Book Review - Billion Dollar Whale
Written by Rashi Chandok
Billion Dollar Whale: The Man Who Fooled Wall Street, Hollywood, and the World
1MDB Scandal has graced the headlines of all major newspapers of the world for the past few
years, enticing readers to figure out how this elaborate scheme took place. This book provides one
of the most detailed and well-researched accounts of the entire episode. Written in the form of
short chapters, it makes for an engaging and effortless read. The authors have used a few simple
tactics (providing an index for all the major individuals involved along with their relation to the
1MDB scandal, mentioning the designation and history of an individual each time their name
reappears in the book, explaining the political intricacies and history of a country, etc) to make
sure that a person unaware of the geopolitical scenario can also comprehend the vast scale and
scope of this shocking tale.
“How he (Jho Low) thrived, and what it says about the failure of global capitalism, is the subject of this book.”
Low Taek Jho - “Jho Low”, the product of a society preoccupied with wealth and glamor, is at the
center of this story. Tracing his life, from childhood to the revelation of his role in the scandal,
this book provides insight into his character, ambitions, and motivation for pulling this scheme
off.
“Low was not so much timid as quietly calculating, as if computing every human interaction, sizing up what he could provide for someone and what they, in turn, could do for him.”
“He intuitively understood that people desire to feel important, part of an exclusive club, and he played on it.”
1MDB Scandal Explanation
1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) describes a vast corruption, bribery, and money
laundering scandal in which funds were appropriated from the Sovereign Wealth Fund of
Malaysia by Jho Low for his use as well as for the benefit of his associates (including the Prime
Minister of Malaysia - Najib Razak and his family). Jho Low’s close association with the Razak
family provided him free reign to run this fund despite him being a very young businessman with
hardly any accomplishments. He took out billions of dollars from this fund for his personal
advancement and enjoyment without caring about the development of his country (for which this
fund was set up) or its citizens (who would be burdened with repaying this money). This scheme
highlights how the greed of a selfish few can destroy the lives and livelihoods of an entire country.
“there was basically no independent oversight of the prime minister, Low, and his
allies in 1MDB’s management.”
Low’s strategies that helped him in successfully running this scheme
● Manipulating the narration about his family’s wealth according to convenience - Low
projected the stolen money as his family wealth in the US and other countries despite his
family not being anywhere close to the level of richness that he flaunted. Also, to avoid
issues in Malaysia where people were aware of the status of his family, he distanced
himself from the lavish parties and his frivolous spending by claiming that the money
belonged to his rich Middle Eastern connections.
● Growing close ties with powerful Middle Eastern and other international connections -
Low deliberately cultivated friendships with people of power who could help him in his
schemes. He understood that people in such high places would be happy to turn a blind
eye to his workings as long as they were handsomely compensated.
● Forming companies with names similar to famous organizations and projecting them to
be backed by powerful individuals - helped him to avoid suspicion by a lot of banks and
professionals.
● Not putting his name in any official documentation or taking an official position in any
organization. Low was smart enough to recognize that he can successfully run his deceit
by tackling all affairs from the backseat.
● Controlling the mainstream media through the government - Low relied on Najib to make
sure that no negative press about the 1MDB was published which helped in preventing
any independent questioning or public outcry for a long time.
● Defeating a bank’s compliance program - Smoothening out any issues raised by banks for
transfers or account openings were handled by Low by providing plausible explanations.
He also tested the bank’s systems by transferring low amounts and getting the all-clear
before passing large transactions.
“The group agreed Low would persuade Prime Minister Najib to write off hundreds of millions of dollars of 1MDB’s investment as a loss. Low acted as if this was make-believe money, debt that Najib could erase with a magic wand, withoutany cost to taxpayers or society.”
Learning Points
● Failure of compliance leads to the success of financial crime - A lot of red flags ignored by
institutions could have easily been prevented if a good compliance system was in place.
Also, Jho Low could get a lot done from global institutions and powerful government
figures by offering them a piece of the action which highlights the lack of accountability in
the public as well as the private sector.
● Only a few individuals pay the price - As is evident from the outcome of this scandal, a lot
of people including the Saudi royals, the Low family, individual bankers, etc. did not have
to face the brunt of their actions. An example has been made of a few select individuals
but the majority who enjoyed the spoils of this fraud are free from any consequences.
● Secrecy promotes misdeeds - Offshore accounts along with unregulated precious jewels,
art, and real estate businesses give a lot of opportunities to wealthy individuals to hide
their wealth which harms the global economy.
● Better regulation is needed for election donation/funds - A candidate is compelled to
meet people because they donate to his/her election campaigns creating a lot of ethical
issues.
● Banks need to tighten their systems - An individual whose account is not opened due to
any issue should automatically not be able to maintain an account with any other
segment of the same bank. As the book points out, Jho Low was rejected for a private
wealth account with Goldman however, the bank continued to provide him access to
various other services.
● Audit firms being replaceable if they give an unfavorable opinion is a challenge that needs
to be looked at - The fact that audit firms can be easily switched if they do not have a
favorable opinion of the organization without making anything public helps companies
hide their wrongdoings. There should be a mechanism for enhanced scrutiny on firms
that frequently replace their auditors to make it harder to get away with schemes like the
1MDB.
● Clear signs of kleptocracy like Rosmah’s penchant for shopping and buying jewels should
be questioned rather than swallowing preposterous explanations.
● Issues faced by developing countries (like brain drain) will persist if leaders don’t make
an honest effort of improving their own countries and economies.
● Transparency in beneficial ownership is needed to reduce the investments of criminal
money made through offshore companies.
● Individual accountability needs to be imposed for white-collar crimes rather than
reaching deals with banks to defer prosecution in return for hefty fines because it does
little to alter the behavior of bankers.
“Everyone was aware that Malaysia’s ruling party, the United Malays National Organization, demanded kickbacks from businesses for granting everything from gambling licenses to infrastructure contracts. The situation stirred in him (Low) a moral relativism. If everyone was taking a cut, then what was the problem?”
The book explains Low’s longing to be cool and makes it apparent that his lavish parties were an
excuse to feel like an important person of power. His risk-taking attitude, schemes, and carefree
outlook might have helped him in this heist however, the book makes it clear that a lot of luck
was involved in keeping a lid on it for this long. The disregard for public funds in the minds of
Jho Low as well as a lot of his accomplices is striking. The book helps the reader to understand
how people committing crimes justify their actions to themselves and the world as mere methods
of making money for their families.
The authors deserve a big round of applause for going through heaps of data and finally providing
us with a truly reliable and extensively researched version of events that took place. I particularly
liked the background information provided for explaining the motives of all the important people
in the book. The appreciation that the authors display for the few courageous citizens of Malaysia
who raised their voices as well as for the staff of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission who
helped by providing data held with them, clearly shows the subtle message of this book i.e. the
world can change only if we try to bring about a change.
Although the book leaves you with a disheartened feeling of knowing that there is a different
world and a separate set of laws for the wealthy/privileged as compared to the common man, it
provides you with a sense of purpose to hold the government and the people holding power in
your country accountable for their deeds and laws approved by them because only a vigilant
public can create a corruption-free nation!