Spiderweb Capitalism: How Global Elites Exploit Frontier Markets

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A behind-the-scenes look at how the rich and powerful use offshore shell corporations to conceal their wealth and make themselves richer.

In 2015, the anonymous leak of the Panama Papers brought to light millions of financial and legal documents exposing how the superrich hide their money using complex webs of offshore vehicles. Spiderweb Capitalism takes you inside this shadow economy, uncovering the mechanics behind the invisible, mundane networks of lawyers, accountants, company secretaries, and fixers who facilitate the illicit movement of wealth across borders and around the globe.

Kimberly Kay Hoang travelled more than 350,000 miles and conducted hundreds of in-depth interviews with private wealth managers, fund managers, entrepreneurs, C-suite executives, bankers, auditors, and other financial professionals. She traces the flow of capital from offshore funds in places like the Cayman Islands, Samoa, and Panama to special-purpose vehicles and holding companies in Singapore and Hong Kong, and how it finds its way into risky markets onshore in Vietnam and Myanmar. Hoang reveals the strategies behind spiderweb capitalism and examines the moral dilemmas of making money in legal, financial, and political gray zones.

Dazzlingly written, Spiderweb Capitalism sheds critical light on how global elites capitalize on risky frontier markets, and deepens our understanding of the paradoxical ways in which global economic growth is sustained through states where the line separating the legal from the corrupt is not always clear.

Reviews

"Winner of the PROSE Award for Excellence in Social Sciences, Association of American Publishers"
"Winner of the PROSE Award in Business, Finance, and Management, Association of American Publishers"
"A revealing look at how a secretive, often criminal element enables the rich to make and protect not only their money, but also their reputations. . . . A work of true crime as much as scholarship, highly readable and maddening." * Kirkus Reviews *

Author Bio

Kimberly Kay Hoang is associate professor of sociology at the University of Chicago. She is the author of Dealing in Desire: Asian Ascendancy, Western Decline, and the Hidden Currencies of Global Sex Work. She lives in Chicago. Twitter @kimberlykhoang