UID:
kobvindex_ZLB34769928
ISBN:
9780062996237
Content:
" LONGLISTED FOR THE FINANCIAL TIMES &,MCKINSEY BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEARIn this compelling story of lies, greed and tarnished idealism, two Wall Street Journal reporters investigate a man who Bill Gates, Western governments, and other investors entrusted with billions of dollars to make profits and end poverty, but who now stands accused of masterminding one of the biggest, most brazen financial frauds ever. Arif Naqvi was charismatic, inspiring, and self-made8212 all the qualities of a successful business leader. The founder of Abraaj, a Dubai-based private-equity firm, Naqvi was the Key Man to the global elite searching for impact investments to make money and do good. He persuaded politicians he could help stabilize the Middle East after 9/11 by providing jobs and guided executives to opportunities in cities they struggled to find on the map. Bill Gates helped him start a $1 billion fund to improve healthcare in poor countries and the UN and Interpol appointed him to boards. As Pope Francis blessed a move to harness capitalism for the good of the poor, Naqvi won the support of Obama's administration and investors, who compared him to Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible. In 2018, Simon Clark and Will Louch were contacted by an anonymous whistleblower who said Naqvi had swindled investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars and offered bribes to sustain his billionaire lifestyle. Digging into the claims, Clark and Louch uncovered hundreds of documents and exposed the wrongdoing. In April 20198212 months after their expos233 broke8212 Naqvi was arrested on charges of fraud and racketeering, and faces up to 291 years in jail. Populated by a cast of larger-than-life characters and moving across Asia, Africa, Europe and America, The Key Man is the story of how the global elite was duped by a capitalist fairytale. Clark and Louch shine a light on efforts to clean up global capital flows even as opaque private equity firms amass trillions of dollars and offshore tax havens cast a veil of secrecy which prevents regulators, investors and citizens from understanding what's really going on in the finance industry. "
Content:
Biographisches: " Simon Clark is a Wall Street Journal reporter based in London. His investigative reporting has led him to the poppy fields of Afghanistan, the copper mines of Congo, and to many banks in the City of London. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 2016. He lives in Lewes, England. " Biographisches: " Will Louch is at law school in London. He was previously a Wall Street Journal reporter covering private equity in London and New York. Before that, he was based in Brussels where he wrote about European politics. He lives in London. " Rezension(3): "John Helyar, coauthor of Barbarians at the Gate:This splendid cautionary tale lays bare the vulnerabilities of the world of high finance, where even the grandees of Davos were marks for the kid from Karachi, who could, seemingly, simultaneously produce mega-returns for investors and lift up poor people in the Third World8212" Rezension(4): "Harry Markopolos, the Bernie Madoff whistleblower:An unbelievable true tale of greed, corruption, and manipulation among the world's financial elite and how the World Bank, Bill Gates, and the governments of the US, UK, France, Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Kuwait fell victim to the world's largest private equity Ponzi scheme. This guy makes Bernie Madoff look like a saint." Rezension(5): "Eileen Appelbaum, coauthor of Private Equity at Work:Arif Naqvi separated billionaires and royalty from their wealth by appealing to their private conceit that they had made their billions doing God's work. The twists and turns of the increasingly desperate effort to raise funds to protect Arif's reputation and keep Abraaj afloat8212" Rezension(6): "Duff McDonald, author of The Golden Passport:How do you dupe the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, the Gates Foundation, and countless financial luminaries from around the globe? Attach yourself to the latest piece of financial gibberish8212" Rezension(7): "Ludovic Phalippou, professor of financial economics at Sa239" Rezension(8): "David Omand, former director of GCHQ and author of160" Rezension(9): "Owen Walker, award-winning journalist and author of Built on a Lie:A rip-roaring account of one of the biggest frauds in corporate history. Through a pacey and deeply researched narrative, Clark and Louch unpick how a private equity trailblazer convinced some of the world's richest and most sophisticated investors to part with their money8212" Rezension(10): "Financial Times:A pacy and deeply reported tale." Rezension(11): "Kirkus Reviews:Compelling and disturbing, the book is a pointed tale of hubris, greed, and the narrow limits of so-called capitalistic 'benevolence' in the era of growing economic inequality. . Timely and provocative reading on one of the many perils of the murky private equity world." Rezension(12): "Publishers Weekly:A riveting chronicle of the meteoric rise and scandalous fall of the Dubai private equity firm Abraaj and its conniving founder, Arif Naqvi. . This deeply reported tale captivates." Rezension(13): "Library Journal:A meticulously researched, compelling reminder of the importance of financial oversight. It should be required reading in business schools." Rezension(14): "Business Standard:The Key Man is a riveting account of the intertwining of brilliance and greed. . The book should be a mandatory read at all schools of journalism and business schools, for it is a rare tour de force from which both can learn." Rezension(15): "The Guardian:Gripping . The account raises questions over whether 'impact investing' and 'stakeholder capitalism' are less about poverty alleviation for the world than guilt alleviation for the Davos elite." Rezension(16): "The Economist:Impeccably researched and sumptuous in its detail. . It is a page-turner, built around a riveting portrait of the key man of the title" Rezension(17): "〈a href=http://www.publishersweekly.com target=blank〉〈img src=https://images.contentreserve.com/pw_logo.png alt=Publisher's Weekly border=0 /〉〈/a〉: May 3, 2021 Wall Street Journal reporter Clark and his former colleague Louch debut with a riveting chronicle of the meteoric rise and scandalous fall of the Dubai private equity firm Abraaj and its conniving founder, Arif Naqvi. The authors write that Naqvi’s obsession “with status, power, and control” was, for a long time, hidden by ostentatious philanthropy, and politicians and fellow businesspeople (among them John Kerry and Bill Gates) fell for his pitch. At its height, Abraaj managed nearly $14 billion and owned stakes in 100 companies globally, and Naqvi won an Oslo Business for Peace Award. But in 2018, Clark and Louch received an email from a whistleblower outlining Naqvi’s exploits (attempting to bribe Pakistan’s prime minister, for instance). They turned it into a Wall Street Journal article, and within six months Naqvi was arrested for operating a criminal organization. The authors detail how, for years, Naqvi misused his company’s money to cover losses and pay for his extravagant lifestyle, which included lavish parties and a 154-foot superyacht. The narrative moves at a fast clip, and extensive interviews with former Abraaj employees strengthen the shock of Naqvi’s “masterful performance.” This deeply reported tale captivates. Agent: Eric Lupfer, Fletcher &,Co. " Rezension(18): "〈a href=http://www.kirkusreviews.com target=blank〉〈img src=https://images.contentreserve.com/kirkus_logo.png alt=Kirkus border=0 /〉〈/a〉: May 15, 2021 Two Wall Street Journal reporters demonstrate how a charismatic but crooked businessman conned elite investors into believing they could profit from doing good for the globally dispossessed. Until he was accused of misappropriating funds in 2018, Pakistani-born Arif Naqvi, founder of the Abraaj Group, was a celebrated private equity tycoon. In this expansion of their investigation for the WSJ, Clark and Louch--who gathered information from more than 150 people, including 70 former Abraaj employees, business chiefs, politicians and a Vatican cardinal--chart Naqvi's breathtaking rise to prominence and his even more stupendous fall from grace. The authors depict the young Naqvi as an exceptionally talented student of modest means whose priority was to get rich. The more ruthless side of his personality began to emerge in his young professional days. A real estate developer in Pakistan, one of his first bosses, noted Naqvi's extreme ego and ambition and willingness to take problematic risks with debt. These traits served him well in his days as an independent fundraiser and dealmaker in Dubai and led him to form the relationships that led to the creation of Abraaj in 2002. The company quickly began making huge profits in developing countries that Naqvi marketed to Western investors and academics as places of excitement and opportunity. For the next 15 years, banks, philanthropists, and a host of foreign governments--including those of the U.S. and Britain--entrusted Abraaj with spectacular sums meant to fund socially conscious projects (such as the rescue of the perennially failing Karachi Electric company) that Naqvi surreptitiously used to keep his billionaire lifestyle afloat. As his fame grew, so did his darker tendencies, which manifested as significant abuses of corporate power. Compelling and disturbing, the book is a pointed tale of hubris, greed, and the narrow limits of so-called capitalistic benevolence in the era of growing economic inequality. Timely and provocative reading on one of the many perils of the murky private equity world. COPYRIGHT(2021) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. " Rezension(19): "〈a href=http://lj.libraryjournal.com/ target=blank〉〈img src=https://images.contentreserve.com/libraryjournal_logo.png alt=Library Journal border=0 /〉〈/a〉: July 16, 2021Wall Street Journal reporters Clark and Louch chronicle the rise and fall of Arif Naqvi and his Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj. On the surface, Naqvi was the epitome of the adage that one can do well by doing good. He redefined emerging markets as impact investments, sold investors on his vision of helping people by investing, and hobnobbed with the elite, from Bill Gates to Princes Charles. And it worked--at first. Clark and Louch detail how Naqvi and his top executives started comingling funds to cover salaries and the exorbitant sums spent on parties and events. It didn't take long for Abraaj to go from misusing funds to full-on fraud. Tipped off by an anonymous employee, the authors painstakingly dug up a trove of evidence, including falsified financial reports, company emails, and interviews with those few who would talk to them. Earlier, in 2017, a Gates Foundation investor also noticed that things weren't adding up, and his inquiries led to an international investigation. Abraaj has since been shut down, Naqvi is awaiting extradition to the United States for trial, and one of his top executives has already pled guilty. VERDICT A meticulously researched, compelling reminder of the importance of financial oversight. It should be required reading in business schools. --Karen Sandlin Silverman, Mt. Ararat Middle Sch., Topsham, MECopyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission. "
Language:
English
URL:
https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-200/0293-1/{15C3BB78-898C-44AD-9739-CDE68720DF55}Img200.jpg
URL:
https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-150/0293-1/15C/3BB/78/{15C3BB78-898C-44AD-9739-CDE68720DF55}Img150.jpg
URL:
https://samples.overdrive.com/?crid=15c3bb78-898c-44ad-9739-cde68720df55&.epub-sample.overdrive.com
URL:
https://api.overdrive.com/v1/collections/v1L1BBQ0AAA2_/products/15c3bb78-898c-44ad-9739-cde68720df55/metadata
URL:
http://voebb.lib.overdrive.com/ContentDetails.htm?ID=15C3BB78-898C-44AD-9739-CDE68720DF55
Bookmarklink
