Episode 3: Thrill Seeking | FT Podcasts

Sam tracks down an outdated contact in Tunisia. A former UN official dwelling off grid. He reveals how he ended up concerned in certainly one of Jan Marsalek’s wildest schemes.

#wirecard #bribe #investigation #espionage #janmarsalek #undercover #austria #vienna #fintech #russianspy #warlord #disinformation #europe #us #investigativejournalism

Hot Money, the award-winning podcast collection from the Financial Times and Pushkin Industries, is again with a 3rd season.

In 2020, the Financial Times uncovered a €2bn fraud at Wirecard, a high-flying German fintech. Many thought that was the top of the story.

But for FT reporter Sam Jones, it was just the start. This season on Hot Money: Agent of Chaos, Sam investigates Wirecard’s chief working officer who vanished simply as Wirecard collapsed — and who turned out to even be a Russian spy.

From an Ibizan sting operation to an tried takeover of the Austrian intelligence service, his reporting spirals right into a world of warlords, espionage and disinformation.

All in an try to reply two questions: who’s the actual Jan Marsalek? And what does his secret life reveal in regards to the highly effective forces he serves?

New episodes of the eight-part season will drop each Tuesday.

► Enjoying FT content material? Get a each day slice of the easiest FT journalism with FT Edit. Free for 30 days then simply £4.99 a month

See when you get the FT at no cost as a pupil (http://ft.com/schoolsarefree) or begin a £1 trial: https://subs.ft.com/spa3_trial?segmentId=3d4ba81b-96bb-cef0-9ece-29efd6ef2132.

► Check out our Community tab for extra tales: https://www.youtube.com/@FinancialTimes/community
► Listen to our podcasts: https://www.ft.com/podcasts
► Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/financialtimes
► Follow us on Instagram: https://www.tiktok.com/@financialtimes