Do you know what an optocoupler is? It's when there's no thermal or electric connection between parts, but the information gets transferred.
This is the same. Government officials don't have to officially communicate with businesses in corrupt ways or allow such "revolving doors".
They may communicate, well, face-to-face unofficially, get kickbacks.
And they also can do things mutually interesting for the business and the official without ever communicating about it, the economic interest is that communication in itself.
And then economic interests are just a subset of power interests. Like surveillance.