Bond by Rob Mundle

Description

The rise and fall of Australia’s most notorious billionaire — in his own words. Alan Bond (1938–2015) went from penniless English immigrant to the top of Australian business — and then to spectacular ruin. In Bond, his long-awaited autobiography written with Rob Mundle and published in 2004, he finally answers his critics.

Bond built the Bond Corporation from Perth property deals into a global conglomerate, bankrolled Australia II‘s historic 1983 America’s Cup victory — the first time in 132 years the trophy left American hands — bought into breweries and television, and became a national hero before the empire collapsed. His account is defiant, colorful, and utterly unapologetic.

For business readers who like their tycoons larger than life. The great Australian cautionary tale, told by the man himself. Ghosted with Mundle’s tabloid punch, it’s the great Australian business story — rise, fall, and all.

The autobiography of Australia’s most notorious billionaire

Alan Bond (1938–2015) rose from penniless English immigrant to become Australia’s most famous — and most controversial — businessman. In Bond, his long-awaited autobiography written with bestselling author Rob Mundle and published in 2004, Bond finally answers his critics and reflects on his spectacular rise and fall.

Bond built the Bond Corporation empire from Perth property deals into a global conglomerate, bankrolled Australia II’s historic 1983 America’s Cup victory — the first time in 132 years the trophy left American hands — bought the Nine Network from Kerry Packer, and at his peak paid a world-record price for Van Gogh’s Irises. Then came one of the most dramatic collapses in corporate history: debts of billions, bankruptcy, and a fraud conviction in 1997 that sent him to prison for four years.

Candid and unflinching, Bond exposes the myths and gossip surrounding one of Australia’s most successful businessmen while offering a telling snapshot of how business was really done in the 1980s.

For readers of

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• Gripping business biographies and corporate rise-and-fall sagas.
• Australian history and the America’s Cup story.
• Memoirs that don’t flinch from their subject’s mistakes.

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The definitive insider account of a legend who lived larger than life.