> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://glossary.ecsa.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://glossary.ecsa.io/collateral.md).

# Collateral

The ability to capitalize one’s wealth by putting one’s assets up as collateral is a key source of social and economic power in capitalism. The collateral question is really a question about who gets to determine what “assets” are, and how they can be utilised for leverage. In the existing economic space workers’ primary asset - their labor power - is only collateral in the context of slavery: the capacity of the employer (owner) to use the worker as collateral; not the workers’ capacity to use what they are capable of as collateral. The collateral question is the financial version of ‘class’. In postcapitalist economic space, all [Agent](/agent.md)s can issue assets to be used as [Collateral](/collateral.md) and central amongst these will be [Stake](/stake.md): agents will use the stake they hold as collateral, and lenders can determine credit limits on the basis of the valuation of stake. The construction of a [Protocol](/protocol.md) for distributed determination of collateral is the key challenge to the current capitalist order. It is the centrepiece of our strategy for a distributed economic system.