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The Invisible Billionaire: Daniel Ludwig
Traces the Ludwig fortune from the days of Prohibition to the purchase of four million acres of Brazilian jungle
401 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 14, 2020
Quite simply among the greatest business biographies ever compiled.
June 23, 2025
3.5 stars.
Another rare book that I was lucky enough to find a pdf of online with the help of Peerce. DK Ludwig was a man of many hats - shipping, land development, farming, etc - but the most accurate word to describe him is ruthless. He treated his workers terribly, damn near like slaves, just to save a small amount on each project. He desecrated a large portion of the Amazon rainforest - and indirectly killed thousands of people in the process - for a vanity project that never came to fruition. He lied and bribed his way to “empire status” in most countries in Central and South America. He worked hand-in-hand with the mob on several occasions. And he was never punished for any of this.
But, with all of his nefarious activities acknowledged, he lived an incredible life and has some admirable qualities. The main lesson to learn from Ludwig’s life is determination. When he was broke, in debt, with the walls closing in during the Great Depression, he found a way out and prospered thereafter. In a throwback to the primary lesson of Lessons from the Titans, Ludwig got his start owning small, unreliable, and volatile ships. Over time, he used the profits from those ships to trade up to higher quality assets - larger vessels and longer term contracts - to even high quality assets - savings & loans, casinos, land development, etc.
Lastly, shoutout to the Jerry Shields for writing this book and pouring through government documents for a glimpse of Ludwig’s name.
Will throw some quotes in here later.
Another rare book that I was lucky enough to find a pdf of online with the help of Peerce. DK Ludwig was a man of many hats - shipping, land development, farming, etc - but the most accurate word to describe him is ruthless. He treated his workers terribly, damn near like slaves, just to save a small amount on each project. He desecrated a large portion of the Amazon rainforest - and indirectly killed thousands of people in the process - for a vanity project that never came to fruition. He lied and bribed his way to “empire status” in most countries in Central and South America. He worked hand-in-hand with the mob on several occasions. And he was never punished for any of this.
But, with all of his nefarious activities acknowledged, he lived an incredible life and has some admirable qualities. The main lesson to learn from Ludwig’s life is determination. When he was broke, in debt, with the walls closing in during the Great Depression, he found a way out and prospered thereafter. In a throwback to the primary lesson of Lessons from the Titans, Ludwig got his start owning small, unreliable, and volatile ships. Over time, he used the profits from those ships to trade up to higher quality assets - larger vessels and longer term contracts - to even high quality assets - savings & loans, casinos, land development, etc.
Lastly, shoutout to the Jerry Shields for writing this book and pouring through government documents for a glimpse of Ludwig’s name.
Will throw some quotes in here later.
January 18, 2023
Good novel
May 26, 2023
Worse free book.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews