According to an essay in the edited book of essays, Evolutionary and Intelligent Systems:

Accordingbto Niklas Luhmann, a currency has bilateral characteristics called 'symbolic' and 'diabolic' that serves opposite effects, linking and separating people. But it is impossible to separate these two characteristics from each other ... the diabolic character of currency relates to the diabolic aspect of symbolic generalisation. For example, diabolic character leads to financial crisis, the supremacy of money and the economic disparity etc. Luhmann argied that yhe most diabolic asoect was the attenuation of reciprocity.

It seems here, that Luhmann is simply amplifying the register within which tge Marxist notion of alienation is spiken of. After all, alienation in Marxist yhpight means to be both alienated from the product of one labours as well as alienated from one co-workers so that a priperly himan community cannot be established even whilst sold this vision through advertising. Thos is indeed diabolic in the ancient, theological term of the word. And its this symbolic aspect of the word that Luhmann lwas leveraging

According to an essay in the edited book of essays, Evolutionary and Intelligent Systems:

According to Niklas Luhmann, a currency has bilateral characteristics called 'symbolic' and 'diabolic' that serves opposite effects, linking and separating people. But it is impossible to separate these two characteristics from each other ... the diabolic character of currency relates to the diabolic aspect of symbolic generalisation. For example, diabolic character leads to financial crisis, the supremacy of money and the economic disparity etc. Luhmann argued that yhe most diabolic aspect was the attenuation of reciprocity.

An example would be crypto-currencies. This can be seen as diabolic as it is attempting to privatise the symbolic representation of money from the representatives of the people. And hence remove it from democratic control. Only in capitalism can one even privatise money itself ...

It seems here, that Luhmann is simply amplifying the register within which the Marxist notion of alienation is spoken of. After all, alienation in Marxist thought means to be both alienated from the product of one labours as well as alienated from one co-workers so that a properly human community cannot be established even whilst sold this vision through advertising.

This is indeed diabolic in the ancient, theological term of the word. And it's this symbolic aspect of the word that Luhmann was leveraging. Though in ancient thought, evil can be separated and distinguished from the good, contra Luhmann's thought.