The Olympics may soon be over but there’s more fun on the way. In three months time, the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption will open public hearings into the granting of coal exploration licences in the Bylong valley, north east of Mudgee. And you can guarantee former Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid will be leading the field.

James Packer hasn’t yet got the thumbs-up for his Sydney casino and 6-star hotel but he’s certainly doing 100% better than Gina Rinehart in her attempt to control Fairfax Media.

When Harold Mitchell decided two years ago to sell the media buying business he had spent 34 years building he did something quite brave and, it transpires, very clever.

I got great news in my inbox this week. I won a $1 million prize from Oxfam. Yeah, I know that sounds a little strange, but not quite as strange as the David Jones 'takeover' bid.

It was Mussolini who famously claimed to have made the trains run on time. Had Il Duce actually achieved that and been around in 2012 to run Victoria's Metro train system, he may have been able to make a bit of cash on the side.

Gina Rinehart doesn't particularly fit the bill, nor does Gerry Harvey or Frank Lowy. James Packer has a bit of flair thanks to his love of rich toys, but is he really cool? Even our youngest billionaire, coal baron Nathan Tinkler, would struggle to fit snugly into the cool category.

According to BRW, Rinehart's wealth has soared by an incredible $18.7 billion in the space of one year to a staggering $29.17 billion. At that level, the magazine says, the queen of iron ore becomes the richest woman in the world.

Despite the family trust shenanigans, Gina Rinehart looks likely to once again dominate the BRW Rich 200 list.

The Nine Network finally has a runaway ratings freight train to rival all comers, with spinny-chair mega-hit The Voice dominating TV screens. And it's not just Nine cashing in.

The first Australian winner in the looming London Olympics has already emerged... it's 81-year-old Frank Lowy, who has pulled off one of his best deals ever just in time for the games, due to open in London on July 27.