The Illicit Global Economy

This chapter provides an introductory snapshot of the illicit global economy and highlights some of the central debates in scholarly and policy circles. It answers questions such as What is the illicit global economy? How old is the illicit global economy? Is the illicit global economy growing? How big is the illicit global economy, and how do we know? What are the most important sectors of the illicit global economy? How does illicit commerce move across borders? Who are the main actors in the illicit global economy? How does the smuggling of licit goods differ from the smuggling of illicit goods? What countries are most involved in the illicit global economy? Do different countries have distinct illicit market niches? What are the main types and sources of consumer demand? How does money laundering work? How have new technological innovations facilitated the illicit global economy? How different is the illicit side of the global economy from the licit side? How separate are the licit and illicit global economies? What illicit trades are priority concerns? What has been the environmental impact of the illicit global economy? Is there anything beneficial about the illicit global economy?