Economy
Rent-Seeking
Definition
When individuals or companies seek to increase their wealth by manipulating economic or political environments rather than through productive activity.
Explanation
Examples include lobbying for favorable regulations, securing monopoly rights, or obtaining government contracts through connections rather than merit. Rent-seeking transfers wealth from productive members of society to rent-seekers without creating new value. It's a major explanation for why resource-rich countries often grow slowly — elites capture resource rents rather than investing productively.