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Category: Banking

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: State of art totally Indigenously developed Resource adequacy model (STELLAR) launched by Central Electricity Authority

    Source: Government of India

    State of art totally Indigenously developed Resource adequacy model (STELLAR) launched by Central Electricity Authority

    A Useful tool for all Discoms and load Despatchers

    Posted On: 13 APR 2025 3:23PM by PIB Delhi

    An indigenously developed Integrated Generation, Transmission and Storage Expansion Planning Model with Demand Response – a vital Resource Adequacy Tool, has been launched on 11.04.2025 by Shri Ghanshyam Prasad, Chairperson, Central Electricity Authority (CEA) in the presence of Sh. Alok Kumar, Ex-Secretary (Power) and partner TLG and various representatives from the State Power Utilities. It is planned to distribute this software model to all the States/ Discoms free of cost.

    The indigenously developed tool is specifically designed to assist the states in carrying out a comprehensive Resource Adequacy plan in line with the resource adequacy guidelines issued by the Ministry of Power in June 2023.

    After the issuance of Resource Adequacy Guidelines, CEA has been carrying out the Resource Adequacy (RA) plans for all the Discoms. To begin with, CEA completed the exercise for all Discoms up to 2032, and now all of them have been updated to 2034-35. CEA has also finished the national level exercise up to 2034-35. Since the plan is dynamic and is mandated to be revised every year, it was thought to develop a common tool for all and share it with them free of cost to play with it. It will also help integrate the studies easily and bring out the optimum solutions for the country.

    The model explicitly considers:

    1. Chronological operation of the power system
    2. All unit commitment constraints, including technical minimum, minimum up and down times, and ramp-up/ramp-down rates.
    3. Endogenous demand response
    4. Ancillary services, and many more.

    The benefits of the tool include:

    1. Ensuring adequate resource adequacy (neither less nor more) in the electricity grid. Zero load shedding, No stressed capacity and least cost solutions.
    2. Optimisation of the cost of power system generation expansion and system operation while considering the benefit of demand response.
    3. Optimisation of energy and ancillary services.
    4. Optimisation of size and location of storage.

    The software has been developed entirely in India with the active guidance of CEA, ensuring complete transparency. CEA will update and upgrade this tool based on further suggestions from the users (Discoms/ load despatchers) of this software.

    The launch event highlighted the collaboration between CEA, The Lantau Group (TLG) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) under the Technical Assistance program. 

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah addresses the State Level Cooperative Conference in Bhopal as the Chief Guest

    Source: Government of India

    Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah addresses the State Level Cooperative Conference in Bhopal as the Chief Guest

    Since the formation of the Ministry of Cooperation, there has been a significant change in the cooperative sector under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and now this sector is moving forward rapidly

    MoU signed between NDDB and MPCDF to increase the contribution of cooperative dairy societies in milk production in Madhya Pradesh

    MOU will expand cooperative dairy to every village of Madhya Pradesh

    Setting up of cooperative milk producing societies in villages will increase milk processing capacity manifold, this will also make farmers prosperous

    The Modi government, in collaboration with the Madhya Pradesh government, is committed to take every possible step for the welfare of the farmers of the state

    During the time of opposition government, the cooperative sector in MP had collapsed, now it is a golden opportunity to revive the cooperative sector

    Three multi-state cooperatives created by the Modi government are providing farmers a fair price for their produce, a platform for export and profits are reaching directly to their bank accounts

    PACS, which earlier used to provide only short-term agricultural loans, are now providing more than 20 types of services, which has increased their income

    Posted On: 13 APR 2025 7:12PM by PIB Delhi

    Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah today addressed the State Level Cooperative Conference organized in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh, as the Chief Guest. Many dignitaries including Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav, State Cooperation Minister Shri Vishwas Sarang and Secretary of the Union Ministry of Cooperation Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani were present on the occasion.

    Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah said that there are a lot of possibilities in the three sectors of agriculture, animal husbandry and cooperatives in Madhya Pradesh and a lot of work is required to exploit them to the fullest. He said that for years the cooperative movement in the country was becoming moribund and was divided at different levels in the country. The reason for this was that the cooperative laws did not change as per the times.

    Shri Amit Shah said that in our Constitution, except for multi-state cooperatives, all cooperatives are a state subject. He said that no initiative was ever taken to make laws according to the rapidly changing conditions in the country. Keeping in mind the geographical conditions, rainfall conditions, rural development, agricultural development and animal husbandry dimensions of each state, no thought was ever given at the national level. Shri Shah said that no thought was ever given, because there was no Cooperation ministry at the national level.
    Shri Shah said 75 years after independence, the Prime Minister of the country, Shri Narendra Modi, established the Cooperation Ministry and he got the privilege of becoming the first Cooperation minister.

    Union Minister of Cooperation said that Since the formation of the Ministry of Cooperation, there has been a significant change in the cooperative sector under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and now this sector is moving forward rapidly. He said that the limits that were in our Constitution are still there. Even today, cooperation is a state subject. Shri Shah said that the Government of India cannot make any legal changes in the field of cooperation. However, efforts have been made to revive the Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), promote the dairy sector, cooperation in the field of production, smooth management of urban cooperative banks, district cooperative banks and rural banks. He said that the Ministry of Cooperation first worked on creating model by-laws for PACS and sent it to the state governments for approval. Today the whole of India has accepted these model by-laws. Expressing gratitude to the states for accepting the model by-laws, Shri Shah said that this step has brought new life to the cooperative sector. He said that unless PACS is strengthened, the three-tier cooperative structure cannot be strengthened. He said that earlier PACS used to provide only short-term agricultural loans, in which they used to earn about half a percent income. But today PACS are providing more than 20 types of services and the new reforms will also increase the income of PACS.

    Shri Amit Shah said that today PACS have been allowed to provide services like Jan Aushadhi Kendra, water distribution, common service centers. He said that today more than 300 schemes are available to the people on PACS computers. One does not need to go out of the village to get railway tickets, electricity bills, water bills, birth and death certificates, all these facilities are now available in PACS. Shri Shah said that many PACS have earned income from these services. PACS can now also become fertilizer dealers, start petrol pumps, distribute cooking gas and also manage the ‘Har Ghar Nal’ scheme.

    Union Minister of Cooperation said that under the new bylaws, work was done to create Multi Purpose PACS (MPACS) by merging PACS, dairy cooperative societies and fishery cooperative societies. He said that the Government of India has computerized all the PACS in the country at a cost of Rs 2500 crore. Madhya Pradesh ranks first in the country in computerization of PACS. Now the District Cooperative Bank and State Cooperative Bank are connected to NABARD due to computer network. Along with this, transparency has also come in the field of cooperation due to the arrangement of online audit.

    Shri Amit Shah said that the computerized PACS are working in 13 languages ​​of India. The Government of India has developed such software for PACS that will work for farmer in his language to open a bank account, i.e. it will work

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Ministry of Corporate Affairs hosts 5th ‘Candidate Open house’ for interns of PM Internship scheme

    Source: Government of India

    Ministry of Corporate Affairs hosts 5th ‘Candidate Open house’ for interns of PM Internship scheme

    Interns Share their inspiring Journeys and experiences

    Posted On: 12 APR 2025 6:13PM by PIB Delhi

    The 5th Candidate Open House was hosted by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs on 11th April 2025. The interns from PM Internship Scheme  reflected on their transformative journeys during the session.

    As part of the Fifth online ‘Candidate Open House’, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs brought together interns of the Prime Minister Internship Scheme to share their early experiences. The session served as a vital touchpoint for aspirants, current interns, and industry stakeholders navigating the scheme.with a overwhelming presence of 557 participants

    In the previous edition of the Open House on April 4, 2025, interns from ONGC shared compelling insights into their learning journeys, while Mr. Anil Bahuguna, Chief of Skill Development at ONGC, highlighted how the organisation is nurturing youth through core skills, soft skills, and overall personality development.

    Carrying the momentum forward on 11th April 2025, Mr. Priyo Roop Guha-HR Lead (Center of Excellence) from HDFC Bank shared how HDFC is actively partnering with the MCA’s PM Internship Scheme to shape aspiring students into job-ready professionals — grooming them with real-world exposure, guidance, and skill refinement. He also  shared that over 130 interns have joined across India under PMIS since December offering them frontline sales roles near home locations. Post-internship, many may be absorbed into full-time roles, making it a strong launchpad for banking careers.

    During the Open House, three interns—Niraj from Uttar Pradesh, Pralay from West Bengal, and Astha from Bihar—shared their inspiring journeys under the Prime Minister Internship Scheme, each reflecting a unique path of growth and transformation.

    Niraj, a history graduate, spoke about his transition into the world of finance and banking. With full support from HDFC Bank, he was relocated from Delhi to a branch closer to his hometown, allowing him to learn and contribute meaningfully. From mastering core banking services to understanding financial products, his journey has been one of remarkable professional evolution.

    Astha, a 22-year-old small-town girl from Naugachia, Bihar, dreamed of a job after graduating in commerce—but had no skills and wasn’t allowed to leave her town. Then a friend told her about the PM Internship Scheme—and it changed her life. Placed at a nearby HDFC branch, she is now confident, disciplined, handling banking products with ease, and proudly supporting her family. “I never imagined such an opportunity would come my way,” she says, now encouraging others to apply too.

    Pralay, who left a fixed-salary job to join the internship, described how his background in economics found its true purpose in the banking sector. He emphasized that this learning experience has been far more valuable than a routine job. Encouraged by the constant support of his team, he is confident that the internship will pave the way for a full-time career in the industry.

    Together, their stories exemplify how the PM Internship Scheme is not just about work experience—but about unlocking potential, building confidence, and shaping futures.

    MCA officials urge candidates to remain proactive on the portal, via email, and by phone to receive the latest updates. With applications for Round 2 of the Prime Minister’s Internship Scheme’s pilot phase currently open, eligible youth are encouraged to apply before the deadline on April 22, 2025. Stay engaged and take the first step toward your future!

    For more information visit: https://pminternship.mca.gov.in/

     

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: JPC Innovation and Technology Competition 2024-25 Award Presentation Ceremony cum Carnival held today (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

    JPC Innovation and Technology Competition 2024-25 Award Presentation Ceremony cum Carnival held today  
         The Commissioner of Police, Mr Chow Yat-ming; the Under Secretary for Education, Dr Sze Chun-fai; the General Manager of Information Technology Department of Bank of China (Hong Kong), Mr Yung Fai; and the Director of Operations of Police, Mr Chan Tung, officiated at the ceremony.

         In his welcome remarks, Mr Chow said that since its establishment in 1974, the JPC has been committed to training young people to become youth leaders and crime-fighting partners through diversified activities, striving to nurture a new generation of law-abiding young people with an affection for the country and Hong Kong, and equipped with positive thinking and an aspiring mindset. He noted that as the Police step up enforcement against “space oil drugs”, the competition introduced the theme of youth drug prevention, encouraging participants to raise anti-drug awareness among young people through creative solutions.
     
         Mr Chow also highlighted the quality of entries received, underscoring the pivotal role of experiential learning in STEAM education, which fosters students’ curiosity while developing their teamwork and problem-solving skills. He added that the JPC will launch more innovative activities to nurture I&T talents for Hong Kong and our country.
     
         The competition aims to encourage primary and secondary school students to utilise their knowledge and skills in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) to construct innovative and feasible “Smart City” solutions. Two “Best Smart City Awards” were introduced to recognise the most innovative entries in artificial intelligence and gerontechnology, while the “Best Safe City Awards” were also presented to acknowledge innovative solutions for fraud prevention and crime fighting, youth drug prevention, and community safety enhancement, ensuring that citizens can continue to thrive in a safe living environment. The competition was divided into four categories, namely junior primary school, senior primary school, junior secondary school and senior secondary school. Over 1700 students from nearly 160 schools participated, and over 1 300 submissions were received. The list of winning teams has been uploaded onto the JPC website.
     
         To further encourage the younger generation to engage with innovation and technology, some winners introduced the creative ideas and stories behind their works at the award presentation ceremony. An I&T carnival was also held and featured a workshop on simulated evidence collection at crime scenes and a number of virtual reality games, allowing participants to learn about the work of the Police, while experiencing the fun of technology.
     
         This is the fourth consecutive year that the JPC has organised the competition which combines experiential learning and policing elements to nurture future young leaders to join hands in preventing and combating crime. The competition was supported by the Education Bureau, the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau, the Digital Policy Office, the Association of I.T. Leaders in Education, the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute, the Hong Kong Computer Society, the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, the Hong Kong Extra-curricular Activities Masters’ Association, the Hong Kong New Emerging Technology Education Association, the Hong Kong Productivity Council, the Hong Kong STEM Education Alliance and the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.
    Issued at HKT 16:45

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    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Productivity reform has been put in the too-hard basket for years. Here’s why leaders leave it alone

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lachlan Vass, Fellow, Tax and Transfer Policy Institute, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University

    National licensing of electricians has been one of the few productivity reforms of recent years. Shutterstock

    The federal election leaders’ and treasurers’ debates last week covered many topics: from Trump’s tariffs to the cost of living, energy supply and excise tax.

    But one of the most consequential things for Australia’s future prosperity was not mentioned – what either a Labor or Coalition government plans to do to kick-start productivity growth.

    It’s usually at this point – seeing the word “productivity” – that people switch off. So bear with me a minute.

    Productivity is a much-maligned term, often thought to mean people working harder or longer. But that’s not what it means.

    Being more productive means getting more for the same amount of work – working smarter, not longer. For example, in 1901 it took 18 minutes of an average worker’s time to be able to afford a loaf of bread.

    Thanks to improvements in efficiency (think using a dough hook rather than hand-kneading) and rising wages, today it takes around four minutes of work to afford a loaf.

    Why it matters to you

    Productivity growth matters. Increasing output and decreasing prices is the main driver of increasing real incomes in the long term. It means you’re able to purchase more (or better quality) goods and services as their relative costs go down and incomes increase.

    But Australia’s productivity growth is languishing. Reserve Bank analysis highlights that labour productivity grew only 0.2% per year over the six years to June 2024. The escalating global tariff war, and associated uncertainty, will threaten this further.

    Poor productivity growth also has significant implications for the federal budget. The budget papers showed that a forecast return to a balanced budget in a decade’s time is premised on a productivity growth assumption of 1.2% per year – which is optimistic.

    Recent analysis from the e61 Institute shows even a slightly more realistic assumption of 1% would increase the budget deficit by 0.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and push out the return to budget balance.

    What about all the inquiries?

    So what can we do about it? Fortunately, the Productivity Commission has delivered several reports that deep dive into the problems and potential solutions.

    The most recent report, Advancing Prosperity, was delivered to the government in 2023. It provided 29 reform directions and 71 individual recommendations, across over 1,000 pages of analysis.

    While a small number of these have been picked up by governments, such as reforms to the temporary skilled migration system, the vast majority remain on the shelf.

    There have been some initiatives aimed at stimulating productivity pursued by government outside of the Productivity Commission recommendations, such as the banning of non-compete clauses and nationally consistent licensing for electricians.



    Read more:
    Non-compete clauses make it too hard to change jobs. Banning them for millions of Australians is a good move

    These are steps in the right direction, but relatively small ones. We need policies to tilt our economy towards being more flexible and adaptable, allowing us to take advantage of whatever the next world-changing idea or technology is.

    Lots of talk, not much action

    So why have we seen so little action on productivity reforms, and why is neither side of politics talking about our productivity problem?

    There are a few likely reasons.

    Firstly, as economists often like to remind people, incentives matter. Politicians are no different to the rest of us in that they respond to the incentives they face. And often productivity-enhancing reforms come with short-term costs (political, economic or social), while the benefits don’t tend to materialise until the longer term.

    With politicians (understandably) focused on re-election every three years, the prospect of incurring a clear short-term cost for a longer-term benefit isn’t always a tempting one.

    Secondly, the impact of productivity-enhancing reforms tend to be more uncertain than other policies.

    For example, if we increase the level of JobSeeker payments, we can be fairly certain that those on JobSeeker will be able to consume more. While we may be confident about the direction of the impact of productivity reforms – such as improving the ability of the workers to find the firms that they best match with – it is harder to be certain about the size of this impact.

    This makes it more difficult to concretely claim an individual policy reform will have benefits that clearly and significantly outweigh the costs.

    No silver bullet on reform

    Finally, when it comes to productivity-enhancing reform, there is no single silver bullet. Modern productivity reform requires a collection of policies enacted together, which may be politically more difficult due to the larger number of potentially negatively affected groups.

    So what can we do to fix this? As constituents if you’re door-knocked or approached by politicians in the election campaign over the coming weeks, then make sure to ask them what their plans for reviving productivity growth are.

    Longer term, it is incumbent upon researchers and policymakers to create the burning platform for why productivity-improving change is needed, and what this means.

    There are many issues Australia faces, and politicians and citizens have limited bandwidth. We should work to better highlight and communicate the benefits and trade-offs, rather than bemoan the lack of action from politicians simply responding to incentives.

    The author thanks Aaron Wong, senior economist at the e61 Institute, for their contribution to this article.

    Lachlan Vass is affiliated with the e61 Institute.

    – ref. Productivity reform has been put in the too-hard basket for years. Here’s why leaders leave it alone – https://theconversation.com/productivity-reform-has-been-put-in-the-too-hard-basket-for-years-heres-why-leaders-leave-it-alone-253749

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: CBB Welcomes Delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ “Dhiyafa” Program

    Source: Central Bank of Bahrain

    CBB Welcomes Delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ “Dhiyafa” Program

    Published on 13 April 2025

    Manama, Bahrain – 13 April 2025: The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) hosted a delegation of participants from the fifth International Diplomats Program “Dhiyafa” on Thursday, 10th April 2025 at its headquarters. The initiative is organised by the Mohamed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa Academy (MBMA) for Diplomatic Studies under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

    Mr. Yousef Rashid Al Fadhel, Executive Director of Corporate Services at CBB, received the delegation which consisted of 23 diplomats. In his opening address, he highlighted the importance of these initiatives in enhancing communication and the exchange of expertise between Bahrain and other nations.

    During the visit, Mr. Mohammed Al Sadiq, Head of Financial Stability at CBB, presented an overview of the institution’s mandate and its commitment to maintaining regulatory oversight in the sector. He also outlined the key objectives of the Financial Services Sector Development Strategy 2022 – 2026. Following his session, Ms. Sarah Ehsan Faraj, Director of the Currency Issue Directorate, delivered a presentation on the issuance of the commemorative silver coin minted on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, marking 25 years of His Majesty’s reign. The visit concluded with a tour of the Currency Museum housed within the CBB’s premises.

    On the occasion, Mr. Yousef Rashid Al Fadhel, commented: “In line with our commitment to contributing towards meaningful national initiatives, we were pleased to offer the delegates an in-depth perspective into the CBB’s pioneering role in supporting the Kingdom’s financial sector. We also commend this vital endeavour, which serves to stimulate the interflow of ideas and build stronger connections with diplomats from different backgrounds as they explore Bahrain’s rich history and cultural legacy.”

    Launched in 2019, “Dhiyafa” was the recipient of the inaugural Government Innovation Competition (Fikra) award in 2018. Since then, it has welcomed 91 officials from 47 nations. Designed as a comprehensive experience that combines academic learning with practical engagement, the program seeks to enhance bilateral relations between Bahrain and the participating countries by showcasing the Kingdom’s progress across diverse fields.

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    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Lamont Thanks Sponsors of the 2025 UConn Women’s Basketball Victory Parade and Rally

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    (HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today is thanking the businesses and organizations who have reached out over the last several days offering to serve as sponsors of the 2025 UConn women’s basketball victory parade and rally, which is being held in downtown Hartford on Sunday, April 13, 2025, at 1:00 p.m.

    Funding from the sponsors is being used to cover all the costs of the event, including police, fire, and ambulance services; public works and sanitation; staging and production; permits and insurance; and labor hours for event set-up, management, and take-down. No state or city funding is used. The event is organized through a partnership between the State of Connecticut, the City of Hartford, and the Hartford Business Improvement District.

    “We are very appreciative of the many businesses and organizations whose sponsorship is covering the costs of this victory parade and rally,” Governor Lamont said. “Their donations are making this event possible, and I thank all of them for helping to honor the 2025 UConn women’s basketball national championship team.”

    The following businesses and organizations are contributing funds:

    • Coca-Cola
    • Jordan’s Furniture
    • Hartford HealthCare
    • LAZ Parking
    • Mohegan Sun
    • Nassau Financial Group
    • PeoplesBank
    • Travelers
    • Bear’s Smokehouse Barbecue
    • CONNSTEP
    • CT Realtors
    • UConn Health
    • Connecticut Army National Guard
    • Delta Dental of CT
    • Sam’s Food Stores
    • Two Roads Brewing
    • Verogy
    • WFSB

    The following businesses are providing substantial in-kind services:

    • C2 Vehicles
    • DATTCO
    • Manafort Brothers
    • Mitchell Auto Group
    • Peter Pan Bus Lines
    • Powerstation Events
    • XL Center

    For more event information, including a map of the parade route, visit www.hartford.com/uconn.

     

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Health workers call for NZ government to join global demands for ambulance massacre inquiry

    Asia Pacific Report

    Health workers spoke out at a rally condemning Israel’s genocide in Gaza and the latest atrocity against Palestinian aid workers today, calling on the New Zealand government to join global demands for an independent investigation.

    They were protesting over last month’s massacre of 15 Palestinian rescue workers and the destruction of their ambulances in Gaza’s Rafah district under heavy fire.

    The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has called for an independent international inquiry into the “deliberate killing” of 8 ambulance medics, 6 civil defence workers and 1 UN worker reportedly executed by the Israeli forces on March 23.

    Their ambulances were destroyed and buried together with the bodies of the victims in a shallow grave a week after the crews went missing.

    One PRCS paramedic, Assaad al-Nassasra, was reported to be still missing.

    Among the speakers in the rally in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland’s Te Komititanga Square, Amnesty International’s Audrey Van Ryn said: “These killings must be independently and impartially investigated and the perpetrators held to account.

    “Medical personnel carrying out their humanitarian duties most be respected and protected in all circumstances.”

    Health worker Jason Brooke read out a message from the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Jagan Chapagain, in response to the killing of the Palestinian first-responders.

    ‘Their ambulances were clearly marked’
    “I am heartbroken. These dedicated ambulance workers were responding to wounded people. They were humanitarians. They wore emblems that should have protected them; their ambulances were clearly marked,” said Chapagain.

    “They should have returned to their families; they did not.”

    Fourteen of the Palestinian aid workers killed by Israel last month. The 15th is still missing. Graphic: Al Jazeera/Creative Commons

    Their bodies were discovered a week later by fellow workers. A video from one of the slain Palestinian Red Crescent medics contradicting the lies propagated by Israel’s military that the vehicles were “advancing suspiciously toward IDF troops without headlights or emergency signals”

    These first responders were not mistakenly misidentified. They were travelling, clearly visible in red crescent marked ambulances with their lights on. They posed no threat.

    According to the United Nations, at least 1060 healthcare workers have been killed in the 18 months since Israel launched its genocidal offensive in Gaza.

    “Whether it’s first-responders and medics, health workers or reporters, not only are these workers being targeted with impunity by the IOF, but their deaths seem to barely cause a ripple,” said Brooke, who was greeted with cries of shame.

    “Where is the condemnation of our politicians? Our media?”

    ‘Dehumanisation of Palestinian life’
    “As the Palestinian poet and author Mohammed El-Kurd suggests, what we are witnessing is the dehumanisation of Palestinian life.

    “Israel only has to mention the word ‘Hamas’ and the indoctrinated look-away. As if resistance to genocide itself were a crime — the punishment a life predetermined for death.

    “Genocide does not distinguish between civilian, aid worker, health worker, reporter and militant. All are condemned.”

    Medical personnel, medical transport, hospitals and other medical facilities, the injured and sick are all specifically protected under international humanitarian law.

    The devastating Gaza massacre represents the single most deadly attack on Red Cross or Red Crescent workers anywhere in the world since 2017.

    Secretary-general Chapagain said: “The number of Palestine Red Crescent volunteers and staff killed since the start of this conflict is now 30.

    “We stand with Palestine Red Crescent and the loved ones of those killed on this darkest of days.”

    PSNA advocate Janfrie Wakim . . . “We mourn those thousands of innocent people . . . who made the ultimate sacrifice with their lives.” Image: Asia Pacific Report

    ‘Palestine wants freedom to live’
    Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA) advocate Janfrie Wakim called on the crowd to give each other “high fives” in recognition of their solidarity in turning up for the protest in the 79th week since the war began.

    “I like the sign in front of me: ‘Palestine wants the freedom to live while Israel has the freedom to kill!’ she said.

    “We mourn those thousands of innocent people  — some with families here and in Gaza and the West Bank — who made the ultimate sacrifice with their lives, and the thousands unaccounted for in rubble and over 100,000 injured.

    “Palestine wants the freedom to live while Israel has the freedom to kill!” . . . a placard at today’s Auckland solidarity rally. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    “Mostly women and children.

    “The humanitarian workers who have been murdered serving humanity.”

    Wakim said the genocide had been enabled by the wealthiest countries in the world and Western media — “including our own with few exceptions”.

    “Without its lies, its deflections, its failure to report the agonising reality of Palestinians suffering, Israel would not have been able to commit its atrocities.”

    All fatalities women and children
    Meanwhile, the United Nations reports Palestinian women and children were the only fatalities in at least three dozen Israeli air strikes on Gaza since mid-March, as it warned that Israel’s military offensive threatened Palestinians’ “continued existence as a group”.

    Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said on Friday that the office had documented 224 Israeli strikes on residential buildings and tents for displaced people in the Gaza Strip between March 18 and April 9.

    “In some 36 strikes about which the UN Human Rights Office corroborated information, the fatalities recorded so far were only women and children,” she said.

    The findings come as Israel’s attacks on Gaza have killed more than 1500 Palestinians since the Israeli military broke a ceasefire in March, according to figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health, reports Al Jazeera.

    A German official was the latest to call for an independent probe over Israel’s killing of the 15 medical aid workers.

    An investigation into Israel’s killing of paramedics must be carried out independently, said German Federal Government Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Assistance Luise Amtsberg.

    “This alleged violation of international law must not go unpunished,” Amtsberg said in a message on social media platform Bluesky.

    Israel’s ‘distortion’ straining ties
    “The investigation must be carried out quickly and independently, and the perpetrators must be brought to justice as soon as possible. The Israeli government and judiciary have a duty here,” she said.

    Israel’s distortion of the event was “once again” straining ties between Germany and Israel, she added.

    Myriam Laaroussi, an emergency coordinator with Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, told Al Jazeera from al-Mawasi, an area west of Khan Younis that houses thousands of displaced Gaza families, that the health system had been destroyed.

    Due to the Israeli blockade, the supplies needed to treat patients were lacking and had left children in Gaza vulnerable to disease, she said.

    The desalination unit was not functioning any more due to Israel’s decision to cut electricity, which had decreased the capacity to retain good hygiene and was leading to outbreaks of polio and scabies.

    “We see that it’s a ‘slow death’ for many Palestinians, with shortages of food and water leading to a loss of weight and medical issues,” she said.

    The ceasefire had been an opportunity to scale up the capacity of the different health facilities, but it had been too short to have enough effect, and now health facilities were being attacked again.

    A “Free free Palestine” placard at today’s Auckland solidarity rally. Image: Asia Pacific Report

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey top M&A financial advisers by value and volume in Q1 2025, finds GlobalData

    Source: GlobalData

    JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey top M&A financial advisers by value and volume in Q1 2025, finds GlobalData

    Posted in Business Fundamentals

    JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey have emerged as the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) financial advisers by value and volume for Q1 2025 in the latest Financial Advisers League Table by GlobalData, which ranks financial advisers by the value and volume of M&A deals on which they advised.

    Based on its Deals Database, the leading data and analytics company has revealed that JP Morgan achieved its leading position in the deal value rankings by advising on $133.6 billion worth of deals. Meanwhile, Houlihan Lokey led in terms of volume by advising on a total of 69 deals.

    Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “It is interesting to note that both JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey were also the top advisers by value and volume in Q1 2024. And despite registering a year-on-year decline in value and volume, respectively, they were still ahead of peers and managed to retain their leadership positions by these metrics in Q1 2025 as well.

    “Houlihan Lokey experienced a very margin drop and the number of deals advised by it mostly remained at the same level in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024. Meanwhile, around half of the deals advised by JP Morgan during Q1 2025 were billion-dollar deals*. Moreover, these also included four mega deals valued more than $10 billion, which played a pivotal role for JP Morgan is leading the pack by value. It also occupied the second position by volume.”

    An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database reveals that JP Morgan occupied the second position in terms of volume by advising on 56 deals followed by Goldman Sachs with 52 deals, PwC with 38 deals and Morgan Stanley with 36 deals.

    Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs occupied the second position in terms of value, by advising on $130.4 billion worth of deals followed by Morgan Stanley with $96.7 billion, Citi with $83.2 billion and Barclays with $74.7 billion.

    *Deals valued more than or equal to $1 billion

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Kirkland & Ellis was the top M&A legal adviser in Q1 2025, finds GlobalData

    Source: GlobalData

    Kirkland & Ellis was the top M&A legal adviser in Q1 2025, finds GlobalData

    Posted in Business Fundamentals

    Kirkland & Ellis has emerged as the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal adviser in Q1 2025 in terms of both value and volume on the latest Legal Advisers League Table by GlobalData, which ranks legal advisers by the value and volume of mergers and acquisition (M&A) deals on which they advised.

    Based on its Deals Database, the leading data and analytics company has revealed that Kirkland & Ellis achieved the leading position by advising on 108 deals worth $107 billion.

    Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Kirkland & Ellis outpaced its peers by a significant margin during Q1 2025 and was the clear winner by deal volume as well as value. It was the only firm with triple-digit deal volume during the review period. Moreover, it was also the only adviser with total deal value surpassing $100 billion.

    “Kirkland & Ellis registered double-digit jump in total value of deals advised by it during Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024. Resultantly, it went ahead from occupying the fourth position by value in Q1 2024 to top the chart by this metric in Q1 2025. Kirkland & Ellis advised on 21 billion-dollar deals*, which also included two mega deals valued more than $10 billion. Involvement in these big-ticket deals helped Kirkland & Ellis to register improvement in terms of value as well as the ranking by this metric.”

    An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database reveals that Davis Polk & Wardwell occupied the second position in terms of value, by advising on $77 billion worth of deals followed by Cravath Swaine & Moore with $60.3 billion, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom with $57.4 billion and Ropes & Gray with $56.3 billion.

    Meanwhile, Latham & Watkins occupied the second position in terms of volume by advising on 67 deals followed by CMS with 51 deals, White & Case with 50 deals, and Ropes & Gray with 49 deals.

    *Deals valued more than or equal to $1 billion

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Pappas Denounces VA Decision to End Program Helping Veterans Stay in Their Homes

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Chris Pappas (D-NH)

    Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, joined House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano (D-CA), Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Development Committee Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to press Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins to immediately reverse his decision to abruptly end the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase Program (VASP)—a VA program that helped veterans experiencing severe financial hardship avoid foreclosure and stay in their homes. 

    “On April 3, 2025, you abruptly announced the closure of the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase Program (VASP), leaving tens of thousands of veterans at risk for foreclosure…We write today to urge you to immediately reverse this decision, and avoid foreclosing on veterans who simply wish to keep paying their mortgage and keep their home,” wrote the lawmakers in a letter to VA Secretary Collins. “…VA is taking a misstep that will push thousands of veterans into foreclosure. This is cruel, wrong, and runs counter to the benefits earned by veterans as led by the VA Loan Guaranty office – which always seeks to use foreclosure as an absolute last resort.”

    Earlier this week, Pappas spoke out forcefully against the end of the VASP program during a House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity markup. 

    The VASP program was created as a “last-resort” option for VA to use for eligible veterans and their family members following the expiration of pandemic programs coupled with rising interest rates, which increased the risk of default for thousands of veterans. Currently, VASP is the only program of last-resort that exists for veterans facing immediate foreclosure, which has helped over 17,000 veterans since the program launched in 2024. By not accepting any new veterans into the program after May 1, 2025, VA risks putting 80,000 veterans onto the streets and out of their homes.

    The lawmakers continued, “Furthermore, with the rising costs of housing and overall inflation, VA must ask itself: Is it more cost effective to allow veterans to lose their homes or help them? VA leaders, veterans service organizations, and housing organizations have all recently shared with Congress their concerns about ending VASP too soon…While past policies have assumed that veterans have been financially irresponsible for assuming mortgages they can’t afford, today’s financial and housing market puts veterans at risk of losing their homes in a much more vulnerable situation.”

    The lawmakers concluded: “Until better policy solutions are in place that provide for stronger underwriting, ending the VASP program abruptly will only harm veterans and their families. Congress, VA, and other stakeholders must work together and offer practical, cost-effective solutions that better serve veterans. Our veterans earned their home loan guarantee benefit, and they deserve a viable option to get back on track with payments and keep their homes.”

    Read the full letter here. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Chinese medical team conducts outreach clinic in Gambia

    Source: China State Council Information Office

    The 22nd batch of the Chinese medical team in The Gambia conducted an outreach clinic and medical supplies donation event at the Farafenni General Hospital in the North Bank Division on Friday.

    The event, which began on April 7, covered multiple specialties including gynecology, pediatric surgery, orthopedic trauma, and traditional Chinese medicine.

    A total of 21 surgeries, mainly general and pediatric, were performed, and over 300 patients received treatment and consultations.

    Momodou Nyassi, director of health services at the Gambian Ministry of Health, said the long-term medical assistance from China has greatly alleviated the shortage of healthcare resources in The Gambia and improved the treatment capacity of the beneficiary hospitals.

    “The latest outreach clinic by the Chinese team was not just a medical intervention, but a concrete example of China’s commitment to improving the health and well-being of the Gambian people,” he said.

    Famara Sillah, executive administrator at the Farafenni General Hospital, said the Chinese medical team not only brought professional expertise but also donated urgently needed medications, which will benefit many more patients.

    Since their arrival in The Gambia in July last year, the 22nd Chinese medical team has carried out four free outreach clinics.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cortez Masto Unveils Plan to Reform Federal Home Loan Bank System, Increase the Supply of Homes

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Nevada Cortez Masto
    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) unveiled the Federal Home Loan Banks’ Mission Activities Act, her plan to reform the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks). This legislation would help ensure the FHLBanks are re-focused on their mission “to support housing finance and community development.”
    “When Congress created the Federal Home Loan Banks in 1932, the mission was simple: help families across the United States afford a home,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “However, in the more than ninety years since, the Federal Home Loan Banks have strayed from their mission. I’ve spent years pushing them to do more to support affordable housing in our communities, and I’m proud to present this next step to make them work for every American.”
    The 11 regional FHLBanks provide financing for more than 6,000 credit unions, banks, community development financial institutions, insurance companies and state housing finance agencies. These funds are meant to allow these organizations to invest more to meet the needs of their communities.
    The Federal Home Loan Banks’ Mission Activities Act would re-focus the FHLBanks on their mission requirements by:
    Requiring the FHLBank system to contribute 30 percent or a minimum of $200 million of its net earnings to its Affordable Home Program and other voluntary programs that meet community needs.
    Enabling small credit unions and community development financial institutions to pledge non-housing loans as collateral and join a Federal Home Loan Bank if they only provide small business, agricultural or community economic development loans.
    Tying FHLBanks Presidents’ compensation to how well the Banks are meeting their mission of supporting affordable housing and community development.
    Read the full bill text here.
    Throughout her time representing Nevada, Senator Cortez Masto has made reforming the Federal Home Loan Banks a cornerstone of her work. In 2021, Cortez Masto introduced the Federal Home Loan Banks’ Mission Implementation Act, which included elements of this proposal. In Congress, Senator Cortez Masto has also highlighted the fact that Nevada has been treated unfairly by the system, and she has sought additional investment in Nevada by the FHLBank of San Francisco resulting in the first-in-the nation targeted Affordable Housing Program for the state.
    Following a 2022 letter Senator Cortez Masto sent to FHFA Director Sandra Thompson, the FHFA announced a review of the Federal Home Loan Bank system. In her letter, the Senator called for a review of the FHLBanks and requested that that review consult stakeholders and outside experts to ensure the FHLBanks responsibly used their federal funding. She also asked that the review consider how FHLBanks can better support affordable housing, rural and tribal communities, income inequality, infrastructure investments, and climate resilience. In late 2023, the FHFA released a comprehensive report calling for mission-focused reform of the FHLBanks.
    Last year, Cortez Masto – alongside Senators Warren (D-Mass.), Wyden (D-Ore.), Smith (D-Minn.), Baldwin (D-Wis.), Sanders (I-Vt.) and Fetterman (D-Pa.) – sent letters to each of the 11 Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) urging them to contribute at least 20% of their net income to affordable housing and other critical community grant programs. Earlier this year, the Senator secured a $10 million investment from the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco into the Nevada Housing Division’s (NHD) single-family bond program.
    Senator Cortez Masto is the Ranking Member of the Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Subcommittee.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Booker, Kim Urge Trump Administration to Investigate Fatal Shooting of New Jersey Teen in the West Bank

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Andy Kim (D-NJ) sent a letter to President Trump urging his administration to seek answers and conduct a U.S.-led investigation into the fatal shooting of Amer Rabee, a 14-year-old New Jerseyan. Two other American citizens were also injured in the incident, including 14-year-old Ayoub Ijbara and 15-year-old Abdulrahman Shihada. Ayoub Ijbara was born in New Jersey and is reported to be in critical condition.

    “As New Jersey’s Senators, we are calling for a thorough and transparent accounting of the facts and circumstances around Amer Rabee’s death and the actions of Israeli security forces. We appreciate the difficult and dynamic nature of the situation, but also underscore our expectation that such an inquiry is possible and should be pursued when an American has died. As a result, we urge your administration to conduct a timely, independent and transparent investigation into Amer Rabee’s death as well as Ayoub Ijbara and Abdulrahman Shihada’s injuries,” the Senators wrote.

    The lawmakers expressed that many of their constituents in New Jersey have connections to Turmus Ayya, a town in the West Bank with a large Palestinian American community, and have been personally impacted by this devastating event and the rise in violence in the West Bank that has occurred in recent years.   

    “We urge your administration to raise this case at the highest levels during meetings with counterparts in the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority and press for full cooperation with a U.S.-led investigation. Furthermore, we urge the State Department to quickly dispatch embassy officials to visit the Rabee and Ijbara families and ensure that they have all support they need during this difficult time, including urgent medical support for Ayoub,” the Senators continued.

    “As we continue the work of keeping Americans safe, here at home and around the world, the U.S. must do all it can to seek answers and accountability when Americans are injured or killed,” the Senators concluded.

    To read the full text of the letter, click here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sullivan Recognizes Fairbanks Philanthropist Jay Ramras as “Alaskan of the Week”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Alaska Dan Sullivan

    04.11.25

    WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) recognized Fairbanks native Jay Ramras on the Senate floor yesterday. For decades, Jay has invested in his community through the preservation of historical landmarks and support for his fellow Alaskans, volunteering his time and resources to charitable causes, and fostering a thriving Jewish community in the Last Frontier. Jay was recognized as part of Sen. Sullivan’s series, “Alaskan of the Week.”

    Click here or the image above to watch Sen. Sullivan’s speech.

    Tribute to Jay Ramras

    Mr. President, it is Thursday here in the U.S. Senate, and it is time for a great tradition—I think one of the greatest traditions in the history of the U.S. Senate. It is called ‘‘The Alaskan of the Week’’ speech, which I try to give most Thursdays. It has been a while. For the pages, this is the highlight of the week. Even our friends in the media like this speech because it usually signals the end of the work week, but not right now. You saw the minority leader’s objection without any explanation on why on confirming the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, so we might be here for a lot longer.

    So I wanted to highlight what is going on in Alaska, as I usually do during my ‘‘Alaskan of the Week’’ speech and just give a snapshot of what is happening back home.

    It is still pretty cold, still have a fair amount of snow. Anchorage just got a bunch of snow that lasted a couple of days. The 53rd Iditarod just concluded in Nome with a stunning first-time win by Alaskan Jessie Holmes and his 10- dog sled team.

    The Iron Dog Race, that is a snow machine race, longest, toughest snow machine race in the world, was won by—that is done in kind of tandem— Robby Schachle and Bradley George, their second victory of the Iron Dog snow machine race.

    Things are starting to thaw, as I mentioned. It is beginning of the summer tourism season, right around the corner. The first cruise ship will dock in Southeast Alaska in less than 2 weeks, and thousands of tourists from all over the world will come to our great State.

    Anyone watching in the Gallery, we would love to have you. Come to Alaska.

    For many of these tourists, this is going to be the trip of a lifetime. For Alaskans, this is where we live every day. And our Alaskan of the Week does something that is very unusual: He is beloved by Alaskans and tourists—not an easy task—and this person is my friend Jay Ramras.

    Like many Alaskans, Jay is a jack-of-all-trades. He owns restaurants and beautiful hotels. He has had a successful political career. He is a prolific philanthropist. He loves history. And more importantly, he loves Alaska and especially his great hometown of Fairbanks—by the way, my wife’s hometown.

    Now, I love to talk about our Alaskan of the Week. There are so many. We have talked about hundreds over the course of many years here on the Senate floor.

    Senate floor. Jay was born in Fairbanks in 1964. His father Dan moved to Fairbanks from Brooklyn, NY, in 1948. And as Jay says: There has been a Ramras in Interior Alaska going on 80 years.

    And Jay’s entrepreneurial resume, which is legendary in Alaska, began in 1986 at the tender age of 22 years old when he started a chicken wing restaurant, expanding his business footprint to other eateries across Fairbanks and, eventually, purchasing the iconic Fairbanks landmark called Pike’s Landing.

    For anyone going to Fairbanks, you have got to stay at Pike’s Landing.

    It was this purchase that led Jay to uncovering some really incredible chapters of Alaskan history—as I said, Jay is a real history buff—and he credits this to his bachelor of arts degree in American history, but it all started with Pike’s.

    So let’s talk about Pike’s. Pike’s Landing was established after World War II when Lloyd Pike claimed land along the Chena River—the Chena River runs right through Fairbanks— under the Homestead Act.

    In 1959—by the way, the same year Alaska became the 49th State—Pike opened the original Pike’s Landing. Throughout the years, Pike’s Landing cemented itself as a landmark in the Fairbanks community.

    When Jay purchased Pike’s Landing in 2000, he found himself wondering about the history of the property and the man who established the landmark location of Pike’s. The original owner had sort of disappeared from history. So Jay asked around, collecting oral histories from Fairbanks old-timers who had seen the growth of Pike’s Landing over the decades.

    Jay found that Pike’s Landing had long faced congestion at the boat launch due to its prime location right there, as I said, on the Chena River. That was a problem Lloyd Pike solved by building a public launch to clear up some of the demand in terms of getting boats on the river.

    The original boat launch was washed away when the Chena River flooded— huge flood by the way—in 1968. But decades later, Jay found himself building another boat launch, unknowingly, right at the same spot. As he said: If I hadn’t already been born, I would have believed in reincarnation. I would have thought I had been reincarnated as Lloyd Pike because he put his boat launch right where Lloyd Pike lived. Since then, Jay has been working with Fairbanks North Star Borough Historic Preservation Commission to put Pike’s Landing on the National Register of Historic Places. I have no doubt that is going to happen. ‘‘It was so important to me that we rescue Lloyd Pike from obscurity,’’ Jay said.

    But this wasn’t the only historical figure that Jay has connected himself and the community of Fairbanks to. As Jay was in the process of building an aviation-themed extension of his hotel, he felt it needed a real airplane mounted in front to honor the lodge’s proximity to the Fairbanks International Airport. While searching, he stumbled on a refurbished Cessna 140 on Craigslist. After purchasing this plane, Jay discovered it had been owned by none other than Noel Wien.

    The Presiding Officer is a pilot. Maybe he knows who Noel Wien is. For those who don’t, Noel Wien is considered the father of Alaska aviation—the first pilot to successfully fly from Anchorage to Fairbanks in 1924. Wien went on to found Wien Airlines, a commercial airline that operated in Alaska for nearly 60 years.

    As the Presiding Officer knows, these were some intrepid pilots. That was 100 years ago he did that first flight—open-air cockpit, really cold.

    Jay’s interest in history, once again, piqued, and he dug into that period and discovered some great photographs of Noel Wien, Wien Airlines, and had a great celebration last year in July of 2024, celebrating the 100th anniversary of that historic flight in Alaska. Really, that was a historic flight for America. My wife Julie and I were there. Senator MURKOWSKI was there. Our Governor was there. By the way, the Wien family was there, including Leslie Wien Hajdukovich, my former regional director. It was a great classic Jay Ramras event. Hundreds of people came out to celebrate a huge moment in Alaska history, Alaska aviation history—I would say, American aviation history.

    In addition to preserving this incredible chapter in Fairbanks’ history, Jay has invested in Fairbanks’ future. Let me tell you about a few of his other endeavors. Each summer, Jay hosts the Yukon 800 boat race, the longest, toughest, roughest speedboat race in the world. It starts at Pike’s, up to the Chena, gets out on the mighty Yukon— huge race.

    Just as I mentioned, he just recently hosted the fourth Iditarod start at Pike’s. Normally, the Iditarod starts down in Anchorage. That is the toughest, longest, greatest race in the world, the Iditarod. It occasionally starts in Fairbanks, but it did this year at Pike’s. And as I mentioned, he regularly sponsors the Iron Dog snow machine race that, yes, is the toughest, longest, roughest snow machine race in the world.

    he world. Jay also had a successful political career, serving three terms in the Alaska House of Representatives. And he is a great philanthropist in Fairbanks—a key player in Fairbanks Food Bank and doing so many other things in terms of philanthropy.

    On top of all this, Jay says his greatest legacy, he believes, will be something he recently did—which I think is just fantastic—the creation of a new synagogue in Fairbanks, the northernmost Chabad in the United States.

    It began with a call from Rabbi Greenberg in Anchorage. He is a great friend of mine, one of the leaders of our Jewish community throughout the State. He asked Jay if he could host a young orthodox rabbi and his wife for a short visit. Of course, Jay, a very generous man, agreed. ‘‘I think it would be around a two-week summer stay.’’ Then they came again for a second visit, this time in January when it is 45 below zero in Fairbanks. It gets really cold in Fairbanks. And they still returned.

    The young couple, Rabbi Heshy Wolf and his wife Chani have now chosen to make Fairbanks their permanent home.

    Jay, generous as ever, purchased a small church with his own money. The previous congregation at the church had outgrown the place. They refurbished it, transforming it into the Fairbanks Jewish Center. The original congregation stayed on rent-free until they found a new home, a new church. Just a few weeks ago, five rabbis gathered in Fairbanks for the first time in over 120 years and hosted this new synagogue, the northernmost synagogue, I believe, in America, in Fairbanks.

    Jay, thank you. What a life of accomplishment. What a legacy, not just for Fairbanks, but for all of Alaska. For every different community—sports community, Jewish community, historical community—you have done it all. And now, Jay, you have been awarded one of the most prestigious awards anyone can achieve in their life, Alaskan of the Week.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: More human-centered retail with AI

    Source: Microsoft

    Headline: More human-centered retail with AI

    Retail has always been about people and processes coming together to deliver unique and relevant shopping experiences. Now with AI, retailers can enhance engagement, delight customers, and empower employees to solve problems like never before. Imagine the potential for significant gains from AI investments across retail operations—from increased productivity and faster employee onboarding to improved skills development and streamlined store processes. These improvements lead to happier associates and more satisfied customers.

    By using more intuitive, natural interfaces to knowledge and information, retailers can start addressing some of retail’s age-old challenges—like finding and retaining the best talent, getting them up to speed quickly, and simplifying store operations so associates can focus on delighting and assisting shoppers.

    Accelerate retail growth with Microsoft Cloud for Retail

    No matter the size of the retailer, choosing which AI technologies to prioritize and where to start can be challenging. However, there are many ways retailers are now using AI to deliver measurable value and real return on investment (ROI). Research shows that for every $1 a company invests in generative AI, the ROI is 3.7 times across industries and regions (compared to 3.5 times in 2024).1 Top leaders using generative AI are realizing significantly higher returns, with an average ROI of $10.30—nearly three times more.1

    To build a foundation for AI success, focus on your business strategy—how AI supports your business goals. Start by identifying the business outcomes you’re aiming for and how AI can help you achieve them.

    Here’s a glimpse into how you can start making gains with your AI investments today by focusing on store operations and the frontline.

    The frontline is first in line with AI

    As the face of retail, frontline workers play a crucial role in the shopper experience. According to recent research by McKinsey, there is a strong relationship between the employee and customer experience, as empowered employees are more likely to deliver superior customer service.2 Yet many frontline workers spend too much time searching for information, and this is one of the top five reported obstacles to their productivity.3

    Generative AI offers significant potential for enhancing frontline productivity and wellbeing, with evidence that most frontline workers think it could help, and they would be comfortable using AI for administrative tasks.3 Generative AI can automate routine tasks, allowing associates to engage more with customers. This shift can lead to a more stimulating work environment, which leads to higher job satisfaction and can help retailers combat ongoing challenges with employee turnover, seasonal hiring, and training.

    At a more macro level, generative AI can also allow retailers to continuously learn and feed insights back into their business processes and to grow their products, services, and competitive differentiation. Retailers can do that by identifying patterns in recurring employee questions so they can get to the root cause of operational challenges and address key gaps in training and store processes.

    Here are some other ways retailers are using generative AI today:

    • Swedish retailer Lindex created Lindex Copilot to offer tailored support to store associates and better understand store needs. Generative AI facilitates this bidirectional learning.
    • MediaMarktSaturn lets associates to have voice conversations with generative AI, accessing details for every product, service, and warranty while staying engaged with the in-store customer, maximizing conversion and increasing customer satisfaction—all while wearing an earbud.
    • Store associates at gourmet chocolatier Venchi use detailed product knowledge and customer insights to address the diverse chocolate preferences of shoppers, achieving a customer satisfaction score of 4.9 out of 5.

    While generative AI technologies are still relatively new, these examples offer a glimpse of what’s possible, and help retailers build an AI foundation for more powerful capabilities emerging with agentic AI.

    Agents are revolutionizing retail operations

    Investing in generative AI is crucial for retailers looking to reinvent customer engagement, empower store leadership and employees, and stay competitive—and now that opportunity has skyrocketed with agents.

    Agents use AI to automate and execute business processes, working alongside or on behalf of a person, team, or organization. Now retailers can leverage agents to help their teams work more efficiently and effectively by giving them faster access to information so they can better support customers and be more productive.

    Agents vary in levels of complexity and capabilities depending on the need. Agents can help frontline workers with a variety of time-saving tasks—from quickly surfacing real-time product information or details about store policies and procedures to support Q&A or troubleshooting. In addition to helping speed information retrieval, agents can help frontline workers with more advanced features like automated task creation or even advising and summarizing information—such as listing open tasks for a shift handover or flagging missed communications. Agents can also operate independently to dynamically plan, orchestrate other agents, and learn to improve over time. For example, an automated stock transfer agent might scan sales velocity across multiple stores and automatically transfer goods between locations if one store is oversupplied while another is understocked, minimizing manual intervention.

    Find in-the-moment answers fast

    One important way to get business value from agents is to help store associates find information about company policies or procedures when a customer is waiting for an answer.

    SharePoint agents can help store associates find quick answers from internal company sources in seconds. Using the power of natural language, associates simply ask what they’re looking for on their tablet or mobile device and the agent responds in natural language with a link to the policy documentation for reference.

    These agents go beyond information retrieval to also generate step-by-step instructions, synthesize product information, and support frontline managers to create and smart-assign shifts, and auto-validate task completion.

    Agents can help associates reduce customer wait time, increase information accuracy, and possibly facilitate sales.

    Simplify store processes

    Complex business processes are another ongoing operational challenge and opportunity for custom agents to help improve productivity.

    Custom-built agents can help retailers connect to external data sources and systems so store associates can find information such as product inventory availability in or near their store, shipping status, or how to initiate a return.

    Frontline workers simply ask, “Help me initiate a return,” and the agent guides them through the process by clarifying the worker’s intent and providing them with next steps, all through a chat interface.

    Custom agents are best suited to also streamline complex workflows like task management, that often involves multiple steps. Using custom agents built with Microsoft Copilot Studio, frontline workers can easily create a task and send it through a task management system that sends automatic alerts as needed, all from a single pane of glass.

    Meeting you where you are on your AI journey

    Microsoft offers AI solutions that you can customize to meet your unique needs and scale. There are several ways agents can be deployed, from no code to low code and pro code. Here are a couple options available today.

    Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is a new offering that adds pay-as-you-go agents to our existing free chat experience for Microsoft 365 commercial customers. Copilot Chat empowers retailers to get started on their AI journey today and includes querying the public web (such as a retailer’s website) for free. To enhance Copilot Chat, retailers can also build custom agents using Copilot Studio and SharePoint agents that enable access to retail systems such as enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), and product information management (PIM), and to documents on SharePoint. These paid agents are available on a metered basis, so you only pay for what you use.

    Store Operations Agent is a pre-built agent available on Copilot Studio enabling retailers to get started fast with a prebuilt solution that acts as an “associate” to your store associate. With this agent, retail employees can:

    • Access data from LOB systems: Look up product inventory, check order status, find customer information and compare products.
    • Access store policies and procedures: Quickly find answers to questions from knowledge bases such as SharePoint, websites, and across select internet portals.
    • Raise incidents for quick resolution: Connect to incident management tools by using more than 1,000 connectors in Power Platform to raise incidents and alert store teams.

    Using Store Operations Agent, employees at leading Nordic retailer Kappahl can quickly and securely surface product information, store policies and procedures, and more, increasing store associate productivity and upleveling the shopping experience for customers.

    A new era of retail fueled by AI, powered by people

    The range of potential gains with AI extends across retail operations—from people to processes to customers, helping make retail more human at every step of the way. From delighting shoppers to helping associates feel more supported and productive, AI can boost store operations efficiency, creating an environment where both shoppers and workers thrive.

    Savings achieved using AI can be reinvested to create a better employee experience, fostering a work environment where employees are enthusiastic ambassadors of the brand, bringing the life of the store to customers every day.

    Microsoft is the proven leader for AI transformation with the full technology stack and portfolio to help retail and consumer goods organizations power their business with AI. We can help you assess your agent environment, ideate on agent use cases, and establish success criteria for evaluating ROI so you can decide what agent is best for you.

    Learn more

    Learn more about how these forward-thinking companies are driving ROI with Microsoft 365 Copilot and agents—and illuminating the path ahead for every organization.

    Microsoft Cloud for Retail

    Connect your customers and your data

    1 Generative AI delivering substantial ROI to businesses integrating the technology across operations: Microsoft-sponsored IDC report – Middle East & Africa News Center.

    2How retailers can build and retain a strong frontline workforce in 2024.

    3Work Trend Index: Will AI Fix Work?

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: The ultimate guide to Microsoft Security at upcoming RSAC 2025 event

    Source: Microsoft

    Headline: The ultimate guide to Microsoft Security at upcoming RSAC 2025 event

    So you just finished watching Microsoft Secure. That means by now, you’ve heard about our new protections for AI and Microsoft Security Copilot agents. These innovations will be the focus of Microsoft Security’s sessions and activities at RSACTM 2025 Conference (RSAC 2025).  

    The can’t-miss conference is just around the corner. Microsoft Security is bringing an exciting lineup of sessions, expert panels, and exclusive networking opportunities to empower security professionals in the era of AI. Our entire presence at RSAC 2025 is designed to help you boost your AI skills so you can stay ahead of threats and manage security more effectively.  

    Whether you’re interested in protecting all your AI investments, AI-driven security, threat intelligence, or securing cloud environments, we’ve got something for you. To help you plan your time from Sunday, April 27 to Thursday, May 1, 2025, in San Francisco, here’s a quick and easy guide to all the key Microsoft Security moments at RSAC 2025.

    Microsoft Pre-Day | 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Palace Hotel 

    For the fourth year in a row, Microsoft Pre-Day kicks off the full lineup of Microsoft events and activities throughout RSAC 2025. We will host these at the Microsoft Security Hub at Palace Hotel, just a short walk from Moscone Center.  

    Hear directly from Microsoft Security leaders as they share reporting on emerging cyberthreat trends and the product innovations designed to protect against them. See the lineup below:  

    • Vasu Jakkal, Corporate Vice President (CVP), Microsoft Security Business 
    • Charlie Bell, Executive Vice President, Microsoft Security 
    • Sherrod DeGrippo, Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy 
    • Dorothy Li, Corporate Vice President (CVP), Microsoft Security Copilot 
    • Ann Johnson, Corporate Vice President (CVP) and Deputy CISO 
    • And more.  

    Register for Pre-Day today.  

    Networking Reception | 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM | Microsoft Security Hub, Palace Hotel, Second Floor 

    Stick around after Microsoft Pre-Day to attend the Networking Reception—a lively evening designed to connect with the security community, engage with Microsoft leaders, and exchange ideas in a relaxed atmosphere. It’s the perfect way to kick off an inspiring week at RSAC 2025. 

    On Monday we ease into things by focusing on what’s new all around. We’ll share lots of goodness about agents and our new innovations announced in March. 

    Security Demo Experience at the Microsoft Security Booth #5744 | All day, every day | Moscone Center North Expo Hall  

    Monday is the first day to explore the show floor. Stop by the Microsoft Security Booth #5744 in Moscone Center North Expo Hall to explore live demos, meet Microsoft Security experts, and get hands-on with the latest tools. 

    Become a defender against cyber threats in a fast-paced, interactive game. You’ll be a part of a mission, navigating realistic incident response scenarios using Microsoft Security solutions, including our new AI Agents. Engage in quick skill challenges and wrap up with expert insights. Are you ready to beat the bad actors? 

    Keynote: Security in the Age of Agentic AI | 4:40 PM | Moscone Center (West Stage) 

    Agentic workflows will dramatically reshape what is possible in security. By enabling more complex problem-solving, agent collaboration, and iterative learning, agentic AI will empower a new paradigm for security that was once the domain of science fiction. Vasu Jakkal will take an imaginative look at the future of security AI agents, and the very human-driven way they will change the game. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | All day | Moscone Center 

    Our top Microsoft Security experts were chosen by RSAC to share their insights and best practices to help you level up your own security strategy. These sessions are designed for learning, not selling. So, you’ll hear more about what’s happening in the security space and less about products. 

    • Practical Strategies for Security Architecture in a Changing World​ @ 8:30 AM – 9:20 AM 

    This session will delve into the core pillars of security architecture and share practical strategies that uphold foundational principles. Will discuss holistic system thinking and provide a practical playbook for navigating the complexities of security architecture while maintaining a focus on the fundamentals and essential considerations for a secure digital environment. 

    Speaker: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft 

     

    • RSAC Innovation Sandbox @ 9:30 AM – 12:40 PM ​ 

    Ten of cybersecurity’s boldest new innovators compete in Innovation Sandbox for the title of “Most Innovative Startup.” ISB celebrates 20 years & spotlights startups with potentially game-changing ideas. The Finalists have 3 minutes to share groundbreaking products & solutions with a panel of judges. Interact first-hand with these companies as the judges deliberate before the winner is crowned. 

    Speakers: Christopher Young, Executive Vice President, Business Development, Strategy and Ventures, Microsoft; David Chan, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley; Dorit Dor, Chief Technology Officer, Check Point Software Technologies; Niloofar Razi Howe, Operating Partner, Capitol Meridian Partners; Hugh Thompson, Executive Chairman & RSAC Conference Program Committee Chair, RSAC; Paul Kocher, Researcher, Independent Researcher; and Nasrin Rezai, SVP & CISO, Verizon 

     

    • AI Era Authentication: Securing the Future with Inclusive Identity @ 1:10 PM – 2:00 PM 

    This session explores the security and usability risks of authentication techniques for users with diverse needs. Emergence of AI agents, a new user identity acting on our behalf, also necessitates a rethink of authentication methods. Discover AI-era authentication using sensors like location and behavior and learn about the shift from active to passive authentication with prototypes in action.  

    Speakers: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft and Aditi Shah, Senior Data & Applied Scientist, Microsoft 

     

    • DPRK Remote IT Workers – Have You Hired One and Are You at Risk? @ 2:20 PM – 3:10 PM 

    The DPRK actively deploys remote IT workers to generate revenue for the regime while circumventing sanctions. DPRK IT workers pose risks to companies, including insider access, potential intellectual property theft, and exposure to other malicious cyber activity. This panel will discuss best practices for identifying and preventing the hiring of DPRK IT workers. 

    Speakers: Greg Schloemer, Senior Threat Intelligence Analyst, Microsoft; Elizabeth Pelker, Special Agent, FBI; Chris Horne, Director, Trust & Safety Intelligence & Investigations, Upwork; Adam Meyers, SVP Intelligence, CrowdStrike; and Bryan Vorndran, Assistant Director, FBI 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day Monday – Wednesday | Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Don’t miss our deep-dive sessions happening at the Microsoft Security Hub. Build your AI cybersecurity skills as Microsoft Security experts will share what they’ve learned and provide insights you can apply in your own organization. 

    • Harnessing Diversity – Strengthening the Cybersecurity Workforce in the Age of AI ​@ 10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Amanda Minnich, Principal Research Manager, Microsoft; Nicole Ford VP, Customer Security Officer, Microsoft; Kyla Guru, Founder/CEO, Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education; Tanell Ford, Assistant General Counsel, Microsoft; and Sherrod Degrippo, Directory of Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft 

     

    • Reshaping SecOps for the Cloud AI Era @ 10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Scott Woodbridge, General Manager, Product Marketing, Microsoft and Corina Feuerstein, Principal Product Manager for Copilot in Defender and Sentinel 

     

    • Practical use of CoPilot AutoFix to address Security Backlog @ 12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Alexis Wales, CISO, GitHub and Marcelo Oliveira, VP, Product Management, GitHub 

     

    • Executive Lunch: Scaling Compliance for Global Regulations @ ​12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Bret Arsenault, CVP, Chief Cybersecurity Advisor, Microsoft  

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Here’s where we talk products. These 15-20 minute informal, come-and-go sessions run all day at the Microsoft Security booth. They’re demo-heavy product showcases to help you learn how to better use the tools you’ve got now. 

    • Identity Security in the Era of AI with Security Copilot @ 5:35PM – 5:55 PM 
    • Security Copilot Agents: Autonomous, adaptive, with you in control @ 6:05PM – 6:25 PM 
    • From Risk to Resilience: The Next Evolution in Multicloud Security @ 6:35 PM– 6:55PM 

    MISA Awards| Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    It’s time to suit up in heroic attire for an epic celebration at the 6th annual Microsoft Security Excellence Awards! Just like the Avengers, assembling to save the world, we’re coming together to honor the extraordinary achievements of our MISA members who work so diligently to protect customers from external threats!  Congratulations to the incredible finalists for the sixth annual Microsoft Security Excellence Awards presented by MISA! 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Take advantage of the opportunity to connect with Microsoft Security experts and enhance your cybersecurity knowledge. From April 28 to April 30, 2025 customers and CISOs can schedule one-on-one meetings at the Palace Hotel to discuss your most pressing security product and threat intelligence questions. Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page.  

    Tuesday is the busiest day of the conference, with lots of choices in front of you, so plan ahead. 

    Keynote: AI Safety: Where Do We Go From Here? | 8:30 AM | Moscone Center (West Stage) 

    During this keynote session, Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and the UK AI Safety Institute leaders come together for this blockbuster panel to explain the evolving landscape of AI safety. Attendees will gain insights into key developments in AI safety that should matter to organizations, its intersection with existing security initiatives, and time-tested approaches to translate AI safety to practice.  

    Speakers: Ram Shankar Siva Kumar, Data Cowboy, Microsoft; Jade Leung, Data Cowboy, Microsoft; and Daniel Rohrer, VP Software Product Security, Architecture & Research, NVIDIA 

     

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | All day | Moscone Center 

    RSAC has chosen top Microsoft Security experts to share insights and best practices, letting you learn about the latest in security without the sales pitch. 

    • Incident Response Dilemmas: Sharing Intel Across Sectors in Critical Times​ @ 9:40 – 10:30 AM ​ 

    An incident may be a singular event affecting one entity. What happens when it affects our critical infrastructure and has the possibility of sector-wide impact and cascading effects? How do companies share information and meet regulatory expectations? The session will dive into the work that financial services companies, the government, and cloud service providers are taking to mature IR. 

    Speakers: Ann Johnson, CVP & Deputy CISO, Customer Security Managment Office, Microsoft; Ted Conklin, Chief AI Officer & Deputy Assistant Secretary, US Treasury; Heather Hogsett, Senior Vice President, Deputy Head of BITS, Bank Policy Institute; and Erez Liebermann, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP 

     

    • XPIA Attacks – Rethinking Defense in Depth for an AI-Powered World @1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    As adversaries rapidly develop sophisticated AI attacks, the solutions also need to evolve rapidly. This panel will explore Cross/Indirect Prompt Injection Attacks (XPIA) and the need to rethink traditional defense in depth strategies. Gain insights into XPIA trends, risk analysis, and innovative solutions to protect critical infrastructure. Join for practical strategies and expert insights.  

    Speakers: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft; Aanchal Gupta, CVP, Microsoft; John Leo, Jr, Managing Director – Threat and Vulnerability Management Leader, EY; and Stefano Zanero, Professor, Politecnico di Milano 

     

    • A Year(ish) of Countering Malicious Actors’ Use of AI: What Have We Learned? @ 2:25 –3:15 PM​ 

    Artificial Intelligence has changed the game when it comes to how cyber adversaries operate, and how defenders respond. This panel will explore lessons learned from the past year of countering malicious cyber actors’ use of AI, challenges and limitations of legal actions involving AI, and what roadblocks might appear going forward as AI, and the actors who use it, continues to evolve. 

    Speakers: Sherrod DeGrippo, Director, Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft; Morgan Adamski, Executive Director, US Cyber Command; Cynthia Kaiser, Deputy Assistant Director, FBI; and Sean Newell, Chief, National Security Cyber Section, National Security Division, Department of Justice 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day | Monday – Wednesday Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Join Microsoft Security product leaders as they share their learnings and how you can apply them in your organization.  

    • Defending Against Modern Threats: Enhancing Endpoint Security and IT Resilience @ 8:00AM – 9:30AM 

    Speakers: Archana Devi Sunder Rajan, Partner Group Product Manager, Microsoft and Peter M. Thompson, Principal PM Manager, Microsoft   

    • Secure and Govern AI to safeguard your data, reduce risks, and support compliance @ ​10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Herain Oberoi, GM, Data & AI Security, Microsoft; Rudra Mitra, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Purview; and Neta Haiby, Director of AI Security, Microsoft 

    • Microsoft Security Copilot @ 12:00PM – 1:30PM 

    Speaker:  Dorothy Li, CVP, Microsoft Security Copilot

    • Secure your data in the era of AI with Microsoft Purview @ 2:30PM – 3:30PM 

    Speakers: Talhah Mir, Principal Group Product Manager, Microsoft Purview and Maithili Dandige, Partner Group Product Manager, Microsoft Purview 

    • ​AI and Automation Panel: The Startup Innovation for Enterprise Resilience – moderated by FC @ 2:30PM – 3:30PM 

    **Attendees will have the opportunity to receive a copy of FC’s book, How I Rob Banks, and the chance to have it signed by the author at the end of the session.

    Speakers: Kevin Magee, Director Cybersecurity Startups, Microsoft for Startups; FC, Co-founder & CEO, Cygenta; Shane Coleman, Chief Data Security Evangelist; Christ “Tito” Sestito, CEO, HiddenLayer; Ravid Circus, Co-founder & CPO, Seemplicity; and Jeremy Vaughan, CEO, Start Left Security 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Stop by the Microsoft Security booth to catch a short demo of your favorite product. 

    • See Beyond Silos and Protect Better with Microsoft Security Exposure Management 11:00 AM –11:20 AM              
    • Accelerate your Zero Trust journey with the Microsoft Entra Suite 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM 
    • Automating Vulnerability Management: The Power of “Endpoint Vulnerability Remediation Agent” in Microsoft Intune 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM  
    • From Risk to Resilience: The Next Evolution in Multicloud Security 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM 
    • Accelerating post-breach deep content analysis and mitigation with Microsoft Purview @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM  
    • Microsoft Sentinel Uncovered: Advanced Capabilities to Transform the SOC @ 1:30 PM – 1:50 PM     
    • Protect AI Workloads from Code to Runtime with Microsoft Defender for Cloud @ 2:00 PM – 2:20 PM    
    • Security Copilot Agents: Autonomous, adaptive, with you in control @ 2:30 PM – 2:50 PM 
    • Unified SecOps: Defending Critical Infrastructure with Microsoft Defender @ 3:00 PM – 3:20 PM  
    • Be Fast as Lighting: Automate Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Sentinel Service Delivery @ 3:30 PM – 3:50 PM  
    • Mastering Cloud Threats: Detect, Investigate, and Respond in real-time with Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Defender XDR integration @ 4:00 PM – 4:20 PM  
    • Practical Strategies for Securing AI-Driven Data: Enhancing Cyber Resilience and Insider Risk Management @ 4:30 PM – 4:50PM  
    • Secure and govern access to GenAI apps with the Microsoft Entra Suite @5:00 PM – 5:20 PM  
    • Bolster your SOC with Microsoft’s Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR) @ 5:30 PM – 5:50PM  

    Networking and Fun | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    • Secure & Sip: DevOps Edition @ 4:30PM – 6:30PM  

    Speaker: Alexis Wales, CISO, GitHub 

    Gather with GitHub’s security leaders and experts for meaningful conversations, thoughtfully crafted cocktails, and a custom ramen bar to round out your day at RSAC. 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Day 2 of meetings with Microsoft Security experts continues. Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page.  https://MicrosoftSecurityEvents.eventbuilder.com/MicrosoftRSAC2025events?source=blog_techcomm 

    As the conference starts to wrap up, don’t miss your chance to get hands-on with Microsoft Security solutions and ask questions at the Hub and booth and in 1:1 meetings. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | Location: Moscone Center 

    • Guardians of the Cyber Galaxy: Allies Against AI-Powered Cybercrime​ @ 8:30 – 9:20 AM  

    ​AI is revolutionizing cybercrime, putting traditional defenses to the test. Expert panelists unite to detail innovative public-private strategies and real-world case studies from their experience in INTERPOL, the FBI, Microsoft, and the Privacy & Cybersecurity Group of an international law firm. Gain actionable insights to protect the global community and fortify cybersecurity defenses.  

    Speakers: Sean Farrell, Lead Counsel, AI Strategy, Digital Crimes Unit, Microsoft Corporation; Garylene Javier, Privacy & Cybersecurity Counsel, Crowell & Moring LLP; Craig Jones, Immediate Past Director Cybercrime, INTERPOL; and Andrew Sczygielski, Supervisory Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation 

     

    • Green and Sustainable AI for Cybersecurity​ @1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    The session will consider the carbon cost of AI and analytics. It will focus on the estimated energy and carbon costs of many cybersecurity use cases and approaches that can be taken to build more sustainable solutions. This will be illustrated through the use of a threat hunting and detection analytical solution and how that could be designed to be most power efficient.  

    Speakers: Lesley Kipling, Chief Security Advisor, Microsoft and Sian John, CTO, NCC Group 

     

    • Scaling AppSec With an SDLC for Citizen Development​ @ 1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    AppSec programs are difficult. Filled to the brim with vulnerabilities. Overloaded staff and inadequate budget. The common “solution” is to narrow scope and focus on crown jewels and their devs. Increasing the scope to 100x devs and 1000x apps surprisingly worked, resulting in program remediation of >50K vulnerabilities in 3 months. 18K of them in a single night. This session will show how. 

    Speakers: Ryan McDonald, Principal Program Manager, Microsoft and Michael Bargury, Co-Founder & CTO, Zenity 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day Monday – Wednesday | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Don’t miss the final few Microsoft Security focused sessions at our Hub. 

    • Threat intelligence trends and insights panel: Exclusive briefing from Microsoft Threat Intelligence @10:30AM – 11:30AM​  

    Speakers: Sherrod De Grippo, Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft; Jeremy Dallman, Senior Director of Security Research in Microsoft Threat Intelligence; and Steven Masada, Assistant General Counsel, DCU 

    • Secure access for your employees with Entra Suite @ ​10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speaker:  Irina Nechaeva, General Manager, Identity and Network Access 

    • Securing the AI Powered Enterprise Executive Panel Lunch @​12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Bret Arsenault, Chief Cybersecurity Advisor, Microsoft; Brandon Dixon, Partner Product Manager, Security AI Strategy, Microsoft; Manny Sahota, Director, Global Cloud Privacy, Microsoft; Herain Oberoi, General Manager, Data Security, Governance, Compliance, Privacy Business and Marketing, Microsoft; and Sarah Bird, Chief Product Officer of Responsible AI, Microsoft 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Don’t miss your chance to see demos and ask questions casually at the booth. 

    • Make Windows endpoints more secure and prevent downtime 11:00 AM – 11:20 AM            
    • Unlocking Opportunities: A Guide to Partnering with Microsoft 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM            
    • EY Security Copilot Empowered Solutions 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM 
    • Microsoft Security Copilot: Protect at the speed and scale of AI 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM           
    • Phishing-Resistant Authentication, Trusted Onboarding & Recovery @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM 
    • Building a multi-layered approach to data security SOC @ 1:30 PM – 1:50 PM     
    • Secure your email and collaboration tools against sophisticated cyber attacks @ 2:00 PM – 2:20 PM  
    • The latest intelligence on North Korean remote IT workers @ 2:30 PM – 2:50 PM 
    • Secure and govern M365 Copilot with Microsoft Purview @ 3:00 PM – 3:20 PM 
    • Proactively Mitigate Risks with Microsoft Security Exposure Management @ 3:30 PM – 3:50 PM 
    • Windows 365: The security of Windows, the scale of the cloud@ 4:00 PM – 4:20 PM 
    • Shift your SOC from manual incident response to automatic attack disruption @ 4:30 PM –4:50PM  
    • A Look Inside Microsoft’s Secure Future Initiative: Progress, Innovations, and Best Practices @ 5:00 PM – 5:20 PM 
    • Simplifying Data Security for the Modern Network with Microsoft Purview and Netskope One @ 5:30 PM – 5:50 PM 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    It’s your final chance to ask your questions and give your suggestions directly to Microsoft Security experts. Book your meeting here: Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC | Location: Moscone Center 

    Last but certainly not least. 

    • Shaping Cybersecurity: How Regulation Shapes Operational Cyber Defense​ @ 10:50 – 11:40AM​  

    In 2024, elections and growing cyberthreats pushed cybersecurity to the forefront of government priorities. The panel will explore governments’ efforts to strengthen cybersecurity and resilience through regulation, the impact on operational cyber defense, and discuss where greater alignment is possible. Attendees will gain an understanding of the quickly evolving global regulatory landscape.  

    Speakers: Ted Maurer, Senior Director, Global Cybersecurity Policy, Microsoft; Christiane Kirketerp de Viron, Director for Digital Society, Trust & Cybersecurity, DG Connect, European Commission; Ari Schwartz, Managing Director, Cybersecurity Services, Venable LLP; Josephine Wolff, Associate Professor of Cybersecurity Policy, Tufts University, The Fletcher School; and Florian Schütz, Director, NCSC – National Cybersecurity Centre 

     

    • Taking the Fight Upstream: Pursuing Systemic Defense Against Phishing​ 12:20 – 11:10 PM​  

    Three decades into the public internet, cybercrime is booming and phishing remains a key vector. With AI-enhanced attacks rising, common users are increasingly ill-equipped to defend themselves. What can be done upstream to protect society? This session explores systemic defense strategies across the ICT ecosystem that hold the potential for significant ecosystem-wide impact.

    Speakers: Kelly Bissell, CVP Security & Fraud, Microsoft; Tal Goldstein, Head of Strategy, World Economic Forum Centre for Cybersecurity; Steven Kelly, Chief Trust Officer, Institute for Security and Technology; and Kemba Walden, President, Paladin Global Institute, Paladin Capital Group  

     

    • Fraud, Risk, Hollywood & Government—A Strategy for AI Across Industry 12:20 – 11:10 PM 

    ​Dive into the high-stakes world of AI as the experts in this session unravel AI’s game-changing roles in Hollywood, government, and finance. Experience firsthand revolutionary strategies, ethical showdowns, and futuristic trends set to redefine industry landscapes. Get ready for a session that’s as dynamic and ambitious as a Hollywood blockbuster! 

    Speakers: Vishal Amin, GM, National Security Group, Security; Gurpreet Bhatia, Acting Deputy CIO for Cybersecurity, Acting CISO, DOD; David Mahdi, CIO, Transmit Security; and Scott Mann, Film Director & Co-Founder/Co-CEO, Flawless 

    • Generative AI Meets Identity Governance: Automating the Overlooked​ @ 1:30 – 2:20 PM​ 

    Identity governance is often the last thing to be implemented and rarely gets the attention it deserves due to its complexity. This session will explore how Generative AI agents can help overcome this by automating critical but often deprioritized tasks like role mining and identity lifecycle management, particularly addressing the challenges of managing ‘movers’ within organizations.  

    Speakers: Angelica Faber, Sr Security Architect, Microsoft and Wesley Kuzma, Architect Manager, Microsoft 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Catch the last day of theater sessions. 

    • How Enterprises will Continue to Learn from Open Source 11:00 AM – 11:20 AM  
    • Creating Bespoke Identity Governance Solutions with Microsoft Entra Suite 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM  
    • Identity-first security: Using an event-based approach for threat remediation @ 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM 
    • Securing and governing Agents built-in Microsoft Copilot Studio @ 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM 
    • Azure Platform Security in an Evolving Threat Landscape @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM 

    How to Make the Most of Microsoft Security at RSAC 2025 

    Plan Ahead: Bookmark this blog to easily find the things that interest you the most. 

    Visit the Booth: Engage with our security experts and experience live demos.

    Follow Along Online: Stay updated by following Microsoft Security on LinkedIn and X. 

    Book a Meeting: Want to connect 1:1 with a Microsoft Security expert? Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page. 

     

    See you at RSAC 2025! 

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: The ultimate guide to Microsoft Security at upcoming RSAC 2025 event

    Source: Microsoft

    Headline: The ultimate guide to Microsoft Security at upcoming RSAC 2025 event

    So you just finished watching Microsoft Secure. That means by now, you’ve heard about our new protections for AI and Microsoft Security Copilot agents. These innovations will be the focus of Microsoft Security’s sessions and activities at RSACTM 2025 Conference (RSAC 2025).  

    The can’t-miss conference is just around the corner. Microsoft Security is bringing an exciting lineup of sessions, expert panels, and exclusive networking opportunities to empower security professionals in the era of AI. Our entire presence at RSAC 2025 is designed to help you boost your AI skills so you can stay ahead of threats and manage security more effectively.  

    Whether you’re interested in protecting all your AI investments, AI-driven security, threat intelligence, or securing cloud environments, we’ve got something for you. To help you plan your time from Sunday, April 27 to Thursday, May 1, 2025, in San Francisco, here’s a quick and easy guide to all the key Microsoft Security moments at RSAC 2025.

    Microsoft Pre-Day | 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Palace Hotel 

    For the fourth year in a row, Microsoft Pre-Day kicks off the full lineup of Microsoft events and activities throughout RSAC 2025. We will host these at the Microsoft Security Hub at Palace Hotel, just a short walk from Moscone Center.  

    Hear directly from Microsoft Security leaders as they share reporting on emerging cyberthreat trends and the product innovations designed to protect against them. See the lineup below:  

    • Vasu Jakkal, Corporate Vice President (CVP), Microsoft Security Business 
    • Charlie Bell, Executive Vice President, Microsoft Security 
    • Sherrod DeGrippo, Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy 
    • Dorothy Li, Corporate Vice President (CVP), Microsoft Security Copilot 
    • Ann Johnson, Corporate Vice President (CVP) and Deputy CISO 
    • And more.  

    Register for Pre-Day today.  

    Networking Reception | 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM | Microsoft Security Hub, Palace Hotel, Second Floor 

    Stick around after Microsoft Pre-Day to attend the Networking Reception—a lively evening designed to connect with the security community, engage with Microsoft leaders, and exchange ideas in a relaxed atmosphere. It’s the perfect way to kick off an inspiring week at RSAC 2025. 

    On Monday we ease into things by focusing on what’s new all around. We’ll share lots of goodness about agents and our new innovations announced in March. 

    Security Demo Experience at the Microsoft Security Booth #5744 | All day, every day | Moscone Center North Expo Hall  

    Monday is the first day to explore the show floor. Stop by the Microsoft Security Booth #5744 in Moscone Center North Expo Hall to explore live demos, meet Microsoft Security experts, and get hands-on with the latest tools. 

    Become a defender against cyber threats in a fast-paced, interactive game. You’ll be a part of a mission, navigating realistic incident response scenarios using Microsoft Security solutions, including our new AI Agents. Engage in quick skill challenges and wrap up with expert insights. Are you ready to beat the bad actors? 

    Keynote: Security in the Age of Agentic AI | 4:40 PM | Moscone Center (West Stage) 

    Agentic workflows will dramatically reshape what is possible in security. By enabling more complex problem-solving, agent collaboration, and iterative learning, agentic AI will empower a new paradigm for security that was once the domain of science fiction. Vasu Jakkal will take an imaginative look at the future of security AI agents, and the very human-driven way they will change the game. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | All day | Moscone Center 

    Our top Microsoft Security experts were chosen by RSAC to share their insights and best practices to help you level up your own security strategy. These sessions are designed for learning, not selling. So, you’ll hear more about what’s happening in the security space and less about products. 

    • Practical Strategies for Security Architecture in a Changing World​ @ 8:30 AM – 9:20 AM 

    This session will delve into the core pillars of security architecture and share practical strategies that uphold foundational principles. Will discuss holistic system thinking and provide a practical playbook for navigating the complexities of security architecture while maintaining a focus on the fundamentals and essential considerations for a secure digital environment. 

    Speaker: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft 

     

    • RSAC Innovation Sandbox @ 9:30 AM – 12:40 PM ​ 

    Ten of cybersecurity’s boldest new innovators compete in Innovation Sandbox for the title of “Most Innovative Startup.” ISB celebrates 20 years & spotlights startups with potentially game-changing ideas. The Finalists have 3 minutes to share groundbreaking products & solutions with a panel of judges. Interact first-hand with these companies as the judges deliberate before the winner is crowned. 

    Speakers: Christopher Young, Executive Vice President, Business Development, Strategy and Ventures, Microsoft; David Chan, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley; Dorit Dor, Chief Technology Officer, Check Point Software Technologies; Niloofar Razi Howe, Operating Partner, Capitol Meridian Partners; Hugh Thompson, Executive Chairman & RSAC Conference Program Committee Chair, RSAC; Paul Kocher, Researcher, Independent Researcher; and Nasrin Rezai, SVP & CISO, Verizon 

     

    • AI Era Authentication: Securing the Future with Inclusive Identity @ 1:10 PM – 2:00 PM 

    This session explores the security and usability risks of authentication techniques for users with diverse needs. Emergence of AI agents, a new user identity acting on our behalf, also necessitates a rethink of authentication methods. Discover AI-era authentication using sensors like location and behavior and learn about the shift from active to passive authentication with prototypes in action.  

    Speakers: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft and Aditi Shah, Senior Data & Applied Scientist, Microsoft 

     

    • DPRK Remote IT Workers – Have You Hired One and Are You at Risk? @ 2:20 PM – 3:10 PM 

    The DPRK actively deploys remote IT workers to generate revenue for the regime while circumventing sanctions. DPRK IT workers pose risks to companies, including insider access, potential intellectual property theft, and exposure to other malicious cyber activity. This panel will discuss best practices for identifying and preventing the hiring of DPRK IT workers. 

    Speakers: Greg Schloemer, Senior Threat Intelligence Analyst, Microsoft; Elizabeth Pelker, Special Agent, FBI; Chris Horne, Director, Trust & Safety Intelligence & Investigations, Upwork; Adam Meyers, SVP Intelligence, CrowdStrike; and Bryan Vorndran, Assistant Director, FBI 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day Monday – Wednesday | Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Don’t miss our deep-dive sessions happening at the Microsoft Security Hub. Build your AI cybersecurity skills as Microsoft Security experts will share what they’ve learned and provide insights you can apply in your own organization. 

    • Harnessing Diversity – Strengthening the Cybersecurity Workforce in the Age of AI ​@ 10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Amanda Minnich, Principal Research Manager, Microsoft; Nicole Ford VP, Customer Security Officer, Microsoft; Kyla Guru, Founder/CEO, Bits N’ Bytes Cybersecurity Education; Tanell Ford, Assistant General Counsel, Microsoft; and Sherrod Degrippo, Directory of Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft 

     

    • Reshaping SecOps for the Cloud AI Era @ 10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Scott Woodbridge, General Manager, Product Marketing, Microsoft and Corina Feuerstein, Principal Product Manager for Copilot in Defender and Sentinel 

     

    • Practical use of CoPilot AutoFix to address Security Backlog @ 12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Alexis Wales, CISO, GitHub and Marcelo Oliveira, VP, Product Management, GitHub 

     

    • Executive Lunch: Scaling Compliance for Global Regulations @ ​12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Bret Arsenault, CVP, Chief Cybersecurity Advisor, Microsoft  

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Here’s where we talk products. These 15-20 minute informal, come-and-go sessions run all day at the Microsoft Security booth. They’re demo-heavy product showcases to help you learn how to better use the tools you’ve got now. 

    • Identity Security in the Era of AI with Security Copilot @ 5:35PM – 5:55 PM 
    • Security Copilot Agents: Autonomous, adaptive, with you in control @ 6:05PM – 6:25 PM 
    • From Risk to Resilience: The Next Evolution in Multicloud Security @ 6:35 PM– 6:55PM 

    MISA Awards| Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    It’s time to suit up in heroic attire for an epic celebration at the 6th annual Microsoft Security Excellence Awards! Just like the Avengers, assembling to save the world, we’re coming together to honor the extraordinary achievements of our MISA members who work so diligently to protect customers from external threats!  Congratulations to the incredible finalists for the sixth annual Microsoft Security Excellence Awards presented by MISA! 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Take advantage of the opportunity to connect with Microsoft Security experts and enhance your cybersecurity knowledge. From April 28 to April 30, 2025 customers and CISOs can schedule one-on-one meetings at the Palace Hotel to discuss your most pressing security product and threat intelligence questions. Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page.  

    Tuesday is the busiest day of the conference, with lots of choices in front of you, so plan ahead. 

    Keynote: AI Safety: Where Do We Go From Here? | 8:30 AM | Moscone Center (West Stage) 

    During this keynote session, Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and the UK AI Safety Institute leaders come together for this blockbuster panel to explain the evolving landscape of AI safety. Attendees will gain insights into key developments in AI safety that should matter to organizations, its intersection with existing security initiatives, and time-tested approaches to translate AI safety to practice.  

    Speakers: Ram Shankar Siva Kumar, Data Cowboy, Microsoft; Jade Leung, Data Cowboy, Microsoft; and Daniel Rohrer, VP Software Product Security, Architecture & Research, NVIDIA 

     

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | All day | Moscone Center 

    RSAC has chosen top Microsoft Security experts to share insights and best practices, letting you learn about the latest in security without the sales pitch. 

    • Incident Response Dilemmas: Sharing Intel Across Sectors in Critical Times​ @ 9:40 – 10:30 AM ​ 

    An incident may be a singular event affecting one entity. What happens when it affects our critical infrastructure and has the possibility of sector-wide impact and cascading effects? How do companies share information and meet regulatory expectations? The session will dive into the work that financial services companies, the government, and cloud service providers are taking to mature IR. 

    Speakers: Ann Johnson, CVP & Deputy CISO, Customer Security Managment Office, Microsoft; Ted Conklin, Chief AI Officer & Deputy Assistant Secretary, US Treasury; Heather Hogsett, Senior Vice President, Deputy Head of BITS, Bank Policy Institute; and Erez Liebermann, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP 

     

    • XPIA Attacks – Rethinking Defense in Depth for an AI-Powered World @1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    As adversaries rapidly develop sophisticated AI attacks, the solutions also need to evolve rapidly. This panel will explore Cross/Indirect Prompt Injection Attacks (XPIA) and the need to rethink traditional defense in depth strategies. Gain insights into XPIA trends, risk analysis, and innovative solutions to protect critical infrastructure. Join for practical strategies and expert insights.  

    Speakers: Abhilasha Bhargav-Spantzel, Partner Security Architect, Microsoft; Aanchal Gupta, CVP, Microsoft; John Leo, Jr, Managing Director – Threat and Vulnerability Management Leader, EY; and Stefano Zanero, Professor, Politecnico di Milano 

     

    • A Year(ish) of Countering Malicious Actors’ Use of AI: What Have We Learned? @ 2:25 –3:15 PM​ 

    Artificial Intelligence has changed the game when it comes to how cyber adversaries operate, and how defenders respond. This panel will explore lessons learned from the past year of countering malicious cyber actors’ use of AI, challenges and limitations of legal actions involving AI, and what roadblocks might appear going forward as AI, and the actors who use it, continues to evolve. 

    Speakers: Sherrod DeGrippo, Director, Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft; Morgan Adamski, Executive Director, US Cyber Command; Cynthia Kaiser, Deputy Assistant Director, FBI; and Sean Newell, Chief, National Security Cyber Section, National Security Division, Department of Justice 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day | Monday – Wednesday Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Join Microsoft Security product leaders as they share their learnings and how you can apply them in your organization.  

    • Defending Against Modern Threats: Enhancing Endpoint Security and IT Resilience @ 8:00AM – 9:30AM 

    Speakers: Archana Devi Sunder Rajan, Partner Group Product Manager, Microsoft and Peter M. Thompson, Principal PM Manager, Microsoft   

    • Secure and Govern AI to safeguard your data, reduce risks, and support compliance @ ​10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speakers: Herain Oberoi, GM, Data & AI Security, Microsoft; Rudra Mitra, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Purview; and Neta Haiby, Director of AI Security, Microsoft 

    • Microsoft Security Copilot @ 12:00PM – 1:30PM 

    Speaker:  Dorothy Li, CVP, Microsoft Security Copilot

    • Secure your data in the era of AI with Microsoft Purview @ 2:30PM – 3:30PM 

    Speakers: Talhah Mir, Principal Group Product Manager, Microsoft Purview and Maithili Dandige, Partner Group Product Manager, Microsoft Purview 

    • ​AI and Automation Panel: The Startup Innovation for Enterprise Resilience – moderated by FC @ 2:30PM – 3:30PM 

    **Attendees will have the opportunity to receive a copy of FC’s book, How I Rob Banks, and the chance to have it signed by the author at the end of the session.

    Speakers: Kevin Magee, Director Cybersecurity Startups, Microsoft for Startups; FC, Co-founder & CEO, Cygenta; Shane Coleman, Chief Data Security Evangelist; Christ “Tito” Sestito, CEO, HiddenLayer; Ravid Circus, Co-founder & CPO, Seemplicity; and Jeremy Vaughan, CEO, Start Left Security 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Stop by the Microsoft Security booth to catch a short demo of your favorite product. 

    • See Beyond Silos and Protect Better with Microsoft Security Exposure Management 11:00 AM –11:20 AM              
    • Accelerate your Zero Trust journey with the Microsoft Entra Suite 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM 
    • Automating Vulnerability Management: The Power of “Endpoint Vulnerability Remediation Agent” in Microsoft Intune 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM  
    • From Risk to Resilience: The Next Evolution in Multicloud Security 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM 
    • Accelerating post-breach deep content analysis and mitigation with Microsoft Purview @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM  
    • Microsoft Sentinel Uncovered: Advanced Capabilities to Transform the SOC @ 1:30 PM – 1:50 PM     
    • Protect AI Workloads from Code to Runtime with Microsoft Defender for Cloud @ 2:00 PM – 2:20 PM    
    • Security Copilot Agents: Autonomous, adaptive, with you in control @ 2:30 PM – 2:50 PM 
    • Unified SecOps: Defending Critical Infrastructure with Microsoft Defender @ 3:00 PM – 3:20 PM  
    • Be Fast as Lighting: Automate Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Sentinel Service Delivery @ 3:30 PM – 3:50 PM  
    • Mastering Cloud Threats: Detect, Investigate, and Respond in real-time with Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Defender XDR integration @ 4:00 PM – 4:20 PM  
    • Practical Strategies for Securing AI-Driven Data: Enhancing Cyber Resilience and Insider Risk Management @ 4:30 PM – 4:50PM  
    • Secure and govern access to GenAI apps with the Microsoft Entra Suite @5:00 PM – 5:20 PM  
    • Bolster your SOC with Microsoft’s Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR) @ 5:30 PM – 5:50PM  

    Networking and Fun | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    • Secure & Sip: DevOps Edition @ 4:30PM – 6:30PM  

    Speaker: Alexis Wales, CISO, GitHub 

    Gather with GitHub’s security leaders and experts for meaningful conversations, thoughtfully crafted cocktails, and a custom ramen bar to round out your day at RSAC. 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Day 2 of meetings with Microsoft Security experts continues. Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page.  https://MicrosoftSecurityEvents.eventbuilder.com/MicrosoftRSAC2025events?source=blog_techcomm 

    As the conference starts to wrap up, don’t miss your chance to get hands-on with Microsoft Security solutions and ask questions at the Hub and booth and in 1:1 meetings. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC 2025 | Location: Moscone Center 

    • Guardians of the Cyber Galaxy: Allies Against AI-Powered Cybercrime​ @ 8:30 – 9:20 AM  

    ​AI is revolutionizing cybercrime, putting traditional defenses to the test. Expert panelists unite to detail innovative public-private strategies and real-world case studies from their experience in INTERPOL, the FBI, Microsoft, and the Privacy & Cybersecurity Group of an international law firm. Gain actionable insights to protect the global community and fortify cybersecurity defenses.  

    Speakers: Sean Farrell, Lead Counsel, AI Strategy, Digital Crimes Unit, Microsoft Corporation; Garylene Javier, Privacy & Cybersecurity Counsel, Crowell & Moring LLP; Craig Jones, Immediate Past Director Cybercrime, INTERPOL; and Andrew Sczygielski, Supervisory Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation 

     

    • Green and Sustainable AI for Cybersecurity​ @1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    The session will consider the carbon cost of AI and analytics. It will focus on the estimated energy and carbon costs of many cybersecurity use cases and approaches that can be taken to build more sustainable solutions. This will be illustrated through the use of a threat hunting and detection analytical solution and how that could be designed to be most power efficient.  

    Speakers: Lesley Kipling, Chief Security Advisor, Microsoft and Sian John, CTO, NCC Group 

     

    • Scaling AppSec With an SDLC for Citizen Development​ @ 1:15 – 2:05 PM​ 

    AppSec programs are difficult. Filled to the brim with vulnerabilities. Overloaded staff and inadequate budget. The common “solution” is to narrow scope and focus on crown jewels and their devs. Increasing the scope to 100x devs and 1000x apps surprisingly worked, resulting in program remediation of >50K vulnerabilities in 3 months. 18K of them in a single night. This session will show how. 

    Speakers: Ryan McDonald, Principal Program Manager, Microsoft and Michael Bargury, Co-Founder & CTO, Zenity 

     

    Microsoft Expert Sessions | All day Monday – Wednesday | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    Don’t miss the final few Microsoft Security focused sessions at our Hub. 

    • Threat intelligence trends and insights panel: Exclusive briefing from Microsoft Threat Intelligence @10:30AM – 11:30AM​  

    Speakers: Sherrod De Grippo, Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy, Microsoft; Jeremy Dallman, Senior Director of Security Research in Microsoft Threat Intelligence; and Steven Masada, Assistant General Counsel, DCU 

    • Secure access for your employees with Entra Suite @ ​10:30AM – 11:30AM​ 

    Speaker:  Irina Nechaeva, General Manager, Identity and Network Access 

    • Securing the AI Powered Enterprise Executive Panel Lunch @​12:00PM – 1:30PM​ 

    Speakers: Bret Arsenault, Chief Cybersecurity Advisor, Microsoft; Brandon Dixon, Partner Product Manager, Security AI Strategy, Microsoft; Manny Sahota, Director, Global Cloud Privacy, Microsoft; Herain Oberoi, General Manager, Data Security, Governance, Compliance, Privacy Business and Marketing, Microsoft; and Sarah Bird, Chief Product Officer of Responsible AI, Microsoft 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Don’t miss your chance to see demos and ask questions casually at the booth. 

    • Make Windows endpoints more secure and prevent downtime 11:00 AM – 11:20 AM            
    • Unlocking Opportunities: A Guide to Partnering with Microsoft 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM            
    • EY Security Copilot Empowered Solutions 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM 
    • Microsoft Security Copilot: Protect at the speed and scale of AI 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM           
    • Phishing-Resistant Authentication, Trusted Onboarding & Recovery @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM 
    • Building a multi-layered approach to data security SOC @ 1:30 PM – 1:50 PM     
    • Secure your email and collaboration tools against sophisticated cyber attacks @ 2:00 PM – 2:20 PM  
    • The latest intelligence on North Korean remote IT workers @ 2:30 PM – 2:50 PM 
    • Secure and govern M365 Copilot with Microsoft Purview @ 3:00 PM – 3:20 PM 
    • Proactively Mitigate Risks with Microsoft Security Exposure Management @ 3:30 PM – 3:50 PM 
    • Windows 365: The security of Windows, the scale of the cloud@ 4:00 PM – 4:20 PM 
    • Shift your SOC from manual incident response to automatic attack disruption @ 4:30 PM –4:50PM  
    • A Look Inside Microsoft’s Secure Future Initiative: Progress, Innovations, and Best Practices @ 5:00 PM – 5:20 PM 
    • Simplifying Data Security for the Modern Network with Microsoft Purview and Netskope One @ 5:30 PM – 5:50 PM 

    Customer Meetings | Location: Microsoft Security Hub at the Palace Hotel (Second Floor) 

    It’s your final chance to ask your questions and give your suggestions directly to Microsoft Security experts. Book your meeting here: Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page. 

    Microsoft Sessions at RSAC | Location: Moscone Center 

    Last but certainly not least. 

    • Shaping Cybersecurity: How Regulation Shapes Operational Cyber Defense​ @ 10:50 – 11:40AM​  

    In 2024, elections and growing cyberthreats pushed cybersecurity to the forefront of government priorities. The panel will explore governments’ efforts to strengthen cybersecurity and resilience through regulation, the impact on operational cyber defense, and discuss where greater alignment is possible. Attendees will gain an understanding of the quickly evolving global regulatory landscape.  

    Speakers: Ted Maurer, Senior Director, Global Cybersecurity Policy, Microsoft; Christiane Kirketerp de Viron, Director for Digital Society, Trust & Cybersecurity, DG Connect, European Commission; Ari Schwartz, Managing Director, Cybersecurity Services, Venable LLP; Josephine Wolff, Associate Professor of Cybersecurity Policy, Tufts University, The Fletcher School; and Florian Schütz, Director, NCSC – National Cybersecurity Centre 

     

    • Taking the Fight Upstream: Pursuing Systemic Defense Against Phishing​ 12:20 – 11:10 PM​  

    Three decades into the public internet, cybercrime is booming and phishing remains a key vector. With AI-enhanced attacks rising, common users are increasingly ill-equipped to defend themselves. What can be done upstream to protect society? This session explores systemic defense strategies across the ICT ecosystem that hold the potential for significant ecosystem-wide impact.

    Speakers: Kelly Bissell, CVP Security & Fraud, Microsoft; Tal Goldstein, Head of Strategy, World Economic Forum Centre for Cybersecurity; Steven Kelly, Chief Trust Officer, Institute for Security and Technology; and Kemba Walden, President, Paladin Global Institute, Paladin Capital Group  

     

    • Fraud, Risk, Hollywood & Government—A Strategy for AI Across Industry 12:20 – 11:10 PM 

    ​Dive into the high-stakes world of AI as the experts in this session unravel AI’s game-changing roles in Hollywood, government, and finance. Experience firsthand revolutionary strategies, ethical showdowns, and futuristic trends set to redefine industry landscapes. Get ready for a session that’s as dynamic and ambitious as a Hollywood blockbuster! 

    Speakers: Vishal Amin, GM, National Security Group, Security; Gurpreet Bhatia, Acting Deputy CIO for Cybersecurity, Acting CISO, DOD; David Mahdi, CIO, Transmit Security; and Scott Mann, Film Director & Co-Founder/Co-CEO, Flawless 

    • Generative AI Meets Identity Governance: Automating the Overlooked​ @ 1:30 – 2:20 PM​ 

    Identity governance is often the last thing to be implemented and rarely gets the attention it deserves due to its complexity. This session will explore how Generative AI agents can help overcome this by automating critical but often deprioritized tasks like role mining and identity lifecycle management, particularly addressing the challenges of managing ‘movers’ within organizations.  

    Speakers: Angelica Faber, Sr Security Architect, Microsoft and Wesley Kuzma, Architect Manager, Microsoft 

     

    Theatre Sessions | Location: Microsoft Security Booth #5744 

    Catch the last day of theater sessions. 

    • How Enterprises will Continue to Learn from Open Source 11:00 AM – 11:20 AM  
    • Creating Bespoke Identity Governance Solutions with Microsoft Entra Suite 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM  
    • Identity-first security: Using an event-based approach for threat remediation @ 12:00 PM – 12:20 PM 
    • Securing and governing Agents built-in Microsoft Copilot Studio @ 12:30 PM – 12:50 PM 
    • Azure Platform Security in an Evolving Threat Landscape @ 1:00 PM – 1:20 PM 

    How to Make the Most of Microsoft Security at RSAC 2025 

    Plan Ahead: Bookmark this blog to easily find the things that interest you the most. 

    Visit the Booth: Engage with our security experts and experience live demos.

    Follow Along Online: Stay updated by following Microsoft Security on LinkedIn and X. 

    Book a Meeting: Want to connect 1:1 with a Microsoft Security expert? Secure your spot by visiting the Microsoft Security Experiences at RSAC 2025 Home Page. 

     

    See you at RSAC 2025! 

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cramer, Scott Introduce Bill to Expand Access to Credit

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)

    ***Click here for audio***

    BISMARCK, N.D.  – Credit scores compiled from loan and payment data are a common indicator of overall consumer financial health. Credit data is typically sourced from car, home, and student loans as well as credit cards and other lines of credit. While most Americans have a variety of data streams, about 26 million Americans are “credit invisible” and lack credit records or repayment history. These scores are essential to securing further lines of credit and impact a consumer’s ability to access financial products like car loans or mortgages.

    U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (Banking) Committee, joined Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) in introducing the Credit Access and Inclusion Act to include additional payments to be factored into credit history. This bill allows credit bureaus to collect payments data for services not traditionally factored into credit reporting, such as rent, internet, phone, electricity, and utility payments. Factoring these payments into credit reporting would expand credit histories and generate credit scores for consumers who were previously “unscoreable.” If enacted, people who pay their bills on time in cash will generate a credit score reflective of their fiscal responsibility.  

    “Millions of Americans pay their utilities, their rent, and their phone bill and other things on time every month, but the narrow scope of credit reporting today doesn’t include these payments, so it doesn’t get calculated into their credit score,” said Cramer. “Our bill is really a simple fix to expand the credit reporting that will then allow these responsible Americans to build credit.”

    “It’s simple, if you pay your bills on time, your credit score should reflect that. This commonsense bill will reward hardworking Americans who manage their finances responsibly, expanding access to credit to help them purchase a home, finance their education, or pursue their dreams,” said Chairman Scott.

    Senate Banking Committee cosponsors include U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-SD), Katie Britt (R-AL), and Bernie Moreno (R-OH).

    Click here for bill text.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Justice Department Surpasses $12 Billion in Compensation to Crime Victims Since 2000

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    To commemorate the 2025 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, the Department of Justice reaffirms its steadfast commitment to compensate crime victims with federally forfeited assets. The Justice Department’s Asset Forfeiture Program has surpassed $12 billion in compensation to crime victims.

    In fiscal year 2024 and the beginning of fiscal year 2025 alone, more than $735.3 million has been returned to victims of human trafficking; romance, investment, and healthcare fraud; business email compromise and government imposter schemes; drug diversion; and cryptocurrency-related thefts and frauds.

    “This extraordinary milestone demonstrates the effectiveness of the Asset Forfeiture Program in taking the profit out of crime and compensating victims,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “While the Criminal Division is deeply proud of these efforts, we recognize that crime victims often lose much more than money. We hope that victims, from exploited children to older Americans targeted by sophisticated criminal schemes, can move forward in their recovery through this compensation. This milestone was made possible by the Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, which manages the Asset Forfeiture Program, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, and the many federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies that have dedicated their time and resources to these investigations.”  

    Recent cases in which victims were compensated for their losses with forfeited assets in 2024 or 2025 include:

    $4.3 Billion to Victims of Bernie Madoff

    United States v. Bernard L. Madoff (Southern District of New York)

    In December 2024, the Justice Department announced that the Madoff Victim Fund (MVF) would make its 10th and final distribution of over $131.4 million to victims of the Bernard L. Madoff fraud scheme. These funds were forfeited by the U.S. government in connection with the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS) fraud scheme. Through its 10 distributions, MVF paid over $4.3 billion from forfeited funds to 40,930 victims in 127 countries for losses they suffered from the collapse of BLMIS, bringing recovery for victims to nearly 94% of their fraud loss. According to court documents and information presented in related proceedings, for decades, Madoff used his position as chairman of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, the investment advisory business he founded in 1960, to steal billions from his clients. On March 12, 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 federal felonies, admitting that he had turned his wealth management business into the world’s largest Ponzi scheme, benefitting himself, his family, and select members of his inner circle.

    $420 Million to Victims of Fraud Schemes Facilitated by Western Union

    United States v. The Western Union Company (Middle District of Pennsylvania)

    In 2017, Western Union entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire fraud.  Western Union agreed to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of the international consumer fraud scheme through the remission process. Western Union simultaneously resolved a parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission. To date, the Criminal Division has disbursed more than $420 million to approximately 175,000 victims.

    $8 Million Returned to Victims of Email Business Compromise Scams

    United States v. Olalekan Jacob Ponle (Northern District of Illinois)

    Olalekan Jacob Ponle worked with co-schemers to engage in numerous business email compromise schemes. The co-schemers used phishing links to gain unauthorized access to email accounts and then created false instructions directing employees of the victim companies to wire money to bank accounts opened by money mules at Ponle’s direction. After unwitting employees wired money, in some cases millions of dollars, to the bank accounts, Ponle instructed the money mules to convert the proceeds to Bitcoin and send them to him. As a result of Ponle’s scheme, victim companies suffered more than $8.03 million in actual losses. The government seized the Bitcoin, obtained a final order of forfeiture, liquidated the cryptocurrency, and used the proceeds to compensate the victims of Ponle’s fraud.

    $5.6 Million to the Small Business Administration

    United States v. Aydin Kalantarov, et al. (Northern District of Ohio)

    According to court documents, from May 2020 through October 2020, Aydin Kalantarov, along with his two brothers, Zaur Kalantarli and Ali Kalantarli, conspired to defraud the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) of nearly $7 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). As part of the scheme the brothers created 70 fictious Ohio corporations with agriculture sounding names. Once the fictitious corporations were created, the brothers submitted fraudulent EIDL loan applications to the SBA claiming that their business was adversely affected by the pandemic. The SBA funded 47 of the applications for a total of approximately $7 million. $5.6 million in forfeited funds was transferred to the clerk of the court for payment to the SBA.

    $2.28 Million Returned to Victims of Two Business Email Compromise Schemes

    United States v. Contents of TD Bank Account, Account Ending 7684, Held in the Name of O’Shane K. Malcolm, et al. (District of Connecticut)

    United States v. Contents of Truist Bank Account Ending 5792, Held in The Name of Quest Freight LLC (District of Connecticut)

    In the first scam, criminal actors compromised an email account associated with a member of the management team of a city’s Board of Education.  In June 2023, these actors created a fake email account that mimicked the email of a bus company that held a contract with the Board of Education for bussing. Using the fake bus company email address, the criminal actors then were able to change the bus company’s payment information from the real bus company to an account held by the criminal actors, and the city sent approximately $5.9 million dollars to the account.  The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,187,691 of the stolen money, which was returned to the city through remission.

    The second forfeiture action involved a healthcare company that was a victim of a business email compromise (BEC) attack.  In April 2023, the company’s yearly medical malpractice insurance payment was set to be paid.  Shortly before the due date, the company received a fraudulent email, purportedly from its malpractice insurance company, with new wire instructions.  The company sent approximately $1,652,254 via a wire transfer using the newly provided instructions. The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,100,694 remaining in the account, which was returned to the healthcare company through remissions.

    $328,500 to an Elderly Victim of a Computer Support Scam

    United States v. Discovery Bank Account Ending in 2237 (District of Connecticut)

    According to court documents, in February 2024, an elderly woman who was tricked by a computer support scheme that mimicked Microsoft customer support transferred approximately $550,000 to the scammers in two wire transfers. Within two days of the transfers, the victim and a family member reported the incident to a local police department, who then partnered with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to investigate the crime. Fortunately, one of the wire transfers, in the amount of $221,000, was reversed by the bank and returned to the victim. HSI traced the remaining money, totaling approximately $328,573, and seized it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then filed a civil asset forfeiture action to forfeit the money to the government, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and HSI then worked with the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section to return the money to the victim.

    $6.4 Million to the Internal Revenue Service

    United States v. Michael Little (Middle District of Florida)

    From 2019 to 2021, Michael Little filed a series of false tax returns claiming massive, bogus fuel tax credits. He filed the false returns in his own name and in the names of co-conspirators and identity theft victims. As a result of this scheme, Little and his co-conspirators obtained at least $12.3 million in fraudulent tax refunds and attempted to obtain at least $27 million more. Little and his co-conspirators also conspired to launder their ill-gotten gains and used significant portions of the fraudulent tax refunds to purchase real estate and other assets.  Over $6.4 million in forfeited funds were transferred to the clerk of court for payment to the IRS.

    $52,000 to a Survivor of Human Trafficking

    United States v. Thuy Tien Luong (Western District of North Carolina)

    Thuy Tien Luong was convicted of forced labor and ordered to serve 15 years in prison for compelling the labor of one of her nail technicians at a salon she owned and operated. From October 2016 to June 2018, Luong forced the survivor’s labor by, among other things, physically assaulting the survivor, threatening to ruin the survivor’s reputation with her family, and falsely claiming that the survivor owed Luong a fictitious debt. In addition to resulting in the return of funds seized from Luong to the Clerk of Court to pay the survivor, the case also resulted in the return to the survivor of a seized bracelet that Luong had held as “payment” towards the survivor’s fictitious debt.

    $6.3 Million Returned to Estate Victims of an Embezzlement Scheme

    United States v. Richard J. Sherwood, et al. (Northern District of New York)

    Starting in 2006, Richard J. Sherwood and Thomas K. Lagan provided estate planning and related legal services to Capital Region philanthropists Warren and Pauline Bruggeman, and to Pauline’s sister, Anne Urban, all of Niskayuna, New York.  They were advising the Bruggemans when, in 2006, the Bruggemans signed wills directing that all their assets go to churches, civic organizations, a local hospital, and a local university scholarship fund, aside from bequests to Urban and Julia Rentz, Pauline’s sisters.

    Warren Bruggeman died in April 2009, and Pauline died in August 2011. In each pleading guilty, Sherwood and Lagan admitted that they conspired to steal, and did steal, millions of dollars from Pauline Bruggeman’s estate as well as from the estate of Urban, who died in 2013. The co-conspirators admitted that they stole $11,831,563 and Sherwood also admitted that he transferred to himself the Bruggeman family camp located on Galway Lake, in Saratoga County.

    For additional information about the Department of Justice’s victim compensation program, please visit: Criminal Division | Victims.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: First Financial Northwest, Inc. Announces Closing of Acquisition of First Financial Northwest Bank by Global Federal Credit Union

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    RENTON, Wash., April 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — First Financial Northwest, Inc. (NASDAQ GS: FFNW) (the “Company”), the former holding company of First Financial Northwest Bank (the “Bank”), today announced the closing, effective April 11, 2025, of the previously announced transaction whereby Global Federal Credit Union (“Global”), headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska, acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed substantially all of the liabilities (including deposit liabilities) of First Financial Northwest Bank. In connection with the closing of the transaction, the Company received $228.7 million in cash pursuant to the Purchase and Assumption Agreement by and among the Company, Global and the Bank, dated January 10, 2024.

    The Company also notified the Nasdaq Stock Market of its intent to delist shares of Company common stock effective on April 21, 2025. As of the close of business on that date, the Company will also close its stock transfer books. As a result, the Company’s common stock will no longer trade on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and Company shareholders will be unable to transfer Company common stock after April 21, 2025.

    The Company plans to distribute all of its remaining assets, including the purchase price received from Global, remaining after taxes and expenses, to Company shareholders in two or more distributions in the coming months. The Company expects to make an initial distribution on or about April 30, 2025, consisting of substantially all of the assets of the Company, less amounts retained to pay taxes and to pay known and anticipated expenses to be incurred in the wind-down and dissolution of the Company. As a condition to the payment of each shareholder’s pro rata portion of the initial distribution, shareholders with physical certificates are required to convert their certificates to book-entry with Computershare, the Company’s stock transfer agent. Shareholders with physical certificates will receive instructions by mail to effect such conversions.

    Following these distributions, the Company expects to dissolve the Company in accordance with Washington law.

    About First Financial Northwest, Inc.
    Prior to the completion of the transaction, First Financial Northwest, Inc. was the parent company of First Financial Northwest Bank, a Washington State-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Renton, Washington. For additional information visit ffnwb.q4ir.com.

    Forward-looking statements:
    When used in this press release and in other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), in press releases or other public shareholder communications, or in oral statements made with the approval of an authorized executive officer, the words or phrases “believe,” “will,” “will likely result,” “are expected to,” “will continue,” “is anticipated,” “estimate,” “project,” “plans,” or similar expressions are intended to identify “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent management’s current expectations and forecasts regarding future events many of which are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. Forward-looking statements include statements with respect to our beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, assumptions and statements about, among other things, the delisting, deregistration, wind-down and dissolution of the Company, the remaining expenses to be incurred in such process, and the remaining cash to be distributed to shareholders. These forward-looking statements are based on current management expectations and may, therefore, involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ, possibly materially from those currently expected or projected in these forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, us, and other factors described in the Company’s latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other reports filed with or furnished to the SEC – that are available on our Investor Relations website at ffnwb.q4ir.com and on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.

    Any of the forward-looking statements that we make in this press release and in the other public statements are based upon management’s beliefs and assumptions at the time they are made and may turn out to be wrong because of the inaccurate assumptions we might make, because of the factors illustrated above or because of other factors that we cannot foresee. Therefore, these factors should be considered in evaluating the forward-looking statements, and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. We do not undertake and specifically disclaim any obligation to revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

    Investor Contacts:
    Rich Jacobson
    Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
    jacobsonr@ffnorthwest.com
    (206) 573-4973
    Karla Evans
    Assistant Vice President, Investor Relations
    evansk@ffnorthwest.com
    (206) 833-1259

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Justice Department Surpasses $12 Billion in Compensation to Crime Victims Since 2000

    Source: United States Attorneys General 1

    To commemorate the 2025 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, the Department of Justice reaffirms its steadfast commitment to compensate crime victims with federally forfeited assets. The Justice Department’s Asset Forfeiture Program has surpassed $12 billion in compensation to crime victims.

    In fiscal year 2024 and the beginning of fiscal year 2025 alone, more than $735.3 million has been returned to victims of human trafficking; romance, investment, and healthcare fraud; business email compromise and government imposter schemes; drug diversion; and cryptocurrency-related thefts and frauds.

    “This extraordinary milestone demonstrates the effectiveness of the Asset Forfeiture Program in taking the profit out of crime and compensating victims,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “While the Criminal Division is deeply proud of these efforts, we recognize that crime victims often lose much more than money. We hope that victims, from exploited children to older Americans targeted by sophisticated criminal schemes, can move forward in their recovery through this compensation. This milestone was made possible by the Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, which manages the Asset Forfeiture Program, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, and the many federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies that have dedicated their time and resources to these investigations.”  

    Recent cases in which victims were compensated for their losses with forfeited assets in 2024 or 2025 include:

    $4.3 Billion to Victims of Bernie Madoff

    United States v. Bernard L. Madoff (Southern District of New York)

    In December 2024, the Justice Department announced that the Madoff Victim Fund (MVF) would make its 10th and final distribution of over $131.4 million to victims of the Bernard L. Madoff fraud scheme. These funds were forfeited by the U.S. government in connection with the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS) fraud scheme. Through its 10 distributions, MVF paid over $4.3 billion from forfeited funds to 40,930 victims in 127 countries for losses they suffered from the collapse of BLMIS, bringing recovery for victims to nearly 94% of their fraud loss. According to court documents and information presented in related proceedings, for decades, Madoff used his position as chairman of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, the investment advisory business he founded in 1960, to steal billions from his clients. On March 12, 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 federal felonies, admitting that he had turned his wealth management business into the world’s largest Ponzi scheme, benefitting himself, his family, and select members of his inner circle.

    $420 Million to Victims of Fraud Schemes Facilitated by Western Union

    United States v. The Western Union Company (Middle District of Pennsylvania)

    In 2017, Western Union entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire fraud.  Western Union agreed to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of the international consumer fraud scheme through the remission process. Western Union simultaneously resolved a parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission. To date, the Criminal Division has disbursed more than $420 million to approximately 175,000 victims.

    $8 Million Returned to Victims of Email Business Compromise Scams

    United States v. Olalekan Jacob Ponle (Northern District of Illinois)

    Olalekan Jacob Ponle worked with co-schemers to engage in numerous business email compromise schemes. The co-schemers used phishing links to gain unauthorized access to email accounts and then created false instructions directing employees of the victim companies to wire money to bank accounts opened by money mules at Ponle’s direction. After unwitting employees wired money, in some cases millions of dollars, to the bank accounts, Ponle instructed the money mules to convert the proceeds to Bitcoin and send them to him. As a result of Ponle’s scheme, victim companies suffered more than $8.03 million in actual losses. The government seized the Bitcoin, obtained a final order of forfeiture, liquidated the cryptocurrency, and used the proceeds to compensate the victims of Ponle’s fraud.

    $5.6 Million to the Small Business Administration

    United States v. Aydin Kalantarov, et al. (Northern District of Ohio)

    According to court documents, from May 2020 through October 2020, Aydin Kalantarov, along with his two brothers, Zaur Kalantarli and Ali Kalantarli, conspired to defraud the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) of nearly $7 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). As part of the scheme the brothers created 70 fictious Ohio corporations with agriculture sounding names. Once the fictitious corporations were created, the brothers submitted fraudulent EIDL loan applications to the SBA claiming that their business was adversely affected by the pandemic. The SBA funded 47 of the applications for a total of approximately $7 million. $5.6 million in forfeited funds was transferred to the clerk of the court for payment to the SBA.

    $2.28 Million Returned to Victims of Two Business Email Compromise Schemes

    United States v. Contents of TD Bank Account, Account Ending 7684, Held in the Name of O’Shane K. Malcolm, et al. (District of Connecticut)

    United States v. Contents of Truist Bank Account Ending 5792, Held in The Name of Quest Freight LLC (District of Connecticut)

    In the first scam, criminal actors compromised an email account associated with a member of the management team of a city’s Board of Education.  In June 2023, these actors created a fake email account that mimicked the email of a bus company that held a contract with the Board of Education for bussing. Using the fake bus company email address, the criminal actors then were able to change the bus company’s payment information from the real bus company to an account held by the criminal actors, and the city sent approximately $5.9 million dollars to the account.  The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,187,691 of the stolen money, which was returned to the city through remission.

    The second forfeiture action involved a healthcare company that was a victim of a business email compromise (BEC) attack.  In April 2023, the company’s yearly medical malpractice insurance payment was set to be paid.  Shortly before the due date, the company received a fraudulent email, purportedly from its malpractice insurance company, with new wire instructions.  The company sent approximately $1,652,254 via a wire transfer using the newly provided instructions. The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,100,694 remaining in the account, which was returned to the healthcare company through remissions.

    $328,500 to an Elderly Victim of a Computer Support Scam

    United States v. Discovery Bank Account Ending in 2237 (District of Connecticut)

    According to court documents, in February 2024, an elderly woman who was tricked by a computer support scheme that mimicked Microsoft customer support transferred approximately $550,000 to the scammers in two wire transfers. Within two days of the transfers, the victim and a family member reported the incident to a local police department, who then partnered with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to investigate the crime. Fortunately, one of the wire transfers, in the amount of $221,000, was reversed by the bank and returned to the victim. HSI traced the remaining money, totaling approximately $328,573, and seized it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then filed a civil asset forfeiture action to forfeit the money to the government, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and HSI then worked with the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section to return the money to the victim.

    $6.4 Million to the Internal Revenue Service

    United States v. Michael Little (Middle District of Florida)

    From 2019 to 2021, Michael Little filed a series of false tax returns claiming massive, bogus fuel tax credits. He filed the false returns in his own name and in the names of co-conspirators and identity theft victims. As a result of this scheme, Little and his co-conspirators obtained at least $12.3 million in fraudulent tax refunds and attempted to obtain at least $27 million more. Little and his co-conspirators also conspired to launder their ill-gotten gains and used significant portions of the fraudulent tax refunds to purchase real estate and other assets.  Over $6.4 million in forfeited funds were transferred to the clerk of court for payment to the IRS.

    $52,000 to a Survivor of Human Trafficking

    United States v. Thuy Tien Luong (Western District of North Carolina)

    Thuy Tien Luong was convicted of forced labor and ordered to serve 15 years in prison for compelling the labor of one of her nail technicians at a salon she owned and operated. From October 2016 to June 2018, Luong forced the survivor’s labor by, among other things, physically assaulting the survivor, threatening to ruin the survivor’s reputation with her family, and falsely claiming that the survivor owed Luong a fictitious debt. In addition to resulting in the return of funds seized from Luong to the Clerk of Court to pay the survivor, the case also resulted in the return to the survivor of a seized bracelet that Luong had held as “payment” towards the survivor’s fictitious debt.

    $6.3 Million Returned to Estate Victims of an Embezzlement Scheme

    United States v. Richard J. Sherwood, et al. (Northern District of New York)

    Starting in 2006, Richard J. Sherwood and Thomas K. Lagan provided estate planning and related legal services to Capital Region philanthropists Warren and Pauline Bruggeman, and to Pauline’s sister, Anne Urban, all of Niskayuna, New York.  They were advising the Bruggemans when, in 2006, the Bruggemans signed wills directing that all their assets go to churches, civic organizations, a local hospital, and a local university scholarship fund, aside from bequests to Urban and Julia Rentz, Pauline’s sisters.

    Warren Bruggeman died in April 2009, and Pauline died in August 2011. In each pleading guilty, Sherwood and Lagan admitted that they conspired to steal, and did steal, millions of dollars from Pauline Bruggeman’s estate as well as from the estate of Urban, who died in 2013. The co-conspirators admitted that they stole $11,831,563 and Sherwood also admitted that he transferred to himself the Bruggeman family camp located on Galway Lake, in Saratoga County.

    For additional information about the Department of Justice’s victim compensation program, please visit: Criminal Division | Victims.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Security News: Justice Department Surpasses $12 Billion in Compensation to Crime Victims Since 2000

    Source: United States Department of Justice 2

    To commemorate the 2025 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, the Department of Justice reaffirms its steadfast commitment to compensate crime victims with federally forfeited assets. The Justice Department’s Asset Forfeiture Program has surpassed $12 billion in compensation to crime victims.

    In fiscal year 2024 and the beginning of fiscal year 2025 alone, more than $735.3 million has been returned to victims of human trafficking; romance, investment, and healthcare fraud; business email compromise and government imposter schemes; drug diversion; and cryptocurrency-related thefts and frauds.

    “This extraordinary milestone demonstrates the effectiveness of the Asset Forfeiture Program in taking the profit out of crime and compensating victims,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “While the Criminal Division is deeply proud of these efforts, we recognize that crime victims often lose much more than money. We hope that victims, from exploited children to older Americans targeted by sophisticated criminal schemes, can move forward in their recovery through this compensation. This milestone was made possible by the Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, which manages the Asset Forfeiture Program, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, and the many federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies that have dedicated their time and resources to these investigations.”  

    Recent cases in which victims were compensated for their losses with forfeited assets in 2024 or 2025 include:

    $4.3 Billion to Victims of Bernie Madoff

    United States v. Bernard L. Madoff (Southern District of New York)

    In December 2024, the Justice Department announced that the Madoff Victim Fund (MVF) would make its 10th and final distribution of over $131.4 million to victims of the Bernard L. Madoff fraud scheme. These funds were forfeited by the U.S. government in connection with the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS) fraud scheme. Through its 10 distributions, MVF paid over $4.3 billion from forfeited funds to 40,930 victims in 127 countries for losses they suffered from the collapse of BLMIS, bringing recovery for victims to nearly 94% of their fraud loss. According to court documents and information presented in related proceedings, for decades, Madoff used his position as chairman of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, the investment advisory business he founded in 1960, to steal billions from his clients. On March 12, 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 federal felonies, admitting that he had turned his wealth management business into the world’s largest Ponzi scheme, benefitting himself, his family, and select members of his inner circle.

    $420 Million to Victims of Fraud Schemes Facilitated by Western Union

    United States v. The Western Union Company (Middle District of Pennsylvania)

    In 2017, Western Union entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire fraud.  Western Union agreed to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of the international consumer fraud scheme through the remission process. Western Union simultaneously resolved a parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission. To date, the Criminal Division has disbursed more than $420 million to approximately 175,000 victims.

    $8 Million Returned to Victims of Email Business Compromise Scams

    United States v. Olalekan Jacob Ponle (Northern District of Illinois)

    Olalekan Jacob Ponle worked with co-schemers to engage in numerous business email compromise schemes. The co-schemers used phishing links to gain unauthorized access to email accounts and then created false instructions directing employees of the victim companies to wire money to bank accounts opened by money mules at Ponle’s direction. After unwitting employees wired money, in some cases millions of dollars, to the bank accounts, Ponle instructed the money mules to convert the proceeds to Bitcoin and send them to him. As a result of Ponle’s scheme, victim companies suffered more than $8.03 million in actual losses. The government seized the Bitcoin, obtained a final order of forfeiture, liquidated the cryptocurrency, and used the proceeds to compensate the victims of Ponle’s fraud.

    $5.6 Million to the Small Business Administration

    United States v. Aydin Kalantarov, et al. (Northern District of Ohio)

    According to court documents, from May 2020 through October 2020, Aydin Kalantarov, along with his two brothers, Zaur Kalantarli and Ali Kalantarli, conspired to defraud the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) of nearly $7 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). As part of the scheme the brothers created 70 fictious Ohio corporations with agriculture sounding names. Once the fictitious corporations were created, the brothers submitted fraudulent EIDL loan applications to the SBA claiming that their business was adversely affected by the pandemic. The SBA funded 47 of the applications for a total of approximately $7 million. $5.6 million in forfeited funds was transferred to the clerk of the court for payment to the SBA.

    $2.28 Million Returned to Victims of Two Business Email Compromise Schemes

    United States v. Contents of TD Bank Account, Account Ending 7684, Held in the Name of O’Shane K. Malcolm, et al. (District of Connecticut)

    United States v. Contents of Truist Bank Account Ending 5792, Held in The Name of Quest Freight LLC (District of Connecticut)

    In the first scam, criminal actors compromised an email account associated with a member of the management team of a city’s Board of Education.  In June 2023, these actors created a fake email account that mimicked the email of a bus company that held a contract with the Board of Education for bussing. Using the fake bus company email address, the criminal actors then were able to change the bus company’s payment information from the real bus company to an account held by the criminal actors, and the city sent approximately $5.9 million dollars to the account.  The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,187,691 of the stolen money, which was returned to the city through remission.

    The second forfeiture action involved a healthcare company that was a victim of a business email compromise (BEC) attack.  In April 2023, the company’s yearly medical malpractice insurance payment was set to be paid.  Shortly before the due date, the company received a fraudulent email, purportedly from its malpractice insurance company, with new wire instructions.  The company sent approximately $1,652,254 via a wire transfer using the newly provided instructions. The government successfully seized and forfeited approximately $1,100,694 remaining in the account, which was returned to the healthcare company through remissions.

    $328,500 to an Elderly Victim of a Computer Support Scam

    United States v. Discovery Bank Account Ending in 2237 (District of Connecticut)

    According to court documents, in February 2024, an elderly woman who was tricked by a computer support scheme that mimicked Microsoft customer support transferred approximately $550,000 to the scammers in two wire transfers. Within two days of the transfers, the victim and a family member reported the incident to a local police department, who then partnered with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to investigate the crime. Fortunately, one of the wire transfers, in the amount of $221,000, was reversed by the bank and returned to the victim. HSI traced the remaining money, totaling approximately $328,573, and seized it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then filed a civil asset forfeiture action to forfeit the money to the government, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and HSI then worked with the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section to return the money to the victim.

    $6.4 Million to the Internal Revenue Service

    United States v. Michael Little (Middle District of Florida)

    From 2019 to 2021, Michael Little filed a series of false tax returns claiming massive, bogus fuel tax credits. He filed the false returns in his own name and in the names of co-conspirators and identity theft victims. As a result of this scheme, Little and his co-conspirators obtained at least $12.3 million in fraudulent tax refunds and attempted to obtain at least $27 million more. Little and his co-conspirators also conspired to launder their ill-gotten gains and used significant portions of the fraudulent tax refunds to purchase real estate and other assets.  Over $6.4 million in forfeited funds were transferred to the clerk of court for payment to the IRS.

    $52,000 to a Survivor of Human Trafficking

    United States v. Thuy Tien Luong (Western District of North Carolina)

    Thuy Tien Luong was convicted of forced labor and ordered to serve 15 years in prison for compelling the labor of one of her nail technicians at a salon she owned and operated. From October 2016 to June 2018, Luong forced the survivor’s labor by, among other things, physically assaulting the survivor, threatening to ruin the survivor’s reputation with her family, and falsely claiming that the survivor owed Luong a fictitious debt. In addition to resulting in the return of funds seized from Luong to the Clerk of Court to pay the survivor, the case also resulted in the return to the survivor of a seized bracelet that Luong had held as “payment” towards the survivor’s fictitious debt.

    $6.3 Million Returned to Estate Victims of an Embezzlement Scheme

    United States v. Richard J. Sherwood, et al. (Northern District of New York)

    Starting in 2006, Richard J. Sherwood and Thomas K. Lagan provided estate planning and related legal services to Capital Region philanthropists Warren and Pauline Bruggeman, and to Pauline’s sister, Anne Urban, all of Niskayuna, New York.  They were advising the Bruggemans when, in 2006, the Bruggemans signed wills directing that all their assets go to churches, civic organizations, a local hospital, and a local university scholarship fund, aside from bequests to Urban and Julia Rentz, Pauline’s sisters.

    Warren Bruggeman died in April 2009, and Pauline died in August 2011. In each pleading guilty, Sherwood and Lagan admitted that they conspired to steal, and did steal, millions of dollars from Pauline Bruggeman’s estate as well as from the estate of Urban, who died in 2013. The co-conspirators admitted that they stole $11,831,563 and Sherwood also admitted that he transferred to himself the Bruggeman family camp located on Galway Lake, in Saratoga County.

    For additional information about the Department of Justice’s victim compensation program, please visit: Criminal Division | Victims.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Durbin, Hirono, Warren, Lead Colleagues In Urging DOJ To Reverse Decisions Greenlighting Cryptocurrency-Based Crime

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin

    April 11, 2025

    Senators: “These are grave mistakes that will support sanctions evasion, drug trafficking, scams, and child sexual exploitation.”

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee led six Senators in urging Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to reverse the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recent decisions to effectively terminate the Department’s cryptocurrency investigations and prosecutions. The memo, sent to staff earlier this week, also stated that DOJ will disband its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), which was established to investigate and prosecute criminal misuse of cryptocurrencies and digital assets. In their letter, the Senators also raise concerns about the potential connections between DOJ’s actions and the cryptocurrency ventures of President Trump and his family.

    “We write in response to your April 7, 2025 memo announcing your decision to give a free pass to cryptocurrency money launderers and to disband the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (“NCET”),” the Senators wrote. “These are grave mistakes that will support sanctions evasion, drug trafficking, scams, and child sexual exploitation.”

    Specifically, the DOJ memo announced that the Department would no longer be enforcing a number of federal laws against entities that handle digital assets, including mixing and tumbling services. Mixers are often used to launder stolen cryptocurrency and used by drug traffickers, those who trade child sexual abuse material, and even North Korea, which uses mixers to evade sanctions and fund weapons of mass destruction.

    “It makes no sense for DOJ to announce a hands-off approach to tools that are being used to support such terrible crimes,” wrote the lawmakers.

    “Drug traffickers, terrorists, fraudsters, and adversaries will exploit this vulnerability on a large scale,” the Senators continued. “Further increasing the risks posed by bad actors is your decision to disband NCET, which has coordinated a Department-wide effort to prosecute illicit activity involving cryptocurrency.”

    Since its creation in 2021, NCET has worked with U.S. Attorneys’ offices to prosecute illicit activity involving cryptocurrency, including prosecuting cases involving hundreds of millions worth of digital assets.Despite this proven record of success, Blanche’s memo stated that the disbandment of NCET will allow the DOJ to “focus on other priorities, such as immigration and procurement frauds.”

    The Senators also warned about the proliferation of cryptocurrency scams and fraud. In 2023 alone, the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimated that $5.6 billion were lost to cryptocurrency fraud—an increase of 45 percent from 2022.

    “You claim in your memo that DOJ will continue to prosecute those who use cryptocurrencies to perpetrate crimes. But allowing the entities that enable these crimes—such as cryptocurrency kiosk operators—to operate outside the federal regulatory framework without fear of prosecution will only result in more Americans being exploited,” wrote the Senators.

    “Your decisions give rise to concerns that President Trump’s interest in selling his cryptocurrency may be the reason for easing law enforcement scrutiny,” the Senators concluded. “We urge you to reconsider these decisions.”

    In addition to Senators Hirono, Warren, and Durbin, this letter was also signed by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Chris Coons (D-DE), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).

    The full text of the letter is available here and below.

    Dear Deputy Attorney General Blanche:

    We write in response to your April 7, 2025 memo announcing your decision to give a free pass to cryptocurrency money launderers and to disband the Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (“NCET”). These are grave mistakes that will support sanctions evasion, drug trafficking, scams, and child sexual exploitation.

    Your memo announces that pursuant to Executive Order 14178, DOJ will generally “no longer target . . . virtual currency exchanges [and] mixing and tumbling services . . . for the acts of their end users or unwitting violations of regulations.” As you know, a cryptocurrency mixer (or tumbler) is a service that blends the cryptocurrencies of many users together to obfuscate the origins and owners of the funds. “[M]ixers are . . . ‘go-to tools for cybercriminals’ seeking to launder stolen cryptocurrency.” Nearly a quarter of the funds sent to mixers in 2022 were tied to money laundering efforts.” Mixers are a favorite tool of North Korea—which uses them to launder the illicit proceeds of its state-sponsored cybercrime and then uses the proceeds to fund its weapons programs—and of sanctioned Russian oligarchs, who already benefit from DOJ disbanding TaskForce KleptoCapture. Mixers are also a favorite tool of drug traffickers and those who trade child sexual abuse material. It makes no sense for DOJ to announce a hands-off approach to tools that are being used to support such terrible crimes.

    Similarly nonsensical is your announcement that DOJ will no longer prosecute a host of crimes involving digital assets, including violations of the Bank Secrecy Act. Congress imposed anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) obligations on a wide range of domestic and foreign entities to combat fraud, drug trafficking, and terrorism, among other crimes. By abdicating DOJ’s responsibility to enforce federal criminal law when violations involve digital assets, you are suggesting that virtual currency exchanges, mixers, and other entities dealing in digital assets need not fulfill their AML/CFT obligations, creating a systemic vulnerability in the digital assets sector. Drug traffickers, terrorists, fraudsters, and adversaries will exploit this vulnerability on a large scale.

    Cryptocurrency-related fraud has exploded in recent years. The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimated losses associated with cryptocurrency fraud at $5.6 billion in 2023 alone—an increase of 45 percent from 2022. You claim in your memo that DOJ will continue to prosecute those who use cryptocurrencies to perpetrate crimes. But allowing the entities that enable these crimes—such as cryptocurrency kiosk operators—to operate outside the federal regulatory framework without fear of prosecution will only result in more Americans being exploited.

    Further increasing the risks posed by bad actors is your decision to disband NCET, which has coordinated a Department-wide effort to prosecute illicit activity involving cryptocurrency. DOJ formed NCET in 2021 “to tackle complex investigations and prosecutions of criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, particularly crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money laundering infrastructure actors.” NCET combined the expertise and resources of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery and Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Sections with Assistant U.S. Attorneys from around the country. Since its formation, NCET has worked with U.S. Attorneys’ offices to:

    • secure the conviction of the operator of a cryptocurrency exchange that laundered over $9 billion in proceeds from hacking, ransomware attacks, identity theft schemes, and narcotics distribution rings;
    • obtain a guilty plea from a man who processed more than $700 million worth of illicit funds in support of online drug trafficking;
    • secure the conviction of a man who operated a $110 million manipulative trading scheme on a cryptocurrency exchange;
    • seize over $112 million in funds linked to cryptocurrency investment schemes; and
    • seize nearly $9 million in cryptocurrency that resulted from the exploitation of over 70 victims through romance scams and cryptocurrency confidence schemes, among many other cases.

    Further, NCET operates as a critical resource for state and local law enforcement who often lack the technical knowledge and skill to investigate cryptocurrency related crimes.  Disbanding NCET will make the work of these state and local law enforcement agents that much harder.

    Why would you dismantle a team that is such an important player in fighting cryptocurrency-based crime? Your decisions give rise to concerns that President Trump’s interest in selling his cryptocurrency may be the reason for easing law enforcement scrutiny.

    We urge you to reconsider these decisions. In addition, we request a staff-level briefing no later than May 1, 2025, providing detailed information on the rationale behind these decisions and their anticipated impacts on the Department’s ability to enforce the law and protect Americans from cryptocurrency-based crimes.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: OceanFirst Financial Corp. Announces Redemption of all Outstanding 57,370 shares of 7.00% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock of OceanFirst Financial Corporation

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    RED BANK, N.J., April 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: OCFC) (the “Company”), the holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. (the “Bank” or “OceanFirst”), announced today that it will redeem 57,370 shares of its 7.00% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A (the “Series A Preferred Stock”), constituting all of the outstanding shares of the Series A Preferred Stock, on May 15, 2025, the next dividend payment date for the Series A Preferred Stock (the “Redemption Date”). Payment of the cash redemption price equal to $1,000 per share of Series A Preferred Stock (the “Redemption Price”) (equivalent to $25 per Depositary Share) will be made on the Redemption Date. The Redemption Price does not include the previously declared dividend payment that is due on the Redemption Date and that will be paid immediately prior to the redemption of the Series A Preferred Stock on the Redemption Date to holders of record on the record date for such dividend payment. On the Redemption Date, simultaneous with the redemption of the Series A Preferred Stock, the depositary for the Series A Preferred Stock will redeem 2,294,800 depositary shares (the “Depositary Shares”), each representing a 1/40th interest in a share of the Series A Preferred Stock, for an amount per Depositary Share equal to 1/40th of the Redemption Price per share of Series A Preferred Stock.

    The Depositary Shares are held only in book-entry form through The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) and shall be redeemed in accordance with the applicable procedures of DTC.

    On the Redemption Date, the Redemption Price will become due and payable. On and after the Redemption Date, dividends in respect of the Series A Preferred Stock represented by the Depositary Shares shall cease to accrue, the Series A Preferred Stock and the Depositary Shares shall no longer be deemed outstanding and all rights of the holders of the Series A Preferred Stock and holders of receipts evidencing the Depositary Shares shall cease and terminate, except only the right of the holders of the Series A Preferred Stock to receive the Redemption Price and the right of the holders of receipts evidencing the Depositary Shares to receive 1/40th of the Redemption Price, in each case, without interest.

    “We are pleased to announce our payoff of the Preferred Stock,” said Patrick Barrett, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. “Our strong capital and liquidity levels have positioned us well to pay off liabilities with higher funding costs. The redemption of our preferred stock is consistent with our balance sheet strategy of optimizing debt and capital.”

    About OceanFirst Financial Corporation

    OceanFirst Financial Corp.’s subsidiary, OceanFirst Bank N.A., founded in 1902, is a $13.3 billion regional bank providing financial services throughout New Jersey and in the major metropolitan areas between Massachusetts and Virginia. OceanFirst Bank delivers commercial and residential financing, treasury management, trust and asset management, and deposit services and is one of the largest and oldest community-based financial institutions headquartered in New Jersey. To learn more about OceanFirst, go to www.oceanfirst.com.

    Company Contact:
    Alfred Goon
    SVP Corporate Development and Investor Relations
    OceanFirst Financial Corp.
    Tel: 1.888.623.2633 ext. 27423
    Email: agoon@oceanfirst.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2025 Earnings Conference Call

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    IOWA CITY, Iowa, April 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: MOFG) (“MidWestOne” or the “Company”), parent company of MidWestOne Bank, today announced that its first quarter 2025 financial results will be released after market closes on Thursday, April 24, 2025. The Company will host a conference call to discuss its financial results at 11:00 a.m. Central Time on Friday, April 25, 2025.

    Investors and analysts interested in participating in the call may pre-register utilizing the following link: https://www.netroadshow.com/events/login?show=29396e9f&confId=80376. After pre-registering for this event, you will receive your access details via email. On the day of the call, you are also able to dial 1-833-470-1428 (callers located in Canada please dial 1-833-950-0062) approximately 15 minutes prior to the start of the call and providing the access code 527448. A live audio webcast of the conference call can be accessed through the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at https://www.midwestonefinancial.com.

    A replay of the conference call will be available within four hours of the conclusion of the call and can be accessed both online and by dialing 1-866-813-9403 within the United States and Canada (all other international callers please dial +440-204-525-0658). The pin to access the telephone replay is 162684. The replay will be available until July 24, 2025.

    About MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc.
    MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc. is a financial holding company headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa. MidWestOne is the parent company of MidWestOne Bank, which operates banking offices in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Colorado. MidWestOne provides electronic delivery of financial services through its website, MidWestOne.bank. MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc. trades on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “MOFG”.

    Category: Earnings
    This news release may be downloaded from Corporate Profile | MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc.

    Source: MidWestOne Financial Group, Inc.

    Industry: Banks

    Contact:  
    Charles N. Reeves Barry S. Ray
    Chief Executive Officer Chief Financial Officer
    319.356.5800 319.356.5800
       

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Hingham Savings Reports First Quarter 2025 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    HINGHAM, Mass., April 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS (NASDAQ: HIFS), Hingham, Massachusetts announced results for the quarter ended March 31, 2025.

    Earnings

    Net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 was $7,124,000 or $3.27 per share basic and $3.24 per share diluted, as compared to $6,868,000 or $3.17 per share basic and $3.13 per share diluted for the same period last year. The Bank’s annualized return on average equity for the first quarter of 2025 was 6.46%, and the annualized return on average assets was 0.64%, as compared to 6.63% and 0.63% for the same period last year. Net income per share (diluted) for the first quarter of 2025 increased by 3.5% compared to the same period in 2024.

    Core net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, which represents net income excluding the after-tax net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized, was $6,125,000 or $2.81 per share basic and $2.78 per share diluted, as compared to $2,213,000 or $1.02 per share basic and $1.01 per share diluted for the same period last year. The Bank’s annualized core return on average equity for the first quarter of 2025 was 5.56% and the annualized core return on average assets was 0.55%, as compared to 2.14% and 0.20% for the same period last year. Core net income per share (diluted) for the first quarter of 2025 increased by 175.2% compared to the same period in 2024.

    See Page 9 for a Non-GAAP reconciliation between Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) net income and core net income. In calculating core net income, the Bank did not make any adjustments other than those relating to the after-tax net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized. In the first quarter of 2024, both net income and core net income were positively impacted by lower income tax expense driven by excess tax benefit associated with the exercise of stock options and the revision of state income tax estimates.

    Balance Sheet

    Total assets increased to $4.523 billion at March 31, 2025, representing 5.9% annualized growth year-to-date and a 0.1% decline from March 31, 2024.

    Net loans increased to $3.924 billion at March 31, 2025, representing 5.2% annualized growth year-to-date and a 0.4% decline from March 31, 2024. Origination activity was concentrated in the Boston and Washington D.C. markets and remained focused on stabilized multifamily commercial real estate.

    Retail and commercial deposits increased to $2.066 billion at March 31, 2025, representing 13.8% annualized growth year-to-date and 9.2% growth from March 31, 2024. Non-interest-bearing deposits, included in retail and commercial deposits, were $427.3 million at March 31, 2025, representing 30.0% annualized growth year-to-date and 23.0% growth from March 31, 2024.

    Growth in non-interest bearing and money market balances in the first quarter of 2025 continues to reflect the Bank’s focus on developing and deepening deposit relationships with new and existing commercial and non-profit customers. The Bank continues to invest in its Specialized Deposit Group, actively recruiting for talented relationship managers in Boston, Washington, and San Francisco, particularly as respected competitors exit these markets or merge with larger regional banks.

    The stability of the Bank’s balance sheet, as well as full and unlimited deposit insurance through the Bank’s participation in the Massachusetts Depositors Insurance Fund, continues to appeal to customers in times of uncertainty.

    Wholesale funds, which includes Federal Home Loan Bank (“FHLB”) borrowings, brokered deposits, and Internet listing service deposits, were $1.978 billion at March 31, 2025 representing a 2.8% annualized decline year-to-date and a 9.5% decline from March 31, 2024, as the Bank replaced a large portion of these funds with retail and commercial deposits. In the first quarter of 2025, the Bank continued to manage its wholesale funding mix to optimize the cost of funds while taking advantage of the inverted yield curve at certain durations by adding lower rate longer term liabilities. Wholesale deposits, which include brokered and Internet listing service time deposits, were $507.1 million at March 31, 2025, representing 9.9% annualized growth year-to-date and 1.4% growth from March 31, 2024. Borrowings from the FHLB totaled $1.471 billion at March 31, 2025, representing a 6.9% annualized decline from December 31, 2024, and a 12.7% decline from March 31, 2024. As of March 31, 2025, the Bank maintained an additional $918.0 million in immediately available borrowing capacity at the FHLB of Boston and the Federal Reserve Bank, in addition to $361.6 million in cash and cash equivalents.

    Book value per share was $200.69 as of March 31, 2025, representing 5.4% annualized growth year-to-date and 5.6% growth from March 31, 2024. In addition to the increase in book value per share, the Bank declared $2.52 in dividends per share since March 31, 2024.

    On March 26, 2025, the Bank declared a regular cash dividend of $0.63 per share. This dividend will be paid on May 14, 2025 to stockholders of record as of May 5, 2025. This will be the Bank’s 125th consecutive quarterly dividend.

    The Bank has also generally declared special cash dividends in each of the last thirty years, typically in the fourth quarter, but did not declare a special dividend in 2024 and 2023. The Bank sets the level of the special dividend based on the Bank’s capital requirements and the prospective return on other capital allocation options, particularly the incremental return on capital from new loan originations. This may result in special dividends, if any, significantly above or below the regular quarterly dividend. Future regular and special dividends will be considered by the Board of Directors on a quarterly basis.

    Operational Performance Metrics

    The net interest margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 increased 26 basis points to 1.50%, as compared to 1.24% in the quarter ended December 31, 2024. This was the fourth consecutive quarter of continued expansion, which has continued to accelerate. This improvement was the result of a decline in the cost of interest-bearing liabilities, combined with an increase in the yield on interest-earning assets. The cost of interest-bearing liabilities fell 21 basis points in the first quarter of 2025, as the Bank continued to reduce retail and commercial deposit rates, and to take advantage of the inverted yield curve by adding lower rate FHLB advances and brokered deposits. The yield on interest-earning assets increased by six basis points in the first quarter of 2025, driven primarily by a higher yield on loans, as the Bank continued to originate loans at higher rates and reprice existing loans, partially offset by a lower yield on cash held at the Federal Reserve Bank.

    The net interest margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 increased 65 basis points to 1.50%, as compared to 0.85% for the same period last year. The Bank experienced a significant decline in the cost of interest-bearing liabilities when compared to the prior year. This was driven primarily by the repricing of the Bank’s funding sources, as the Bank began to reduce retail and commercial deposit rates in the second half of 2024, and to take advantage of the inverted yield curve by adding lower rate FHLB advances and brokered deposits. During this period, the yield on interest-earning assets increased, driven primarily by an increase in the yield on loans, partially offset by lower yield on cash held at the Federal Reserve Bank.

    Key credit and operational metrics remained strong in the first quarter of 2025. At March 31, 2025, non-performing assets totaled 0.04% of total assets, compared to 0.03% at December 31, 2024 and 0.04% at March 31, 2024. Non-performing loans as a percentage of the total loan portfolio totaled 0.05% at March 31, 2025, compared to 0.04% at both December 31, 2024 and March 31, 2024. The Bank did not record any charge-offs in the first three months of 2025 or 2024. Most of the non-performing assets and loans cited above were and are residential, owner-occupant loans.

    The Bank had only one small commercial real estate non-performing loan and no other commercial real estate delinquent loans as of March 31, 2025, and did not have any delinquent or non-performing commercial real estate loans as of December 31, 2024 or March 31, 2024. This commercial loan became current shortly after the close of the first quarter. The Bank did not own any foreclosed property at March 31, 2025, December 31, 2024 or March 31, 2024.

    The efficiency ratio, as defined on page 5 below, decreased to 45.82% for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to 52.30% in the prior quarter and 77.24% for the same period last year. Operating expenses as a percentage of average assets increased to 0.68% for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to 0.66% for the prior quarter and 0.67% for the same period last year. This reflects, in part, seasonally higher expenses during the first quarter and continuing investments in deposit-gathering infrastructure. As the efficiency ratio can be significantly influenced by the level of net interest income, the Bank utilizes these paired figures together to assess its operational efficiency over time. During periods of significant net interest income volatility, the efficiency ratio in isolation may over or understate the underlying operational efficiency of the Bank. The Bank remains focused on reducing waste through an ongoing process of continuous improvement and standard work that supports operational leverage.

    Chairman Robert H. Gaughen Jr. stated, “Returns on equity and assets in the first quarter of 2025 remained significantly lower than our long-term performance, reflecting the lingering challenge from the increase in short-term interest rates and a historically long and deep inversion of the yield curve. These conditions have posed a significant – albeit ultimately temporary – challenge to our business model.

    This challenge began to fade last year and we are cautiously optimistic moving forward. Returns in our core business have started to improve, driven by acceleration in our net interest margin. Our operational leverage remains critical to generating satisfactory returns over time. Although our investment returns are likely to remain volatile over any individual period, they continue to contribute meaningfully to growth in book value per share over time.

    While the last two years have been extraordinarily challenging, the Bank’s business model has been built to compound shareholder capital over time. We remain focused on careful capital allocation, defensive underwriting and rigorous cost control – the building blocks for compounding shareholder capital through all stages of the economic cycle. These remain constant, regardless of the macroeconomic environment in which we operate.”

    The Bank’s quarterly financial results are summarized in this earnings release, but shareholders are encouraged to read the Bank’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q, which is generally available several weeks after the earnings release. The Bank expects to file Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on or about May 7, 2025.

    Incorporated in 1834, Hingham Institution for Savings is one of America’s oldest banks. The Bank maintains offices in Boston, Nantucket, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco.

    The Bank’s shares of common stock are listed and traded on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol HIFS.

    Annual Meeting

    The Bank will hold its Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Meeting”) at 2:00PM EST on Wednesday, April 30, 2025 at the Hingham Historical Society (Old Derby Academy), located at 34 Main Street, Hingham, Massachusetts. We strongly encourage shareholders to attend in person, although they may also observe the Meeting by streaming video. Following the business meeting, the Bank will hold an informal meeting to discuss the results of the prior year and the operations of the Bank, as well as a question and answers session. We strongly encourage all shareholders to vote by proxy. Electronic voting will not be available. Registration for the meeting is available on the Bank’s website (click here). In addition to participating in the meeting itself, we also encourage shareholders to submit questions in writing in advance using the form on the Bank’s website.

     
    HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS
    Selected Financial Ratios
     
      Three Months Ended
    March 31,
      2024   2025
    (Unaudited)          
               
    Key Performance Ratios          
    Return on average assets (1) 0.63 %   0.64 %
    Return on average equity (1) 6.63     6.46  
    Core return on average assets (1) (5) 0.20     0.55  
    Core return on average equity (1) (5) 2.14     5.56  
    Interest rate spread (1) (2) 0.13     0.80  
    Net interest margin (1) (3) 0.85     1.50  
    Operating expenses to average assets (1) 0.67     0.68  
    Efficiency ratio (4) 77.24     45.82  
    Average equity to average assets 9.54     9.98  
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest bearing liabilities 119.91     122.26  
               
      March 31,
    2024    		   December 31, 2024   March 31,
    2025
    (Unaudited)                      
               
    Asset Quality Ratios          
    Allowance for credit losses/total loans   0.67 %   0.69 %   0.69 %
    Allowance for credit losses/non-performing loans   1,530.95     1,775.00     1,487.46  
                       
    Non-performing loans/total loans   0.04     0.04     0.05  
    Non-performing loans/total assets   0.04     0.03     0.04  
    Non-performing assets/total assets   0.04     0.03     0.04  
                       
    Share Related                  
    Book value per share $ 190.07     $ 198.03   $ 200.69  
    Market value per share $ 174.46     $ 254.14   $ 237.80  
    Shares outstanding at end of period   2,180,250       2,180,250     2,180,250  
    (1) Annualized.
    (2) Interest rate spread represents the difference between the yield on interest-earning assets and the cost of interest-bearing liabilities.
    (3) Net interest margin represents net interest income divided by average interest-earning assets.
    (4) The efficiency ratio is a non-GAAP measure that represents total operating expenses, divided by the sum of net interest income and total other income, excluding the net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized.
    (5) Non-GAAP measurements that represent return on average assets and return on average equity, excluding the after-tax net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized.
     
    HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS
    Consolidated Balance Sheets
     

    (In thousands, except share amounts)

    		 March 31, 2024   December 31, 2024   March 31, 2025
    (Unaudited)                  
    ASSETS  
                     
    Cash and due from banks $ 6,200   $ 4,183   $ 8,664
    Federal Reserve and other short-term investments   367,046     347,647     352,977
    Cash and cash equivalents   373,246     351,830     361,641
                     
    CRA investment   8,759     8,769     8,900
    Other marketable equity securities   78,497     104,575     109,335
    Securities, at fair value   87,256     113,344     118,235
    Securities held to maturity, at amortized cost   5,500     6,493     6,494
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost   69,484     61,022     61,322
    Loans, net of allowance for credit losses of $26,760
    at March 31, 2024, $26,980 at December 31, 2024
    and $27,280 at March 31, 2025    		   3,938,252     3,873,662     3,924,108
    Bank-owned life insurance   13,723     13,980     14,064
    Premises and equipment, net   16,844     16,397     16,244
    Accrued interest receivable   8,783     8,774     9,006
    Other assets   16,263     12,269     12,314
    Total assets $ 4,529,351   $ 4,457,771   $ 4,523,428

    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

                     
    Interest-bearing deposits $ 2,045,524   $ 2,094,626   $ 2,146,091
    Non-interest-bearing deposits   347,397     397,469     427,287
    Total deposits   2,392,921     2,492,095     2,573,378
    Federal Home Loan Bank advances   1,684,675     1,497,000     1,471,000
    Mortgagors’ escrow accounts   13,570     16,699     15,820
    Accrued interest payable   14,040     8,244     11,266
    Deferred income tax liability, net   1,765     3,787     4,069
    Other liabilities   7,982     8,191     10,338
    Total liabilities   4,114,953     4,026,016     4,085,871
                     
    Stockholders’ equity:                
    Preferred stock, $1.00 par value,
    2,500,000 shares authorized, none issued    		   —     —     —
    Common stock, $1.00 par value, 5,000,000 shares
    authorized; 2,180,250 shares issued and outstanding at March 31, 2024, December 31, 2024 and March 31, 2025    		   2,180     2,180     2,180
    Additional paid-in capital   15,416     15,571     15,622
    Undivided profits   396,802     414,004     419,755
    Total stockholders’ equity   414,398     431,755     437,557
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 4,529,351   $ 4,457,771   $ 4,523,428
     
    HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS
    Consolidated Statements of Income
     
      Three Months Ended
    March 31,
    (In thousands, except per share amounts) 2024   2025
    (Unaudited)          
               
    Interest and dividend income:          
    Loans $ 43,120   $ 45,221
    Debt securities   45     95
    Equity securities   1,450     1,451
    Federal Reserve and other short-term investments   2,827     3,055
    Total interest and dividend income   47,442     49,822
               
    Interest expense:          
    Deposits   21,146     18,621
    Federal Home Loan Bank advances   17,212     15,165
    Total interest expense   38,358     33,786
    Net interest income   9,084     16,036
    Provision for credit losses   108     300
    Net interest income, after provision for credit losses   8,976     15,736
    Other income:          
    Customer service fees on deposits   137     135
    Increase in cash surrender value of bank-owned life insurance   81     84
    Gain on equity securities, net   5,971     1,281
    Miscellaneous   55     49
    Total other income   6,244     1,549
    Operating expenses:          
    Salaries and employee benefits   4,297     4,467
    Occupancy and equipment   431     439
    Data processing   755     724
    Deposit insurance   810     748
    Foreclosure and related   32     10
    Marketing   89     136
    Other general and administrative   813     946
    Total operating expenses   7,227     7,470
    Income before income taxes   7,993     9,815
    Income tax provision   1,125     2,691
    Net income $ 6,868   $ 7,124
               
    Cash dividends declared per common share $ 0.63   $ 0.63
               
    Weighted average shares outstanding:          
    Basic   2,169     2,180
    Diluted   2,192     2,201
               
    Earnings per share:          
    Basic $ 3.17   $ 3.27
    Diluted $ 3.13   $ 3.24
               
     
    HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS
    Net Interest Income Analysis
     
      Three Months Ended
      March 31, 2024   December 31, 2024   March 31, 2025  
      Average Balance (9)  

    Interest

    		 Yield/
    Rate (10)    		   Average Balance (9)  

    Interest

    		 Yield/ Rate (10)   Average Balance (9)  

    Interest

    		 Yield/
    Rate (10)
       
    (Dollars in thousands)  
    (Unaudited)                                                  
    Assets                                                  
    Loans (1) (2) $ 3,956,135   $ 43,120   4.36 %   $ 3,882,297   $ 44,787   4.58 %  $ 3,929,828   $ 45,221   4.67 %
    Securities (3) (4)   116,203     1,495   5.15       126,771     1,642   5.14     130,674     1,546   4.80  
    Short-term investments (5)   208,245     2,827   5.43       293,987     3,515   4.74     278,722     3,055   4.45  
    Total interest-earning assets   4,280,583     47,442   4.43       4,303,055     49,944   4.60     4,339,224     49,822   4.66  
    Other assets   64,034                 72,638               79,209            
    Total assets $ 4,344,617               $ 4,375,693             $ 4,418,433            
                                                       
    Liabilities and stockholders’ equity:     `                                            
    Interest-bearing deposits (6) $ 2,098,851     21,146     4.03 %   $ 2,136,101     20,518   3.81 %  $ 2,141,294     18,621   3.53 %
    Borrowed funds   1,471,027     17,212     4.68       1,421,152     15,985   4.46     1,407,844     15,165   4.37  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities   3,569,878     38,358     4.30       3,557,253     36,503   4.07     3,549,138     33,786   3.86  
    Non-interest-bearing deposits   346,136                   374,461               413,877            
    Other liabilities   14,261                   14,072               14,464            
    Total liabilities   3,930,275                   3,945,786               3,977,479            
    Stockholders’ equity   414,342                 429,907               440,954            
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $ 4,344,617               $ 4,375,693             $ 4,418,433            
    Net interest income       $ 9,084               $ 13,441             $ 16,036      
                                                       
    Weighted average interest rate spread             0.13 %               .53 %              0.80 %
                                                       
    Net interest margin (7)             0.85 %               1.24 %              1.50 %
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest-bearing
    liabilities (8)     		   119.91 %             120.97 %           122.26 %          
    (1 ) Before allowance for credit losses.
    (2 ) Includes non-accrual loans.
    (3 ) Excludes the impact of the average net unrealized gain or loss on securities.
    (4 ) Includes Federal Home Loan Bank stock.
    (5 ) Includes cash held at the Federal Reserve Bank.
    (6 ) Includes mortgagors’ escrow accounts.
    (7 ) Net interest income divided by average total interest-earning assets.
    (8 ) Total interest-earning assets divided by total interest-bearing liabilities.
    (9 ) Average balances are calculated on a daily basis.
    (10 ) Annualized.

     HINGHAM INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS
     Non-GAAP Reconciliation

     The Bank believes the presentation of the following non-GAAP financial measures provide useful supplemental information that is essential to an investor’s proper understanding of results of operations and financial condition of the Bank. Management uses these measures in its analysis of the Bank’s performance. These non-GAAP measures should not be viewed as substitutes for the financial measures determined in accordance with GAAP, nor are they necessarily comparable to non-GAAP performance measures that may be presented by other banks.

     The table below presents the reconciliation between net income and core net income, a non-GAAP measurement that represents net income excluding the after-tax net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized.

      Three Months Ended
    March 31,
    (In thousands, unaudited) 2024     2025  
               
    Non-GAAP reconciliation:          
    Net Income $ 6,868     $ 7,124  
    Gain on equity securities, net   (5,971 )     (1,281 )
    Income tax expense (1)   1,316       282  
    Core Net Income $ 2,213     $ 6,125  
    (1)  The equity securities are held in a tax-advantaged subsidiary corporation. The income tax effect of the gain on equity securities, net, was calculated using the effective tax rate applicable to the subsidiary.

    The table below presents the calculation of the efficiency ratio, a non-U.S. GAAP performance measure that management uses to assess operational efficiency which represents total operating expenses, divided by the sum of net interest income and total other income, excluding net gain on equity securities, both realized and unrealized.

              Three Months Ended  
          March 31,       December 31,       March 31,  
    (In thousands, unaudited)     2024         2024         2025    
                             
    Non-U.S. GAAP efficiency ratio calculation:                        
    Operating expenses   $ 7,227       $ 7,174       $ 7,470    
                             
    Net interest income   $ 9,084       $ 13,441       $ 16,036    
    Other income     6,244         8,779         1,549    
    Gain on equity securities, net     (5,971 )       (8,503 )       (1,281 )  
    Total revenue   $ 9,357       $ 13,717       $ 16,304    
                             
    Efficiency ratio     77.24   %     52.30   %     45.82   %

    CONTACT: Patrick R. Gaughen, President and Chief Operating Officer (781) 783-1761

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Main Street Financial Services Corp. Declares Quarterly Dividend

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    WOOSTER, Ohio, April 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Main Street Financial Services Corp.  (OTCQX:MSWV), (the “Company”), the holding company parent of Main Street Bank Corp. (the “Bank”) has declared a cash dividend of $0.14 per share of the Company’s common stock for the quarter ending March 31, 2025. The quarterly cash dividend will be paid on May 9, 2025, to stockholders of record as of April 28, 2025.

    About MSWV: Main Street Financial Services Corp. is a $1.4 billion holding company headquartered in Wooster, Ohio. Its primary subsidiary, Main Street Bank Corp. was founded in 1899 and provides full-service banking, commercial lending, and mortgage services across its branch infrastructure. Today, Main Street Bank Corp operates 19 branch locations in Wooster, Ohio, Wheeling, West Virginia and other surrounding communities in Ohio and West Virginia. 

    Statements contained in this news release which are not historical facts may be forward- looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors. Factors which could result in material variations include, but are not limited to, changes in interest rates which could affect net interest margins and net interest income, competitive factors which could affect net interest income and noninterest income, changes in demand for loans, deposits and other financial services in the Company’s market area; changes in asset quality, general economic conditions as well as other factors discussed in documents filed by the Company from time to time. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occurred after the date on which such statements were made.

    Contact:

    Main Street Financial Services Corp. 
    James R. VanSickle II
    President and Chief Executive Officer
    330-264-5767

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Security: New York man sentenced to prison for money laundering crimes related to nearly half million dollars stolen from local business through computer malware

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    COLUMBUS, Ohio – A New York man was sentenced in federal court here today to 46 months in prison for crimes related to laundering hundreds of thousands of dollars from a Columbus strength training equipment manufacturer. 

    Alex Bogomolny, 53, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty in November 2024 to conspiring to commit and committing money laundering. 

    According to court documents, in 2021, a malicious banking Trojan had infected a computer of an employee of Rogue Fitness, which is headquartered in Columbus. The specific Trojan is known by the FBI to steal banking credentials and usually targets corporate victims. As a result of the Trojan, the company lost nearly half a million dollars.

    The stolen money was transferred to 22 different card numbers, including to Bogomolny’s Bank of America card.

    Further investigation of Bogomolny’s bank account revealed that between December 2019 and July 2021, he laundered more than $247,000 in additional criminal proceeds through his account.

    While executing a search warrant at the defendant’s Brooklyn residence, agents found documents that included more than 341,000 unique identifiers like names, addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. The search also discovered images of driver’s licenses, U.S. passports and full lists of full credit card numbers.

    Bogomolny also used the online gambling site FanDuel to conspire to launder money. He and others would steal a victim’s identity and use it to create a FanDuel account. Then criminal proceeds were deposited into the account and later withdrawn. In total, Bogomolny and others used this scheme to deposit nearly $572,000 and withdraw more than $485,000 of the criminal proceeds.

    Finally, Bogomolny’s plea documents detail that, in 2023, the defendant met with undercover FBI agents and agreed to launder $20,000 for a six percent fee. The funds were represented as proceeds of illegal drug activities.

    Between November 2023 and March 2024, Bogomolny sent $18,800 of the original $20,000 back to the undercover FBI agents through multiple ACH transactions.

    Bogomolny later agreed to accept another $50,000 from the undercover agents. He met up with the agents in April 2024 and accepted the money, after which he was arrested.

    Kelly A. Norris, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Elena Iatarola, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the sentence imposed today by U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley. Assistant United States Attorney Peter K. Glenn-Applegate is representing the United States in this case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Auction for Sale (re-issue) of (i) ‘6.79% GS 2031’, (ii) ‘6.98% GOI SGrB 2054’ and (iii) ‘7.09% GS 2074’

    Source: Government of India

    Posted On: 11 APR 2025 8:38PM by PIB Delhi

    The Government of India (GoI) has announced the sale (re-issue) of (i) “6.79% Government Security 2031” for a notified amount of ₹11,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using multiple price method, (ii) “6.98% GOI SGrB 2054” for a notified amount of ₹5,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using multiple price method and (iii) “7.09% Government Security 2074” for a notified amount of ₹14,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using multiple price method. GoI will have the option to retain additional subscription up to ₹2,000 crore against each security mentioned above. The auctions will be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India, Mumbai Office, Fort, Mumbai on April 17, 2025 (Thursday).

    Up to 5% of the notified amount of the sale of the securities will be allotted to eligible individuals and institutions as per the Scheme for Non-Competitive Bidding Facility in the Auction of Government Securities.

    Both competitive and non-competitive bids for the auction should be submitted in electronic format on the Reserve Bank of India Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber system) on April 17, 2025. The non-competitive bids should be submitted between 10:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. and the competitive bids should be submitted between 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.

    The result of the auctions will be announced on April 17, 2025 (Thursday) and payment by successful bidders will be on April 21, 2025 (Monday).    

    The Securities will be eligible for “When Issued” trading in accordance with the guidelines on ‘When Issued transactions in Central Government Securities’ issued by the Reserve Bank of India vide circular No. RBI/2018-19/25 dated July 24, 2018 as amended from time to time.

     

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    NB/KMN

    (Release ID: 2121087) Visitor Counter : 53

    Read this release in: Hindi

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –