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The purpose of this paper is to contribute to understanding modern monetary arrangements from a Marxist perspective that takes into account recent developments in the Marxist theory of world money. The paper treats the US dollar as a primus inter pares quasi-world money and challenges the argument of US hegemony by exploring the behavior of major capitalist states and selected developing countries, the BRICS, in so far as their official international reserves are concerned. The findings reveal a clear pattern in the behavior of major capitalist states in terms of the size and form of their reserves with the variations in them implying a hierarchical structure of the corresponding quasi-world moneys. The analysis focuses on developed countries and treats them individually. The merit of this approach, distinctive in the literature on international reserves, is that it reveals the above-mentioned pattern which is blurred when Japan is included. The results imply that current international monetary arrangements reflect and promote multipolarity and competition on the geopolitical scene, the evolution of which is historical.

This chapter critically examines the Post Keynesian horizontalist theory of money from a Marxian perspective. Horizontalist analyses are criticised from three angles. First, monetary theory should be historically specific. Second, credit money is an advanced form of money, created mostly as liabilities of financial institutions, and its supply is endogenous in a more complex and profound sense than Post Keynesian analysis allows. Third, although credit money is endogenous, the quantity supplied is not always compatible with the needs of the sphere of circulation. Consequently, pronounced instability and inflation are possible for purely monetary reasons.

In Finance Capital Hilferding suggests that, in the early stages of capitalist development, banks engage in short-term lending for “circulation” purposes, while concerning themselves with their liquidity. As capitalist development proceeds, banks lend longer-term for “investment” purposes, and their concern shifts to securing their solvency. Consequently, banks and industrial enterprises become amalgamated into “finance capital,” developing mutual “commitment” relations, and giving a bank-based character to the financial system. The core of Hilferding’s argument resembles Smith’s analysis of banking, but in important respects his argument is reminiscent of Steuart’s earlier and opposing analysis. Hilferding was able to integrate key elements of both approaches to banking by relying on Marx’s concept of loanable money capital, as well as on Marx’s claim that the average rate of interest is normally lower than the average rate of profit. However, Hilferding’s view that financial systems spontaneously become bank-based has not stood the test of time well. This failure is probably due to underestimating the importance of state intervention in shaping the financial system.

Granting mortgages to customers likely to become insolvent was widespread in Spain during the housing bubble that burst in 2007, resulting in an unprecedented rate of home repossessions. The practice was usually legal, but if power relations, structural determinations, and asymmetrical access to information are taken into account, it appears abusive and socially harmful. Several sorts of people were involved in it: bank staff who, under pressure from managers, took advantage of their long-standing relationships with customers; real estate agents and mortgage brokers who saw a business opportunity in people’s aspiration to home ownership; and investment banking executives who devised sophisticated financial products aimed at masking risk. For them, selling risky mortgages was not only a profitable business but also a way to comply with norms, values, and expectations at play in their social settings. This chapter will show how mortgage lending and its evaluation as wrong or acceptable by actors in different social positions has a relational nature, and is based on diverging moral economies that guide economic action in the framework of neoliberalism.

The mobilisations against the wildfires in Greece (2007) redefined the notion of environmentalism in the country, and it was one of the first examples which showcased the potential of digital media for protests and resistance in the Greek context. At the same time, the global recession strongly affected the environmental politics and policies applied in Greece, indicating threats, risks and areas of conflict (e.g., privatisation of recourses, water, etc.). Following the environmental protests of 2007, this study provides an insight into the case of #Skouries forest and the antimining protests, focussing on the period 2015–2017. The study developed through the analysis of online data (Twitter) which was collected during the period March 2015 to March 2017 (#skouries). This chapter develops an insight into the online networks, coalitions and dominant actors (SNA) and also investigates the hashtags evolution and discourse (Semantic analysis). The collection and visualisation of the data developed using NodeXL. This case is considered one of the most indicative examples of the Greek environmental movement, as this shaped during the evolution of social media and in the crisis context. As such, this chapter demonstrates that the importance of the use of Twitter for the organisation of the movement, as well as an alternative space for public engagement/debate on climate change and environmental-related issues.