Abstract (EN)

Digital payment systems Alipay and Wechat Pay, created only a few years ago, are now used daily by hundreds of millions of people. They are connected to credit systems providing loans for consumption and for small and medium enterprises, which did not exist on this scale in the banking system before. And they are also central in the redefinition of state and citizenship as economic policy is officially oriented towards increasing consumption, big data is used for health, education, agriculture and other economic activities, and as systems such as the “social credit” develop. Exploring functionalist, idealist and pragmatist approaches of money in anthropology and sociology, the presentation explores methodological and theoretical questions that arise when studying these processes.