Gulliver’s Curse: The Perils of Immortality in Modern Finance and Investing

In our modern world, we are conditioned to pursue longevity. We strive for it in our lives, our institutions, and certainly in our investments. We seek the company with the unbreachable moat, the stock that can be held forever, the economic system that promises perpetual growth. But what if this pursuit of permanence is not a virtue, but a trap? What if immortality, stripped of vitality, is not a blessing, but a curse?

This is the profound question raised by a seemingly simple letter to the Financial Times, which draws a parallel between modern finance and one of literature’s most haunting allegories: the Struldbrugs from Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels. In his travels, Gulliver discovers a race of humans who are born immortal. At first, he is enchanted by the idea, imagining an eternity of accumulated wisdom and experience. But he soon learns the horrifying truth. The Struldbrugs are not eternally young; they simply cannot die. They continue to age, suffering from the endless decay of their bodies and minds, becoming decrepit, miserable, and a burden to a society that has long moved on. They are a living embodiment of permanence without purpose, of existence without evolution.

Swift’s cautionary tale, penned nearly 300 years ago, is a remarkably prescient metaphor for the challenges facing today’s global economy, financial markets, and technological frontiers. From “zombie” corporations clinging to life support to investment portfolios that mistake stagnation for stability, the Struldbrug’s curse is all around us. It warns that in the dynamic world of finance and economics, the relentless pursuit of immortality can lead not to perpetual prosperity, but to systemic decay.

The Corporate Struldbrugs: When Companies Refuse to Die

In a healthy, vibrant economy, the business landscape is in constant flux. New ideas supplant the old, innovative companies displace incumbents, and resources are reallocated to more productive uses. However, in recent decades, we’ve witnessed the rise of a phenomenon economists call “zombie firms.” These are the corporate Struldbrugs of our time.

A zombie firm is a company that is unable to cover its debt servicing costs from its current profits over an extended period. It is technically alive—it hasn’t declared bankruptcy—but it is economically dead. These companies don’t have the capital to invest, innovate, or grow. They merely subsist, often propped up by lenient banking practices and low interest rates that allow them to roll over their debt indefinitely. Research from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has highlighted the growing prevalence of these firms, noting that they lock up capital, labor, and productivity that could be used by more dynamic sectors of the economy.

Like Swift’s immortals, these companies are a drain on the society around them. They suppress wages, reduce employment growth, and create a drag on overall economic vitality. The stories of Kodak or Blockbuster are often cited as tales of failing to adapt to new technology. But they are also examples of the desire for corporate immortality. Both companies tried to preserve their existing, successful models for as long as possible, viewing new technologies like digital photography and streaming not as opportunities, but as threats to their seemingly permanent reign. Their demise, while painful for those involved, was ultimately a necessary part of the economic life cycle, freeing up vast resources for the innovators who followed.

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Schumpeter’s Gale vs. The Immortal Portfolio

The natural antidote to the Struldbrug curse in the economy is what the economist Joseph Schumpeter famously termed “creative destruction.” He argued that the engine of capitalism is a “perennial gale of creative destruction,” where new technologies, products, and business models constantly destroy old ones. This churn is not a sign of failure; it is the very source of long-term economic growth and rising living standards.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the stock market. The S&P 500 index is often seen as a bellwether for the U.S. economy, a bastion of stability. Yet, its strength lies not in the permanence of its constituents, but in their impermanence. The list of companies in the index is constantly evolving. A study by the consulting firm Innosight highlights this trend vividly, showing a dramatic decline in the average tenure of companies on the S&P 500.

Below is a summary of the shrinking corporate lifespan, a testament to the accelerating pace of creative destruction.

This data illustrates a crucial lesson for investors. The “buy and hold forever” strategy, while powerful, should not be mistaken for “buy and ignore forever.” An investor who clings to a failing company—a corporate Struldbrug—out of nostalgia or an unwillingness to accept a loss is actively working against the market’s primary driver of returns: innovation. The goal of long-term investing is not to build an immortal, unchanging portfolio, but to build a resilient one that adapts to the inevitable gales of creative destruction.

The Fintech & Blockchain Promise: A New Form of Immortality?

As we look to the future, the Struldbrug metaphor takes on a new, digital dimension with the rise of financial technology, particularly blockchain. Technologies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are built on the concept of immutability—a permanent, unchangeable, and theoretically eternal ledger of transactions. This offers a tantalizing promise of a new kind of financial immortality: a system free from the whims of fallible central parties, a permanent record of ownership, a trading and banking infrastructure that could, in theory, last forever.

But here, again, we must heed Swift’s warning. What happens if we build flawed, biased, or inefficient systems onto an immutable foundation? If a smart contract contains a bug, it could be exploited in perpetuity. If an early blockchain protocol proves to be environmentally or economically unsustainable, untangling it becomes a monumental task. We risk creating digital Struldbrugs—technological systems that are immortalized in code but become decrepit, inefficient, and a burden on future generations. The debate over “code is law” versus the need for adaptable governance in the blockchain space is a modern manifestation of this very dilemma.

The potential of fintech and blockchain to revolutionize finance is undeniable. They can enhance transparency, reduce costs, and democratize access to banking and investing. However, their designers and proponents must avoid the hubris of believing they can create a perfect, eternal system from the outset. True resilience will come not from absolute immutability, but from building systems that are robust yet adaptable, with clear governance mechanisms for evolution and correction. We must seek progress, not just permanence. The Trillion-Dollar Question: How a US-South Korea Nuclear Sub Deal Could Reshape Global Investing

Gulliver’s Guide to Navigating Modern Finance

The lesson of the Struldbrugs is not that we should abandon the pursuit of long-term value. Rather, it is a call to redefine it. Enduring success in the modern economy is not about achieving a state of static perfection, but about mastering the art of dynamic adaptation. Here are some takeaways for different stakeholders:

• For Investors: Embrace the principle of regeneration in your portfolio. This means regular rebalancing, cutting losses on investments whose fundamental theses have broken, and continually seeking new sources of growth. Diversification is your best defense against the unexpected demise of any single corporate giant. Do not mistake a legacy name for a permanent competitive advantage.
• For Business Leaders: Foster a culture of “healthy paranoia.” Actively seek to disrupt your own business model before a competitor does. As Intel’s Andy Grove famously said, “Only the paranoid survive.” Allocate capital not just to protecting the old, but to aggressively funding the new. The goal is not to make your current company immortal, but to ensure the spirit of innovation within it endures.
• For Policy Makers: Resist the temptation to bail out every failing industry in the name of stability. While social safety nets are crucial to cushion the impact of creative destruction on individuals, propping up zombie firms with cheap credit and subsidies ultimately weakens the entire economy. A healthy economic policy allows for failure, ensuring that capital and talent can flow to the more productive and innovative parts of the market.

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Conclusion: Embracing Vitality Over Immortality

Gulliver was ultimately repulsed by the Struldbrugs, seeing in their endless, decaying lives a fate worse than death. His journey teaches us a profound truth applicable to every facet of our financial world: longevity without vitality is a curse. A stock market filled with immortal but stagnant companies would generate no returns. An economy that never allows old industries to fade would cease to innovate. A financial technology locked into a flawed, immutable state would become a digital prison.

The ultimate goal, therefore, should not be to build immortal institutions, but to foster resilient and adaptable systems. We must embrace the cycles of creation and destruction, recognizing them as a sign of health, not a symptom of failure. By learning this lesson from Gulliver’s travels, we can better navigate the complexities of modern finance, building a future that is not just long-lasting, but also vibrant, dynamic, and truly prosperous.