TY - JOUR AB - Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to highlight both the ways in which transnational organized crime has developed and will develop, and also some problems in relation to financing economic organized crime networks. These are related to the problem of state capture problem in emerging democracies.Design/methodology/approach– The literature and other sources have been reviewed to analyse trends relating to transnational crime organisations.Findings– It was found that criminal organisations have moved in the last few years to strengthen their economic power, putting pressure on to states' politics through their networks. In some cases (such as tycoons in transitional countries) it seems that they have already entered a third phase – movement into politics. This form of elite organized crime could be characterised as a fifth branch of state authority, because it is influences, through the means of a great amount of money, corruption, networking and extortion, both the state economy and policy.Originality/value– The analyses and conclusions help us to understand the transformation of organized crime and its influence on modern society, especially in emerging democracies. This may allow politicians and others to predict how economic organized crime will act in the future and how to avoid the current pressure being exerted by these groups. VL - 35 IS - 9 SN - 0306-8293 DO - 10.1108/03068290810896307 UR - https://doi.org/10.1108/03068290810896307 AU - Dobovšek Bojan ED - Paul Ponsaers ED - Joanna Shapland ED - Colin Williams PY - 2008 Y1 - 2008/01/01 TI - Economic organized crime networks in emerging democracies T2 - International Journal of Social Economics PB - Emerald Group Publishing Limited SP - 679 EP - 690 Y2 - 2024/04/20 ER -