the.com/syndicate

means A group of individuals or businesses that join forces to manage or finance a shared venture, pool resources, or carve up territory and profits — legitimate or criminal.

from From French syndicat, rooted in syndic, 'a representative who manages the affairs of a group' — itself from Late Latin syndicus, borrowed from Greek syndikos, 'one who helps in court, an advocate,' built from syn- ('together') plus dike ('justice, right'). So the word's bones are oddly civic: it started out meaning someone appointed to speak and act for a body of people. Over centuries that shifted from 'representative' to 'the represented group itself,' and by the time it reached English and crossed into business and crime, a syndicate was no longer a lone advocate but the whole alliance — rivals bundled into one voice, often for profit rather than justice.