Polycentric Governance of Nascent Digital Public Infrastructures: Insights from the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure
Type: article
Abstract: Digital public infrastructures have become foundational to the delivery of today’s public and private services. Yet, there is limited understanding of how governments can effectively govern infrastructure innovation during the early stages – especially when the infrastructure spans national borders. To address this gap, we conduct an inductive case study of the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure. Our analysis shows how nascent cross-border infrastructures can be organized through multi-layered and dynamically evolving polycentric governance configurations, in which distinct yet aligned sub-configurations are applied to the infrastructure core and complement layers over time. By unpacking how these configurations can be established and adapted, we contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the challenges inherent in nascent DPI governance and offer actionable insights into how governments can purposefully design and combine governance configurations to navigate this critical early stage.
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7222990053