The Stellenbosch Mafia
Inside the Billionaire's Club
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Narrated by:
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Dylan Oosthuizen
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By:
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Pieter du Toit
About this listen
About 50km outside of Cape Town lies the beautiful town of Stellenbosch, nestled against vineyards and blue mountains that stretch to the sky. Here reside some of South Africa’s wealthiest individuals: all male, all Afrikaans - and all stinking rich. Johann Rupert, Jannie Mouton, Markus Jooste and Christo Weise, to name a few.
Julius Malema refers to them scathingly as ‘The Stellenbosch Mafia’, the very worst example of white monopoly capital. But who really are these mega-wealthy individuals, and what influence do they exert not only on Stellenbosch but more broadly on South African society?
Author Pieter du Toit begins by exploring the roots of Stellenbosch, one of the wealthiest towns in South Africa and arguably the cradle of Afrikanerdom. This is the birthplace of apartheid leaders, intellectuals, newspaper empires and more. He then closely examines this ‘club’ of billionaires. Who are they and, crucially, how are they connected? What network of boardroom membership, alliances and family connections exist? Who are the ‘old guard’ and who are the ‘inkommers’, and what about the youngsters desperate to make their mark? He looks at the collapse of Steinhoff: what went wrong, and whether there are other companies at risk of a similar fate. He examines the control these men have over cultural life, including pulling the strings in South Africa rugby.
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Engaging, authors politics could be reduced
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By: James Crabtree
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The Bank That Lived a Little
- Barclays in the Age of the Very Free Market
- By: Philip Augar
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Based on unparalleled access to those involved, and told with compelling pace and drama, The Bank That Lived a Little is the story of one of the most familiar names on the British high street since Big Bang in 1986. Philip Augar describes in detail three decades of boardroom intrigue driven by ruthless ambition, grandiose dreams and a desire for wealth. It is a tale of a struggle for long-term supremacy between rival strategies and their adherents.
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Global superstar bankers under light-touch gov
- By Philo on 12-21-18
By: Philip Augar
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White House, Inc.
- How Donald Trump Turned the Presidency into a Business
- By: Dan Alexander
- Narrated by: Noah Michael Levine
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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White House, Inc. is a newsmaking exposé that details President Trump’s efforts to make money off of politics, taking us inside his exclusive clubs, luxury hotels, overseas partnerships, commercial properties, and personal mansions. Alexander tracks hundreds of millions of dollars flowing freely between big businesses and President Trump. He explains, in plain language, how Trump tried to translate power into profit, from the 2016 campaign to the ramp-up to the 2020 campaign.
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Required reading for all Americans
- By Gregor on 10-11-20
By: Dan Alexander
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Alibaba
- The House That Jack Ma Built
- By: Duncan Clark
- Narrated by: Jim Meskimen
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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In just a decade and a half, Jack Ma, a man from modest beginnings who started out as an English teacher, founded Alibaba and built it into one of the world's largest companies, an e-commerce empire on which hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers depend. Alibaba's $25 billion IPO in 2014 was the largest global IPO ever. A Rockefeller of his age who is courted by CEOs and presidents around the world, Jack is an icon for China's booming private sector.
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Strange: Best part of story happens "off-screen"
- By Tristan on 09-02-16
By: Duncan Clark
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On Corruption in America
- And What Is at Stake
- By: Sarah Chayes
- Narrated by: Sarah Chayes
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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In this unflinching exploration of corruption in America, Chayes exposes how corruption has thrived within our borders - from the titans of America's Gilded Age (Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, et al.) to the collapse of the stock market in 1929, the Great Depression, and FDR's New Deal; from Joe Kennedy's years of banking, bootlegging, machine politics, and pursuit of infinite wealth to the deregulation of the Reagan Revolution - undermining this nation's proud middle class and union members.
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Profoundly ambitious and genuine yet...
- By Jerry A. Boriskin on 08-16-20
By: Sarah Chayes
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Africa Rise and Shine
- By: Jim Ovia
- Narrated by: David Applefield
- Length: 4 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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The road to success is rarely linear and never easy. But with courage, hard work, perseverance, and dedication to duty, Jim Ovia, founder and chairman of Zenith Bank, proves we can achieve the unthinkable. Jim has been called the Godfather of Banking by Forbes Africa. And this should be no surprise. In a time of tension between military and civilian regimes, periods of incredible economic instability, and a decaying infrastructure, Jim founded Zenith Bank in Nigeria.
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Very inspiring
- By Henry on 06-10-23
By: Jim Ovia
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Too Good to Be True
- The Rise and Fall of Bernie Madoff
- By: Erin Arvedlund
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Erin Arvedlund, the financial reporter who questioned the amazing returns of Bernie Madoff's hedge funds way back in 2001, traces the life of the infamous swindler and addresses the tough questions surrounding the collapse of his Ponzi scheme.
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Doesn't add much more that a lot of details.
- By Robert on 11-07-10
By: Erin Arvedlund
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Inside Money
- Brown Brothers Harriman and the American Way of Power
- By: Zachary Karabell
- Narrated by: Zachary Karabell
- Length: 17 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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In Inside Money, acclaimed historian, commentator, and former financial executive Zachary Karabell offers the first full and frank look inside this institution against the backdrop of American history. Blessed with complete access to the company's archives, as well as a thrilling understanding of the larger forces at play, Karabell has created an X-ray of American power - financial, political, cultural - as it has evolved from the early 1800s to the present.
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Brilliant, well researched & highly insightful
- By Mongezi on 02-11-22
By: Zachary Karabell
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Play Nice but Win
- A CEO's Journey from Founder to Leader
- By: Michael Dell, James Kaplan
- Narrated by: Michael Dell
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1984, soon-to-be college dropout Michael Dell hid signs of his fledgling PC business in the bathroom of his University of Texas dorm room. Almost 30 years later, at the pinnacle of his success as founder and leader of Dell Technologies, he found himself embroiled in a battle for his company’s survival. What he’d do next could ensure its legacy — or destroy it completely.
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Not perfect, but worth a listen
- By James S. on 11-09-21
By: Michael Dell, and others
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Dealing with China
- An Insider Unmasks the New Economic Superpower
- By: Henry M. Paulson
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 18 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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When Hu Jintao, China's then vice president, came to visit the New York Stock Exchange and Ground Zero in 2002, he asked Hank Paulson to be his guide. It was a testament to the pivotal role that Goldman Sachs played in helping China experiment with private enterprise. In Dealing with China, the best-selling author of On the Brink draws on his unprecedented access to both the political and business leaders of modern China to answer several key questions.
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A Valuable Book on China
- By Michael Moore on 09-04-15
By: Henry M. Paulson
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The Miracle
- The Epic Story of Asia's Quest for Wealth
- By: Michael Schuman
- Narrated by: Fred Stella
- Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Spanning nine countries, filled with heroic tales of bold decisions and self-sacrifice, and probing vast historical undercurrents, "The Miracle" takes readers inside private boardroom meetings, heated business negotiations, factory floors, and presidential cabinet sessions for a behind-the-scenes look at the events that shaped Asia's economic ascent - and will shape the world in the century to come.
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Packed with stories of both bussinesses and gov
- By Roman on 11-21-12
By: Michael Schuman
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The House of Dimon
- How JP Morgan's Jamie Dimon Rose to the Top of the Financial World
- By: Patricia Crisafulli
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Jamie Dimon is Wall Street's biggest player. Following the 11h-hour rescue of Bear Stearns by JPMorgan, his profile has reached stratospheric levels. And while the deals and decisions he's made have usually turned out to be the right ones, his journey to the top of the financial world has been anything but easy. Now, in The House of Dimon, business writer Patricia Crisafulli goes behind the scenes to recount the amazing events that have shaped Dimon's career.
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Intriguing
- By Jean on 08-28-16
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What listeners say about The Stellenbosch Mafia
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Patrick S.
- 08-16-19
What a pity
An interesting book, read in a most peculiar sing song manner with astounding mispronunciations of the main protagonists names which changed from chapter to chapter.. surely a production like this would ensure at least the names of the subjects of the book would be pronounced properly!
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4 people found this helpful
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- Marc
- 09-18-19
Good story - Shocking performance.
Story was very interesting and well researched but the narration / performance was cringe worthy. The pronunciation of some of the simplest English was weak and the more complicated names and places made my ears bleed.
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- Anonymous User
- 12-22-21
Insightful and inspiring
This book puts a lot of unknowns about the history of the billionaires of Stellenbosch into
perspective. It is both thought provoking and inspiring and provides an interesting explanation into the wealth generated by what is now deemed to be in the hands of white capitalistic monopolies.
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- Kgothatso Meka
- 01-13-22
Worthy Read
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Delved into the mysterious word of the Stellenbosch elite made up of largely old Afrikaans males. Fascinating culture with fascinating stories about how and with whom they built their businesses with. Worthy read for any South African entrepreneur.
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- Eli Barnes
- 02-14-23
Maybe just not my cup of tea
An exposé, mixed with a bit of gossip. If I had lived in SA, I believe I’d be much more interested. Thank you.
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- Anonymous User
- 10-22-19
Informative and inspiring
It's interesting
And inspiring to see what hard work can make one archive on top of the naysayers and the blacks sheeps
1
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- Kyle Walker
- 08-12-19
Enjoyable and Easy listen
nice peer into the stellies troop and how relationships matter more than anything else. soort soek soort.
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- Gerhard
- 09-24-19
Joost... E
Markus Jooste has an e at the end... The narrator talks about Joost... As the rugby player's name.
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- Anonymous User
- 12-24-22
Really Interesting
What alot I didn't know about my own country. I would recommend for any business owner.
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- Anonymous User
- 12-23-23
Good content poor narration
Alot of this content resembles the documentary on Marcus Jooste and the title of the book is way off and just misleading. Insightful, rich and well-written content on some of S-A's mega wealthy and powerful business men from Stellenbosch that unfortunately was lost by the narrator who for me, did not do the text and the juicinesst in-between the lines justice. I found myself rewinding alot to get what was said.
Most of the book centers around around Rupert and Jooste with dabblings into other Characters.
Not cumbersome nor laborious but lacking energy and rhythm.
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