Financial Culture-Hacking

The Heretic’s Guide to Global Finance, Chapter 3: Financial Culture Hacking

In this chapter Scott focuses on the human element at the heart of the global financial system. He acknowledges that the currency that the industry trades on is not euros, pounds, or dollars, but information: companies dedicate resources to finding out new things, hide their secrets to prevent opponents finding out their new things. But what is often unsaid is that this information bounces around between individual people, with feelings. These feelings inform the workings of the industry as much as the information. People working in the financial sector spend significant amounts of time and money building relationships with their colleagues, building what Scott calls the “informal trust networks” that allow the spread of resources and information. He makes the point that the idea of bankers as people with feelings is at odds with the widespread image of the selfish egomaniac as depicted in films like Wall Street and American Psycho. Scott argues that this perception influences how bankers behave and in turn how the industry operates. He advocates a rejection of the stereotype of the “evil banker” and an embrace of a more nuanced view of the people working in finance. This is the “culture hacking” of the chapter’s title, which he believes can bring about real changes in the way global finance companies work. Scott recommends following the principles of “gonzo journalism”, as practiced by Louis Theroux, eliminating the barriers between ourselves and the world of finance, getting up close to financial centres, communicating with people who work as traders and investors. The point he is getting to is that we are prone to view “bankers” as a group, all with vaguely similar motives, all generally nefarious. I would generally agree with him, this self vs. other style of thinking is never helpful, whether the other is bankers, Russia people, primary school teachers, or Muslims. It is important that we recognise the diversity of all groups and that each individual cannot be viewed simply as a member of a group. Scott believes that campaigners for financial reform all to often tar everyone working in the City of London with the same brush but of course the 30 year old trader who has begun their career recently is a very different person and in a very different situation to the 60 year old CEO of their company. Ultimately, what Scott is suggesting seems to be to take the finance industry less seriously. It is not something that should be viewed as intimidating and overly serious, but something that we can all engage with and have fun with. Scott finishes the chapter by exploring different ways the current stereotypical image of people in the finance industry does not match reality and how it damages societal relations. He describes how working in finance can provide exhilarating challenges to people with a passion for maths or analysis, how the media’s portrayal of malevolent traders can be hurtful for those working in the industry. Finally, he recommends that the workers themselves need to be more aware of their organisation, pay attention to the whole rather than just their specific task, a culture that he believes can lead to serious lapses in morality on behalf of the organisation — as everyone is paying attention to a very small chunk of the organisation’s processes, they are not reflecting on the consequences of their actions. Scott demonstrates several ways in which we, the public, and people working in finance, can take a different approach to the industry, to render it more accessible to all and its workings more in touch with reality. This could have the benefit of an industry with a much more positive effect on society as a whole.