This paper examines explanations for corruption and state capture in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to evaluate the importance of regional factors related to the transition from communism to liberal democracy and country-specific factors related to the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The paper shows that the overall level of state capture is best explained by regional factors, while the specific structure of corruption in Bosnia and Herzegovina is closely related to the way the war was fought and the peace treaty that brought it to an end. Reform efforts face steep and powerful opposition in the form of political and economic elites who have shifted from a focus on extracting wealth from the state to using state resources in order to maintain control and stymy political competition.