Butchers, fake deaths and falling from helicopters: History’s craziest frauds
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Episode: Butchers, fake deaths and falling from helicopters: History’s craziest frauds
Pub date: 2026-09-23
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How do you tell if an economy is actually working? Most economics classes point to controlled inflation, steady growth, or low unemployment - but what if the level of financial fraud is the real hidden indicator?
Robin Wigglesworth and Gillian Tett talk to Dan Davies, financial historian and author of Lying for Money, to hear about some of the wildest and most shocking frauds in history. From 'the great salad oil swindle,' which almost brought down American Express to a fake gold mine in Borneo that ended with a mysterious fall from a helicopter. Together they explore how trust drives modern economies - and how fraudsters continuously exploit it.
Further reading: Lying for Money: How Legendary Frauds Reveal the Workings of Our World by Dan Davies
To enjoy future episodes, be sure to subscribe to The Story of Money wherever you get your podcasts, also on the show's dedicated YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@FTTheStoryOfMoney
Hosts: Gillian Tett and Robin Wigglesworth
Senior Producer: Laurence Knight
Producer: Michela Tindera
Executive producers: Kate Ford and Manuela Saragosa
Video producer: Michael Saliba
Original music and sound design: Breen Turner
Broadcast engineers: Bianca Wakeman and Petros Gioumpasis
Podcast development: Laura Clarke
FT global head of audio: Flo Phillips
Learn more at www.ft.com/tsom or get in touch at thestoryofmoney@ft.com
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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