Introduction: Philosophy for Finance

Abstract

The reactions to financial systems have varied between radically negative, pragmatically moderate, and generally positive ( §1). These three stances display different philosophical approaches to finance and also the interdependence between finance and philosophy ( §2). On this basis, I outline the role that philosophy plays for financial practice and vice versa ( §3), and I explore the specific dynamics of a 'reverse finance' ( §4) and interesting philosophical consequences of it ( §5). Moreover, I discuss some recent contributions to a few main issues in the emerging field of the philosophy of finance ( §6), in particular in ontology, methodology, ethics, mathematical modelling, and algorithmic finance.