Tycoon, entrepreneur, convicted criminal and businessman Alan Bond has died, aged 77.
Following complications after heart surgery, he never regained consciousness and was taken off life support earlier today.
The West Australian will be remembered for many things, among them, winning the America's Cup in 1983, the first time a non-American team had won the series, breaking the longest winning streak in the history of the sport. It also happened to be with a controversial boat, Australia II with its winged keel.
But he will also be known for hoodwinking plenty of investors and being hoodwinked himself by an even greater investor.
He expanded his Bond Corporation business into many interests, including brewing, gold mining and television.
In 1987, Bond bought the Nine Network from Kerry Packer for $1 billion, but sold the TV network back to Packer for a mere $250 million as his empire was collapsing. Packer famously quipped, "You only get one Alan Bond in your lifetime, and I've had mine."
The same year, Bond University was founded by Bond Corporation, the first privately funded university.
But 5 years later, in 1992, he was declared bankrupt, with personal debts of around $1.8 billion. Creditors accepted $12 million to cover the bankruptcy, around half a cent per dollar in 1995, but in 1997 Bond was sentenced to 7 years in jail, after pleading guilty to syphoning off $1.2 billion from part of the Bell Group into Bond Corporation. The Bell Group collapsed in 1991.
Hundreds of small investors lost millions when Bond Corporation itself collapsed, while many other creditors also lost plenty. Unbelievably, a court case was still underway 20 years after it began to recoup funds lost when Bell Group collapsed, and was only finalised last month.
Bond was one of the last of the high flying 80's Australian business entrepreneurs, including the likes of Kerry Packer, Christopher Skace, Robert Holmes a Court, Laurie Connell, Allan Hawkins and Rupert Murdoch.
Whatever you may think of Alan Bond, he was still a person with family and friends. To them, we say condolences and our thoughts are with you.
