From Cash to Code: Payment Rails as Peace Infrastructure in Syria

Author: Rebecca Thompson

Syria’s political transition has opened a rare window for stabilisation after years of conflict and economic deterioration and fragmentation. As sanctions ease and political institutions slowly re-form, the country faces an urgent practical challenge: the enabling of money to move safely, predictably, and at scale. Payments underpin salaries, markets, remittances, humanitarian transfers, and public services. Without reliable payment flows, peace dividends will not materialise, and confidence in the transition will weaken. Syria’s formal banking sector is essential to long-term economic recovery and international reintegration. However, it is emerging from years of politicisation, conflict-era pressures, and severe international de-risking. Rebuilding capital adequacy, governance, and correspondent banking relationships will take time. During this transition, complementary payment mechanisms are needed to stabilise day-to-day economic life while banks regain public trust and operational capacity. Informal money exchangers (sarrafs) and their hawala networks have effectively become Syria’s national payment system. Over recent years, many have adopted mobile apps, digital ledgers, and stablecoin-based settlement, creating an emerging digital financial ecosystem capable of moving funds quickly across governorates and borders. If shaped responsibly, this hybrid system can support short-term stabilisation and complement banking reform. If neglected, it risks reinforcing political capture, enabling illicit finance, and undermining international confidence. This report examines how Syria can build a sequenced approach to financial recovery looking specifically at payment rails: using digital and sarraf-led systems as bridging infrastructure while gradually reconstructing a resilient, regulated banking sector able to anchor peace over the long term.