Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality
    The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality
    The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality
    Audiobook11 hours

    The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality

    Written by Katharina Pistor

    Narrated by Laural Merlington

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    Capital is the defining feature of modern economies, yet most people have no idea where it actually comes from. What is it, exactly, that transforms mere wealth into an asset that automatically creates more wealth? The Code of Capital explains how capital is created behind closed doors in the offices of private attorneys, and why this little-known fact is one of the biggest reasons for the widening wealth gap between the holders of capital and everybody else.

    In this revealing book, Katharina Pistor argues that the law selectively "codes" certain assets, endowing them with the capacity to protect and produce private wealth. With the right legal coding, any object, claim, or idea can be turned into capital-and lawyers are the keepers of the code. Pistor describes how they pick and choose among different legal systems and legal devices for the ones that best serve their clients' needs, and how techniques that were first perfected centuries ago to code landholdings as capital are being used today to code stocks, bonds, ideas, and even expectations-assets that exist only in law.

    A powerful new way of thinking about one of the most pernicious problems of our time, The Code of Capital explores the different ways that debt, complex financial products, and other assets are coded to give financial advantage to their holders.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateOct 8, 2019
    ISBN9781541431898

    Related to The Code of Capital

    Related audiobooks

    Public Policy For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Capitalism American-style: A Financial History Of The United States

      Jun 16, 2021

      “Ages of American Capitalism" by Jonathan Levy sheds light on U.S. history as seen through a financial lens.

      3 min read

    • Article

      Stereo Speakers

      Aug 18, 2021

      Stereo Speakers
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Win-Win Fallacy

      Sep 9, 2018

      The Win-Win Fallacy
      8 min read

    • Article

      Cool It, Krugman

      Dec 19, 2019

      Cool It, Krugman
      8 min read

    • Article

      Upside Of The Blockchain Bust

      Jan 26, 2023

      CRYPTOCURRENCIES promised a revolution. According to their many libertarian supporters, the creation of these currencies by blockchain technology would end the tyranny of the state in monetary affairs. In future, as computers and mobile phones became

      3 min read

    • Article

      Who Broke the Economy?

      Dec 11, 2017

      Who Broke the Economy?
      4 min read

    • Article

      Michael Hiltzik: America Is Falling Out Of Love With Billionaires, And It's About Time

      Feb 1, 2019

      Our emerging political debate over taxing the rich seems to be getting bogged down in details - how high a tax rate, should we tax income or wealth, etc., etc. But this fixation on nuts and bolts is obscuring what may be the most important aspect of

      5 min read

    • Article

      Surviving A Financial Crisis

      Oct 5, 2018

      Surviving A Financial Crisis
      12 min read

    • Article

      Whistleblowing Is Broken

      Aug 25, 2022

      Whistleblowing Is Broken
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Secretive Industry Devouring the U.S. Economy

      Oct 30, 2023

      The publicly traded company is disappearing. In 1996, about 8,000 firms were listed in the U.S. stock market. Since then, the national economy has grown by nearly $20 trillion. The population has increased by 70 million people. And yet, today, the nu

      7 min read

    • Article

      Capitol Gains

      May 11, 2022

      Capitol Gains
      9 min read

    • Article

      The Biggest Threat To Crypto

      Jun 4, 2021

      Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have endured a rollercoaster ride in recent weeks, partly because authorities across the world appear to be paying them more attention. Yet, judging by the US Federal Reserve’s recent comments, it’s not so much bitc

      2 min read

    • Article

      Heal Thyself

      Aug 26, 2020

      Heal Thyself
      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Code of Capital

    4/5

    22 ratings2 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      This is a good book for those who would like to understand how much the law influences the coding/creation of capital. I did learn quite a bit. I wish the author didn't conclude this with a big "If", but end with a few positive suggestions on correcting the course of abuse of law in creating this inequality.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      In this book, Colombia Law professor Katharina Pistor defines capital as an asset plus the rules, laws, or codes, that govern access to this asset. Through the perspective of this definition, Pistor unpacks how law is always biased, and always preferences the rights of some over those of others. Through this approach, she also reinforces the state theory of money.Pistor explores a variety of case studies. Her first, which is quite enlightening, explores the Maya's quest for land tenure in Bolivia. Some of Pistor's other examples, such as the subprime mortgage crisis and Long Term Capital Management, don't seem to add much depth to the discussion (if you're looking for a book one the former, read Adam Tooze's "Crashed; on the latter, Roger Lowenstein's "When Genius Failed").The most interesting aspects of her case arise in the way she traces the history of entities like the trust back two millennia. Did you know that Medieval Europe had an equivalent in the "use?" Or Rome, with the "peculium," a slave-operated entity?Through an inquiry into law, Pistor reminds us that capital's existence and utilization rely fundamentally on a social contract which is mutable. And at the moment, that social contract is fatally frayed. Pistor predicts that civilization either initiates a fundamental overhaul to our laws or we will see its downfall (she cites even staid publications like "The Financial Times" calling for a renewed social contract).The book also investigates the paradox of the mobility of capital (although she doesn't examine the inverse trend with the imprisonment of people within national borders). Almost all capital is coded in either English law, or the law of New York state (hence London and New York City's uncontested dominance as the planet's two financial centers).In her conclusions, Pistor pits the state against smart contracts and blockchain. From my perspective, this is not an either/or situation. But Pistor's explorations up to this point are still thought-provoking even if you don't agree with her conclusions.If you're looking for a nuanced theory about the legal origination of wealth, this is a great read.

      1 person found this helpful