Recent literature at the nexus of geography and political economy notes that local governments are becoming financialised. But it is not always clear what this means. Specifically, what is being financialised? And what is the role of local governments in this process? Building on Whiteside’s definition of local state-led financialisation as enabled and internal, this article combines a systematic literature review with the comparative analysis of country-level statistics to clarify this process further. It identifies four channels through which local government financialisation unfolds empirically. First, local governments enable the financialisation of public assets and services through privatisation and outsourcing and by applying financial principles to land use planning. Second, they borrow against their own assets. Third, local governments use bonds and derivatives to manage the risks and costs of their borrowing. Fourth, they invest to generate financial income. Focusing on high-income countries in Western Europe, the article extends the geographical remit of the US- and UK-centric literature. Building on its findings, the article highlights two avenues for further research. First, internationally comparative research can explore how the structural context in which local governments operate shapes their financialisation. Second, critical research into the tension between the objectives and risks of local government financialisation adds nuance to current debates.

中文翻译：

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什么是地方政府金融化？厘清地方政府角色的四个实证渠道

最近有关地理学和政治经济学关系的文献指出，地方政府正在变得金融化。但这意味着什么并不总是很清楚。具体来说，什么是金融化的？地方政府在这个过程中扮演什么角色？基于怀特塞德对地方国家主导的金融化的定义，本文将系统性文献综述与国家级统计数据的比较分析相结合，以进一步阐明这一过程。它根据经验确定了地方政府金融化展开的四种渠道。首先，地方政府通过私有化和外包以及将金融原则应用于土地利用规划，实现公共资产和服务的金融化。其次，他们以自己的资产为抵押借款。第三，地方政府利用债券和衍生品来管理借贷风险和成本。第四，他们投资是为了产生经济收入。本文重点关注西欧高收入国家，扩展了以美国和英国为中心的文献的地理范围。基于其发现，本文强调了进一步研究的两个途径。首先，国际比较研究可以探讨地方政府运作的结构环境如何影响其金融化。其次，对地方政府金融化的目标和风险之间的紧张关系进行批判性研究，为当前的争论增添了细微差别。