plainwire

Complex systems, explained plainly

01what is plainwire

the systems
ordinary life runs on

one of them per episode.

plainwire is a documentary channel that takes one of them at a time.

Some of these systems you use directly, like a payment network or an insurance policy. Others you never deal with at all, and they still shape prices, savings and work.

An episode goes all the way through: how the thing works, how it got here, and where it is going. It takes in the parts that are still argued over, and it ends with what all of it means for the people living with the result.

verticals
  • payments
  • markets
  • logistics
  • infrastructure
  • insurance
  • licensing
  • procurement
02episodes

watch it, then read it

episode 01 · 6 October 2026 the invisible tax The $2 fee on a $100 card payment splits three ways, and the slice nobody can see, Visa and Mastercard's scheme fee, is the one no country caps. all episodes
03what an episode covers

all the way through

  1. how it works

    The mechanism, step by step, including the steps that usually get skipped.

  2. how it got here

    The decisions that built it, and what happened when someone tried to change them.

  3. where it's going

    What is changing now, what could replace it, and what that would mean for the people living with it.

04follow

follow the wire

Episodes go up on YouTube, and each one gets its article here.

  • youtubewatch
  • otherscoming soon
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05contact

line up the cut
to make contact

contact