Exclusive | Billionaire has been offered gold mines, houses, cows in trade for his $7.9m Tanzania island resort but theres a catch
A bitcoin billionaire is trying to offload his private African island and says he’s been deluged with “hilarious” offers — even though he doesn’t technically own the land.“There is overwhelming interest,” tech titan Tim Draper told The Post exclusively.“I have gotten offers to swap for gold mines, houses, for cows, and for $1 with a promise to pay the rest — when he could.”Draper’s plans to sell his Lupita Island property in Tanzania have been the subject of social media intrigue ever since he announced the sale on X on Aug.
28.“I am selling my island in Lake Tanganyika,” he wrote.“Gorgeous place, but we don’t use it enough.
$7.9 million or best offer.”Things grew more interesting when, days later, Tanzania’s Ministry of Lands released a statement saying that Lupita Island was technically owned by the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA) — and not Draper’s to sell.According to the government, Firelight Safaris Ltd., a company in which Draper is a shareholder, holds a “Derivative Right” to develop and operate the resort he built on the island.Draper conceded that’s the case.
According to the ministry, his investment may be transferred to another investor under Tanzanian law, but the land remains government-owned.“The sale is of all the tenant improvements,” Draper told The Post.“The buildings and villas are on a Tanzanian government land lease.”That setup is common in Tanzania, where all land is public and foreign investors generally operate through government leases or derivative rights.
Similar arrangements are typical in other island-tourism markets, such as the Maldives.TISEZA says the rights can run for up to 99 years and may be renewed.Lupita sits in Tanzanian waters in the country’s western Rukwa Region and can only be accessed via boat.The 110-acre island — about 0.17 square miles — lies in Lake Tanganyika, a 12,700-square-mile body of water shared by Tanzania, the Dem...