> load the company up with debt and pay yourself a nice dividend
I am new to this. Doesn't a dividend come from profits? What profits are there if you need debt? And who will loan to you if your business plan is to exit scam?
> What profits are there if you need debt? And who will loan to you if your business plan is to exit scam?
If you’re a water company, after government bailed out the banks, chances were good you’re not going bust. What are they going to do? Let the entire population of London die of dehydration?
And since a lot of investors in large utility companies are international, should the government somehow not make them whole (or worse, just expropriate), there would typically be repercussions - with international arbitration courts adjudicating reparation with processes that are typically stacked in favour of businesses.
A dividend can be paid with money from any source, it's all money.
> And who will loan to you if your business plan is to exit scam?
Ambitious junior bankers. Or you get the government to guarantee your debt.