Ransomware is not just a type of malware it s also at the center of a flourishing underground economy that has all the conventions of legitimate commerce. The general economy of ransomware is well-developed and complex, with several actors supplying services to one another Affiliates can be seen as the channel partners of the underground, responsible for ransomware distribution to end victims. They usually pocket between 60 and 80 percent of the ransom, with the rest going to operators and authors coffers.
Source: https://threatpost.com/inside-ransomware-economy/166471/