Thursday, July 9, 2015
H202B (28 rue des Saints-Pères)
In investigations of offshore financial centers (OFCs), little is understood of the
indigenous and expatriate populations who live and work in OFCs and their complex
socio-political relations both locally and globally. Using the ethnographic frameworks
provided by the social sciences and humanities, I look at the fiscal anthropology and
sociology of offshore by studying the technocratic professionals defined by Dagnaud and
Mehl (1983) as “sub-elites”. Sub-elites work in finance, law and trusteeship and are both
the architects and gatekeepers of global wealth flows. How have elites transformed small
maritime and plantation economies in the Caribbean into powerful offshore financial
industries and what is the future of offshore financial centres based on sub-elite
perspectives? I aim to understand how indigenous and expatriate populations work
together to communicate their professional expectations and consolidate the competitive
position of each of their islands as an international financial centre. In order to illuminate
what the alternative economic futures might be for three British Overseas Territories (The
Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bermuda), which are currently over-reliant on the
financial industry, I look at the social ecology of finance and regulation in offshore
financial centers.
indigenous and expatriate populations who live and work in OFCs and their complex
socio-political relations both locally and globally. Using the ethnographic frameworks
provided by the social sciences and humanities, I look at the fiscal anthropology and
sociology of offshore by studying the technocratic professionals defined by Dagnaud and
Mehl (1983) as “sub-elites”. Sub-elites work in finance, law and trusteeship and are both
the architects and gatekeepers of global wealth flows. How have elites transformed small
maritime and plantation economies in the Caribbean into powerful offshore financial
industries and what is the future of offshore financial centres based on sub-elite
perspectives? I aim to understand how indigenous and expatriate populations work
together to communicate their professional expectations and consolidate the competitive
position of each of their islands as an international financial centre. In order to illuminate
what the alternative economic futures might be for three British Overseas Territories (The
Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bermuda), which are currently over-reliant on the
financial industry, I look at the social ecology of finance and regulation in offshore
financial centers.
