Citizenship in a financialised society: financial inclusion and the state before and after the crash

Abstract

Financialisation, understood as the increased role of finance in individuals’ daily lives as well as the economy in general, has profound implications for the relationship between individuals and the state. This article therefore interrogates recent developments in welfare provision in the UK, in particular the ‘financial inclusion’ agenda, in order to assess how financialisation is affecting the nature and practice of citizenship. By associating institutional change with the UK’s prevailing model of economic growth, it offers an original account of both the persistence of the financial inclusion agenda despite challenges posed by the financial crisis, and the ‘responsibilisation’ of citizenship.