“A clear, compelling account of the rise and fall of Brierley Investments, an essential read for anyone who lived through the 1980s.” Henry Newrick, Founder National Business Review (NBR).

Now, for the first time, the full dramatic story is told in one book – by the man who created the company – Ron Brierley himself.

If you lived through the investment era of the 1970s and 1980s, this will bring it all back — the deals, the personalities, the clashes, the politics, and the unforgettable chaos of the time.

If you enjoy bold business stories, boardroom battles, takeover games, wild profits, bad decisions, and big personalities —

This book is unmissable.

WHAT YOU’LL DISCOVER INSIDE

25 Jaw-Dropping Moments from 60 Years of Corporate Warfare

This book is packed with real events that are almost impossible to believe today:

1. How a teenager with a typewriter became NZ’s most feared investor.
2. The forgotten company (Mamaku) that launched an empire.
3. Secret shareholder registers slipped to Brierley by insiders.
4. The Southern Cross fight — when the establishment tried to crush the young upstart from Wellington.
5. Brierley’s near-death clash with Robert Muldoon.
6. The innovative fundraising tactics that pre-dated today’s capital markets.
7. The miracle return of AMPAT Rubber’s seized Indonesian estates.
8. The AGM punch-up where a director was knocked cold.
9. The explosive rise of IEL in Australia — and the lieutenant whose temper was legendary.
10. How Brierley’s became NZ’s most widely held public company.
11. The takeover battles that rewrote corporate norms.
12. The theatre empire nobody expected.
13. The deals that went spectacularly wrong.
14. The personalities behind the scenes — brilliant, reckless, loyal, difficult, colourful
15. The boardroom standoffs that spilled into the newspapers.
16. The international expansion that stretched the company too far.
17. The “Worst Deal in Australian Corporate History.”
18. Political pressure, bureaucratic fights, and high-stakes manoeuvring.
19. The unexpected wins that kept BIL in the game.
20. The critical mistakes that led to the company’s slow decline.
21. How the empire finally unravelled.
22. The strange, unexpected final chapter in Ron Brierley’s story.
23. And the legacy BIL leaves behind today.

If you enjoy stories that blend business brilliance with human drama, this will keep you turning pages.

WHY THIS BOOK MATTERS

Because the world will never again see a company like Brierley Investments Limited.

• The rules were different
• The personalities were larger
• The decisions were bolder
• The risks were wilder
• The stakes were higher

This was a time when:

• Boardrooms were battlegrounds
• Politics and business collided daily
• Takeovers dominated the newspapers
• Investors held meetings in pubs
• Ordinary Kiwis and Aussies took part in the boom
• And corporate legends were made

The story of BIL is the story of an era — an era remembered fondly by hundreds of thousands of investors across both countries.

RELIVE THE MOST EXCITING ERA IN NZ & AUSTRALIAN CORPORATE HISTORY

FINAL WORD — IF YOU REMEMBER THE TIMES, YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK

This isn’t just a corporate history.

It’s a drama.
A thriller.
A rise-and-fall empire.
A portrait of a time when deals were bold, personalities were fierce, and business news mattered to every investor in the country.

Relive the excitement. Remember the battles. Revisit the names. Rediscover the era.

Only 1,250 copies available in New Zealand and 1,250 in Australia.

$45 copy + postage.

Order your copy today