The relevance of the presented research is determined by the fact that modern conditions of global socio-economic development are characterized by a whole range of problems. At the same time, the global development initiatives put forward are characterized by a relatively low level of efficiency in their implementation. The purpose of the presented study is to identify, from a theoretical and methodological point of view, the reasons for the discrepancy between the large-scale goals of global socioeconomic development and the relatively modest results obtained in the process of achieving them. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the demonstration of a significant discrepancy between the declared global goals of a creative, constructive nature and the actual opportunistic goals aimed at enriching business elites, due to the intangibility of a significant part of the assets being created, combined with the high level of asymmetry of outsider and insider information about the processes being implemented. The practical significance of the results obtained lies in the proposal to strengthen control measures and quantify the effectiveness of the use of funds attracted by business elites under the auspices of solving the most pressing large-scale problems of global socioeconomic development.