buccaneering

adj, noun — 2 senses

adj

bold, reckless and unscrupulous

American capitalism developed with dramatic speed and impressiveness after the Civil War, which had probably slowed its growth temporarily, though it also provided considerable opportunities for the great buccaneering business entrepreneurs aptly nicknamed ‘robber barons’.1975, Eric Hobsbawm, The Age of Capital. 1848-1875, published 1995, page 173:

noun

Usually robbery on the high seas; piracy

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.