Alan Bond

Alan Bond (22 April 1938 – 5 June 2015) was an English-born Australian businessman noted for his high-profile and often corrupt business dealings. These included his central role in the WA Inc scandals of the 1980s; the biggest corporate collapse in Australian history; and also his criminal conviction that saw him serve four years in prison. He is also remembered for bankrolling the successful challenge for the 1983 America's Cup, the first time the New York Yacht Club had lost it in its 132-year history. He also founded Bond University, Gold Coast, Australia.

Early life

Alan Bond was born on 22 April 1938, the son of Frank and Kathleen Bond[1] in the Hammersmith district of London, England. In 1950, aged 12, he emigrated to Australia with his parents and his elder sister Geraldine,[2] living in Fremantle, near Perth. At the age of 14, he was charged with stealing and being unlawfully on premises. Aged 18, he was arrested for being unlawfully on the premises, and reportedly admitted planning a robbery.[1][3]

Career

Bond began his career as a signwriter under the name 'Nu-Signs' after terminating his apprenticeship 18 months before it was due to end. In 1956 he was charged with attempted burglary, having been found by police roaming the streets of Fremantle dressed in State Electricity Commission overalls and carrying tools. Nu-Signs changed its name to Lesmurdie Heights – after the name of Bond's biggest estate – and changed the name again to Bond Corporation in 1959. In the 1960s, as a property developer in an expanding market, he was one of WA's largest borrowers from finance companies eager to lend to developers and uncritical of the valuations Bond put on his estates. Some of his developments included apartments along the Swan River and Lesmurdie Heights.

In his heyday the Perth-based Bond was one of Australia's most prominent businesspeople. He extended his business interests into fields outside property development including brewing (he controlled Castlemaine Tooheys in Australia,[6] leading the business to legal success in the landmark constitutional law case of Castlemaine Tooheys Ltd v South Australia,[7] and G. Heileman Brewing Company in La Crosse, Wisconsin, US[8]), gold mining,[9] television,[10] and airships.[11] Australia's first private university, Bond University, was founded by the Bond Corporation in 1987.[12] He purchased QTQ-9 Brisbane and settled an outstanding defamation dispute the station had with the Queensland premier, Joh Bjelke-Petersen by paying out A$400,000. He said in a television interview several years later that he paid because "Sir Joh left no doubt that if we were going to continue to do business successfully in Queensland then he expected the matter to be resolved".[13]

In 1987, Bond purchased Vincent van Gogh's renowned painting Irises for $54 million—the highest price ever paid for a single painting at the time. However, the purchase was funded by a substantial loan from the auctioneer Sotheby's, which Bond failed to repay.[14] The transaction was criticised by art dealers as possibly a manipulated sale designed to artificially inflate values generally (which it seems to have done).[15] The painting was subsequently re-sold in 1990 to the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.[16]

That same year, Bond also organised the establishment of the Bond Centre in Hong Kong, which was located in a twin tower skyscraper complex. The property was later bought by the Lippo Group of Indonesia, and is now known as the Lippo Centre.[17]

The America's Cup

Bond became a public hero in his adopted country when he bankrolled challenges for the America's Cup, which resulted in his selection in 1978 as Australian of the Year[18] (awarded jointly with Galarrwuy Yunupingu). His Australia II syndicate won the 1983 America's Cup, which had been held by the New York Yacht Club since 1851, thus breaking the longest winning streak in the history of sport. That victory, widely regarded as one of Australia's greatest international sporting achievements, resulted in Bond's receipt of the Order of Australia, in the grade of Officer.

Purchasing the Nine Network

In 1987, Bond paid $1 billion to purchase the Australia-wide Channel Nine television network from Kerry Packer's PBL. In a 2003 interview with Andrew Denton, Bond described the negotiations as follows:

"...when we first sat down, we said, 'We're either going to sell our stations to you for $400 million, or you're going to sell your stations to us.' And [Kerry Packer] said, 'Well, I don't really want to sell my stations.' And I said, 'Oh, is that right?' So, anyway, after much discussion, Kerry thumped the table and said, 'Listen, if you can pay me $1 billion, I'll sell them to you, otherwise bugger off'. ... [T]hen I rang the National Australia Bank. I said, 'Look, I'm in discussions here to buy these television stations. Kerry will sell to me, and what I want to do is put our stations together and then, with Sky Channel, I'm going to float it off as a separate entity and raise the capital to pay for it... [Packer] said $1 billion [was his asking price], but I think I'll get it for $800 million.' ... [The bank manager] duly rang back and said yes. I said, 'Thank God. I'll go and have some further negotiations with Kerry,' which I did.

birth date	April 22, 1938
birth place	Hammersmith, London, England
death date	June 5, 2015
death place	Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia
occupation	Businessman
title	CEO of Bond Corporation Holdings Ltd
years active	1954–1992
known for	Business magnate · yachting sponsor · corporate criminal · Founding Bond Corporation Holdings Ltd · Bond University founder
criminal charge	Corporate fraud
criminal penalty	Four years' imprisonment
spouse	Eileen Hughes (m. 1955-1992) Diana Bliss (m. 15 April 1995-28 January 2012)
children	4

Early life

Career

The America's Cup

Purchasing the Nine Network

Bankruptcy and conviction for fraud

Return to investment activities

Family

Illness and death

In popular culture

Projects and developments

Western Australia

Elsewhere in Australia

Overseas

Further reading

References