● A new use-case analysis in collaboration with SIX, Eraneos, and Anapaya examined two typical network applications in enterprise networking
● Using SCION instead of conventional connectivity solutions improves cyber resilience, provider diversity, optionality, while reducing third-party risks
● Additionally, substantial operational cost reductions of up to CHF 1.3 million across different networking scenarios are possible for enterprises
Lucerne, May 18, 2026 – AI, cyberattacks, cloud dependencies, quantum computing, regulatory compliance – topics once confined to IT teams – have become boardroom staples. Business leaders are now expected to treat IT not as a functional domain, but as a strategic capability with direct consequences for resilience, competitiveness, and risk profiles. At the center of this shift sits connectivity. The Internet underpins global ecosystems across industries like finance, healthcare, energy, and the public sector, yet most of today’s solutions fall short on security, sovereignty, and reliability.SCION was designed to address that gap. But strategic value must be backed by economic substance. The right benchmark is not current spending, but what it costs to achieve the same outcomes through traditional solutions or to leave cyber threats unaddressed. A new analysis puts that to the test. Across two enterprise network scenarios, from WAN connectivity to remote access to critical systems, SCION delivers annual cost savings of up to CHF 1.3 million compared to conventional alternatives while offering a stronger cybersecurity posture.The analysis was executed and published by the SCION Association, the non-profit organization responsible for maintaining and promoting the SCION technology, together with SIX, an initiator of the first industrial-grade SCION application (SSFN), Eraneos, a consulting firm with expertise in SCION, and Anapaya, a commercial provider of SCION technology. For two core network applications, potential differences in operating costs, return on investment (ROI), and payback times were calculated.
The results show substantial potential cost savings with SCION technology:
● Replacing leased lines with SCION for enterprise WANs can lead to a cost reduction of 91% and an ROI of 2389%. The payback time would be less than a month.
● Replacing Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) with SCION for enterprise networking can reduce costs by 81% with an ROI of 1110%. The payback time would also be less than a month.
● Using SCION instead of a Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) for a large ecosystem can reduce costs by 33% with an ROI of 228%. The payback time would be under four months.
● Adding SCION GATE by Anapaya for remote access to the existing cybersecurity solutions of an illustrative bank with 800 employees led to an ROI of 72% with considerable hardware and personnel savings. For this application, the payback time would be nine months.
As the analysis shows, for enterprise WANs and secure remote access use cases, SCION proves to be a more cost-efficient connectivity model than traditional network architectures in the scenarios assessed. Beyond financial benefits, SCION becomes a strategic choice across three critical dimensions. First, SCION dramatically reduces the attack surface, a vital defense in an era where AI-accelerated zero-day exploitations are reducing patch time from months to days. Second, it eliminates third-party risk through multiple providers and full control over data paths at the network layer. Third, SCION delivers true optionality as it empowers users with the freedom to choose their own paths and providers, enabling sovereign use cases. Together, these capabilities mean enterprises can secure their private networks with the flexibility of the modern Internet, while achieving measurable gains in cyber resilience and provider diversity. Technical details, cost derivation, and breakdowns for all assessed application scenarios can be found in this white paper.
Nicola Rustignoli, co-CEO, SCION Association: «SCION offers a differentiated combination of path awareness, multi-provider connectivity, and governance capabilities that is uncommon in conventional enterprise network models. It offers superior capabilities meeting present-day cyber resilience, data protection, and optionality requirements. At the same time, for the very first time, we were able to demonstrate that it provides substantial cost savings when replacing traditional solutions and high returns on investment when complementing existing perimeter-based solutions.»
Cornelius Dorn, Head Strategy, Future Business & Terravis, Banking Services, SIX: «The Swiss financial center relies heavily on meeting the highest standards of cybersecurity and robust operations for both its day-to-day functioning and its global attractiveness and reputation. However, operational and financial targets must also be met. The analysis of the cost of SCION technology shows that this is not a trade-off, but can be achieved simultaneously.»
Adrian Anderegg, Partner, Eraneos: «Organizations navigating NIS2 and DORA face mounting pressure to demonstrate concrete technical controls for cyber resilience across critical infrastructure. Our analysis shows that SCION enables compliance through higher resilience while delivering meaningful cost savings compared to traditional network architectures, making it a solid business case.»
Martin Bosshardt, CEO, Anapaya – The SCION Company: «AI-driven attacks now exploit zero-day vulnerabilities in minutes, rendering even advanced filters insufficient. Full logical isolation from the Internet is the most effective defense — and SCION delivers exactly that. Built on existing infrastructure, SCION is also more cost-effective than MPLS or private networks, while complementing encryption-based tools like SD-WAN and VPNs to provide resilience, savings, and peace of mind.»
On June 11th, we are hosting a webinar to discuss the white paper in detail and answer questions. If you would like to join, register here.
ABOUT THE SCION Association
The SCION Association is a non-profit organization based in Lucerne, Switzerland, founded in 2022 with the goal of managing SCION technology and promoting its community. Together with its members, it creates open technical specifications and maintains the open-source implementation of SCION. For more information, visit www.scion.org
ABOUT SIX
SIX serves the Swiss and Spanish financial centers and a broad international client base, offering stable and efficient infrastructure services. SIX operates stock exchanges and provides services in post trading, financial information as well as the payments business. The company is owned by its users (about 120 financial institutions). With over 4,300 employees and a presence in 19 countries, SIX generated operating income of CHF 1.7 billion and EBITDA of CHF 460 million in 2025. www.six-group.com
About Eraneos
Eraneos is an international strategy, transformation and technology consulting group, dedicated to empowering organizations to thrive in an ever-changing digital age. By bringing together top-tier experts from business and tech, we help clients to continuously raise the bar in successful transformations, from strategy to execution. Whether we’re designing future-ready organizations, unlocking the potential of data and AI, or securing businesses with cutting-edge cybersecurity, we deliver results pragmatically. Our team of around 1,200 dedicated professionals is based in offices across Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, the UK, Singapore, and the USA, and seamlessly blends global perspectives with strong local roots. In 2025, Eraneos realized a turnover of over EUR 300 million. Further information: www.eraneos.com
ABOUT ANAPAYA
Anapaya is a Swiss company that strives to enhance Internet security and connectivity through the SCION Internet architecture, a groundbreaking technology offering secure routing, resiliency against DDoS attacks, and high availability. Anapaya’s solutions empower global businesses to operate with confidence in today’s world by delivering higher security and flexibility for their business-critical services and data communication. Together with its partner ecosystem of telecommunication companies, system integrators, and cloud providers, Anapaya is making the SCION Internet accessible to everyone. Customers include, among others, the Swiss National Bank and SIX, operating the Secure Swiss Finance Network for critical applications like the Interbank Clearing System used by more than 300 Banks, the Health Info Net AG providing the SecureSwiss Health Network used by more than 30,000 doctors and the Swiss Federal Administration. Anapaya was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland. For more information visit: www.anapaya.net