Billion Dollar Whale - Key takeaways

 Book : Billion Dollar Whale

Authors: Tom Wright and Bradley Hope

A detailed account of 1MDB Financial fraud is captured in this book. The book is vey fast paced and full of information about how the fraud was conducted. This book will keep rubbing salt on Malaysia’s wounds forever.

Worth reading to understand the following questions:

• How politicians interfere in business?
• How Head of State are human and vulnerable to corruption?
• Why never trust a banker even if it is the venerated Goldman Sachs?
• How educational institutions like Harrow are used for networking and not for knowledge?
• How lawyers use their position to create benefits to their clients i.e. IOLTA Accounts?
• How Seychelles, London and others like Swiss, British Virgin Islands make money I.e. stolen money of Asian corrupt politicians?
• Top professionals in their respective fields are vulnerable and they have same human weakness like others?
• How Hollywood Actors / Directors / Singers all behave same as other human beings i.e. everyone needs quick and easy money?
• How Pakistan protects Dawood Ibrahim is it the same as how Low is roaming in China?
• How International Peace Awards are a sham?
• How sovereign money is wasted on Advertisements by politicians? E.g. Welcome First Lady etc.
• Important question on Asia “Wasn’t Asia just a morass of corruption anyway?
• When it comes to believe freebies are entitlements Hollywood stars are same as Bollywoods (Indian film industry).
• Why the Sotheby’s and Christie’s will never close / they will be protected by the uber rich and elite? Mutual interest.
• How countries use Official Secrets to bury the corruptions / truths damaging politicians?
• A very apt question for Yes Bank Rana Kapoor, PSU Banks etc. - Hadn’t the system of checks and balances at banks failed to catch Jho Low’s malfeasance for seven years because of the greed of financiers? Replace Jho Low with Indian Industrialist and Bankers.
• How top executives like Mr. K V Kamath escapes their failure in running the banks and still manage to get on board of a committee formed by Reserve Bank of India? Even Goldman has it :

Gary Cohn, Goldman’s president and a big supporter of the 1MDB business, became director of President Donald Trump’s National Economic Council in January 2017, a job he stayed in for a little over a year.

Switzerland and Neutrality

The last time the Swiss fought a military battle was 500 years ago, against the French. (The Swiss lost.) Two hundred years ago, Switzerland was acknowledged as a neutral state in the Treaty of Paris. But it wasn’t until this day, Feb. 13, in 1920, that the League of Nations formally recognized its neutrality.

https://time.com/3695334/switzerland-neutrality-history/

• Why Switzerland is neutral country?

Numbered account (Swiss bank secrecy)

 Geneva Freport (Storing of art bought from illegal money)

Both are used to stash illegal / black money by the uber rich / charltans. The sheer reason why Switzerland stayed neutral in the world wars, it appears the objective is to safeguard the illegal money of the political masters across the world.

The way London is shelter for the men ( from developing / autocratic countries) who have acquired ill-gotten wealth. Switzerland is for storing of ill-gotten wealth.

In short steal money / black money / launder it by storing it at Switzerland and stay at London.