Monetary exploitation is the most effective means of bondage and most widely accepted form to control over a population because it is required for any transaction that doesn't get solely resolved by violence, in doing so you can essentially tax, govern, and structure Society without the need or expense of an occupying presence just the occasional military operation to remind them of said colonization: up until 2020 or so the CFA was used in 8 African nations and had a dire strain on those nation's people [0]. You should listen to Francis Ngannou's talk about the effective bondage African nations were operating under French rule because of the CFA that made trade between even neighboring African nations impossible.
Colonialism takes on many faces, but as the saying goes: He who controls the money supply of a nation controls the nation.
> go and have a read about the CFA franc
Agreed, also look into why France has had continual conflicts in the Ivory Coast to see how it achieved this.
0: https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/23/africa/france-stops-use-of-cf...
citation please?
in terms of finacial centres: NYC is first, followed by London (and they swap places every so often)
down at number 15 or so is Paris
Apple's market cap alone is larger than the entire LSE, and Paris exchange
Using the Paris exchange overtaking the London exchange as a barometer for broader overtaking of the finance industry is akin to saying that a person is taking over the F1 title from someone after beating them in a bike race around their house.
London Loses Crown of Biggest European Stock Market to Paris - 14 November 2022
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-14/london-lo...
Ever noticed that the L in LIBOR stands for London?
Interest rates and money (FX) (money can also refer to short term rates but KISS) is very much still London's thing especially relative to other European cities.
Aside: French engineering talent is massively underappreciated.
Currently the UK system is not "pay to play", if this changed tomorrow someone will be happily own the asset sacrificing a true percentage. In fact Tax is an idea our bankers want to see more of, the outspoken ones that is.
Our UK assets are still worth a pretty penny and last I checked it's kinda difficult to annex physical property to an offshore country. The political classes job is selling this country to the highest bidder as fast the public allows them to get away with and they plan to be in power for a very long time with the help of the media.
Brexit was a disaster for their economy and it will take decades for the UK to stop feeling the pain.
They are a bit bureaucratic for sure.
I don't think UK people are inheritantly less ambitious than anywhere else, but the very low social mobility here has always dragged down potential for some, while the punishing austerity and lack of investment over the past decade has limited other people's opportunities further.
Look at France and Germany: industry, tech, lots of "producing" businesses thrive. Paris has even overtaken London in finance. There's simply more ambition, innovation and energy.