The Ledger / Daniel Och
Daniel Och
◼ Origin
Daniel Och co-founded Och-Ziff Capital Management in 1994, building one of the world's largest hedge funds and accumulating $3.9 billion through multi-strategy arbitrage and alternative investments. Och-Ziff's growth into Africa in the 2000s was driven not only by investment returns but by a systematic bribery operation spanning six African countries — the largest FCPA violation by an investment adviser in US history at the time.
◼ Self-Made Verdict — YES
Co-founded Och-Ziff with $100M from Ziff family clients in 1994; prior career at Goldman Sachs arbitrage desk. Wealth from fund performance fees and co-investment, not inheritance.
◼ Documented marks
01
September 2016 — DOJ/SEC FCPA Settlement, $413 Million: Och-Ziff Capital Management and affiliated entities agreed to pay $413 million in criminal fines and civil penalties to resolve DOJ and SEC charges that they violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by paying bribes to government officials in Libya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Niger, Guinea, and Burkina Faso. The bribery scheme involved $100 million in corrupt payments to obtain mining and resource deals across six African countries. It was the largest FCPA violation by an investment adviser in US history. Source: DOJ Press Release, September 29, 2016; SEC Order.
02
September 2016 — Personal SEC Settlement, $2.2 Million: Daniel Och personally paid $2.2 million to settle SEC civil charges related to his knowledge of and failure to prevent FCPA violations at Och-Ziff Capital. The SEC charged that Och, as CEO, knew that the company was paying bribes in Africa and failed to implement adequate internal controls to prevent those payments. Source: SEC Litigation Release No. 23642, September 29, 2016.
No inheritance, or primary accounts documented for this billionaire yet.
◼ List of charges
01
Corporate Bribery
5 – 15 years
Statute: Payment of bribes to foreign or domestic officials to obtain or retain business, as defined under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or equivalent statute.
Basis: DOJ/SEC FCPA settlement September 2016: Och-Ziff Capital paid $413M for systematic bribery of government officials across six African countries (Libya, DRC, Chad, Niger, Guinea, Burkina Faso) to obtain mining/resource deals. $100M in corrupt payments. Largest FCPA violation by an investment adviser in US history. Daniel Och personally paid $2.2M SEC civil settlement for failure to prevent violations.
Total sentence
5–15 years
That is
0.1–0.2 life sentences
(using 78 years as one life)
At $1 million per day
Daniel Och's fortune would last 11 years
0.1 lifetimes of luxury — before running out.
These are moral charges, not legal ones. The actual legal system has not — and will not — bring them.
More ledger entries