Good Bad Billionaire

How oilman Charles Koch turned black gold into dark money. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng investigate the feuding family that has shaped US politics for decades. The Koch family battles made “Dallas and Dynasty look like a playpen” with brother against brother, and even twin against twin. But Charles Koch succeeded as heir to the oil fortune, and spent the billions earnt...

Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack uncover the huge public feuds and private legal battles that made the most famous woman in the world. She can change the economy, but is Taylor Swift good, bad, or just another billionaire? We’d love to hear your feedback. Email goodbadbillionaire@bbc.com or drop us a text or WhatsApp to +1 (917) 686-1176. To find out more about the show an...

How Warren Buffett became the richest investor in history, amassing a fortune of over $120 billion, without moving from the Nebraska home he bought in 1958. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng discover how Buffett earned his first money as a six year old, bought his first shares at 11 and filed his first tax return at 13. He went on to formulate his own investment philosophy...

How NR Narayana Murthy, now known as the father-in-law of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, first became known as the father of India's IT boom. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack explain how Murthy made Infosys, the technology company he founded with six friends and some cash borrowed from his wife, a world leader in outsourcing. Simon and Zing reveal how 20th Century Indian p...

How Rupert Murdoch inherited an Australian newspaper and turned it into a global media empire. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng tell the origin story of the 92-year-old media magnate. He’s been called ‘evil’ and ‘a cancer’; for others, he’s the champion of the free press. He’s also one of the most powerful people on the planet. So which Rupert Murdoch is it: is he good bad...

The story of Mexican drug lord Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, better known as El Chapo, the leader of one of the world’s most prolific, violent and powerful drug cartels. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng follow El Chapo from childhood in the Mexican mountain region of Sinaloa to the very top of the drug business, and into the New York prison cell where he now resides. Si...

How hip-hop’s first billionaire went from grams to Grammys. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack chart Jay-Z's meteoric rise from drug dealing in the projects to sipping champagne in a private jet. Jay-Z turned his aspirational lifestyle into cash, rapping about the champagne that he owned. And the private jet? A gift from his wife, Beyonce. In the podcast that uncovers how th...

How did being fired from Wall Street lead Michael Bloomberg to a $96 billion fortune and a failed presidential campaign? Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack try to understand this man of contradictions. A brash playboy and thoughtful data nerd, a lifelong Democrat who became the Republican mayor of New York, a plutocrat who spent $1 billion self-funding a short-lived presiden...

Why was biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong sued by his brother... and Cher? BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng trace his journey from apartheid South Africa to the upper echelons of LA society. He’s tried to cure cancer, diabetes, and Covid-19, and along the way rubbed shoulders with some of the most powerful people on the planet: Joe Biden, the Pope, and Donald Trump....

Microsoft boss Bill Gates spent more than a decade as the richest person in the world, after becoming the youngest self-made billionaire in history. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack follow his journey from venerated, nerdy entrepreneur to ruthless monopolist, then from generous philanthropist to conspiracy theory magnet and divisive public figure. The podcast that uncovers...

The spectacular rise and incredible fall of crypto empire FTX and its unconventional founder, Sam Bankman-Fried - a billionaire wannabe philanthropist now facing decades behind bars. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack could not resist inviting special guest Michael Lewis (author of Liar's Poker, Moneyball and The Big Short) to tell this story. Michael was at the scene as Ban...

How did an accountant from Stoke-on-Trent gamble it all to become the world's highest paid woman? Denise Coates founded online betting company Bet365 and soon became a billionaire. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng trace the journey of this elusive figure. Geographically she's not travelled far, becoming the biggest employer in her hometown of Stoke-on-Trent. But as a busin...

How did basketball's biggest superstar become the world's first athlete billionaire? Michael Jordan turned his prodigious talent on the court into a money-making machine. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack trace Jordan's career from his childhood in North Carolina, through brilliance as a college basketball player, to his all-conquering phase with the Chicago Bulls and beyon...

How does the subject of a leaked sex tape become a billionaire business mogul? Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack find out how Kim Kardashian leveraged her fame and sold her privacy to earn billions, breaking the internet along the way. They follow her money making schemes, from selling celebrities' clothes online and styling Paris Hilton, to multi-million dollar weddings an...

The rise and rise of the French entrepreneur who vies with Elon Musk for the title of richest person in the world. Bernard Arnault is the head of luxury brand conglomerate LVMH, a house of brands that owns Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, Moet, Hennessey, Christian Dior, Sephora, Tiffany & Co, Marc Jacobs, Fenty and some 70 other luxury labels. Journalist Zing Tsjeng and BBC business editor Simon Jack...

Just who was the arms dealer prisoner swapped for US basketball star Brittney Griner? Viktor Bout was a man who built his empire selling arms to anyone who wanted them, and became a billionaire in the process. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng piece together a tale from the secretive world of the international arms trade. They follow Bout's story from Tajikistan to Moscow,...

In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for the planet, Simon and Zing follow George Lucas' journey from cult filmmaker to master of a cinematic galaxy. Find out how he harnessed the force of Star Wars to make him one of the richest filmmakers in the world, despite directing just six movies. We’d love to hear your feedback....

How did Oprah become the richest African American of the 20th Century? BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng find out, and then they judge her. In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for the planet, Simon and Zing follow Oprah Winfrey's rise from a poor young girl dressed in potato sacks, to the queen of...

The story of the billionaire who wasn't. When Charles "Chuck" Feeney first appeared on the world's rich lists in the 1980s, he had built a billion-dollar business selling duty free goods to tourists. But he'd also given most of his money away to charity. BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng follow Feeney's journey from Depression-era New Jersey through living the high life dur...

How did WeWork founder Adam Neumann oversee one of the most spectacular business fails in modern history? BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng find out, and then they judge him. In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for the planet, Simon and Zing follow Adam Neumann's journey from a barefoot, tequila-s...

How did Sir Philip Green go from being a respected retail mogul to becoming the unacceptable face of capitalism? BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng find out, and then they judge him. In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for the planet, Simon and Zing talk about a man who Simon has had a few run ins...

How did pop star Rihanna become the richest-ever person from Barbados? Simon Jack and Zing Tsjeng explain, and then decide if she's good, bad, or just another billionaire. In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for the planet, Simon and Zing talk about the richest woman in music. Discover how Robyn Rihanna Fenty went from a...

How did Amazon boss Jeff Bezos become the first person worth over $100 billion? BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng tell the story, from zero to his first million, and then on to the billions. Then they judge him - is he good, bad, or just another billionaire? In the podcast that uncovers how the world's 2,668 billionaires made their money and asks if they are good or bad for...

Coming Tuesday 29th August... The podcast that finds out how the richest people on the planet made their billions, and then judges them for it. Are they good, bad, or just another billionaire? Each episode BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist and podcaster Zing Tsjeng pick a billionaire and uncover their journey to the top. They learn how they made their money and what makes them tick, to...