Sociological discourse on the temporality of finance

This paper presents an analytical review of the theoretical tenets within the European economic sociology discourse on the temporality of finance, spanning the period of 2010-2024. Driven by the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, this topic remains a pertinent area of inquiry. The core of the discussion consists of three approaches. According to the first approach, the temporality of finance is determined by its orientation towards the future. At the same time, the future is marked by categories of uncertainty and risks. The future appears as an investment forecast, as an iterative formation and revision of the subjective expectations of financial market participants regarding the price level and the level of risk acceptance. The second approach conceptualizes the temporality of finance as anchored in the present, effectively excluding future contingencies. This perspective emphasizes the synchronicity of financial transactions and arbitrage procedures, wherein speculative value is generated in real-time based on price differentials for the same asset across disparate geographical markets or within the same market at different points in time. The third approach posits the temporality of finance as a multidirectional, non-linear, and recursive process, capable of being conceptualized through various future scenarios. This approach leverages the mechanism of future discounting, which, in contrast to its traditional financial mathematical interpretation, is construed by economic sociologists as a political technology. Discounting, understood in this broader sense (rather than as the application of computational formulas for determining the capital required to achieve a projected future cash flow at a specified rate of return), reflects the equilibrium of interests held by those possessing significant capital within society. It connects the present and the future, determining the present value of capital based on its anticipated future income. The author comes to the conclusion that academic research conducted by European economic sociologists on the temporality of finance served not only to elucidate the specific mechanisms of surplus value creation in the financial economy but also to legitimize short-term financial speculation as a normative foundation for the global system of financial capitalism. This has enabled a concentrated focus on the temporality of the future, seeking out liquid targets for capital deployment and utilizing investments to shape the “future” of societies.