True democracy means the greatest good for the greatest number with fair access to all. No one would claim that global finance today is democratic. In reality, markets are networks that tend towards concentration, to an extent never seen before. Google has 4.3 billion users, accounting for over 90 per cent of internet users, with a market value of $1.7 trillion. Facebook (now Meta) has 2.9 billion users and a market value of $590 billion. The top 30 banks accounted for 62 per cent of the total assets of the top 100 banks of $110.3 trillion at end of 2021. 

The top two exchanges (NYSE and Nasdaq) account for 43 per cent of the total market cap of the top 30 global exchanges ($121.4 trillion). In half of the world’s listed companies, the top three shareholders hold more than 50 per cent of the capital. The impacts on people are clear. Credit Suisse reports that 2.9 billion people have less than USD 10,000 in household wealth while the top 1.1 per cent of the world’s population holds 45.8 per cent of global household wealth.