Money substitutes one generalized act for countless individual trust demonstrations

Evidence

As a certainty-equivalent which can guarantee in the present the fulfilment of as yet uncertain future expectations, money is at the same time a functional equivalent for other forms of trust. Within the context of those needs which can be satisfied with money, it fulfils the same time-spanning and risk-absorbing function in a more precise and more effective form because it is specifically designed for such functions, and it thus renders trust redundant. Anyone who has money has no need, in that respect, to trust others. Generalized trust in the institution of money, then, replaces, through one all-inclusive act, the countless individual, difficult demonstrations of trust which would be necessary to provide a sure foundation for life in a co-operative society. — Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, 214

Categorization

• XREF: Directly connects to the reader’s Giddens frame: money-as-system-medium is precisely what ‘faceless commitments’ rest on — confidence in an expert system that replaces interpersonal facework. This is Luhmann’s version of the same mechanism.
• DEFINE: Defines money as a ‘certanty-equivalent’ and ‘functional equivalent for trust’ — core operationalization of system trust.