The Key Man: The True Story of How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy Tale
Written by Simon Clark and Will Louch
Narrated by Peter Noble
4.5/5
()
About this audiobook
LONGLISTED FOR THE FINANCIAL TIMES & MCKINSEY BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR
ONE OF THE ECONOMIST'S BEST BOOKS OF 2021
In 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-made—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 2019—months after their exposé broke—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.
Simon Clark
Simon Clark is a journalist and writer. He previously worked at the Wall Street Journal. 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.
More audiobooks from Simon Clark
The Night of the Triffids Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Secrets of the Dead Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to The Key Man
Related audiobooks
Pyramid of Lies: The Prime Minister, the Banker and the Billion Pound Scandal Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lucifer's Banker Uncensored: The Untold Story of How I Destroyed Swiss Bank Secrecy, 2nd Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundless: The Rise, Fall, and Escape of Carlos Ghosn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Madoff with the Money Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don't Fall For It: A Short History of Financial Scams Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The New Elite: Inside the Minds of the Truly Wealthy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Collision Course: Carlos Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jackpot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dumb Money: How Our Greatest Financial Minds Bankrupted the Nation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Kleptocracy: How the U.S. Created the World's Greatest Money Laundering Scheme in History Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Madoff Talks: Uncovering the Untold Story Behind the Most Notorious Ponzi Scheme in History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Bond King: How One Man Made a Market, Built an Empire, and Lost It All Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Secrecy World: Inside the Panama Papers Investigation of Illicit Money Networks and the Global Elite Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fallen Giant: The Amazing Story of Hank Greenberg and the History of AIG Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Art of Vulture Investing: Adventures in Distressed Securities Management Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dark Commerce: How a New Illicit Economy Is Threatening Our Future Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pandemic, Inc.: Chasing the Capitalists and Thieves Who Got Rich While We Got Sick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Treasury's War: The Unleashing of a New Era of Financial Warfare Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Know-It-Alls: The Rise of Silicon Valley as a Political Powerhouse and Social Wrecking Ball Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anatomy of Greed: The Unshredded Truth from an Enron Insider Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The New Tycoons: Inside the Trillion Dollar Private Equity Industry That Owns Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ugly Americans Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
White Collar Crime For You
My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bad City: Peril and Power in the City of Angels Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The White House Plumbers: The Seven Weeks That Led to Watergate and Doomed Nixon's Presidency Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blood on Their Hands: Murder, Corruption, and the Fall of the Murdaugh Dynasty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Secrecy World: Inside the Panama Papers Investigation of Illicit Money Networks and the Global Elite Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lying For Money: How Legendary Frauds Reveal the Workings of the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Chickenshit Club: Why the Justice Department Fails to Prosecute ExecutivesWhite Collar Criminals Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5American Pain: How a Young Felon and His Ring of Doctors Unleashed America's Deadliest Drug Epidemic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Plain Sight: The Kaufman County Prosecutor Murders Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Best New True Crime Stories: Crimes of Famous & Infamous Criminals Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moneyland: The Inside Story of the Crooks and Kleptocrats Who Rule the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bad Paper: Chasing Debt from Wall Street to the Underworld Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDon't Fall For It: A Short History of Financial Scams Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blood Money: The Story of Life, Death, and Profit Inside America's Blood Industry Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fall: The Mysterious Life and Death of Robert Maxwell, Britain's Most Notorious Media Baron Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Elements of Style Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Kleptocracy: How the U.S. Created the World's Greatest Money Laundering Scheme in History Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why They Do It: Inside the Mind of the White-Collar Criminal Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Red Card: How the U.S. Blew the Whistle on the World's Biggest Sports Scandal Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Practice to Deceive Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Too Big to Jail: Inside HSBC, the Mexican Drug Cartels and the Greatest Banking Scandal of the Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Catastrophe: The Story of Bernard L. Madoff, the Man Who Swindled the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mr Ordinary Goes to Jail Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Madoff Talks: Uncovering the Untold Story Behind the Most Notorious Ponzi Scheme in History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lawyer X Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Key Man
69 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A fascinating read/listen for anyone interested in global finance, ethics and impact.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is a fascinating look into philanthropy. it delves into what the mega rich spend, invest and squander their millions on, in the hope of becoming richer, dressed up as doing good.
Towards the end it becomes edge of your seat as it chronicles the net closing in on Arif Naqvi. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5An eye opener. Greed can blind so many people, I never thought. To think that smart people like Bill Gates and institutional investors can be duped so easily is not only preposterous but also frightening.