Liz David-Barrett

Part 3 of #GIACE’s blog series is out! @devipillay.co.za unpacks the Zondo Commission’s 353 recommendations and why South Africa’s post-capture reforms remain uneven. Key gaps persist in law enforcement and whistle-blower protection. Read more: bit.ly/GIACEPart3

Consultants, capture, and kleptocrats: how professional service providers enable corruption

Professional enablers often work behind the scenes—but their influence can drive corruption and state capture. Join our GI ACE roundtable with @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social, @devipillay.co.za, Alex Cooley, @jheathershaw.bsky.social, Corentin Cohen and @tenaprelec.bsky.social

🔗 bit.ly/GIACERoundtable

I had such a fun time speaking with @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social on the KickBack podcast about the role that both voters and women officeholders can play in electoral accountability for corruption in Latin America. Thanks for having me on @kickbackgap.bsky.social!

Today’s #GIACEseminar was a lively dive into how illicit finance is reshaping tourism and hospitality.

Thank you to Jean-Patrick Villeneuve, @ofabianobomfim.bsky.social, Dieter Zinnbauer, @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social and all the participants who joined!

Learn more: bit.ly/corruptionin...

🚨The Nov GI ACE Newsletter is out!
From real estate money laundering to sanctions evasion & a new blog on anti-money-laundering in the Global South — explore the latest from the GI ACE network.
🔗Read: bit.ly/GIACENewsletter_7
🔗SUB: bit.ly/NewsletterSUB

139. Áron Hajnal & József Péter Martin on systemic corruption in Hungary Hungary, once seen as a democratic success story is now widely recognized as one of the EU's most corrupt member states. Regular KB host Liz David-Barrett sits down with József Péter Martin and Áron H

New KB episode: @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social talks with József Péter Martin and Áron Hajnal about research on Hungary, state capture dynamics, EU conditionality, and scenarios ahead of April 2026.
Listen: Soundcloud: bit.ly/47cGU2J

#Governance #StateCapture #EU #Hungary

This month in GI ACE: new insights on corruption in carbon markets, state capture and legal accountability. Watch, read and listen to the latest research from across the GI ACE network.

🔗Full October newsletter: bit.ly/GIACENewsletter6

🔗Subscribe here: bit.ly/NewsletterSUB

How do consulting giants enable state capture?

@lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social talks to @devipillay.co.za on McKinsey’s role in South Africa, drawing on the Zondo Commission.
🔗Listen: bit.ly/KBspotify138
🔗Paper: lnkd.in/eczS5NAM

#StateCapture #SouthAfrica #AntiCorruption

🌍 Applications are open for the Ibrahim Leadership Fellowship at ITC (Geneva).

Work with a UN–WTO agency supporting SMEs in developing countries, contribute to trade strategies, and take part in high-level discussions.

Deadline: 20/11/25

🔗 Apply now: https://mo.ibrahim.foundation/fellowships

Really enjoyed chatting cleaning up politics with @politicshome.bsky.social along with @petergeoghegan.bsky.social, @danieljbruce.bsky.social and Lloyd Hatton MP. Lots to do still...

Join us on 18 September as we kickoff our first #GIACESeminar with Dan Marks & @jenniferscotland.bsky.social from @rusi.bsky.social, and reflections from Pablo Fernandez (EcoSecurities).

📖 Scoping Corruption in Voluntary Carbon Markets
🕰️ 12:30–1:30 PM (UK time)
🔗 bit.ly/GIACESeminar1

#GIACE hosted our Mid-Year Conference (8–9 Sept) with researchers, Fellows, FCDO & CSO partners.
Day 1 featured multiple panels on research themes, ending with a roundtable on the Changing Global Order.
Day 2 focused on impact - turning research into real-world solutions and more.

bit.ly/giaceconf

@lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social co-chaired a panel on state capture at the @ecpr.bsky.social annual meeting in Thessaloniki.

Our takeaway: Tackling capture means understanding not just corruption itself, but the mechanisms & motivations that make states vulnerable.

Recap blog> bit.ly/ecprconferen...

Radical right accommodation really does not work.

New paper out with this exceptionally talented team
@katharinalawall.bsky.social @robjohns75.bsky.social @drjennings.bsky.social @sarahobolt.bsky.social @zachdickson.bsky.social @danjdevine.bsky.social & @jack-bailey.co.uk

doi.org/10.31235/osf...

Does State Capture Facilitate Strategic Corruption? Scholars have suggested that great powers seeking to engage in strategic corruption, particularly through corrosive capital, target countries where there are governance weaknesses. This article res...

New paper!

Q: Does State Capture Facilitate Strategic Corruption? www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

A: Not necessarily. Even where states are deeply captured, supra-national and domestic institutions with oversight functions can create regulatory barriers

Masking who wields real influence …..? Time to introduce a comprehensive statutory lobbying register to shine a light on lobbying whatever name it goes by….?
@danieljbruce.bsky.social @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social

Portugal launches probe into construction giant’s dealings with Equatorial Guinea’s vice president - ICIJ The president’s son, known as Teodorin, has repeatedly caught the attention of international authorities, including in France where a messy legal battle is underway after French authorities seized…

Portugal’s Attorney General has launched a probe into possible corruption involving Portuguese construction firm Zagope and the eldest son of Equatorial Guinea’s longtime dictator, following an exposé by ICIJ and its media partners.

Read our latest: www.icij.org/news/2025/07...

📚 Highlights from the CSC Summer Academy!

Two days of rich discussion on state capture, grand corruption, integrity in sport, and more. Interested in anti-corruption?
Apply to our MA in Corruption & Governance:
lnkd.in/e-vEK2sb
#AntiCorruption #GoodGovernance #CSC

Thanks Mo @mo.ibrahim.foundation for a really fascinating discussion about #anticorruption, #goodgovernance, #aid and #doingbusiness in Africa!

Check out this very frank and open conversation with Mo Ibrahim about how to tackle corruption and improve governance in Africa!

David Lammy has announced a UK-led Summit on illicit financial flows- will it deliver in tackling kleptocracy and corruption? blogs.sussex.ac.uk/centre-for-t... @spotlightcorruption.org @racheldavies.bsky.social @duncanhames.bsky.social @sussexscsc.bsky.social @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social

‘Come meet us in Dubai’: the new offshoring of grand corruption Sensitive business is moving towards more permissive jurisdictions in response to tighter regulations and greater media attention.

Is it now time for national and international law to designate the “kleptocratic enterprise” of elites and professionals as a form of serious organised crime?
@lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social @danieljbruce.bsky.social
theconversation.com/come-meet-us...

@danieljbruce.bsky.social shared his insights on global corruption with us in Feb ‘22, and @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social joined us in Nov ‘22 to talk about #statecapture You can view both via our archive
www.kwaku.org.uk/Video.html

Inside the Congo Hold-Up: How a Captured Bank Enabled Grand Corruption - Governance & Integrity Anti-Corruption Evidence This briefing reveals how BGFIBank DRC was transformed into a vehicle for grand corruption by Congo’s ruling elite. It details how illicit financial flows were enabled through mis-invoicing, fictitiou...

Financial institutions are the arteries of modern economies—but when captured, they become pipelines for illicit wealth.
@acdatacollective.bsky.social's new brief "Inside the Congo Hold-Up" shows how BGFIBank DRC was hijacked by the Kabila regime to launder public funds.

🔗 bit.ly/ACDCPolicyBr...

Come work with us!

📺NEW VIDEO📺

Last night, key British offshore financial centres failed to meet their own deadline for revealing who owns companies registered there.

It’s time the UK Government escalates its response & ensures places like the BVI are no longer safe havens for the world's corrupt.

Watch and read ⤵️

Fear and favour in captured states So, Trump and Musk fell out. Quelle surprise. But is Musk ready for the fallout?

Trump v. Musk. How buddying up to autocrats can turn sour for business leaders...

Fear and favour in captured states

open.substack.com/pub/elizabet...

What does state capture mean for UNCAC implementation?
In a new #GIACE blog, Tom Shipley explores how the UNCAC process often overlooks the systemic nature of capture, and what a more effective approach could look like.

🔗 Blog: giace.org/statecapture...
🔗 Also Read: bit.ly/uncaccoaliti...

State capture is a deliberate strategy to dismantle democratic checks & repurpose public institutions for private gain.

The @uncaccoalition.bsky.social warns it’s eroding the very institutions UNCAC helped build, turning anti-corruption bodies into political tools.

📖 bit.ly/uncaccoalitionstatement