Political Economy shaped by Financialization

Financialization has, in the last several decades, touched many aspects of political economy, intensified politics of distribution and redefined power struggles around the world. Nonetheless, the style and types of financialization and its manifestation in both domestic politics and foreign policy vary greatly among different economies depending on financialization and the important role of financialized wealth both to sustain corporations and savers (especially in rapidly aging population like Japan for the pensioners). Despite its comparatively low level of financialization among the OECD members, the phenomenon have had visible influence in shaping the Japanese government's role both in its monetary policy through the Bank of Japan (BOJ) and for its external geoeconomic strategy of infrastructure investment financing in competition with China's Belt-and-Road Initiative (BRI) since 2013. I argue in this report that due to the rising level of financialization, the Japanese government has faced increased pressure to adjust its policies to accommodate the demands of market-based financial interest, on the one hand, and to direct the country's financial power for its foreign policy goals, on the other hand. The developmental legacy of Japan's institutions, however, continues to influence the government's financial strategy.