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This article is about an association of people or groups. For other uses, see Syndicate (disambiguation).

A syndicate is a self-organizing group of individuals, companies, corporations or entities formed to transact some specific business, to pursue or promote a shared interest. In most cases formed groups aim to scale up their profits. Although there are many legal syndicates formed around the world, the usage of the term "the syndicate" in colloquial English often refers to one involved in illegal activities.[citation needed]

The term is also associated with anarchist theory, specifically anarcho-syndicalism, in which it forms an alternative to both the nation state and capitalist corporations.[1]


The word syndicate comes from the French word syndicat which means trade union (syndic meaning administrator), from the Latin word syndicus which in turn comes from the Greek word σύνδικος (syndikos) which means caretaker of an issue, compare to ombudsman or representative.


The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines syndicate as a group of people or businesses that work together. This may be a council or body or association of people or an association of concerns, officially authorized to undertake a duty or negotiate business with an office or jurisdiction. It may mean an association of racketeers in organized crime. It may refer to a business concern that sells materials for publication (newspaper, radio, TV, internet) in a number of outlets simultaneously, or a group of newspapers under one management.[2]

Crime syndicates[edit]

Main article: Crime syndicates

In the case of criminal activity, the syndicate is there to promote, and engage in, organized crime, organizations which run common illegal businesses on a larger, also international scale. The subunit of the syndicate is a crime family or clan, organized by blood family, as seen in the Italian Mafia, and with its Italian American Mafia crime families, the Five Families dominating New York City crime, the Gambino crime family, Genovese crime family, Lucchese crime family, Bonanno crime family, and the Colombo crime family.

Media syndicates[edit]

Main article: Broadcast syndication

In media, syndicates are organizations by name and credit. For example, BBC Radio International is a radio syndicated business. A news ticker, residing in the lower third the screen image shows usually syndicated news posts.

Business syndicates[edit]

A formed group of several business entities, like companies or corporations, which share common interest on the market, but usually are not direct competitors. Larger companies or corporations form syndicates to strengthen their position on the market. Internet companies and corporations, focusing on various Internet ventures, tend to form syndicates within their own group, with direct competitors involved. In such cases they share a certain type of market, like brand management or Search engine optimization, and usually form a Conglomerate Syndicate. They may be syndicated nationally or internationally.

Finance syndicates[edit]

In finance, a bank syndicate is a group of banks lending a usually large amount of money for a specific purpose and to one single borrower, often referred to only as a syndicate. Syndicated loans are loans underwritten by a syndicate are more common in the US, where financial markets are in corporate ownership rather than private equity markets as in Europe or South America.

Worker-managed enterprise[edit]

Main article: Syndicalism

Anarchists, syndicalists and other libertarian socialists use the word "syndicate" to refer to an enterprise managed by its workers. Such an enterprise is governed by a face-to-face meeting of everyone who works there, in which each worker has one vote. Either there are no managers, or the managers are directly elected and recallable. In either case, the most important decisions are made collectively by the whole workforce. This is known as workers' self-management. A worker's syndicate can also mean a trade union.

Lottery syndicates[edit]

Lottery syndicates are formed to pool tickets thus increasing the chances of winning. Lottery syndicates are more common in the UK and Europe in general. They are legal in the US, but legal problems are regularly reported [3][4]

See also[edit]


  1. ^ "What is a syndicate?". "Syndicate comes from the French word syndicat which means trade union (syndic meaning administrator), from the Latin word syndicus, which in turn comes from the Greek word (syndikos), which means caretaker of an issue, compared to ombudsman or representative." 
  2. ^ "syndicate". Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2014. 
  3. ^ Sarah Coles (28 February 2013). "The dangers of joining a lottery syndicate". Retrieved 27 February 2014. 
  4. ^ Paul Thompson (29 December 2010). "Lottery syndicate refuse to share jackpot with member who didn't pay $1 towards ticket". Retrieved 27 February 2014.