The Tagion Manifesto
Written by Decard (decard.io), the initial steward of the Tagion network January 10, 2025 (Download Manifesto as PDF)
Motivation
Control over monetary and financial systems has long been synonymous with power, allowing those at the helm to steer the course of economies and, consequently, whole societies. This control has mostly resided with governments and commercial institutions, whose interests have not always aligned with those of the broader public. This has led to forms of money that often work to the advantage of a select few at the expense of the many, in effect deepening social and economic divides. Today, as commercial interests exert more and more control over monetary systems, they have evolved into conduits for speculative investments that drive social, ecological, and financial instability. Recognising these systemic imbalances, the Tagion network was born to challenge the status quo of money and finance. Tagion is envisioned as an open and decentralised financial infrastructure—governed by and for the people. Free from commercial dominance and state interference, Tagion is set to evolve into a supranational network, accessible to everyone, regardless of geographic or socio-economic boundaries. Guided by the conviction that innovation in money and finance should be open to all, the intention with Tagion is for it to be a public infrastructure designed to empower local communities, organisations and everyday individuals, cultivating a rich ecosystem of financial services and complementary currencies. By doing so, Tagion shall promote the vision of more inclusive, equitable, sustainable, and cooperative economies.
Background
A decentralised system like Tagion does not start by itself. It needs to be conceived, designed, developed, built, and fostered—until it achieves the level of maturity that allows for it to be self-sustained and indeed fully decentralised. Tagion’s inception came from three individuals—Theis Simonsen, Carsten Rasmussen, and Kristian Vestergaard—who founded Decard (previously i25s) as the leadership vehicle to realise the ambitions for Tagion as set out above. At the time or writing, Decard is acting as the custodian for funds raised for that purpose and as the legal entity managing the technical development of the Tagion software and its safe release and staged implementation. With the software fully operational and released as open source, additional forms of leadership will be required for the development of emergent governance structures that will take Tagion from its early closed and protected test environment into an open and decentralised network. Governance here means all the rules and procedures relating to ownership, operation, funding, and maintenance — or, in a nutshell: the decision-making about all aspects at all stages of Tagion’s development. But since a truly decentralised system is (at least by our definition) self-governing, no rule can be fully safeguarded against being changed at a later stage. In this sense, governance here cannot refer to a predefined set of rules but must be seen as an ever-evolving system. To ensure that the development of the Tagion network remains, at all stages, aligned with the vision set out above, the following Seven Guiding Principles have been established by Decard. If the alignment of every element of Tagion’s unfolding governance is checked against these principles the hope is that Tagion will always remain true to its vision — even when fully decentralised and thus out of Decard’s stewardship.
Guiding Principles
1. Decentralisation
The Tagion network shall distribute planning and decision-making responsibilities to the community of the network, ensuring the network reflects the interests of the many, not the few. This shall be done to prevent any powerful entity—be it nation states, commercial entities, or influential individuals—from imposing their will on the system. As such, the system will be immune to interference, coercion, or control by any single group or individual, ensuring a decentralised network that operates solely on the collective consensus of its community.
2. Inclusivity
The Tagion network shall be inclusive and accessible, striving to ensure that all individuals, regardless of economic status or geographic location, can utilise, develop, and participate in the governance of the system. It shall promote financial inclusivity and invite participation from everyone, everywhere.
3. Equality of Opportunity
The Tagion network shall strive to provide all participants with equal opportunities to contribute to and benefit from the network, without compromising security. It shall strive not to foster unearned privileges within the network that lead to the disproportionate accumulation of capital and power, ensuring that participation and rewards are driven by merit, collaboration, and contribution.
4. Autonomy
Tagion shall operate fully autonomously, never relying on any external entity to function. It shall enable users to launch federated Subsystems with bespoke governance and provide the greatest possible independence and versatility of these systems, while maintaining the integrity of the federated whole.
5. Transparency
All rules of the Tagion system and the amounts transacted thereon shall remain public and verifiable. All software code, governance proposals, and documentation of their respective development shall be published.
6. Privacy and Anonymity
Users of the decentralised Tagion Mainnet shall have full ownership and control over their personal data and how much of their identity they disclose to other parties. On federated Subsystems it shall be made possible to balance transparency, privacy and anonymity to allow for diverse use cases and all compliance requirements.
7. Sustainability
The Tagion network shall operate as a self-sustaining system, not relying on external funding. It shall evolve through innovation and continuous development, balancing user needs, community desires, and environmental considerations.
Tagion shall always uphold the seven core principles here defined.