Barrick Silences Its Biggest Critic by Buying Out Randgold

  • Randgold CEO has been outspoken critic of bigger competitors
  • Barrick agreed to buy gold rival Randgold in all-share deal

Mark Bristow

Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
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For more than two decades, Mark Bristow has been a thorn in the side of Barrick Gold Corp. Now he’s its closest partner.

The 59-year-old South African will take the role of chief executive officer at Barrick after the Canadian company inked a $5.4 billion deal to buy out Randgold Resources Ltd. It’s a bigger stage for Bristow, known as an outsider for his sharp and frequent criticisms of the gold industry and a genius at running an African mine.