A business oligarch is generally a business magnate who controls sufficient resources to influence national politics.[1][2] A business leader can be considered an oligarch if the following conditions are satisfied:

  1. uses monopolistic tactics to dominate an industry;
  2. possesses sufficient political power to promote their own interests;
  3. controls multiple businesses, which intensively coordinate their activities.[2]

More generally, an oligarch (from ancient Greek: ὀλίγος (oligos) = 'few' and ἄρχειν (archein) = 'rule') is a "member of an oligarchy; a person who is part of a small group holding power in a state".[3]

The term is commonly used in the Western press to differentiate Russian business oligarchs from Western business oligarchs. According to a study by journalist Alan Macleod on its use by the New York Times, CNN and Fox News, 98% of the mentions of countries linked to oligarchs were related to Russia (overwhelmingly) or countries of the former Soviet Union. American business people were very rarely referred to as oligarchs in the 150 articles included in the study.[4]

See also[edit]


References[edit]

  1. ^ Guriev, Sergei; Rachinsky, Andrei (2005). "The role of oligarchs in Russian capitalism". Journal of Economic Perspectives. 19 (1): 131–150. doi:10.1257/0895330053147994.
  2. ^ a b Chernenko, Demid (2018). "Capital structure and oligarch ownership" (PDF). Economic Change and Restructuring. 52 (4): 383–411. doi:10.1007/S10644-018-9226-9. S2CID 56232563.
  3. ^ "oligarch". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ^ "Russia Has 'Oligarchs,' the US Has 'Businessmen'". fair.org. September 14, 2019.


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