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Jörg Wiegratz and David Whyte on how neoliberalism's moral order feeds fraud and corruption

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Crossposted from here

In a recent article on The Conversation, and  argue that corporate fraud is not just present, but is widespread in many neoliberalised economies of both income-rich and income-poor countries. They highlight Volkswagen’s emissions cheating scandal as perhaps the most recent and most startling example, but say that the automobile industry is only one of many sectors, including banking and the arms industry, where scandals have become commonplace. Certain practices and norms that many people in the global North considered shocking only a while ago have become routine in public life.

David Whyte and Jörg Wiegratz are editors of Neoliberalism and the Moral Economy of Fraud, published by Routledge this month. Contributors are from a range of disciplines including sociology, anthropology and political science, social policy and economics. There are three Africa specific chapters: ‘Entrepreneurialism, Corruption and Moral Order in the Criminal Justice System of the Democratic Republic of Congo’, by Maritza Felices-Luna (Ottawa); ‘Murder for gain: Commercial insurance and moralities in South Africa’, by Erik Bähre (Leiden), and ‘Seeking God's Blessings: Pentecostal Religious Discourses, Pyramidal Schemes and Money Scams in the Southeast of Benin Republic’, by Sitna Quiroz (Durham). Other chapters have country case studies from Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe and Central Asia.  For interested readers: the introduction of the book ‘Neoliberalism, Moral economy and Fraud’ is available for free on the book website (see Look Inside function). Routledge has offered a 20% discount up to the end of the year (code: FLR40) for individuals purchasing print copies via the publisher’s website.

LUCAS and POLIS provided financial support to the international workshop in Leeds which led to the production of this book.

Read The Conversation article here.