利息功能的理论辨析——兼论民间融资的合理性与高利贷之成因

Theoretical Analysis of the Function of Interest: Also on the Rationality of Private Financing and the Causes of Usury

从三种不同的价值学说视角阐释利息的本质,其优缺点互见。应从现实社会需求的角度出发,分析利息在现实社会中所具有的功能——增加社会福利和积累社会财富。其功能的实现必须借助于两种机制———信息传递和激励。信息传递有利于传递出产业资本拥有者资金稀缺性方面的信息,进而引导社会生产要素的合理配置;而利息的激励主要是能够使那些具有资本但是缺乏财富创造能力的个体参与到使得两者在合作中都能够受益的契约中来。利息的这两种机制,将有助于促进社会资金的周转效率,进而促进整体社会财富的有效增长。这种认识,有助于厘清现代社会经济生活中对利息的种种误解、偏见,并对民间融资的合理性以及高利贷现象存在的原因进行客观的分析。

The paper analyzes the strong points and weak points of the argument on interest on the basis of three kinds of value theories, and points out that academics should analyze the interest from the perspective of social function. Based on it, the paper views the interest as one kind of in- centive mechanism. The incentive mechanism mainly stimulates the people, who have financial cap- ital but lack of wealth creation ability, to participate in the cooperation with the people who have wealth creation ability but lack of capital. The viewpoint will contribute to make certain that the in- terest has played an important role in model society, and could avoid the prejudice on the interest.