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  • MIL-OSI Russia: GUU presented the “Course on Business and Entrepreneurship” at the conference of thematic partners of “Artek”

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    The IX International Conference of Thematic Partners “Artek at 100%” was held in the International Children’s Center “Artek”, in which representatives of the State University of Management with the program “Course for Business and Entrepreneurship” took part.

    The International Children’s Center “Artek” annually holds a competition for additional general development programs, and in the year of the 100th anniversary of “Artek”, which will be celebrated in 2025, this conference becomes a particularly important milestone in the history of the center, demonstrating its openness to cooperation.

    This year, the center plans to implement more than 170 programs with the participation of 130 partners, in all areas that exist in the Russian Federation. Within the framework of partner programs, Artek will be visited by more than 17 thousand children from 89 regions of our vast homeland, as well as from foreign countries. The “red thread” of the anniversary year will be the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory and the Year of the Defender of the Fatherland. Patriotic events will also be implemented jointly with partner organizations.

    It should be noted that for the second year in a row, the State University of Management has become the winner of the competition of additional general development programs. This time, on behalf of the State University of Management, the conference was attended by first-year master’s students in the Project Management program, Maria Larshina and Polina Ponikarovskaya, who are members of the project team of the Business and Entrepreneurship Course program. This program was developed on the initiative of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, and a large team of the best specialists from the State University of Management took part in its development.

    The International Conference of Thematic Partners “Artek at 100” was held from January 19 to 22. On the first day of the conference, plenary sessions were held dedicated to the activities of Artek, key events of 2025 and the role of partner organizations in creating meaningful programs and the educational environment of the Artek Information Technology Center.

    On the second day of the conference, the participants visited the Korsun Children’s Center, a branch of Artek in Sevastopol. Round tables were held there, as well as a ceremony to award certificates to the winners of the competition for additional general development programs. The winner’s certificate was presented to representatives of the State University of Management by the First Deputy Director of the Artek International Children’s Center, Elena Zhivoglyad. For the 100th anniversary of the International Children’s Center, a documentary film, Artek. 100 Years of Happy Childhood, was created together with the Media Glob team. The first viewers were thematic partners – participants of the IX International Conference.

    On the last day of the conference “Artek at 100%” a festival of creativity was held, where participants were able to exchange experiences, ideas and their skills. The event featured more than 40 platforms from thematic partners of “Artek”. The State University of Management organized a point “Entrepreneurial Puzzle”, where participants could test their ingenuity and knowledge, as well as learn more about the additional general development program “Course on Business and Entrepreneurship”.

    Let us add that the additional general development program “Course on Business and Entrepreneurship” is aimed at training qualified personnel for medium and small businesses by involving teenagers and young people. Its goal: to develop entrepreneurship competencies in students by means of interactive forms of training, project and game technologies. The main events of the program include: practical classes, conversations, discussions, project work in groups, business and role-playing games, quizzes.

    Over the course of three days, representatives of partner organizations, together with Artek employees, developed mechanisms for integrating thematic programs into the educational process of the children’s center, discussed the regulatory framework for the partners’ activities, information and methodological support for the educational process, and much more.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 01/28/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI: 89% of IT Leaders Worry GenAI Flaws Could Negatively Impact Their Organization’s Cybersecurity Strategies, Sophos Survey Finds

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    OXFORD, United Kingdom, Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sophos, a global leader of innovative security solutions for defeating cyberattacks today released a new report, “Beyond the Hype: The Businesses Reality of AI for Cybersecurity,” which surveyed 400 IT leaders on their use of AI in security. The survey found that, despite 65% having adopted generative artificial intelligence (GenAI capabilities) 89% of IT leaders are concerned that flaws in GenAI cybersecurity tools could put their organization at risk.

    Additionally, according to new Sophos X-Ops research, “Cybercriminals Still Not Getting on Board the AI Train (Yet),” also released today, there has been a slight but noteworthy shift in the way cybercriminals use AI. After investigating several underground forums, Sophos X-Ops found that, while there’s still skepticism about GenAI, some criminals are using it to automate mundane tasks, such as crafting bulk emails and analyzing data. Others are incorporating it into spam and social engineering toolkits.

    “As with many other things in life, the mantra should be ‘trust but verify’ regarding generative AI tools. We have not actually taught the machines to think; we have simply provided them the context to speed up the processing of large quantities of data,” said Chester Wisniewski, director, global field CTO, Sophos. “The potential of these tools to accelerate security workloads is amazing, but it still requires the context and comprehension of their human overseers for this benefit to be realized.”

    With some form of AI embedded in the cybersecurity infrastructure of 98% of organizations surveyed, IT leaders expressed concern about potential over-reliance on AI, with 87% of respondents stating they were concerned about a resulting lack of cybersecurity accountability.

    GenAI and Reducing Burnout

    Different-sized organizations expressed different priorities for utilizing GenAI. While large organizations (those with more than 1,000 employees) are prioritizing improved protection, respondents with 50-99 employees rated reducing burnout as their top desired benefit from GenAI tools. However, complicating matters, across all sizes of organizations, 84% of leaders surveyed said they were concerned about pressure to reduce cybersecurity professional headcount due to unrealistic expectations about AI’s abilities to replace human operators.

    Other Key Findings from the “Beyond the Hype” Report:

    • Costs of GenAI Are Hard to Quantify: 75% of IT leaders agree that the costs of GenAI in cybersecurity products are hard to quantify.
    • Companies Are Counting on Savings from GenAI: While 80% of IT leaders believe that GenAI will significantly increase the cost of cybersecurity tools, most organizations believe GenAI offers a path to lowering overall cybersecurity expenditure with 87% of respondents believing the savings of GenAI will offset the costs.

    To learn more about IT leaders utilizing AI, read the report, “Beyond the Hype: The Businesses Reality of AI for Cybersecurity,” on Sophos.com.

    To learn more about cybercriminal attitudes towards GenAI, read the report, “Cybercriminals Still Not Getting on Board the AI Train (Yet),” on Sophos.com.

    Learn More About

    About Sophos
    Sophos is a global leader and innovator of advanced security solutions for defeating cyberattacks, including Managed Detection and Response (MDR) and incident response services and a broad portfolio of endpoint, network, email, and cloud security technologies. As one of the largest pure-play cybersecurity providers, Sophos defends more than 600,000 organizations and more than 100 million users worldwide from active adversaries, ransomware, phishing, malware, and more. Sophos’ services and products connect through the Sophos Central management console and are powered by Sophos X-Ops, the company’s cross-domain threat intelligence unit. Sophos X-Ops intelligence optimizes the entire Sophos Adaptive Cybersecurity Ecosystem, which includes a centralized data lake that leverages a rich set of open APIs available to customers, partners, developers, and other cybersecurity and information technology vendors. Sophos provides cybersecurity-as-a-service to organizations needing fully managed security solutions. Customers can also manage their cybersecurity directly with Sophos’ security operations platform or use a hybrid approach by supplementing their in-house teams with Sophos’ services, including threat hunting and remediation. Sophos sells through reseller partners and managed service providers (MSPs) worldwide. Sophos is headquartered in Oxford, U.K. More information is available at www.sophos.com.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Innovation Quest Turns Students into Entrepreneurs 

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    If there is one thing that Gaofei Zhang learned from a night-time equestrian class at UConn on a bitter cold evening is that a warm, comfortable pair of boots is one of life’s necessities.

    “After that night, I tried a lot of brands of boots,’’ says Zhang, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Allied Health Sciences in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural History (CAHNR). “They either weren’t warm or weren’t waterproof, or they were slippery or stiff or hard to clean. I didn’t understand why you’d call them ‘snow boots’ if they aren’t good in the snow!’’

    Zhang has a home in Mongolia where the temperature drops as low as minus-30 degrees. The locals create warm and comfortable work boots, but they aren’t stylish. Zhang thought she could adopt their footwear expertise and merge it with something fashionable, including multi-colored fur and beads.

    “As an international student, I didn’t know anything about how to start a company and I was not brave enough to create it on my own,’’ she says. Last year she brought her idea to Innovation Quest (iQ), a UConn entrepreneurship program and competition that helps students develop their ideas into thriving startups. IQ provides workshops, mentoring, and startup funding for the most promising ideas.

    Today, Zhang’s unique, handcrafted boots, marketed under the name MOGSki, are ready to go to market, and the 15 styles of boots and apres-ski accessories are drawing interest from many boutiques. Elegant and chic, they are made of sheep, mink, or cow hide and lined with shearling for added warmth.

    Innovation Quest Workshops Begin on Feb. 4; Students Vie for $30,000 in Funding 

    Zhang is one of more than 2,500 UConn students who have participated in iQ since its inception 14 years ago.  The program is open to UConn graduate and undergraduate students from any field of study.

    IQ is run by Kevin Gardiner ’06 MBA, an adjunct professor in business and engineering. He has held management positions at both startups and long-established companies, including Macy’s, Oracle, and Welcome Commerce.

    “We’re definitely looking for someone who has grit, someone who isn’t going to give up,’’ he says. “As an entrepreneur, you get far more ‘no’s’ than ‘yeses,’ and that’s something that you have to accept. I also look for someone with a passion for the problem they are tackling. When the iQ judges see that, they know they’ve got an entrepreneur whom they can bet on.”

    This year’s event will begin with a kickoff workshop at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb, 4, followed by workshops on Feb. 12, Feb. 26, and March 5. All the workshops are virtual for the convenience of students. Participants may sign up at innovationquest.uconn.edu.

    IQ had a 22% increase in participation last year, over 2023, and that’s a trend that Gardiner hopes to see continue.

    Previous participants have created everything from stuffed animals to clothing to personal care items to businesses engaged in environmental cleanup. Gardiner says that in recent years, students seem particularly interested in health tech, mobile apps, and AI-related companies, but all good idea are welcome.

    Last year’s first-place award went to Ph.D. candidate John Toribio, whose company Zemi Labs is creating wearable garments that provide biomechanical data, including heart and muscle performance.

    “UConn continues to provide more and more opportunities for student entrepreneurs, and we continue to evolve this program,’’ Gardiner says. “We welcome students who just want to dip a toe in the water, as well as those who are fully committed to creating a business.’’

    The iQ program has more than 50 expert mentors and more than half of them have been associated with the program since the beginning. Every year, iQ adds new advisers, all passionate about working with students.

    “I want all students to feel welcome,’’ Gardiner says. “We have four virtual workshops to help students understand entrepreneurship. Are you ready to launch a business? If not, what do you need to get ready? We want anyone, even those with a more remote interest, to attend and learn.’’

    After the workshops are completed, students can submit a formal application to enter the competition and compete for a share of $30,000 in funding. Final presentations are April 14 in Storrs and the top three startup companies will be announced. Many of the previous participants have gone on to start their companies or to pursue an entrepreneurial career.

    Zhang Developed Business Expertise, Confidence

    For Zhang, the last year has been enormously gratifying, both personally and professionally.

    “IQ has been an incredible journey for me. It’s not only helped sharpen my presentation skills but also expanded my knowledge across so many areas—product positioning, sales, marketing, tax, finance, IP, law, storytelling, and more,’’ she says.

    “The competition broadened my perspectives, strengthened my courage and determination, and provided invaluable mentorship and networking opportunities,’’ she says. “It’s truly been one of the most impactful milestones in my entrepreneurial journey, directly pushing forward the progress of my startup.’’

    She says she would tell anyone considering entrepreneurship to give it a try.

    “I would tell other entrepreneurs to be fearless in exploring new ideas and to use your own experiences to solve problems,’’ she says. “Be adaptable, build a network, find mentors, be persistent, and be open to both failures and successes.’’

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Dave Cantin Group Positions for Growth in 2025 with New Leadership Appointments and Promotions

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Dave Cantin Group (DCG), a leading mergers and acquisitions advisory company to retail automotive groups and their owners, has announced several strategic leadership advancements and new hires to support its growth in 2025 being fueled by an accelerating M&A environment as part of its ambitious growth strategy for 2025.

    The industry’s largest and most experienced executive leadership team realigns roles in preparation for a milestone year. Brian Traugott has been promoted to Chief of Staff to President and CEO Dave Cantin and Chief Business and Strategy Officer Brian Gordon. Other executive appointments included Tony Karabon as Executive Vice President, Head of Acquisition Management, and Stephen Jones as Executive Vice President, Head of Acquisition Strategy.

    Within the DCG central support team, Brandon Werley has been promoted to Vice President of M&A Advisory Services, bolstering DCG’s client service group, which utilizes the company’s proprietary AI tool, Jump IQ. Denise Salzstein has moved to Director of CRM, and Cameron Markeson to Associate, Business Analysis. The company also welcomed Zach Orr as Marketing Coordinator.

    All these moves follow a robust year in 2024 for DCG and foreshadow what is shaping up to be the company’s busiest year in history in 2025. “The number of large, quality deals we already have scheduled for closing in the first half of 2025, combined with the current level of client activity indicated that we needed to staff up across the organization to meet our clients’ needs,” said Dave Cantin, President and CEO of Dave Cantin Group. “We’re excited to see our team growing and to maximize the exceptional talent of our Executive Leadership Team, delivering unparalleled service, innovation, and results for our clients.”

    About Dave Cantin Group

    The Dave Cantin Group is a leading automotive M&A advisory company specializing in acquisitions, divestitures, intelligence, and other advisory services. The company is the M&A services provider of choice for North America’s top automotive dealership groups, advising on approximately 40 transactions annually, DCG is differentiated by its advisory approach, long term lens on client relationships, and commitment to market intelligence tools that inform DCG and client strategies. In 2023, DCG became the only retail automotive M&A company with a significant strategic investor, welcoming Kaltroco to the DCG family.

    Through its M&A intelligence division, DCG produces automotive content and delivers relevant, timely marketing intelligence, including the automotive industry Market Outlook Report (MOR). Together with CBT News, DCG produces the Inside M&A studio show and podcast to share stories, news and trends impacting the retail automotive industry. DCG’s proprietary AI-enabled software, Jump IQ, anchors its advisory services that support retail automotive dealers in developing informed M&A strategies and making smarter M&A decisions.

    The company’s nonprofit initiative, DCG Giving, funds child and adolescent cancer research and treatment in communities nationwide and other worthy charitable initiatives. DCG team members regularly feature on the industry speaking circuit and are regularly cited by top national and global news outlets. For more information, please visit davecantingroup.com.

    Media Contact:

    Katie Merx

    katiemerx@gmail.com

    313.510.5090

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f162c27f-9bab-4734-b906-64b9644192bc

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Zscaler Now Offers Natively Integrated Zero Trust Solution for RISE with SAP

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SAN JOSE, Calif., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Zscaler, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZS), the leader in cloud security and an SAP partner, is now offering customers its Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) service, natively integrated within RISE with SAP. Zscaler Private Access™ (ZPA™) for SAP, delivered through the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange™ platform, helps enable SAP customers with on-prem ERP workloads to simplify and de-risk their cloud migration, without the complexity and risk associated with traditional VPNs.

    As per Zscaler’s 2024 VPN Risk report, 56% of organizations have been targets of cyberattacks exploiting VPN security vulnerabilities in the last year. These incidents underscore the growing imperative to move away from traditional perimeter-based defenses towards a more robust Zero Trust architecture to enable secure access to an organization’s most critical ERP infrastructure.

    By running ZPA within customers’ containerized RISE with SAP cloud environments, Zscaler can deliver native zero trust connectivity to SAP S/4HANA Cloud applications across deployment models, including multi-cloud or hybrid cloud. With this foundation, Zscaler also empowers customers with Zscaler Data Protection for compliance and Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM) with Zscaler Digital Experience™ (ZDX™) for an improved user experience.

    Businesses that use RISE with SAP can leverage ZPA to benefit from:

    • Secure, Agile Cloud Access: RISE with SAP combines all the components that businesses need to pursue their business transformation strategies securely. With the integration of ZPA within RISE with SAP, customers can eliminate traditional firewalls and VPNs which unlocks cloud agility and improves security and compliance.
    • Natively supported Zero Trust protection: By provisioning Zscaler connectors natively, Zero Trust access is enabled within the RISE with SAP environment, without the need for traditional VPNs. This ensures that customers can run their technology operations in a managed, secure cloud infrastructure with built-in security and data protection.
    • Secure access for workforce and business partners: ZPA delivers seamless client-based and client-less Zero Trust connectivity, ensuring secure, direct access for employees and third parties from anywhere to RISE with SAP applications and resources.

    Corporate, Customer and GSI Quotes

    “Customers have been using the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange to protect their SAP workloads across a large range of SAP applications for years,” said Punit Minocha, EVP, Business Development & Corporate Strategy at Zscaler. “Now, we are launching a solution that natively integrates within RISE with SAP to facilitate the secure migration of workloads to a managed service and provides improved user-friendliness by eliminating the burden of traditional firewalls and VPNs. Customers achieve application modernization while also securing remote access to business-critical applications and therefore facilitating the ‘working from anywhere’ culture that is so important to today’s workforce.”

    “The integration of Zscaler Private Access with RISE with SAP enables streamlined Zero Trust security across SAP applications, providing secure access for users and partners while supporting compliance and performance, no matter where their workforce, apps or data resides,” said Roland Costea, Chief Information Security Office, SAP Enterprise Cloud Services.

    “Using Zscaler Private Access platform, we can confidently enable secure, remote access to SAP resources while maintaining the flexibility and scalability needed,” said Tobias Thörmann, Network Security Architect, Volkswagen AG. “This new integrated solution that Zscaler and SAP have created is an important capability to support our digital transformation with secure cloud services.”

    “Zscaler’s ZPA integration with RISE with SAP marks a significant step forward in securing and optimizing enterprise applications in the cloud,” said Georgios Billios, Group Service Manager, Siemens AG. “By seamlessly connecting users to SAP services while maintaining the highest standards of security and performance, this partnership empowers organizations to innovate and scale with confidence in today’s digital landscape, which we will evaluate in our own RISE with SAP implementations.”

    “This innovative solution will enable organizations like ours to enhance the security and reliability of our SAP applications,” said Nataliia Iskra, Head of IT Security Operations, Deutsche Börse. “By enabling secure, zero-trust access to critical systems without the need for traditional VPNs, Zscaler empowers our teams to work with confidence, no matter where they are. This innovative approach reduces risk, ensures regulatory compliance, and ultimately strengthens the foundation of our IT security strategy.”

    “Using Zscaler’s ZPA solution to securely access SAP applications is a strategic move for organizations aiming to fortify their enterprise security,” said Britta Simms, Managing Director, Accenture. “Moving beyond traditional perimeter defenses like VPNs allows organizations to ensure that every access request is validated based on identity, context, and risk. This continuous authentication model is essential for protecting SAP applications in the cloud, enabling organizations to embrace digital transformation while maintaining a robust security posture.”

    “Modern organizations operate SAP systems across a hybrid landscape and today’s distributed workers need access to these systems from different locations,” said Sachin Singh, Managing Director, Deloitte & Touche LLP. “This new solution offered jointly by Zscaler and SAP simplifies migration of SAP applications to the cloud by allowing users to have a consistent, secure experience, no matter where these applications are hosted. With our deep technical cybersecurity knowledge and this new solution from Zscaler and SAP, we can help clients navigate data protection compliance while utilizing digital experience monitoring for optimizing user experience during the migration.”

    Join us for our exclusive virtual event featuring leaders from SAP, Siemens, Volkswagen, Deutsche Börse, Deloitte, Accenture, and Capgemini, in which they will discuss the partnership in detail. Register here.

    For more information on the latest Zscaler and SAP integration, please visit – https://www.zscaler.com/partners/sap.

    About Zscaler

    Zscaler (NASDAQ: ZS) accelerates digital transformation so customers can be more agile, efficient, resilient, and secure. The Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange™ platform protects thousands of customers from cyberattacks and data loss by securely connecting users, devices, and applications in any location. Distributed across more than 160 data centers globally, the SSE-based Zero Trust Exchange™ is the world’s largest in-line cloud security platform.

    SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see https://www.sap.com/copyright for additional trademark information and notices. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies.

    Media Contacts
    Nick Gonzalez
    press@zscaler.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Patrick Doyle’s five best film scores – including his pick of an undiscovered gem

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By David Scott, Head of Division, School of Business and Creative Industries, University of the West of Scotland

    Scottish musician Patrick Doyle is an acclaimed composer of over 60 feature film scores with many attendant accolades, honours and awards. I first met him in 2001 while making a now long-vanished series on movie music called Silverscreen Beats for BBC Radio.

    I visited him at his office on the Shepperton lot in Surrey. There, I watched, enchanted, as he flitted between desk and piano bringing his creativity to life with his incredible musicality and riotous humour illustrating scores like Carlito’s Way (1993), Sense and Sensibility (1995) and Gosford Park (2001).

    So years later, when the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) presented Doyle with an honorary doctorate, I wasted no time in asking him to visit and talk to our students. The film of that event is finally available online and is a treat for all fans of film music.

    I could pick 20 favourite Patrick Doyle soundtracks for this “best of” list. In the end, I selected these four and asked him to pick a fifth.

    1. Henry V (1989)

    Back in 2001, Doyle told me he loves to get the opportunity to compose a song for a movie soundtrack. Henry V, his first full-length feature score, includes one of the greatest examples, Non-Nobis Domine, sung after the key battle scene of Kenneth Branagh’s 1989 film.

    It builds from a plain opening verse, sung in the film by young Doyle himself who remembers, with a humorous twinkle, trying to sing it slightly “off key” to enhance its authenticity.

    Non-Nobis Domine in Henry V.

    From that simple introduction, the composer gradually adds choral, orchestral and complex harmonic elements, skilfully balancing the elation and darkness of triumph. And for all its harmonic counterpoint and rich orchestration, he never lets you forget that lonely central melody, doubling it down the octave on bowed double basses as it reaches the climax.

    The soundtrack recording, conducted by Simon Rattle with the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, is a thing of wonder. But to truly understand the perfect marriage of story and music – even if orchestras and choirs did not typically boom across 15th-century battlefields – experience Non-Nobis Domine in the original movie.

    2. Brave (2012)

    The Scottish tradition is never far from Patrick’s music. Indeed, O! For a Muse of Fire, the opening theme from Henry V, uses a recognisably Scottish sound, two notes played quickly across a five note interval, as a key motif, expanding this in a melodic phrase that recalls the cries of seagulls.

    In Disney Pixar’s Brave (2012), Doyle brings an authentic voice to the imaginary Scotland of its central character, the indefatigable Merida. Her defiant exuberance is mirrored in the rhythm of pieces like The Games and Remember to Smile where the composer uses a traditional hand-held drum (the bodhran), bagpipes and fiddles, with the harmony instruments often playing in tight unison to rousing effect.

    Remember to Smile from the Brave score.

    If a key role of the movie soundtrack is to extend narrative or visual language, the effect wrought here is almost physical – to the extent that my own embarrassed grandchildren have had to restrain me from dancing on the couch during screenings of Brave.

    Elsewhere though, the slow mystery of a beautifully animated landscape is matched by atmospheric, languid passages that call on deep reserves of the tradition and its melancholy.

    3. Sense and Sensibility (1995)

    Patrick’s Catholic upbringing is another constant presence in his music. He was greatly influenced by the beautiful Irish melodic hymns which were imported to the west of Scotland. His soundtrack for Ang Lee’s Sense and Sensibility was nominated for a raft of music awards including the Baftas, the Oscars and Golden Globes.

    It has marvellous passages of yearning and almost devotional melody and harmony, but I include it selfishly for the hymnal Weep No More You Sad Fountains alone. It’s one of my very favourite melodies, and one I was privileged to hear him play at close quarters at UWS.

    The Dreame from Sense and Sensibility.

    This majestic piece can be heard on the original soundtrack, sung by English soprano Jane Eaglen, on Patrick’s 2015 album of solo piano pieces and, of course, during my interview with him. Perhaps less well known from the same film is The Dreame, another devotional piece, again sung by Eaglen and set to a Ben Johnson poem. Complex in conception and virtuosic in execution, the piece is nevertheless understated, underplayed, and more devastating for it.

    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    4. Carlito’s Way (1993)

    Doyle’s hilarious and hugely affectionate account of working with one of cinema’s greats, the director Brian DePalma, is a highlight of the conversation I had with him at UWS. His insights range from the creation of the music, the larger-than-life DePalma himself and descriptions of giant cranes chucking down fake rain onto a Biblical-scale location shoot in New York.

    The music created for Carlito’s Way, DePalma’s crime classic starring Al Pacino, is dramatic and rangy, with passages of glacial orchestrated strings – the title theme is a highlight – sitting alongside solo piano, small jazz ensemble and interesting sonic juxtapositions.

    The Elevator from Carlitto’s Way.

    One piece, The Elevator, combines marimba, piano and plucked strings in unison against guiro and woodblocks. It establishes a theme that builds intensely, adding different instrumental colour towards the famous climax in Grand Central Station in New York. It is recognisably “movie music”, but tells its own melodic story.

    5. Doyle’s choice – Indochine (1993)

    When I asked Patrick to choose an “undiscovered gem for a new generation”, he quickly picked Indochine, the 1993 drama starring Catherine Deneuve. The movie won the Oscar for best foreign film in that year and the music is classic Doyle, melodic, rich in harmony and grand enough in orchestral scale to match the sumptuous visual language of the film.

    Premier Rendez-Vous from Indochine.

    That devotional, romantic sound is in full flow too. Pieces like Premier Rendez-Vous and Journey’s End are almost heady in conception and execution. Among the most distinctive themes in this hugely expansive work are also among the most distinctive pieces in Doyle’s own canon: two sure-footed tango and rumba pieces and the title theme itself with its unusual and atmospheric combination of ethereal wordless vocal, eastern bass drum, gong and finger bells. Essential.

    David Scott does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Patrick Doyle’s five best film scores – including his pick of an undiscovered gem – https://theconversation.com/patrick-doyles-five-best-film-scores-including-his-pick-of-an-undiscovered-gem-247132

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Money available to businesses to display support for Spectra

    Source: Scotland – City of Aberdeen

    Aberdeen City Council is offering a one-time grant of £500 to individual local businesses that want to show their support for Spectra – Scotland’s Festival of Light – when it returns to the city next week.

    Spectra, runs from Thursday 6 to Sunday 9 February and will see Aberdeen city centre filled with artwork, light installations, projections and thousands of visitors.

    The Council is interested in hearing from businesses on how they might ‘Spectra-fy’ their business but also how, they could incorporate light-based displays, decorations and adornments to their premises for the duration of the festival.

    Councillor Martin Greig, culture spokesperson for Aberdeen City Council, said: “Our one-off grants to local businesses are intended to make the city and the city centre even more vibrant during the period of the Spectra displays. This has become a very popular annual event and we want the business community to benefit as much as possible from the increased footfall.

    “Last year there were over 100,000 visitors to the festival over the four days. Businesses are invited to consider how they can use the Council’s special grant scheme to take advantage of the increased footfall, for example, they could apply to extend opening hours or find other ways of attracting customers. It will be a splendid celebration hence it is important to take the interests of traders into account.”

    Applicants are advised to read the Application Guidance in full. Any questions should be emailed to the project team at BusinessSupport@aberdeencity.gov.uk

    The application form can be found here.

    Applications will be accepted until 28 February 2025 or until such time as funding has been fully allocated. Retrospective bids will be considered providing they are able to provide evidence that money spent was explicitly tied to the Spectra festival.

    All complete applications received will be assessed and verified against the eligibility criteria by Aberdeen City Council. Incomplete applications may not be reviewed.

    Successful applicants will be informed by offer letter. All decisions will be made at the discretion of Aberdeen City Council and are subject to the availability of funds.

    This scheme has been funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

    For more information on Spectra 2025 and to sign up for the latest news and offers go to www.spectraaberdeen.com

    Information about grants available to businesses to host and support other events in the city is available here. 

    ENESS – Sky Castle – a dreamy, interactive sound and light installation, featuring a cluster of inflatable arches that span in colourful symphony across public space.  It will be located in Union Terrace Gardens during Spectra 2025. Image by Gavin Jowitt photography. 

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Council motion supports extension to lifespan of power stations Lancaster City Council has welcomed the recent decision to extend the operating lifespan of Heysham’s two nuclear power stations.

    Source: City of Lancaster

    Lancaster City Council has welcomed the recent decision to extend the operating lifespan of Heysham’s two nuclear power stations.

    Heysham One

    At a recent meeting of Full Council, the following motion was passed:

    This Council welcomes last month’s announcement that following a detailed technical review of the power stations, EDF’s licensee board has decided to extend generation dates for Heysham 1 by one year to 2027 and Heysham 2 by two years to 2030.

    This decision is great news for Heysham and the wider local community. The power stations are a provider of high skill, high wage jobs, and the extension of the generating life of the power stations secures employment for more than 1,500 staff and contractors. The power stations are anchor institutions, with supply chains and spending power boosting the local economy. They are also a major source of business rate revenue for the Council, whose significant contributions help secure a higher standard of local services and protect more Council jobs than would otherwise be possible.

    This decision is also excellent news nationally. Extending the generating lives of the Heysham stations will bolster the UK’s security of supply and support plans for the rapid expansion of renewables by helping to maintain grid stability. Nuclear power is a low carbon source of energy, and a key element of the Government’s strategy to provide clean power by 2030.   Ensuring the baseload with nuclear power also helps limit the UK’s dependence on imported gas, a regrettable situation which has caused an energy crisis and led to inflated household bills.

    Council has confidence in the safety considerations underpinning this decision. We note that ongoing generation from the stations will ultimately depend not on decisions by EDF, but on the outcome of future inspections, the results of which are reviewed by the independent regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation.  

    Looking to the future, Council notes that Heysham is a location earmarked by the Government for the potential siting of one or more Small Modular Reactors (SMR), that EDF is an approved development partner for these new technologies, and that the first reactors of this type are intended to be delivered by 2029. Council supports bringing ‘New Nuclear’ to Heysham and welcomes the continuation of the benefits this would bring to both our residents and the rest of the UK.

    Council resolves that:

    1. The Chief Executive will write to the Secretary” of State for Energy and Climate Change, Cat Smith MP and Lizzi Collinge MP, welcoming the generating life extensions to Heysham 1 & 2, and conveying our support for bringing New Nuclear to Heysham and a timeline for this project to achieve, so we can plan for the future engineers and the stability of the Council.
       
    2. That we publicise these views via our various communications channels.
       
    3. That a full response to any consultation on New Nuclear is prepared on behalf of the Council by Business Committee at the appropriate time.

    Last updated: 28 January 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: CareCloud to Present at The Microcap Conference 2025

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Somerset, NJ, Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CareCloud, Inc. (the “Company”) (Nasdaq: CCLD, CCLDO, CCLDP), a leading provider of healthcare technology and generative AI solutions for medical practices and health systems nationwide, is pleased to announce its participation in The Microcap Conference 2025, the premier event for growth-focused companies and investors. The conference will take place January 28-30, 2025 at the Borgata Hotel Spa & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ.

    CareCloud’s management team will deliver a corporate presentation highlighting the Company’s recent developments, innovative solutions, and strategic growth initiatives. Additionally, the team will participate in one-on-one meetings with institutional and individual investors to explore opportunities and discuss CareCloud’s roadmap for continued growth and value creation.

    “We are excited to discuss CareCloud’s many recent milestones, including the imminent resumption of our Preferred Stock dividends in February 2025, the overwhelming support we received from shareholders in our most recent proxy to increase our authorized common shares, and our strong profitability growth during 2024,” said Stephen Snyder, Co-CEO of CareCloud. “These achievements, together with our stock performance over the last year, reflect investor confidence in our strategy and execution.”

    About The Microcap Conference 2025

    The Microcap Conference is the largest independent microcap event in the U.S., bringing together top-tier investors and executives from growth-oriented companies. The event provides an unparalleled platform for companies to showcase their value propositions through corporate presentations, expert panels, and networking opportunities.

    The 2025 conference highlights include:

    • Keynote Speakers: Renowned industry leaders, including Jon Ledecky, Co-Owner of the New York Islanders, and Tom Gardner, CEO of Motley Fool, will share their insights on investing and market trends.
    • Expert Panels and Presentations: Financial commentators Ron Insana (CNBC) and Charlie Gasparino (FOX Business) will cover pressing topics, including capital formation, regulatory updates, and equity market trends.
    • Entertainment Headliner: Comedian and Netflix star Tom Papa will headline an evening performance, adding a touch of entertainment to the event.

    Hosted by DealFlow Events, The Microcap Conference is celebrated for combining high-quality financial insights with engaging networking and entertainment experiences. For more information, visit The Microcap Conference.

    About CareCloud

    CareCloud brings disciplined innovation to the business of healthcare. Our suite of technology-enabled solutions helps clients increase financial and operational performance, streamline clinical workflows and improve the patient experience. More than 40,000 providers count on CareCloud to help them improve patient care, while reducing administrative burdens and operating costs. Learn more about our products and services, including revenue cycle management (RCM), practice management (PM), electronic health records (EHR), business intelligence, patient experience management (PXM) and digital health at www.carecloud.com.

    To listen to video presentations by CareCloud’s management team, read recent press releases and view our latest investor presentation, please visit ir.carecloud.com.

    Follow CareCloud on LinkedIn, X and Facebook.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains various forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to anticipated future events, future results of operations or future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “shall,” “should,” “could,” “intends,” “expects,” “plans,” “goals,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “predicts,” “possible,” “potential,” “target,” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.

    Our operations involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside our control, and any one of which, or a combination of which, could materially affect our results of operations and whether the forward-looking statements ultimately prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, without limitation, statements reflecting management’s expectations for future financial performance and operating expenditures, expected growth, profitability and business outlook, the impact of pandemics on our financial performance and business activities, and the expected results from the integration of our acquisitions.

    These forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our (or our industry’s) actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of the risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements, including without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to the Company’s ability to manage growth, migrate newly acquired customers and retain new and existing customers, maintain cost-effective global operations, increase operational efficiency and reduce operating costs, predict and properly adjust to changes in reimbursement and other industry regulations and trends, retain the services of key personnel, develop new technologies, upgrade and adapt legacy and acquired technologies to work with evolving industry standards, compete with other companies’ products and services competitive with ours, and other important risks and uncertainties referenced and discussed under the heading titled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

    The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, even if subsequently made available by the Company on its website or otherwise. The Company does not assume any obligations to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

    SOURCE CareCloud

    Company Contact:
    Norman Roth
    Interim Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Controller
    CareCloud, Inc.
    nroth@carecloud.com

    Investor Contact:
    Stephen Snyder
    Co-Chief Executive Officer
    CareCloud, Inc.
    ir@carecloud.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Capital City Bank Group, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter 2024 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Capital City Bank Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: CCBG) today reported net income attributable to common shareowners of $13.1 million, or $0.77 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $13.1 million, or $0.77 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2024, and $11.7 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2023.

    For the full year of 2024, net income attributable to common shareowners totaled $52.9 million, or $3.12 per diluted share, compared to net income of $52.3 million, or $3.07 per diluted share, for the same period of 2023.

    QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS (4thQuarter 2024 versus 3rdQuarter 2024)

    Income Statement

    • Tax-equivalent net interest income totaled $41.2 million compared to $40.3 million for the prior quarter
      • Net interest margin increased 5 basis points to 4.17% (total deposit costs down 6 basis points partially offset by a 1 basis point decrease in earning asset yield).
    • Stable credit quality metrics and credit loss provision – net loan charge-offs were 25 basis points (annualized) of average loans – allowance coverage ratio was 1.10% at December 31, 2024
    • Noninterest income decreased $0.8 million, or 3.9%, driven by lower mortgage banking revenues
    • Noninterest expense decreased $1.1 million, or 2.7%, primarily due to lower other expense which included a gain from the sale of a banking office

    Balance Sheet

    • Loan balances decreased $16.1 million, or 0.6% (average), and $31.5 million, or 1.2% (end of period)
    • Deposit balances increased $28.4 million, or 0.8% (average), and increased $92.9 million, or 2.6% (end of period), reflective of the seasonal increase in public fund balances
    • Tangible book value per share increased $1.05, or 4.6%, due in part to a favorable year-end re-measurement adjustment for the pension plan ($0.60 per diluted share)

    FULL YEAR 2024 HIGHLIGHTS

    Income Statement

    • Tax-equivalent net interest income totaled $159.2 million for 2024 compared to $159.4 million for 2023 driven by higher yields across our earning assets, partially offset by higher deposit cost which was well controlled at 89 basis points for the year – net interest margin was 4.08% for 2024 compared to 4.05% for 2023
    • Credit quality metrics remained strong throughout the year – allowance coverage ratio remained stable at 1.10% – net loan charge-offs were 21 basis points of average loans for 2024 versus 18 basis points for 2023
    • Noninterest income increased $4.4 million, or 6.1%, driven by higher mortgage banking revenues and wealth management fees
    • Noninterest expense increased $8.3 million, or 5.3%, primarily due to higher compensation expense reflective of higher incentive compensation, merit raises, and higher health insurance costs

    Balance Sheet

    • Loan balances increased $50.1 million, or 1.9% (average), and decreased $82.4 million, or 3.0% (end of period)
    • Deposit balances decreased $72.2 million, or 2.0% (average), and decreased $29.8 million, or 0.8% (end of period)
    • Tangible book value per share increased $3.20, or 15.6%, driven by strong earnings and favorable investment security and pension plan accumulated other comprehensive loss adjustments

    “In 2024, we delivered record earnings and advanced our commitment to creating shareholder value, which is demonstrated by a 15.6% increase in tangible book value per share, a 15.8% increase in the dividend, and the repurchase of 83,000 shares,” said William G. Smith, Jr., President, Chairman and CEO of Capital City Bank Group. “Our associates also earned us recognition for the 12th consecutive year as one of the best banks to work for—an achievement that underscores the strength of our organization and the core values we embrace. We remain focused on soundness, profitability, growth, and making strategic investments that add long-term value. Our fortress balance sheet, diversified revenues, and growth markets together position us well for 2025 and beyond.”

    Discussion of Operating Results

    Net Interest Income/Net Interest Margin

    Tax-equivalent net interest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 totaled $41.2 million, compared to $40.3 million for the third quarter of 2024, and $39.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. For 2024, tax-equivalent net interest income totaled $159.2 million compared to $159.4 million for 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the increase reflected higher investment securities interest due to new investment purchases at higher yields, in addition to lower deposit interest expense, partially offset by lower loan interest due to lower balances. Compared to 2023, the slight decrease reflected an increase in deposit interest expense and a decrease in investment securities interest that was offset by increases in loan interest and overnight funds interest.

    Our net interest margin for the fourth quarter of 2024 was 4.17%, an increase of five basis points over the third quarter of 2024 and an increase of 10 basis points over the fourth quarter of 2023. For the month of December 2024, our net interest margin was 4.18%. For 2024, our net interest margin was 4.08%, an increase of three basis points over 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the increase reflected higher yield in the investment portfolio driven by new purchases during the quarter, in addition to lower deposit interest expense. The increase over 2023 reflected a combination of earning assets re-pricing at higher interest rates and higher average loan balances, partially offset by a higher cost of deposits. For the fourth quarter of 2024, our cost of funds was 88 basis points, a decrease of five basis points from the third quarter of 2024 and an increase of 15 basis points over the fourth quarter of 2023. Our total cost of deposits (including noninterest bearing accounts) was 86 basis points, 92 basis points, and 66 basis points, respectively, for the same periods.

    Provision for Credit Losses

    We recorded a provision expense for credit losses of $0.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $1.2 million for the third quarter of 2024 and $2.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the provision expense reflected a $0.8 million decrease in the provision for loans held for investment (“HFI”) and a $0.3 million decrease in the provision benefit for unfunded loan commitments. The decrease in the provision for loans HFI was primarily due to lower loan balances and slightly lower loss rates.

    For 2024, we recorded a provision expense for credit losses of $4.0 million compared to $9.7 million for 2023. The decrease reflected a $4.5 million decrease in the provision for loans HFI and a $1.2 million decrease in the provision for unfunded loan commitments. The decrease in the provision for loans HFI was primarily due to lower new loan volume and loan balances in 2024 and favorable loan grade migration. The decrease in the provision for unfunded loan commitments reflected a lower level of loan commitments. We discuss the allowance for credit losses further below.

    Noninterest Income and Noninterest Expense

    Noninterest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 totaled $18.8 million compared to $19.5 million for the third quarter of 2024 and $17.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the $0.7 million decrease from the third quarter of 2024 reflected a $0.8 million decrease in mortgage banking revenues attributable to lower production volume and a $0.3 million decrease in deposit fees that was partially offset by a $0.4 million increase in wealth management fees, primarily from retail brokerage. The $1.6 million increase over the fourth quarter of 2023 was driven by higher mortgage banking revenues of $0.8 million driven by a higher gain on sale margin and wealth management fees of $0.9 million, primarily from retail brokerage and to a lesser extent trust.

    For 2024, noninterest income totaled $76.0 million compared to $71.6 million for 2023, primarily attributable to a $3.9 million increase in mortgage banking revenues and a $2.8 million increase in wealth management fees, partially offset by a $2.2 million decrease in other income. The increase in mortgage banking revenues was due to a higher gain on sale margin. The increase in wealth management fees was primarily driven by higher retail brokerage fees and to a lesser extent trust fees, primarily attributable to both new account growth and higher account values driven by higher market returns. The decrease in other income was primarily attributable to a $1.4 million gain from the sale of mortgage servicing rights in 2023, and to a lesser extent a decrease in vendor bonus income and miscellaneous income.

    Noninterest expense for the fourth quarter of 2024 totaled $41.8 million compared to $42.9 million for the third quarter of 2024 and $40.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The $1.1 million decrease from the third quarter of 2024 was primarily attributable to lower other expense of $1.2 million and occupancy expense of $0.2 million that was partially offset by a $0.3 million increase in compensation expense. The decrease in other expense was primarily attributable to a $1.0 million decrease in other real estate expense driven by the sale of a banking office and lower miscellaneous expense of $0.5 million which reflected a non-routine VISA Class B swap payment in the third quarter of 2024. The decrease in occupancy expense reflected lower property tax and software license expense. The increase in compensation was driven by higher incentive plan compensation. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, the $1.8 million increase was driven by a $2.3 million increase in compensation expense that was partially offset by a $0.2 million decrease in occupancy expense and a $0.3 million decrease in other expense. The unfavorable variance in compensation expense reflected a $1.4 million increase in salary expense and a $0.9 million increase in other benefit expense with the salary expense driven by higher incentive compensation and merit adjustments and the associate benefit expense reflective of higher health insurance cost.

    For 2024, noninterest expense totaled $165.3 million compared to $157.0 million for 2023, primarily attributable to increases in compensation expense of $6.9 million, occupancy expense of $0.3 million, and other expense of $1.1 million. The increase in compensation reflected a $5.4 million increase in salary expense and a $1.6 million increase in other associate benefit expense. The increase in salary expense was primarily due to a lower level of realized loan cost (credit offset to salary expense) of $3.1 million (lower new loan volume), higher base salary expense of $2.2 million (primarily annual merit raises), and a $1.2 million increase in cash incentive compensation that was partially offset by lower commission expense of $1.4 million (lower residential mortgage volume). The unfavorable variance in other associate benefit expense was due to a $0.9 million increase in associate insurance cost and a $0.6 million increase in stock compensation expense. The increase in occupancy expense was attributable to increases in software license and maintenance agreement expenses. The increase in other expense was driven by a $1.1 million increase in other real estate expense and a $1.4 million increase in processing expense that was partially offset by a $1.4 million decrease in miscellaneous expense. The increase in other real estate expense reflected a lower level of gains from the sale of banking offices in 2024. The increase in processing expense reflected both inflationary increases on contract renewals and the outsourcing of our core processing system. The decrease in miscellaneous expense was attributable to lower pension plan expense for the non-service related component of the plan.

    Income Taxes

    We realized income tax expense of $4.2 million (effective rate of 24.3%) for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $3.0 million (effective rate of 19.1%) for the third quarter of 2024 and $2.9 million (effective rate of 20.3%) for the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the increase in our effective tax rate was attributable to a lower than projected level of pre-tax income from Capital City Home Loans (“CCHL”) in relation to our consolidated income as the non-controlling interest adjustment for CCHL is accounted for as a permanent tax adjustment. Further, we realized a higher than projected Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) Section 162(m) limitation related to current and future compensation. For 2024, we realized income tax expense of $13.9 million (effective rate of 21.2%) compared to $13.0 million (effective rate of 20.4%) for 2023 with the increase in the effective tax rate primarily attributable to a higher IRC Section 162(m) limitation and lower tax-exempt interest income. Absent discrete items or new tax credit investments, we expect our annual effective tax rate to approximate 24% for 2025.

    Discussion of Financial Condition

    Earning Assets

    Average earning assets totaled $3.922 billion for the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of $38.5 million, or 1.0 %, over the third quarter of 2024, and an increase of $97.9 million, or 2.6%, over the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase over both prior periods was primarily driven by higher deposit balances (see below – Deposits). Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the change in earning asset mix was primarily attributable to a $41.4 million increase in short term investments (overnight funds sold), a $6.7 million increase in investment securities, and $6.5 million increase in loans held for sale, partially offset by a $16.1 million decrease in loans HFI. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, the change in earning asset mix reflected a $198.4 million increase in short term investments (overnight funds sold) that was partially offset by a $48.0 million decrease in investment securities, a $33.8 million decrease in loans HFI, and a $18.7 million decrease in loans held for sale.

    Average loans HFI for the fourth quarter of 2024 decreased $16.1 million, or 0.6%, from the third quarter of 2024 and decreased $33.8 million, or 1.3%, from the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the decline was primarily attributable to decreases in consumer loans (primarily indirect auto) of $18.3 million and commercial mortgage real estate loans of $24.1 million, partially offset by increases in construction real estate loans of $13.1 million, and residential real estate loans of $11.6 million. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, the decrease was driven by decreases in consumer loans (primarily indirect auto) of $72.8 million, commercial loans of $30.2 million, and commercial mortgage real estate loans of $25.3 million, partially offset by increases in residential real estate loans of $70.8 million, construction real estate loans of $16.6 million, and home equity loans of $10.2 million.

    Loans HFI at December 31, 2024 decreased $31.5 million, or 1.2%, from September 30, 2024 and decreased $82.4 million, or 3.0%, from December 31, 2023. Compared to September 30, 2024, the decrease was driven by decreases in commercial mortgage real estate loans of $40.9 million, consumer loans (primarily indirect auto) of $13.8 million, and commercial loans of $5.4 million, partially offset by increases in home equity loans of $9.1 million, other loans of $13.5 million, and residential real estate loans of $5.0 million. Compared to December 31, 2023, the decrease was primarily attributable to decreases in consumer loans (primarily indirect auto) of $71.5 million, commercial mortgage real estate loans of $46.4 million, and commercial loans of $36.0 million, partially offset by increases in residential real estate loans of $27.2 million, construction real estate loans of $23.9 million, and home equity loans of $9.1 million.

    Allowance for Credit Losses

    At December 31, 2024, the allowance for credit losses for loans HFI totaled $29.3 million compared to $29.8 million at September 30, 2024 and $29.9 million at December 31, 2023. Activity within the allowance is provided on Page 9. The decreases in the allowance from September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023 were primarily attributable to lower loan balances and favorable loan migration. Net loan charge-offs were 25 basis points of average loans for the fourth quarter of 2024 versus 19 basis points for the third quarter of 2024. For 2024, net loan charge-offs were 21 basis points of average loans compared to 18 basis points in 2023. At December 31, 2024, the allowance represented 1.10% of loans HFI compared to 1.11% at September 30, 2024, and 1.10% at December 31, 2023.

    Credit Quality

    Nonperforming assets (nonaccrual loans and other real estate) totaled $6.7 million at December 31, 2024 compared to $7.2 million at September 30, 2024 and $6.2 million at December 31, 2023. At December 31, 2024, nonperforming assets as a percent of total assets equaled 0.15%, compared to 0.17% at September 30, 2024 and 0.15% at December 31, 2023. Nonaccrual loans totaled $6.3 million at December 31, 2024, a $0.3 million decrease from September 30, 2024 and a $0.1 million increase over December 31, 2023. Further, classified loans totaled $19.9 million at December 31, 2024, a $5.6 million decrease from September 30, 2024 and a $2.3 million decrease from December 31, 2023.

    Deposits

    Average total deposits were $3.600 billion for the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of $28.4 million, or 0.8%, over the third quarter of 2024 and an increase of $51.9 million, or 1.5%, over the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the increase was primarily attributable to higher NOW account balances which reflected the seasonal inflow of public funds from municipal clients as they receive their tax receipts beginning in late November. The increase over the fourth quarter of 2023 reflected higher NOW, MMA, and certificates of deposit (“CD”) balances that were partially offset by decreases in noninterest bearing and savings balances. During 2024, we realized a re-mix in deposits as rate sensitive clients sought higher yield deposit products. Average core deposit balances (total deposits less public funds) increased $20.3 million over the third quarter of 2024 and $28.4 million over the fourth quarter of 2023.

    At December 31, 2024, total deposits were $3.672 billion, an increase of $92.9 million, or 2.6%, over September 30, 2024 and a decrease of $29.8 million, or 0.8%, from December 31, 2023. Compared to the third quarter of 2024, the increase was primarily due to a $110.7 million increase in NOW account balances which reflected the aforementioned seasonal inflow of public funds balances. The decrease from the fourth quarter of 2023 was driven by lower noninterest bearing, NOW, and savings account balances that were partially offset by higher MMA and CD balances which reflected the aforementioned re-mix in balances during 2024. Core deposit balances (total deposits less public funds) decreased $50.3 million from the third quarter of 2024 and increased $21.9 million over the fourth quarter of 2023.

    Liquidity

    The Bank maintained an average net overnight funds (deposits with banks plus FED funds sold less FED funds purchased) sold position of $298.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $256.9 million in the third quarter of 2024 and $99.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to both prior periods, the increases reflected growth in average core and public fund deposit balances.

    At December 31, 2024, we had the ability to generate approximately $1.535 billion (excludes overnight funds position of $321 million) in additional liquidity through various sources including various federal funds purchased lines, Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings, the Federal Reserve Discount Window, and brokered deposits.

    We also view our investment portfolio as a liquidity source and have the option to pledge securities in our portfolio as collateral for borrowings or deposits, and/or to sell selected securities. Our portfolio consists of debt issued by the U.S. Treasury, U.S. governmental agencies, municipal governments, and corporate entities. At December 31, 2024, the weighted-average maturity and duration of our portfolio were 2.54 years and 2.19 years, respectively, and the available-for-sale portfolio had a net unrealized after-tax loss of $19.2 million.

    Capital

    Shareowners’ equity was $495.3 million at December 31, 2024 compared to $476.5 million at September 30, 2024 and $440.6 million at December 31, 2023. For the fourth quarter of 2024, shareowners’ equity was positively impacted by net income attributable to common shareowners of $13.1 million, a net $7.6 million decrease in the accumulated other comprehensive loss, the issuance of stock of $0.9 million, stock compensation accretion of $0.7 million, and a $0.4 million reclassification from temporary equity (concurrent with the agreement to assign the minority membership interest (49%) in Capital City Home Loans, LLC, temporary equity was reclassified to other liabilities and included a $0.4 million net credit to retained earnings to account for the difference between the fair value and the book value of the minority interest). The net favorable change in accumulated other comprehensive loss reflected a $10.1 million decrease in the pension plan loss from the year-end re-measurement of the plan and a $0.7 million increase in the fair value of the interest rate swap related to subordinated debt, that was partially offset by a $3.2 million increase in the investment securities loss. Shareowners’ equity was reduced by common stock dividends of $3.9 million ($0.23 per share).

    For the full year 2024, shareowners’ equity was positively impacted by net income attributable to common shareowners of $52.9 million, a net $15.7 million decrease in the accumulated other comprehensive loss, the issuance of stock of $3.1 million, and stock compensation accretion of $1.9 million. The net favorable change in accumulated other comprehensive loss reflected a $10.1 million decrease in the pension plan loss from the year-end re-measurement of the plan and a $5.6 million decrease in the investment securities loss. Shareowners’ equity was reduced by common stock dividends of $14.9 million ($0.88 per share), the repurchase of stock of $2.3 million (82,540 shares), net adjustments totaling $1.4 million related to transactions under our stock compensation plans, and a $0.3 million reclassification from temporary equity.

    At December 31, 2024, our total risk-based capital ratio was 18.77% compared to 17.97% at September 30, 2024 and 16.57% at December 31, 2023. Our common equity tier 1 capital ratio was 15.64%, 14.88%, and 13.52%, respectively, on these dates. Our leverage ratio was 11.05%, 10.89%, and 10.30%, respectively, on these dates. At December 31, 2024, all our regulatory capital ratios exceeded the thresholds to be designated as “well-capitalized” under the Basel III capital standards. Further, our tangible common equity ratio was 9.55% at December 31, 2024 compared to 9.28% and 8.26% at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. If our unrealized held-to-maturity securities losses of $16.0 million (after-tax) were recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss, our adjusted tangible capital ratio would be 9.17%.

    About Capital City Bank Group, Inc.

    Capital City Bank Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: CCBG) is one of the largest publicly traded financial holding companies headquartered in Florida and has approximately $4.3 billion in assets. We provide a full range of banking services, including traditional deposit and credit services, mortgage banking, asset management, trust, merchant services, bankcards, securities brokerage services and financial advisory services, including the sale of life insurance, risk management and asset protection services. Our bank subsidiary, Capital City Bank, was founded in 1895 and now has 63 banking offices and 104 ATMs/ITMs in Florida, Georgia and Alabama. For more information about Capital City Bank Group, Inc., visit www.ccbg.com.

    FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

    Forward-looking statements in this Press Release are based on current plans and expectations that are subject to uncertainties and risks, which could cause our future results to differ materially. The words “may,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “target,” “vision,” “goal,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The following factors, among others, could cause our actual results to differ: our ability to successfully manage credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, and other risks inherent to our industry; the effects of changes in the level of checking or savings account deposits and the competition for deposits on our funding costs, net interest margin and ability to replace maturing deposits and advances; legislative or regulatory changes; adverse developments in the financial services industry generally; inflation, interest rate, market and monetary fluctuations; uncertainty in the pricing of residential mortgage loans that we sell, as well as competition for the mortgage servicing rights related to these loans; interest rate risk and price risk resulting from retaining mortgage servicing rights and the effects of higher interest rates on our loan origination volumes; changes in monetary and fiscal policies of the U.S. Government; the cost and effects of cybersecurity incidents or other failures, interruptions, or security breaches of our systems or those of our customers or third-party providers; the effects of fraud related to debit card products; the accuracy of our financial statement estimates and assumptions; changes in accounting principles, policies, practices or guidelines; the frequency and magnitude of foreclosure of our loans; the effects of our lack of a diversified loan portfolio; the strength of the local economies in which we operate; our ability to declare and pay dividends; structural changes in the markets for origination, sale and servicing of residential mortgages; our ability to retain key personnel; the effects of natural disasters (including hurricanes), widespread health emergencies (including pandemics), military conflict, terrorism, civil unrest or other geopolitical events; our ability to comply with the extensive laws and regulations to which we are subject; the impact of the restatement of our previously issued consolidated statements of cash flows and any deficiencies in the processes undertaken to effect such restatements; any inability to implement and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting and/or disclosure control or inability to remediate our existing material weaknesses in our internal controls deemed ineffective; the willingness of clients to accept third-party products and services rather than our products and services; technological changes; the outcomes of litigation or regulatory proceedings; negative publicity and the impact on our reputation; changes in consumer spending and saving habits; growth and profitability of our noninterest income; the limited trading activity of our common stock; the concentration of ownership of our common stock; anti-takeover provisions under federal and state law as well as our Articles of Incorporation and our Bylaws; other risks described from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and our ability to manage the risks involved in the foregoing. Additional factors can be found in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, as amended, and our other filings with the SEC, which are available at the SEC’s internet site (http://www.sec.gov). Forward-looking statements in this Press Release speak only as of the date of the Press Release, and we assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements or the reasons why actual results could differ, except as may be required by law.

    USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
    Unaudited

    We present a tangible common equity ratio and a tangible book value per diluted share that removes the effect of goodwill and other intangibles resulting from merger and acquisition activity. We believe these measures are useful to investors because it allows investors to more easily compare our capital adequacy to other companies in the industry.

    The GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliations are provided below.

    (Dollars in Thousands, except per share data) Dec 31, 2024 Sep 30, 2024 Jun 30, 2024 Mar 31, 2024 Dec 31, 2023
    Shareowners’ Equity (GAAP)   $ 495,317   $ 476,499   $ 460,999   $ 448,314   $ 440,625  
    Less: Goodwill and Other Intangibles (GAAP)     92,773     92,813     92,853     92,893     92,933  
    Tangible Shareowners’ Equity (non-GAAP) A   402,544     383,686     368,146     355,421     347,692  
    Total Assets (GAAP)     4,307,142     4,225,316     4,225,695     4,259,922     4,304,477  
    Less: Goodwill and Other Intangibles (GAAP)     92,773     92,813     92,853     92,893     92,933  
    Tangible Assets (non-GAAP) B $ 4,214,369   $ 4,132,503   $ 4,132,842   $ 4,167,029   $ 4,211,544  
    Tangible Common Equity Ratio (non-GAAP) A/B   9.55 %   9.28 %   8.91 %   8.53 %   8.26 %
    Actual Diluted Shares Outstanding (GAAP) C   17,018,122     16,980,686     16,970,228     16,947,204     17,000,758  
    Tangible Book Value per Diluted Share (non-GAAP) A/C $ 23.65   $ 22.60   $ 21.69   $ 20.97   $ 20.45  
    CAPITAL CITY BANK GROUP, INC.                      
    EARNINGS HIGHLIGHTS                      
    Unaudited                      
                           
        Three Months Ended   Twelve Months Ended  
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   Dec 31, 2024   Sep 30, 2024   Dec 31, 2023   Dec 31, 2024   Dec 31, 2023  
    EARNINGS                      
    Net Income Attributable to Common Shareowners $ 13,090 $ 13,118 $ 11,720   52,915 $ 52,258  
    Diluted Net Income Per Share $ 0.77 $ 0.77 $ 0.70   3.12 $ 3.07  
    PERFORMANCE                      
    Return on Average Assets (annualized)   1.22 % 1.24 % 1.12 % 1.25 % 1.22 %
    Return on Average Equity (annualized)   10.60   10.87   10.69   11.18   12.40  
    Net Interest Margin   4.17   4.12   4.07   4.08   4.05  
    Noninterest Income as % of Operating Revenue   31.34   32.67   30.46   32.34   31.05  
    Efficiency Ratio   69.74 % 71.81 % 70.82 % 70.30 % 67.99 %
    CAPITAL ADEQUACY                      
    Tier 1 Capital   17.58 % 16.77 % 15.37 % 17.58 % 15.37 %
    Total Capital   18.77   17.97   16.57   18.77   16.57  
    Leverage   11.05   10.89   10.30   11.05   10.30  
    Common Equity Tier 1   15.64   14.88   13.52   15.64   13.52  
    Tangible Common Equity (1)   9.55   9.28   8.26   9.55   8.26  
    Equity to Assets   11.50 % 11.28 % 10.24 % 11.50 % 10.24 %
    ASSET QUALITY                      
    Allowance as % of Non-Performing Loans   464.14 % 452.64 % 479.70 % 464.14 % 479.70 %
    Allowance as a % of Loans HFI   1.10   1.11   1.10   1.10   1.10  
    Net Charge-Offs as % of Average Loans HFI   0.25   0.19   0.23   0.21   0.18  
    Nonperforming Assets as % of Loans HFI and OREO   0.25   0.27   0.23   0.25   0.23  
    Nonperforming Assets as % of Total Assets   0.15 % 0.17 % 0.15 % 0.15 % 0.15 %
    STOCK PERFORMANCE                      
    High $ 40.86 $ 36.67 $ 32.56   40.86 $ 36.86  
    Low   33.00   26.72   26.12   25.45   26.12  
    Close $ 36.65 $ 35.29 $ 29.43   36.65 $ 29.43  
    Average Daily Trading Volume   27,484   37,151   33,297   31,390   33,775  
                           
    (1) Tangible common equity ratio is a non-GAAP financial measure. For additional information, including a reconciliation to GAAP, refer to Page 7.        
                           
    CAPITAL CITY BANK GROUP, INC.                    
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL CONDITION            
    Unaudited                    
                         
      2024
    		 2023
    (Dollars in thousands) Fourth Quarter   Third Quarter   Second Quarter   First Quarter   Fourth Quarter
    ASSETS                    
    Cash and Due From Banks $ 70,543   $ 83,431   $ 75,304   $ 73,642   $ 83,118  
    Funds Sold and Interest Bearing Deposits   321,311     261,779     272,675     231,047     228,949  
    Total Cash and Cash Equivalents   391,854     345,210     347,979     304,689     312,067  
                         
    Investment Securities Available for Sale   403,345     336,187     310,941     327,338     337,902  
    Investment Securities Held to Maturity   567,155     561,480     582,984     603,386     625,022  
    Other Equity Securities   2,399     6,976     2,537     3,445     3,450  
    Total Investment Securities   972,899     904,643     896,462     934,169     966,374  
                         
    Loans Held for Sale   28,672     31,251     24,022     24,705     28,211  
                         
    Loans Held for Investment (“HFI”):                    
    Commercial, Financial, & Agricultural   189,208     194,625     204,990     218,298     225,190  
    Real Estate – Construction   219,994     218,899     200,754     202,692     196,091  
    Real Estate – Commercial   779,095     819,955     823,122     823,690     825,456  
    Real Estate – Residential   1,028,498     1,023,485     1,012,541     1,012,791     1,001,257  
    Real Estate – Home Equity   220,064     210,988     211,126     214,617     210,920  
    Consumer   199,479     213,305     234,212     254,168     270,994  
    Other Loans   14,006     461     2,286     3,789     2,962  
    Overdrafts   1,206     1,378     1,192     1,127     1,048  
    Total Loans Held for Investment   2,651,550     2,683,096     2,690,223     2,731,172     2,733,918  
    Allowance for Credit Losses   (29,251 )   (29,836 )   (29,219 )   (29,329 )   (29,941 )
    Loans Held for Investment, Net   2,622,299     2,653,260     2,661,004     2,701,843     2,703,977  
                         
    Premises and Equipment, Net   81,952     81,876     81,414     81,452     81,266  
    Goodwill and Other Intangibles   92,773     92,813     92,853     92,893     92,933  
    Other Real Estate Owned   367     650     650     1     1  
    Other Assets   116,326     115,613     121,311     120,170     119,648  
    Total Other Assets   291,418     290,952     296,228     294,516     293,848  
    Total Assets $ 4,307,142   $ 4,225,316   $ 4,225,695   $ 4,259,922   $ 4,304,477  
    LIABILITIES                    
    Deposits:                    
    Noninterest Bearing Deposits $ 1,306,254   $ 1,330,715   $ 1,343,606   $ 1,361,939   $ 1,377,934  
    NOW Accounts   1,285,281     1,174,585     1,177,180     1,212,452     1,327,420  
    Money Market Accounts   404,396     401,272     413,594     398,308     319,319  
    Savings Accounts   506,766     507,604     514,560     530,782     547,634  
    Certificates of Deposit   169,280     164,901     159,624     151,320     129,515  
    Total Deposits   3,671,977     3,579,077     3,608,564     3,654,801     3,701,822  
                         
    Repurchase Agreements   26,240     29,339     22,463     23,477     26,957  
    Other Short-Term Borrowings   2,064     7,929     3,307     8,409     8,384  
    Subordinated Notes Payable   52,887     52,887     52,887     52,887     52,887  
    Other Long-Term Borrowings   794     794     1,009     265     315  
    Other Liabilities   57,863     71,974     69,987     65,181     66,080  
    Total Liabilities   3,811,825     3,742,000     3,758,217     3,805,020     3,856,445  
                         
    Temporary Equity   –     6,817     6,479     6,588     7,407  
    SHAREOWNERS’ EQUITY                    
    Common Stock   170     169     169     169     170  
    Additional Paid-In Capital   37,684     36,070     35,547     34,861     36,326  
    Retained Earnings   463,949     454,342     445,959     435,364     426,275  
    Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss, Net of Tax   (6,486 )   (14,082 )   (20,676 )   (22,080 )   (22,146 )
    Total Shareowners’ Equity   495,317     476,499     460,999     448,314     440,625  
    Total Liabilities, Temporary Equity and Shareowners’ Equity $ 4,307,142   $ 4,225,316   $ 4,225,695   $ 4,259,922   $ 4,304,477  
    OTHER BALANCE SHEET DATA                    
    Earning Assets $ 3,974,431   $ 3,880,769   $ 3,883,382   $ 3,921,093   $ 3,957,452  
    Interest Bearing Liabilities   2,447,708     2,339,311     2,344,624     2,377,900     2,412,431  
    Book Value Per Diluted Share $ 29.11   $ 28.06   $ 27.17   $ 26.45   $ 25.92  
    Tangible Book Value Per Diluted Share(1)   23.65     22.60     21.69     20.97     20.45  
    Actual Basic Shares Outstanding   16,975     16,944     16,942     16,929     16,950  
    Actual Diluted Shares Outstanding   17,018     16,981     16,970     16,947     17,001  
    (1) Tangible book value per diluted share is a non-GAAP financial measure. For additional information, including a reconciliation to GAAP, refer to Page 7.
                                 
    CAPITAL CITY BANK GROUP, INC.                            
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS                      
    Unaudited                            
                                 
        2024   2023   Twelve Months Ended December 31,
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   Fourth Quarter   Third Quarter   Second Quarter   First Quarter   Fourth Quarter   2024   2023
    INTEREST INCOME                            
    Loans, including Fees $ 41,453   $ 41,659 $ 41,138 $ 40,683 $ 40,407 $ 164,933 $ 152,250
    Investment Securities   4,694     4,155   4,004   4,244   4,392   17,097   18,692
    Federal Funds Sold and Interest Bearing Deposits   3,596     3,514   3,624   1,893   1,385   12,627   10,126
    Total Interest Income   49,743     49,328   48,766   46,820   46,184   194,657   181,068
    INTEREST EXPENSE                            
    Deposits   7,766     8,223   8,579   7,594   5,872   32,162   17,582
    Repurchase Agreements   199     221   217   201   199   838   513
    Other Short-Term Borrowings   83     52   68   39   310   242   1,538
    Subordinated Notes Payable   581     610   630   628   627   2,449   2,427
    Other Long-Term Borrowings   11     11   3   3   5   28   20
    Total Interest Expense   8,640     9,117   9,497   8,465   7,013   35,719   22,080
    Net Interest Income   41,103     40,211   39,269   38,355   39,171   158,938   158,988
    Provision for Credit Losses   701     1,206   1,204   920   2,025   4,031   9,714
    Net Interest Income after Provision for Credit Losses   40,402     39,005   38,065   37,435   37,146   154,907   149,274
    NONINTEREST INCOME                            
    Deposit Fees   5,207     5,512   5,377   5,250   5,304   21,346   21,325
    Bank Card Fees   3,697     3,624   3,766   3,620   3,713   14,707   14,918
    Wealth Management Fees   5,222     4,770   4,439   4,682   4,276   19,113   16,337
    Mortgage Banking Revenues   3,118     3,966   4,381   2,878   2,327   14,343   10,400
    Other   1,516     1,641   1,643   1,667   1,537   6,467   8,630
    Total Noninterest Income   18,760     19,513   19,606   18,097   17,157   75,976   71,610
    NONINTEREST EXPENSE                            
    Compensation   26,108     25,800   24,406   24,407   23,822   100,721   93,787
    Occupancy, Net   6,893     7,098   6,997   6,994   7,098   27,982   27,660
    Other   8,781     10,023   9,038   8,770   9,038   36,612   35,576
    Total Noninterest Expense   41,782     42,921   40,441   40,171   39,958   165,315   157,023
    OPERATING PROFIT   17,380     15,597   17,230   15,361   14,345   65,568   63,861
    Income Tax Expense   4,219     2,980   3,189   3,536   2,909   13,924   13,040
    Net Income   13,161     12,617   14,041   11,825   11,436   51,644   50,821
    Pre-Tax Loss (Income) Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest   (71 )   501   109   732   284   1,271   1,437
    NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO
    COMMON SHAREOWNERS    		 $ 13,090   $ 13,118 $ 14,150 $ 12,557 $ 11,720 $ 52,915 $ 52,258
    PER COMMON SHARE                            
    Basic Net Income $ 0.77   $ 0.77 $ 0.84 $ 0.74 $ 0.69 $ 3.12 $ 3.08
    Diluted Net Income   0.77     0.77   0.83   0.74   0.70   3.12   3.07
    Cash Dividend $ 0.23   $ 0.23 $ 0.21 $ 0.21 $ 0.20 $ 0.88 $ 0.76
    AVERAGE SHARES                            
    Basic   16,946     16,943   16,931   16,951   16,947   16,943   16,987
    Diluted   16,990     16,979   16,960   16,969   16,997   16,969   17,023
    CAPITAL CITY BANK GROUP, INC.                            
    ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES (“ACL”)                        
    AND CREDIT QUALITY                            
    Unaudited                            
                                 
        2024
    		   2023   Twelve Months Ended December 31,
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   Fourth Quarter   Third Quarter   Second Quarter   First Quarter   Fourth Quarter   2024   2023
    ACL – HELD FOR INVESTMENT LOANS                            
    Balance at Beginning of Period $ 29,836   $ 29,219   $ 29,329   $ 29,941   $ 29,083   $ 29,941   $ 25,068  
    Transfer from Other Liabilities   –     –     –     (50 )   66     (50 )   66  
    Provision for Credit Losses   1,085     1,879     1,129     932     2,354     5,025     9,529  
    Net Charge-Offs (Recoveries)   1,670     1,262     1,239     1,494     1,562     5,665     4,722  
    Balance at End of Period $ 29,251   $ 29,836   $ 29,219   $ 29,329   $ 29,941   $ 29,251   $ 29,941  
    As a % of Loans HFI   1.10 %   1.11 %   1.09 %   1.07 %   1.10 %   1.10 %   1.10 %
    As a % of Nonperforming Loans   464.14 %   452.64 %   529.79 %   431.46 %   479.70 %   464.14 %   479.70 %
    ACL – UNFUNDED COMMITMENTS                            
    Balance at Beginning of Period   2,522   $ 3,139   $ 3,121   $ 3,191   $ 3,502   $ 3,191   $ 2,989  
    Provision for Credit Losses   (367 )   (617 )   18     (70 )   (311 )   (1,036 )   202  
    Balance at End of Period(1)   2,155     2,522     3,139     3,121     3,191     2,155     3,191  
    ACL – DEBT SECURITIES                            
    Provision for Credit Losses $ (17 ) $ (56 ) $ 57   $ 58   $ (18 ) $ 42   $ (17 )
    CHARGE-OFFS                            
    Commercial, Financial and Agricultural $ 499   $ 331   $ 400   $ 282   $ 217   $ 1,512   $ 511  
    Real Estate – Construction   47     –     –     –     –     47     –  
    Real Estate – Commercial   –     3     –     –     –     3     120  
    Real Estate – Residential   44     –     –     17     79     61     79  
    Real Estate – Home Equity   33     23     –     76     –     132     39  
    Consumer   1,307     1,315     1,061     1,550     1,689     5,233     5,754  
    Overdrafts   574     611     571     638     602     2,394     2,789  
    Total Charge-Offs $ 2,504   $ 2,283   $ 2,032   $ 2,563   $ 2,587   $ 9,382   $ 9,292  
    RECOVERIES                            
    Commercial, Financial and Agricultural $ 103   $ 176   $ 59   $ 41   $ 83   $ 379   $ 277  
    Real Estate – Construction   3     –     –     –     –     3     2  
    Real Estate – Commercial   33     5     19     204     16     261     52  
    Real Estate – Residential   28     88     23     37     34     176     253  
    Real Estate – Home Equity   17     59     37     24     17     137     226  
    Consumer   352     405     313     410     433     1,480     1,936  
    Overdrafts   298     288     342     353     442     1,281     1,824  
    Total Recoveries $ 834   $ 1,021   $ 793   $ 1,069   $ 1,025   $ 3,717   $ 4,570  
    NET CHARGE-OFFS (RECOVERIES) $ 1,670   $ 1,262   $ 1,239   $ 1,494   $ 1,562   $ 5,665   $ 4,722  
    Net Charge-Offs as a % of Average Loans HFI(2)   0.25 %   0.19 %   0.18 %   0.22 %   0.23 %   0.21 %   0.18 %
    CREDIT QUALITY                            
    Nonaccruing Loans $ 6,302   $ 6,592   $ 5,515   $ 6,798   $ 6,242          
    Other Real Estate Owned   367     650     650     1     1          
    Total Nonperforming Assets (“NPAs”) $ 6,669   $ 7,242   $ 6,165   $ 6,799   $ 6,243          
                                 
    Past Due Loans 30-89 Days $ 4,311   $ 9,388   $ 5,672   $ 5,392   $ 6,855          
    Classified Loans   19,896     25,501     25,566     22,305     22,203          
                                 
    Nonperforming Loans as a % of Loans HFI   0.24 %   0.25 %   0.21 %   0.25 %   0.23 %        
    NPAs as a % of Loans HFI and Other Real Estate   0.25 %   0.27 %   0.23 %   0.25 %   0.23 %        
    NPAs as a % of Total Assets   0.15 %   0.17 %   0.15 %   0.16 %   0.15 %        
                                 
    (1)Recorded in other liabilities                            
    (2)Annualized                            
    CAPITAL CITY BANK GROUP, INC.                                                                                        
    AVERAGE BALANCE AND INTEREST RATES                                                                                        
    Unaudited                                                                                                    
                                                                                                         
        Fourth Quarter 2024     Third Quarter 2024     Second Quarter 2024     First Quarter 2024     Fourth Quarter 2023       Full Year 2024     Full Year 2023  
    (Dollars in thousands)   Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		     Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		     Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		     Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		     Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		       Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		     Average
    Balance    		   Interest   Average
    Rate    		  
    ASSETS:                                                                                                    
    Loans Held for Sale $ 31,047   $ 976   7.89 % $ 24,570   $ 720   7.49 % $ 26,281   $ 517   5.26 % $ 27,314     563   5.99 % $ 49,790   $ 817   6.50 %   $ 27,306   $ 2,776   6.72 % $ 55,510   $ 3,232   5.82 %
    Loans Held for Investment(1)   2,677,396     40,521   6.07     2,693,533     40,985   6.09     2,726,748     40,683   6.03     2,728,629     40,196   5.95     2,711,243     39,679   5.81       2,706,461     162,385   6.03     2,656,394     149,366   5.62  
                                                                                                         
    Investment Securities                                                                                                    
    Taxable Investment Securities   914,353     4,688   2.04     907,610     4,148   1.82     918,989     3,998   1.74     952,328     4,239   1.78     962,322     4,389   1.81       923,253     17,073   1.85     1,016,550     18,652   1.83  
    Tax-Exempt Investment Securities(1)   849     9   4.31     846     10   4.33     843     9   4.36     856     9   4.34     862     7   4.32       848     37   4.34     2,199     59   2.68  
                                                                                                         
    Total Investment Securities   915,202     4,697   2.04     908,456     4,158   1.82     919,832     4,007   1.74     953,184     4,248   1.78     963,184     4,396   1.82       924,101     17,110   1.85     1,018,749     18,711   1.83  
                                                                                                         
    Federal Funds Sold and Interest Bearing Deposits   298,255     3,596   4.80     256,855     3,514   5.44     262,419     3,624   5.56     140,488     1,893   5.42     99,763     1,385   5.51       239,712     12,627   5.27     203,147     10,126   4.98  
                                                                                                         
    Total Earning Assets   3,921,900   $ 49,790   5.05 %   3,883,414   $ 49,377   5.06 %   3,935,280   $ 48,831   4.99 %   3,849,615   $ 46,900   4.90 %   3,823,980   $ 46,277   4.80 %     3,897,580   $ 194,898   5.00 %   3,933,800   $ 181,435   4.61 %
                                                                                                         
    Cash and Due From Banks   73,992               70,994               74,803               75,763               76,681                 73,881               75,786            
    Allowance for Credit Losses   (30,107 )             (29,905 )             (29,564 )             (30,030 )             (29,998 )               (29,902 )             (28,190 )          
    Other Assets   293,884               291,359               291,669               295,275               296,114                 293,044               297,290            
                                                                                                         
    Total Assets $ 4,259,669             $ 4,215,862             $ 4,272,188             $ 4,190,623             $ 4,166,777               $ 4,234,603             $ 4,278,686            
                                                                                                         
    LIABILITIES:                                                                                                    
    Noninterest Bearing Deposits $ 1,323,556             $ 1,332,305             $ 1,346,546             $ 1,344,188             $ 1,416,825               $ 1,336,601             $ 1,507,657            
    NOW Accounts   1,182,073   $ 3,826   1.29 %   1,145,544   $ 4,087   1.42 %   1,207,643   $ 4,425   1.47 %   1,201,032   $ 4,497   1.51 %   1,138,461   $ 3,696   1.29 %     1,183,962   $ 16,835   1.42 %   1,172,861   $ 12,375   1.06 %
    Money Market Accounts   422,615     2,526   2.38     418,625     2,694   2.56     407,387     2,752   2.72     353,591     1,985   2.26     318,844     1,421   1.77       400,664     9,957   2.49     299,581     3,670   1.22  
    Savings Accounts   504,859     179   0.14     512,098     180   0.14     519,374     176   0.14     539,374     188   0.14     557,579     202   0.14       518,869     723   0.14     592,033     598   0.10  
    Time Deposits   167,321     1,235   2.94     163,462     1,262   3.07     160,078     1,226   3.08     138,328     924   2.69     116,797     553   1.88       157,342     4,647   2.95     97,480     939   0.96  
    Total Interest Bearing Deposits   2,276,868     7,766   1.36     2,239,729     8,223   1.46     2,294,482     8,579   1.50     2,232,325     7,594   1.37     2,131,681     5,872   1.09       2,260,837     32,162   1.42     2,161,955     17,582   0.81  
    Total Deposits   3,600,424     7,766   0.86     3,572,034     8,223   0.92     3,641,028     8,579   0.95     3,576,513     7,594   0.85     3,548,506     5,872   0.66       3,597,438     32,162   0.89     3,669,612     17,582   0.48  
    Repurchase Agreements   28,018     199   2.82     27,126     221   3.24     26,999     217   3.24     25,725     201   3.14     26,831     199   2.94       26,970     838   3.11     19,917     513   2.57  
    Other Short-Term Borrowings   6,510     83   5.06     2,673     52   7.63     6,592     68   4.16     3,758     39   4.16     16,906     310   7.29       4,882     242   4.94     24,146     1,538   6.37  
    Subordinated Notes Payable   52,887     581   4.30     52,887     610   4.52     52,887     630   4.71     52,887     628   4.70     52,887     627   4.64       52,887     2,449   4.56     52,887     2,427   4.53  
    Other Long-Term Borrowings   794     11   5.57     795     11   5.55     258     3   4.31     281     3   4.80     336     5   4.72       534     28   5.31     408     20   4.77  
    Total Interest Bearing Liabilities   2,365,077   $ 8,640   1.45 %   2,323,210   $ 9,117   1.56 %   2,381,218   $ 9,497   1.60 %   2,314,976   $ 8,465   1.47 %   2,228,641   $ 7,013   1.25 %     2,346,110   $ 35,719   1.52 %   2,259,313   $ 22,080   0.98 %
                                                                                                         
    Other Liabilities   73,130               73,767               72,634               68,295               78,772                 71,964               81,842            
                                                                                                         
    Total Liabilities   3,761,763               3,729,282               3,800,398               3,727,459               3,724,238                 3,754,675               3,848,812            
    Temporary Equity   6,763               6,443               6,493               7,150               7,423                 6,712               8,392            
                                                                                                         
    SHAREOWNERS’ EQUITY:   491,143               480,137               465,297               456,014               435,116                 473,216               421,482            
                                                                                                         
    Total Liabilities, Temporary Equity and Shareowners’ Equity $ 4,259,669             $ 4,215,862             $ 4,272,188             $ 4,190,623             $ 4,166,777               $ 4,234,603             $ 4,278,686            
                                                                                                         
    Interest Rate Spread     $ 41,150   3.59 %     $ 40,260   3.49 %     $ 39,334   3.38 %     $ 38,435   3.43 %     $ 39,264   3.55 %       $ 159,179   3.47 %     $ 159,355   3.63 %
                                                                                                         
    Interest Income and Rate Earned(1)       49,790   5.05         49,377   5.06         48,831   4.99         46,900   4.90         46,277   4.80           194,898   5.00         181,435   4.61  
    Interest Expense and Rate Paid(2)       8,640   0.88         9,117   0.93         9,497   0.97         8,465   0.88         7,013   0.73           35,719   0.92         22,080   0.56  
                                                                                                         
    Net Interest Margin     $ 41,150   4.17 %     $ 40,260   4.12 %     $ 39,334   4.02 %     $ 38,435   4.01 %     $ 39,264   4.07 %       $ 159,179   4.08 %     $ 159,355   4.05 %
                                                                                                         
    (1)Interest and average rates are calculated on a tax-equivalent basis using a 21% Federal tax rate.                                                                  
    (2)Rate calculated based on average earning assets.                                                                                            

    For Information Contact:
    Jep Larkin
    Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
    850.402. 8450

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Sandy Spring Bancorp Announces Fourth Quarter Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    OLNEY, Md., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq-SASR), the parent company of Sandy Spring Bank, reported a net loss of $39.5 million ($0.87 per diluted common share) for the quarter ended December 31, 2024, compared to net income of $16.2 million ($0.36 per diluted common share) for the third quarter of 2024 and $26.1 million ($0.58 per diluted common share) for the fourth quarter of 2023.   The current quarter’s net loss is a result of a $54.4 million goodwill impairment charge determined during our annual goodwill impairment test based on the terms of the merger agreement with Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation (“AUB”).   The goodwill impairment is a non-cash charge and has no impact on the Company’s regulatory capital ratios, cash flows, core operating performance or liquidity position.

    The current quarter’s core earnings were $21.0 million ($0.47 per diluted common share), compared to $17.9 million ($0.40 per diluted common share) for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 and $27.1 million ($0.60 per diluted common share) for the quarter ended December 31, 2023. Core earnings exclude the goodwill impairment charge, merger and acquisition expense, and the after-tax impact of amortization of intangibles, investment securities gains or losses and other non-recurring or extraordinary items. The current quarter’s increase in core earnings as compared to the linked quarter was driven by higher net interest income coupled with higher non-interest income, and lower provision for credit losses, partially offset by higher adjusted non-interest expense. The total provision for credit losses was $4.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $6.3 million for the previous quarter and a credit of $3.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2023.

    “We are pleased with our fourth quarter results, most notably our improved net interest margin, growth in core earnings, and reductions in brokered deposits,” said Daniel J. Schrider, Chair, President and CEO of Sandy Spring Bank. “We remain focused on serving our clients and building communities in the Greater Washington region.”

    Fourth Quarter Highlights

    • Total assets at December 31, 2024 decreased by 2% to $14.1 billion compared to $14.4 billion at September 30, 2024. This decline is predominantly driven by a $200.0 million reduction in FHLB advances and a resulting $231.4 million decline in cash and cash equivalents quarter-over-quarter.
    • Total loans remained level at $11.5 billion as of December 31, 2024 compared to September 30, 2024. During the current quarter, AD&C and commercial business loans and lines increased by $71.7 million and $32.2 million, respectively, while the commercial investor real estate segment declined by $88.9 million. Total residential mortgage and consumer loan portfolios increased by $19.6 million during this period.
    • Total deposits stayed relatively unchanged at $11.7 billion at December 31, 2024 compared to September 30, 2024. Interest-bearing deposits increased $106.1 million, while noninterest-bearing deposits declined $98.1 million. Growth in interest-bearing deposits was mainly experienced within interest checking accounts, which grew $122.9 million during the current quarter, while decline in noninterest-bearing deposit categories was driven by lower balances in commercial checking accounts. Total deposits, excluding brokered deposits, increased by $32.0 million quarter-over-quarter and represented 94% of total deposits as of December 31, 2024.
    • The ratio of non-performing loans to total loans was 1.03% at December 31, 2024 compared to 1.09% at September 30, 2024 and 0.81% at December 31, 2023. The current quarter’s decline in non-performing loans was mainly related to pay downs on several non-accrual loans along with a single commercial real estate loan that returned to an accrual status.
    • Net interest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 grew $4.7 million or 6% compared to the previous quarter and $4.4 million or 5% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the previous quarter, interest income increased by $1.0 million, while interest expense decreased by $3.7 million.
    • The net interest margin was 2.53% for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to 2.44% for the third quarter of 2024 and 2.45% for the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared to the linked quarter, the rate paid on interest-bearing liabilities decreased 23 basis points, driven by a 26 basis point decline in the rate on interest-bearing deposits, while the yield on interest-earning assets declined by six basis points. The decline in the rate paid on interest-bearing deposits was attributable to a 50 basis point reduction in the federal funds rate during the current quarter and the associated actions taken by management to re-price the Company’s funding base.
    • Provision for credit losses directly attributable to the funded loan portfolio was $4.7 million for the current quarter compared to $6.3 million in the previous quarter and a credit of $2.6 million in the prior year quarter. The current quarter’s provision expense is mainly attributable to a slight deterioration in the projected economic variables coupled with higher qualitative adjustments, partially offset by lower probability of recession. In addition, during the current quarter, the provision for unfunded commitments declined by $0.2 million, a result of higher utilization rates on lines of credit.
    • Non-interest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by 10% or $1.9 million compared to the linked quarter and grew by 31% or $5.1 million compared to the prior year quarter. The quarter-over-quarter increase was mainly due to an increase in income from bank-owned life insurance driven by one-time mortality proceeds received during the current quarter in combination with higher swap fees and higher wealth management income, which was partially offset by lower income from mortgage banking activities.
    • Non-interest expense for the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by $61.3 million compared to the third quarter of 2024 and $67.1 million compared to the prior year quarter, due to the goodwill impairment charge of $54.4 million incurred during the current quarter. Excluding the goodwill impairment charge, adjusted non-interest expense was $79.8 million during the current quarter compared to $72.9 million in the linked quarter. This quarterly increase in adjusted non-interest expense was primarily due to a combination of merger and acquisition expense associated with the pending merger with AUB along with higher salaries and compensation benefits, partially offset by lower professional fees and services.
    • We perform an annual goodwill impairment test as of October 1st of each year. During the current year, we utilized the terms incorporated in the merger agreement between the Company and AUB. The implied value of the Company utilized the stock conversion ratio in the merger agreement and used a weighted average approach to consider both AUB’s most recent closing stock price prior to the merger announcement date, as well as the forward sale price for AUB common stock under the forward sale agreement announced simultaneous with the merger agreement. This valuation method resulted in the estimated fair value of the Company being below its book value and required the recording of a goodwill impairment charge of $54.4 million.
    • Return on average assets (“ROA”) for the quarter ended December 31, 2024 was (1.09)% and return on average tangible common equity (“ROTCE”) was 5.46% compared to 0.46% and 5.88%, respectively, for the third quarter of 2024 and 0.73% and 9.26%, respectively, for the fourth quarter of 2023. On a non-GAAP basis, the current quarter’s core ROA was 0.58% and core ROTCE was 6.80% compared to 0.50% and 5.88%, respectively, for the previous quarter and 0.76% and 9.26%, respectively, for the fourth quarter of 2023.
    • The GAAP efficiency ratio was 124.61% for the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to 72.12% for the third quarter of 2024 and 68.33% for the fourth quarter of 2023. An elevated GAAP efficiency ratio for the current quarter was the result of higher non-interest expense due to the $54.4 million goodwill impairment charge. The non-GAAP efficiency ratio was 67.16% for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to 69.06% for the third quarter of 2024 and 66.16% for the prior year quarter.

    Balance Sheet and Credit Quality

    Total assets were $14.1 billion at December 31, 2024, as compared to $14.4 billion at September 30, 2024. At December 31, 2024, total loans remained stable at $11.5 billion compared to the previous quarter. During this period, the growth in AD&C and commercial business loans and lines of $71.7 million or 6% and $32.2 million or 2%, respectively, was mostly offset by the decline in commercial investor real estate loans of $88.9 million or 2%. Total residential mortgage and consumer loan portfolios increased by $19.6 million or 1%.

    Deposits stayed relatively unchanged at $11.7 billion at December 31, 2024 compared to September 30, 2024. During this period, noninterest-bearing deposits decreased $98.1 million or 3%, while interest-bearing deposits increased $106.1 million or 1%. The decline in noninterest-bearing deposit categories was driven by decreases in commercial checking accounts. Growth in interest-bearing deposits was seen predominantly in interest checking accounts, which grew $122.9 million or 8% during the current quarter. Total deposits, excluding brokered deposits, increased by $32.0 million quarter-over-quarter and remained at 94% of total deposits as of December 31, 2024 compared to September 30, 2024, reflecting continued strength and stability of the core deposit base. Total uninsured deposits at December 31, 2024 were approximately 37% of total deposits.

    Total borrowings decreased $201.7 million or 23% at December 31, 2024 as compared to the previous quarter, primarily driven by a $200.0 million reduction in FHLB advances, of which $150 million related to scheduled maturities, while $50 million was prepaid generating a $0.5 million gain on debt extinguishment. At December 31, 2024, available unused sources of liquidity, which consist of available FHLB borrowings, fed funds, funds through the Federal Reserve Bank’s discount window, as well as excess cash and unpledged investment securities, totaled $6.3 billion or 147% of uninsured deposits.

    The tangible common equity to tangible assets ratio was 8.84% at December 31, 2024, compared to 8.83% at September 30, 2024.

    At December 31, 2024, the Company had a total risk-based capital ratio of 15.38%, a common equity tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 11.36%, a tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 11.36%, and a tier 1 leverage ratio of 9.39%. These risk-based capital ratios compare to a total risk-based capital ratio of 15.53%, a common equity tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 11.27%, a tier 1 risk-based capital ratio of 11.27%, and a tier 1 leverage ratio of 9.59% at September 30, 2024. All of these ratios remain well in excess of the mandated minimum regulatory requirements.

    Non-performing loans include non-accrual loans and accruing loans 90 days or more past due. At December 31, 2024, non-performing loans totaled $119.4 million, compared to $125.3 million at September 30, 2024 and $91.8 million at December 31, 2023. The ratio of non-performing loans to total loans was 1.03% compared to 1.09% on a linked quarter basis. These levels of non-performing loans compare to 0.81% at December 31, 2023. The current quarter’s decline in non-performing loans was mainly related to pay downs on several non-accrual loans along with a single commercial real estate loan that returned to an accrual status based on the borrower’s historical payment performance. Total net charge-offs for the current quarter amounted to $1.7 million compared to $0.7 million for the third quarter of 2024 and net recoveries of $0.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2023.

    At December 31, 2024, the allowance for credit losses was $134.4 million or 1.16% of outstanding loans and 113% of non-performing loans, compared to $131.4 million or 1.14% of outstanding loans and 105% of non-performing loans at the end of the previous quarter and $120.9 million or 1.06% of outstanding loans and 132% of non-performing loans at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase in the allowance for the current quarter compared to the previous quarter mainly reflects slight deterioration in the projected economic variables coupled with higher qualitative adjustments, partially offset by lower probability of economic recession.

    Income Statement Review

    Quarterly Results

    Net loss was $39.5 million ($0.87 per diluted common share) for the three months ended December 31, 2024 compared to net income of $16.2 million ($0.36 per diluted common share) for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and $26.1 million ($0.58 per diluted common share) for the prior year quarter. The current quarter’s net loss is predominantly related to the $54.4 million goodwill impairment charge.   The current quarter’s core earnings were $21.0 million ($0.47 per diluted common share), compared to $17.9 million ($0.40 per diluted common share) for the previous quarter and $27.1 million ($0.60 per diluted common share) for the quarter ended December 31, 2023. The increase in the current quarter’s core earnings compared to the linked quarter was driven primarily by higher net interest income and non-interest income, and lower provision for credit losses, partially offset by higher adjusted non-interest expense.

    Net interest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 increased $4.7 million or 6% compared to the previous quarter and $4.4 million or 5% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. During the current quarter, interest income increased $1.0 million, while interest expense declined $3.7 million. The higher interest rate environment during the current year was primarily responsible for a $5.4 million year-over-year increase in interest income, which outpaced the $1.0 million year-over-year growth in interest expense.

    The net interest margin was 2.53% for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to 2.44% for the third quarter of 2024 and 2.45% for the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase in the net interest margin during the current quarter was a result of a 23 basis point decrease in the rate paid on interest-bearing liabilities, driven by a 26 basis point decline in the rate paid on interest-bearing deposits, while the yield earned on interest-earning assets declined by six basis points. As compared to the prior year quarter, the yield on interest-earning assets increased eight basis points, while the rate paid on interest-bearing liabilities declined nine basis points, resulting in net interest margin increase of eight basis points.

    The total provision for credit losses was $4.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $6.3 million for the previous quarter and a credit of $3.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The provision for credit losses directly attributable to the funded loan portfolio was $4.7 million for the current quarter compared to $6.3 million for the third quarter of 2024 and a credit of $2.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The current quarter’s provision is mainly a reflection of a slight deterioration in the projected economic variables along with higher qualitative adjustments, partially offset by lower probability of economic recession. In addition, during the current quarter, the reserve for unfunded commitments declined to $1.3 million from $1.5 million in the previous quarter due to higher utilization rates on lines of credit.

    Non-interest income for the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by 10% or $1.9 million compared to the linked quarter and grew by 31% or $5.1 million compared to the prior year quarter. The current quarter’s increase in non-interest income as compared to the previous quarter was mainly driven by the $1.9 million increase in income from bank owned life insurance, generated by one-time mortality proceeds, $0.4 million of swap fee income, and $0.2 million increase in wealth management income, due to the overall favorable market performance, partially offset by $0.4 million decrease in income from mortgage banking activities, due to lower sales volumes.

    Non-interest expense for the fourth quarter of 2024 increased $61.3 million or 84% compared to the third quarter of 2024 and $67.1 million or 100% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase over the comparative quarters was primarily due to the goodwill impairment charge of $54.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2024. Excluding the goodwill impairment charge, adjusted non-interest expense increased $6.9 million or 9% compared to the linked quarter. This quarter-over-quarter increase is predominantly attributable to $4.2 million in merger and acquisition expenses incurred during the current quarter, a $3.3 million increase in salaries and benefits, due to an increase in employee incentive compensation, and a $0.7 million increase in marketing expense. These increases were partially offset by the $1.8 million reduction in professional fees and services.

    For the fourth quarter of 2024, the GAAP efficiency ratio was 124.61% compared to 72.12% for the third quarter of 2024 and 68.33% for the fourth quarter of 2023. The non-GAAP efficiency ratio was 67.16% for the current quarter as compared to 69.06% for the third quarter of 2024 and 66.16% for the fourth quarter of 2023.

    ROA for the quarter ended December 31, 2024 was (1.09)% and ROTCE was 5.46% compared to 0.46% and 5.88%, respectively, for the third quarter of 2024 and 0.73% and 9.26%, respectively, for the fourth quarter of 2023. On a non-GAAP basis, the current quarter’s core ROA was 0.58% and core ROTCE was 6.80% compared to 0.50% and 5.88% for the third quarter of 2024 and 0.76% and 9.26%, respectively, for the fourth quarter of 2023.

    Explanation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    This news release contains financial information and performance measures determined by methods other than in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). The Company’s management believes that the supplemental non-GAAP information provides a better comparison of period-to-period operating performance. Additionally, the Company believes this information is utilized by regulators and market analysts to evaluate a company’s financial condition and, therefore, such information is useful to investors. Non-GAAP measures used in this release consist of the following:

    • Tangible common equity and related measures are non-GAAP measures that exclude the impact of goodwill and other intangible assets.
    • The non-GAAP efficiency ratio excludes goodwill impairment loss, merger and acquisition expense, amortization of intangible assets, investment securities gains/(losses), pension settlement expense, severance expense, contingent payment expense, and includes tax-equivalent income.
    • Core earnings and the related measures of core earnings per diluted common share, core return on average assets and core return on average tangible common equity reflect net income exclusive of goodwill impairment loss, merger and acquisition expense, and after-tax impact of amortization of intangible assets, investment securities gains/(losses) and other non-recurring or extraordinary items.
    • Pre-tax pre-provision net income excludes income tax expense and the provision (credit) for credit losses.

    These disclosures should not be viewed as a substitute for financial results in accordance with GAAP, nor are they necessarily comparable to non-GAAP performance measures that may be presented by other companies. Please refer to the non-GAAP Reconciliation tables included with this release for a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measure.

    About Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc.

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc., headquartered in Olney, Maryland, is the holding company for Sandy Spring Bank, a premier community bank in the Greater Washington, D.C. region. With over 50 locations, the bank offers a broad range of commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services throughout Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Through its subsidiaries, Rembert Pendleton Jackson and West Financial Services, Inc., Sandy Spring Bank also offers a comprehensive menu of wealth management services.

    Source: Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc.
    Code: SASR-E

      For additional information or questions, please contact:
        Daniel J. Schrider, Chair, President & Chief Executive Officer, or
        Charles S. Cullum, E.V.P. & Chief Financial Officer
        Sandy Spring Bancorp
        17801 Georgia Avenue
        Olney, Maryland 20832
        1-800-399-5919
        Email: DSchrider@sandyspringbank.com 
          CCullum@sandyspringbank.com 
           
        Website: www.sandyspringbank.com
        Media Contact:
        Jennifer E. Schell, Division Executive, Marketing & Corporate Communications
        301-774-6400 x8331
        jschell@sandyspringbank.com 
           

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Sandy Spring Bancorp’s forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks identified in our quarterly and annual reports and the following: changes in general business and economic conditions nationally or in the markets that we serve; changes in consumer and business confidence, investor sentiment, or consumer spending or savings behavior; changes in the level of inflation; changes in the demand for loans, deposits and other financial services that we provide; the possibility that future credit losses may be higher than currently expected; the impact of the interest rate environment on our business, financial condition and results of operations; the impact of compliance with changes in laws, regulations and regulatory interpretations, including changes in income taxes; changes in credit ratings assigned to us or our subsidiaries; competitive pressures among financial services companies; the ability to attract, develop and retain qualified employees; our ability to maintain the security of our data processing and information technology systems; the impact of changes in accounting policies, including the introduction of new accounting standards; the impact of judicial or regulatory proceedings; the impact of fiscal and governmental policies of the United States federal government; the impact of health emergencies, epidemics or pandemics; the effects of climate change; and the impact of natural disasters, extreme weather events, military conflict, terrorism or other geopolitical events; the possibility that the Company’s pending merger with AUB does not close when expected or at all because required regulatory or other approvals or conditions to closing are not received or satisfied on a timely basis or at all (and the risk that such approvals may result in the imposition of conditions that could adversely affect the combined company or the expected benefits of the merger); the risk that the benefits from the merger may not be fully realized or may take longer to realize than expected; and the risk of disruption to the Company’s business as a result of the pendency of the merger;. Sandy Spring Bancorp provides greater detail regarding some of these factors in its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, including in the Risk Factors section of those reports, and in its other SEC reports. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s forward-looking statements may also be subject to other risks and uncertainties, including those that it may discuss elsewhere in this news release or in its filings with the SEC, accessible on the SEC’s Web site at www.sec.gov. 

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS – UNAUDITED

        Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		   %
    Change    		   Year Ended
    December 31,    		   %
    Change
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)     2024       2023         2024       2023    
    Results of operations:                        
    Net interest income   $ 86,086     $ 81,696     5 %   $ 327,126     $ 354,550     (8 )%
    Provision/ (credit) for credit losses     4,468       (3,445 )   N/M       14,192       (17,561 )   N/M  
    Non-interest income     21,646       16,560     31       79,315       67,078     18  
    Non-interest expense     134,241       67,142     100       343,288       275,054     25  
    Income/ (loss) before income tax expense     (30,977 )     34,559     N/M       48,961       164,135     (70 )
    Net income/ (loss)     (39,453 )     26,100     N/M       19,935       122,844     (84 )
                               
    Net income/ (loss) attributable to common shareholders   $ (39,457 )   $ 26,066     N/M     $ 19,902     $ 122,621     (84 )
    Pre-tax pre-provision net income/ (loss) (1)   $ (26,509 )   $ 31,114     N/M     $ 63,153     $ 146,574     (57 )
                               
    Return on average assets     (1.09 )%     0.73 %           0.14 %     0.87 %    
    Return on average common equity     (9.70 )%     6.70 %           1.25 %     8.04 %    
    Return on average tangible common equity (1)     5.46 %     9.26 %           6.73 %     11.06 %    
    Net interest margin     2.53 %     2.45 %           2.46 %     2.67 %    
    Efficiency ratio – GAAP basis (2)     124.61 %     68.33 %           84.46 %     65.24 %    
    Efficiency ratio – Non-GAAP basis (2)     67.16 %     66.16 %           67.07 %     60.99 %    
                               
    Per share data:                          
    Basic net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.58     N/M     $ 0.44     $ 2.74     (84 )%
    Diluted net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.58     N/M     $ 0.44     $ 2.73     (84 )
    Weighted average diluted common shares     45,133,834       45,009,574     —       45,227,487       44,947,263     1  
    Dividends declared per share   $ 0.34     $ 0.34     —     $ 1.36     $ 1.36     —  
    Book value per common share   $ 34.51     $ 35.36     (2 )   $ 34.51     $ 35.36     (2 )
    Tangible book value per common share (1)   $ 26.99     $ 26.64     1     $ 26.99     $ 26.64     1  
    Outstanding common shares     45,140,417       44,913,561     1       45,140,417       44,913,561     1  
                             
    Financial condition at period-end:                        
    Investment securities   $ 1,418,244     $ 1,414,453     — %   $ 1,418,244     $ 1,414,453     — %
    Loans     11,537,966       11,366,989     2       11,537,966       11,366,989     2  
    Assets     14,127,480       14,028,172     1       14,127,480       14,028,172     1  
    Deposits     11,745,665       10,996,538     7       11,745,665       10,996,538     7  
    Stockholders’ equity     1,558,011       1,588,142     (2 )     1,558,011       1,588,142     (2 )
                             
    Capital ratios:                        
    Tier 1 leverage (3)     9.39 %     9.51 %         9.39 %     9.51 %    
    Common equity tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets (3)     11.36 %     10.90 %         11.36 %     10.90 %    
    Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets (3)     11.36 %     10.90 %         11.36 %     10.90 %    
    Total regulatory capital to risk-weighted assets (3)     15.38 %     14.92 %         15.38 %     14.92 %    
    Tangible common equity to tangible assets (4)     8.84 %     8.77 %         8.84 %     8.77 %    
    Average equity to average assets     11.26 %     10.97 %         11.31 %     10.87 %    
                             
    Credit quality ratios:                        
    Allowance for credit losses to loans     1.16 %     1.06 %         1.16 %     1.06 %    
    Non-performing loans to total loans     1.03 %     0.81 %         1.03 %     0.81 %    
    Non-performing assets to total assets     0.87 %     0.65 %         0.87 %     0.65 %    
    Allowance for credit losses to non-performing loans     112.59 %     131.59 %         112.59 %     131.59 %    
    Annualized net charge-offs/ (recoveries) to average loans (5)     0.06 %     — %         0.03 %     0.01 %    

    N/M – not meaningful

    (1) Represents a non-GAAP measure.
    (2) The efficiency ratio – GAAP basis is non-interest expense divided by net interest income plus non-interest income from the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The traditional efficiency ratio – Non-GAAP basis excludes goodwill impairment loss, merger and acquisition expense, intangible asset amortization, pension settlement expense, severance expense and contingent payment expense from non-interest expense; and investment securities gains/ (losses) from non-interest income; and adds the tax-equivalent adjustment to net interest income. See the Reconciliation Table included with these Financial Highlights.
    (3) Estimated ratio at December 31, 2024.
    (4) The tangible common equity to tangible assets ratio is a non-GAAP ratio that divides assets excluding goodwill and other intangible assets into stockholders’ equity after deducting goodwill and other intangible assets. See the Reconciliation Table included with these Financial Highlights.
    (5) Calculation utilizes average loans, excluding residential mortgage loans held-for-sale.
       

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    RECONCILIATION TABLE – UNAUDITED (CONTINUED)
    OPERATING EARNINGS – METRICS

        Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		   Year Ended
    December 31,
    (Dollars in thousands)     2024       2023       2024       2023  
    Core earnings (non-GAAP):                
    Net income/ (loss) (GAAP)   $ (39,453 )   $ 26,100     $ 19,935     $ 122,844  
    Plus/ (less) non-GAAP adjustments:                
    Merger, acquisition and disposal expense(2)     4,164       —       4,164       —  
    Amortization of intangible assets (net of tax)(1)     1,937       1,047       6,801       3,898  
    Goodwill impairment loss(2)     54,391       —       54,391       —  
    Severance expense (net of tax)(1)     —       —       —       1,445  
    Pension settlement expense (net of tax)(1)     —       —       —       6,088  
    Investment securities gains/ losses     —       —       —       —  
    Contingent payment expense (net of tax)(1)     —       —       —       27  
    Core earnings (Non-GAAP)   $ 21,039     $ 27,147     $ 85,291     $ 134,302  
                     
    Core earnings per diluted common share (non-GAAP):                
    Weighted average common shares outstanding – diluted (GAAP)     45,133,834       45,009,574       45,227,487       44,947,263  
                     
    Earnings/ (loss) per diluted common share (GAAP)   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.58     $ 0.44     $ 2.73  
    Core earnings per diluted common share (non-GAAP)   $ 0.47     $ 0.60     $ 1.89     $ 2.99  
                     
    Core return on average assets (non-GAAP):                
    Average assets (GAAP)   $ 14,362,321     $ 14,090,423     $ 14,129,795     $ 14,055,645  
                     
    Return on average assets (GAAP)     (1.09 )%     0.73 %     0.14 %     0.87 %
    Core return on average assets (non-GAAP)     0.58 %     0.76 %     0.60 %     0.96 %
                     
    Return/ Core return on average tangible common equity (non-GAAP):                
    Net Income/ (loss) (GAAP)   $ (39,453 )   $ 26,100     $ 19,935     $ 122,844  
    Plus: Amortization of intangible assets (net of tax)(1)     1,937       1,047       6,801       3,898  
    Plus: Goodwill impairment loss(2)     54,391       —       54,391       —  
    Net income adjusted (non-GAAP)   $ 16,875     $ 27,147     $ 81,127     $ 126,742  
                     
    Average total stockholders’ equity (GAAP)   $ 1,617,633     $ 1,546,312     $ 1,597,456     $ 1,528,242  
    Average goodwill     (356,341 )     (363,436 )     (361,653 )     (363,436 )
    Average other intangible assets, net     (30,885 )     (20,162 )     (30,178 )     (18,596 )
    Average tangible common equity (non-GAAP)   $ 1,230,407     $ 1,162,714     $ 1,205,625     $ 1,146,210  
                     
    Return on average tangible common equity (non-GAAP)     5.46 %     9.26 %     6.73 %     11.06 %
    Core return on average tangible common equity (non-GAAP)     6.80 %     9.26 %     7.07 %     11.72 %
    (1) Tax adjustments have been determined using the combined marginal federal and state rate of 25.48% and 25.37% for 2024 and 2023, respectively.
    (2) Adjustment is not tax-effected as it represents a tax nondeductible item.
       

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    RECONCILIATION TABLE – UNAUDITED

        Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		   Year Ended
    December 31,
    (Dollars in thousands)     2024       2023       2024       2023  
    Pre-tax pre-provision net income:                
    Net income/ (loss) (GAAP)   $         (39,453 )   $         26,100     $         19,935     $         122,844  
    Plus/ (less) non-GAAP adjustments:                
    Income tax expense             8,476               8,459               29,026               41,291  
    Provision/ (credit) for credit losses             4,468               (3,445 )             14,192               (17,561 )
    Pre-tax pre-provision net income/ (loss) (non-GAAP)   $ (26,509 )   $ 31,114     $ 63,153     $ 146,574  
                     
    Efficiency ratio (GAAP):                
    Non-interest expense   $ 134,241     $ 67,142     $ 343,288     $ 275,054  
                     
    Net interest income plus non-interest income   $ 107,732     $ 98,256     $ 406,441     $ 421,628  
                     
    Efficiency ratio (GAAP)     124.61 %     68.33 %     84.46 %     65.24 %
                     
    Efficiency ratio (Non-GAAP):                
    Non-interest expense   $ 134,241     $ 67,142     $ 343,288     $ 275,054  
    Less non-GAAP adjustments:                
    Amortization of intangible assets     2,599       1,403       9,126       5,223  
    Merger, acquisition and disposal expense     4,164       —       4,164       —  
    Goodwill impairment loss     54,391       —       54,391       —  
    Severance expense     —       —       —       1,939  
    Pension settlement expense     —       —       —       8,157  
    Contingent payment expense     —       —       —       36  
    Non-interest expense – as adjusted   $ 73,087     $ 65,739     $ 275,607     $ 259,699  
                     
    Net interest income plus non-interest income   $ 107,732     $ 98,256     $ 406,441     $ 421,628  
    Plus non-GAAP adjustment:                
    Tax-equivalent income     1,100       1,113       4,459       4,157  
    Less/ (plus) non-GAAP adjustment:                
    Investment securities gains/ (losses)     —       —       —       —  
    Net interest income plus non-interest income – as adjusted   $ 108,832     $ 99,369     $ 410,900     $ 425,785  
                     
    Efficiency ratio (Non-GAAP)     67.16 %     66.16 %     67.07 %     60.99 %
                     
    Tangible common equity ratio:                
    Total stockholders’ equity   $ 1,558,011     $ 1,588,142     $ 1,558,011     $ 1,588,142  
    Goodwill     (309,045 )     (363,436 )     (309,045 )     (363,436 )
    Other intangible assets, net     (30,748 )     (28,301 )     (30,748 )     (28,301 )
    Tangible common equity   $ 1,218,218     $ 1,196,405     $ 1,218,218     $ 1,196,405  
                     
    Total assets   $ 14,127,480     $ 14,028,172     $ 14,127,480     $ 14,028,172  
    Goodwill     (309,045 )     (363,436 )     (309,045 )     (363,436 )
    Other intangible assets, net     (30,748 )     (28,301 )     (30,748 )     (28,301 )
    Tangible assets   $ 13,787,687     $ 13,636,435     $ 13,787,687     $ 13,636,435  
                     
    Tangible common equity ratio     8.84 %     8.77 %     8.84 %     8.77 %
                     
    Outstanding common shares     45,140,417       44,913,561       45,140,417       44,913,561  
    Tangible book value per common share   $ 26.99     $ 26.64     $ 26.99     $ 26.64  
                                     

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CONDITION – UNAUDITED

    (Dollars in thousands)   December 31,
    2024    		   December 31,
    2023
    Assets        
    Cash and due from banks   $ 80,698     $ 82,257  
    Federal funds sold     —       245  
    Interest-bearing deposits with banks     438,265       463,396  
    Cash and cash equivalents     518,963       545,898  
    Residential mortgage loans held for sale (at fair value)     22,757       10,836  
    SBA loans held for sale     715       —  
    Investments held-to-maturity (fair values of $177,854 and $200,411 at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively)     215,747       236,165  
    Investments available-for-sale (at fair value)     1,140,783       1,102,681  
    Other investments, at cost     61,714       75,607  
    Total loans     11,537,966       11,366,989  
    Less: allowance for credit losses – loans     (134,401 )     (120,865 )
    Net loans     11,403,565       11,246,124  
    Premises and equipment, net     55,998       59,490  
    Other real estate owned     3,265       —  
    Accrued interest receivable     45,627       46,583  
    Goodwill     309,045       363,436  
    Other intangible assets, net     30,748       28,301  
    Other assets     318,553       313,051  
    Total assets   $ 14,127,480     $ 14,028,172  
             
    Liabilities        
    Noninterest-bearing deposits   $ 2,804,930     $ 2,914,161  
    Interest-bearing deposits     8,940,735       8,082,377  
    Total deposits     11,745,665       10,996,538  
    Securities sold under retail repurchase agreements     68,911       75,032  
    Federal Reserve Bank borrowings     —       300,000  
    Advances from FHLB     250,000       550,000  
    Subordinated debt     371,400       370,803  
    Total borrowings     690,311       1,295,835  
    Accrued interest payable and other liabilities     133,493       147,657  
    Total liabilities     12,569,469       12,440,030  
             
    Stockholders’ equity        
    Common stock — par value $1.00; shares authorized 100,000,000; shares issued and outstanding 45,140,417 and 44,913,561 at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively.     45,140       44,914  
    Additional paid in capital     748,905       742,243  
    Retained earnings     856,613       898,316  
    Accumulated other comprehensive loss     (92,647 )     (97,331 )
    Total stockholders’ equity     1,558,011       1,588,142  
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity   $ 14,127,480     $ 14,028,172  
                     

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME – UNAUDITED

        Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		   Year Ended
    December 31,
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)     2024       2023       2024     2023  
    Interest income:                
    Interest and fees on loans   $ 153,262     $ 148,655     $ 609,571   $ 579,960  
    Interest on mortgage loans held for sale     249       199       1,050     896  
    Interest on SBA loans held for sale     21       —       23     —  
    Interest on deposits with banks     7,997       8,456       25,398     22,435  
    Interest and dividend income on investment securities:                
    Taxable     7,821       6,454       29,140     26,992  
    Tax-advantaged     1,697       1,848       7,082     7,224  
    Interest on federal funds sold     —       4       8     17  
    Total interest income     171,047       165,616       672,272     637,524  
    Interest expense:                
    Interest on deposits     76,111       69,813       303,173     225,028  
    Interest on retail repurchase agreements and federal funds purchased     369       4,075       5,259     14,452  
    Interest on advances from FHLB     3,865       6,086       20,259     27,709  
    Interest on subordinated debt     4,616       3,946       16,455     15,785  
    Total interest expense     84,961       83,920       345,146     282,974  
    Net interest income     86,086       81,696       327,126     354,550  
    Provision/ (credit) for credit losses     4,468       (3,445 )     14,192     (17,561 )
    Net interest income after provision/ (credit) for credit losses     81,618       85,141       312,934     372,111  
    Non-interest income:                
    Service charges on deposit accounts     2,998       2,749       11,763     10,447  
    Mortgage banking activities     1,091       792       5,615     5,536  
    Wealth management income     10,920       9,219       42,071     36,633  
    Income from bank owned life insurance     3,213       1,207       7,496     4,210  
    Bank card fees     457       454       1,750     1,769  
    Other income     2,967       2,139       10,620     8,483  
    Total non-interest income     21,646       16,560       79,315     67,078  
    Non-interest expense:                
    Salaries and employee benefits     44,309       35,482       159,858     160,192  
    Occupancy expense of premises     4,727       4,558       19,005     18,778  
    Equipment expenses     4,252       3,987       15,924     15,675  
    Marketing     2,013       1,242       5,363     5,103  
    Outside data services     3,228       3,000       12,642     11,186  
    FDIC insurance     2,761       2,615       11,396     9,461  
    Amortization of intangible assets     2,599       1,403       9,126     5,223  
    Merger, acquisition and disposal expense     4,164       —       4,164     —  
    Professional fees and services     4,805       5,628       21,208     17,982  
    Goodwill impairment loss     54,391       —       54,391     —  
    Other expenses     6,992       9,227       30,211     31,454  
    Total non-interest expense     134,241       67,142       343,288     275,054  
    Income/ (loss) before income tax expense     (30,977 )     34,559       48,961     164,135  
    Income tax expense     8,476       8,459       29,026     41,291  
    Net income/ (loss)   $ (39,453 )   $ 26,100     $ 19,935   $ 122,844  
                     
    Net income per share amounts:                
    Basic net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.58     $ 0.44   $ 2.74  
    Diluted net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.58     $ 0.44   $ 2.73  
    Dividends declared per share   $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 1.36   $ 1.36  
                                   

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    HISTORICAL TRENDS – QUARTERLY FINANCIAL DATA – UNAUDITED

          2024       2023  
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   Q4   Q3   Q2   Q1   Q4   Q3   Q2   Q1
    Profitability for the quarter:                                
    Tax-equivalent interest income   $ 172,147     $ 171,219     $ 166,252     $ 167,113     $ 166,729     $ 163,479     $ 159,156     $ 152,317  
    Interest expense             84,961       88,686       84,828       86,671       83,920       77,330       67,679       54,045  
    Tax-equivalent net interest income     87,186       82,533       81,424       80,442       82,809       86,149       91,477       98,272  
    Tax-equivalent adjustment     1,100       1,121       1,139       1,099       1,113       1,068       1,006       970  
    Provision/ (credit) for credit losses     4,468       6,316       1,020       2,388       (3,445 )     2,365       5,055       (21,536 )
    Non-interest income     21,646       19,715       19,587       18,367       16,560       17,391       17,176       15,951  
    Non-interest expense     134,241       72,937       68,104       68,006       67,142       72,471       69,136       66,305  
    Income/ (loss) before income tax expense     (30,977 )     21,874       30,748       27,316       34,559       27,636       33,456       68,484  
    Income tax expense     8,476       5,665       7,941       6,944       8,459       6,890       8,711       17,231  
    Net income/ (loss)   $ (39,453 )   $ 16,209     $ 22,807     $ 20,372     $ 26,100     $ 20,746     $ 24,745     $ 51,253  
    GAAP financial performance:                                
    Return on average assets   (1.09)%     0.46 %     0.66 %     0.58 %     0.73 %     0.58 %     0.70 %     1.49 %
    Return on average common equity   (9.70)%     4.01 %     5.81 %     5.17 %     6.70 %     5.35 %     6.46 %     13.93 %
    Return on average tangible common equity     5.46 %     5.88 %     8.27 %     7.39 %     9.26 %     7.42 %     8.93 %     19.10 %
    Net interest margin     2.53 %     2.44 %     2.46 %     2.41 %     2.45 %     2.55 %     2.73 %     2.99 %
    Efficiency ratio – GAAP basis     124.61 %     72.12 %     68.19 %     69.60 %     68.33 %     70.72 %     64.22 %     58.55 %
    Non-GAAP financial performance:                                
    Pre-tax pre-provision net income/ (loss)   $ (26,509 )   $ 28,190     $ 31,768     $ 29,704     $ 31,114     $ 30,001     $ 38,511     $ 46,948  
    Core after-tax earnings   $ 21,039     $ 17,936     $ 24,400     $ 21,916     $ 27,147     $ 27,766     $ 27,136     $ 52,253  
    Core return on average assets     0.58 %     0.50 %     0.70 %     0.63 %     0.76 %     0.78 %     0.77 %     1.52 %
    Core return on average common equity     5.17 %     4.44 %     6.21 %     5.56 %     6.97 %     7.16 %     7.09 %     14.20 %
    Core return on average tangible common equity     6.80 %     5.88 %     8.27 %     7.39 %     9.26 %     9.51 %     9.43 %     19.11 %
    Core earnings per diluted common share   $ 0.47     $ 0.40     $ 0.54     $ 0.49     $ 0.60     $ 0.62     $ 0.60     $ 1.16  
    Efficiency ratio – Non-GAAP basis     67.16 %     69.06 %     65.31 %     66.73 %     66.16 %     60.91 %     60.68 %     56.87 %
    Per share data:                        
    Net income/ (loss) attributable to common shareholders   $ (39,457 )   $ 16,205     $ 22,800     $ 20,346     $ 26,066     $ 20,719     $ 24,712     $ 51,084  
    Basic net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.36     $ 0.51     $ 0.45     $ 0.58     $ 0.46     $ 0.55     $ 1.14  
    Diluted net income/ (loss) per common share   $ (0.87 )   $ 0.36     $ 0.51     $ 0.45     $ 0.58     $ 0.46     $ 0.55     $ 1.14  
    Weighted average diluted common shares     45,133,834       45,242,920       45,145,214       45,086,471       45,009,574       44,960,455       44,888,759       44,872,582  
    Dividends declared per share   $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34     $ 0.34  
    Non-interest income:                                
    Service charges on deposit accounts     2,998       3,009       2,939       2,817       2,749       2,704       2,606       2,388  
    Mortgage banking activities     1,091       1,529       1,621       1,374       792       1,682       1,817       1,245  
    Wealth management income     10,920       10,738       10,455       9,958       9,219       9,391       9,031       8,992  
    Income from bank owned life insurance     3,213       1,307       1,816       1,160       1,207       845       1,251       907  
    Bank card fees     457       435       445       413       454       450       447       418  
    Other income     2,967       2,697       2,311       2,645       2,139       2,319       2,024       2,001  
    Total non-interest income   $ 21,646     $ 19,715     $ 19,587     $ 18,367     $ 16,560     $ 17,391     $ 17,176     $ 15,951  
    Non-interest expense:                                
    Salaries and employee benefits   $ 44,309     $ 41,030     $ 37,821     $ 36,698     $ 35,482     $ 44,853     $ 40,931     $ 38,926  
    Occupancy expense of premises     4,727       4,657       4,805       4,816       4,558       4,609       4,764       4,847  
    Equipment expenses     4,252       3,841       3,868       3,963       3,987       3,811       3,760       4,117  
    Marketing     2,013       1,320       1,288       742       1,242       729       1,589       1,543  
    Outside data services     3,228       3,025       3,286       3,103       3,000       2,819       2,853       2,514  
    FDIC insurance     2,761       2,773       2,951       2,911       2,615       2,333       2,375       2,138  
    Amortization of intangible assets     2,599       2,323       2,135       2,069       1,403       1,245       1,269       1,306  
    Merger, acquisition and disposal expense     4,164       —       —       —       —       —       —       —  
    Professional fees and services     4,805       6,577       4,946       4,880       5,628       4,509       4,161       3,684  
    Goodwill impairment loss     54,391       —       —       —       —       —       —       —  
    Other expenses     6,992       7,391       7,004       8,824       9,227       7,563       7,434       7,230  
    Total non-interest expense   $ 134,241     $ 72,937     $ 68,104     $ 68,006     $ 67,142     $ 72,471     $ 69,136     $ 66,305  
                                                                     

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    HISTORICAL TRENDS – QUARTERLY FINANCIAL DATA – UNAUDITED

          2024       2023  
    (Dollars in thousands, except per share data)   Q4   Q3   Q2   Q1   Q4   Q3   Q2   Q1
    Balance sheets at quarter end:                            
    Commercial investor real estate loans   $ 4,779,593     $ 4,868,467     $ 4,933,329     $ 4,997,879     $ 5,104,425     $ 5,137,694     $ 5,131,210     $ 5,167,456  
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate loans     1,748,772       1,737,327       1,747,708       1,741,113       1,755,235       1,760,384       1,770,135       1,769,928  
    Commercial AD&C loans     1,327,292       1,255,609       1,184,296       1,090,259       988,967       938,673       1,045,742       1,046,665  
    Commercial business loans     1,653,135       1,620,926       1,601,510       1,509,592       1,504,880       1,454,709       1,423,614       1,437,478  
    Residential mortgage loans     1,537,589       1,529,786       1,521,890       1,511,624       1,474,521       1,432,051       1,385,743       1,328,524  
    Residential construction loans     49,028       53,639       78,027       97,685       121,419       160,345       190,690       223,456  
    Consumer loans     442,557       426,167       417,161       416,132       417,542       416,436       422,505       421,734  
    Total loans     11,537,966       11,491,921       11,483,921       11,364,284       11,366,989       11,300,292       11,369,639       11,395,241  
    Allowance for credit losses – loans     (134,401 )     (131,428 )     (125,863 )     (123,096 )     (120,865 )     (123,360 )     (120,287 )     (117,613 )
    Residential mortgage loans held for sale     22,757       21,489       18,961       16,627       10,836       19,235       21,476       16,262  
    SBA loans held for sale     715       425       —       —       —       —       —       —  
    Investment securities     1,418,244       1,440,488       1,401,511       1,405,490       1,414,453       1,392,078       1,463,554       1,528,336  
    Total assets     14,127,480       14,383,073       14,008,343       13,888,133       14,028,172       14,135,085       13,994,545       14,129,007  
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits     2,804,930       2,903,063       2,931,405       2,817,928       2,914,161       3,013,905       3,079,896       3,228,678  
    Total deposits     11,745,665       11,737,694       11,340,228       11,227,200       10,996,538       11,151,012       10,958,922       11,075,991  
    Customer repurchase agreements     68,911       70,767       75,038       71,529       75,032       66,581       74,510       47,627  
    Total stockholders’ equity     1,558,011       1,628,837       1,599,004       1,589,364       1,588,142       1,537,914       1,539,032       1,536,865  
    Quarterly average balance sheets:                            
    Commercial investor real estate loans   $ 4,825,594     $ 4,874,003     $ 4,964,406     $ 5,057,334     $ 5,125,028     $ 5,125,459     $ 5,146,632     $ 5,136,204  
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate loans     1,739,686       1,741,663       1,734,106       1,746,042       1,755,048       1,769,717       1,773,039       1,769,680  
    Commercial AD&C loans     1,300,966       1,253,035       1,133,506       1,030,763       960,646       995,682       1,057,205       1,082,791  
    Commercial business loans     1,606,641       1,579,001       1,551,798       1,508,336       1,433,035       1,442,518       1,441,489       1,444,588  
    Residential mortgage loans     1,535,924       1,526,445       1,518,748       1,491,277       1,451,614       1,406,929       1,353,809       1,307,761  
    Residential construction loans     47,788       64,684       86,638       110,456       142,325       174,204       211,590       223,313  
    Consumer loans     433,185       421,003       417,206       417,539       419,299       421,189       423,306       424,122  
    Total loans     11,489,784       11,459,834       11,406,408       11,361,747       11,286,995       11,335,698       11,407,070       11,388,459  
    Residential mortgage loans held for sale     13,768       19,889       14,497       8,142       10,132       13,714       17,480       8,324  
    SBA loans held for sale     591       65       —       —       —       —       —      
    Investment securities     1,542,401       1,531,378       1,538,624       1,536,127       1,544,173       1,589,342       1,639,324       1,679,593  
    Interest-earning assets     13,713,618       13,474,697       13,292,995       13,411,810       13,462,583       13,444,117       13,423,589       13,316,165  
    Total assets     14,362,321       14,136,037       13,956,261       14,061,935       14,090,423       14,086,342       14,094,653       13,949,276  
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits     2,813,545       2,783,906       2,790,620       2,730,295       2,958,254       3,041,101       3,137,971       3,480,433  
    Total deposits     11,807,983       11,483,524       11,245,476       11,086,145       11,089,587       11,076,724       10,928,038       11,049,991  
    Customer repurchase agreements     65,253       63,436       62,161       72,836       66,622       67,298       58,382       60,626  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities     9,792,134       9,600,905       9,441,015       9,583,074       9,418,666       9,332,617       9,257,652       8,806,720  
    Total stockholders’ equity     1,617,633       1,607,377       1,579,582       1,584,902       1,546,312       1,538,553       1,535,465       1,491,929  
    Financial measures:                                
    Average equity to average assets     11.26 %     11.37 %     11.32 %     11.27 %     10.97 %     10.92 %     10.89 %     10.70 %
    Average investment securities to average earning assets     11.25 %     11.36 %     11.57 %     11.45 %     11.47 %     11.82 %     12.21 %     12.61 %
    Average loans to average earning assets     83.78 %     85.05 %     85.81 %     84.71 %     83.84 %     84.32 %     84.98 %     85.52 %
    Loans to assets     81.67 %     79.90 %     81.98 %     81.83 %     81.03 %     79.94 %     81.24 %     80.65 %
    Loans to deposits     98.23 %     97.91 %     101.27 %     101.22 %     103.37 %     101.34 %     103.75 %     102.88 %
    Assets under management   $ 6,577,150     $ 6,567,752     $ 6,215,697     $ 6,165,509     $ 5,999,520     $ 5,536,499     $ 5,742,888     $ 5,477,560  
    Capital measures:                                
    Tier 1 leverage(1)     9.39 %     9.59 %     9.70 %     9.56 %     9.51 %     9.50 %     9.42 %     9.44 %
    Common equity tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets(1)     11.36 %     11.27 %     11.28 %     10.96 %     10.90 %     10.83 %     10.65 %     10.53 %
    Tier 1 capital to risk-weighted assets(1)     11.36 %     11.27 %     11.28 %     10.96 %     10.90 %     10.83 %     10.65 %     10.53 %
    Total regulatory capital to risk-weighted assets(1)     15.38 %     15.53 %     15.49 %     15.05 %     14.92 %     14.85 %     14.60 %     14.43 %
    Book value per common share   $ 34.51     $ 36.10     $ 35.45     $ 35.37     $ 35.36     $ 34.26     $ 34.31     $ 34.37  
    Outstanding common shares     45,140,417       45,125,078       45,109,671       44,940,147       44,913,561       44,895,158       44,862,369       44,712,497  
    (1) Estimated ratio at December 31, 2024.
       

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    LOAN PORTFOLIO QUALITY DETAIL – UNAUDITED

          2024     2023
    (Dollars in thousands)   December 31,   September 30,   June 30,   March 31,   December 31,   September 30,   June 30,   March 31,
    Non-performing assets:                                
    Loans 90 days past due:                                
    Commercial real estate:                                
    Commercial investor real estate   $ —   $ —   $ —   $ —   $ —   $ —   $ —   $ 215
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate     —     —     —     —     —     —     —     —
    Commercial AD&C     —     —     —     —     —     —     —     —
    Commercial business     —     —     —     20     20     415     29     3,002
    Residential real estate:                                
    Residential mortgage     232     399     338     340     342     —     692     352
    Residential construction     —     —     —     —     —     —     —     —
    Consumer     —     —     —     —     —     —     —     —
    Total loans 90 days past due     232     399     338     360     362     415     721     3,569
    Non-accrual loans:                                
    Commercial real estate:                                
    Commercial investor real estate     58,071     57,578     55,498     55,579     58,658     20,108     20,381     15,451
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate     7,008     9,639     9,403     4,394     4,640     4,744     4,846     4,949
    Commercial AD&C     31,314     31,816     2,127     556     1,259     1,422     569     —
    Commercial business     7,590     9,044     8,455     7,164     10,051     9,671     9,393     9,443
    Residential real estate:                                
    Residential mortgage     10,939     11,996     12,228     11,835     12,332     10,766     10,153     8,935
    Residential construction     521     539     539     542     443     449     —     —
    Consumer     3,697     4,258     4,400     4,011     4,102     4,187     3,396     4,900
    Total non-accrual loans     119,140     124,870     92,650     84,081     91,485     51,347     48,738     43,678
    Total non-performing loans     119,372     125,269     92,988     84,441     91,847     51,762     49,459     47,247
    Other real estate owned (OREO)     3,265     3,265     2,700     2,700     —     261     611     645
    Total non-performing assets   $ 122,637   $ 128,534   $ 95,688   $ 87,141   $ 91,847   $ 52,023   $ 50,070   $ 47,892
                                                     
        For the Quarter Ended,
    (Dollars in thousands)   December 31,
    2024    		   September 30,
    2024    		   June 30,
    2024    		   March 31,
    2024    		   December 31,
    2023    		 z September 30,
    2023    		   June 30,
    2023    		   March 31,
    2023
    Analysis of non-accrual loan activity:                                
    Balance at beginning of period   $ 124,870     $ 92,650     $ 84,081     $ 91,485     $ 51,347     $ 48,738     $ 43,678     $ 34,782  
    Non-accrual balances transferred to OREO     —       (565 )     —       (2,700 )     —       —       —       —  
    Non-accrual balances charged-off     (1,698 )     (787 )     —       (1,550 )     —       (183 )     (2,049 )     (126 )
    Net payments or draws     (5,065 )     (3,095 )     (1,427 )     (4,017 )     (7,619 )     (1,545 )     (1,654 )     (10,212 )
    Loans placed on non-accrual     2,847       36,667       10,038       1,490       47,920       4,967       9,276       19,714  
    Non-accrual loans brought current     (1,814 )     —       (42 )     (627 )     (163 )     (630 )     (513 )     (480 )
    Balance at end of period   $ 119,140     $ 124,870     $ 92,650     $ 84,081     $ 91,485     $ 51,347     $ 48,738     $ 43,678  
                                     
    Analysis of allowance for credit losses – loans:                                
    Balance at beginning of period   $ 131,428     $ 125,863     $ 123,096     $ 120,865     $ 123,360     $ 120,287     $ 117,613     $ 136,242  
    Provision/ (credit) for credit losses – loans     4,653       6,310       2,961       3,331       (2,574 )     3,171       4,454       (18,945 )
    Less loans charged-off, net of recoveries:                                
    Commercial real estate:                                
    Commercial investor real estate     (3 )     397       (3 )     (2 )     (3 )     (3 )     (14 )     (5 )
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate     (30 )     (27 )     (27 )     (27 )     (27 )     (25 )     (27 )     (26 )
    Commercial AD&C     (23 )     111       (23 )     (283 )     —       —       —       —  
    Commercial business     1,656       250       (28 )     1,550       (105 )     15       363       (127 )
    Residential real estate:                                
    Residential mortgage     (7 )     (35 )     39       (6 )     (6 )     (4 )     35       21  
    Residential construction     —       —       —       —       —       —       —       —  
    Consumer     87       49       236       (132 )     62       115       1,423       (179 )
    Net charge-offs/ (recoveries)     1,680       745       194       1,100       (79 )     98       1,780       (316 )
    Balance at the end of period   $ 134,401     $ 131,428     $ 125,863     $ 123,096     $ 120,865     $ 123,360     $ 120,287     $ 117,613  
                                     
    Asset quality ratios:                                
    Non-performing loans to total loans     1.03 %     1.09 %     0.81 %     0.74 %     0.81 %     0.46 %     0.44 %     0.41 %
    Non-performing assets to total assets     0.87 %     0.89 %     0.68 %     0.63 %     0.65 %     0.37 %     0.36 %     0.34 %
    Allowance for credit losses to total loans     1.16 %     1.14 %     1.10 %     1.08 %     1.06 %     1.09 %     1.06 %     1.03 %
    Allowance for credit losses to non-performing loans     112.59 %     104.92 %     135.35 %     145.78 %     131.59 %     238.32 %     243.21 %     248.93 %
    Annualized net charge-offs/ (recoveries) to average loans     0.06 %     0.03 %     0.01 %     0.04 %     — %     — %     0.06 %       (0.01 )%
                                                                     

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    CONSOLIDATED AVERAGE BALANCES, YIELDS AND RATES – UNAUDITED

        Three Months Ended December 31,
          2024       2023  
    (Dollars in thousands and tax-equivalent)   Average
    Balances    		   Interest (1)   Annualized
    Average
    Yield/Rate    		   Average
    Balances    		   Interest (1)   Annualized
    Average
    Yield/Rate
    Assets                        
    Commercial investor real estate loans   $ 4,825,594     $ 57,898   4.77 %   $ 5,125,028     $ 60,909   4.72 %
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate loans     1,739,686       21,497   4.92       1,755,048       21,011   4.75  
    Commercial AD&C loans     1,300,966       24,303   7.43       960,646       20,510   8.47  
    Commercial business loans     1,606,641       26,374   6.53       1,433,035       23,822   6.60  
    Total commercial loans     9,472,887       130,072   5.46       9,273,757       126,252   5.40  
    Residential mortgage loans     1,535,924       14,676   3.82       1,451,614       12,984   3.58  
    Residential construction loans     47,788       672   5.59       142,325       1,515   4.22  
    Consumer loans     433,185       8,496   7.80       419,299       8,543   8.08  
    Total residential and consumer loans     2,016,897       23,844   4.72       2,013,238       23,042   4.56  
    Total loans (2)     11,489,784       153,916   5.33       11,286,995       149,294   5.25  
    Residential mortgage loans held for sale     13,768       249   7.24       10,132       199   7.86  
    SBA loans held for sale     591       21   14.50       —       —   —  
    Taxable securities     1,214,327       7,821   2.58       1,193,408       6,454   2.16  
    Tax-advantaged securities     328,074       2,143   2.61       350,765       2,322   2.64  
    Total investment securities (3)     1,542,401       9,964   2.58       1,544,173       8,776   2.27  
    Interest-bearing deposits with banks     667,074       7,997   4.77       621,007       8,456   5.40  
    Federal funds sold     —       —   —       276       4   5.43  
    Total interest-earning assets     13,713,618       172,147   5.00       13,462,583       166,729   4.92  
                             
    Less: allowance for credit losses – loans     (131,565 )             (121,851 )        
    Cash and due from banks     77,280               89,143          
    Premises and equipment, net     56,925               69,162          
    Other assets     646,063               591,386          
    Total assets   $ 14,362,321             $ 14,090,423          
                             
    Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity                        
    Interest-bearing demand deposits   $ 1,519,835     $ 6,510   1.70 %   $ 1,474,748     $ 5,612   1.51 %
    Regular savings deposits     1,763,353       13,768   3.11       1,153,610       9,715   3.34  
    Money market savings deposits     3,116,359       26,657   3.40       2,697,930       24,456   3.60  
    Time deposits     2,594,891       29,176   4.47       2,805,045       30,030   4.25  
    Total interest-bearing deposits     8,994,438       76,111   3.37       8,131,333       69,813   3.41  
    Repurchase agreements     65,253       327   2.00       66,622       354   2.11  
    Federal funds purchased and Federal Reserve Bank borrowings     3,525       42   4.69       300,000       3,721   4.92  
    Advances from FHLB     357,609       3,865   4.30       550,000       6,086   4.39  
    Subordinated debt     371,309       4,616   4.97       370,711       3,946   4.26  
    Total borrowings     797,696       8,850   4.41       1,287,333       14,107   4.35  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities     9,792,134       84,961   3.45       9,418,666       83,920   3.54  
                             
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits     2,813,545               2,958,254          
    Other liabilities     139,009               167,191          
    Stockholders’ equity     1,617,633               1,546,312          
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity   $ 14,362,321             $ 14,090,423          
                             
    Tax-equivalent net interest income and spread       $ 87,186   1.55 %       $ 82,809   1.38 %
    Less: tax-equivalent adjustment         1,100             1,113    
    Net interest income       $ 86,086           $ 81,696    
                             
    Interest income/earning assets           5.00 %           4.92 %
    Interest expense/earning assets           2.47             2.47  
    Net interest margin           2.53 %           2.45 %
    (1) Tax-equivalent income has been adjusted using the combined marginal federal and state rate of 25.48% and 25.37% for 2024 and 2023, respectively. The annualized taxable-equivalent adjustments utilized in the above table to compute yields aggregated to $1.1 million and $1.1 million in 2024 and 2023, respectively.
    (2) Non-accrual loans are included in the average balances.
    (3) Available-for-sale investments are presented at amortized cost.
       

    Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. and Subsidiaries
    CONSOLIDATED AVERAGE BALANCES, YIELDS AND RATES – UNAUDITED

        Year Ended December 31,
          2024       2023  
    (Dollars in thousands and tax-equivalent)   Average
    Balances    		   Interest (1)   Annualized
    Average
    Yield/Rate    		   Average
    Balances    		   Interest (1)   Annualized
    Average
    Yield/Rate
    Assets                        
    Commercial investor real estate loans   $ 4,929,894     $ 234,402   4.75 %   $ 5,133,279     $ 237,976   4.64 %
    Commercial owner-occupied real estate loans     1,740,376       84,587   4.86       1,766,839       82,049   4.64  
    Commercial AD&C loans     1,180,100       93,082   7.89       1,023,669       81,515   7.96  
    Commercial business loans     1,561,616       105,400   6.75       1,440,382       92,080   6.39  
    Total commercial loans     9,411,986       517,471   5.50       9,364,169       493,620   5.27  
    Residential mortgage loans     1,518,170       56,644   3.73       1,380,496       48,909   3.54  
    Residential construction loans     77,276       3,880   5.02       187,599       6,817   3.63  
    Consumer loans     422,260       34,189   8.10       421,963       32,946   7.81  
    Total residential and consumer loans     2,017,706       94,713   4.69       1,990,058       88,672   4.46  
    Total loans (2)     11,429,692       612,184   5.36       11,354,227       582,292   5.13  
    Residential mortgage loans held for sale     14,089       1,050   7.45       12,421       896   7.21  
    SBA loans held for sale     165       23   14.17       —       —   —  
    Taxable securities     1,200,218       29,140   2.43       1,254,739       26,992   2.15  
    Tax-advantaged securities     336,913       8,928   2.65       357,933       9,049   2.53  
    Total investment securities (3)     1,537,131       38,068   2.48       1,612,672       36,041   2.23  
    Interest-bearing deposits with banks     492,649       25,398   5.16       432,392       22,435   5.19  
    Federal funds sold     216       8   3.79       393       17   4.26  
    Total interest-earning assets     13,473,942       676,731   5.02       13,412,105       641,681   4.78  
                             
    Less: allowance for credit losses – loans     (125,131 )             (124,624 )        
    Cash and due from banks     81,761               93,494          
    Premises and equipment, net     58,571               69,886          
    Other assets     640,652               604,784          
    Total assets   $ 14,129,795             $ 14,055,645          
                             
    Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity                        
    Interest-bearing demand deposits   $ 1,480,668     $ 25,368   1.71 %   $ 1,429,219     $ 16,077   1.12 %
    Regular savings deposits     1,643,305       56,365   3.43       784,575       17,546   2.24  
    Money market savings deposits     2,914,712       105,847   3.63       2,974,580       93,432   3.14  
    Time deposits     2,588,713       115,593   4.47       2,695,232       97,973   3.64  
    Total interest-bearing deposits     8,627,398       303,173   3.51       7,883,606       225,028   2.85  
    Repurchase agreements     65,913       1,370   2.08       63,259       915   1.45  
    Federal funds purchased and Federal Reserve Bank borrowings     75,227       3,889   5.17       273,508       13,537   4.95  
    Advances from FHLB     465,164       20,259   4.36       615,082       27,709   4.50  
    Subordinated debt     371,085       16,455   4.43       370,487       15,785   4.26  
    Total borrowings     977,389       41,973   4.29       1,322,336       57,946   4.38  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities     9,604,787       345,146   3.59       9,205,942       282,974   3.07  
                             
    Noninterest-bearing demand deposits     2,779,696               3,152,699          
    Other liabilities     147,856               168,762          
    Stockholders’ equity     1,597,456               1,528,242          
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity   $ 14,129,795             $ 14,055,645          
                             
    Tax-equivalent net interest income and spread       $ 331,585   1.43 %       $ 358,707   1.71 %
    Less: tax-equivalent adjustment         4,459             4,157    
    Net interest income       $ 327,126           $ 354,550    
                             
    Interest income/earning assets           5.02 %           4.78 %
    Interest expense/earning assets           2.56             2.11  
    Net interest margin           2.46 %           2.67 %
    (1) Tax-equivalent income has been adjusted using the combined marginal federal and state rate of 25.48% and 25.37% for 2024 and 2023, respectively. The annualized taxable-equivalent adjustments utilized in the above table to compute yields aggregated to $4.5 million and $4.2 million in 2024 and 2023, respectively.
    (2) Non-accrual loans are included in the average balances.
    (3) Available-for-sale investments are presented at amortized cost.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: CMA independent inquiry group publishes provisional findings in cloud services market investigation

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    The inquiry group’s report provisionally recommends that the CMA board considers investigating AWS and Microsoft’s cloud service activities using new digital markets powers.

    iStock

    • Provisional findings show competition in the £9 billion UK cloud services markets is not working as well as it could be.

    The Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) independent inquiry group has today published provisional findings following an in-depth assessment into cloud services. It has provisionally found that competition is not working as well as it could be, which is likely to be leading to higher costs, less choice, less innovation and lower quality of service for businesses and organisations across the UK economy.

    Cloud services provide vital infrastructure which supports improved innovation, productivity and scaling for most businesses and organisations in the UK. Customers include financial services, retailers, digital start-ups and key public services who spent £9 billion on cloud services in 2023, a figure growing by over 30% each year.

    In its report, the inquiry group provisionally found:

    • Cloud customers face a limited choice of providers and do not consider many providers are able to provide the range of services that they need. Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft are the two large providers of cloud services, each with a share of up to 40% of UK customer spend on cloud services. Google is the next largest provider with a much smaller share.

    • Technical and commercial barriers make it difficult for cloud customers to switch between and use different cloud providers, locking them into their initial choices which may not reflect their evolving business needs.

    • There are significant barriers to entry and expansion due to the very large capital investment needed to supply cloud services, making it harder for alternative cloud suppliers to enter and grow in these markets.

    • Microsoft is using its strong position in software to make it harder for AWS and Google to compete effectively for cloud customers that wish to use Microsoft software on the cloud. This reduces the competitive challenge that AWS and Google can provide in cloud services and to Microsoft’s position. 

    The inquiry group provisionally believes these concerns make it harder for customers to switch cloud provider or use multiple clouds, which may ultimately impact the price and quality of cloud services. The ability of UK businesses to put healthy pressure on cloud providers to offer better deals is key to ensuring good outcomes and to unlocking the potential benefits of cloud services.

    The inquiry group provisionally recommends that the CMA use its powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA) to consider whether to designate the two largest providers, AWS and Microsoft, with strategic market status (SMS) in relation to their respective digital activities in cloud services.

    Kip Meek, chair of the CMA’s independent inquiry group, said:

    Cloud services underpin most business operations, providing vital infrastructure to businesses and organisations across the UK economy. Our provisional view is that competition in this market is not working as well as it could be. So, we propose that the CMA considers investigating the largest cloud service providers using its new digital markets powers.

    Effective competition in the delivery of these vital services could drive choice, quality and competitive prices – not only helping UK businesses but boosting innovation, productivity, growth and investment across the UK economy.

    The inquiry group will consult on its provisional findings and recommendations before making a final decision by the statutory deadline of 4 August 2025.

    For more information, including how to respond to the consultation, visit the cloud services market investigation case page.

    Notes to Editors:

    1. The CMA defines cloud services as infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and platform as a service (PaaS). IaaS includes services, such as compute, networking and storage and PaaS includes platforms based on this infrastructure which enable customers to develop and run applications in the cloud.

    2. The purpose of a market investigation is to decide whether any feature or combination of features of the cloud services markets in the UK prevents, restricts or distorts competition in connection with the supply or acquisition of any goods or services in the UK or a part of the UK (an ‘adverse effect on competition’ or ‘AEC’). Should we find an AEC, we are required to decide whether we should take any remedial action or whether we should recommend the taking of action by others to remedy, mitigate or prevent the AECs we have found.

    3. The group provisionally considers that the DMCC Act powers would be better suited to addressing the concerns it has identified than the powers directly available to it in the market investigation because they would allow the CMA to take a targeted and flexible approach to remedies, as a result of their greater flexibility, including new powers designed to enhance the effectiveness of remedies, and better provisions for ongoing monitoring and oversight. Greater competition in cloud services has the potential to unlock benefits for UK businesses and drive economic growth.

    4. As set out in the full provisional findings report which will be available on the case page in due course, the interventions the CMA could consider in this market (should AWS and Microsoft be designated with SMS) may include a range of measures which might encourage appropriate technical standardisation, reduce data transfer charges incurred in switching and multi cloud and/or ensure fair licensing of software.The group provisionally considers that measures aimed at AWS and Microsoft would address its market-wide concerns by directly benefitting the majority of UK customers and affecting the competitive conditions for other providers.

    5. The CMA’s market investigation began following a reference from Ofcom, which had carried out a market study on cloud services. The CMA investigated the following features identified by Ofcom: egress fees, technical barriers and committed spend discounts. While the CMA has provisionally found that egress fees and technical barriers constitute features which harm competition in the markets, it has provisionally found that committed spend discounts (as currently implemented by cloud service providers), while widespread, do not currently harm competition as rivals can profitably compete against them.

    6. The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA) came into force on 1 January 2025. For more information, visit the CMA’s initial plans following the commencement of the regime.

    7. Under the new digital markets and competition regime the CMA can – if warranted – impose legally binding conduct requirements (CRs) or pro-competition interventions (PCIs) on firms in relation to the digital activity for which they have been designated as having SMS. The CMA board will decide if and when to open SMS designation investigations.

    8. For media enquiries, contact the CMA press office on 020 3738 6460 or  press@cma.gov.uk.

    Updates to this page

    Published 28 January 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New ‘global growth team’ appointed by Trade Secretary

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    A new ‘global growth team’ of UK Trade Envoys has today been appointed by the Trade Secretary to drive UK exports and investment.

    A new ‘global growth team’ of UK Trade Envoys has today [28 January] been appointed by the Trade Secretary to drive UK exports and investment as the Government pulls every lever available to drive economic growth under its Plan for Change. 

    The 32 parliamentarians, drawn from across the political spectrum, have been assigned target markets across six continents and tasked with identifying trade and investment opportunities for businesses and championing the UK as a destination of choice for investment in those markets.  

    Each market has been identified as presenting significant potential for growing UK trade and Trade Envoys are appointed on their ability, relevant skills and experience. This can be based on their respective markets or UK sector knowledge, including previous government-to-government experience, as well as their commitment to the UK’s growth mission. 

    Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:

    Trade and investment are key to delivering economic growth, the number one mission of this Government and a key part of our Plan for Change.

    That’s why I’ve launched a new team of Trade Envoys, who will use their experience, expertise and knowledge to unlock new markets around the world for British businesses, drumming up investment into the UK and ultimately driving economic growth.

    They will work closely with the Department for Business and Trade. The announcement comes ahead of the new Trade Strategy in Spring, which will prioritise rebuilding our relationship with the EU and seizing opportunities to access new markets further afield.  

    Alongside bolstering exports, attracting investments, and removing trade barriers, the government is also resuming trade talks with FTA partners, including – so far – the GCC, Switzerland and South Korea.  

    The news comes as Trade Minister Douglas Alexander is in South Africa today as part of a multi-leg visit to the region to strengthen trade links and create opportunities for UK businesses.  

    The new appointments are:

    • Afzal Khan MP appointed to Türkiye  

    • Alex Sobel MP appointed to Ukraine  

    • Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP appointed to Ghana  

    • Ben Coleman MP appointed to Morocco & Francophone West Africa  

    • Calvin Bailey MP appointed to Southern Africa  

    • Carolyn Harris MP appointed to New Zealand  

    • Dan Carden MP appointed to Mexico  

    • David Pinto-Duschinsky MP appointed to Switzerland & Lichtenstein  

    • Fabian Hamilton MP appointed to Southern Cone  

    • Flo Eshalomi MP appointed to Nigeria  

    • George Freeman MP appointed to Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore & Brunei  

    • Lord Iain McNicol of West Kilbride appointed to Jordan, Kuwait & the Palestine Territories  

    • Lord Ian Austin of Dudley appointed to Israel  

    • Baroness Jane Ramsey of Wall Heath appointed to Ethiopia  

    • Jess Morden MP appointed to Central America  

    • Lord John Alderdice appointed to Azerbaijan & Central Asia  

    • Lord John Hannett of Everton appointed to Sri Lanka  

    • Lord John Speller of Smethwick appointed to Australia  

    • Josh MacAlister MP appointed to Brazil  

    • Kate Osamor MP appointed to East Africa  

    • Matt Western MP appointed to Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos  

    • Mohammad Yasin MP appointed to Pakistan  

    • Naz Shah MP appointed to Indonesia & ASEAN  

    • Paulette Hamilton MP appointed to Commonwealth Caribbean  

    • Lord Richard Faulkner of Worcester appointed to Taiwan  

    • Lord Roger Liddle appointed to Andean   

    • Dr Rosena Allin-Khan appointed to South Africa   

    • Baroness Rosie Winterton of Doncaster appointed to Bangladesh  

    • Sarah Olney MP appointed to North Africa  

    • Sharon Hodgson MP appointed to Japan  

    • Lord Tom Watson of Wyre Forest appointed to Republic of Korea  

    • Yasmin Qureshi MP appointment to Egypt

    Updates to this page

    Published 28 January 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Symbotic Completes Acquisition of Walmart’s Advanced Systems and Robotics Business and Signs Related Commercial Agreement

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    WILMINGTON, Mass., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —  Symbotic Inc. (Nasdaq: SYM), a leader in A.I.-enabled robotics technology for the supply chain, today announced it has both completed the acquisition of the Advanced Systems and Robotics business from Walmart (NYSE: WMT) and signed the related commercial agreement with Walmart covering the development and deployment of automation systems for Accelerated Pickup and Delivery centers (“APDs”) at Walmart stores (the “Commercial Agreement”).

    Walmart has chosen Symbotic to develop, build and deploy an advanced solution leveraging Symbotic’s A.I.-enabled robotics platform to offer Walmart customers greater shopping convenience through accelerated online pickup and delivery options at stores. Under the terms of the Commercial Agreement, Symbotic will engage in a development program funded by Walmart to enhance current online pickup and delivery fulfillment systems as well as to design new systems to meet the needs of current and future customers. If performance criteria are achieved, Walmart is committed to purchasing and deploying systems for 400 APDs at stores over a multi-year period, with Walmart’s option to add additional APDs in the coming years. Associated with the development program, Walmart will pay Symbotic a total of $520 million, including $230 million that was paid at the closing of the acquisition of the Advanced Systems and Robotics business from Walmart.

    The transaction and new agreement could increase Symbotic’s future backlog by more than $5 billion and adds a micro-fulfillment solution that expands its addressable market by more than $300 billion in the United States alone.

    “We’re excited to expand upon our long-term relationship with Walmart while broadening our product offering to automation at the store to support the growth of eCommerce,” said Rick Cohen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Symbotic.

    ABOUT SYMBOTIC

    Symbotic is an automation technology leader reimagining the supply chain with its end-to-end, A.I.-powered robotic and software platform. Symbotic reinvents the warehouse as a strategic asset for the world’s largest retail, wholesale, and food & beverage companies. Applying next-generation technology, high-density storage and machine learning to solve today’s complex distribution challenges, Symbotic enables companies to move goods with unmatched speed, agility, accuracy and efficiency. As the backbone of commerce, Symbotic transforms the flow of goods and the economics of the supply chain for its customers. For more information, visit www.symbotic.com.

    FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

    This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but are not limited to, our expectations or predictions of future financial or business performance or conditions. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Generally, statements that are not historical facts, including statements concerning our possible or assumed future actions, business strategies, events, backlog, or results of operations, are forward-looking statements. These statements may be preceded by, followed by or include the words “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “projects,” “forecasts,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seeks,” “plans,” “scheduled,” “anticipates,” or “intends” or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events, results or performance to differ materially from those indicated by such statements. Certain of these risks are identified and discussed in Symbotic’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including the sections titled “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” contained therein. These risk factors will be important to consider in determining future results and should be reviewed in their entirety. These forward-looking statements are expressed in good faith, and Symbotic believes there is a reasonable basis for them. However, there can be no assurance that the events, results or trends identified in these forward-looking statements will occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Symbotic is not under any obligation, and expressly disclaims any obligation, to update, alter or otherwise revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Readers should carefully review the statements set forth in the reports, which Symbotic has filed or will file from time to time with the SEC.

    In addition to factors previously disclosed in Symbotic’s filings with the SEC and those identified elsewhere in this communication, the following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements or historical performance: failure to realize the benefits expected from the transactions described herein (the “Transactions”); business disruption following the Transactions; the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the agreements entered into in connection with the Transactions, including the Commercial Agreement; the effect of the Transactions on Symbotic’s business relationships, performance, and business generally; the amount of the costs, fees, expenses and other charges related to the Transactions; and other consequences associated with joint ventures and legislative and regulatory actions and reforms.

    Any financial projections in this communication are forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions that are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond Symbotic’s control. While all projections are necessarily speculative, Symbotic believes that the preparation of prospective financial information involves increasingly higher levels of uncertainty the further out the projection extends from the date of preparation. The assumptions and estimates underlying the projected results are inherently uncertain and are subject to a wide variety of significant business, economic and competitive risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the projections. The inclusion of projections in this communication should not be regarded as an indication that Symbotic or its representatives considered or consider the projections to be a reliable prediction of future events.

    Annualized, pro forma, projected and estimated numbers are used for illustrative purposes only, are not forecasts and may not reflect actual results.

    This communication is not intended to be all-inclusive or to contain all the information that a person may desire in considering an investment in Symbotic and is not intended to form the basis of an investment decision in Symbotic. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements concerning Symbotic, the Transactions or other matters and attributable to Symbotic or any person acting on their behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements above.

    INVESTOR RELATIONS CONTACT

    Charlie Anderson
    Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate Development
    ir@symbotic.com

    MEDIA INQUIRIES

    mediainquiry@symbotic.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Provident Financial Holdings Reports Second Quarter of Fiscal Year 2025 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Net Income of $872,000 in the December 2024 Quarter, Down 54% from the Sequential Quarter and 59% from the Comparable Quarter Last Year

    Net Interest Margin of 2.91% in the December 2024 Quarter, Up Seven Basis Points from the Sequential Quarter and 13 Basis Points from the Comparable Quarter Last Year

    Loans Held for Investment of $1.05 Billion at December 31, 2024, Unchanged from June 30, 2024

    Total Deposits of $867.5 Million at December 31, 2024, Down 2% from June 30, 2024

    Non-Performing Assets to Total Assets Ratio of 0.20% at December 31, 2024, Unchanged from June 30, 2024

    Non-Interest Expenses Remain Well Controlled

    RIVERSIDE, Calif., Jan. 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Provident Financial Holdings, Inc. (“Company”), NASDAQ GS: PROV, the holding company for Provident Savings Bank, F.S.B. (“Bank”), today announced earnings for the second quarter of the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025.

    The Company reported net income of $872,000, or $0.13 per diluted share (on 6.79 million average diluted shares outstanding), for the quarter ended December 31, 2024, down 59 percent from net income of $2.14 million, or $0.31 per diluted share (on 6.98 million average diluted shares outstanding), in the comparable period a year ago. The decrease in earnings was due primarily to a $586,000 provision for credit losses, in contrast to a $720,000 recovery of credit losses in the comparable period a year ago, and a $450,000 increase in non-interest expenses (primarily attributable to higher salaries and employee benefits and other operating expenses).

    “I am pleased with the progress we have made in our fundamental operating results. Net interest income increased by approximately two percent from the prior sequential quarter and was largely the result of an expanding net interest margin. Growth in the loans held for investment portfolio, which increased from the September 30, 2024 balance, also contributed to this improvement. Credit quality remains strong; however, the increase in mortgage interest rates has resulted in a longer estimated average life of our loan portfolio and a corresponding provision for credit losses. Additionally, we remain active in our stock repurchase plan with our Board of Directors recently approving a new plan, demonstrating our commitment to sound capital management practices,” stated Donavon P. Ternes, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. “As I described last quarter, our business model performs better in a flat or upward-sloping yield curve environment. Now that the Federal Open Market Committee has implemented looser monetary policy and the inverted yield curve has reversed course, we are transitioning back to less restrictive operating strategies,” concluded Ternes.

    Return on average assets was 0.28 percent for the second quarter of fiscal 2025, compared to 0.61 percent in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 and 0.66 percent for the second quarter of fiscal 2024. Return on average stockholders’ equity for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was 2.66 percent, compared to 5.78 percent for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 and 6.56 percent for the second quarter of fiscal 2024.

    On a sequential quarter basis, the $872,000 net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 reflects a 54 percent decrease from $1.90 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2025. The decrease was primarily attributable to a $586,000 provision for credit losses, in contrast to a $697,000 recovery of credit losses, and a $271,000 increase in non-interest expense (primarily due to an increase in salaries and employee benefits), partly offset by a $143,000 increase in net interest income (primarily due to a higher net interest margin). The increase in salaries and employee benefits expense was primarily attributable to higher employee compensation. Diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 were $0.13 per share, down 54 percent from $0.28 per share in the first quarter of fiscal 2025.

    For the six months ended December 31, 2024, net income decreased $1.13 million, or 29 percent, to $2.77 million from $3.90 million in the comparable period in fiscal 2024. Diluted earnings per share for the six months ended December 31, 2024 decreased 27 percent to $0.41 per share (on 6.83 million average diluted shares outstanding) from $0.56 per share (on 7.00 million average diluted shares outstanding) for the comparable six-month period last year. The decrease in earnings was primarily attributable to a $1.12 million increase in non-interest expense (primarily due to an increase in salaries and employee benefits and other operating expenses) and a $538,000 decrease in net interest income, partly offset by a $118,000 increase in non-interest income.

    In the second quarter of fiscal 2025, net interest income decreased slightly to $8.76 million from $8.77 million for the same quarter last year. The slight decrease in net interest income was due to a lower average balance of interest-earning assets, partly offset by a higher net interest margin. The average balance of interest-earning assets decreased five percent to $1.20 billion in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $1.26 billion in the same quarter last year, primarily due to decreases in the average balance of loans receivable, investment securities and interest-earning deposits. The net interest margin for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 increased 13 basis points to 2.91 percent from 2.78 percent in the same quarter last year. The increase in net interest margin was due to increased yields on interest-earning assets outpacing increased funding costs. The average yield on interest-earning assets increased 33 basis points to 4.66 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from 4.33 percent in the same quarter last year. In contrast, our average funding costs increased by 23 basis points to 1.92 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from 1.69 percent in the same quarter last year.

    Interest income on loans receivable increased $541,000, or four percent, to $13.05 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $12.51 million in the same quarter of fiscal 2024. The increase was due to a higher average loan yield, partly offset by a lower average loan balance. The average yield on loans receivable increased 33 basis points to 4.99 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from 4.66 percent in the same quarter last year. Adjustable-rate loans of approximately $100.7 million repriced upward in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 by approximately 15 basis points from a weighted average rate of 7.83 percent to 7.98 percent. The average balance of loans receivable decreased $27.8 million, or three percent, to $1.05 billion in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $1.07 billion in the same quarter last year. Total loans originated for investment in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 were $36.4 million, up 80 percent from $20.2 million in the same quarter last year, while loan principal payments received in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 were $34.3 million, up 93 percent from $17.8 million in the same quarter last year.

    Interest income from investment securities decreased $53,000, or 10 percent, to $471,000 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $524,000 for the same quarter of fiscal 2024. This decrease was attributable to a lower average balance, partly offset by a higher average yield. The average balance of investment securities decreased $23.4 million, or 16 percent, to $123.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $147.2 million in the same quarter last year. The decrease in the average balance was due to scheduled principal payments and prepayments of investment securities. The average yield on investment securities increased 10 basis points to 1.52 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from 1.42 percent for the same quarter last year. The increase in the average yield was primarily attributable to a lower premium amortization during the current quarter in comparison to the same quarter last year ($97,000 vs. $137,000) due to lower total principal repayments ($5.3 million vs. $5.9 million) and, to a lesser extent, the upward repricing of adjustable-rate mortgage-backed securities.

    In the second quarter of fiscal 2025, the Bank received $213,000 in cash dividends from the Federal Home Loan Bank (“FHLB”) – San Francisco stock and other equity investments, up eight percent from $197,000 in the same quarter last year, resulting in an average yield of 8.38 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 compared to 8.29 percent in the same quarter last year. The average balance of FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was $10.2 million, up from $9.5 million in the same quarter of fiscal 2024.

    Interest income from interest-earning deposits, primarily cash deposited at the Federal Reserve Bank (“FRB”) of San Francisco, was $287,000 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025, down $148,000 or 34 percent from $435,000 in the same quarter of fiscal 2024. The decrease was due to a lower average balance and, to a lesser extent, a lower average yield. The average balance of the Company’s interest-earning deposits decreased $7.8 million, or 25 percent, to $23.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $31.5 million in the same quarter last year. The average yield earned on interest-earning deposits in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was 4.74 percent, down 67 basis points from 5.41 percent in the same quarter last year. The decrease in the average yield was due to a lower average interest rate on the FRB’s reserve balances resulting from decreases in the targeted federal funds rate during the comparable periods.

    Interest expense on deposits for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was $2.67 million, an increase of $401,000 or 18 percent from $2.27 million for the same period last year. The increase was attributable to higher rates paid on deposits, partly offset by a lower average balance. The average cost of deposits was 1.23 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025, up 24 basis points from 0.99 percent in the same quarter last year. The increase in the average cost of deposits was primarily attributable to an increase in higher cost time deposits, particularly brokered certificates of deposit. The average balance of deposits decreased $51.5 million, or six percent, to $863.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $914.6 million in the same quarter last year.

    Transaction account balances, or “core deposits,” decreased $21.6 million, or four percent, to $592.9 million at December 31, 2024 from $614.5 million at June 30, 2024, while time deposits increased slightly to $274.6 million at December 31, 2024 from $273.9 million at June 30, 2024. As of December 31, 2024, brokered certificates of deposit totaled $143.8 million, up $12.0 million or nine percent from $131.8 million at June 30, 2024. The weighted average cost of brokered certificates of deposit was 4.56 percent and 5.18 percent (including broker fees) at December 31, 2024 and June 30, 2024, respectively.

    Interest expense on borrowings, consisting of FHLB advances, for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 decreased $30,000, or one percent, to $2.59 million from $2.62 million for the same period last year. The decrease in interest expense on borrowings was primarily the result of a lower average balance, partly offset by a higher average cost. The average balance of borrowings decreased $3.8 million, or two percent, to $226.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $230.5 million in the same quarter last year. The average cost of borrowings increased two basis points to 4.53 percent in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from 4.51 percent in the same quarter last year.

    At December 31, 2024, the Bank had approximately $246.2 million of remaining borrowing capacity at the FHLB. Additionally, the Bank has an unused secured borrowing facility of approximately $198.5 million with the FRB of San Francisco and an unused unsecured federal funds borrowing facility of $50.0 million with its correspondent bank. The total available borrowing capacity across all sources totaled approximately $494.7 million at December 31, 2024.

    The Bank continues to work with both the FHLB and FRB of San Francisco to ensure that its borrowing capacity is continuously reviewed and updated in order to be accessed seamlessly should the need arise.

    During the second quarter of fiscal 2025, the Company recorded a provision for credit losses of $586,000 (which included a $41,000 recovery of unfunded commitment reserves), in contrast to a $720,000 recovery of credit losses recorded during the same period last year and a $697,000 recovery of credit losses recorded in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (sequential quarter). The provision for credit losses recorded in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was primarily attributable to a longer estimated life of the loan portfolio resulting from lower loan prepayment estimates (attributable to higher interest rates) and a slight increase in the outstanding balance of loans held for investment at December 31, 2024 from September 30, 2024.

    Non-performing assets, comprised solely of non-accrual loans with underlying collateral located in California, decreased $66,000 or three percent to $2.5 million, which represented 0.20 percent of total assets at December 31, 2024, compared to $2.6 million, which represented 0.20 percent of total assets at June 30, 2024. At both December 31, 2024 and June 30, 2024, non-performing loans were comprised of 10 single-family loans. At both December 31, 2024 and June 30, 2024, there was no real estate owned and no loans past due by 90 days or more that were accruing interest. For the quarters ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, there were no loan charge-offs.

    The recent wildfires in Los Angeles, California did not have a material impact on the Company’s operations or the Bank’s customers. The Bank’s branches and facilities remained operational throughout the wildfire events, and there were no significant disruptions to customer services or business activities observed. Additionally, the Bank has not identified any significant credit exposure or financial impact attributable to the wildfires at this time.

    Classified assets were $5.8 million at December 31, 2024, consisting of $631,000 of loans in the special mention category and $5.1 million of loans in the substandard category. Classified assets at June 30, 2024 were $5.8 million, consisting of $1.1 million of loans in the special mention category and $4.7 million of loans in the substandard category.

    The allowance for credit losses on loans held for investment was $7.0 million, or 0.66 percent of gross loans held for investment, at December 31, 2024, down from $7.1 million, or 0.67 percent of gross loans held for investment, at June 30, 2024. The decrease in the allowance for credit losses was due primarily to a shorter estimated life of the loan portfolio, partly offset by a slightly higher balance of loans held for investment. Management believes that, based on currently available information, the allowance for credit losses is sufficient to absorb expected losses inherent in loans held for investment at December 31, 2024.

    Non-interest income decreased by $30,000, or three percent, to $845,000 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $875,000 in the same period last year, due primarily to decreases in loan servicing and other fess, deposit fees and card and processing fees, partly offset by an increase in other fees. On a sequential quarter basis, non-interest income decreased $54,000, or six percent, primarily due to decreases in loan servicing and other fess, deposit fees and card and processing fees, partly offset by an increase in other fees.

    Non-interest expense increased $450,000, or six percent, to $7.79 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 from $7.34 million for the same quarter last year, primarily due to higher salaries and employee benefits expenses and other operating expenses. The higher salaries and employee benefits expenses was primarily due to higher compensation expenses, retirement plan benefit expenses and executive search agency costs, partly offset by a lower accrual adjustment for the supplemental executive retirement plans expense. On a sequential quarter basis, non-interest expense increased $271,000, or four percent as compared to $7.52 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, due primarily to higher salaries and employee benefits expenses. The higher salaries and employee benefits expenses was primarily due to higher compensation expenses, a higher accrual adjustment for the supplemental executive retirement plans expense and executive search agency costs.

    The Company’s efficiency ratio, defined as non-interest expense divided by the sum of net interest income and non-interest income, in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was 81.15 percent, an increase from 76.11 percent in the same quarter last year and 79.06 percent in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (sequential quarter). The increase in the efficiency ratio during the current quarter in comparison to the comparable quarter last year was due to higher non-interest expense and, to a lesser extent, a lower net interest income and non-interest income.

    The Company’s provision for income taxes was $352,000 for the second quarter of fiscal 2025, down 60 percent from $884,000 in the same quarter last year and down 55 percent from $789,000 for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (sequential quarter). The decrease during the current quarter compared to both the sequential quarter and same quarter last year was due to a decrease in pre-tax income. The effective tax rate in the second quarter of fiscal 2025 was 28.8 percent as compared to 29.2 percent in the same quarter last year and 29.3 percent for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (sequential quarter).

    The Company repurchased 63,556 shares of its common stock pursuant to its current stock repurchase program at an average cost of $16.04 per share during the quarter ended December 31, 2024. As of December 31, 2024, a total of 31,919 shares remained available for future purchase under the Company’s current repurchase program, which expires on September 26, 2025.

    The Bank currently operates 13 retail/business banking offices in Riverside County and San Bernardino County (Inland Empire).

    The Company will host a conference call for institutional investors and bank analysts on Tuesday, January 28, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. (Pacific) to discuss its financial results. The conference call can be accessed by dialing 1-800-715-9871 and referencing Conference ID number 7361828. An audio replay of the conference call will be available through Tuesday, February 4, 2025 by dialing 1-800-770-2030 and referencing Conference ID number 7361828.

    For more financial information about the Company please visit the website at www.myprovident.com and click on the “Investor Relations” section.

    Safe-Harbor Statement

    This press release contains statements that the Company believes are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to the Company’s financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance or business. You should not place undue reliance on these statements as they are subject to various risks and uncertainties. When considering these forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind these risks and uncertainties, as well as any cautionary statements the Company may make. Moreover, you should treat these statements as speaking only as of the date they are made and based only on information then actually known to the Company.

    There are a number of important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from historical performance and these forward-looking statements. Factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from the results anticipated or implied by our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: adverse economic conditions in our local market areas or other markets where we have lending relationships; effects of employment levels, labor shortages, inflation, a recession or slowed economic growth; changes in the interest rate environment, including the increases and decreases in the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Board (the “Federal Reserve”) benchmark rate and the duration of such levels, which could adversely affect our revenues and expenses, the value of assets and obligations, and the availability and cost of capital and liquidity; the impact of inflation and the Federal Reserve monetary policy; the effects of any Federal government shutdown; credit risks of lending activities, including loan delinquencies, write-offs, changes in our ACL, and provision for credit losses; increased competitive pressures, including repricing and competitors’ pricing initiatives, and their impact on our market position, loan, and deposit products; quality and composition of our securities portfolio and the impact of adverse changes in the securities markets; fluctuations in deposits; secondary market conditions for loans and our ability to sell loans in the secondary market; liquidity issues, including our ability to borrow funds or raise additional capital, if necessary; expectations regarding key growth initiatives and strategic priorities; the impact of bank failures or adverse developments at other banks and related negative press about the banking industry in general on investor and depositor sentiment; results of examinations of us by regulatory authorities, which may the possibility that any such regulatory authority may, among other things, institute a formal or informal enforcement action against us or our bank subsidiary which could require us to increase our ACL, write-down assets, change our regulatory capital position or affect our ability to borrow funds or maintain or increase deposits or impose additional requirements or restrictions on us, any of which could adversely affect our liquidity and earnings; legislative and regulatory changes, including changes in banking, securities and tax law, in regulatory policies and principles, or the interpretation of regulatory capital or other rules; use of estimates in determining the fair value of assets, which may prove incorrect; disruptions or security breaches, or other adverse events, failures or interruptions in or attacks on our information technology systems or on our third-party vendors; the potential imposition of new tariffs or changes to existing trade policies that could affect economic activity or specific industry sectors; staffing fluctuations in response to product demand or corporate implementation strategies; our ability to pay dividends on our common stock; environmental, social and governance goals; effects of climate change, severe weather events, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics and other public health crises, acts of war or terrorism, civil unrest and other external events; 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 and furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which are available on our website at www.myprovident.com and on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

    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 whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. These risks could cause our actual results for fiscal 2025 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements by, or on behalf of us and could negatively affect our operating and stock price performance.

             
    Contacts:   Donavon P. Ternes   TamHao B. Nguyen
        President and   Senior Vice President and
        Chief Executive Officer   Chief Financial Officer
             
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition
    (Unaudited –In Thousands, Except Share and Per Share Information)
     
         December 31,    September 30,    June 30,   March 31,   December 31,
          2024     2024   2024   2024   2023
    Assets                              
    Cash and cash equivalents   $ 45,539     $ 48,193     $ 51,376     $ 51,731     $ 46,878  
    Investment securities – held to maturity, at cost with no allowance for credit losses     118,888       124,268       130,051       135,971       141,692  
    Investment securities – available for sale, at fair value     1,750       1,809       1,849       1,935       1,996  
    Loans held for investment, net of allowance for credit losses of $6,956, $6,329, $7,065, $7,108 and $7,000, respectively; includes $1,016, $1,082, $1,047, $1,054 and $1,092 of loans held at fair value, respectively     1,053,603       1,048,633       1,052,979       1,065,761       1,075,765  
    Accrued interest receivable     4,167       4,287       4,287       4,249       4,076  
    FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments, includes $650, $565, $540, $0 and $0 of other equity investments at fair value, respectively     10,218       10,133       10,108       9,505       9,505  
    Premises and equipment, net     9,474       9,615       9,313       9,637       9,598  
    Prepaid expenses and other assets     11,327       10,442       12,237       11,258       11,583  
    Total assets   $ 1,254,966     $ 1,257,380     $ 1,272,200     $ 1,290,047     $ 1,301,093  
                                   
    Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity                              
    Liabilities:                              
    Noninterest-bearing deposits   $ 85,399     $ 86,458     $ 95,627     $ 91,708     $ 94,030  
    Interest-bearing deposits     782,116       777,406       792,721       816,414       817,950  
    Total deposits     867,515       863,864       888,348       908,122       911,980  
                                   
    Borrowings     245,500       249,500       238,500       235,000       242,500  
    Accounts payable, accrued interest and other liabilities     13,321       14,410       15,411       17,419       16,952  
    Total liabilities     1,126,336       1,127,774       1,142,259       1,160,541       1,171,432  
                                   
    Stockholders’ equity:                              
    Preferred stock, $.01 par value (2,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding)     —       —       —       —       —  
    Common stock, $.01 par value; (40,000,000 shares authorized; 18,229,615, 18,229,615, 18,229,615, 18,229,615 and 18,229,615 shares issued respectively; 6,705,691, 6,769,247, 6,847,821, 6,896,297 and 6,946,348 shares outstanding, respectively)     183       183       183       183       183  
    Additional paid-in capital     98,747       98,711       98,532       99,591       99,565  
    Retained earnings     210,779       210,853       209,914       208,923       208,396  
    Treasury stock at cost (11,523,924, 11,460,368, 11,381,794, 11,333,318, and 11,283,267 shares, respectively)     (181,094 )     (180,155 )     (178,685 )     (179,183 )     (178,476 )
    Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax     15       14       (3 )     (8 )     (7 )
    Total stockholders’ equity     128,630       129,606       129,941       129,506       129,661  
    Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity   $ 1,254,966     $ 1,257,380     $ 1,272,200     $ 1,290,047     $ 1,301,093  
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
    (Unaudited – In Thousands, Except Per Share Information)
                               
        For the Quarter Ended   Six Months Ended
           December 31,   December 31,
        2024   2023   2024 2023
    Interest income:                          
    Loans receivable, net   $ 13,050     $ 12,509     $ 26,073     $ 24,685  
    Investment securities     471       524       953       1,048  
    FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments     213       197       423       376  
    Interest-earning deposits     287       435       647       898  
    Total interest income     14,021       13,665       28,096       27,007  
                               
    Interest expense:                          
    Checking and money market deposits     51       72       104       129  
    Savings deposits     117       73       229       111  
    Time deposits     2,506       2,128       5,165       3,918  
    Borrowings     2,588       2,618       5,223       4,936  
    Total interest expense     5,262       4,891       10,721       9,094  
                               
    Net interest income     8,759       8,774       17,375       17,913  
    Provision for (recovery of) credit losses     586       (720 )     (111 )     (175 )
    Net interest income, after provision for (recovery of) credit losses     8,173       9,494       17,486       18,088  
                               
    Non-interest income:                          
    Loan servicing and other fees     60       124       164       103  
    Deposit account fees     282       299       580       587  
    Card and processing fees     300       333       620       686  
    Other     203       119       380       250  
    Total non-interest income     845       875       1,744       1,626  
                               
    Non-interest expense:                          
    Salaries and employee benefits     4,826       4,569       9,459       8,683  
    Premises and occupancy     917       903       1,868       1,806  
    Equipment     379       346       722       633  
    Professional     412       410       838       882  
    Sales and marketing     187       181       360       349  
    Deposit insurance premiums and regulatory assessments     190       209       373       406  
    Other     883       726       1,697       1,441  
    Total non-interest expense     7,794       7,344       15,317       14,200  
    Income before income taxes     1,224       3,025       3,913       5,514  
    Provision for income taxes     352       884       1,141       1,611  
    Net income   $ 872     $ 2,141     $ 2,772     $ 3,903  
                               
    Basic earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.31     $ 0.41     $ 0.56  
    Diluted earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.31     $ 0.41     $ 0.56  
    Cash dividends per share   $ 0.14     $ 0.14     $ 0.28     $ 0.28  
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations – Sequential Quarters
    (Unaudited – In Thousands, Except Per Share Information)
                                       
        For the Quarter Ended
        December 31,   September 30,   June 30,   March 31,   December 31,
        2024   2024   2024   2024   2023
    Interest income:                                  
    Loans receivable, net   $ 13,050     $ 13,023     $ 12,826     $ 12,683     $ 12,509  
    Investment securities     471       482       504       517       524  
    FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments     213       210       207       210       197  
    Interest-earning deposits     287       360       379       397       435  
    Total interest income     14,021       14,075       13,916       13,807       13,665  
                                       
    Interest expense:                                  
    Checking and money market deposits     51       53       71       90       72  
    Savings deposits     117       112       105       97       73  
    Time deposits     2,506       2,659       2,657       2,488       2,128  
    Borrowings     2,588       2,635       2,632       2,573       2,618  
    Total interest expense     5,262       5,459       5,465       5,248       4,891  
                                       
    Net interest income     8,759       8,616       8,451       8,559       8,774  
    Provision for (recovery of) credit losses     586       (697 )     (12 )     124       (720 )
    Net interest income, after provision for (recovery of) credit losses     8,173       9,313       8,463       8,435       9,494  
                                       
    Non-interest income:                                  
    Loan servicing and other fees     60       104       142       92       124  
    Deposit account fees     282       298       278       289       299  
    Card and processing fees     300       320       381       317       333  
    Other     203       177       666       150       119  
    Total non-interest income     845       899       1,467       848       875  
                                       
    Non-interest expense:                                  
    Salaries and employee benefits     4,826       4,633       4,419       4,540       4,569  
    Premises and occupancy     917       951       945       835       903  
    Equipment     379       343       347       329       346  
    Professional     412       426       327       321       410  
    Sales and marketing     187       173       193       167       181  
    Deposit insurance premiums and regulatory assessments     190       183       184       190       209  
    Other     883       814       757       786       726  
    Total non-interest expense     7,794       7,523       7,172       7,168       7,344  
    Income before income taxes     1,224       2,689       2,758       2,115       3,025  
    Provision for income taxes     352       789       805       620       884  
    Net income   $ 872     $ 1,900     $ 1,953     $ 1,495     $ 2,141  
                                       
    Basic earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.28     $ 0.28     $ 0.22     $ 0.31  
    Diluted earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.28     $ 0.28     $ 0.22     $ 0.31  
    Cash dividends per share   $ 0.14     $ 0.14     $ 0.14     $ 0.14     $ 0.14  
                                       
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Financial Highlights
    (Unaudited – Dollars in Thousands, Except Share and Per Share Information)
                                     
        As of and For the  
        Quarter Ended     Six Months Ended  
        December 31,     December 31,  
           2024       2023        2024       2023  
    SELECTED FINANCIAL RATIOS:                                
    Return on average assets     0.28 %     0.66 %     0.45 %     0.60 %
    Return on average stockholders’ equity     2.66 %     6.56 %     4.22 %     5.98 %
    Stockholders’ equity to total assets     10.25 %     9.97 %     10.25 %     9.97 %
    Net interest spread     2.74 %     2.64 %     2.70 %     2.70 %
    Net interest margin     2.91 %     2.78 %     2.87 %     2.83 %
    Efficiency ratio     81.15 %     76.11 %     80.11 %     72.68 %
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest-bearing liabilities     110.52 %     110.27 %     110.43 %     110.22 %
                                     
    SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA:                                
    Basic earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.31     $ 0.41     $ 0.56  
    Diluted earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.31     $ 0.41     $ 0.56  
    Book value per share   $ 19.18     $ 18.67     $ 19.18     $ 18.67  
    Shares used for basic EPS computation     6,744,653       6,968,460       6,788,889       6,992,565  
    Shares used for diluted EPS computation     6,792,759       6,980,856       6,827,921       7,004,042  
    Total shares issued and outstanding     6,705,691       6,946,348       6,705,691       6,946,348  
                                     
    LOANS ORIGINATED FOR INVESTMENT:                                
    Mortgage loans:                                
    Single-family   $ 29,583     $ 8,660     $ 52,032     $ 21,112  
    Multi-family     6,495       6,608       11,685       11,721  
    Commercial real estate     365       4,936       1,625       5,875  
    Commercial business loans     —       —       50       —  
    Total loans originated for investment   $ 36,443     $ 20,204     $ 65,392     $ 38,708  
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Financial Highlights
    (Unaudited – Dollars in Thousands, Except Share and Per Share Information)
                                             
        As of and For the  
        Quarter     Quarter     Quarter     Quarter     Quarter  
        Ended     Ended     Ended     Ended     Ended  
           12/31/24        09/30/24        06/30/24        03/31/24        12/31/23  
    SELECTED FINANCIAL RATIOS:                                        
    Return on average assets     0.28 %     0.61 %     0.62 %     0.47 %     0.66 %
    Return on average stockholders’ equity     2.66 %     5.78 %     5.96 %     4.57 %     6.56 %
    Stockholders’ equity to total assets     10.25 %     10.31 %     10.21 %     10.04 %     9.97 %
    Net interest spread     2.74 %     2.66 %     2.54 %     2.55 %     2.64 %
    Net interest margin     2.91 %     2.84 %     2.74 %     2.74 %     2.78 %
    Efficiency ratio     81.15 %     79.06 %     72.31 %     76.20 %     76.11 %
    Average interest-earning assets to average interest-bearing liabilities     110.52 %     110.34 %     110.40 %     110.28 %     110.27 %
                                             
    SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA:                                        
    Basic earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.28     $ 0.28     $ 0.22     $ 0.31  
    Diluted earnings per share   $ 0.13     $ 0.28     $ 0.28     $ 0.22     $ 0.31  
    Book value per share   $ 19.18     $ 19.15     $ 18.98     $ 18.78     $ 18.67  
    Average shares used for basic EPS     6,744,653       6,833,125       6,867,521       6,919,397       6,968,460  
    Average shares used for diluted EPS     6,792,759       6,863,083       6,893,813       6,935,053       6,980,856  
    Total shares issued and outstanding     6,705,691       6,769,247       6,847,821       6,896,297       6,946,348  
                                             
    LOANS ORIGINATED FOR INVESTMENT:                                        
    Mortgage loans:                                        
    Single-family   $ 29,583     $ 22,449     $ 10,862     $ 8,946     $ 8,660  
    Multi-family     6,495       5,190       4,526       5,865       6,608  
    Commercial real estate     365       1,260       1,710       2,172       4,936  
    Construction     —       —       1,480       —       —  
    Commercial business loans     —       50       —       1,250       —  
    Total loans originated for investment   $ 36,443     $ 28,949     $ 18,578     $ 18,233     $ 20,204  
     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Financial Highlights
    (Unaudited – Dollars in Thousands)
                                             
           As of        As of        As of        As of        As of  
        12/31/24     09/30/24     06/30/24     03/31/24     12/31/23  
    ASSET QUALITY RATIOS AND DELINQUENT LOANS:                                        
    Recourse reserve for loans sold   $ 23     $ 23     $ 26     $ 31     $ 31  
    Allowance for credit losses on loans held for investment   $ 6,956     $ 6,329     $ 7,065     $ 7,108     $ 7,000  
    Non-performing loans to loans held for investment, net     0.24 %     0.20 %     0.25 %     0.21 %     0.16 %
    Non-performing assets to total assets     0.20 %     0.17 %     0.20 %     0.17 %     0.13 %
    Allowance for credit losses on loans to gross loans held for investment     0.66 %     0.61 %     0.67 %     0.67 %     0.65 %
    Net loan charge-offs (recoveries) to average loans receivable (annualized)     — %     — %     — %     — %     — %
    Non-performing loans   $ 2,530     $ 2,106     $ 2,596     $ 2,246     $ 1,750  
    Loans 30 to 89 days delinquent   $ 3     $ 2     $ 1     $ 388     $ 340  
                                       
           Quarter      Quarter      Quarter      Quarter      Quarter
        Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended
        12/31/24   09/30/24   06/30/24   03/31/24   12/31/23
    (Recovery) recourse provision for loans sold   $ —     $ (3 )   $ (5 )   $ —     $ (2 )
    Provision for (recovery of) credit losses   $ 586     $ (697 )   $ (12 )   $ 124     $ (720 )
    Net loan charge-offs (recoveries)   $ —     $ —     $ —     $ —     $ —  
                                           
           As of          As of          As of          As of          As of  
        12/31/2024       09/30/2024       06/30/2024       03/31/2024       12/31/2023  
    REGULATORY CAPITAL RATIOS (BANK):                                           
    Tier 1 leverage ratio   9.81 %       9.63 %       10.02 %       9.70 %       9.48 %
    Common equity tier 1 capital ratio   18.60 %       18.36 %       19.29 %       18.77 %       18.20 %
    Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio   18.60 %       18.36 %       19.29 %       18.77 %       18.20 %
    Total risk-based capital ratio   19.67 %       19.35 %       20.38 %       19.85 %       19.24 %
                                     
        As of December 31,  
           2024        2023  
           Balance        Rate(1)        Balance        Rate(1)  
    INVESTMENT SECURITIES:                                
    Held to maturity (at cost):                                
    U.S. SBA securities   $ 385       5.35 %   $ 630       5.85 %
    U.S. government sponsored enterprise MBS     114,817       1.59       137,205       1.50  
    U.S. government sponsored enterprise CMO     3,686       2.14       3,857       2.17  
    Total investment securities held to maturity   $ 118,888       1.62 %   $ 141,692       1.54 %
                                     
    Available for sale (at fair value):                                
    U.S. government agency MBS   $ 1,152       4.46 %   $ 1,314       3.47 %
    U.S. government sponsored enterprise MBS     518       6.90       584       5.61  
    Private issue CMO     80       6.09       98       4.67  
    Total investment securities available for sale   $ 1,750       5.26 %   $ 1,996       4.16 %
    Total investment securities   $ 120,638       1.67 %   $ 143,688       1.57 %

         (1)  Weighted-average yield earned on all instruments included in the balance of the respective line item.

     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Financial Highlights
    (Unaudited – Dollars in Thousands)
                                 
        As of December 31,  
           2024        2023  
           Balance        Rate(1)        Balance        Rate(1)  
    LOANS HELD FOR INVESTMENT:                            
    Mortgage loans:                            
    Single-family (1 to 4 units)   $ 533,140       4.60 %   $ 521,944       4.32 %
    Multi-family (5 or more units)     433,724       5.48       458,502       5.00  
    Commercial real estate     77,984       6.72       88,640       6.20  
    Construction     1,480       11.00       2,534       8.88  
    Other     90       5.25       102       5.25  
    Commercial business loans     4,371       9.67       1,616       10.50  
    Consumer loans     59       17.75       68       18.50  
    Total loans held for investment     1,050,848       5.15 %     1,073,406       4.79 %
                                 
    Advance payments of escrows     321               106          
    Deferred loan costs, net     9,390               9,253          
    Allowance for credit losses on loans     (6,956 )             (7,000 )        
    Total loans held for investment, net   $ 1,053,603             $ 1,075,765          
    Purchased loans serviced by others included above   $ 1,749       5.72 %   $ 10,239       5.59 %

         (1)  Weighted-average yield earned on all instruments included in the balance of the respective line item.

                                     
        As of December 31,  
           2024        2023  
           Balance        Rate(1)        Balance        Rate(1)  
    DEPOSITS:                                
    Checking accounts – noninterest-bearing   $ 85,399       — %   $ 94,030       — %
    Checking accounts – interest-bearing     251,024       0.04       275,396       0.04  
    Savings accounts     232,917       0.20       256,578       0.14  
    Money market accounts     23,527       0.29       31,637       0.82  
    Time deposits     274,648       3.61       254,339       3.76  
    Total deposits(2)(3)   $ 867,515       1.22 %   $ 911,980       1.13 %
                                     
    Brokered CDs included in time deposits above   $ 143,775       4.56 %   $ 122,700       5.26 %
                                     
    BORROWINGS:                                
    Overnight   $ 15,000       4.66 %   $ —       — %
    Three months or less     40,000       3.98       67,500       4.35  
    Over three to six months     22,500       4.17       32,500       5.00  
    Over six months to one year     59,000       5.05       40,000       5.21  
    Over one year to two years     94,000       4.46       67,500       4.14  
    Over two years to three years     —       —       20,000       4.72  
    Over three years to four years     15,000       4.41       —       —  
    Over four years to five years     —       —       15,000       4.41  
    Over five years     —       —       —       —  
    Total borrowings(4)   $ 245,500       4.51 %   $ 242,500       4.55 %

         (1)  Weighted-average rate paid on all instruments included in the balance of the respective line item.
         (2)  Includes uninsured deposits of approximately $134.7 million and $140.3 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
         (3)  The average balance of deposit accounts was approximately $35 thousand and $34 thousand at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
         (4)  The Bank had approximately $246.2 million and $266.5 million of remaining borrowing capacity at the FHLB – San Francisco, approximately $198.5 million and $183.0 million of borrowing capacity at the FRB of San Francisco and $50.0 million and $50.0 million of borrowing capacity with its correspondent bank at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

     
    PROVIDENT FINANCIAL HOLDINGS, INC.
    Financial Highlights
    (Unaudited – Dollars in Thousands)
                                     
        For the Quarter Ended     For the Quarter Ended  
        December 31, 2024     December 31, 2023  
           Balance      Rate(1)        Balance        Rate(1)  
    SELECTED AVERAGE BALANCE SHEETS:                                
                                     
    Loans receivable, net   $ 1,046,797       4.99 %   $ 1,074,592       4.66 %
    Investment securities     123,826       1.52       147,166       1.42  
    FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments     10,172       8.38       9,505       8.29  
    Interest-earning deposits     23,700       4.74       31,473       5.41  
    Total interest-earning assets   $ 1,204,495       4.66 %   $ 1,262,736       4.33 %
    Total assets   $ 1,234,768             $ 1,293,471          
                                     
    Deposits(2)   $ 863,106       1.23 %   $ 914,629       0.99 %
    Borrowings     226,707       4.53       230,546       4.51  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities(2)   $ 1,089,813       1.92 %   $ 1,145,175       1.69 %
    Total stockholders’ equity   $ 131,135             $ 130,614          

         (1)  Weighted-average yield earned or rate paid on all instruments included in the balance of the respective line item.
         (2)  Includes the average balance of noninterest-bearing checking accounts of $86.2 million and $99.4 million during the quarters ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively; and the average balance of uninsured deposits (adjusted lower by collateralized deposits) of $130.2 million and $139.3 million in the quarters ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

                                     
        Six Months Ended     Six Months Ended  
           December 31, 2024        December 31, 2023  
           Balance      Rate(1)        Balance        Rate(1)  
    SELECTED AVERAGE BALANCE SHEETS:                                
                                     
    Loans receivable, net   $ 1,047,964       4.98 %   $ 1,073,600       4.60 %
    Investment securities     126,698       1.50       150,439       1.39  
    FHLB – San Francisco stock and other equity investments     10,146       8.34       9,505       7.91  
    Interest-earning deposits     25,015       5.06       32,758       5.36  
    Total interest-earning assets   $ 1,209,823       4.64 %   $ 1,266,302       4.27 %
    Total assets   $ 1,239,950             $ 1,296,811          
                                     
    Deposits(2)   $ 871,844       1.25 %   $ 927,406       0.89 %
    Borrowings     223,723       4.63       221,501       4.42  
    Total interest-bearing liabilities(2)   $ 1,095,567       1.94 %   $ 1,148,907       1.57 %
    Total stockholders’ equity   $ 131,317             $ 130,578          

         (1)  Weighted-average yield earned or rate paid on all instruments included in the balance of the respective line item.
         (2)  Includes the average balance of noninterest-bearing checking accounts of $88.4 million and $102.8 million during the six months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively; and the average balance of uninsured deposits (adjusted lower by collateralized deposits) of $125.7 million and $139.1 million in the six months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

    ASSET QUALITY:

                                             
           As of      As of      As of      As of      As of
        12/31/24   09/30/24   06/30/24   03/31/24   12/31/23
    Loans on non-accrual status                                        
    Mortgage loans:                                        
    Single-family   $ 2,530     $ 2,106     $ 2,596     $ 2,246     $ 1,750  
    Total     2,530       2,106       2,596       2,246       1,750  
                                             
    Accruing loans past due 90 days or more:     —       —       —       —       —  
    Total     —       —       —       —       —  
                                             
    Total non-performing loans (1)     2,530       2,106       2,596       2,246       1,750  
                                             
    Real estate owned, net     —       —       —       —       —  
    Total non-performing assets   $ 2,530     $ 2,106     $ 2,596     $ 2,246     $ 1,750  

         (1)  The non-performing loan balances are net of individually evaluated or collectively evaluated allowances, specifically attached to the individual loans.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Deepseek: China’s gamechanging AI system has big implications for UK tech development

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Feng Li, Chair of Information Management, Associate Dean for Research & Innovation, Bayes Business School, City St George’s, University of London

    Koshiro K

    DeepSeek sent ripples through the global tech landscape this week as it soared above ChatGPT in Apple’s app store. The meteoric rise has shifted the dynamics of US-China tech competition, shocked global tech stock valuations, and reshaped the future direction of artificial intelligence (AI) development.

    Among the industry buzz created by DeepSeek’s rise to prominence, one question looms large: what does this mean for the strategy of the third leading global nation for AI development – the United Kingdom?

    The generative AI era was kickstarted by the release of ChatGPT on November 30 2022, when large language models (LLMs) entered mainstream consciousness and began reshaping industries and workflows, while everyday users explored new ways to write, brainstorm, search and code. We are now witnessing the “DeepSeek moment” – a pivotal shift that demonstrates the viability of a more efficient and cost-effective approach for AI development.

    DeepSeek isn’t just another AI tool. Unlike ChatGPT and other major LLMs developed by tech giants and AI startups in the USA and Europe, DeepSeek represents a significant evolution in the way AI models are developed and trained.

    Most existing approaches rely on large-scale computing power and datasets (used to “train” or improve the AI systems), limiting development to very few extremely wealthy market players. DeepSeek not only demonstrates a significantly cheaper and more efficient way of training AI models, its open-source “MIT” licence (after the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where it was developed) allows users to deploy and develop the tool.

    This helps democratise AI, taking up the mantle from US company OpenAI – whose initial mission was “to build artificial general intelligence (AGI) that is safe and benefits all of humanity” – enabling smaller players to enter the space and innovate.

    By making cutting-edge AI development accessible and affordable to all, DeepSeek has reshaped the competitive landscape, allowing innovation to flourish beyond the confines of large, resource-rich organisations and countries.

    It has also set a new benchmark for efficiency in its approach, by training its model at a fraction of the cost, and matching – even surpassing – the performance of most existing LLMs. By employing innovative algorithms and architectures, it is delivering superior results with significantly lower computational demands and environmental impact.

    Why DeepSeek matters

    DeepSeek was conceived by a group of quantitative trading experts in China. This
    unconventional origin holds lessons for the UK and US.

    While the UK – particularly London – has long attracted scientific and technological excellence, many of the highest achieving young graduates have tended to disproportionately opt for careers in finance, something that has come the expense of innovation in other critical sectors such as AI. Diversifying the pathways for Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) professionals could yield transformative outcomes.

    The UK government’s recent and much-publicised 50-point action plan on AI offers glimpses of progressive intent, but also displayed a lack of boldness to drive real change. Incremental steps are not sufficient in such a fast-moving environment. The UK needs a new plan – one that leverages its unique strengths while addressing systemic weaknesses.

    Firstly, it’s important to recognise that the UK’s comparative advantage lies in its leading interdisciplinary expertise. World-class universities, thriving fintech and dynamic professional services and creative sectors offer fertile ground for AI applications that extend beyond traditional tech silos. The intersection of AI with finance, law, creative industries and medicine presents opportunities to lead in some niche but high-impact areas.

    The UK’s funding and regulatory frameworks are due an overhaul. DeepSeek’s development underscores the importance of agile, well-funded ecosystems that can support big, ambitious “moonshot” projects. Current UK funding mechanisms are bureaucratic and fragmented, favouring incremental innovations over radical breakthroughs, at times stifling innovation rather than nurturing it. Simplifying grant applications and offering targeted tax incentives for AI startups would represent a healthy start.

    Finally, it will be critical for the UK to keep its talent in the country. The UK’s AI sector faces a brain drain as top talent gravitates toward better-funded opportunities in the US and China. Initiatives such as public-private partnerships for AI research development can help anchor talent at home.

    DeepSeek’s rise is an excellent example of strategic foresight and execution. It doesn’t merely aim to improve existing models, but redefines the very boundaries of how AI could be developed and deployed – while demonstrating efficient, cost-effective approaches that can yield astounding results. The UK should adopt a similarly ambitious mindset, focusing on areas where it can set global standards rather than playing catch-up.

    AI’s geopolitics cannot be ignored either. As the US and China compete with one another, the UK has a critical role to play as the trusted intermediary and ethical leader in AI governance. By championing transparent AI standards and fostering international collaboration, the UK can punch above its weight on the global stage.

    DeepSeek’s success should serve as a wake-up call. Britain has the talent, institutions and entrepreneurial spirit to be a significant leading player in AI – but it must act decisively, and now.

    It is time to remove token gestures and embrace bold strategies that move the needle and position the UK as a leader in an AI-driven future. This moment calls for action, not just more conversation.

    DeepSeek has raised the bar. It is now up to the UK to meet it.

    Feng Li does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Deepseek: China’s gamechanging AI system has big implications for UK tech development – https://theconversation.com/deepseek-chinas-gamechanging-ai-system-has-big-implications-for-uk-tech-development-248387

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Coventry City Council Unveils its Green Skills Roadmap

    Source: City of Coventry

    Coventry Council has launched its Green Skills Roadmap.

    The roadmap is a comprehensive guide designed to support educators, employers and investors in identifying, accessing, and embedding sustainable net-zero skills into their operations.

    It provides a clear Action Plan which Coventry will address in partnership with a range of public, private and third sector partners.

    Coventry is committed to building a robust green skills ecosystem, helping businesses transition to sustainable practices, and offering future generations the tools they need to succeed in green careers. This roadmap is a vital step towards achieving a sustainable, net-zero future for Coventry.

    With the government’s target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, green careers, defined as roles that directly contribute to reducing emissions or addressing climate change through mitigation or adaptation, are set to play a critical role in the UK’s future economy.

    Green skills encompass the technical knowledge and behaviours necessary to tackle environmental challenges, which are becoming essential across all industries to help businesses manage their environmental impact, promote sustainability and contribute to a greener economy. Green jobs include positions focused on environmental restoration, transitioning industries to sustainable practices, and adapting business models to reduce.

    Councillor Dr Kindy Sandhu, Cabinet Member for Education and Skills said: “Coventry is at the forefront of the transition to green employment and investment, seamlessly integrating sustainability skills into education while fostering a green workforce through reskilling and technological innovation. 

    “The Green Skills Roadmap provides valuable guidance to educators and businesses, inspiring a new generation to pursue green careers and equipping them with the skills necessary to build a more sustainable future. 

    “Driving growth in green employment requires a united effort from public agencies, businesses, and investors. This roadmap will not only attract green industry investment to the region but also establish a strong green skills ecosystem, creating meaningful job opportunities and paving the way for future developments in the city.”

    The Green Skills Roadmap includes detailed Actions on the below:

    • Details On Improving Green Skills in Education: supporting teacher and careers advisors to aid student in finding green jobs, diversifying green skill pipeline subjects and partnering with adult education services to promote sustainability awareness programmes.
    • Implementation of Green Skills for Businesses: equipping business support advisors with green skills knowledge and collaborating with employers to align with green Apprenticeship Standards.
    • A Just Transition: for fossil fuel-dependent trades to reskill workforces with green skills, offering work experience and training programs.
    • Future Skills and skills for Investment: skills funding to support Greenpower park and electric vehicle development, encourage green skill training and apprenticeships and ensure the skills adapt to Coventry’s ‘Energy Plan’.

    The Green Skills Roadmap has been developed in partnership with key contributions and support from: Business in Community (BiTC), Coventry College, Coventry University, CW Chamber of Commerce, Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), E.ON, The University of Warwick, Warwick manufacturing group (WMG) and others.

    Access the full Green Skills Roadmap.

    To keep up to date with the latest news, sign up for our Your Coventry email newsletter or follow the Council on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko took part in the award ceremony of the Russian Government Prize in Tourism for 2024, which is being held as part of the national project “Tourism and Hospitality”. The list of winners was approved by order of Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    January 28, 2025

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024. Deputy Chairperson of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Inna Svyatenko

    January 28, 2025

    Previous news Next news

    Dmitry Chernyshenko presented the Russian Government awards in the field of tourism for 2024

    The winners of the award were the authors of 10 successful projects that contributed to the development of the Russian hospitality industry. Among them are initiatives to create new tourist facilities, innovative digital solutions, training programs, popularization of event tourism, as well as the development of tourism products accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities.

    The Deputy Prime Minister thanked the laureates for their significant contribution to the tourism and hospitality industry. According to him, this award recognizes the best industry practices and a highly professional approach to work. The laureates’ projects are not only effective from a business perspective, they change people’s lives for the better.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin has named the development of domestic tourism as one of his priorities. According to his instructions, the tourism industry’s share in GDP should increase to 5% by 2030, and the number of annual trips around the country should grow to 140 million.

    “We see that more and more of our citizens are traveling around Russia, discovering its beauty, exploring new destinations and routes. By the end of 2024, Russians had made more than 92 million domestic trips – this is good growth. It is important that the laureates’ projects are aimed at creating hotel rooms for families with children in holiday destinations, as instructed by President Vladimir Putin, as well as a barrier-free environment for people with disabilities. We will continue to provide comfortable and accessible conditions for tourists. We will build hotels, seaside and ski resorts, amusement parks and other infrastructure. This will not only develop domestic tourism, but also increase the number of foreign guests,” Dmitry Chernyshenko emphasized.

    He added that by decree of the head of state, 2025 has been declared the Year of the Defender of the Fatherland. It is important to build tourist routes to places of (military) glory of the Great Patriotic War in order to preserve the memory of the heroes and their exploits.

    “Russian tourism is developing rapidly today. We see a growing interest in traveling around the country every year, both from Russians and our foreign guests. The hospitality industry has seen a large increase in investment in recent years, both private and public. But in addition to financial resources, tourism now needs new ideas that will allow it to create world-class tourism products and services. Therefore, the federal tourism award every year encourages authors of interesting projects that offer unconventional approaches to the development of the industry,” said Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov.

    The award winners were also congratulated by Deputy Chairperson of the Federation Council Inna Svyatenko and Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Tourism and Development of Tourism Infrastructure Sangadzhi Tarbaev.

    The winners receive a cash prize– 1 million rubles. In 2024, 88 projects were submitted for consideration by the award council.

    Applications are currently being accepted for the 2025 Government Tourism Prize. Projects nominated for the prize must have been implemented in practice at least one year before the start of the application process. Works will be accepted until March 1, 2025. More details are inannouncement of the start of the collection of applications for the Russian Government Awards in the field of tourism in 2025.

    Projects that received the Russian Government Prize in 2024

    1. The Attraction project is a complex development in Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinsk Region, with social, sports and cultural facilities. The project area is a venue for mass festivals. From 2019 to 2024, the volume of investments in the project exceeded 15 billion rubles. (Awardee – R.V. Novitsky)

    2. The project “Ecopark “Yasnopole”. Living Village” is an association of several farms on a territory of 500 hectares in the Yasnogorsk district of the Tula region, which are engaged in agricultural and agrotourism activities, creating all the conditions for the development of surrounding villages and settlements. The ecopark uses energy-efficient technologies in construction and alternative energy sources, as well as advanced eco-technologies in agriculture – organic farming, a nursery of soil-forming microorganisms and others. The ecopark is visited by more than 20 thousand people per year. (Awardee – D.A. Cherepkov)

    3. The Green Path of the Krasnaya Polyana Resort Project, during which 29 events were held with the participation of over 2.5 thousand people. Within the framework of the project, several popular science books were published, the accessibility of the Krasnaya Polyana resort territory for people with limited mobility was increased, and projects to support children’s adaptive sports and physical education were implemented. Seven of the nine hotels of the resort passed independent environmental certification. (Awardees – L.M. Shagarov, A.A. Molochkova)

    4. TV channel “My Planet”, which has been covering the sphere of Russian tourism for 15 years. The TV channel ranks third in the rating of cited popular science TV channels. The audience of the TV channel is 55 million viewers per year. (Awardees – G.V.Kovbasyuk, N.A.Kuznetsova, A.B.Pankratov)

    5. The Hospitality Classes project in Crimea is aimed at creating conditions for successful socialization and professional self-determination of teenagers. The project program consists of nine modules, each of which is dedicated to a separate area in the hospitality industry and professions in this area. (Awardees – N.A. Vistunova, D.S. Kolesnikova, A.S. Petrova, E.V. Ponomareva)

    6. The project “System for the Development of Domestic and Inbound Tourism Based on the Synergy of the Tourism Business and the Government” – includes analytical and expert work on studying the preferences of Russians in recreation, assessment and analysis of the tourism potential of the regions, a set of training events for the regional tourism business. Based on this data, a tourism product is formed, a strategy for its promotion and implementation is developed. (Awardees – S.I. Gonetskaya, O.N. Ivanova, A.L. Malinina, G.Sh. Musalova, A.E. Fokeeva)

    7. The project of the active recreation park “Malskaya Dolina” is a modern complex for active recreation with developed infrastructure. It is located in the village of Rogovo in the Pskov region, a historical place on the territory of the Izborsko-Malskaya Valley – a natural monument of regional significance. The territory of the park is 194 hectares. (Awardee – V.A. Seliverstov)

    8. “Glamping Ecosystem “Green Trail”” is one of the first glampings in Russia, which contributed to the development of the corresponding recreation format. On its territory there are tents and guest houses, as well as a clearing for accommodating tent tourists and caravanners. Every year the hotel receives about 7 thousand people. (Awardee – I.I. Mamai)

    9. The project “Inclusive tourism as a comprehensive system of habilitation and rehabilitation of children with autism spectrum disorders”, during the existence of which more than 200 children with disabilities took part in trips. (Awardee – A.V. Senik)

    10. Research project “Rating of the event potential of Russian regions” is the first analytical tool for assessing the level of development of infrastructure for event and business tourism in the regions. Since 2014, the rating has annually assessed the potential of Russian regions in the sphere of organizing events on their territory that contribute to the development of business and event tourism, the growth of the investment attractiveness of the region, as well as support for the socio-economic and cultural life of the region. (Awardee – D.A. Ostrovskaya)

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: DCCA NEWS RELEASE: SAFETY AROUND ELECTRIC UTILITY POLES AND POWER LINES

    Source: US State of Hawaii

    DCCA NEWS RELEASE: SAFETY AROUND ELECTRIC UTILITY POLES AND POWER LINES

    Posted on Jan 27, 2025 in Latest Department News, Newsroom

     

    STATE OF HAWAIʻI

    KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI

     

    DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS

    KA ʻOIHANA PILI KĀLEPA

    DIVISION OF CONSUMER ADVOCACY

     

    JOSH GREEN, M.D.

    GOVERNOR

    KE KIAʻĀINA

     

    NADINE Y. ANDO

    DIRECTOR

    KA LUNA HOʻOKELE

    MICHAEL ANGELO

    EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

    SAFETY AROUND ELECTRIC UTILITY POLES AND POWER LINES

    Public Urged to Report Safety Hazards Around Electric Utility Poles and Power Lines

     

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    January 27, 2025

    HONOLULU — The state of Hawai‘i Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Division of Consumer Advocacy (DCA), urges residents take appropriate action in case of emergencies involving downed power lines or sparking near electric utility poles. Residents are also encouraged to report non-emergency concerns, such as vegetation overgrowth near power lines, which can pose safety hazards.

    Residents should call 911 immediately if they observe downed power lines or sparking near a utility pole. The electric utility will then be notified by 911 dispatchers and a troubleshooter will be dispatched.

    For non-emergency concerns, such as vegetation overgrowth on power lines or damage, residents should contact their local electric utility directly.

    Emergency Concerns:

    • Downed Power Lines or Sparking Near a Utility Pole: If you witness downed power lines or sparking, call 911 immediately. Never touch a downed power line or attempt to move it, and always assume it is energized. Once 911 is called, dispatchers will notify the electric utility, and a troubleshooter will be sent. For after-hours emergencies, always contact 911 first, then report it to your electric utility’s trouble line.

    Emergency Contact Information:

    • Hawaiian Electric
      • O‘ahu: 1-855-304-1212
      • Maui: 808-871-7777
      • Moloka‘i, Lānaʻi: 1-877-871-8461
      • Hawai‘i Island: 808-969-6666
    • KIUC
      • Kaua‘i: 808-246-4300

    Non-Emergency Safety Concerns:

    • Vegetation Concerns or Equipment Issues Near/On Electric Utility Poles or Power Lines: If you see overgrown vegetation near power lines or have safety concerns related to electric utility equipment on utility poles (power lines, transformers, etc.), please report them to the relevant electric utility company. This document can assist with identifying electric utility equipment.
    • Contacting Electric Utility Providers: Once the electric utility company has been notified, a troubleshooter will assess the risk and, if necessary, remove the potential hazard. Response times vary based on the amount of volume being managed at that time.

    Non-Emergency Contact Information:

    • Hawaiian Electric
      • For vegetation concerns or questions regarding tree trimming and inspection, please contact:
    • KIUC
      • Members are encouraged to take photos and email a report to [email protected] with as much information on the location of the problem as possible. You can also send a message through Facebook Messenger with photos and location information. Reports can be made by phone to 808-246-4300, but specific information on the location and a description of the problem will be necessary.

    Safety Reminders:

    • Never touch a downed power line or attempt to move it.
    • Always assume a downed line is energized.
    • Never plant vegetation below or close to power lines.
    • Keep vegetation trimmed away from your home to prevent contact with power lines.
    • If you see sparking or smoke near a utility pole, call 911 and report it immediately to your local electric utility company.

     

    The Division of Consumer Advocacy is a state agency that plays a vital role in safeguarding the interests of consumers of regulated public utility services. Representing a broad spectrum of customers across various utility and transportation sectors, DCA advocates before the Hawai‘i Public Utilities Commission. DCA comprises a diverse team of professionals committed to ensuring the safe, reliable, and equitable delivery of utility services at affordable rates, while aligning with the state’s policy objectives.

    ###

    Media Contact:

    Communications Office

    Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs

    Phone: 808-586-2760

    Email: [email protected]

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Expert advisory group appointed by independent water commission

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    The independent water commission announces members of the new advisory group

    Expert advisory group appointed by independent water commission

    Senior advisory group supporting Sir Jon Cunliffe on major water reset

    Leading voices from areas including the environment, public health and investment have been announced today (28 January) as the new advisory group to the independent water commission, chaired by Sir Jon Cunliffe.  

    Sir Chris Whitty (Chief Medical Officer), Richard Benwell (CEO, Wildlife & Countryside Link),  Professor Isabelle Durance (Professor of Integrated Water Sciences at Cardiff University) and Peter Harrison (former CEO, Schroders) are among the nine members advising the commission in its major review of the water system. 

    A Call for Evidence will be published in February 2024 to bring in views from all interested parties on possible areas of reform. 

    The members are: 

    • Richard Benwell (environment expert), Chief Executive of Wildlife and Countryside Link, a coalition of environmental charities. Previously policy adviser to the Defra Secretary of State and worked in policy and advocacy roles for the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and RSPB.   

    • Chris Whitty (public health expert), Chief Medical Officer for England and Chief Medical Adviser to the UK Government. 

    • Professor Isabelle Durance (environmental science and Welsh water system expert), Founder and Director of the Water Research Institute at Cardiff University, and Professor of Integrated Water Sciences 

    • Peter Harrison (investment expert), Former Group CEO at Schroders plc. Member of the Capital Markets Industry Taskforce (CMIT), Chair of the charity Business in the Community, and chair-designate of Morgan Sindall plc.   

    • Dame Yve Buckland (consumers advocate), Founding Chair of the Consumer Council for Water (2005 –2015). Chair of University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust since 2023.    

    • Jonathan Haskel (economics expert) Professor of Economics at Imperial College Business School. Previously board member at the UK Statistics Authority and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee at the Bank of England. 

    • Philip Graham (infrastructure), Executive Director of Good Growth at Greater London Authority. Previously Chief Executive of the National Infrastructure Commission.  

    • Jon Loveday (project delivery and commercial expert), Director of Infrastructure, Enterprise and Growth at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA). Shareholder Non-Executive Director of Crossrail International and Sizewell C. Former Executive Director within the water, telecoms and energy sectors. 

    • Stephen Peacock (planning and place-making expert), CEO of West of England Mayoral Combined Authority. Former CEO and Executive Director of growth and regeneration at Bristol City Council 

    The independent water commission was announced by the UK and Welsh governments in October 2024 to help deliver a reset of the water sector, chaired by Former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, Sir Jon Cunliffe.

    The upcoming Call for Evidence will look at the management of the overall water system, regulatory reform, and the role of water companies, owners and investors.   

    A set of recommendations will be delivered later this year to the Defra Secretary of State Steve Reed and Huw Irranca Davies, Wales’ Deputy First Minister with responsibility for Climate Change and Rural Affairs.  

    Sir Jon Cunliffe, Chair of the independent water commission, said: 

    Since taking up this role I have seen the many complex challenges faced by the water sector in England and Wales. All sides know that change is clearly needed.  

    The calibre of expertise we have bought together in this group reflects the significance of the task ahead.  

    I know their insight and experience will be invaluable in recommending meaningful and long-term reforms to rebuild the trust that has been lost and deliver a thriving and sustainable water sector for the future. I look forward to our work together in the coming months.

    As set out in the Terms of Reference, the Commission is operating independently of the UK and Welsh Ministers. The Chair and advisory group are supported by a Defra Secretariat.  

    Full biographies of all advisory group members are listed below.   

    Name Details
    Richard Benwell (environment) Richard Benwell is CEO of Wildlife & Countryside Link, a coalition of environmental charities. He is a Board member of UK Youth for Nature and the Broadway Initiative, and Chair of Oxfordshire’s Local Nature Partnership. Previously, he was Policy Adviser to the Secretary of State at DEFRA, and has worked in policy and advocacy roles for WWT and RSPB.
    Sir Chris Whitty (public health) Professor Sir Chris Whitty FRS is Chief Medical Officer for England (CMO) and head of the public health profession. He is an epidemiologist and NHS infectious disease consultant physician. Chris has worked with the Royal Academy of Engineering and others on solutions for the safe management of sewage.
    Dame Yve Buckland (consumers) Yve Buckland was the founding Chair of the Consumer Council for Water, holding the role between 2005 and 2015.  She has also held a number of roles in public health, including Chair of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement at Warwick University (2005 – 2010), Pro-Chancellor of Aston University (2019 – 2023), and in 2022 Dame Yve was appointed Chair of University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. 
    Jonathan Haskel (economics) Jonathan Haskel is Professor of Economics at Imperial College Business School, Imperial College London, where he has been since 2008.  He has previously taught at Queen Mary, University of London; Dartmouth College, USA and New York University, USA.  His research interests are productivity and growth.   In addition to his academic activities, he has been an External Member of the Reporting Panel of the Competition and Markets Authority (2001-2009); a non-Executive Director of the UK Statistics Authority (2016-2022) and an External Member of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee (2018-2024).
    Philip Graham  (infrastructure) Philip Graham was the founding Chief Executive of the National Infrastructure Commission from 2015-20, during which time he led its establishment as an independent arms-length body and delivered the UK’s first ever cross-cutting National Infrastructure Assessment. He is currently Executive Director for Good Growth at the Greater London Authority, where he leads the Mayor’s policies and programmes in relation to London’s environment, economy, infrastructure, and spatial development. He worked across areas in the Department for Transport, including leading the Airports Commission’s review of aviation capacity for Sir Howard Davies.
    Jon Loveday (project management and delivery) Jon Loveday is the Director of Infrastructure, Enterprise and Growth at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), the government’s centre of expertise for infrastructure and major projects. He leads the expert delivery team advising on the set up of delivery bodies, commercial models and project delivery across the £800bn Government’s Major Projects Portfolio. Jon has held Executive roles for regulated utility companies and major construction and infrastructure contractors and has extensive experience of delivering major utility projects throughout the UK.
    Peter Harrison (investors) Peter Harrison was formally Group Chief Executive of Schroders plc, with over 35 years’ experience in the asset management industry. He is currently a member of the Capital Markets Industry Taskforce (CMIT), chair of the charity Business in the Community, and chair-designate of Morgan Sindall plc.
    Professor Isabelle Durance (science and Welsh water system) Isabelle Durance is Professor of Integrated Water Science and Director of the Water Research Institute at Cardiff University, recognised for its interdisciplinarity and extensive stakeholder reach that includes water companies, government and regulators. With multi-million-pound support, her personal research in the UK and overseas examines interactions between landscape change, biodiversity and ecosystem services.  Outside her academic role, she is involved extensively in various advisory capacities to government bodies, research councils, charities, industry and regulators – especially in the water sector.
    Stephen Peacock (planning and place-making) Stephen Peacock is Chief Executive of the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, responsible for £1 billion of investment to drive sustainable and inclusive growth across the most productive and fast-growing UK city region outside London. He has a commercial background in international energy and technology along with a track record of public sector leadership.  A former partner with a major professional services firm, Stephen was Chief Executive of Bristol City Council where his achievements include the creation of the award-winning City Leap public-private partnership.

    Updates to this page

    Published 28 January 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Arbitration decision in favour of IDEX Biometrics

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    In the Prospectus published by IDEX Biometrics ASA (“IDEX” or the “Company”) on 13 November 2024, IDEX informed that the Company had requested arbitration at the Oslo Chamber of Commerce concerning a receivable from a customer who had not yet paid. Zwipe AS (“Zwipe”), the customer in question, disclosed in its prospectus dated 4 December 2024 that it was in arbitration regarding a warranty dispute with IDEX related to the delivery of parts communicated in its annual report 2023 and that the total dispute amount was around NOK 7.1 million.

    The Oslo Chamber of Commerce has on 27 January 2025, rendered its decision on the matter, which is a final resolution of the dispute. Zwipe has been ordered to pay USD 702,000 excl. VAT to lDEX plus late payment interest. The warranty counterclaim from Zwipe was dismissed in its entirety. Zwipe was further ordered to compensate IDEX for its legal costs, and pay for the full arbitration costs.

    Zwipe shall pay IDEX the receivable and the award of legal fees within 14 days from the date of the decision.

    This information is considered to be inside information pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) and is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to MAR article 17 and section 5 -12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. This stock exchange release was published by Marianne Bøe, Head of Investor Relations on 28 January 2025 at 10:05 (CET).

    For further information contact:
    Marianne Bøe, Head of Investor Relations, +47 91800186
    Kristian Flaten, CFO, +47 95092322
    E-mail:ir@idexbiometrics.com

    About IDEX Biometrics

    IDEX Biometrics ASA (OSE: IDEX) is a global technology leader in fingerprint biometrics, offering authentication solutions across payments, access control, and digital identity. Our solutions bring convenience, security, peace of mind and seamless user experiences to the world. Built on patented and proprietary sensor technologies, integrated circuit designs, and software, our biometric solutions target card-based applications for payments and digital authentication. As an industry-enabler we partner with leading card manufacturers and technology companies to bring our solutions to market.

    For more information, visit www.idexbiometrics.com

    Trademark Statement
    IDEX, IDEX Biometrics and the IDEX logo are trademarks owned by IDEX Biometrics ASA. All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI China: Chinese celebrate Spring Festival with traditions, travels and shopping spree

    Source: China State Council Information Office 2

    With traditional fairs and shopping and travel booms over this year’s extended holiday, China is about to ring in the Spring Festival of the Year of the Snake, the first since its inclusion into the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage list.
    For Chinese across the world, the Spring Festival is a time for family reunions, festive traditions, holiday shopping and diverse cultural and tourism activities. This year, it falls on Jan. 29 with hundreds of millions of people traveling to reunite with families in the world’s largest annual human migration.
    Celebrations today highlight both traditional and modern elements, from temple fairs, lantern displays, lion dances and intangible cultural heritage bazaars to village galas, light and drone shows, museum exhibitions, and travels at home and abroad.
    This year, festive glee and activities are further boosted by the UNESCO recognition, pro-consumption policies and the extension of the traditional seven-day holiday by an extra day.

    A performance is staged at the Hetou ancient street scenic area in Tangshan, north China’s Hebei Province, Jan. 26, 2025. China is alive with vibrant celebrations with the Spring Festival just around the corner. (Photo by Liu Mancang/Xinhua)
    FAMILY REUNIONS AND TRADITIONAL FESTIVITIES
    For migrant workers like Zhang Changfu, a native of Baise in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, south China, the Spring Festival offers a rare opportunity for a family reunion.
    “I’ve been working away from home for 20 years, but I return home every Spring Festival,” said Zhang, 41, who works as a machinist in the southwestern metropolis of Chengdu, adding that he is looking forward to taking his family to the local temple fair.
    The temple fair, a panoply of folk performances, local delicacies and traditional handicrafts, is a familiar sight at this time of year. While such activities contain more traditional elements in the countryside, large cities like Beijing and Shanghai have a tradition of holding large-scale fairs.
    For others, like Lin Jia who works in Nanjing, capital of east China’s Jiangsu Province, Spring Festival is the perfect time for a family tour. Lin’s parents and grandmother have traveled from Hunan Province to join her for the holiday.
    Lin plans to take them sightseeing around the city after a New Year’s Eve dinner at a hotpot restaurant. “It’s both a reunion and a mini vacation,” she said.
    This year, many cities are holding more traditional festive activities, motivated by the inscription of the Spring Festival on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December. The southwestern megacity of Chongqing has planned more than 100 intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, bazaars and performances during the holiday.
    “We hope visitors can feel the strong festive ambiance and the special charm of our cultural heritage,” said Tang Mao, the organizer of a cultural heritage bazaar in Chongqing’s bustling Jiefangbei commercial area, where over 40 artisans display traditional crafts like paper-cutting, New Year picture drawing and sugar-figure making.
    HOLIDAY SHOPPING
    For centuries, shopping has been a crucial part of Spring Festival preparations: from nice food to new clothes and carefully chosen gifts.
    Liu Fengmei, a woman in her 70s in Shanghai, traveled over an hour by subway to First Foodhall, a time-honored food store on the iconic Nanjing Road, to stock up on traditional holiday snacks.
    A long queue is seen outside the store, which, like many across the country at this time of the year, is filled with festive decorations and a dazzling array of traditional foods.
    Following the UNESCO recognition, Chinese consumers also appear to be particularly interested in goods with a cultural festival flair.
    Li Gang with the Ministry of Commerce said sales of neo-Chinese-style jewelry and goods featuring intangible cultural heritages have grown by 52.6 percent and 26.6 percent in the month-long online shopping event for the festival initiated by the ministry.
    In recent years, the Spring Festival shopping lists have included more imported goods, reflecting Chinese people’s rising purchasing power and growing appetite for imported quality goods.
    Earlier this month, a cargo ship loaded with 20,000 tonnes of Chilean cherries arrived at the Nansha Port in south China’s Guangzhou, perfectly timed to offer a festive treat for millions ahead of the Spring Festival.
    “Chilean cherries, Australian lobsters and Russian snow crabs … the prices of imported products are quite attractive, so I plan to prepare a New Year’s Eve dinner that blends both Chinese and foreign flavors,” said a customer surnamed Guo at a store of fresh-food chain Freshippo in Beijing.
    Driven by government-subsidized trade-in programs, mobile phones, wearable devices, and green and smart home appliances are also highly sought-after items ahead of the festival, according to the ministry.
    “Spending on New Year’s goods can offer a glimpse into the resilience and vitality of consumption throughout the year,” said Hong Tao, director of the Institute of Business Economics at Beijing Technology and Business University, who expects a new wave of holiday consumption growth.
    Tourists take a selfie at Jiangjunshan Ski Resort in Altay, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Jan. 21, 2025. As the Spring Festival approaches, Altay in Xinjiang has ushered in peak tourist season. (Xinhua/Hu Huhu)
    HOLIDAY TRAVEL
    In addition to local festivities, many are venturing farther afield to make the most of the eight-day Spring Festival holiday.
    Fang Xue, a resident of Shanghai, plans to take her parents on a holiday trip to Shantou, a coastal city in Guangdong Province. “Traveling during the Spring Festival has become quite fashionable,” Fang said. “My parents in their 80s are very eager to travel.”
    The extended holiday has given a boost to the travel industry. While tourist cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Chengdu are attracting large numbers of holidaymakers, smaller cities are also getting more travelers who wish to savor celebrations with local flavors, according to Fliggy, a leading online travel agency.
    “Expectations for intangible cultural heritage activities are especially high during the first Spring Festival after the UNESCO recognition,” said Wang Liyang, operations manager at Fliggy.
    Thanks to China’s further easing of visa policies, many Chinese cities are also witnessing an influx of international visitors, with many eager to experience the festival traditions.
    “The UNESCO heritage status gives Spring Festival worldwide recognition and increases its appeal to international tourists,” said Zhou Huijie, an analyst at Trip.com research institute.
    Trip.com Group has estimated that inbound bookings would jump by 203 percent during the Spring Festival, with tourists from the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, the United States, Australia, Thailand and Britain topping the list.
    Lukas Muller from Germany is traveling in northeast China’s Jilin Province for skiing and to experience the Spring Festival.
    “My friends and I will experience Chinese New Year up close, including eating dumplings, putting up spring couplets, setting off fireworks, and many other customs I’m not familiar with yet,” he said, also praising China’s visa-free policy that facilitated his trip.
    Spring Festival serves as the most direct cultural window to understand the Chinese people and it is also a traditional festival with the most Chinese cultural characteristics, said Feng Jicai, a renowned Chinese writer who has long championed intangible cultural heritage protection. 

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: DeepSeek shatters beliefs about the cost of AI, leaving US tech giants reeling

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael J. Davern, Professor of Accounting & Business Information Systems, The University of Melbourne

    Almost A$1 trillion (US$600 billion) was wiped off the value of artificial intelligence microchip maker Nvidia overnight on Monday, when a little-known Chinese start up, DeepSeek, threatened to upend the US tech market.

    While Nvidia suffered the biggest one-day loss in sharemarket history, other tech giants – Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon, who are investing heavily in competing AI tools including ChatGPT and Gemini – were also hit.

    The rout was caused by investors’ shock at the claimed performance of DeepSeek’s new R1 chatbot. The Chinese AI was reported to be more advanced than its competitors and less expensive to develop.

    DeepSeek R1 has soared, becoming the top free downloaded app on Apple’s app store, as US technology and related stock prices fell dramatically.

    Why tech stocks took a deep dive

    The market was surprised by DeepSeek providing what amounts to cheaper technology but comparable performance.

    This has dramatically changed the market’s expectations of computing power, showing more can be done for less. It has also compromised the competitiveness of the US tech companies’ existing AI products and developments.

    Stock prices are driven by market expectations. The claimed performance of DeepSeek R1 prompted a major revision of expectations about what was technologically possible and about how cheaply AI could be developed and operated.

    Investors have rapidly incorporated the news of a low-cost Chinese AI competitor into stock prices, anticipating this new entrant could disrupt the market and erode the competitive advantage of existing leaders.

    Who is DeepSeek and what is R1?

    DeepSeek was founded in 2023 by Chinese hedge fund High Flyer, which had been exclusively using AI in trading since 2021.

    DeepSeek develops large language models (LLMs) that can underpin chatbots and other AI-based tools. R1 is the latest iteration of DeepSeek’s chatbot and underlying model. It builds on earlier versions of generative AI models developed by DeepSeek, and considerable amounts of data, but is a surprising leap forward in performance and cost.

    CAPTION TO GO HERE.
    Koshiro K/Shutterstock

    Technology investors believe R1 matches or outperforms competitors, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT 4.o1 on numerous benchmarks.

    However, there are some key differences:

    1. The model underlying R1 operates in a much less intensive manner. It is much cheaper to develop and run, requiring less data and computing power.

    2. The training of the model was possible despite the US export ban preventing Chinese companies such as DeepSeek from accessing chips from US companies such as Nvidia. The Biden administration had introduced laws restricting the sale of certain computer chips and machinery to China, in a move intended to block its rival from accessing some of the world’s most advanced technology.

    3. The training data and data uploaded to R1 sit on servers in China. Given concerns about data privacy and intellectual property have already been raised about US-based companies, having data under jurisdiction of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is arguably even more concerning.

    4. The chatbot program code is free to download, read and modify, unlike ChatGPT. This is however somewhat a false transparency – what matters more is the underlying model, not the Chatbot code.

    5. R1 is known to censor its responses in line with Chinese Communist Party values.

    The future of AI and tech stocks

    It is unknown whether this crash in price of tech stocks is an irrational panic that will reverse, or whether it simply reflects correct pricing. The future costs and benefits of AI are still uncertain.

    This is both a technological and an economic question.

    In technological terms, it is yet to be seen whether R1 really does require less computing power and less data to train and use.

    Economically, there are potential winners and losers. AI users may win with cheaper access to AI, and LLMs in particular, leading to increased adoption and associated productivity gains. Existing producers such as Nvidia may lose out in what was a market with few real competitors.

    More broadly, society may benefit from less computationally intensive, and therefore more energy-efficient, AI. However, the geopolitical risk of a single country capturing the market, together with concerns about data privacy, intellectual property and censorship may outweigh the benefits.

    Michael J. Davern has previously received funding from CPA Australia for industry research into Artificial Intelligence.

    Matt Pinnuck does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. DeepSeek shatters beliefs about the cost of AI, leaving US tech giants reeling – https://theconversation.com/deepseek-shatters-beliefs-about-the-cost-of-ai-leaving-us-tech-giants-reeling-248424

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI: NBPE Announces December Monthly NAV Estimate

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN OR INTO AUSTRALIA, CANADA, ITALY, DENMARK, JAPAN, THE UNITED STATES, OR TO ANY NATIONAL OF SUCH JURISDICTIONS

    St Peter Port, Guernsey        28 January 2025

    NB Private Equity Partners (NBPE), the $1.2bn1, FTSE 250, listed private equity investment company managed by Neuberger Berman, today announces its 31 December 2024 monthly NAV estimate.

    NAV Highlights (31 December 2024)

    • NAV per share was $26.91 (£21.49), a total return of (2.2%) in the month
    • Year to date NAV TR of (0.8%) (based on 31 December 2023 final numbers and 31 December 2024 monthly estimate)
    • NBPE expects to receive additional updated Q4 2024 financial information which will be incorporated in the monthly NAV updates in the coming weeks
    • $283 million of available liquidity at 31 December 2024
    As of 31 December 2024 2024 3 years 5 years 10 years
    NAV TR (USD)*
    Annualised    		 (0.8%) (6.1%)
    (2.1%)    		 65.0%
    10.5%    		 160.2%
    10.0%
    MSCI World TR (USD)*
    Annualised    		 19.2% 22.0%
    6.9%    		 73.9%
    11.7%    		 171.9%
    10.5%
    Share price TR (GBP)*
    Annualised    		 (1.1%) (2.3%)
    (0.8%)    		 62.1%
    10.1%    		 231.2%
    12.7%
    FTSE All-Share TR (GBP)*
    Annualised    		 9.5% 18.5%
    5.8%    		 26.5%
    4.8%    		 81.9%
    6.2%

    * All NBPE performance figures assume re-investment of dividends on the ex-dividend date and reflect cumulative returns over the relevant time periods shown, measured against the 31 December audited results at the beginning of the period. Three-year, five-year and ten-year annualised returns are presented for USD NAV, MSCI World (USD), GBP Share Price and FTSE All-Share (GBP) Total Returns.

    Portfolio Update to 31 December 2024

    NAV performance during the month driven by:

    • 0.8% NAV decrease ($10 million) from the receipt of private company valuation information
    • 0.5% NAV decrease ($6 million) from negative FX movements
    • 0.7% NAV decrease ($9 million) from the value of quoted holdings (which now constitute 6% of portfolio fair value)
    • 0.2% NAV decrease ($3 million) attributable to expense accruals

    Realisations from the portfolio

    • $179 million of realisations received in 2024. Driven by full exits of Cotiviti, Safefleet, Melissa & Doug, FV Hospital and Syniti, partial realisations of Action and Qpark as well as full and partial realisations of quoted holdings and income investments

    $283 million of total liquidity at 31 December 2024

    • $73 million of cash and liquid investments with $210 million of undrawn credit line available

    Four new investments completed in 2024; $104 million invested in 2024 in new and follow-on investments

    • $25 million invested in FDH Aero, a leading parts distributor to the aerospace and defense industry
    • $38 million invested into two U.S. healthcare businesses, Benecon and Zeus
    • $30 million investment in Mariner Wealth Advisors, a financial services firm
    • $11 million of additional new and follow on investments

    Portfolio Valuation

    The fair value of NBPE’s portfolio as of 31 December 2024 was based on the following information:

    • 7% of the portfolio was valued as of 31 December 2024
      • 6% in public securities
      • 1% in private direct investments
    • 1% of the portfolio was valued as of 30 November 2024
      • 1% in private direct investments
    • 92% of the portfolio was valued as of 30 September 2024
      • 91% in private direct investments
      • 1% in private funds

    For further information, please contact:

    NBPE Investor Relations        +44 (0) 20 3214 9002
    Luke Mason        NBPrivateMarketsIR@nb.com  

    Kaso Legg Communications        +44 (0)20 3882 6644

    Charles Gorman        nbpe@kl-communications.com
    Luke Dampier
    Charlotte Francis

    Supplementary Information (as at 31 December 2024)

    Company Name Vintage Lead Sponsor Sector Fair Value ($m) % of FV
    Action 2020 3i Consumer 65.6 5.2%
    Osaic 2019 Reverence Capital Financial Services 62.7 4.9%
    Solenis 2021 Platinum Equity Industrials 61.3 4.8%
    BeyondTrust 2018 Francisco Partners Technology / IT 45.6 3.6%
    Branded Cities Network 2017 Shamrock Capital Communications / Media 38.3 3.0%
    Monroe Engineering 2021 AEA Investors Industrials 38.2 3.0%
    Business Services Company* 2017 Not Disclosed Business Services 38.1 3.0%
    GFL (NYSE: GFL) 2018 BC Partners Business Services 35.5 2.8%
    True Potential 2022 Cinven Financial Services 32.1 2.5%
    Staples 2017 Sycamore Partners Business Services 31.6 2.5%
    Kroll 2020 Further Global / Stone Point Financial Services 31.4 2.5%
    Marquee Brands 2014 Neuberger Berman Consumer 31.2 2.5%
    Mariner 2024 Leonard Green & Partners Financial Services 30.0 2.4%
    FDH Aero 2024 Audax Group Industrials 29.1 2.3%
    Fortna 2017 THL Industrials 28.7 2.3%
    Viant 2018 JLL Partners Healthcare 27.2 2.1%
    Stubhub 2020 Neuberger Berman Consumer 26.5 2.1%
    Agiliti 2019 THL Healthcare 25.3 2.0%
    Benecon 2024 TA Associates Healthcare 25.1 2.0%
    Solace Systems 2016 Bridge Growth Partners Technology / IT 24.4 1.9%
    Engineering 2020 NB Renaissance / Bain Capital Technology / IT 24.0 1.9%
    Addison Group 2021 Trilantic Capital Partners Business Services 23.8 1.9%
    USI 2017 KKR Financial Services 22.2 1.8%
    Auctane 2021 Thoma Bravo Technology / IT 21.9 1.7%
    Excelitas 2022 AEA Investors Industrials 21.9 1.7%
    Qpark 2017 KKR Transportation 21.3 1.7%
    AutoStore (OB.AUTO) 2019 THL Industrials 20.4 1.6%
    CH Guenther 2021 Pritzker Private Capital Consumer 20.2 1.6%
    Renaissance Learning 2018 Francisco Partners Technology / IT 19.7 1.6%
    Bylight 2017 Sagewind Partners Technology / IT 19.5 1.5%
    Total Top 30 Investments                             $942.7 74.4%

    *Undisclosed company due to confidentiality provisions.

    Geography % of Portfolio
    North America 79%
    Europe 20%
    Asia / Rest of World 1%
    Total Portfolio 100%
       
    Industry % of Portfolio
    Tech, Media & Telecom 22%
    Consumer / E-commerce 20%
    Industrials / Industrial Technology 17%
    Financial Services 16%
    Business Services 12%
    Healthcare 8%
    Other 4%
    Energy 1%
    Total Portfolio 100%
       
    Vintage Year % of Portfolio
    2016 & Earlier 10%
    2017 19%
    2018 15%
    2019 12%
    2020 12%
    2021 17%
    2022 5%
    2023 2%
    2024 8%
    Total Portfolio 100%

    About NB Private Equity Partners Limited
    NBPE invests in direct private equity investments alongside market leading private equity firms globally. NB Alternatives Advisers LLC (the “Investment Manager”), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Neuberger Berman Group LLC, is responsible for sourcing, execution and management of NBPE. The vast majority of direct investments are made with no management fee / no carried interest payable to third-party GPs, offering greater fee efficiency than other listed private equity companies. NBPE seeks capital appreciation through growth in net asset value over time while paying a bi-annual dividend.

    LEI number: 213800UJH93NH8IOFQ77

    About Neuberger Berman
    Neuberger Berman is an employee-owned, private, independent investment manager founded in 1939 with over 2,800 employees in 26 countries. The firm manages $508 billion of equities, fixed income, private equity, real estate and hedge fund portfolios for global institutions, advisors and individuals. Neuberger Berman’s investment philosophy is founded on active management, fundamental research and engaged ownership. The firm’s leadership in stewardship and sustainable investing is recognized by the PRI based on its consecutive above median reporting assessment results. Neuberger Berman has been named by Pensions & Investments as the #1 or #2 Best Place to Work in Money Management for each of the last eleven years (firms with more than 1,000 employees). Visit www.nb.com for more information. Data as of 31 December 2024, unless otherwise noted.

    1Based on net asset value.

    This press release appears as a matter of record only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any security.

    NBPE is established as a closed-end investment company domiciled in Guernsey. NBPE has received the necessary consent of the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. The value of investments may fluctuate. Results achieved in the past are no guarantee of future results. This document is not intended to constitute legal, tax or accounting advice or investment recommendations. Prospective investors are advised to seek expert legal, financial, tax and other professional advice before making any investment decision. Statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are based on current expectations, estimates, projections, opinions and beliefs of NBPE’s investment manager. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, and undue reliance should not be placed thereon. Additionally, this document contains “forward-looking statements.” Actual events or results or the actual performance of NBPE may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such targets or forward-looking statements.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Samsung Integrates EMBIBE’s AI-Powered Learning Platform into the Samsung Education Hub App for Smart TVs & Smart Monitors

    Source: Samsung

     
    Samsung, India’s largest consumer electronics brand, has partnered with EMBIBE, an AI-powered personalised learning outcomes platform, to integrate it into the Samsung Education Hub app, a designed-for-TV education app. The collaboration will help TVs become effective educational tools providing personalised learning experiences for students.
     
    Through this partnership, EMBIBE, as part of the Samsung Education Hub app, will offer extensive educational coverage, supporting all major curricula, including CBSE, ICSE, IB, Cambridge, all State Boards and major entrance exams such as IIT JEE and NEET. Students will benefit from a large collection of award-winning, immersive 3D explainer videos, designed to make even the most complex topics easier to understand and more engaging to learn.
     
    “The Samsung Education Hub app aims to expand the role of TVs in homes, transforming them from mere entertainment hubs to a seamless platform for online learning. This innovative ‘designed-for-TV’ education app is set to revolutionise the online learning experience, making it engaging and accessible to all. Our vision is to create a future where education knows no boundaries and knowledge is within easy reach at the click of a button,” said Viplesh Dang, Senior Director, Visual Display Business, Samsung India.
     
    “Our partnership with Samsung TV marks a significant leap in delivering a truly personal, engaging, learning experience through one of the most trusted and loved mediums. Samsung has partnered with EMBIBE because we’ve solved two critical challenges: creating stunning interactive, multi-modal content and delivering it through a deeply personalized experience powered by AI. The synergy between Samsung’s innovation and EMBIBE’s expertise in edtech is a powerful combination that sets a new standard for educational excellence, creating a transformative learning experience for everyone,” said Aditi Avasthi, Founder & CEO at EMBIBE.
     
    At the heart of EMBIBE’s offering is its personalised, AI-driven adaptive practice, which adjusts to each student’s learning level. Through the Samsung Education Hub, students will be able to access EMBIBE’s video-based learning resources and also its AI-powered adaptive practice in English, Hindi and 10 major regional languages, backed by over 10 years of educational engagement data of more than two crore students. They can choose from 54,000 practice tests and use personalised score-improvement features that will provide useful insights for improvement. In addition, students can avail Samsung’s exclusive discount of a flat 50% on EMBIBE annual subscription purchased on TV.
     
    EMBIBE content will be available on all 2024 Samsung TVs and smart monitors and will be gradually made available on earlier models. Existing subscribers of EMBIBE, who own Samsung TVs will have seamless login and access to this rich educational content, along with Samsung TV users who wish to subscribe to the platform. Earlier this year, Samsung had teamed up with the leading ed-tech platform, Physics Wallah for Samsung Education Hub on 2023 & 2024 Samsung TVs.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: GRBA’s successful appeal for its House Bed & Bath mark: a warning for well-known brands

    Source: Allens Insights

    Proactive trade mark strategies are essential 12 min read

    In allowing the appeal by Global Retail Brands Australia Pty Ltd (GRBA), the Full Court of the Federal Court found that its use of the mark (the House B&B Mark) did not constitute misleading or deceptive conduct or passing off in relation to proceedings brought by Bed Bath ‘N’ Table Pty Ltd (BBNT) concerning its registered mark (the BBNT Mark).

    In this Insight, we examine GRBA’s successful appeal, including why the decision is a cautionary tale, particularly for well-known brands in relation to the importance of building up reputation in sub-brands or truncated versions of key marks, and provide valuable insights in relation to proactive trade mark strategy.

    Key takeaways

    • Whether or not conduct is likely to mislead or deceive is an objective question which the court must determine for itself. Conduct will be likely to mislead or deceive if there is a real or not remote chance or possibility that the relevant person or class of persons will be misled or deceived. It is not sufficient to merely demonstrate that the conduct may cause ordinary and reasonable consumers to wonder if there is an association.
    • A finding of subjective wilful blindness on the part of a respondent does not rise to the level of, and should not be confused with. an intention to mislead or deceive.
    • In borderline cases of misleading or deceptive conduct, evidence of an intention to deceive or cause confusion can be a relevant factor to take into account in the evaluation of whether there was objectively misleading or deceptive conduct.
    • Expert evidence may be of limited assistance in determining whether consumers are likely to be misled, and the question is ultimately a matter for the court’s impression.

    Overview

    BBNT brought trade mark infringement proceedings in relation to the BBNT Mark, as well as claims under the Australia Consumer Law (ACL) and for passing off. At first instance, Justice Rofe found that BBNT failed in its trade mark infringement claim, but somewhat surprisingly, succeeded in its ACL and passing off claims. This was despite findings by Justice Rofe that the marks were not deceptively similar and that BBNT did not have any independent reputation in BED BATH or in BED & BATH alone (only in the composite phrase BED BATH N TABLE).

    The Full Court allowed the appeal and found that the primary judge had erred in holding that the use by GRBA of its House B&B Mark constituted misleading or deceptive conduct and passing off. BBNT’s cross-appeal on infringement failed.

    The ACL appeal

    Background to the dispute

    BBNT has traded under and by reference to the name BED BATH ‘N’ TABLE since 1976. Since the 1990s, it has consistently used the branding. The appearance of BBNT stores is typically a Hampton’s style, with white walls, wooden floorboards, and no discount signage. It has a dominant position in the soft homewares sector. The evidence also established that no other retailer had used the words ‘bed’ or ‘bath’ in their store names or external signage since that time up to the present. Other retailers had used “bed” and “bath” inside their stores as category descriptors only (not as trade marks).

    GRBA has operated retail stores under the House brand since at least 1978 and is well-established in the hard homewares market. It has operated under the trade mark ‘House’ as well as under a series of sub-brands (‘House WAREHOUSE’, ‘House OUTLET’ etc). House stores typically feature discount marketing in crowded displays.

    In May 2021, GRBA began operating a new soft homewares business using the House B&B Mark. GRBA contended that the intention of adopting the House B&B Mark was to advertise that House had extended into bedroom and bathroom products. GRBA considered obtaining legal advice for the re-branding, but apparently ultimately adopted the new branding without legal consultation. There was also evidence that GRBA was aware of BBNT’s marketing of its brand, including an email in which an employee of GRBA stated ‘we will have Bed bath and table running scared’.

    The dispute

    BBNT brought a claim against GRBA in the Federal Court, alleging that GRBA, in using its House B&B Mark, had:

    1. infringed the BBNT Mark, contravening section 120 of the Trade Marks Act 1995 (Cth) (TMA);
    2. contravened ss 18(1) and 29(1)(a), (g) and (h) of the ACL; and
    3. engaged in the tort of passing off.

    BBNT also had a trade mark opposition on foot but deferred this to run the Federal Court proceedings.

    At first instance, Justice Rofe was not satisfied that GRBA had infringed BBNT’s trade marks because her Honour found that the House B&B Mark was not substantially identical or deceptively similar to the BBNT Mark. There were a number of key differences between the marks including the presence of ‘N’ TABLE’ in the BBNT mark, the presence of the visually significant ‘House’ in the House B&B mark, and differences in presentation and orientation.

    Her Honour did find, however, that, by using its House B&B Mark, GRBA had contravened the ACL, and engaged in the tort of passing off.

    GRBA appealed the finding with respect to the ACL and passing off claims, and BBNT challenged the finding of lack of trade mark infringement in a cross claim (which ultimately failed). This Insight focuses on the Full Court’s reasoning with respect to the ACL claim.

    Misleading or deceptive conduct?

    The primary judge had found that GRBA’s use of the House B&B Mark was likely to mislead or deceive the ordinary and reasonable consumer, even though the marks were not deceptively similar. The Full Court challenged a number of aspects of her Honour’s reasoning. We focus below on how the issues of reputation, the test for misleading or deceptive conduct, descriptiveness, and intention played into the decision:

    (a) Reputation

    Justice Rofe considered that the reputation of BBNT was ‘crucial’ to the different outcomes for the trade mark infringement claim and the misleading conduct claim. Her Honour noted that BBNT had acquired an extensive reputation in the BBNT Mark in the soft homewares market in Australia for over 40 years. Although Justice Rofe found that BBNT had a reputation in the BBNT Mark, her Honour did not find that it had an independent reputation in BED BATH or in BED & BATH alone. BBNT had provided some evidence of truncation of the BBNT Mark by consumers to ‘BED BATH’ or ‘BED & BATH’, however, Justice Rofe ultimately did not think the evidence provided of some truncation in informal settings (such as telephone calls and in-store conversations) justified a finding that ordinary consumers typically truncated the mark, or that BBNT had any reputation in ‘BED BATH’ or ‘BED & BATH’. Her Honour nevertheless went on to find that reasonable consumers coming across the House B&B Mark and store for the first time would question whether there was some association between this brand and BBNT (for instance, questioning whether they had merged or whether GRBA had taken over BBNT).

    The Full Court, however, considered that Justice Rofe’s finding that there was no independent reputation in ‘BED BATH’ or ‘BED & BATH’ demonstrated that it was the use of the composite phrase ‘BED BATH ‘N’ TABLE’ or ‘BED BATH AND TABLE’ only that would indicate the existence of a commercial association between the business operating under that name and another business using a different name which also included the words ‘BED & BATH.’ As a result, the Full Court found that Justice Rofe’s findings on reputation were inconsistent with her conclusion that the use by GRBA of the House B&B Mark was likely to lead ordinary and reasonable consumers to believe that the store was associated in some way with stores operated under the BBNT name.

    (b) Test for misleading or deceptive conduct

    Further, the Full Court found that Justice Rofe erred in applying the test for misleading or deceptive conduct. The court highlighted that even if use of the House B&B Mark by GRBA ‘may cause ordinary and reasonable consumers to wonder if there is any such association’ (which, as outlined above, the Full Court considered unlikely), that would not be sufficient to justify a finding that GRBA had engaged in conduct likely to mislead or deceive. Rather, conduct will be likely to mislead or deceive if there is a real or not remote chance or possibility that the relevant person or class of persons will be misled or deceived. This is an objective question which the court must determine for itself.

    (c) Descriptiveness

    The Full Court also emphasised that conduct that causes confusion is not necessarily co-extensive with misleading or deceptive conduct. It cited a passage from Hornsby Building Information Centre Pty Ltd v Sydney Building Information Centre Ltd which highlights that choosing descriptive words as a part of a trade name can enliven the possibility of blunders by members of the public, and that this small risk of confusion must be accepted:

    ‘So long as descriptive words are used by two traders as part of their respective trade names, it is possible that some members of the public will be confused whatever the differentiating words may be.” The risk of confusion must be accepted, to do otherwise is to give to one who appropriates to himself descriptive words an unfair monopoly in those words and might even deter others from pursuing the occupation which the words describe.’

    The Full Court accepted that the BBNT Mark is not purely descriptive (BBNT does not sell beds, baths or tables); rather it is partly descriptive.  Drawing a somewhat long bow, the Full Court considered that the BBNT Mark conveys that the products on sale in the stores trading under the BBNT mark are related in some way to beds baths and tables.

    The Full Court considered that there are two ways that consumers might be confused by use of the House B&B Mark:

    1. by confusing the two marks despite the differentiating element of HOUSE; or
    2. by drawing an inference from the presence of BED BATH or BED & BATH in the two marks that there was some association between the businesses using them.

    The Full Federal Court dismissed the first option, opining that the differences between the two marks were substantial and obvious to anyone but a careless observer. It dismissed the second option on the basis that their Honours considered that, even if consumers associated the words BED & BATH with BBNT, they were unlikely to be misled into thinking that the two businesses were associated, given the significant differences between the two names. In the Full Court’s opinion, consumers were likely to do no more than infer that both businesses were engaged in the supply of soft homewares for bedrooms and bathrooms.

    (d) Intention

    The case law indicates that an intention to deceive can be relevant to whether conduct is likely to mislead or deceive. At first instance, Justice Rofe found that GRBA’s failure to seek legal advice in relation to the re-branding, its knowledge of BBNT’s reputation and ‘fierce’ determination not to alter the House B&B Mark even after becoming aware of some evidence of confusion with BBNT’s brand, fell short of intention to deceive, but did amount to ‘wilful blindness’. Her Honour took this wilful blindness into account when she considered whether there was misleading or deceptive conduct. However, the Full Court noted that intention is only one factor among many in the assessment, and ultimately even if there is an intention to deceive, if the impugned mark does not sufficiently resemble the registered owner’s mark, there will be no likelihood of deception. The Full Court also highlighted that the case law (Verrocchi v Direct Chemist Outlet Pty Ltd [2016] FCAFC 104) indicates that an intention to deceive ought only to be taken into account in borderline cases of misleading or deceptive conduct, which their Honours considered this case was not. In any event, ‘wilful blindness’ was not equivalent to an ‘intention to deceive’. The Full Court found that the primary judge had misapplied the test, by relying on wilful blindness to the risk of confusion as ‘reliable and expert opinion on the question of whether GRBA’s conduct was likely to deceive, particularly in circumstances where her Honour declined to find that GRBA had any commercial dishonest intention to appropriate part of BBNT’s trade or reputation.’

    Ultimately, the Full Court found that the primary judge erred in concluding that, by using the House B&B mark, GRBA had engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct, and the appeal was allowed.  

    Actions you can take now

    • This decision indicates the importance of proactive trade mark strategies, even for longstanding brands with significant reputation. Reputation cannot be taken into account in trade mark infringement proceedings under sections 120(1) or 120(2) TMA, and generally only under s60 at the opposition stage, although in the context of registration it may still be possible to consider reputation under section 44 in arguments concerning imperfect recollection. So, even if a company’s brand is very well known in Australia, this does not matter for an assessment of infringement (whether the impugned mark is substantially identical or deceptively similar to the well-known mark).
    • Careful and proactive branding strategies should be considered, for instance: ensuring that any sub-brands, brand extensions, or truncated versions of the brand are protected alongside the core marks. It is advisable to monitor actual use of your company’s marks in the market and keep up to date with any changes in how the marks are used by consumers. If there are truncated versions being used, or quasi descriptive aspects of the marks that you would nevertheless not like a competitor to be able to capitalise on (such as BED & BATH or BED N BATH), it will be important to seek to register these versions with appropriate modifications.
    • Similarly, even if these sub-brands or truncated versions cannot be registered immediately, companies can nevertheless implement strategies to build up reputation in them (with a view to future registration). In this case, a failure to build up reputation in BED BATH or BED & BATH made it difficult for BBNT to make out an ACL claim in relation to GRBA’s use of the House B&B Mark. GRBA was able to argue its use was not misleading or deceptive as BBNT did not have reputation in BED BATH or BED & BATH alone.
    • When making strategic decisions between trade mark opposition proceedings and actions for infringement and under the ACL, it is important to consider which provisions best serve your interests and enforcement objectives. In this case, BBNT deferred its opposition proceeding to the House B&B Mark in order to bring proceedings in the Federal Court. With the benefit of hindsight, might BBNT have fared better by focusing on the opposition, which allows prior reputation in a mark that is not deceptively similar to the opposed mark to be taken into account? While a successful opposition would not have prevented use of the challenged mark, it may have encouraged the parties to review their respective positions.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Expression of interest opens for Bendigo Airport Business Park

    Source: State of Victoria Local Government 2

    The City of Greater Bendigo is pleased to open an expression of interest for the new Bendigo Airport Business Park and businesses and developers are encouraged to apply.

    Bendigo Airport is offering nine business park lots for lease ranging in size from 600m2 to 1,357m2.

    This is a prime location within the landside area of the airport to support businesses either from Greater Bendigo or outside of the region who are seeking new opportunities and future growth.

    Each lot features road frontage, service connections and convenient access to the airport for freight and passenger movements.

    Due to the prominent and highly visible location next to the airport, businesses will be required to provide aesthetically appropriate infrastructure on the lot site which will require a planning and building permit to be constructed.

    There are six additional lots of vacant land that will be released in the future. Expansion into these additional lots will be considered for the right business proposals.

    Manager Economy and Experience James Myatt said the new business park offered new and exciting business opportunities.

    “The Bendigo Airport Business Park is in a prime location within the landside area of the airport providing businesses with the chance to become part of a thriving commercial hub,” Mr Myatt said.

    “The airport precinct in East Bendigo is strategically well positioned with the potential for strong investment returns.

    “This business park is designed to complement the recent airport terminal development which has increased capacity and created additional business opportunities to support regional growth.

    “The City has opened an expression of interest with nine lots available for businesses to lease land and establish their business within the airport precinct.

    “I encourage businesses and developers to submit an expression of interest and tell us how the Airport Business Park will benefit your business and the airport.”

    To submit an expression of interest, please visit: 

    VendorPanel Public Tenders

    Submissions close on Tuesday March 11 2025.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Cambridge Road lane closure to be lifted 4 days ahead of schedule 

    Source: New Zealand Transport Agency

    |

    Sheet piling works for the Tauriko Enabling Works project are ahead of schedule at the SH29/Cambridge Road intersection, which means the lane closure will be lifted overnight on Wednesday 29 January.

    Traffic will be able to turn off SH29 into Cambridge Road again from Thursday 30 January. The remaining sheet piling and retailing wall works will start taking place behind the barrier and both lanes will be open for traffic.  

    Works to improve safety at the SH29/Cambridge Road intersection have started off well, despite this area being challenging and narrow to work in, says Darryl Coalter, NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) Regional Manager, Infrastructure Delivery Waikato/Bay of Plenty (Acting). 

    “Everything aligned. Great weather, good ground conditions, no machinery breakdowns and the opportunity for the crew to work extended hours, enabled this tricky stage of the job to be completed 4 days ahead of schedule,” says Mr Coalter. 

    “Scheduling this work in January while schools are out and traffic volumes are lower helped minimise overall disruption to the travelling public. We’d like to thank everyone for their patience while this work was completed, especially residents, businesses and project neighbours.” 

    Tauranga City Council Bethlehem Ward Councillor Kevin Schuler says seeing work associated with the lane closure completed ahead of schedule is a fantastic result. 

    “This is a great start to works at the SH29 and Cambridge Road intersection, and an excellent outcome for businesses and for local residents we know use this route often.” 

     With the temporary sheet piles almost fully in place on this section of Cambridge Road, work can commence on the permanent retaining wall soon, says Mr Coalter.  

    “Building a retaining wall in this location is complex due to the surrounding geography, traffic volumes on Cambridge Road and constructing a 210m-long concrete wall, with a steep gully on one side.  This is further complicated by multiple underground services that also need to be installed including power, water and fibre.  

    “The retaining wall is a key step allowing us to widen the road, accommodating increased traffic and a shared path, and is scheduled for completion in late 2025. Once the retaining wall is completed, there will be a lane shift on Cambridge Road allowing intersection and drainage works to begin on the other side of Cambridge Road. 

    “The upgrade of the SH29/Cambridge Road intersection is a key part of the Tauriko Enabling Works project.  It will be a much safer and more efficient intersection, including a new connection to Whiore Avenue for buses and people walking and cycling wanting to access Tauriko Business Estate.” 

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Full Court dismisses appeal by Ultra Tune over contempt of court

    Source: Australian Competition and Consumer Commission

    The Full Federal Court has today dismissed an appeal by Ultra Tune Australia Pty Ltd (Ultra Tune), upholding a decision of the Federal Court in March 2024 to impose $1.5 million in fines for four separate instances of contempt of court.

    The contempt of court decision related to breaches of orders made by the Court in 2019 after earlier ACCC proceedings in relation to breaches of the Australian Consumer Law and the Franchising Code of Conduct (Franchising Code) by Ultra Tune, including its failure to implement a compliance program.

    Ultra Tune appealed the decision on two grounds; first that the Court had no power to impose a punishment for contempt where no endorsement was included on the relevant orders as to the consequences of non-compliance with those orders and secondly as to how the fines were calculated.

    In dismissing the appeal, the Full Federal Court held on the first ground that there was no error in the primary judge’s construction of the relevant Federal Court rules relating to the endorsement.  On the second ground the Full Federal Court held that “Ultra Tune has not established any overt error on the part of the primary judge in determining the fines for the contempts nor that they are otherwise manifestly excessive, taken alone or as a total penalty”.

    “We are pleased with the Full Court upholding this decision, which we consider a clear message that compliance with the Franchising Code is of utmost importance,” ACCC Commissioner Liza Carver said.

    “This is a serious matter because Ultra Tune had failed to comply with the requirements which are in place to protect franchisees even after judgments in earlier ACCC court action against it.”

    “We will continue to monitor the compliance by Ultra Tune and other franchisors, and take appropriate action if required,” Ms Carver said.

    The Court also awarded the ACCC its costs of the appeal.

    Background

    Ultra Tune is a car servicing franchisor with operations in every mainland state and territory and over 260 centres across Australia.

    In 2017, the ACCC instituted proceedings against Ultra Tune in relation to alleged contraventions of the ACL and the Franchising Code. In January 2019, the Federal Court imposed total pecuniary penalties of $2.604 million against Ultra Tune (reduced to $2.014 million on appeal) for its contravening conduct.

    The penalties related to Ultra Tune’s:

    • late production and dissemination (by over six months in some instances) of marketing fund statements and disclosure documents mandated by the Franchising Code; and
    • treatment of a prospective franchisee, whom the court found Ultra Tune had misled.

    In March 2019, the Court ordered Ultra Tune to implement a compliance program and made injunctions restraining Ultra Tune from contravening certain provisions of the ACL and the Franchising Code. The Full Federal Court rejected an appeal by Ultra Tune against this decision in September 2019.

    In June 2022, the ACCC instituted proceedings alleging Ultra Tune was in contempt of court by failing to comply with the orders made in March 2019.  In March 2024, the Federal Court fined Ultra Tune $1.5 million for contempt of Court. The company appealed this decision in late March.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Doorstop – Jerrabombera

    Source: Australia Government Ministerial Statements

    SUBJECTS: Cheaper Child Care; Wage rise for early educators; Universal early education; Fully funding public schools; $7,200 worse off under Peter Dutton; National Bullying Action Plan; The Middle East; Antisemitism; University governance; Local government 

    KRISTY McBAIN, MINISTER FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TERRITORIES: It’s a pleasure today to welcome Minister Jason Clare to Goodstart Jerrabomberra where 90 places a day are filled, and we have a wait list. Jerrabomberra is the heart of the Queanbeyan region, it’s fast growing, and this childcare centre is one of many that have benefitted from the Albanese Labor Government’s Cheaper Childcare plan.

    We know families right across our region have benefitted from this, and it’s so great to be able to introduce Minister Clare to the wonderful staff here, the wonderful centre manager and State manager and the wonderful kids that come here each and every day to enjoy this beautiful centre.

    JASON CLARE, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION: Thanks very much, Kristy. It’s absolutely fantastic to be with you here at Jerrabomberra at the Goodstart Centre here. You are an absolutely fantastic Member of Parliament, and we are so lucky to have as part of the Albanese Labor Government and this community is lucky to have you as their Labor Member.

    When we were elected two and a half years ago, childcare costs had sky rocketed, childcare costs under the Liberals went up by 49 per cent over just under a decade, and that was double the OECD average.

    We’ve cut the cost of childcare now for more than a million Australian families. In the first 15 months of our Cheaper Childcare laws this has meant that for an average family on about 120 grand a year combined income with one child in early education or care saved them about 2,700 bucks, and that’s real money that’s making a real difference for families right across the country.

    And when we were elected two and a half years ago childcare workers were leaving the sector in droves, that’s the truth of it, and we’re now starting to see that turn around. Data that’s been released today shows that vacancy rates in the childcare sector are down 22 per cent, and at Goodstart, where we are today, all of their centres across the country, we’re seeing job applications now jump by 35 per cent, and expressions of interest jump by 50 to 60 per cent. Vacancy rates at Goodstart Centres are down by a massive 28 per cent.

    So that’s fantastic news. It shows that when you pay people more, more people want to do the job, and there aren’t many jobs that are more important than the work that our early educators do, getting young people ready for school.

    If we win the next election, the next big thing that we need to do is build more centres where they don’t exist at the moment and help to make sure that more young people get the chance that the children we’ve met here today get, help young people who can’t get into early education and care now, either because there’s no centre in their town, or because they can’t get access to the subsidy through no fault of their own.

    And that’s why if we win the next election, we’ll set up a $1 billion fund to build more centres in the outer suburbs and in the regions where they don’t exist at the moment, and implement a three day guarantee, to guarantee that every child who needs it will get access to three days a week of government supported early education and care.

    Why? To make sure that more children are ready to start school, because the evidence is, that if children spend more time in early education and care in centres like this, they’re more likely to start school ready to learn.

    And just while talking about school, last week the Prime Minister announced that South Australia and Victoria have become the fifth and sixth States to sign up to our public school funding and reform agreement, the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement, that’s along with WA, Tassie, ACT, the Northern Territory and of course now South Australia and Victoria.

    On the weekend, teachers backed this agreement, on the weekend principals backed this agreement, and now today the Business Council of Australia backed this agreement. This is real funding, to fix the funding of our public schools, and it’s not a blank cheque, it’s tied to real reform; things like phonics checks in Year 1 and numeracy checks in Year 1 to identify children who might already be falling behind, and then using that funding to make sure that children who do fall behind catch up early, because we know that children who catch up early are more likely to go on and finish high school.

    So, it’s backed by teachers, backed by principals, backed by the business community. The only people that are against it are Peter Dutton and the Liberal Party, they’re against cutting the cost of childcare for Australian parents, they’re against pay rises for childcare workers, they’re against building more childcare centres where they don’t exist, and they’re against fixing the funding of our public schools and tying that funding to evidence based teaching and real reform to help more young children to catch up, keep up and finish high school.

    Happy to take some questions.

    JOURNALIST: When do you expect that Queensland and New South Wales will sign on to that school agreement?

    CLARE: I won’t give you a date, but negotiations are going well.

    JOURNALIST: Fresh polling is showing that it’s really tight. Are your cost-of-living measures cutting through with the voters?

    CLARE: We know that Australians are doing it tough, a lot of Australians are doing it tough, that’s why creating a million jobs is really important, that’s why cutting inflation by more than half is really important, that’s why boosting real wages is really important as well.

    We’re making progress, there’s more work to do, but the evidence that came out on the weekend shows that if Peter Dutton had been the Prime Minister of Australia for the last 12 months, Australian families would be over $7,000 worse off.

    Why? Well, because he was against the tax cuts that delivered a lot of support for Australian families, he’s against cheaper childcare, he’s against cutting the cost of medicine, he’s against lifting real wages, he’s against cutting the cost of people’s energy bills through that $300 rebate, and when you add all that up, it means that Aussie families would be thousands and thousands of dollars, $7,200, worse off under Peter Dutton.

    JOURNALIST: On the School Agreement, so New South Wales and Queensland you would assume are trying to get more than 25 per cent. Are you open to that?

    CLARE: Don’t assume that. But I’m not going to negotiate through the media. What’s important here is that we fix the funding of our public schools, and we tie that to the sort of reforms that are going to help make sure that more kids that fall behind can catch up and keep up and finish high school.

    Private schools, non government schools are funded at the level that David Gonski said they should be at, public schools aren’t, and this agreement is about fixing that, but also tying that to real targets and real reforms.

    The current agreement doesn’t do that. There aren’t any real targets, there aren’t any real reforms. I want to make sure that we fix the funding of our schools and tie it to the sort of reforms that we know work. I want this money to get results.

    At the moment in public schools, over the course of say, you know, the last eight years or so, we’ve seen the percentage of kids finishing high school drop from 83 per cent to 73 per cent. Just think about that for a second. That’s happening at a time where it’s more important to finish school than it was when we were little.

    We’ve got to turn that around if we’re going to make sure that more people get a chance to go to TAFE and university and get the jobs that are being created today. That’s why this funding is important, but that’s why the reforms that it’s linked to are just as important.

    JOURNALIST: The States that signed on to it earlier, are they now pushing for 25 per cent as well, and will you grant that?

    CLARE: I’ve already spoken to those States, and we will offer to them the same deal, which is we’ll lift our offer from 20 to 25 if they get rid of that 4 per cent which is usually aligned to things like capital depreciation costs. So, we’re having great conversations with states like WA and Tassie.

    JOURNALIST: Is there a willingness though to go above 25 per cent for the two states that have paid off, and then does that open up the chance for increased funding for other states?

    CLARE: No. That’s why when I answered your previous question, I said don’t assume that the States are asking for more than 25 per cent. What the states have been asking for, for the last 12 months is that we increase our offer from 20 to 25 per cent, and we said, “Yeah, we’ll do that, but we need you to chip in as well”.

    It’s always been my view that the Commonwealth’s got to chip in and the states have to chip in as well. That’s why we’re saying to the states, if we can lift our funding from 20 to 25 per cent, let’s get rid of that other 4 per cent, which is used for things like capital depreciation that don’t actually go to real funding for schools at the moment.

    JOURNALIST: Is the absolute cap 25?

    CLARE: Well, again, I’m not going to go into the details of the conversation, but we’re not talking beyond 25.

    JOURNALIST: How exactly are you going to address high rates of absenteeism due to bullying or mental health issues, do you actually have a stepped plan in place for the next school year?

    CLARE: Yep. This is a complicated thing. There is absolutely no place for bullying in our schools. That’s why the work that we’re doing in putting together a National Bullying Action Plan with the states is so critical, so important; that’s why getting rid of mobile phones in schools is so important; that’s why the ban on access to social media for young people under the age of 16 is so important as well.

    We know fundamentally that children are less likely to be at school if they’re suffering from bullying or they’re suffering from mental health challenges. And young people with mental health challenges, by the time they’re in Year 9 are about a year and a half to two years behind the rest of the class, and less likely to finish school.

    And so the sort of things that we want to tie this funding to are early intervention when children are young at primary school to make sure that they keep up and catch up, but also more investment in things like mental health workers and paediatric nursing support in our schools.

    That investment in health is not just about health, it has real education outcomes as well.

    JOURNALIST: Donald Trump overnight said that   sorry, a couple of days ago said that he proposed “cleaning”   unquote   “cleaning out Gaza and resettling Palestinians”. What is the Government’s response to that?

    CLARE: The Government’s position for a very, very long time, I think since December of 2023, has been to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, and we’re glad that that has finally happened. We want to see an end to the killing in the Middle East, we want to see trucks come in with food and with medicine and with aid. We want to see the hostages returned.

    JOURNALIST: And what about resettling Palestinians though? What is your response directly to that suggestion that they should be moved to Jordan or Egypt?

    CLARE: The position of the Australian Government, which I think is still the position of the Opposition as well is that we believe in a two-state solution, two countries living side by side, two peoples living side by side in two nations where people can live in safety and security without having to go through checkpoints or fear that their lives will be taken from them the next day.

    JOURNALIST: Just on that language though, you know, “cleaning out”, do you think that’s triggering language or insensitive language?

    CLARE: Repeating my previous answer, we want two peoples able to be live side by side in safety and security.

    JOURNALIST: Do you have a set price tag on the number of those professional healthcare workers you want in schools?

    CLARE: No, there’s no set number, but this investment in South Australia’s an extra billion dollars over the next 10 years, in Victoria it’s an extra two and a half billion dollars over the next 10 years.

    The agreements that we’re striking with the states are all going to be slightly different depending on the needs in those states, but it’s designed to invest in real practical reforms that we know are going to get the results that we need.

    Just to add to what we’re talking about here, we’re talking about fixing the funding of our public schools. Now one in 10 children at the moment, when they sit for their NAPLAN tests in third grade, are identified as being below the national average, so one in 10   sorry, below the national minimum standard, so one in 10. But amongst children from poor families, from really disadvantaged backgrounds, it’s one in three, and most of those children go to public schools.

    So our public schools are the places that do the real heavy lifting where the challenge is three times as big, and they’re the ones that were underfunded at the moment. We want to fix that funding and tie that funding to help those children to catch up and keep up and finish high school.

    JOURNALIST: On that pay rise for early educators, do you know how many centres have used that as an excuse to immediately increase their fees by 4.4 per cent?  

    CLARE: Here’s the thing, they can’t, because a condition of getting the funding for the pay rise is they can’t increase their fees by more than 4 per cent.

    JOURNALIST: Yeah. That’s why I’m asking how many have increased their fees to that 4.4?

    CLARE: I suspect that most centres will increase their fees somewhere between zero and up to that 4 per cent over the next 12 months. The key thing is they can’t go beyond that, and that’s a big part of this deal. Number one, we want to make sure that the money goes to the worker, not the centre, and number two, in order to get that funding, they cannot increase their fees by more than 4 per cent.

    JOURNALIST: Do you know how many though have hit that cap?

    CLARE: It’s too early to give you that number.

    JOURNALIST: This billion-dollar strategy for outer suburbs and regional areas, do you have any hotspots, any, you know, regional areas that you’re concerned about that don’t have enough facilities?

    CLARE: You can look at data that shows where there are what’s called sometimes “childcare deserts” right across the country. This fund is designed to help to make sure that we build centres where they’re needed most, and in particular, if you look at the Productivity Commission report released last year it talks to this, it’s the outer suburbs, and it’s in Regional Australia.

    Just talking to the team at Goodstart here is the only childcare centre in Jerra that provides full service from six week old children right through to four year olds.

    JOURNALIST: I did just want to ask you about – there was evidence at a Parliamentary Committee last week about an online meeting of ANU to delete the Nazi salute. The investigation to my understanding is that they found that that wasn’t the case. What else do you think was happening there?

    CLARE: I make the general point, whether it’s at ANU or whether it’s at QUT that there is absolutely no place for the poison of antisemitism in our universities or anywhere in this country or anywhere in the world.

    There is a commemoration that’s just happened of the 80th Anniversary of the Holocaust and Auschwitz. You know, in the lifetime of our grandparents we’ve all seen the true terror of what antisemitism can wreak and there is no place for it, and that’s why I’ve made it very clear to every university leader in the country that they must enforce their Codes of Conduct, and that includes saying that directly to the Vice Chancellor of QUT.

    JOURNALIST: Do you believe though that it was appropriate that an ANU student who went on radio said that terrorist designated organisation, Hamas [indistinct] unconditional support was able to overturn her expulsion on appeal. You’ve just spoken about the poison of antisemitism; we have a growing issue in Australia. Is that an appropriate thing to do?

    CLARE: No.

    JOURNALIST: Are we any closer to a governance review   what’s the latest with the university governance review?

    CLARE: Yeah, last week we announced the members of the panel that will be responsible for implementing that review.

    JOURNALIST: Are you confident with the members of that panel?

    CLARE: I am.

    JOURNALIST: And then I might just Ms McBain something if that’s okay.

    CLARE: Sure.

    JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] would like to see councils auctioning off properties. What do you think of this decision?

    McBAIN: Look, every Council has the opportunity to take action when someone doesn’t pay rates for a period of time. My understanding, and it was a unanimous decision of Queanbeyan-Palerang Council to take this route, is that these rates have been unpaid for more than five years. A lot of those properties that attempted to make contact by door knocking them, letter boxing them, serving them, there’s been no contact made with any of those individuals for a variety of reasons. It is an avenue open to them, but as I said, it’s a unanimous decision of Queanbeyan-Palerang Council to take this action, which I’m sure that hasn’t been done lightly either.

    JOURNALIST: Are you concerned about the financial stability of councils if they are having to resort to methods like this just to try and stay out of debt?

    McBAIN: Look, I think when you look at it, it’s about a million dollars in unpaid rates that they are going to attempt to recruit through auction. I don’t think this goes anywhere near dealing with some of the ongoing issues that councils have, but what we’ve done since we’ve been in government, you know, there’s been more collaboration with local councils than in any time before that.

    I’ve personally met with over 250 councils either in their communities or in Canberra or at a Local Government Association conference. We have doubled Roads to Recovery funding and that means regional councils across the country have now more money than ever before to deal with road issues.

    Across Eden Monaro that’s $26.3 million extra for our local councils resulting in over $65 million for roads alone. We’ve increased road black spot funding, we’ve created the new safer local road and infrastructure program, $200 million a year, you know, we’ve been really putting our shoulder to the wheel making a difference for local councils, and just last week I was able to announce $27.2 million for Marulan Sewer Treatment Plant, you know, which is something that Council had called from but hadn’t been supported in getting.

    So, the Albanese Government takes seriously the priorities of local councils and local communities and we’ve been delivering for all of them.

    JOURNALIST: Thank you.

    MIL OSI News –