On the storm-scarred hillside of Roseau Valley, Dominica, the tiny Caribbean island nation, a passport is funding a geothermal plant for clean energy. In Basseterre, St. Kitts, it once funded 60–70% of government revenue. In Valletta, Malta, it helped topple a prime minister: Joseph Muscat resigned in December 2019 amid revelations linked to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, an investigative journalist killed while probing golden passport corruption. In São Tomé, fewer than 100 applications in four months have already sparked a new African frontier in the global market for citizenship. This is the “business of belonging.” The global citizenship-by-investment (CBI) industry, per MarketIntelo, a research firm, was valued at $5.2 billion in 2024, with analysts projecting it to hit $1...