Quentin Belot Capital is back. Rethinking French capitalism. 22 April, 4pm

Quentin Belot Couloumies, Université Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble INP, CERAG, Grenoble, France
Wednesday 22 April, 16:00-17:30, Practice Suite.
The seminar will be introduced by Theo Bourgeron.

Capital is back. Rethinking French capitalism through structures, power, and long-term dynamics of capital

This paper presents my current work, that seeks to challenge dominant narratives of contemporary capitalism that emphasize rupture – between Fordism and neoliberalism, or between state and market. Focusing on the French case, it argues instead for a long-term structural continuity in the organization of capital accumulation, rooted in transformations that took shape during the 1960s. The paper more specifically sets out a framework to analyse capitalism not as a succession of regimes, but as a set of evolving structures: structures of ownership, control, circulation, and power. It highlights the central role of holdings, financial mechanisms, and state-capital entanglements in shaping these dynamics. By bridging economic history, sociology of elites, and critical management studies, I propose to reconsider the second half of the twentieth century as a decisive moment in the consolidation – rather than the disruption – of contemporary capitalism.