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This article investigates the changing financial behaviour of Brazilian and Turkish non-financial corporations (NFCs) in the context of international financial subordination. Recent empirical evidence shows that emerging capitalist economies’ (ECEs) NFCs have increased their holdings of very short-term financial assets (mainly cash), whilst borrowing heavily from (international) financial markets and banks. Drawing on an extensive mixed-method study, we show that, instead of being paradoxical or driven by speculative carry trade operations, the ‘wasteful’ combination of holding very liquid and lower yielding assets while borrowing at higher costs (largely denominated in foreign currency) can be contextualized in the subordinate integration of ECEs firms into the global economy. Whereas cash holdings protect against macroeconomic uncertainty, ECEs firm borrowing is largely determined by international …