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The Outlaw Bank: A Wild Ride into the Secret Heart of BCCI
Two journalists with Time magazine provide a behind-the-scenes look at the BCCI scandal, describing a complex web of intrigue, kickbacks, corruption, and coverup and their cloak-and-dagger investigation into the case. 100,000 first printing. $100,000 ad/promo. Tour.
399 pages, Hardcover
First published April 6, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 23, 2014
'Agha Hassan Abdi was perhaps the most brilliant pure businessman the developing world has ever produced.'
My whole intention of reading this book was to educate myself with the tale of BCCI, the most successful and ambitious international corporation produced by Pakistan to date, centre of whose tale was its charismatic and dashing head Agha Hassan Abdi.
And the book delivers, what an incredible tale of the rise of Agha Hassan Abdi from a lowly clerk to the head of the biggest bank to come out of the developed world. If Mohammed Ali Jinnah was the founding father of Pakistan than Agha Hassan Abdi has to considered the founding father of banking industry in Pakistan. As the head of probably the only truly international corporation to come out of Pakistan, Abdi had to have exceptional skills. He was a leader, a charmer, and a supreme manipulator who managed to ingratiate himself with some of the most influential personal in Asia. But isn't that what bankers are supposed to do in the first place? I mean people like the Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi, the Shah of Iran and President of Pakistan, President Carter probably do qualify as dream clients for any banker, surly. Or am I missing something here? I read this book in the backdrop of some of the biggest banking scams in the US and across the world which make me wonder why the authors choose to ostracise Abdi and the BCCI to such lengths. The authors repeatedly branded BCCI as a ‘ponzi’ scheme claiming that the bank had little collateral and depending on roaming capital but then what caused the banking crash of 2008? Are not the reasons pretty similar?
The clue to BCCI’s demise and take down is embedded in the book itself.
Clip from Business Week in 1980.
The Arab nations of OPEC are building a new international banking system that threatens to capture control of the world’s financial resources in the 1980’s in the same way they took control of the world’s energy resources in the 1970’s. While the different pieces of the Arab banking system are only now being put in place, it is already clear that the OPEC money weapon will join with the OPEC oil weapon in giving the Arabs unprecedented sway over the economies and politics of the West.
On one level, the Arab banks will be the richest financial institutions in the world, with the ability to tap into the OPEC oil nations fantastic wealth, which is expected to reach $1 trillion by 1985.
Did you notice the reference to weapons in the above quote?
The book for me takes great pains to highlight the corrupt and nefarious activities of BCCI, with a lot of repetition which made me wonder as repetition as a tactics is generally in propaganda and advertising. And I am afraid this particular book is highly prejudiced against BCCI right from the start till the the end. In taking down Pakistan, the authors have openly defamed whole country cultures like Pakistan which I found pretty distasteful. If the whole culture of Pakistan was so corrupt than who helped provide evidence against BCCI? Weren't those some conscientious Pakistani employees as well?
The real value of the book for me was the story of BCCI, their phenomenal rise and very dramatic and public lynching with a very important lesson to the rich Arabs by the West.
‘Don't think you can buy everything with your money as long as we have the power.’
And to the Pakistanis.
‘You are good but not as good as the Westerners, so choose your masters carefully next time.’
My whole intention of reading this book was to educate myself with the tale of BCCI, the most successful and ambitious international corporation produced by Pakistan to date, centre of whose tale was its charismatic and dashing head Agha Hassan Abdi.
And the book delivers, what an incredible tale of the rise of Agha Hassan Abdi from a lowly clerk to the head of the biggest bank to come out of the developed world. If Mohammed Ali Jinnah was the founding father of Pakistan than Agha Hassan Abdi has to considered the founding father of banking industry in Pakistan. As the head of probably the only truly international corporation to come out of Pakistan, Abdi had to have exceptional skills. He was a leader, a charmer, and a supreme manipulator who managed to ingratiate himself with some of the most influential personal in Asia. But isn't that what bankers are supposed to do in the first place? I mean people like the Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi, the Shah of Iran and President of Pakistan, President Carter probably do qualify as dream clients for any banker, surly. Or am I missing something here? I read this book in the backdrop of some of the biggest banking scams in the US and across the world which make me wonder why the authors choose to ostracise Abdi and the BCCI to such lengths. The authors repeatedly branded BCCI as a ‘ponzi’ scheme claiming that the bank had little collateral and depending on roaming capital but then what caused the banking crash of 2008? Are not the reasons pretty similar?
The clue to BCCI’s demise and take down is embedded in the book itself.
Clip from Business Week in 1980.
The Arab nations of OPEC are building a new international banking system that threatens to capture control of the world’s financial resources in the 1980’s in the same way they took control of the world’s energy resources in the 1970’s. While the different pieces of the Arab banking system are only now being put in place, it is already clear that the OPEC money weapon will join with the OPEC oil weapon in giving the Arabs unprecedented sway over the economies and politics of the West.
On one level, the Arab banks will be the richest financial institutions in the world, with the ability to tap into the OPEC oil nations fantastic wealth, which is expected to reach $1 trillion by 1985.
Did you notice the reference to weapons in the above quote?
The book for me takes great pains to highlight the corrupt and nefarious activities of BCCI, with a lot of repetition which made me wonder as repetition as a tactics is generally in propaganda and advertising. And I am afraid this particular book is highly prejudiced against BCCI right from the start till the the end. In taking down Pakistan, the authors have openly defamed whole country cultures like Pakistan which I found pretty distasteful. If the whole culture of Pakistan was so corrupt than who helped provide evidence against BCCI? Weren't those some conscientious Pakistani employees as well?
The real value of the book for me was the story of BCCI, their phenomenal rise and very dramatic and public lynching with a very important lesson to the rich Arabs by the West.
‘Don't think you can buy everything with your money as long as we have the power.’
And to the Pakistanis.
‘You are good but not as good as the Westerners, so choose your masters carefully next time.’
July 17, 2012
Interesting story about an international bank started by a Pakistani grows to become the underworld's money launderer, US gvmt agencies included. I learned that business cannot be divorced from culture and there is a lot of business in oil and arms trading. BCCI sold weapons where people cannot, e.g., to both Israel and Iran. BCCI takes advantage of some countries secrecy in banking laws to defraud millions. The CIA was a big BCCI customer while we were trying to stop the Soviets in Afghanistan, drugs a major commodity there. BCCI owned at least two US banks and eventually those in power were forced to into action, reluctantly. A terrific political read.
March 1, 2025
Low four stars. The story was remarkable, it's just that the narrative was dominated by the investigators themselves that some parts of the BCCI story were drowned out. Also dealt a bit too much about the innards of US politics which is hit or miss for me. Still a noteworthy story to tell though, I'm always down for a good money laundering bank story.
January 8, 2022
Solid, if a bit dry, description of the history of BCCI. It could definitely do for a new addition now that it really is past history as opposed to being written while legal cases were still unresolved. It also did very little in explain what it all means, just glimpses of possibilities.
December 17, 2024
Written in a disorganized style, combined with the complex nature of the subject, made it hard to read. Also lacking in details. I mean, lots of banks get caught money laundering or holding accounts of drug dealers. How was this one supposedly so special?
September 21, 2021
Insanity.
Read
May 18, 2022Beaty and Gwynne's book is well written and explains things well, but in the end the whole BCCI affair is so insane and complex and convoluted, it's hard to feel you've learned anything at all.
May 26, 2022
Extreme fraud and great corruption
Condoned by the U.S. government.
Condoned by the U.S. government.
May 24, 2025
What a book wow. I did not have Jimmy Carter being financially tied to a corrupt Pakistani bank that was complicit in money laundering and drug trafficking on my bingo card.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews