Coercive Capital explores the intersection of U.S. economic and national security and global financial reform. Global adversaries are weaponizing our trade and financial systems, while Illicit financial flows, kleptocracy, and organized crime continue to erode democratic systems and destabilize economies. Elaine Dezenski brings together experts who understand these emerging threats and provide insights into the risks and emerging opportunities to strengthen our collective response.
The Clean Capital Shift: Andrew King Talks Risks and Opportunities
Andrew King, Executive Director of Future Union, joins Coercive Capital to expose how authoritarian financial flows are quietly reshaping democratic institutions—from pensions and universities to policy circles.
In this 50-minute interview, King breaks down:
– The origins of Future Union and why clean capital is essential
– The real-world risk of foreign influence in American finance
– The Clean Capital Pledge and how reform is starting to take hold
– Concrete examples of capture—and what we can do about it
Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of finance, power, and democracy.
Visit: illicitedge.com
Questions? Contact: elaine@illicitedge.com
22 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT
Unplugging Beijing: How to Reclaim America’s Battery Supply Chain
How did the Chinese Communist Party build near-total control over the world’s most critical battery inputs? And how can the U.S. respond before it’s too late?
Josh Birenbaum of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) joins Elaine Dezenski on Coercive Capital to discuss their new report which breaks down the CCP’s strategic capture of the global battery supply chain—and outline what it will take for the United States to regain control.
Based on FDD’s July 2025 report, “Unplugging Beijing,” this episode offers a practical, urgent blueprint for restoring American battery independence.
Topics include:
How China cornered the lithium, nickel, and graphite markets
The role of state-backed firms in Beijing’s battery dominance
Why market solutions alone won’t solve the problem
What U.S. policymakers must do now—and who’s already behind
Hosted by Elaine Dezenski.
New episodes weekly on Coercive Capital.
8 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT
Human Intelligence in Conflict Zones | Coercive Capital
Tom Sanderson shares firsthand experiences in conflict zones with host Elaine Dezenski, revealing the realities of global risk and the crucial role of human intelligence in navigating complex power dynamics in this interview.
24 Jun 2025TRANSCRIPT
Tehran’s Tightrope: The Cost of Confrontation
Host Elaine Dezenski interviews Behnam Ben Taleblu about the costs of confronting Iran, examining the impact of economic pressures and rising regional tensions on financial institutions.
26 Mar 2025TRANSCRIPT
“The Investigator," with Jules B. Kroll | Coercive Capital
Elaine Dezenski interviews Jules B. Kroll on his pioneering role in the private investigative industry and the evolution of corporate intelligence.
11 Mar 2025TRANSCRIPT
Investing in "America First" with Nova J. Daly | Coercive Capital
Among the dizzying number of executive orders, tariff negotiations, and Doge activity since the inauguration, the America First Investment Policy requires a specific focus to better understand the potential impact on foreign investment in the United States, from both allies and hostile nations.
Nova J. Daly is a Senior Public Policy Advisor at Wiley Rein, LLP. He formerly served in the Treasury Department as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS.) Coercive Capital host, Elaine Dezenski, recently spoke with Nova about America First, what it means for capital flows, U.S. companies, and the broader seismic shift in the global trade order.
18 Feb 2025TRANSCRIPT
Combating the Illicit Economy: David M. Luna
From smuggling and trafficking to cyber fraud and trade-based money laundering, the illicit economy is estimated to represent more than $2 trillion of illegal activity annually. And the international criminal networks that drive the illicit economy have continued to evolve and grow more sophisticated with every operation. This shadow economy is massive and its real-life consequences are widespread resulting in deaths by overdose, violence in communities, and government destabilization.
David M. Luna is a true expert on the illicit economy. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the International Coalition Against Illicit Economies (ICAIE). He also held senior positions with the U.S. State Department and at the White House. and has worked internationally with the Organization of Econ and Dev. And the UN.
Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski recently spoke with David M. Luna about the contours of the shadow economy and why breaking the corruptive power and financial power of these transnational criminal networks is a critical element of our national security strategy.
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5 Feb 2025TRANSCRIPT
Foreign Threats & Information Warfare: Dr. Ivana Stradner | Coercive Capital
Foreign adversaries’ weaponization of information is nothing new. Still, the means and modes by which rogue nations use disinformation, propaganda, and cyber-attacks to influence American public opinion are increasingly worrisome – weakening democracy, weaponizing free speech, and polarizing citizens in ways they may not recognize - like in Russia, Iran and China where governments have built a global apparatus sowing discord and a growing anti-west narrative.
Dr. Ivana Stradner is a renowned security expert and Research Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Barish Center for Media Integrity, where her work examines both the psychological and technical aspects of Russian information warfare. Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski recently spoke with Dr. Stradner about what she describes as the “covert war for American Minds.”
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21 Jan 2025TRANSCRIPT
Confronting Kleptocracy: Zoë Reiter | Coercive Capital
Transnational kleptocracy describes how corrupt rulers steal public funds and then launder those funds within the international financial system. It's accomplished by moving those funds from fragile states to “safer” jurisdictions—like the U.S.
Many of America’s foreign adversaries operate as kleptocracies and cutting off their illicit financial flows weakens their impact on free and open societies across the globe.
Anti-corruption organizations worldwide are increasingly focused on rooting out the kleptocrats, their funds, their networks, their shell corporations, and their facilitators.
One such organization, the National Endowment for Democracy, is an independent, bipartisan, non-governmental organization focused on strengthening democratic institutions worldwide. Zoë Reiter is the Director of NED’s program on combating kleptocracy. She recently spoke with Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski on her work and efforts to bolster the role of a civil society in exposing the networks of kleptocrats.
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7 Jan 2025TRANSCRIPT
Identity is Everything: Amit Sharma | Coercive Capital
The evolution and modernization of how we manage and protect identity has moved into a new era. More than two decades after the tragic events of 9/11- when 19 hijackers used falsified identity documents to board planes, US travelers over the age of 18 will now be required to present a REAL ID compliant form of identification to board an aircraft, or access certain types of federal facilities Identity verification is also at the core of Know Your Customer requirements. And it’s why financial services providers are a key stakeholder in the evolution of digital identity.
Furthermore, new digital identity infrastructure has the potential to put the customer at the center of a user-based system that will help individuals retain their personal data and reduce the risk of fraud, identity theft and account takeover.
Coercive Capital host, Elaine Dezenski recently spoke with Amit Sharma, Founder and CEO of FinClusive, about the concept of sovereign ownership of identity and the integrity of personal data as a fundamental human right.
17 Dec 2024TRANSCRIPT
The State & Sanctions: Cari Stinebower
Cari Stinebower, Chair of the International Trade Practice at Winston and Strawn, breaks down the tools and strategies needed to strengthen sanctions enforcement and safeguard international commerce.
3 Dec 2024TRANSCRIPT
Corporate America’s China Challenge: Isaac Stone Fish
Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski explores the evolving risks of doing business in China with expert Isaac Stone Fish, Founder and CEO of Strategy Risks, and creator of the SR 250 China risk exposure index.
19 Nov 2024TRANSCRIPT
Coercive Capital: Department of Defense Supply Chain Economics with Wes Spurlock and David Rader
In this episode of Coercive Capital, Elaine Dezenski hosts David Rader, Senior Advisor at the Office of the Secretary of Defense and Adjunct Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, along with Wes Spurlock, Senior Advisor and Co-Founder of the Office of Strategic Capital at the Department of Defense and a former U.S. Air Force Military Officer. They discuss the supply chain economics of the Department of Defense, adversarial capital, and much more.
5 Nov 2024TRANSCRIPT
Coercive Capital: The Corruption Continuum - Scott Greytak & Casey Michel
In the 1970s, corruption in the U.S was often not considered a problem. Or it was viewed as a problem that happened “over there”.... in other parts of the world. But in retrospect, the reality and our perception of corruption has changed. And even though anti-corruption legislation like the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act was implemented to help combat the issue, corruption continues and grows in ways that no one could have predicted.
Kleptocrats around the world are uniting to attack us- in Russia, China, Venezuela, North Korea, and Iran- use their power to attack their neighbors, and destabilize the global economy… allowing dictators and criminals to leverage our own system against us – hiring lobbyists, lawyers, and corporate service agents to influence our elections, buy off our politicians, move dirty money, compromise our economy, and weaken our resilience.
To help understand the urgency of these new risks and the tools needed to protect America, democracy, and, maybe, the world, Coercive Capital host Eliane Dezenski speaks with Scott Greytak, the Director of Advocacy of Transparency International US, and Casey Michel, Director of the Combating Kleptocracy Program at the Human Rights Foundation.
22 Oct 2024TRANSCRIPT
Coercive Capital: Networks that Fuel the Fentanyl Crisis with Ray Donovan
The ongoing fentanyl crisis in America shows few signs of abating. Roughly 200 people per day, more than 75,000 Americans per year, lose their lives due to fentanyl use. But how do we stem the tide and reverse this trend? Examining the epidemic through an economic and financial lens helps us identify those who benefit from fentanyl production and distribution. In other words, we need to follow the money. Chinese underground money laundering networks and manufacturers of precursor chemicals ensure that criminal networks get paid and that chemicals flow to the Mexican cartels producing and distributing fentanyl. These illicit actors take huge profits and degrade American society in the process.
Ray Donovan is a 28-year veteran of the DEA, serving as its Head of Operations, and a leading voice helping us understand and expose the vast criminal and money-laundering networks that support the fentanyl trade and how we can counter China’s overt strategy to wage war on America through fentanyl.
Ray joined Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski for a deep dive on the networks that fuel the fentanyl crisis in the U.S.
8 Oct 2024TRANSCRIPT
Coercive Capital - Economic Security Matters: Juan Zarate
In the debut episode of Coercive Capital, Elaine Dezenski hosts Juan Zarate, who served as the Deputy National Security Advisor for Counterterrorism in the George W. Bush administration, In a wide-ranging discussion, Elaine and Juan discuss today’s economic security landscape, America’s complex and vulnerable relationship with China, and the growing weaponization of trade. They also discuss transparency, ally-shoring, and new economic alliances as well as the critical role that private capital and American companies play in the global economic realignment that is shaping our world.
25 Sept 2024TRANSCRIPT
Introducing 'Coercive Capital'
Coercive Capital explores the intersection of U.S. economic and national security and global financial reform. Global adversaries are weaponizing our trade and financial systems, while Illicit financial flows, kleptocracy, and organized crime continue to erode democratic systems and destabilize economies. Elaine Dezenski brings together experts who understand these emerging threats and provide insights into the risks and emerging opportunities to strengthen our collective response.
Inside a recent episode
The Clean Capital Shift: Andrew King Talks Risks and Opportunities
Published 5 Aug 2025 · Transcript excerpt
[…] So let's go a little bit deeper on exposures of endowments and pensions. Where specific have you found the most risk? What kind of exposure are we talking about? Can you get into some of the details on that? Sure. I mean, there's some pensions and endowments that are more noteworthy, oftentimes the larger ones. So at least let's back to basics or taking a step back here. US pensions are state pensions. We don't, the US at least until a couple of months ago, had never had a sovereign wealth fund. So let's say Norway and Sweden and Saudi Arabia and China obviously have large sovereign wealth funds where the government takes money and decides how to allocate that for economic outperformance or reinvesting on behalf of citizens. […]
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