Double Standards: The Forced Closure Of The BCCI Bank

The Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) was the brainchild of Pakistani visionary Agha Hasan Abedi and became the fastest growing bank in the world. At its zenith, BCCI had 500 offices in 76 countries with over 14,000 employees making it the 4th largest private bank. It became the bridge between the Third World and the West and at its peak was bailing out governments in developing countries like the IMG or World Bank along with major philanthropic and humanitarian funding initiatives. It was forcefully shut down by the Bank of England after pressure from the US authorities in 1991 amidst allegations of fraud and money-laundering.

Double Standards revisits the BCCI saga and carries out an academic analysis to compare its treatment against the fines meted out to major international banks following global financial meltdown in 2008. Allegations against BCCI are on par with a 'parking violation' compared to the criminal actions of the banking powerhouses of today, yet they are let off the hook by regulators with mere fines and penalties due to them being "Too Big to Indict". The book sheds light on the untold story of BCCI and its legendary founder whose life has been obscured ever since its forced closure. The book seeks to explore why the bank was shut when the Abu Dhabi government bailed it out following its restructure and more importantly who benefited from its closure?