Asset Managers and the Rise of Rentier Capitalism — with Brett Christophers

Embark on a journey encompassing Brett Christophers' latest three books in this Crash Course Episode. He provides a comprehensive overview of the ascent of rentier capitalism, observed in diverse forms across political economies, and hones in on the pivotal role of asset managers in value extraction and shaping a rentier economy.

07:25 What are rent and profit?
15:32 Calculating Rent
21:00 Asset Managers Society
29:58 Managing Assets
31:41 States and the investment space for asset managers
36:17 Derisking State
37:18 Marketization under neo-liberalism
43:24 The geography of this, defensive strategies
50:36 International Trade and investment Treaties
56:03 Competition and privatisation

Key questions we will explore with Brett:

What exactly are rents, and what sets them apart from profits within the capitalist framework? Why is this distinction crucial?

How has the landscape of asset management evolved, and where does it fit into the broader narrative of the rise of rentier capitalism?

In the pursuit of decarbonisation, what obstacles arise due to the dominance of monopolists in various sectors of our economies?

Brett Christophers is professor of human geography at Uppsala University’s Institute for Housing and Urban Research. He published over six books covering various aspects of Western capitalism. For our talk we focus on his three latest books published by Verso, ‘Rentier Capitalism: Who Owns the Economy, and Who Pays for It?’,’ Our Lives in Their Portfolios: Why Asset Managers Own the World’, The Price is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won't Save the Planet

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About Crash Course Economics

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Crash Course is inviting global experts to break down complex issues in lay terms and make them accessible to all so that we can understand how to shape our economic system for a just recovery and future.

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Music credit: "Capital G" by Nine Inch Nails, "Tribal Remix" by Imnotlouis (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US)