|
Alan Bond
The 1980s was the decade of the Australian entrepreneur, and Western Australia, with Perth as its financial center, racked up the country's fastest rate of growth. Deregulated financial markets, easy credit, a bull market, and a series of shady deals propelled Perth and a number of homegrown tycoons onto the world stage.
Chief among them was Alan Bond, who had immigrated to the continent from England in 1950. Ten years later, he borrowed his first $13,000 to buy a piece of land in suburban Perth. He amassed his fortune through real estate development, which culminated with his land company going public in 1969. By 1982, the Bond Corporation was the largest business in Western Australia. The following year, Bond achieved world recognition when his yacht, the Australia II, won the America's Cup in Newport, Rhode Island. In 1987, he was voted the outstanding Australian of the Year.
At his peak, Bond's interests ranged from beer to diamond mines; he was in retailing, he owned newspapers, television stations, and famous works of art. But his luck ran out when the stock market crashed in 1987, and Bond, along with a number of high-flying Perth businessmen, went down in flames. His company had racked up $9.3 billion in debt. A royal investigative commission, an indictment, a ruined reputation, and a prison term for fraud followed in quick succession.
Today, Perth remains a prosperous city, with a row of tall glass skyscrapers built by a wealthy host of oil and mining companies. And Alan Bond, after serving four years in prison, went free on a legal technicality in March 2000. Some observers noted that he had spent one day in jail for every million dollars he stole.
|
