bank financial transfers with no published history. What backstory is available shows that it was founded by a European as a Belgian cooperative who was sent back to Europe after being head of international settlements at Amex. The organization appeared really suddenly given glacial technological norms of the day, and its first HQ was not located in a financial center but rather in Virginia, right by the CIA. Yes, I'm saying it was probably founded as an intelligence asset. The US really leveraged the post-WWII and cold war periods to cement its geopolitical dominance globally. Well played.