Patrimonial Capitalism

In recent decades, inheritance has taken on increasing significance in contemporary capitalist societies. The chapter discusses ‘patrimonial capitalism’, or inheritance-based capitalism, a term coined by Piketty. The first part of the chapter examines the return of patrimonial capitalism. In an era of vast concentrations of wealth, scholars have started to draw on an older language of patrimony, plutocracy and oligarchy to describe the contemporary Global North. However, others have argued such terms risk obscuring what is specific about the current era, which has enriched a wider patrimonial middle class. Whatever the diagnosis, racial and gender inequalities have been compounded and reshaped by current trends in durable wealth. The second part of the chapter explores the elite family as a key institution through which wealth is perpetuated and the next generation are socialised to inherit successfully. Wealth managers are central to this process and have been identified as crucial to the recent growth in dynastic wealth. Among a wider tool box of legal devices that wealth managers draw on, this chapter focuses on the trust, which is unique in its ability to pass on multiple forms of capital. The final part of the chapter focuses on three approaches that invert the social processes and institutional structures of patrimonial capitalism to socialise succession, including social justice philanthropy, a minimum universal inheritance and citizen trusts. The conclusion draws together the discussion of patrimonial capitalism, dynastic wealth and efforts to democratise wealth and power.