The promissory machine of green finance

Abstract

Green finance has demonstrated remarkable resilience despite ongoing challenges. We address this puzzle by arguing that this resilience rests on a promissory legitimacy – credibility derived from future-oriented promises rather than present achievements. To advance this argument, we develop the concept of a promissory machine which produces green finance through the ordering logics of promises, themselves primarily directed at financial audiences. The machine further works to uphold the credibility of these promises through cycles of credibility work. A corollary is that green finance is constantly evolving, diversifying, and growing in complexity in ways that ultimately obscure the veracity of promissory claims. We contribute to debates on future temporalities by suggesting that the promises of green finance extend the present rather than creating possibilities for transforming it.