Black market

A black market^[a] is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services whose production and distribution are prohibited or restricted by law, non-compliance with the rule constitutes a black-market trade since the transaction itself is illegal. Such transactions include the illegal drug trade, prostitution (where prohibited), illegal currency transactions, and human trafficking.^[1][2][3]

Participants often conceal illegal behavior from government authorities or regulators.^[4] Cash remains the preferred medium of exchange for illegal transactions, as it is more difficult to trace.^[5] Common reasons for engaging in black market activity include trading contraband, avoiding taxes or regulations, or evading price controls and rationing. Such activities are generally referred to using the definite article, e.g., "the black market in bush meat".

The black market is distinct from the grey market, in which commodities are distributed through channels that, while legal, are unofficial, unauthorized, or unintended by the original manufacturer, and the white market, in which trade is legal and official.

Black money is the proceeds of an illegal transaction, on which income and other taxes have not been paid. Black money is often associated with money laundering, a process used to conceal the illegitimate source of the money. Because of the clandestine nature of the black economy, it is not possible to determine its size and scope.^[6]

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