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  • MIL-OSI USA: California Man Charged with Weapon of Mass Destruction Offense in Connection with Bomb Attack in Lobby of County Courthouse

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    A three-count federal grand jury indictment was returned today charging Nathaniel James McGuire, 20, of Santa Maria, California, with committing a bomb attack at a courthouse in Santa Maria in which several people were injured. McGuire’s arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 25 in the Central District of California.

    According to the indictment and criminal complaint, on Sept. 25, McGuire entered a courthouse of Santa Barbara County Superior Court and threw a bag into the lobby. The bag exploded and McGuire left the courthouse on foot. The explosion injured at least five people who were near the bomb when it exploded.

    Shortly thereafter, McGuire was apprehended and detained by law enforcement officials as he was trying to access a red Ford Mustang car parked outside the building. McGuire allegedly yelled that the government had taken his guns and that everyone needed to fight, rise up, and rebel.

    Inside the car, a deputy saw ammunition, a flare gun, and a box of fireworks. A search of the car revealed a shotgun, a rifle, more ammunition, a suspected bomb, and 10 Molotov cocktails. Law enforcement later rendered the bomb safe. McGuire told law enforcement he intended to re-enter the courthouse with the firearms in order to kill a judge.

    A search of McGuire’s residence revealed an empty can with nails glued to the outside, a duffel bag containing matches, black powder, used and unused fireworks, and papers that appeared to be recipes for explosive material.

    McGuire was charged with one count of using a weapon of mass destruction, one count of maliciously damaging a building by means of explosive, and one count of possessing unregistered destructive devices. McGuire has been in custody since his arrest in September, shortly after the attack.

    If convicted of all charges, McGuire faces a mandatory minimum penalty of seven years in prison and a statutory maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

    Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada for the Central District of California, and Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI’s National Security Branch announced the case.

    The FBI is investigating the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Takla and Kathrynne N. Seiden for the Central District of California are prosecuting this case with substantial assistance from Trial Attorney Patrick Cashman of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

    An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Marshall Miller Delivers Remarks at the New York City Bar Association Compliance Institute

    Source: United States Attorneys General 7

    Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

    Thank you for that generous introduction. It’s great to be home in New York.

    The leaves are changing. The Yankees are in the World Series. And we’re here to talk about corporate criminal enforcement.

    It doesn’t get any better than this.

    Today, I’m honored to be here to take stock of the Department’s programmatic overhaul of corporate criminal enforcement in recent years, to discuss how that overhaul is designed to empower compliance programs and professionals, and to take a look around the corner to what’s ahead.

    There’s an old adage, laced with irony and sometimes attributed to an ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” Over the past few years, we at the Justice Department — indeed, all of us in America — have been on the receiving end of that adage. We all, truly, are living in interesting times.

    The volatility and rate of change in the geopolitical landscape and the world economy can be head-spinning: here a regional armed conflict, there a natural disaster, and everywhere transformative leaps in technology.

    Perhaps the opportunities seem greater than ever — but so, certainly, do the risks.

    And one key area where risks have spread and morphed is in the field of corporate crime.

    Corporate crime, of course, is not new. But it’s constantly evolving. So, we must skate to where the puck is going, not to where it’s been.

    To meet the moment, over the past few years, the Department has engaged in an overhaul of our corporate criminal enforcement program by modernizing and adapting.

    We’ve done that by emphasizing clarity, consistency, and transparency in our policies.

    We’ve done that by increasing the consequences for bad actors — whether individual or corporate — and by providing new incentives for good corporate citizenship and investments in compliance.

    And we’ve done that by recalibrating and surging resources to address today’s corporate crime threats — and tomorrow’s.

    In doing so, we’ve created a clear roadmap of the Department’s expectations for every CEO, General Counsel, Board Member, and Chief Compliance Officer who’s navigating a fast-changing world and must mitigate risk and stay on the right side of the law.

    *                                  *                                  *

    Let me start with the balance of consequences and incentives — where we’ve increased punishment for bad actors and enhanced incentives for ethical corporate behavior.

    To be clear, when it comes to corporate criminal enforcement, Job #1 is individual accountability.

    Corporate crime hurts real people — and corporate crimes are committed by real people.

    So the Department’s top priority in corporate criminal enforcement is holding individuals accountable.

    Accountability not only promotes fairness, it also drives deterrence.

    We’ve empowered our prosecutors to focus on the worst offenders committing the biggest crimes, no matter how high they rank on the corporate org chart — no matter how challenging and time-consuming the case.

    This approach is resource intensive. Prosecuting the most important cases against the most sophisticated wrongdoers requires breaking down complex criminal schemes, understanding cutting-edge markets and technology, and analyzing terabytes of data.

    So we’ve adapted enforcement policies to promote swift individual prosecutions.

    We’ve given good actors more avenues to help us go after the bad guys — through innovative whistleblower programs and consistent, transparent, and predictable voluntary self-disclosure policies.

    And we’ve made clearer than ever before what we expect from companies cooperating with government investigations to accelerate investigations of wrongdoers.

    This updated approach has generated real returns, with timely convictions of: the CEOs of the world’s two largest cryptocurrency platforms — FTX and Binance; the CEO and the COO of Theranos;

    Prosecuting the most culpable individuals is not only the right thing to do, it has the greatest deterrent impact by changing behavior and preventing misconduct.

    To increase accountability and deterrence, we’ve also clarified the rules of the road for corporate enforcement.

    In prior years, a disjointed, patchwork Department approach to key tools like whistleblowing, voluntary self-disclosure, and monitor selection limited their effectiveness.

    When corporate misconduct was detected, the benefits of whistleblowing or self-reporting to the Justice Department were often opaque and unpredictable.

    The Department’s response seemed to depend on which office or even which prosecutor was assigned to the case.

    Without written, public policies across most of the Department, self-reporting seemed like a roll of the dice without even a sense for the odds.

    It was time for change.

    Over the past few years, we’ve moved methodically to establish a very different paradigm –— one with consistent, transparent, and predictable rules of the road.

    For the first time, every Justice Department component has a published Voluntary Self-Disclosure policy that sets forth exactly what a company needs to do to self-report misconduct — and what a company can expect if they do so.

    For the first time, incentive compensation systems are assessed and upgraded as part of every Criminal Division resolution, because compensation systems can either promote compliance or reward risky — sometimes criminal — behavior.

    And companies that claw back compensation from executives involved in wrongdoing can reduce penalties by the amount of those clawbacks, providing new incentives to make wrongdoers — not innocent shareholders — pay the price.

    For the first time, all independent compliance monitors across the Department must be chosen under consistent, published selection processes and based on the application of public and transparent factors.

    And for the first time, the Justice Department instituted a Department-led whistleblower program with clear incentives for dropping a dime on corporate crime.

    Today, individuals and companies know when, where, and how to “do the right thing,” to borrow a phrase from my fellow Brooklynite Spike Lee.

    We’ve also broadened the gap between the benefits an ethical company can access and the penalties a compliance-flouting company faces.

    Investing in compliance and practicing good corporate citizenship should be the clear product of basic arithmetic — not some complex calculus problem with too many unknown variables to solve.

    We aim to empower General Counsels and Chief Compliance Officers to make a simple and powerful business case to boards and C-suites: the case for investing in compliance programs, for calibrating compensation plans to promote compliance and deter wrongdoing, and for swiftly reporting detected misconduct to Justice Department.

    As Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco put it in connection with the ground-breaking prosecution of TD Bank earlier this month: “If the business case for compliance wasn’t clear before — it should be now.”

    *                                  *                                  *

    Let me take a few minutes to delve deeper into the Department’s new whistleblowing and voluntary self-disclosure paradigm.

    First, whistleblowing. We know it works. Whistleblower reports to the government lead to prosecutions and civil enforcement actions. Internal reports help companies address misconduct before it gets out of hand.

    But gaps in whistleblower reporting opportunities left whole areas of corporate criminal misconduct unaddressed, with potential whistleblowers lacking a clear reporting path and a clear reason to blow the whistle.

    So this year, the Justice Department launched a two-part whistleblower program — with different rules and incentives for whistleblowers not involved in the criminal activity they’re reporting and for those who were.

    For whistleblowers not involved in the reported misconduct, Deputy Attorney General Monaco launched the first-ever Department whistleblower awards program — aimed at building on successful programs at the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

    The awards program is based on a simple premise: if an individual helps the Department discover corporate misconduct — otherwise unknown to us — then that person would qualify to receive a percentage of the resulting forfeiture.

    This program not only incentivizes individuals to step forward, it puts pressure on companies to do the same – because a company can still qualify for voluntary self-disclosure credit if it reports the conduct within 120 days of the whistleblower report to the Department.

    Now, by its very terms, this awards program doesn’t apply to individuals who were meaningfully involved in the criminal conduct itself. For that, we’ve launched whistleblower non-prosecution pilots in the Criminal Division and many of our most active U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.

    Those offices are offering non-prosecution agreements to certain individuals involved in misconduct who report previously undiscovered wrongdoing.

    In the same way a company could receive a declination, individuals with knowledge of misconduct can do the same — by stepping up, owning up, and helping us prosecute the most serious wrongdoers.

    All this fits seamlessly with the newly clear, transparent, and cross-Department approach to voluntary self-disclosures by companies, instituted at Deputy Attorney General Monaco’s direction.

    Voluntary self-disclosures drive successful criminal prosecutions of culpable individuals. They speed money back to victims and disgorge ill-gotten gains. They bring misconduct to a halt and tighten compliance programs with added government oversight.

    So, where a company voluntarily self-discloses misconduct previously unknown to the Department — absent aggravating circumstances and after remediation, disgorgement, and victim compensation — it can avoid a guilty plea or indictment.

    And such a voluntary self-disclosure to the Criminal Division can also qualify a company for the presumption of a declination of prosecution.

    Early signs indicate these newly consistent and transparent programs are working.

    Corporate voluntary self-disclosures to the Criminal Division are increasing every year, with more than twice as many last year as compared to 2021.

    In the first few months of the Justice Department’s whistleblower awards program, we’ve already received more than 200 tips.

    And U.S. Attorneys’ Offices report that individual voluntary self-disclosures have resulted in promising ongoing investigations.

    Notably, the programs complement each other, setting up a virtuous cycle.

    As the Deputy Attorney General has said, “when everybody wants to be first in the door, no one wants to be second” — regardless of whether you’re an innocent whistleblower, a potential defendant looking to minimize criminal exposure, or an audit committee chair at a company where the misconduct took place.

    Our approach also involves increasing punishment for companies that are repeat bad actors or who flout compliance.

    Calibrating a successful program of incentives and consequences requires increasing the penalties for corporate entities that aren’t getting the message.

    And we’ve moved out on that as well.

    Egregious corporate conduct demands a stiff punitive response.

    So multinational companies like LaFarge, TD Bank, and Binance have pleaded guilty to egregious crimes involving material support for terrorism, money laundering conspiracy, and sanctions violations, respectively — with combined penalties of almost $7 billion.

    Penalties also are levied to deter future misconduct. So, when a company breaks the law a second time or violates the terms of a prior resolution, we’ve made sure they pay a far steeper price.

    Powerful companies like Boeing and Ericsson have experienced that approach in action — pleading guilty to charges that stemmed from recidivist conduct or violations of deferred prosecution agreements.

    Corporate criminal charges and guilty pleas are no longer “specials” for certain customers —they’re now on the main, everyday menu.

    Today’s overhauled corporate enforcement program at the Justice Department means clearer and more transparent policies; predictable benefits for whistleblowers and incentives for companies that voluntarily self-disclose; and a far bigger gulf between the criminal outcomes for good and bad actors.

    All of it adds up to a clear business case for investing early and often in compliance.

    *                                  *                                  *

    I also want to highlight our surge of resources to address the dramatic expansion of corporate crime risks related to national security and emerging technology.

    In returning to government some two and a half years ago, I was struck by how often our corporate criminal investigations now implicate the country’s national security interests.

    The crimes vary — from sanctions violations to money laundering to material support for terrorism.

    The corporate defendants range across industry – from construction and shipping to agriculture and telecommunications.

    And the national security risks run the gamut – from money laundering for Russian interests to trafficking in Iranian crude oil to sanctions evasion to support the North Korean nuclear program.

    To meet the moment, the Department has surged resources to address the challenge.

    We’ve surged prosecutors into the Criminal Division’s Bank Integrity Unit, which prosecutes violations of the Bank Secrecy Act — including the recent, groundbreaking conviction of TD Bank.

    We’ve added more than 25 white collar prosecutors and a Chief Counsel for Corporate Criminal Enforcement to our National Security Division to inject energy and expertise in corporate enforcement.

    We’ve launched extraordinarily successful enforcement initiatives, involving Main Justice components, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and partner law enforcement agencies, to address particularly dangerous national security threats: initiatives like Task Force KleptoCapture, which has brought criminal charges against 100 individuals and entities who violated Russia-related sanctions or export controls — and seized, restrained, or obtained forfeiture orders against more than $650 million in assets. And initiatives like the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, which is laser focused on keeping the most sensitive technologies out of the world’s most dangerous hands, charging two dozen complex and high-impact cases since its launch last year.

    Every company’s legal and compliance functions should sit up and take note: national security risks are not only here — they’re accelerating.

    And they’re being supercharged by emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

    *                                  *                                  *

    Now you might ask: what should compliance professionals be doing today to prepare for tomorrow?

    As you may know, we recently updated the Criminal Division’s guidance on evaluating corporate compliance programs — known as the ECCP — in part to ensure that companies are focused on mitigating risks associated with the use and misuse of AI and other emerging technologies.

    Now, the ECCP doesn’t tell companies how to design and implement their compliance programs. Instead, the guidance poses questions that companies should be asking themselves throughout the compliance program life cycle — from design to execution.

    The Justice Department’s overhauled corporate criminal enforcement program places a particular premium on certain questions that executives and board members need to be asking:

    • Have we empowered our compliance leaders and invested sufficiently in our compliance program, given our risk profile and today’s geopolitical landscape?
    • Do we have effective internal detection and reporting systems and robust internal investigative capabilities — so we can avail ourselves of voluntary self-disclosure opportunities?
    • Have we designed compensation systems that promote compliance and enable clawbacks or escrowing of incentive comp?
    • Have we assessed risks associated with national security and emerging technologies and taken appropriate steps to mitigate them?
    • If a company finds itself on the wrong side of a Department investigation tomorrow, the company’s posture may well depend on how its leadership answers those questions today.

    I want to close by speaking directly to the compliance leaders here today.

    Thank you for the work you do every day to promote compliance in companies across America and around the globe.

    It’s not always easy to be the voice of compliance in the room.

    But when you do your jobs effectively, you not only serve your clients well, you protect our nation.

    At the Justice Department, our overhaul of corporate enforcement should empower you — along with other compliance-promoting corporate leaders — with stronger tools and greater sway to advocate for investment in compliance; to advance ethical behavior; to detect, deter, and report corporate misconduct; to defend against emerging national security and AI-related threats; and ultimately to promote good corporate citizenship.

    We look forward to continuing our work with all of you on this important effort.

    Thank you, once again, for being here today.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Students of the State University of Management learned about the work of the Management Center of the Urban Economy Complex

    Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

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

    On October 22, 2024, 1st and 3rd year students of the educational programs “Urban Studies and City Management”, “State and Municipal Administration”, accompanied by associate professors of the Department of State and Municipal Administration Irina Milkina and Bayrta Ubushaeva visited the Management Center of the City Economy Complex (MCC UHS).

    The center was created to promptly respond to problems related to monitoring the operation of housing and communal services facilities in Moscow. Analysts monitor various deviations around the clock, as well as analyze the causes of incidents and make forecast estimates. Today, a single technological platform combines all key sources of information. This facilitates the process of making strategic management decisions online.

    As part of the excursion, the students visited the 112 Service call center, the data processing center, and the situation room of the Central Control Center of the State Emergency Service.

    The students were shown the importance of coordinating the work of all services using specific examples, as well as the use of modern technologies to prevent problems. Often we do not notice the colossal work that is being done to improve the comfort of life of city residents. The participants of the excursion also learned that all the work of the Control Center is strictly regulated in order to promptly and effectively make decisions on the work of city services.

    The employees spoke about the importance of the work of not only the Central Office of the KGH, but also the “112 Service”. The work schedule of this capital service is 24 hours a day, since it is designed to provide emergency assistance and respond to calls at any time, so operators must always be at the workplace. And in order for operators to work effectively and not be overloaded after processing a dozen emotional calls, it is important that the work schedule and rest schedule are strictly observed, so when one employee is resting, another one comes to replace him.

    Students noted that despite the complexity and specificity of the work, the creation of this Center helps to improve the efficiency of urban management thanks to a modern information system.

    Malika Yarmukhamedova, 3rd year student: “I was pleased with the tour! I think that visiting this complex is very useful for development in urban studies. We were clearly shown all the components of the urban economy of the city of Moscow and the efficiency of their use. A puzzle of how city services function and coordinate came together in my head.”

    Ulyana Laryushina, 3rd year student: “Many thanks to the Center’s staff for clearly demonstrating how city services management functions. It was interesting to learn about modern technologies used in this area and to understand how decisions are made in emergency situations.”

    Ilya Dubodelov, 3rd year student: “I was pleased to talk to real specialists in the field of municipal services. I learned a lot of new things in this area, and was also amazed by the technologies used by the Center for Management of the Municipal Services Complex, and the overall coherence of all departments.”

    The State University of Management thanks the Department of Housing and Public Utilities of the City of Moscow, the State Budgetary Institution “MAC” and the State Budgetary Institution “System 112” for the opportunity to visit an important facility for managing the capital’s municipal economy.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 10/24/2024

    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 Germany: Results of the 2024 LSI stress test

    Source: Deutsche Bundesbank in English

    The profitability of Germany’s small and medium-sized banks and Sparkassen (less significant institutions, or LSIs) improved significantly in 2023. The institutions achieved stronger earnings during the period of higher interest rates; they have further expanded their capital resources and appear to be prepared even for serious adverse scenarios. These were among the findings of the sixth LSI stress test and accompanying survey, which were conducted this year by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the Deutsche Bundesbank.
    “The banks are on more solid ground. Most institutions have good capital ratios and are capable of handling the very demanding challenges posed in this year’s stress test,” said Raimund Röseler, BaFin’s Chief Executive Director of Banking Supervision, while presenting the stress test results in Frankfurt. The scenario assumed in this year’s test was far more challenging than in the last exercise two years ago. In total, the shock caused the Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio to decrease by 3.7 percentage points to 14.5 percent. The stress effect was mainly driven by credit and market risks.
    Under the scenario presented in the stress test, the number of institutions that experience difficulties lies in the medium double digits. These institutions would not meet the supervisory capital requirements in the case of a major economic downturn. The number of impacted institutions is twice as high as in the 2022 LSI stress test – mainly due to the tougher scenario specifications.
    “Institutions should continue to expand their capital resources and not erode their solid baseline unless absolutely necessary. The economic situation remains uncertain. We will closely monitor the outlier institutions. If necessary, we will take supervisory countermeasures at an early stage,” Röseler declared.
    Results of the survey on the current and future earnings and risk situation show that institutions are anticipating an increase in loss allowances. Banks and Sparkassen are still willing to take on additional risks on their books and increase their lending. However, their plans foresee a greater increase in CET1 capital than in risk-weighted assets, which leads to a moderate rise in the CET1 ratio and takes more than sufficient account of the additional risks they plan to assume.
    “Our analysis shows that the majority of banks and Sparkassen are less optimistic with regard to commercial real estate. Supervisors will continue to closely monitor this segment,” said Michael Theurer, the member of the Executive Board responsible for banking supervision at the Deutsche Bundesbank. The outlook is more positive for residential properties, but lower market values are expected for buildings in need of renovation to meet energy efficiency standards. The banks and Sparkassen consider the greatest challenges to be recruitment, increased competition for deposits and the slowdown in economic activity. “In particular, challenges arising from demographic change will have a longterm impact on the banking sector. Institutions need to begin adapting to this development early and take a forward-looking approach,” Theurer advised.
    1,200 small and medium-sized German credit institutions took part in the stress test conducted by the Deutsche Bundesbank and BaFin. The participating institutions represent approximately 91 percent of all credit institutions in Germany and approximately 40 percent of the aggregate total assets. The results of the stress test are incorporated into the supervisory activities of the Deutsche Bundesbank and BaFin.
    Annex
    Earnings
    BaFin and the Deutsche Bundesbank collected the institutions’ own planned and forecast figures in the survey. The institutions were also asked to simulate their earnings for the period from 2024 to 2028 in five interest rate scenarios predefined by the supervisors. The institutions performed these calculations assuming a static balance sheet, meaning they were not able to adjust their portfolios.

     

    Scenario
    Yield curve
    Balance sheet assumption

    1

    Planned scenario
    Institution-specific assumptions
    dynamic

    2

    Steady interest rate level
    +/-0 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    3

    Positive interest rate shock
    + 200 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    4

    Negative interest rate shock
    − 100 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static

    5

    Gradual interest rate increase
    + 40 bp annually as at 01.01.
    static

    6

    Inverse turn
    + 200 bp to − 60 bp as at 01.01.2024
    static
    Table 1: Methodological rules and interest rate scenarios in the survey (2024–2028); “bp” stands for “basis points”
    On the basis of their own planned and forecast figures, the surveyed credit institutions reported in the second quarter of 2024 that they expect their return on assets to increase by 45% over the next five years (2022: + 18%). Return on assets is defined as the profit for the year before tax in relation to total assets. However, this highly positive projection is based on the optimistic assumption that interest rates will remain steady or even slightly increase in the medium to long term.
    Resilience
    On average, the institutions surveyed expect to increase their CET1 ratio from a level of 18.2% to 19.4% by 2028. They plan to do so despite the larger increase in risk-weighted assets, which can be traced to an upturn in the volume of business and increased risk-taking.
    Stress test used for determining Pillar 2 guidance
    Stress testing examines the resilience of institutions under adverse economic conditions and estimates the consequences for their capital resources. To this end, the banks and Sparkassen simulated their earnings and resilience for the years 2024 to 2026 according to baseline and stress scenarios predefined by the supervisors. The stress scenario for this year’s test entails a dramatic economic downturn resulting in interest rate risks, credit risks and market risks, among others. Other components of the banks’ profit and loss accounts were extrapolated based on historical data, partially with discounts.
    The supervisory authorities aimed to determine whether the capital resources of the credit institutions were still adequate over a three-year period in a stress scenario. After a capital depletion of 3.7 percentage points (the largest decrease in the CET1 ratio over the three-year scenario horizon), the small and medium-sized institutions in Germany still had a CET1 ratio of 14.5% on aggregate, which represents a sound capital basis.
    The stress test identifies the vulnerabilities of each individual institution. The risks revealed in the stress test also factor into the calculation of Pillar 2 guidance. An institution’s failure to comply with this recommendation acts as an important early warning threshold for supervisors. Institutions that are particularly vulnerable can be subjected to even closer supervision at an early stage. This helps further strengthen the stability of the German banking market.

    MIL OSI

    MIL OSI German News –

  • MIL-OSI: TRAINERS’ HOUSE GROUP INTERIM REPORT 1 JANUARY – 30 SEPTEMBER 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TRAINERS’ HOUSE GROUP, STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE, 24 OCTOBER 2024 at 8:30
              
    January-September 2024 in brief

    • net sales EUR 5.9 million (EUR 6.5 million), change of -9.7 % compared to the corresponding period of the previous year
    • operating result EUR 0.1 million (EUR 0.1 million), 1.1 % of net sales (1.0 %)
    • cash flow from operations EUR 0.1 million (EUR 0.1 million)
    • earnings per share EUR 0.03 (EUR 0.04)

    July-September 2024 in brief

    • net sales EUR 1.6 million (EUR 1.6 million), change of -1.2 % compared to the corresponding period of the previous year
    • operating result EUR -0.1 million (EUR -0.1 million), -9.4 % of net sales (-6.7 %)
    • cash flow from operations EUR -0.3 million (EUR -0.2 million)
    • earnings per share EUR -0.07 (EUR -0.05)

    Key figures at the end of third quarter of 2024

    • cash and cash equivalents EUR 1.1 million (EUR 1.5 million)
    • interest-bearing liabilities of EUR 0.7 million (EUR 0.3 million) and interest-bearing net debt of EUR -0.4 million (EUR -1.3 million).
    • equity ratio 65.2 % (65.3 %)

    OUTLOOK FOR 2024

    The company estimates the operating profit for 2024 to be negative.

    CEO ARTO HEIMONEN

    Despite the challenging market conditions, the company’s year-to-date result is slightly profitable at the end of the third quarter.

    Due to the holiday season, the third quarter of Trainers’ House is actually two months long from the point of view of revenue accumulation.

    Customer activity and customer satisfaction remained at a high level. Acquiring new assignments succeeded moderately. The productivity of encounter marketing business increased.

    Healthy cash flow and profitability are the company’s most important business goals in 2024 as well.

    The purpose of Trainers’ House is to help people forward. This is possible by touching people, electrifying management and producing verifiable results.

    Thanks to customers, employees, and partners.

    More information:
    Arto Heimonen, CEO, +358 404 123 456
    Saku Keskitalo, CFO, +358 404 111 111

    OPERATIONAL REVIEW

    During the review period, the company focused on serving its customers.

    FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE

    Net sales for the reporting period were EUR 5.9 million (EUR 6.5 million). Operating result was EUR 0.1 million, 1.1 % of net sales (EUR 0.1 million, 1.0 %). The result for the period was EUR 0.1 million, 1.1 % of net sales (EUR 0.1 million, 1.2 %).

    The breakdown of the Group’s figures (unit thousand euros) is presented in the following table:

    Group’s main figures (kEUR) 1-9/2024 1-9/2023
    Net sales 5 907 6 541
    Expenses:    
    Expenses arising from employee benefits -3 947 -4 339
    Other expenses -1 635 -1 729
    EBITDA 325 473
    Depreciation and impairment losses -259 -405
    EBIT 66 68
    EBIT, % of net sales 1.1 1.0
    Financial income and expenses -15 8
    Result before taxes 51 76
    Income taxes 14 4
    Result of the period 65 80
    Result, % of net sales 1.1 1.2

    LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES

    The company’s long-term goal is profitable growth.

    FINANCING, INVESTMENTS AND SOLVENCY

    Cash flow and key financing figures (unit million euros) 1-9/2024 1-9/2023
    Cash flow from operations before financial items 0.2 0.1
    Cash flow from operations 0.1 0.1
    Cash flow from investments 0.0 0.1
    Cash flow from financing -0.2 -0.9
    Total cash flow -0.1 -0.7
         
      9/2024 9/2023
    Cash 1.1 1.5
    Interest-bearing debt 0.7 0.3
    Equity ratio % 65.2 65.3

    MAJOR RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES

    Trainers’ House’s business is sensitive to economic fluctuations.

    The general economic situation internationally and in Finland contains significant risks. The war in Europe and Middle East, the tense world political situation and the possible expansion of the crisis can cause rapid changes in the operating environment.

    Possible world trade restrictions and changes in the world political situation affect the exports of Finnish companies, which is reflected in the demand of the domestic market. The demand in domestic market will also diminish due to public cost-cuttings and tax increases. The change in domestic market demand directly affects Trainers’ House’s business.

    Compared to the level of the last decade, the high interest rate has a negative effect on economic activity. Inflation can also accelerate due to, for example, escalation of world political crises.

    The constant competition for the best employees affects recruitment and the commitment of key personnel. From the company’s point of view, the labor market situation has eased over the past year.

    The above-mentioned risks, when realized alone or together, have a significant impact on the company’s operations.

    The company divides the risk factors affecting business, earnings, and market capitalization into five main categories: market and business risks, personnel-related risks, technology and information security risks, financial risks, and legal risks.

    Trainers’ House has sought to hedge against the adverse effects of other risks with comprehensive insurance policies. These include statutory insurance, liability and property insurance and legal expenses insurance. Insurance coverage, insurance values and deductibles are reviewed annually together with the insurance company.

    The Management Team reports to the Board on a monthly basis on key business-related risks and, where necessary, risk management measures.

    The Group has the reporting systems required for effective business monitoring. Internal control is linked to the company’s vision, strategic goals and the business goals set on the basis of them.

    The realization of business objectives and the Group’s financial development are monitored on a monthly basis through the Group’s corporate governance system. As an essential part of the control system, actual data and up-to-date forecasts are reviewed monthly by the Group Management Team. The control system includes, among other things, sales reporting, an income statement, a rolling revenue and profit forecast, and key figures that are important to operations.

    Trainers’ House is an expert organization. The magnitude of market and business risks is difficult to determine. Typical risks in this area are related to, for example, general economic development, customer distribution, technology choices, the development of competition and the management of personnel costs.

    Risks are managed through the planning and regular monitoring of sales, human resources, and operating expenses, which enables rapid action when circumstances change. The risks of trade receivables have been taken into account by the recognition of expenses based on the age of the receivables and individual risk analyzes.

    The goal of Trainers’ House’s financial risk management is to secure the availability of equity and debt financing on competitive terms and to reduce the impact of adverse market movements on the company’s operations.

    Financial risks are divided into four categories, which are liquidity, interest rate risks, currency risks and credit risks. Each risk is monitored separately. Liquidity and interest rate risks are reduced with sufficient cash resources and efficient collection of receivables. Currency risks are low as Trainers’ House operates primarily in the euro market. In financial risk management, the focus is on liquidity.

    The success of Trainers’ House as an expert organization depends on its ability to attract and retain skilled staff. In addition to a competitive salary, personnel risks are managed through incentive schemes and investments in personnel training, career opportunities and general well-being.

    Technology is a key part of Trainers’ House’s business. Technology risks include, but are not limited to, supplier risk, risks related to internal systems, challenges posed by technological change, and security risks. Risks are protected against long-term cooperation with technology suppliers, appropriate security systems, staff training and regular security audits.

    Trainers’ House’s legal risks are mainly focused on the contractual relationship between the company and customers or service providers. At their most typical, they relate to delivery responsibility and the management of intellectual property rights. In order to manage the risks related to contracts and intellectual property rights, the company has internal guidelines for contractual procedures. In the company’s view, the contractual risks are not unusual.

    At the end of the review period, goodwill and other intangible assets recognized in the balance sheet have been tested in the normal way. The test did not reveal any need for impairment.

    The consolidated balance sheet of Trainers’ House has goodwill of EUR 2.1 million. The balance sheet value of other intangible assets is EUR 1.0 million. If the Group’s profitability does not develop as forecasted or other external factors independent of the Group’s operations, such as interest rates, change significantly, it is possible that goodwill and other intangible assets will have to be written off. Recognition of an impairment loss would have no effect on the Group’s cash flow.

    Due to the project nature of the operations, the order backlog is short, and predictability is therefore challenging.

    The description of potential risks is not comprehensive. Trainers’ House conducts continuous risk assessment in connection with its operations and strives to hedge against identified risks.

    Investors have also been informed about the risks in the company’s annual review and on the website at www.trainershouse.fi.

    PERSONNEL

    At the end of the review period, the Group had 107 (111) employees. As before, the company reports the number of employees converted to full-time employees.

    DECISIONS REACHED AT THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

    The annual general meeting of Trainers’ House Plc was held on 27 March 2024 in Helsinki.

    The annual general meeting confirmed the financial statements and discharged CEO and the members of the Board of Directors from liability for the fiscal year 1 January – 31 December 2023. The annual general meeting also decided to adopt the remuneration policy of the governing bodies.

    The annual general meeting decided, in accordance with the board’s proposal, that the company does not distribute a dividend from 2023.

    Aarne Aktan, Jari Sarasvuo, Jarmo Hyökyvaara, Elma Palsila and Emilia Tauriainen were re-elected as members of the Board of Directors. In the board meeting held after the annual general meeting, the Board of Directors elected Jari Sarasvuo as the chairperson of the board.

    The annual general meeting decided that the board member’s remuneration shall be EUR 1,500 per month and the chairperson’s remuneration will be EUR 3,500 per month.

    Grant Thornton Oy was elected as the company’s auditor. The remuneration to the auditor is paid according to the auditor’s reasonable invoice.

    SHARES AND SHARE CAPITAL

    The company’s share is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd under the name Trainers’ House Plc (TRH1V).

    At the end of the reporting period, Trainers’ House Plc had 2,147,826 shares and a registered share capital of EUR 880,743.59. The company does not hold any of its own shares. There have been no changes in the share capital during the period.

    Share performance and trading

      1-9/2024 1-9/2023
    Traded shares, pcs 203 608 213 827
    Average number of all company shares, % 9.5 10.0
    Traded shares, EUR 576 890 1 013 869
    Highest share quotation 4.88 6.12
    Lowest share quotation 2.07 3.38
    Closing price 2.27 3.73
    Weighted average price 2.83 4.74
    Market capitalization 4.9 mil. 8.0 mil.

    SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND NOTES

    The report has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 standard. The report has been prepared in accordance with IFRS standards and interpretations that have been approved for application in the EU and are in force on 1 January 2024.

    In this interim report Trainers’ House has followed the same accounting policies and calculation methods as in the 2023 annual financial statements.

    The figures given in the interim report are unaudited.

    INCOME STATEMENT IFRS (kEUR) 1-9/2024 1-9/2023 1-12/2023
    NET SALES 5 907 6 541 8 437
    Expenses:      
    Materials and services -286 -308 -391
    Personnel-related expenses -3 947 -4 339 -5 691
    Depreciation and impairment losses -259 -405 -531
    Other operating expenses -1 348 -1 420 -1 925
    Total expenses -5 841 -6 473 -8 538
    Operating result 66 68 -101
    Financial income and expenses -15 8 6
    Result before taxes 51 76 -95
    Income taxes 14 4 4
    RESULT OF THE PERIOD 65 80 -91
    Result attributable to owners of the parent company 65 80 -91
    Earnings per share, EUR 0.03 0.04 -0.04
    Earnings per share attributable to owners of the parent company, EUR 0.03 0.04 -0.04
    BALANCE SHEET IFRS (kEUR) 9/2024 9/2023 12/2023
    ASSETS      
    Non-current assets      
    Tangible assets 704 430 961
    Goodwill 2 129 2 129 2 129
    Other intangible assets 1 013 1 025 1 013
    Long-term receivables      
    Other receivables, long-term 105 138 138
    Deferred tax receivables 218 204 202
    Total long-term receivables 324 342 341
    Total non-current assets 4 170 3 926 4 443
           
    Current assets      
    Account receivables and other receivables 1 002 942 783
    Cash and cash equivalents 1 120 1 533 1 175
    Total current assets 2 122 2 475 1 958
    TOTAL ASSETS 6 292 6 400 6 401
           
    SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND LIABILITIES 9/2024 9/2023 12/2023
    Equity attributable to the owners of the parent company      
    Share capital 881 881 881
    Distributable non-restricted equity fund 37 37 37
    Retained earnings 3 021 3 111 3 111
    Result of the period 65 80 -91
    Total shareholders’ equity 4 004 4 109 3 939
    Long-term liabilities      
    Deferred tax liabilities 203 205 203
    Long-term financial liabilities 420 58 631
    Total long-term liabilities 622 263 833
    Short-term liabilities      
    Short-term financial liabilities 280 216 197
    Accounts payable and other liabilities 1 386 1 812 1 432
    Total short-term liabilities 1 666 2 028 1 629
    Total liabilities 2 288 2 291 2 462
    TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND LIABILITIES 6 292 6 400 6 401
    CASH FLOW STATEMENT IFRS (kEUR) 1-9/2024 1-9/2023 1-12/2023
    CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS      
    Result of the period 65 80 -91
    Adjustments 263 435 570
    Changes in working capital -169 -398 -257
    Cash flow from operations before financial items and taxes 158 117 222
    Financial items and taxes paid -22 -13 -16
    CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS 137 104 206
    CASH FLOW FROM INVESTMENTS      
    Investments in tangible and intangible assets -3 -12 -12
    Repayment of loan receivables 17 42 42
    Interests received 5 21 21
    CASH FLOW FROM INVESTMENTS 18 51 51
    CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING      
    Repayment of lease liabilities -128 -272 -363
    Dividends paid -82 -597 -966
    CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING -210 -869 -1 329
    TOTAL CASH FLOW -55 -714 -1 072
    CHANGE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS      
    Opening balance of cash and cash equivalents 1 175 2 247 2 247
    Closing balance of cash and cash equivalents 1 120 1 533 1 175
    CHANGE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS -55 -714 -1 072

    CHANGE IN SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY (kEUR)
    Equity attributable to owners of the parent company

    CHANGE IN SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY (kEUR) Share capital Distributable non-restricted equity fund Retained earnings Total
    Equity 1 January 2023 881 37 4 121 5 039
    Other comprehensive income     80 80
    Dividends     -1 009 -1 009
    Equity 30 September 2023 881 37 3 191 4 109
             
    Equity 1 January 2024 881 37 3 021 3 939
    Other comprehensive income     65 65
    Dividends     0 0
    Equity 30 September 2024 881 37 3 086 4 004

    RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

    During the period under review, Trainers’ House had transactions with Causa Prima Ltd, a company controlled by Jari Sarasvuo, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors, and Pro Vividus Ltd and Anorin Liekki Ltd, which are related to the company.

    The following transactions took place with related parties:

    RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (kEUR) 1-9/2024 1-9/2023 1-12/2023
    Purchases during the period 272 131 168
    Liabilities at the end of the period 95 31 39
    PERSONNEL 1-9/2024 1-9/2023 1-12/2023
    Average number of personnel 108 115 113
    Personnel at the end of the period 107 111 96
    COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES 9/2024 9/2023 12/2023
    Collaterals and contingent liabilities given for own commitments(kEUR) 120 120 120
    OTHER KEY FIGURES 9/2024 9/2023 12/2023
    Equity ratio (%) 65.2 65.3 63.5
    Shareholders’ equity/share (EUR) 1.86 1.91 1.83

    Calculation formulas for key figures

    Earnings per share        = Result of the period attributable to owners of the parent company
                                          Average number of shares adjusted for share issue in financial period

    Interest-bearing net debt = Interest-bearing liabilities – cash and cash equivalents

    Equity ratio (%)          = Equity x 100
                                        Balance sheet total – advances received

    Equity / share            = Equity                                              
                                        Number of shares adjusted for share issue at the
                                        end of financial period

    Items affecting the calculation of key figures 9/2024 9/2023 12/2023
    Advances received (kEUR) 154 107 198
    Interest-bearing liabilities (kEUR) 700 274 828
    Average number of shares adjusted for share issue in financial period (unit thousand shares) 2 148 2 148 2 148
    Number of shares adjusted for share issue at the end of the financial period (unit thousand shares) 2 148 2 148 2 148

    In Helsinki 24 October 2024

    TRAINERS’ HOUSE PLC

    BOARD OF DIRECTORS

    Information:
    Arto Heimonen, CEO, +358 404 123 456
    Saku Keskitalo, CFO, +358 404 111 111

    DISTRIBUTION
    Nasdaq Helsinki
    Main media
    www.trainershouse.fi – For investors

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Co-op teams up with Quadient to deliver parcel locker convenience in communities in the UK

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Quadient (Euronext: QDT), a global automation platform powering secure and sustainable business connections, has partnered with Co-op in the United Kingdom to deliver further parcel locker growth and added convenience to its communities, it has revealed today.

    The partnership to supply Parcel Pending by Quadient lockers to Co-op’s stores, aims to align Co-op’s footprint in the heart of local communities with the continued growth in consumer demand for safe, secure and accessible parcel lockers.

    Parcel Pending by Quadient is a growing network of intelligent lockers used for deliveries and returns from significant carriers, including Royal Mail, DPD, Evri, and UPS, as well as for new services across the UK like convenient key drop-offs with Keynest.

    More than 30 units will initially be installed at Co-op stores, with the potential for this partnership to grow. The first lockers will be seen this month at Co-op stores in Bedford, Bradford, Guildford, Keighley, Liverpool, Stockport, Swinton, and Telford.

    The multicarrier open locker network form part of Co-op’s strategy to develop added services and enhanced convenience – creating a compelling customer offer to ensure its stores are a convenient destination not only for groceries but for a range of services that meet the needs of local communities.

    George Hayworth, Head of Q-Comm Development, Co-op, said: “We are delighted to partner with Quadient. Safe, secure and convenient parcel lockers are one of the ways in which we make things easier and deliver enhanced convenience for our member-owners and customers. With our stores conveniently located in high streets and transport hubs, university campuses and residential developments, parcel lockers can help local residents and time-pressed consumers pick up or return parcels at a time that is convenient to them, quickly, easily and conveniently.”

    Katia Bourgeais-Crémel, Director of Lockers Automation Europe at Quadient said: “We are proud to collaborate with the Co-op to introduce our open lockers in their stores. This partnership enables us to offer Co-op customers a secure and efficient solution for managing parcel deliveries and returns. Our open locker network is accessed by multiple carriers, including Royal Mail, DPD, Evri, and UPS, providing even greater convenience than others in the market. Shoppers can easily collect or return parcels, whether during a grocery run or as part of their daily routine, making the process both simple and seamless.”

    Learn more at parcelpending.com/en-gb. 

    About Quadient®
    Quadient is a global automation platform powering secure and sustainable business connections through digital and physical channels. Quadient supports businesses of all sizes in their digital transformation and growth journey, unlocking operational efficiency and creating meaningful customer experiences. Listed in compartment B of Euronext Paris (QDT) and part of the CAC® Mid & Small and EnterNext® Tech 40 indices, Quadient shares are eligible for PEA-PME investing. For more information about Quadient, visit www.quadient.com.

    Contacts

    Sandy Armstrong, Sterling Kilgore Joe Scolaro, Quadient         
    Director of Media & Communications Global Press Relations Manager
    +1-630-699-8979 +1 203-301-3673
    sarmstrong@sterlingkilgore.com j.scolaro@quadient.com

    About Co-op
    Co-op is one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives with interests across food, funerals, insurance and legal services. Owned by millions of UK consumers, the Co-op operates almost 2,400 food stores, over 800 funeral homes and provides products to over 6,000 other stores, including those run by independent co-operative societies and through its wholesale business, Nisa Retail Limited. Employing 56,000 people, the Co-op has an annual turnover of over £11billion and is a recognized leader for its social goals and community-led programs. The Co-op exists to meet members’ needs and stand up for the things they believe in. For more information about the Co-op, visit www.co-op.co.uk

    Attachments

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  • MIL-OSI Russia: The results of the internship of Russian specialists in Belarus have been summed up

    Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

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

    The final part of the internship of Russian specialists in the Republic of Belarus took place in Minsk and facilities close to the country’s capital.

    On October 21, members of the Russian delegation took part in a contact exchange with companies representing businesses and potential B2B partners from Belarus. The event was opened by the Director of the Federal Resource Center, Alexey Bunkin. The head of the Rossotrudnichestvo representative office in the Republic of Belarus, Yury Makushin, also addressed the Russian and Belarusian participants with an opening speech.

    During the event, the current state of foreign trade relations between Russia and Belarus, promising export and import directions, the peculiarities of local buyers’ perception of Russian products, issues of certification, logistics and mutual settlements were discussed, and numerous personal meetings, conversations and exchange of contacts took place.

    Then a visit to the office of the Free Economic Zone “Minsk” took place. The deputy head of the FEZ administration spoke in detail about its functioning, features in comparison with other zones, answered questions from members of the Russian delegation.

    Next, the internship participants visited the production facilities of ZAPAGROMASH LLC, the CIS leader in the production of agricultural machinery, including for feeding and keeping cattle, and Minsk Tractor Plant OJSC, the oldest enterprise in the republic and the largest manufacturer of agricultural machinery.

    During the visits, the delegation members learned about the history of the companies, examined samples of manufactured equipment and a number of production shops, including assembly shops, and discussed issues of interest to them with the management of the enterprises, with special attention paid to the topic of ensuring social security for workers.

    In the evening of the same day, Alexey Bunkin held a briefing with the internship participants, during which the results of the work were summed up, the achieved results were presented, and the prospects for the development of subsequent similar projects were discussed.

    On the final day of the internship, October 22, the delegation visited the Great Stone Industrial Park. They were given a thorough introduction to the history of the park’s creation and its present day, had a dialogue with the deputy head of the administration with answers to numerous questions, and toured the territory.

    The Russian delegation then moved to the building of the Belarusian State University of Economics and took part in a session on business education as part of the Second Forum of the Scientific and Educational Consortium “Eurasian Network University”, held by the State University of Management. Leading specialists from a number of consulting companies in the Republic of Belarus spoke to the internship participants.

    Also in the BGEU building, the vice-rector of the State University of Management Dmitry Bryukhanov and Alexey Bunkin presented certificates of advanced training in the program “Economic cooperation in the agro-industrial complex” to the participants of the Presidential program for training management personnel.

    The business program of the internship of Russian specialists in Minsk ended in the same place where it began – in the building of the Trade Mission of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Belarus. The meeting was attended by the representative of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Belarus Ilya Fedorov, the head of the department for promoting direct foreign investment and import substitution of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Belarus Anastasia Dedyulya, the head of the production and marketing department of the KUP “Myasomolprom” of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee Tatyana Volozgina, a number of heads of commercial and manufacturing enterprises from the agro-industrial complex.

    The Russian and Belarusian participants once again considered possible areas and prospects for cooperation, and exchanged contacts for further interaction. Moreover, the discussion was based on information and experience gained during their stay in Belarus.

    The results of the intensive practice-oriented internship of Russian specialists in Belarus were familiarization with successful examples of entrepreneurship, establishment of contacts with both representatives of local businesses and Russian representative bodies that ensure the state interests of Russia in the sphere of foreign economic activity in Belarus.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 10/24/2024

    Internships for Russian specialists in the Republic of Belarus took place in Minsk and facilities close to the country’s capital.

    On October 21, members of the Russian delegation took part in a contact exchange with companies representing businesses and potential B2B partners from Belarus….

    ” data-yashareImage=”https://guu.ru/wp-content/uploads/Беларусь-2024-1.jpg” data-yashareLink=”https://guu.ru/%d0%bf%d0%be%d0%b4%d0%b2%d0%b5%d0%b4%d0%b5%d0%bd%d1%8b-%d0%b8%d1%82%d0%be%d0%b3%d0%b8-%d1%81%d1%82%d0%b0%d0%b6%d0%b8%d1%80%d0%be%d0%b2%d0%ba%d0%b8-%d1%80%d0%be%d1%81%d1%81%d0%b8%d0%b9%d1%81%d0%ba/”>

    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: MKS Instruments Breaks Ground on Super Center Factory in Malaysia

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ANDOVER, Mass., United States and KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ: MKSI), a global provider of technologies that transform the world, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) and InvestPenang today announced that MKS celebrated the groundbreaking ceremony of its super center factory in Penang, Malaysia to support the growing needs of semiconductor equipment for wafer fabrication in the region and globally. The state-of-the-art facility will be located on a 17-acre plot, spanning approximately 500,000 square feet. and will employ approximately 1,000 people. The new factory will be built in multiple phases, with the first phase scheduled for completion in the first half of 2026.

    ADUN Bukit Tambun and Director of InvestPenang, YB Goh Choon Aik stated, “Penang, renowned as the Silicon Valley of the East, has cemented its position as a preferred global destination for electronics and electrical investments in Southeast Asia. With a legacy of five decades of industrialisation and a reputation for innovation and technological excellence, the state offers a thriving industrial ecosystem that naturally attracts investors. MKS Instruments’ expansion into Penang is a testament to the state’s appeal as a preferred investment destination, supported by its robust ecosystem.”

    YB Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), welcomed MKS Instruments to Malaysia, stating, “This groundbreaking super center factory is a resounding affirmation of our government’s commitment to expediting investors’ projects with the able assistance of agencies like MIDA. More importantly, this aligns with our New Industrial Master Plan 2030, which aims to enhance our economic complexity, fostering symbiotic relationships between global companies and local SMEs, and creating high-skilled, high-paying jobs in cutting-edge sectors like engineering and technical fields, for the benefit of Malaysians. I’m confident that these initiatives will catapult our semiconductor sector to the pinnacle of the global value chain, a true ‘tour de force’ in the world of industry.”

    Datuk Sikh Shamsul Ibrahim Sikh Abdul Majid stated “This momentous occasion presents a golden opportunity for our machinery and equipment (M&E) companies to showcase their prowess in producing high-value products and integrated services that meet the exacting standards of multinational corporations (MNCs). MIDA remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting and facilitating investments that enhance operational capabilities, ultimately catalysing the meteoric rise of Malaysia’s manufacturing sector, a true ‘industrial powerhouse’ in the making.”

    “Penang offers an attractive and rapidly growing semiconductor ecosystem, and building a significant presence here is part of our strategic and long-term capital planning,” said Dr. John T.C. Lee, President and Chief Executive Officer of MKS. “Adding Penang to our global footprint puts us closer to our customers, suppliers and a robust technology infrastructure, including a deep and talented labor pool, as we continue to spur innovation and enhance our capabilities as a leader across a broad array of semiconductor manufacturing applications.”

    MIDA reports that for the first half of 2024 (1H2024), the Machinery and Equipment (M&E) sector saw promising growth, with a total of 64 projects approved, amounting to investments valued at RM2.8 billion. These projects are anticipated to create significant opportunities, generating over 3,500 new jobs and contributing to the sector’s continued development and expansion in Malaysia.

    About MIDA

    MIDA is the government’s principal investment promotion and development agency under the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) to oversee and drive investments into the manufacturing and services sectors in Malaysia. Headquartered in Kuala Lumpur Sentral, MIDA has 12 regional and 21 overseas offices. MIDA continues to be the strategic partner to businesses in seizing the opportunities arising from the technology revolution of this era. For more information, please visit www.mida.gov.my and follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok and YouTube channel.

    About InvestPenang

    InvestPenang is the Penang State Government’s principal agency for the promotion of investments. Its objectives are to develop and sustain Penang’s economy by enhancing and continuously supporting business activities in the State through foreign and local investments, including spawning viable new growth centers. To realize its objectives, InvestPenang also runs initiatives like the SMART Penang Center (providing assistance to SMEs), Penang CAT Center (for talent attraction and retention), and Global Business Services (GBS) Focus Group (promoting and developing digital economy). For more information, please visit https://investpenang.gov.my.

    About MKS Instruments

    MKS Instruments enables technologies that transform our world. We deliver foundational technology solutions to leading edge semiconductor manufacturing, electronics and packaging, and specialty industrial applications. We apply our broad science and engineering capabilities to create instruments, subsystems, systems, process control solutions and specialty chemicals technology that improve process performance, optimize productivity and enable unique innovations for many of the world’s leading technology and industrial companies. Our solutions are critical to addressing the challenges of miniaturization and complexity in advanced device manufacturing by enabling increased power, speed, feature enhancement, and optimized connectivity. Our solutions are also critical to addressing ever-increasing performance requirements across a wide array of specialty industrial applications. Additional information can be found at www.mks.com.

    For more information, please contact:

    MIDA InvestPenang MKS Instruments
    Ms. Zakiah Sajidan
    Director, Machinery and Metal
    Technology Division
    Email: zakiah@mida.gov.my
    Tel.: +603 22676769    		 Ms. Elaine Cheah
    Communications & Business
    Intelligence
    Email: elaine@investpenang.gov.my
    Tel.: +604 6468833    		 Mr. Bill Casey
    Senior Director, Marketing
    Communications 
    Email: press@mksinst.com
    Tel.: +1 630 995 6384 

    Ms. Kerry Kelly
    Partner, Kekst CNC
    Email: kerry.kelly@kekstcnc.com
         

    Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements
    This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, regarding MKS’ construction of a factory in Malaysia and the projected timeline. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact should be considered to be forward-looking statements. Actual events or results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements set forth herein, including as a result of the factors described in MKS’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. MKS is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Rosneft Organises Clean Shores Environmental Festival in Nefteyugansk

    Source: Rosneft

    Headline: Rosneft Organises Clean Shores Environmental Festival in Nefteyugansk

    RN-Yuganskneftegaz (Rosneft’s largest producing asset) organised the Clean Shores environmental festival in Nefteyugansk. More than 500 employees and their family members attended the event, which was held for the fourth time.

    The festival programme included a clean-up and many interactive activities aimed at improving the environmental culture of the residents. The environment-oriented initiative was held on the territory of the memorial complex – «R-63 well» and the embankment of the Yugansk Ob river. Volunteers made a significant contribution to the health of the environment by collecting household waste and old tyres for recycling on the embankment.

    The festival had themed sections: games for children and mini-GTO, a quiz and workshops. An exhibition of specialised machinery was held near the memorial stele.

    On the same day, RN-Yuganskneftegaz employees planted 60 cherry trees in Nefteyugansk in honour of the 60th anniversary of the first Ust-Balyk oil being sent to the refinery. The event took place in the street named after Alexander Filimonov, an outstanding Soviet oilman, hero of socialist labour and honorary resident of the city.

    The event was attended by representatives of the Nefteyugansk administration, young specialists of the enterprise, activists of the Movement of the Firsts, students of Rosneft classes, residents and guests of the city.

    Environmental volunteering is an integral part of Rosneft’s volunteer movement. The Company’s employees are actively involved in cleaning up natural coastal and urban areas, as well as in interactive events aimed at promoting an environmental culture among the younger generation.

    Reference:

    RN-Yuganskneftegaz pays great attention to the conservation of natural resources and environmental protection by implementing various environmental programmes. Including compensatory reforestation and artificial propagation of aquatic bioresources.

    Rosneft
    Information Division
    September 11, 2024

    Keywords: Environmental news 2024

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Ocean Maid report and flyer published

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Grounding and subsequent loss of a stern trawler on Cairnbulg Point, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

    Image courtesy of Alex Young and www.marinetraffic.com

    Today, we have published our accident investigation report into the grounding of the stern trawler Ocean Maid (BA 55) on Cairnbulg Point near the port of Fraserburgh, Scotland on 24 October 2022. The vessel later broke up and sank.

    The report, available via this link, contains details of what happened, subsequent actions taken and recommendations.

    A safety flyer to the fishing industry has also been produced with this report.

    Media enquiries (telephone only)

    Media enquiries during office hours 01932 440015

    Media enquiries out of hours 0300 7777878

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI China: Israeli airstrikes kill 1 soldier, injure 7 in Syria

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Israel launched airstrikes on the Syrian capital Damascus and a military site in the central province of Homs before daybreak Thursday, killing one soldier and wounding seven others, the Syrian Defense Ministry said.

    The attacks, which occurred around 3:40 a.m. local time (0040 GMT), were launched from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights and northern Lebanon, hitting two sites in Damascus’ Kafr Sousa neighborhood and one military site in the countryside of Homs, the ministry said in a statement.

    The strikes caused material damage, the statement added without elaborating.

    Huge explosions were heard in Damascus earlier in the day.

    Earlier reports said a residential building in Kafr Sousa was targeted.

    Israel has been carrying out strikes against what it said were Iranian-linked targets in Syria for years. However, both Syrian and Iranian governments have denied the existence of Iranian military forces or base in Syria.

    Israel has ramped up attacks on Syria with the escalation of Israel-Lebanon conflicts.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Last design and construction contract awarded for Light Public Housing

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

         The Housing Bureau (HB) and the Architectural Services Department (ArchSD) announced today (October 24) that the last design and construction contract for Light Public Housing (LPH), i.e. Public Works Contract no. SS N516, has been awarded to Yau Lee Construction Company Limited upon assessment. The contract comprises six projects including Hang Kwong Street, Ma On Shan, and the conversion of five vacant or to-be-vacant school premises, providing a total of around 1 500 units. The construction works are expected to commence in phases by November 2024 at the earliest.

         The construction works of LPH have been proceeding at full speed, with a total of about 28 500 units in seven projects (i.e. Yau Pok Road, Yuen Long; Tuen Mun Area 3A; Choi Hing Road, Ngau Tau Kok; Olympic Avenue, Kai Tak; Lok On Pai, Siu Lam; Tuen Mun Area 54; and Sheung On Street/Sheung Ping Street, Chai Wan) already commenced since December 2023. Among them, the first LPH project at Yau Pok Road, Yuen Long, will be completed for intake in the first quarter of next year.

         A spokesman for the HB said that the award of the last design and construction contract today marks the new stage towards the progressive completion and intake of LPH, which could truly improve the living conditions and quality of life of the people living in inadequate housing. The HB and the ArchSD will continue to press ahead with relevant works at full speed to achieve the Government’s target of providing about 30 000 LPH units by 2027-28.   

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Alwyn Jordan: Monitoring and assessing risks to financial stability in the Caribbean

    Source: Bank for International Settlements

    On behalf of the Central Bank of Barbados, it is my great pleasure to welcome you to this peer-to-peer exchange seminar. I’d like to extend a special welcome to Dr. Petr Jakubik from CARTAC, whose initiative has brought us together for this important event.

    This is not just another training seminar – it is a dynamic platform for the exchange of ideas, the sharing of expertise and the building of frameworks for future collaboration. In today’s rapidly evolving global landscape, where financial stability and economic resilience are increasingly intertwined with central bank regulation, peer exchanges like this are vital. They help us remain agile, informed and equip us with the latest knowledge and best practices to meet the challenges we face as central bankers and regulators.

    It is therefore a pleasure to be here today to discuss this issue with you, which is at the heart of economic development in the Caribbean. We all know that at first glance, financial stability may seem like a dry, technical topic, but for us in the Caribbean, it is central to safeguarding our economic well-being. As the global financial system becomes more interconnected, our economies are exposed to a variety of risks – both natural and man-made. Today, I want to highlight why financial stability is crucial for our region, with particular emphasis on challenges such as climate change, external shocks, and the evolving financial landscape. I will also shed some light on the difficulties faced by Caribbean central banks and other regulators in preparing comprehensive Financial Stability Reports.

    We all know that financial stability is about ensuring that various entities such as banks, insurance companies, financial markets, and payment systems operate smoothly without triggering major disruptions. When financial stability is maintained, businesses can secure credit, households can borrow and save, and governments can finance development. It is therefore the backbone of economic resilience.

    For the Caribbean, the stakes are particularly high. We are a region of small, open economies that are highly dependent on external trade, tourism, and foreign investment. Our economic structure makes us extremely vulnerable to external shocks, whether they are related to global financial conditions, natural disasters, or geopolitical events. Any significant disruption to the financial system, whether from internal weaknesses or external shocks can therefore quickly lead to a financial crisis. The resulting economic hardship can take years, or even decades, from which to recover. A very good example of this phenomenon was seen during and after the Global Financial Crisis. 

    Vulnerability to Climate Change

    But let me start by addressing one of the major external risks to Caribbean economies, namely the climate crisis. Our region is one of the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Indeed, when we refer to climate vulnerable economies, Caribbean countries are always the highest ranked by any measure. Rising sea levels, more intense storms such as hurricane Beryl, which caused significant damage to a number of Caribbean islands in late June, prolonged droughts, and flooding have become our unfortunate reality. These climate-related risks have a direct bearing on financial stability, as these systems don’t just devastate homes and infrastructure, they can also have adverse effects on the financial system.

    For example, the destruction of infrastructure can lead to loans becoming non-performing, as businesses and households may default on their debt. Banks and other large financial entities in turn, may face liquidity problems, which can trigger a systemic crisis. Furthermore, as governments attempt to rebuild after the event, this often leads to an increase in public debt, which puts further strain on their ability to finance essential services and infrastructure. Imagine the strain on our resources that would have occurred had any of our islands been hit by the back-to-back hurricanes that recently devastated Florida and other states along the US South coast. 

    Climate-related risks are particularly challenging to manage because of their unpredictable nature and the difficulty in quantifying their economic impact. Caribbean regulators must therefore continuously monitor these risks and implement forward-looking policies to mitigate their effects on the financial system.

    The Impact of Global Economic Shocks

    In addition to climate change, external economic shocks pose another serious risk to financial stability in the Caribbean. Our economies are heavily reliant on global trade, tourism, and remittances. Any disturbance in the global economy such as a recessions in our major trading partners or sudden changes in commodity prices can ripple through our financial systems. Take, for instance, the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought the world to a standstill in 2020. It was an economic shock of unprecedented proportions for the Caribbean. Indeed, our tourism sector, a lifeline for many economies, came to a grinding halt, leaving governments and businesses scrambling to stay afloat.

    Central banks in the region had to take swift action to ensure liquidity in the financial system, lower interest rates, and support government stimulus efforts. But the pandemic highlighted an ongoing challenge: our financial systems are vulnerable to global crises, and the lack of diversified economies in the region makes recovery more difficult. Regulators must therefore constantly balance the need to maintain stability, while responding to these shocks in an agile and effective manner.

    Navigating the New Financial Landscape

    But this is not the only challenge facing us as regulators, as the financial landscape is also evolving rapidly. The rise of fintech, digital currencies, and shadow banking, has created new opportunities for financial inclusion and innovation. However, it also presents new risks. Digital currencies, while offering the potential for greater financial inclusion, bring concerns about regulatory oversight, cybersecurity, and monetary policy transmission. Caribbean countries have been the pioneers in developing digital currency frameworks, but it still requires careful consideration of the impact on financial stability.

    Shadow banks – non-bank financial intermediaries that provide similar services as traditional banks – such as payday lenders or firms offering “buy now, pay later” options for buyers, are another concern. Given that these entities generally operate outside the regular regulatory framework, they are often opaque, and central banks may lack the tools to properly oversee their activities. They can, therefore, pose systemic risks without the safeguards that apply to the formal financial sector. If these institutions fail, the resulting financial contagion could spread quickly throughout the economy. Developing effective regulatory frameworks for shadow banks is therefore critical to ensuring financial stability in our region. 

    The Value of Financial Stability Reports

    It is against this backdrop that Caribbean central banks face the herculean task of monitoring, assessing, and mitigating these risks. One of the key tools at their disposal is macroprudential policy, which is still in its initial stage of implementation in most Caribbean economies. However, central banks have made significant improvements in communicating the risks to the public via their Financial Stability Reports (FSR). These FSRs, as you all know, provide a comprehensive assessment of the financial system’s health and highlight any emerging vulnerabilities. However, preparing a comprehensive FSR is a very challenging exercise, especially in the Caribbean context.

    One of the most significant challenges is the lack of comprehensive and timely data. Many countries in the region struggle with collecting and analysing the necessary data to fully assess financial risks. Without high-quality data, it is difficult for central banks to make accurate forecasts or take pre-emptive action. Improving data collection and our analytical capabilities must therefore be a priority for the region, if we are to produce meaningful and effective reports.

    Moreover, we know that preparing a high-quality FSR requires specialised knowledge in areas such as macroprudential policy, risk modelling, and scenario analysis. Given the complexity of financial systems and the fast-paced evolution of risks, Caribbean regulators must therefore invest in training and development, to ensure that they have the expertise required to produce comprehensive reports. 

    In our context, the Financial Stability Report of Barbados has evolved over the years, reflecting the growing complexity of the financial landscape in the country. I’d like to highlight some of the key milestones that have shaped this journey, all of which have been implemented as a result of our partnership with our sister regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and our collaboration with CARTAC (Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre).

    A major accomplishment was the introduction of stress testing in 2016, as this allowed us to simulate how our banking sector would perform under adverse shocks. This tool gave the Bank, as a policymaker and regulator, a clearer understanding of the vulnerabilities that might emerge during a financial crisis, helping us better prepare for potential disruptions. This was a crucial step in ensuring that our banks and financial institutions remain resilient, even in the face of global uncertainties.

    As our financial system grew more diverse, it became essential to extend our focus beyond traditional banks. In 2018, the FSR began to include a detailed analysis of non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) such as insurance companies, pension funds, and credit unions, though our collaboration with the FSC. This was a key milestone because non-bank financial institutions are integral to our economy, and their health is equally as important as that of the banking sector. By broadening the scope of the FSR, we now have a more comprehensive picture of the overall financial system.

    The next significant development occurred four years later in 2020, when we made an important breakthrough in acknowledging the significant risk that climate change poses to our financial system. With the inclusion of climate-related financial risk analysis, the Central Bank aligned Barbados with the global efforts to manage climate-related financial risks, underscoring our commitment to resilience.

    The results of this work, led by Dr. Saida Teleu and her team, were incorporated in Barbados’ 2023 FSR. With the invaluable assistance of the Coastal Zone Management Unit, we’ve implemented a climate stress test, focusing on projecting damage to the accommodation sector, which is deeply intertwined with our tourism industry. This collaboration has allowed us to assess the potential impacts of climate-related risks on financial stability in a more data-driven and precise manner.

    In the most recent FSR, the Bank has also successfully undertaken a significant revamp of its publication, with improvements that underscore our commitment to both innovation and comprehensive risk management. One of the key upgrades has been the introduction of a dynamic balance sheet approach to stress testing. Unlike traditional methods, this approach allows us to incorporate explicit macroeconomic scenarios and extend our stress testing over a longer horizon. This dynamic perspective offers us deeper insights into how our financial system would respond to shocks in a changing economic environment. Additionally, we’ve developed a non-performing loan satellite model, giving us a more accurate assessment of credit risk in our financial system. 

    We also recognised the growing importance of the real estate sector, and so we’ve enhanced our analysis of this sector. Real estate is not only a critical component of household wealth, but also a significant driver of lending and investment activity, making it essential to the stability of our financial system. 

    As the financial landscape changes, so too must our approach to assessing risks. In this regard, the 2023 FSR also incorporated the risks posed by digital financial services, fintech, and cybersecurity and issued a survey to the industry to gather vital data. This addition was particularly important given the rapid rise of cyber-crime and the increasing use of online financial services, and the recent publicised cyber-related breaches at the Barbados Revenue Authority and one of our credit unions give testament to this fact. As a country, we are keen to embrace innovation, but it is equally important that we understand and manage the risks that come with these technological advancements.

    These most recent advancements significantly upgraded our report. Indeed, the Bank’s FSR has now become, in our humble opinion, the regional benchmark for integrating climate change into financial stability assessments. However, we are keen to share our insights with our regional colleagues and we thank CARTAC for sponsoring two peer-to-peer missions, including this one, which serve to further strengthen financial stability efforts throughout the Caribbean. 

    Each of these milestones reflects our Bank’s commitment to ensuring a resilient financial system. From stress testing and climate risk analysis to the inclusion of cyber risks and more robust data analytics, we are continuously improving the tools and strategies we use to safeguard financial stability.

    But our work doesn’t end here. The financial system is always evolving, and we must stay ahead of the curve. By building on these achievements and addressing new challenges, we will continue to protect the financial well-being of Barbados, ensuring that we are resilient in the face of both local and global uncertainties.

    I am honoured to also explore some of the significant milestones achieved by two of our regional counterparts – the Financial Services Commission of Turks and Caicos and the Central Bank of Aruba – in their efforts to enhance their financial stability reporting. 

    Let me begin with Turks and Caicos. Your financial system plays a vital role in your country’s economy, particularly in your banking and offshore sectors. In collaboration with CARTAC, the FSC made great strides in developing its stress testing framework, which is very similar to the one we recently implemented, as a multi-factor and multi-period macroeconomic-stress test that can account for both domestic economic shocks such as a downturn in tourism and external shocks like global financial market volatility. By extending the horizon and refining the scenarios, the FSC is now better equipped to gauge the potential vulnerabilities within its financial system.

    We know that the Central Bank of Aruba does not currently publish a Financial Stability Report. However, the Bank does perform stress tests on its banking sector, the results of which are usually discussed with the banks individually via bilateral meetings. In 2023, the Bank conducted a stress test on the banking sector, with a key focus on concentration risk. This scenario analysis was driven by the developments in the US banking system that took place that year. 

    We will hear directly from these two institutions about their journey to enhance and assess financial stability in their respective jurisdictions. Over the next few days, you will participate in a diverse and robust line-up of sessions that promise to deepen our understanding and sharpen our capabilities. 

    I encourage all of you to actively participate in these discussions, as the true power of peer-to-peer learning lies in the collective wisdom and shared experiences of those in this room. Each of us brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, and together, we have the opportunity to generate innovative solutions that can strengthen the financial stability of our institutions and economies.

    I commend CARTAC, and Petr specifically, for hosting these peer-to-peer exchanges, which provide unique value to our professional growth. While we are all experts in our respective areas, there is tremendous strength in collaboration. This seminar is therefore a perfect opportunity to foster connections, engage in thought-provoking discussions, and together, to drive the innovation and progress that our institutions and economies need to thrive.

    I would like to take a moment to recognise and thank the organising team, especially the Financial Stability Unit led by Saida, who have worked tirelessly to put together this exceptional event, as well as Karen, who has done an excellent job in coordinating this event. Your dedication and efforts are deeply appreciated.

    I would also like to extend a special thank you to our speakers, including those from our sister regulator, the FSC, and our colleagues from the Turks & Caicos and Aruba, who have prepared valuable content for us. We look forward to the knowledge and insights you will bring to the table.

    In closing, I urge each of you to take full advantage of the opportunities this seminar provides. Whether through the formal sessions or during informal conversations during the coffee breaks, I encourage you to use this time to build stronger networks, exchange ideas, and learn from one another. Once again, thank you all for being here. I look forward to the meaningful discussions and practical takeaways that will undoubtedly emerge over the next few days and I wish everyone a productive and successful seminar.

    Thank you.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-Evening Report: NZ’s Labour calls on other cities to follow Israel boycott lead

    Asia Pacific Report

    New Zealand’s opposition Labour Party has backed Christchurch City Council and called for other cities to block business with firms involved in Israel’s illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestine Territories.

    “It is great that Christchurch is the first council in New Zealand to take up this cause. We hope others will follow this example,” Labour’s associate foreign affairs spokesperson Phil Twyford said.

    “Christchurch City’s decision is in line with the recent International Court of Justice ruling on the illegal settlements, which said the international community should not ‘aid or assist’ the settlements.”

    Christchurch is New Zealand’s third-largest city with a population of 408,000. The council vote yesterday was 10 for sanctions, two against and three abstentions.

    Labour has called on the government to direct the Super Fund and the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) to divest from any companies on the United Nations list of companies complicit in building or maintaining the illegal settlements, and use its procurement rules to ban any future dealings with those firms.

    “New Zealanders want to see an end to Israel’s slaughter in Gaza, and a political solution that allows the establishment of a Palestinian state,” Twyford said.

    “Unfortunately, since the Oslo Accords in 1993, Israel has deliberately set out to colonise the Occupied West Bank with settlements housing more than 700,000 Israelis, designed to scuttle any hope of a two-state solution.

    “It is time for the international community to take action against this breach of international law.”

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Video: UK Watch live: House of Lords debates the contribution of special needs schools to education sector

    Source: United Kingdom UK House of Lords (video statements)

    Baroness Monckton of Dallington Forest, chair of Team Domenica, a charity supporting disabled people into work, will put forward the debate.

    Watch live here on YouTube.

    Find out more and see the list of members speaking https://www.parliament.uk/business/news/2024/october/contribution-special-needs-schools-to-the-education-sector-focus-of-lords-debate/

    Catch-up on House of Lords business:

    Watch live events: https://parliamentlive.tv/Lords
    Read the latest news: https://www.parliament.uk/lords/

    Stay up to date with the House of Lords on social media:

    • Twitter: https://twitter.com/UKHouseofLords
    • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/UKHouseofLords/
    • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UKHouseofLords
    • Flickr: https://flickr.com/photos/ukhouseoflords/albums
    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-house-of-lords
    • Threads: https://www.threads.net/@UKHouseOfLords

    #HouseOfLords #UKParliament #StateOpening

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LplCpkxtexQ

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠ Harris Administration Strengthens Standards to Protect Millions from Exposure to Lead Paint Dust, Announces New Actions to Address Toxic Lead  Exposure

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    Today’s announcement is expected to reduce the lead exposure of up to 1.2 million people every year and represents one of over 100 actions taken by the Administration in 2024 to reduce lead poisoning
    President Biden and Vice President Harris have been clear that all Americans deserve to live free from fear of toxic lead exposure. Since Day One, the Biden-Harris Administration has marshalled a whole of government effort to reduce all sources of lead exposure, issuing a comprehensive Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan that guides federal action to achieve a lead-free future.
    Today, as we continue to mark National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, the Biden-Harris Administration is taking action to further reduce lead exposure by issuing a final Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule to strengthen requirements for the removal of lead paint dust in pre-1978 housing and child care facilities.
    Lead is a neurotoxin that can irreversibly harm brain development in children, lower IQ, cause behavioral problems, and lead to life-long health effects. There is no safe level of lead exposure. Yet, due to decades of inequitable infrastructure development and underinvestment, lead poisoning disproportionately affects low-income communities and communities of color.
    Today’s final rule sets new standards for lead abatement activities that will better protect children and communities from the harmful effects of exposure to dust generated from lead paint. The rule will help protect people in communities across the country from these harms, and is expected to reduce the lead exposures of up to nearly 1.2 million people every year, providing public health and economic benefits up to 30 times greater than the costs. Although the United States banned lead-based paint in residences in 1978, an estimated 31 million houses built before 1978 still contain lead-based paint, and 3.8 million are home to one or more child under the age of six, putting them at risk of lead exposure.
    Since the announcement of the Biden-Harris Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan, the Administration has taken hundreds of actions across more than 10 agencies to reduce the risk of lead poisoning in drinking water, paint, soil, food and household products, the workplace, and to combat lead exposure internationally – including more than 100 actions in the past year alone. Some of the actions since the latest Action Plan progress update in November 2023 include:
    Reducing Exposure to Lead from Paint and Dust in the Home – Lead in household dust originates from indoor sources such as deteriorated, lead-based paint on surfaces. In the last year, the Administration has worked diligently to identify, help tackle, and eliminate these exposures in several ways:
    Earlier this month, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced more than $420 million in awards to remove lead hazards from homes, including HUD-assisted homes, ensuring the safety of children, residents, and families. This includes $2 million to remove other housing-related hazards from homes in conjunction with weatherization efforts, and nearly $10 million to facilitate research on better identifying and controlling lead and other housing-related hazards. These awards are part of President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which seeks to ensure that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal climate, clean energy, affordable and sustainable housing, and other investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. 
    In August 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a new final rule updating the Head Start Program Performance Standards. This rule requires Head Start programs to protect children from exposure to lead in water and paint through regular testing and inspection and remediate lead in Head Start facilities where lead exists.
    In 2024, EPA conducted approximately 1,400 compliance monitoring activities for lead-based paint in over 190 communities, more than a third of which were communities with environmental justice concerns. Additionally, EPA’s Federal Facilities Enforcement Office conducted compliance monitoring activities at 18 military installations in 2024. This work protects our service members and their families from exposure to lead-based paint in their homes at military bases.
    Reducing Exposure to Lead from Drinking Water – Millions of buildings still receive their water through a lead pipe. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken historic steps to meet President Biden’s commitment to replace every lead pipe in the country within a decade:
    Earlier this month President Biden traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to announce a final rule that requires drinking water systems nationwide to replace lead service lines within 10 years. This rule will protect children from brain damage, prevent up to 900,000 infants being born with low birth weight, and protect 1,100 adults from premature death from heart disease every year.
    President Biden secured a historic $15 billion in funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law specifically dedicated for replacing lead service lines, and provided an additional $2.6 billion from his Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for drinking water upgrades and lead pipe replacements, along with an additional $11.7 billion in general-purpose funding through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund which can also be used for lead pipe replacement. To date, EPA has announced over $18 billion of this funding across every state. Nearly half of this funding is required to flow to disadvantaged communities, in the form of grants and zero-interest loans.
    Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration’s actions, cities across the country are already making progress in replacing lead pipes. Cities with some of the highest numbers of lead pipes, like Milwaukee, Detroit, Pittsburgh, St. Paul, and Denver, have received funding from the Administration and are now on track to replace all lead pipes within 10 years or less. Under this Administration, over 367,000 lead pipes have been replaced nationwide, benefitting nearly 1 million people.
    Funding from the American Rescue Plan’s $350 billion State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund can be used by states and communities to replace lead service lines and remediate lead paint. To date, well over $20 billion nationwide has been invested in water infrastructure projects.
    During this Administration, the EPA has also used its Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program to provide well over $350 million in financing to communities for lead pipe replacement.
    Since launching in November 2023, EPA’s Get the Lead Out Initiative has provided technical assistance to public water systems nationwide to identify lead pipes and accelerate their replacement. Prioritizing disadvantaged and underserved communities, the initiative is providing assistance to a growing list of public water systems, including in Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois, and facilitates access to funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This initiative builds on the partnership between EPA, the Department of Labor (DOL), and 40 underserved communities to support lead pipe replacement.
    In January 2023, the White House Summit on Accelerating Lead Pipe Replacement hosted by Vice President Harris, announced new actions and progress to deliver clean drinking water, replace lead pipes, and remediate lead paint to protect children and communities across America, including the Biden-Harris Get the Lead Out Partnership comprised of state and local officials, water utilities, labor unions, and other nongovernmental organizations who committed to advance and accelerate lead pipe replacement. This White House Partnership spurred the creation of a the Great Lakes Lead Pipes Partnership, a first-of-its kind, mayor-led effort to accelerate lead pipe replacement in cities with the heaviest lead burdens.
    In August 2024, EPA announced $26 million in grant funding to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities across the country. These grants will be used by 55 States and territories to reduce lead exposure where children learn and play.
    The Department of the Interior conducted more than 330 water system assessments at all Indian Affairs-owned sites, including schools, offices and detention centers, among others. Beyond service lines, assessments collected lead/copper samples to identify lead sources in water distribution systems and where lead levels affected drinking points DOI coordinated immediate remediation strategies and implemented actions including alternative water sourcing and confirmatory sampling.
    Reducing Exposure to Lead from Air – Major sources of lead in the air include emissions from manufacturing, waste and metals processing, and aircraft operating on leaded aviation fuel. To tackle these emissions, the Biden-Harris Administration has taken the following actions:
    In January 2024, EPA released the Integrated Science Assessment for Lead as part of its review of the lead National Ambient Air Quality Standards. This technical document, along with additional technical and policy assessments, will provide the scientific foundation for EPA’s decisions as it regulates air lead exposure.
    In October 2023, EPA issued a final determination that emissions of lead from aircraft engines that operate on leaded fuel cause or contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health and welfare. With this final determination, EPA and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have begun work to consider regulatory options to address lead emissions from aircrafts.
    Reducing Exposure to Lead from Soil – Lead contamination at legacy pollution sites from past industrial operations, like lead mining and smelting, can accumulate in soil and poses a threat to human health and the environment. Reducing lead levels in soils can reduce exposure risks.
    The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests $5 billion to clean up legacy pollution, including lead contamination, at Superfund and Brownfields sites. In Fiscal Year 2024, EPA completed 63 Superfund cleanup projects that addressed lead contamination in soil to protect families and children from the harmful impacts of lead. In addition, lead is the environmental contaminant most commonly reported by EPA Brownfields cleanup grant recipients. In fiscal year 2024, Brownfields grant recipients completed 63 brownfields cleanups that addressed lead contamination.
    In January 2024, after years of research and advanced understanding of the latest science on lead, EPA issued new guidance to improve screenings for lead in residential soils at Superfund and other contaminated sites. This new guidance cuts in half the recommended screening levels issued 30 years ago and takes into account the potential for cumulative impacts by recommending even more stringent levels in areas where there may be additional sources of lead exposure, such as lead in drinking water or lead paint in homes.
    Reducing Exposure to Lead from Food and Household Products – Lead may be present in food when it is in the environment where foods are grown, raised, or processed. To reduce the risk to children of ingesting lead in food, the Administration is working to addressed lead hazards in processed foods.
    In September 2024, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a new study on dietary exposure from lead in infants and young children. This action is part of the agency’s Closer to Zero effort, which sets forth the FDA’s science-based approach to continually reduce exposure to lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury and other contaminants to the lowest levels possible in foods eaten by babies and young children.
    Protecting People from Lead Exposure in the Workplace – Workers can be exposed to lead as a result of the production, use, maintenance, recycling, and disposal of lead material and products. In 2024, the Administration sought to protect workers through a number of actions.
    In April 2024, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) released Trends in Workplace Lead Exposure, monitoring workplace lead exposure trends through the Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and Surveillance program.
    In March 2024, at the direction of President Biden, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that all veterans exposed to toxins and other hazards during military service—including lead—are now eligible for VA health care.
    Accelerating Innovations to Improve Blood Lead Testing – Testing blood is the best way to determine if a person has had lead exposure, as there are often no immediate symptoms when someone is exposed to lead. Based on blood lead test results, healthcare providers can recommend follow-up actions and care.
    In March 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Phase 2 of the Lead Detect Prize on challenge.gov, inviting selected Phase 1 participants to develop their winning concepts into detailed designs. This challenge provides a $1 million prize pool to accelerate the development of next-generation point-of-care blood lead testing technology. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the FDA support the challenge, and it spotlights the urgent need to identify and foster new or existing breakthrough solutions and products for optimal lead testing in children.
    Establishing Domestic Partnerships to Reduce All Lead Exposure – The Administration is engaging stakeholders in a number of ways to reduce community exposure to lead in the United States.
    In July 2024, the President’s Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children published the Progress Report on the Federal Lead Action Plan, a comprehensive update on the government’s progress since 2018 toward reducing childhood lead exposures. HUD, EPA, and HHS, as co-leading members of the Task Force’s Lead Subcommittee, are leading aggressive actions to combat lead exposure. The Federal Lead Action Plan promotes a vision that the United States will become a place where children, especially those in communities with environmental justice concerns, can live, learn and play and remain safe from lead exposure and its harmful effects.
    In June 2024, the CDC published the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention National Classroom program. This program features multiple training methods and outreach strategies, including slide presentations, training videos, webinars, podcasts, and materials posted online to engage a broad range of audiences, including public health professionals, other physicians, general audiences, and high school students, through social media platforms and many other outlets.
    In February 2024, the EPA in collaboration with HUD and CDC/ASTDR published A U.S. Lead Exposures Hotspot Analysis, which identifies states and counties with the highest potential lead exposure risk from old housing sources of lead. This analysis applied science-based methods based on available data, continuing the agencies’ commitment to advancing whole of government efforts to focus lead actions in disproportionately impacted locations.
    EPA continues to establish and lead U.S. whole-of-government partnerships to develop and apply a science-based blueprint to identify communities with high lead exposures and improve their health outcomes in support of EPA’s Lead Strategy and priority activities of the President’s Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children.
    Spearheading an International Effort to Reduce Global Lead Exposure – Amidst historic actions taken domestically to combat lead exposure in the United States, the Administration has built an unprecedented global coalition to tackle lead exposure in low- and middle-income countries, where one in two children has elevated levels of lead in their blood.
    In September 2024, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) joined UNICEF and over 60 partners and 26 countries to launch the Partnership for a Lead-Free Future, the first-ever public-private partnership dedicated to tackling lead exposure in low- and middle-income countries. The Partnership committed $150 million toward this effort—at least 10 times the average estimated annual investment to combat lead exposure internationally over the past five years.
    Earlier this year, USAID, through its Enterprises for Development, Growth, and Empowerment (EDGE) Fund, provided $5 million to the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP) to accelerate the global transition to lead-free paint. Spanning over 30 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Central Asia, and Europe, the LEEP partnership will support governments in introducing lead paint regulations and demonstrate how the private sector can reduce lead exposure, saving lives and protecting communities.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Celebrations mark official opening of new Winchester 3G pitch

    Source: City of Winchester

    The installation of a new community 3G pitch in Winchester has been celebrated at an official opening event.   

    The high-quality pitch, which has replaced the current grass pitch at Hillier Way football ground, is a surface which can be used all year round.

    The Hillier Way ground is the home venue of Winchester City FC, a committee-run members club which has a history dating back to 1884. The club’s first game on the new surface was an FA Cup qualifying game against Weymouth.

    The facility is also used by Winchester City Flyers girls’ and ladies’ teams, and Winchester Youth FC.

    The official opening on 23 October 2024 

    The new pitch has been funded by: a grant from the Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation of £1,132,214; Winchester City Council Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding of £300,000; and £16,000 from Winchester City FC.

    It is also available for wider local community activity sessions and private hire, including use by schools, colleges and other clubs.

    Robert Sullivan, Chief Executive of The Football Foundation, said: “The Football Foundation is working closely with our partners – the Premier League, The FA and Government – to transform the quality of grassroots facilities in England by delivering projects like this across the country. 

    “Good quality playing facilities have a transformative impact on physical and mental health and play an important role in bringing people together and strengthening local communities. 

    “We’re delighted that the local community in Winchester will now be able to enjoy all these benefits thanks to the new 3G pitch at The Hillier Way Football Ground.”

    Winchester City Council’s Cabinet Member for Community and Engagement Cllr Kathleen Becker said: “We’re very pleased to celebrate the official opening of this fantastic new surface which cements existing opportunities for community sport. It opens up exciting new ones too, including increased opportunities for female coaches and players in the district.

    “Already being well used by the local community, we also look forward to seeing this pitch benefit schools and other clubs for sessions, holiday activity and private hire.”

    Winchester City FC Chairman Ken Raisbeck said: “The completion of the stadium development represents a significant moment in the history of the football club but also an opportunity for the community of Winchester.

    “Football is a great vehicle to bring people together as well as encourage health and wellbeing. This facility creates a home for the club and from five-year-olds through to the first team, we now have an asset that can be used by everyone.

    “I am delighted that the council supported the vision and through the football club we were able to bring investment to the city to provide this fantastic facility; it’s an exciting moment in the development of the club and our community partners.” 

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Companies House publishes first strategic intelligence assessment

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Analysis aims to help agency’s understanding of the key threats and guide approach to tackling them  

    Companies House has today published its first ever strategic intelligence assessment as the agency steps up its work to help tackle economic crime. 

    The strategic intelligence assessment gives an in-depth analysis of the key threats Companies House faces. It’ll guide future prioritisation, decision making, risk identification and mitigation.

    The assessment will be followed by a new control strategy, which will outline recommendations and action plans.  

    As part of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, the company registrars for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland now have new and enhanced powers.  

    These include the power to proactively share data with other government departments and law enforcement agencies. 

    In her foreword to the assessment, Companies House chief executive Louise Smyth said: 

    “I am pleased to introduce our first ever strategic intelligence assessment. This marks one of the major steps forward for the changes underway at Companies House.  

    “The assessment forms part of our work to more closely align to the National Intelligence Model and will underpin the work of our new and expanding Intelligence team.  

    “I’d like to thank our strategic partners for their valued insights, which have been used to shape our assessment and are helping us to continue our integration into the wider economic crime ecosystem.”

    Updates to this page

    Published 24 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Southside Bancshares, Inc. Announces Financial Results for the Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    • Third quarter net income of $20.5 million;
    • Third quarter earnings per diluted common share of $0.68;
    • Annualized return on third quarter average assets of 0.98%;
    • Annualized return on third quarter average tangible common equity of 13.69%(1); and
    • Nonperforming assets remain low at 0.09% of total assets. 

    TYLER, Texas, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Southside Bancshares, Inc. (“Southside” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: SBSI) today reported its financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2024. Southside reported net income of $20.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, an increase of $2.1 million, or 11.2%, compared to $18.4 million for the same period in 2023. Earnings per diluted common share increased $0.08, or 13.3%, to $0.68 for the three months ended September 30, 2024, from $0.60 for the same period in 2023. The annualized return on average shareholders’ equity for the three months ended September 30, 2024, was 10.13%, compared to 9.50% for the same period in 2023. The annualized return on average assets was 0.98% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 0.93% for the same period in 2023. 

    “Third quarter financial results were highlighted by a linked quarter $1.86 million increase in net interest income, a linked quarter eight basis point increase in our net interest margin to 2.95%, earnings per share of $0.68, a 13.69% return on average tangible equity(1), and continued strong asset quality,” stated Lee R. Gibson, Chief Executive Officer of Southside. “During the quarter we sold $28 million of lower yielding municipal securities, unwound the related fair value swaps and recorded a loss of $1.9 million. The proceeds were reinvested in higher yielding agency mortgage-backed securities. In addition, we recorded an impairment charge of $868,000 on the sale of approximately $10 million of available for sale (“AFS”) municipal securities and the unwind of the related fair value swaps on October 1.” 

    Operating Results for the Three Months Ended September 30, 2024 

    Net income was $20.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $18.4 million for the same period in 2023, an increase of $2.1 million, or 11.2%. Earnings per diluted common share were $0.68 and $0.60 for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The increase in net income was a result of the increase in net interest income and the decrease in provision for credit losses, partially offset by the decrease in noninterest income and increases in noninterest expense and income tax expense. Annualized returns on average assets and average shareholders’ equity for the three months ended September 30, 2024 were 0.98% and 10.13%, respectively, compared to 0.93% and 9.50%, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2023. Our efficiency ratio and tax-equivalent efficiency ratio(1) were 53.94% and 51.90%, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 54.86% and 52.29%, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2023, and 54.90% and 52.71%, respectively, for the three months ended June 30, 2024. 

    Net interest income for the three months ended September 30, 2024 was $55.5 million, an increase of $2.2 million, or 4.1%, from the same period in 2023. The increase in net interest income was due to the increases in the average balance and the average yield of interest earning assets, partially offset by increases in the average rate paid on our interest bearing liabilities and average balance of our interest bearing liabilities. Linked quarter, net interest income increased $1.9 million, or 3.5%, compared to $53.6 million during the three months ended June 30, 2024, largely due to the increase in the average yield on our interest earning assets and the decrease in the average rate paid on our interest bearing liabilities, partially offset by the decrease in the average balance of interest earning assets. 

    Our net interest margin and tax-equivalent net interest margin(1) decreased to 2.82% and 2.95%, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 2.85% and 3.02%, respectively, for the same period in 2023. Linked quarter, net interest margin and tax-equivalent net interest margin(1) increased from 2.74% and 2.87%, respectively for the three months ended June 30, 2024. 

    Noninterest income was $8.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, a decrease of $2.7 million, or 24.6%, compared to $10.8 million for the same period in 2023. The decrease was due to a net loss on sale of securities AFS and decreases in other noninterest income and deposit services income, partially offset by an increase in brokerage services income. On a linked quarter basis, noninterest income decreased $3.4 million, or 29.3%, compared to the three months ended June 30, 2024. The decrease was primarily due to an increase in net loss on sale of securities AFS and decreases in other noninterest income and bank owned life insurance income related to a $1.0 million death benefit realized in the second quarter of 2024. The decrease in other noninterest income for both periods was primarily due to an impairment charge of $868,000 on the sale of approximately $10 million of AFS municipal securities and the unwind of the related fair value swaps on October 1. 

    Noninterest expense increased $0.8 million, or 2.2%, to $36.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $35.6 million for the same period in 2023, due to increases in salaries and employee benefits and software and data processing expense, partially offset by decreases in advertising, travel and entertainment expense, professional fees, net occupancy expense and amortization of intangibles. On a linked quarter basis, noninterest expense increased by $0.6 million, or 1.6%, compared to the three months ended June 30, 2024, due to increases in other noninterest expense, salaries and employee benefits expense and professional fees. 

    Income tax expense increased $1.3 million, or 40.7%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in 2023. On a linked quarter basis, income tax expense decreased $0.8 million, or 15.8%. Our effective tax rate (“ETR”) increased to 17.6% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 14.5% for the three months ended September 30, 2023, and increased slightly from 17.4% for the three months ended June 30, 2024. The higher ETR for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, was primarily due to a decrease in tax-exempt income as a percentage of pre-tax income. 

    Operating Results for the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2024 

    Net income was $66.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $69.4 million for the same period in 2023, a decrease of $2.7 million, or 3.8%. Earnings per diluted common share were $2.20 for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $2.24 for the same period in 2023, a decrease of 1.8%. The decrease in net income was primarily a result of the decrease in noninterest income and increases in noninterest expense and income tax expense, partially offset by the decrease in provision for credit losses and the increase in net interest income. Returns on average assets and average shareholders’ equity for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 were 1.06% and 11.19%, respectively, compared to 1.20% and 12.21%, respectively, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. Our efficiency ratio and tax-equivalent efficiency ratio(1) were 55.56% and 53.35%, respectively, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 53.99% and 51.44%, respectively, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. 

    Net interest income was $162.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $160.5 million for the same period in 2023, an increase of $1.9 million, or 1.2%, due to increases in the average balance and the average yield of interest earning assets, partially offset by increases in the average rate paid on our interest bearing liabilities and average balance of our interest bearing liabilities. 

    Our net interest margin and tax-equivalent net interest margin(1) were 2.76% and 2.90%, respectively, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 2.95% and 3.13%, respectively, for the same period in 2023. 

    Noninterest income was $29.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, a decrease of $3.9 million, or 11.6%, compared to $33.3 million for the same period in 2023. The decrease was due to decreases in the net gain on sale of equity securities, other noninterest income and deposit services income and a loss on sale of loans, partially offset by a decrease in net loss on sale of securities AFS and an increase in brokerage services income. The decrease in other noninterest income was primarily due to an impairment charge of $868,000 on the sale of approximately $10 million of AFS municipal securities and the unwind of the related fair value swaps on October 1. 

    Noninterest expense was $109.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $105.4 million for the same period in 2023, an increase of $3.6 million, or 3.4%. The increase was primarily due to increases in salaries and employee benefits and software and data processing expense, partially offset by decreases in professional fees, net occupancy expense, advertising, travel and entertainment expense, and amortization of intangibles. 

    Income tax expense increased $2.0 million, or 16.3%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in 2023. Our ETR was approximately 17.6% and 15.0% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The higher ETR for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to the same period in 2023, was primarily due to a decrease in tax-exempt income as a percentage of pre-tax income. 

    Balance Sheet Data 

    At September 30, 2024, Southside had $8.36 billion in total assets, compared to $8.28 billion at December 31, 2023 and $7.97 billion at September 30, 2023. 

    Loans at September 30, 2024 were $4.58 billion, an increase of $157.4 million, or 3.6%, compared to $4.42 billion at September 30, 2023. Linked quarter, loans decreased $11.3 million, or 0.2%, due to decreases of $50.2 million in commercial real estate loans, $14.9 million in municipal loans, $2.4 million in loans to individuals and $1.0 million in commercial loans. These decreases were partially offset by increases of $39.8 million in construction loans and $17.4 million in 1-4 family residential loans. 

    Securities at September 30, 2024 were $2.70 billion, an increase of $53.4 million, or 2.0%, compared to $2.64 billion at September 30, 2023. Linked quarter, securities decreased $15.1 million, or 0.6%, from $2.71 billion at June 30, 2024. 

    Deposits at September 30, 2024 were $6.44 billion, an increase of $86.1 million, or 1.4%, compared to $6.35 billion at September 30, 2023. Linked quarter, deposits decreased $60.2 million, or 0.9%, from $6.50 billion at June 30, 2024. 

    At September 30, 2024, we had 179,214 total deposit accounts with an average balance of $32,000. Our estimated uninsured deposits were 35.9% as of September 30, 2024. When excluding affiliate deposits (Southside-owned deposits) and public fund deposits (all collateralized), our total estimated deposits without insurance or collateral was 19.2% as of September 30, 2024. Our noninterest bearing deposits represent approximately 21.4% of total deposits. Linked quarter, our cost of interest bearing deposits remained consistent at 3.01%. Linked quarter, our cost of total deposits decreased one basis point from 2.39% in the prior quarter to 2.38%. 

    Our cost of interest bearing deposits increased 83 basis points, from 2.16% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, to 2.99% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024. Our cost of total deposits increased 75 basis points, from 1.62% for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, to 2.37% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024. 

    Capital Resources and Liquidity 

    Our capital ratios and contingent liquidity sources remain solid. During the third quarter ended September 30, 2024, we did not purchase any common stock pursuant to our Stock Repurchase Plan. Under this plan, repurchases of our outstanding common stock may be carried out in open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or pursuant to any trading plan that might be adopted in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Company has no obligation to repurchase any shares under the Stock Repurchase Plan and may modify, suspend or discontinue the plan at any time. We have not purchased any common stock pursuant to the Stock Repurchase Plan subsequent to September 30, 2024. 

    As of September 30, 2024, our total available contingent liquidity, net of current outstanding borrowings, was $2.23 billion, consisting of FHLB advances, Federal Reserve Discount Window and correspondent bank lines of credit. 

    Asset Quality 

    Nonperforming assets at September 30, 2024 were $7.7 million, or 0.09% of total assets, an increase of $3.3 million, or 74.8%, compared to $4.4 million, or 0.05% of total assets, at September 30, 2023. Linked quarter, nonperforming assets increased $0.7 million, or 10.7%, from $6.9 million at June 30, 2024 due primarily to an increase of $1.1 million, or 18.7%, in nonaccrual loans, partially offset by decreases of $0.1 million in restructured loans and $0.3 million in other real estate owned. 

    The allowance for loan losses totaled $44.3 million, or 0.97% of total loans, at September 30, 2024, compared to $42.4 million, or 0.92% of total loans, at June 30, 2024. The increase in the allowance as a percentage of total assets was primarily due to the increased economic concerns forecasted in the CECL model specific to office and multifamily markets in metro areas. The allowance for loan losses was $41.8 million, or 0.94% of total loans, at September 30, 2023. 

    For the three months ended September 30, 2024, we recorded a provision for credit losses for loans of $2.3 million, compared to a provision of $6.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, and a reversal of provision of $0.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024. Net charge-offs were $0.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to net charge-offs of $0.9 million and $0.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and June 30, 2024, respectively. Net charge-offs were $1.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to net charge-offs of $1.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. 

    We recorded a provision for credit losses on off-balance-sheet credit exposures of $0.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $0.6 million and $0.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and June 30, 2024, respectively. We recorded a reversal of provision for credit losses for off-balance-sheet credit exposures of $0.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to a provision for credit losses on off-balance-sheet credit exposures of $0.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The balance of the allowance for off-balance-sheet credit exposures was $3.3 million and $3.9 million at September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and is included in other liabilities. 

    Dividend 

    Southside Bancshares, Inc. declared a third quarter cash dividend of $0.36 per share on August 8, 2024, which was paid on September 5, 2024, to all shareholders of record as of August 22, 2024. 

    _______________ 

    (1) Refer to “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below and to “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” at the end of the financial statement tables in this Earnings Release for more information and for a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest GAAP financial measure. 

    Conference Call 

    Southside’s management team will host a conference call to discuss its third quarter ended September 30, 2024 financial results on Thursday, October 24, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. CDT. The conference call can be accessed by webcast, for listen-only mode, on the company website, https://investors.southside.com, under Events. 

    Those interested in participating in the question and answer session, or others who prefer to call-in, can register at https://register.vevent.com/register/BIe280e5ecbf444a68a5836f1e27caa8a9 to receive the dial-in number and unique code to access the conference call seamlessly. While not required, it is recommended that those wishing to participate, register 10 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure a more efficient registration process. 

    For those unable to attend the live event, a webcast recording will be available on the company website, https://investors.southside.com, for at least 30 days, beginning approximately two hours following the conference call. 

    Non-GAAP Financial Measures 

    Our accounting and reporting policies conform to generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in the United States and prevailing practices in the banking industry. However, certain non-GAAP measures are used by management to supplement the evaluation of our performance. These include the following fully taxable-equivalent measures (“FTE”): (i) Net interest income (FTE), (ii) net interest margin (FTE), (iii) net interest spread (FTE), and (iv) efficiency ratio (FTE), which include the effects of taxable-equivalent adjustments using a federal income tax rate of 21% to increase tax-exempt interest income to a tax-equivalent basis. Interest income earned on certain assets is completely or partially exempt from federal income tax. As such, these tax-exempt instruments typically yield lower returns than taxable investments. 

    Net interest income (FTE), net interest margin (FTE) and net interest spread (FTE). Net interest income (FTE) is a non-GAAP measure that adjusts for the tax-favored status of net interest income from certain loans and investments and is not permitted under GAAP in the consolidated statements of income. We believe this measure to be the preferred industry measurement of net interest income and that it enhances comparability of net interest income arising from taxable and tax-exempt sources. The most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP is our net interest income. Net interest margin (FTE) is the ratio of net interest income (FTE) to average earning assets. The most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP is our net interest margin. Net interest spread (FTE) is the difference in the average yield on average earning assets on a tax-equivalent basis and the average rate paid on average interest bearing liabilities. The most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP is our net interest spread. 

    Efficiency ratio (FTE). The efficiency ratio (FTE) is a non-GAAP measure that provides a measure of productivity in the banking industry. This ratio is calculated to measure the cost of generating one dollar of revenue. The ratio is designed to reflect the percentage of one dollar which must be expended to generate that dollar of revenue. We calculate this ratio by dividing noninterest expense, excluding amortization expense on intangibles and certain nonrecurring expense by the sum of net interest income (FTE) and noninterest income, excluding net gain (loss) on sale of securities available for sale and certain nonrecurring impairments. The most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP is our efficiency ratio. 

    These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered alternatives to GAAP-basis financial statements and other bank holding companies may define or calculate these non-GAAP measures or similar measures differently. Whenever we present a non-GAAP financial measure in an SEC filing, we are also required to present the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP and reconcile the differences between the non-GAAP financial measure and such comparable GAAP measure. 

    Management believes adjusting net interest income, net interest margin and net interest spread to a fully taxable-equivalent basis is a standard practice in the banking industry as these measures provide useful information to make peer comparisons. Tax-equivalent adjustments are reflected in the respective earning asset categories as listed in the “Average Balances with Average Yields and Rates” tables. 

    A reconciliation of our non-GAAP financial measures to the comparable GAAP financial measures is included at the end of the financial statement tables. 

    About Southside Bancshares, Inc. 

    Southside Bancshares, Inc. is a bank holding company with approximately $8.36 billion in assets as of September 30, 2024, that owns 100% of Southside Bank. Southside Bank currently has 54 branches in Texas and operates a network of 73 ATMs/ITMs. 

    To learn more about Southside Bancshares, Inc., please visit our investor relations website at https://investors.southside.com. Our investor relations site provides a detailed overview of our activities, financial information and historical stock price data. To receive email notification of company news, events and stock activity, please register on the website under Resources and Investor Email Alerts. Questions or comments may be directed to Lindsey Bailes at (903) 630-7965, or lindsey.bailes@southside.com. 

    Forward-Looking Statements 

    Certain statements of other than historical fact that are contained in this press release and in other written materials, documents and oral statements issued by or on behalf of the Company may be considered to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of and subject to the safe harbor protections of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, nor should they be relied upon as representing management’s views as of any subsequent date. These statements may include words such as “expect,” “estimate,” “project,” “anticipate,” “appear,” “believe,” “could,” “should,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “would,” “seek,” “intend,” “probability,” “risk,” “goal,” “target,” “objective,” “plans,” “potential,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are statements with respect to the Company’s beliefs, plans, expectations, objectives, goals, anticipations, assumptions, estimates, intentions and future performance and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. For example, benefits of the Share Repurchase Plan, trends in asset quality, capital, liquidity, the Company’s ability to sell nonperforming assets, expense reductions, planned operational efficiencies and earnings from growth and certain market risk disclosures, including the impact of interest rates and our expectations regarding rate increases, tax reform, inflation, the impacts related to or resulting from other economic factors are based upon information presently available to management and are dependent on choices about key model characteristics and assumptions and are subject to various limitations. By their nature, certain of the market risk disclosures are only estimates and could be materially different from what actually occurs in the future. Accordingly, our results could materially differ from those that have been estimated. The most significant factor that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated by our forward-looking statements include the ongoing impact of higher inflation levels, interest rate fluctuations and general economic and recessionary concerns, all of which could impact economic growth and could cause a reduction in financial transactions and business activities, including decreased deposits and reduced loan originations, our ability to manage liquidity in a rapidly changing and unpredictable market, labor shortages and changes in interest rates by the Federal Reserve. 

    Additional information concerning the Company and its business, including additional factors that could materially affect the Company’s financial results, is included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, under “Part I – Item 1. Forward Looking Information” and “Part I – Item 1A. Risk Factors” and in the Company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company disclaims any obligation to update any factors or to announce publicly the result of revisions to any of the forward-looking statements included herein to reflect future events or developments. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Summary (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      As of
        2024       2023  
      Sep 30,   Jun 30,   Mar 31,   Dec 31,   Sep 30,
    ASSETS                  
    Cash and due from banks $ 130,147     $ 114,283     $ 96,744     $ 122,021     $ 105,601  
    Interest earning deposits   333,825       272,469       307,257       391,719       106,094  
    Federal funds sold   22,325       65,244       65,372       46,770       114,128  
    Securities available for sale, at estimated fair value   1,408,437       1,405,944       1,405,221       1,296,294       1,335,560  
    Securities held to maturity, at net carrying value   1,288,403       1,305,975       1,306,898       1,307,053       1,307,886  
    Total securities   2,696,840       2,711,919       2,712,119       2,603,347       2,643,446  
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost   40,291       32,991       27,958       11,936       12,778  
    Loans held for sale   768       1,352       756       10,894       1,382  
    Loans   4,578,048       4,589,365       4,577,368       4,524,510       4,420,633  
    Less: Allowance for loan losses   (44,276 )     (42,407 )     (43,557 )     (42,674 )     (41,760 )
    Net loans   4,533,772       4,546,958       4,533,811       4,481,836       4,378,873  
    Premises & equipment, net   138,811       138,489       139,491       138,950       139,473  
    Goodwill   201,116       201,116       201,116       201,116       201,116  
    Other intangible assets, net   2,003       2,281       2,588       2,925       3,295  
    Bank owned life insurance   137,489       136,903       136,604       136,330       135,737  
    Other assets   124,876       133,697       130,047       137,070       130,545  
    Total assets $ 8,362,263     $ 8,357,702     $ 8,353,863     $ 8,284,914     $ 7,972,468  
                       
    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY                  
    Noninterest bearing deposits $ 1,377,022     $ 1,366,924     $ 1,358,827     $ 1,390,407     $ 1,431,285  
    Interest bearing deposits   5,058,680       5,129,008       5,186,933       5,159,274       4,918,286  
    Total deposits   6,435,702       6,495,932       6,545,760       6,549,681       6,349,571  
    Other borrowings and Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings   865,856       763,700       770,151       722,468       608,038  
    Subordinated notes, net of unamortized debt
    issuance costs    		   92,006       91,970       93,913       93,877       93,838  
    Trust preferred subordinated debentures, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   60,273       60,272       60,271       60,270       60,269  
    Other liabilities   103,172       144,858       95,846       85,330       132,157  
    Total liabilities   7,557,009       7,556,732       7,565,941       7,511,626       7,243,873  
    Shareholders’ equity   805,254       800,970       787,922       773,288       728,595  
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 8,362,263     $ 8,357,702     $ 8,353,863     $ 8,284,914     $ 7,972,468  
     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars and shares in thousands, except per share data)
     
      Three Months Ended
        2024       2023  
      Sep 30,   Jun 30,   Mar 31,   Dec 31,   Sep 30,
    Income Statement:                  
    Total interest income $ 105,703     $ 104,186     $ 102,758     $ 98,939     $ 93,078  
    Total interest expense   50,239       50,578       49,410       44,454       39,805  
    Net interest income   55,464       53,608       53,348       54,485       53,273  
    Provision for (reversal of) credit losses   2,389       (485 )     58       2,281       6,987  
    Net interest income after provision for (reversal of) credit losses   53,075       54,093       53,290       52,204       46,286  
    Noninterest income                  
    Deposit services   6,199       6,157       5,985       6,305       6,479  
    Net gain (loss) on sale of securities available for sale   (1,929 )     (563 )     (18 )     (10,386 )     11  
    Gain (loss) on sale of loans   115       220       (436 )     178       96  
    Trust fees   1,628       1,456       1,336       1,431       1,522  
    Bank owned life insurance   857       1,767       784       2,602       790  
    Brokerage services   1,068       1,081       1,014       944       760  
    Other   233       1,439       1,059       1,427       1,178  
    Total noninterest income   8,171       11,557       9,724       2,501       10,836  
    Noninterest expense                  
    Salaries and employee benefits   22,233       21,984       23,113       21,152       21,241  
    Net occupancy   3,613       3,750       3,362       3,474       3,796  
    Advertising, travel & entertainment   734       795       950       1,127       1,062  
    ATM expense   412       368       325       318       358  
    Professional fees   1,206       1,075       1,154       1,315       1,472  
    Software and data processing   2,951       2,860       2,856       2,644       2,432  
    Communications   423       410       449       435       359  
    FDIC insurance   939       977       943       892       902  
    Amortization of intangibles   278       307       337       370       407  
    Other   3,543       3,239       3,392       3,456       3,524  
    Total noninterest expense   36,332       35,765       36,881       35,183       35,553  
    Income before income tax expense   24,914       29,885       26,133       19,522       21,569  
    Income tax expense   4,390       5,212       4,622       2,206       3,120  
    Net income $ 20,524     $ 24,673     $ 21,511     $ 17,316     $ 18,449  
                       
    Common Share Data:      
    Weighted-average basic shares outstanding   30,286       30,280       30,262       30,235       30,502  
    Weighted-average diluted shares outstanding   30,370       30,312       30,305       30,276       30,543  
    Common shares outstanding end of period   30,308       30,261       30,284       30,249       30,338  
    Earnings per common share                  
    Basic $ 0.68     $ 0.81     $ 0.71     $ 0.57     $ 0.60  
    Diluted   0.68       0.81       0.71       0.57       0.60  
    Book value per common share   26.57       26.47       26.02       25.56       24.02  
    Tangible book value per common share   19.87       19.75       19.29       18.82       17.28  
    Cash dividends paid per common share   0.36       0.36       0.36       0.37       0.35  
                       
    Selected Performance Ratios:                  
    Return on average assets   0.98 %     1.19 %     1.03 %     0.85 %     0.93 %
    Return on average shareholders’ equity   10.13       12.46       11.02       9.31       9.50  
    Return on average tangible common equity (1)   13.69       16.90       15.07       13.10       13.17  
    Average yield on earning assets (FTE) (1)   5.51       5.45       5.38       5.30       5.15  
    Average rate on interest bearing liabilities   3.28       3.32       3.22       3.04       2.84  
    Net interest margin (FTE) (1)   2.95       2.87       2.86       2.99       3.02  
    Net interest spread (FTE) (1)   2.23       2.13       2.16       2.26       2.31  
    Average earning assets to average interest bearing liabilities   128.51       128.62       127.71       131.65       133.24  
    Noninterest expense to average total assets   1.73       1.72       1.77       1.73       1.79  
    Efficiency ratio (FTE) (1)   51.90       52.71       55.54       50.86       52.29  

    (1)  Refer to “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” at the end of the financial statement tables in this Earnings Release for a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest GAAP financial measure. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Three Months Ended
        2024       2023  
      Sep 30,   Jun 30,   Mar 31,   Dec 31,   Sep 30,
    Nonperforming Assets: $ 7,656     $ 6,918     $ 7,979     $ 4,001     $ 4,381  
    Nonaccrual loans   7,254       6,110       7,709       3,889       4,316  
    Accruing loans past due more than 90 days   —       —       —       —       —  
    Restructured loans   —       145       151       13       15  
    Other real estate owned   388       648       119       99       50  
    Repossessed assets   14       15       —       —       —  
                       
    Asset Quality Ratios:                  
    Ratio of nonaccruing loans to:                  
    Total loans   0.16 %     0.13 %     0.17 %     0.09 %     0.10 %
    Ratio of nonperforming assets to:                  
    Total assets   0.09       0.08       0.10       0.05       0.05  
    Total loans   0.17       0.15       0.17       0.09       0.10  
    Total loans and OREO   0.17       0.15       0.17       0.09       0.10  
    Ratio of allowance for loan losses to:                  
    Nonaccruing loans   610.37       694.06       565.01       1,097.30       967.56  
    Nonperforming assets   578.32       613.00       545.90       1,066.58       953.21  
    Total loans   0.97       0.92       0.95       0.94       0.94  
    Net charge-offs (recoveries) to average loans outstanding   0.04       0.02       0.03       0.11       0.08  
                       
    Capital Ratios:                  
    Shareholders’ equity to total assets   9.63       9.58       9.43       9.33       9.14  
    Common equity tier 1 capital   13.07       12.72       12.43       12.28       12.27  
    Tier 1 risk-based capital   14.12       13.76       13.47       13.32       13.31  
    Total risk-based capital   16.59       16.16       15.92       15.73       15.71  
    Tier 1 leverage capital   9.61       9.40       9.22       9.39       9.61  
    Period end tangible equity to period end tangible assets (1)   7.38       7.33       7.17       7.04       6.75  
    Average shareholders’ equity to average total assets   9.67       9.52       9.35       9.13       9.76  

    (1)  Refer to the “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” at the end of the financial statement tables in this Earnings Release for a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest GAAP financial measure. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Three Months Ended
        2024       2023  
    Loan Portfolio Composition Sep 30,   Jun 30,   Mar 31,   Dec 31,   Sep 30,
    Real Estate Loans:                  
    Construction $ 585,817     $ 546,040     $ 599,464     $ 789,744     $ 720,515  
    1-4 Family Residential   755,406       738,037       720,508       696,738       689,492  
    Commercial   2,422,612       2,472,771       2,413,345       2,168,451       2,117,306  
    Commercial Loans   358,854       359,807       358,053       366,893       385,816  
    Municipal Loans   402,041       416,986       427,225       441,168       441,512  
    Loans to Individuals   53,318       55,724       58,773       61,516       65,992  
    Total Loans $ 4,578,048     $ 4,589,365     $ 4,577,368     $ 4,524,510     $ 4,420,633  
                       
    Summary of Changes in Allowances:                  
    Allowance for Loan Losses                  
    Balance at beginning of period $ 42,407     $ 43,557     $ 42,674     $ 41,760     $ 36,303  
    Loans charged-off   (773 )     (721 )     (634 )     (1,572 )     (1,262 )
    Recoveries of loans charged-off   365       444       347       284       378  
    Net loans (charged-off) recovered   (408 )     (277 )     (287 )     (1,288 )     (884 )
    Provision for (reversal of) loan losses   2,277       (873 )     1,170       2,202       6,341  
    Balance at end of period $ 44,276     $ 42,407     $ 43,557     $ 42,674     $ 41,760  
                       
    Allowance for Off-Balance-Sheet Credit Exposures                  
    Balance at beginning of period $ 3,208     $ 2,820     $ 3,932     $ 3,853     $ 3,207  
    Provision for (reversal of) off-balance-sheet credit exposures   112       388       (1,112 )     79       646  
    Balance at end of period $ 3,320     $ 3,208     $ 2,820     $ 3,932     $ 3,853  
    Total Allowance for Credit Losses $ 47,596     $ 45,615     $ 46,377     $ 46,606     $ 45,613  
     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Nine Months Ended
      September 30,
        2024       2023  
    Income Statement:      
    Total interest income $ 312,647     $ 260,802  
    Total interest expense   150,227       100,260  
    Net interest income   162,420       160,542  
    Provision for (reversal of) credit losses   1,962       6,873  
    Net interest income after provision for (reversal of) credit losses   160,458       153,669  
    Noninterest income      
    Deposit services   18,341       19,192  
    Net gain (loss) on sale of securities available for sale   (2,510 )     (5,590 )
    Net gain on sale of equity securities   —       5,058  
    Gain (loss) on sale of loans   (101 )     385  
    Trust fees   4,420       4,479  
    Bank owned life insurance   3,408       3,221  
    Brokerage services   3,163       2,361  
    Other   2,731       4,227  
    Total noninterest income   29,452       33,333  
    Noninterest expense      
    Salaries and employee benefits   67,330       64,473  
    Net occupancy   10,725       11,220  
    Advertising, travel & entertainment   2,479       2,966  
    ATM expense   1,105       1,033  
    Professional fees   3,435       4,036  
    Software and data processing   8,667       6,751  
    Communications   1,282       1,034  
    FDIC insurance   2,859       2,666  
    Amortization of intangibles   922       1,327  
    Other   10,174       9,889  
    Total noninterest expense   108,978       105,395  
    Income before income tax expense   80,932       81,607  
    Income tax expense   14,224       12,231  
    Net income $ 66,708     $ 69,376  
    Common Share Data:      
    Weighted-average basic shares outstanding   30,276       30,862  
    Weighted-average diluted shares outstanding   30,332       30,916  
    Common shares outstanding end of period   30,308       30,338  
    Earnings per common share      
    Basic $ 2.20     $ 2.25  
    Diluted   2.20       2.24  
    Book value per common share   26.57       24.02  
    Tangible book value per common share   19.87       17.28  
    Cash dividends paid per common share   1.08       1.05  
           
    Selected Performance Ratios:      
    Return on average assets   1.06 %     1.20 %
    Return on average shareholders’ equity   11.19       12.21  
    Return on average tangible common equity (1)   15.20       16.98  
    Average yield on earning assets (FTE) (1)   5.45       4.97  
    Average rate on interest bearing liabilities   3.27       2.49  
    Net interest margin (FTE) (1)   2.90       3.13  
    Net interest spread (FTE) (1)   2.18       2.48  
    Average earning assets to average interest bearing liabilities   128.28       134.94  
    Noninterest expense to average total assets   1.74       1.84  
    Efficiency ratio (FTE) (1)   53.35       51.44  

    (1)  Refer to the “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” at the end of the financial statement tables in this Earnings Release for a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest GAAP financial measure. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Nine Months Ended
      September 30,
        2024       2023  
    Nonperforming Assets: $ 7,656     $ 4,381  
    Nonaccrual loans   7,254       4,316  
    Accruing loans past due more than 90 days   —       —  
    Restructured loans   —       15  
    Other real estate owned   388       50  
    Repossessed assets   14       —  
           
    Asset Quality Ratios:      
    Ratio of nonaccruing loans to:      
    Total loans   0.16 %     0.10 %
    Ratio of nonperforming assets to:      
    Total assets   0.09       0.05  
    Total loans   0.17       0.10  
    Total loans and OREO   0.17       0.10  
    Ratio of allowance for loan losses to:      
    Nonaccruing loans   610.37       967.56  
    Nonperforming assets   578.32       953.21  
    Total loans   0.97       0.94  
    Net charge-offs (recoveries) to average loans outstanding   0.03       0.05  
           
    Capital Ratios:      
    Shareholders’ equity to total assets   9.63       9.14  
    Common equity tier 1 capital   13.07       12.27  
    Tier 1 risk-based capital   14.12       13.31  
    Total risk-based capital   16.59       15.71  
    Tier 1 leverage capital   9.61       9.61  
    Period end tangible equity to period end tangible assets (1)   7.38       6.75  
    Average shareholders’ equity to average total assets   9.51       9.81  

    (1) Refer to the “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” at the end of the financial statement tables in this Earnings Release for a reconciliation of this non-GAAP financial measure to the nearest GAAP financial measure. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Consolidated Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Nine Months Ended
      September 30,
    Loan Portfolio Composition   2024       2023  
    Real Estate Loans:      
    Construction $ 585,817     $ 720,515  
    1-4 Family Residential   755,406       689,492  
    Commercial   2,422,612       2,117,306  
    Commercial Loans   358,854       385,816  
    Municipal Loans   402,041       441,512  
    Loans to Individuals   53,318       65,992  
    Total Loans $ 4,578,048     $ 4,420,633  
           
    Summary of Changes in Allowances:      
    Allowance for Loan Losses      
    Balance at beginning of period $ 42,674     $ 36,515  
    Loans charged-off   (2,128 )     (2,632 )
    Recoveries of loans charged-off   1,156       1,170  
    Net loans (charged-off) recovered   (972 )     (1,462 )
    Provision for (reversal of) loan losses   2,574       6,707  
    Balance at end of period $ 44,276     $ 41,760  
           
    Allowance for Off-Balance-Sheet Credit Exposures      
    Balance at beginning of period $ 3,932     $ 3,687  
    Provision for (reversal of) off-balance-sheet credit exposures   (612 )     166  
    Balance at end of period $ 3,320     $ 3,853  
    Total Allowance for Credit Losses $ 47,596     $ 45,613  

    The tables that follow show average earning assets and interest bearing liabilities together with the average yield on the earning assets and the average rate of the interest bearing liabilities for the periods presented. The interest and related yields presented are on a fully taxable-equivalent basis and are therefore non-GAAP measures. See “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Non-GAAP Reconciliation” for more information.  

    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Average Balances and Average Yields and Rates (Annualized) (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Three Months Ended
      September 30, 2024   June 30, 2024
      Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate   Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate
    ASSETS                      
    Loans (1) $ 4,613,028     $ 72,493   6.25 %   $ 4,595,980     $ 70,293   6.15 %
    Loans held for sale   871       11   5.02 %     1,489       24   6.48 %
    Securities:                      
    Taxable investment securities (2)   791,914       7,150   3.59 %     783,856       7,009   3.60 %
    Tax-exempt investment securities (2)   1,174,445       11,825   4.01 %     1,254,097       12,761   4.09 %
    Mortgage-backed and related securities (2)   886,325       11,976   5.38 %     830,504       11,084   5.37 %
    Total securities   2,852,684       30,951   4.32 %     2,868,457       30,854   4.33 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost, and equity investments   41,159       582   5.63 %     40,467       573   5.69 %
    Interest earning deposits   281,313       3,798   5.37 %     300,047       4,105   5.50 %
    Federal funds sold   33,971       488   5.71 %     75,479       1,021   5.44 %
    Total earning assets   7,823,026       108,323   5.51 %     7,881,919       106,870   5.45 %
    Cash and due from banks   100,578               110,102          
    Accrued interest and other assets   455,091               424,323          
    Less: Allowance for loan losses   (42,581 )             (43,738 )        
    Total assets $ 8,336,114             $ 8,372,606          
    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY                      
    Savings accounts $ 598,116       1,490   0.99 %   $ 604,753       1,454   0.97 %
    Certificates of deposit   1,087,613       12,647   4.63 %     1,020,099       11,630   4.59 %
    Interest bearing demand accounts   3,409,911       24,395   2.85 %     3,513,068       25,382   2.91 %
    Total interest bearing deposits   5,095,640       38,532   3.01 %     5,137,920       38,466   3.01 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings   618,708       6,488   4.17 %     606,851       6,455   4.28 %
    Subordinated notes, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   91,988       937   4.05 %     92,017       936   4.09 %
    Trust preferred subordinated debentures, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   60,273       1,180   7.79 %     60,271       1,171   7.81 %
    Repurchase agreements   83,297       899   4.29 %     88,007       955   4.36 %
    Other borrowings   137,482       2,203   6.37 %     143,169       2,595   7.29 %
    Total interest bearing liabilities   6,087,388       50,239   3.28 %     6,128,235       50,578   3.32 %
    Noninterest bearing deposits   1,344,165               1,346,274          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   98,331               101,399          
    Total liabilities   7,529,884               7,575,908          
    Shareholders’ equity   806,230               796,698          
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 8,336,114             $ 8,372,606          
    Net interest income (FTE)     $ 58,084           $ 56,292    
    Net interest margin (FTE)         2.95 %           2.87 %
    Net interest spread (FTE)         2.23 %           2.13 %

    (1)  Interest on loans includes net fees on loans that are not material in amount.
    (2)  For the purpose of calculating the average yield, the average balance of securities is presented at historical cost. 

    Note: As of September 30, 2024 and June 30, 2024, loans totaling $7.3 million and $6.1 million, respectively, were on nonaccrual status. Our policy is to reverse previously accrued but unpaid interest on nonaccrual loans; thereafter, interest income is recorded to the extent received when appropriate. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Average Balances and Average Yields and Rates (Annualized) (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Three Months Ended
      March 31, 2024   December 31, 2023
      Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate   Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate
    ASSETS                      
    Loans (1) $ 4,559,602     $ 68,849   6.07 %   $ 4,473,618     $ 67,886   6.02 %
    Loans held for sale   8,834       18   0.82 %     1,858       27   5.77 %
    Securities:                      
    Taxable investment securities (2)   780,423       6,967   3.59 %     852,023       7,970   3.71 %
    Tax-exempt investment securities (2)   1,285,922       13,168   4.12 %     1,456,187       15,688   4.27 %
    Mortgage-backed and related securities (2)   764,713       10,119   5.32 %     581,548       6,865   4.68 %
    Total securities   2,831,058       30,254   4.30 %     2,889,758       30,523   4.19 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost, and equity investments   40,063       333   3.34 %     24,674       296   4.76 %
    Interest earning deposits   380,181       5,202   5.50 %     150,763       2,054   5.41 %
    Federal funds sold   62,599       838   5.38 %     93,149       1,286   5.48 %
    Total earning assets   7,882,337       105,494   5.38 %     7,633,820       102,072   5.30 %
    Cash and due from banks   114,379               110,380          
    Accrued interest and other assets   441,783               374,120          
    Less: Allowance for loan losses   (42,973 )             (41,822 )        
    Total assets $ 8,395,526             $ 8,076,498          
    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY                      
    Savings accounts $ 604,529       1,424   0.95 %   $ 610,453       1,432   0.93 %
    Certificates of deposit   941,947       10,341   4.42 %     910,759       9,691   4.22 %
    Interest bearing demand accounts   3,634,936       26,433   2.92 %     3,469,120       24,498   2.80 %
    Total interest bearing deposits   5,181,412       38,198   2.97 %     4,990,332       35,621   2.83 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings   607,033       5,950   3.94 %     262,709       1,430   2.16 %
    Subordinated notes, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   93,895       956   4.10 %     93,859       965   4.08 %
    Trust preferred subordinated debentures, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   60,270       1,175   7.84 %     60,269       1,195   7.87 %
    Repurchase agreements   92,177       967   4.22 %     96,622       1,008   4.14 %
    Other borrowings   137,287       2,164   6.34 %     294,683       4,235   5.70 %
    Total interest bearing liabilities   6,172,074       49,410   3.22 %     5,798,474       44,454   3.04 %
    Noninterest bearing deposits   1,338,384               1,424,961          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   100,014               115,388          
    Total liabilities   7,610,472               7,338,823          
    Shareholders’ equity   785,054               737,675          
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 8,395,526             $ 8,076,498          
    Net interest income (FTE)     $ 56,084           $ 57,618    
    Net interest margin (FTE)         2.86 %           2.99 %
    Net interest spread (FTE)         2.16 %           2.26 %

    (1)   Interest on loans includes net fees on loans that are not material in amount.
    (2)   For the purpose of calculating the average yield, the average balance of securities is presented at historical cost. 

    Note: As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, loans totaling $7.7 million and $3.9 million, respectively, were on nonaccrual status. Our policy is to reverse previously accrued but unpaid interest on nonaccrual loans; thereafter, interest income is recorded to the extent received when appropriate. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Average Balances and Average Yields and Rates (Annualized) (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Three Months Ended
      September 30, 2023
      Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate
    ASSETS          
    Loans (1) $ 4,396,184     $ 64,758   5.84 %
    Loans held for sale   1,537       26   6.71 %
    Securities:          
    Taxable investment securities (2)   912,789       8,731   3.79 %
    Tax-exempt investment securities (2)   1,510,044       16,232   4.26 %
    Mortgage-backed and related securities (2)   442,908       4,426   3.96 %
    Total securities   2,865,741       29,389   4.07 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost, and equity investments   22,363       265   4.70 %
    Interest earning deposits   37,891       535   5.60 %
    Federal funds sold   94,441       1,253   5.26 %
    Total earning assets   7,418,157       96,226   5.15 %
    Cash and due from banks   106,348          
    Accrued interest and other assets   400,850          
    Less: Allowance for loan losses   (36,493 )        
    Total assets $ 7,888,862          
    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY          
    Savings accounts $ 622,246       1,458   0.93 %
    Certificates of deposit   949,894       9,443   3.94 %
    Interest bearing demand accounts   3,189,048       20,050   2.49 %
    Total interest bearing deposits   4,761,188       30,951   2.58 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings   230,184       1,174   2.02 %
    Subordinated notes, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   93,817       962   4.07 %
    Trust preferred subordinated debentures, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   60,268       1,178   7.75 %
    Repurchase agreements   104,070       1,048   4.00 %
    Other borrowings   317,913       4,492   5.61 %
    Total interest bearing liabilities   5,567,440       39,805   2.84 %
    Noninterest bearing deposits   1,441,738          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   109,490          
    Total liabilities   7,118,668          
    Shareholders’ equity   770,194          
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 7,888,862          
    Net interest income (FTE)     $ 56,421    
    Net interest margin (FTE)         3.02 %
    Net interest spread (FTE)         2.31 %

    (1)   Interest on loans includes net fees on loans that are not material in amount.
    (2)   For the purpose of calculating the average yield, the average balance of securities is presented at historical cost. 

    Note: As of September 30, 2023, loans totaling $4.3 million were on nonaccrual status. Our policy is to reverse previously accrued but unpaid interest on nonaccrual loans; thereafter, interest income is recorded to the extent received when appropriate. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Average Balances and Average Yields and Rates (Annualized) (Unaudited)
    (Dollars in thousands)
     
      Nine Months Ended
      September 30, 2024   September 30, 2023
      Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate   Average Balance   Interest   Average Yield/Rate
    ASSETS                      
    Loans (1) $ 4,589,621     $ 211,635   6.16 %   $ 4,241,676     $ 179,545   5.66 %
    Loans held for sale   3,721       53   1.90 %     1,620       69   5.69 %
    Securities:                      
    Taxable investment securities (2)   785,422       21,126   3.59 %     843,846       23,216   3.68 %
    Tax-exempt investment securities (2)   1,237,884       37,754   4.07 %     1,587,656       48,880   4.12 %
    Mortgage-backed and related securities (2)   827,396       33,179   5.36 %     433,335       12,585   3.88 %
    Total securities   2,850,702       92,059   4.31 %     2,864,837       84,681   3.95 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost, and equity investments   40,565       1,488   4.90 %     25,071       889   4.74 %
    Interest earning deposits   320,371       13,105   5.46 %     60,623       2,310   5.09 %
    Federal funds sold   57,265       2,347   5.47 %     75,499       2,838   5.03 %
    Total earning assets   7,862,245       320,687   5.45 %     7,269,326       270,332   4.97 %
    Cash and due from banks   108,325               105,885          
    Accrued interest and other assets   440,340               406,160          
    Less: Allowance for loan losses   (43,096 )             (36,564 )        
    Total assets $ 8,367,814             $ 7,744,807          
    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY                      
    Savings accounts $ 602,450       4,368   0.97 %   $ 645,415       4,201   0.87 %
    Certificates of deposit   1,016,812       34,618   4.55 %     845,851       21,215   3.35 %
    Interest bearing demand accounts   3,518,906       76,210   2.89 %     3,005,449       47,120   2.10 %
    Total interest bearing deposits   5,138,168       115,196   2.99 %     4,496,715       72,536   2.16 %
    Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings   610,893       18,893   4.13 %     281,260       5,347   2.54 %
    Subordinated notes, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   92,631       2,829   4.08 %     96,753       2,955   4.08 %
    Trust preferred subordinated debentures, net of unamortized debt issuance costs   60,271       3,526   7.81 %     60,266       3,309   7.34 %
    Repurchase agreements   87,811       2,821   4.29 %     89,282       2,423   3.63 %
    Other borrowings   139,306       6,962   6.68 %     362,684       13,690   5.05 %
    Total interest bearing liabilities   6,129,080       150,227   3.27 %     5,386,960       100,260   2.49 %
    Noninterest bearing deposits   1,342,945               1,506,431          
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   99,758               91,784          
    Total liabilities   7,571,783               6,985,175          
    Shareholders’ equity   796,031               759,632          
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 8,367,814             $ 7,744,807          
    Net interest income (FTE)     $ 170,460           $ 170,072    
    Net interest margin (FTE)         2.90 %           3.13 %
    Net interest spread (FTE)         2.18 %           2.48 %

    (1)   Interest on loans includes net fees on loans that are not material in amount.
    (2)   For the purpose of calculating the average yield, the average balance of securities is presented at historical cost. 

    Note: As of September 30, 2024 and 2023, loans totaling $7.3 million and $4.3 million, respectively, were on nonaccrual status. Our policy is to reverse previously accrued but unpaid interest on nonaccrual loans; thereafter, interest income is recorded to the extent received when appropriate. 

    The following tables set forth the reconciliation of return on average common equity to return on average tangible common equity, book value per share to tangible book value per share, net interest income to net interest income adjusted to a fully taxable-equivalent basis assuming a 21% marginal tax rate for interest earned on tax-exempt assets such as municipal loans and investment securities, along with the calculation of total revenue, adjusted noninterest expense, efficiency ratio (FTE), net interest margin (FTE) and net interest spread (FTE) for the applicable periods presented. 

     
    Southside Bancshares, Inc.
    Non-GAAP Reconciliation (Unaudited)
    (Dollars and shares in thousands, except per share data)
     
        Three Months Ended   Nine Months Ended
          2024       2023       2024       2023  
        Sep 30,   Jun 30,   Mar 31,   Dec 31,   Sep 30,   Sep 30,   Sep 30,
    Reconciliation of return on average common equity to return on average tangible common equity:                            
    Net income   $ 20,524     $ 24,673     $ 21,511     $ 17,316     $ 18,449     $ 66,708     $ 69,376  
    After-tax amortization expense     220       243       266       292       322       728       1,048  
    Adjusted net income available to common shareholders   $ 20,744     $ 24,916     $ 21,777     $ 17,608     $ 18,771     $ 67,436     $ 70,424  
                                 
    Average shareholders’ equity   $ 806,230     $ 796,698     $ 785,054     $ 737,675     $ 770,194     $ 796,031     $ 759,632  
    Less: Average intangibles for the period     (203,288 )     (203,581 )     (203,910 )     (204,267 )     (204,658 )     (203,592 )     (205,096 )
    Average tangible shareholders’ equity   $ 602,942     $ 593,117     $ 581,144     $ 533,408     $ 565,536     $ 592,439     $ 554,536  
                                 
    Return on average tangible common equity     13.69 %     16.90 %     15.07 %     13.10 %     13.17 %     15.20 %     16.98 %
                                 
    Reconciliation of book value per share to tangible book value per share:                            
    Common equity at end of period   $ 805,254     $ 800,970     $ 787,922     $ 773,288     $ 728,595     $ 805,254     $ 728,595  
    Less: Intangible assets at end of period     (203,119 )     (203,397 )     (203,704 )     (204,041 )     (204,411 )     (203,119 )     (204,411 )
    Tangible common shareholders’ equity at end of period   $ 602,135     $ 597,573     $ 584,218     $ 569,247     $ 524,184     $ 602,135     $ 524,184  
                                 
    Total assets at end of period   $ 8,362,263     $ 8,357,702     $ 8,353,863     $ 8,284,914     $ 7,972,468     $ 8,362,263     $ 7,972,468  
    Less: Intangible assets at end of period     (203,119 )     (203,397 )     (203,704 )     (204,041 )     (204,411 )     (203,119 )     (204,411 )
    Tangible assets at end of period   $ 8,159,144     $ 8,154,305     $ 8,150,159     $ 8,080,873     $ 7,768,057     $ 8,159,144     $ 7,768,057  
                                 
    Period end tangible equity to period end tangible assets     7.38 %     7.33 %     7.17 %     7.04 %     6.75 %     7.38 %     6.75 %
                                 
    Common shares outstanding end of period     30,308       30,261       30,284       30,249       30,338       30,308       30,338  
    Tangible book value per common share   $ 19.87     $ 19.75     $ 19.29     $ 18.82     $ 17.28     $ 19.87     $ 17.28  
                                 
    Reconciliation of efficiency ratio to efficiency ratio (FTE), net interest margin to net interest margin (FTE) and net interest spread to net interest spread (FTE):                            
    Net interest income (GAAP)   $ 55,464     $ 53,608     $ 53,348     $ 54,485     $ 53,273     $ 162,420     $ 160,542  
    Tax-equivalent adjustments:                            
    Loans     608       633       656       680       674       1,897       2,044  
    Tax-exempt investment securities     2,012       2,051       2,080       2,453       2,474       6,143       7,486  
    Net interest income (FTE) (1)     58,084       56,292       56,084       57,618       56,421       170,460       170,072  
    Noninterest income     8,171       11,557       9,724       2,501       10,836       29,452       33,333  
    Nonrecurring income (2)     2,797       (576 )     18       8,376       (11 )     2,239       (1,006 )
    Total revenue   $ 69,052     $ 67,273     $ 65,826     $ 68,495     $ 67,246     $ 202,151     $ 202,399  
                                                             
    Noninterest expense   $ 36,332     $ 35,765     $ 36,881     $ 35,183     $ 35,553     $ 108,978     $ 105,395  
    Pre-tax amortization expense     (278 )     (307 )     (337 )     (370 )     (407 )     (922 )     (1,327 )
    Nonrecurring expense (3)     (219 )     2       17       22       17       (200 )     56  
    Adjusted noninterest expense   $ 35,835     $ 35,460     $ 36,561     $ 34,835     $ 35,163     $ 107,856     $ 104,124  
                                                             
    Efficiency ratio     53.94 %     54.90 %     57.95 %     53.30 %     54.86 %     55.56 %     53.99 %
    Efficiency ratio (FTE) (1)     51.90 %     52.71 %     55.54 %     50.86 %     52.29 %     53.35 %     51.44 %
                                                             
    Average earning assets   $ 7,823,026     $ 7,881,919     $ 7,882,337     $ 7,633,820     $ 7,418,157     $ 7,862,245     $ 7,269,326  
                                                             
    Net interest margin     2.82 %     2.74 %     2.72 %     2.83 %     2.85 %     2.76 %     2.95 %
    Net interest margin (FTE) (1)     2.95 %     2.87 %     2.86 %     2.99 %     3.02 %     2.90 %     3.13 %
                                                             
    Net interest spread     2.10 %     2.00 %     2.02 %     2.10 %     2.14 %     2.04 %     2.31 %
    Net interest spread (FTE) (1)     2.23 %     2.13 %     2.16 %     2.26 %     2.31 %     2.18 %     2.48 %

    (1)   These amounts are presented on a fully taxable-equivalent basis and are non-GAAP measures.
    (2)   These adjustments may include net gain or loss on sale of securities available for sale, net gain on sale of equity securities, BOLI income related to death benefits realized and other investment income or loss in the periods where applicable.
    (3)   These adjustments may include foreclosure expenses and branch closure expenses, in the periods where applicable.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Equifax Canada Champions Financial Inclusion for Newcomers to Canada with the Launch of Global Consumer Credit File

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Equifax Canada has launched the Global Consumer Credit File, an innovative solution designed to empower lenders to make more confident credit lending decisions for newcomers to Canada. The solution creates a calibrated credit score using newcomers’ credit histories from their countries of origin. The platform offers lenders and newcomers to Canada a seamless and secure means to access global credit data which is essential in obtaining services such as housing, credit cards, and mobile phone contracts.

    Immigration to Canada continues to grow, with the country on track to welcome 500,000 new immigrants annually by 2025. Many of these newcomers will arrive with credit histories that often go unseen by Canadian financial institutions. People who are new to Canada often have a thin credit file (generally defined as having 2 or less credit lines) with little to no credit history because their credit file from their country of origin may not carry over to Canada. Without a more robust credit file, newcomers may face greater challenges in navigating the Canadian financial economy such as accessing credit cards or mortgages with favourable rates or renting an apartment. Having a credit score allows newcomers to Canada to gain access to greater financial opportunities.

    Robust Credit Bureau data from around the world
    The Global Consumer Credit File allows newcomers to leverage their global credit profiles when they apply for the credit necessary to build their financial lives in Canada. It offers a seamless and secure way of connecting financial data within Equifax Consumer Credit bureaus worldwide to create a calibrated score and helping to give financial visibility to individuals who are new to Canada. With this trusted information, lenders can make more informed decisions and help to expand credit access for newcomers based in part upon information gained from their international credit histories. The Global Consumer Credit File will launch with credit information from India, with plans to expand the service for newcomers from Brazil, Argentina, and Chile over the coming months, and a future roadmap that includes 18 countries total.

    “At Equifax Canada, we are committed to supporting the Canadian financial ecosystem to help provide more inclusive financial opportunities that move people forward,” said Sue Hutchison, President and CEO of Equifax Canada. “Newcomers to Canada bring a wealth of talent and ambition to this country, and we are proud to play a role in helping them gain access to the credit they need to thrive. The Global Consumer Credit File allows us to empower these individuals from day one, helping them establish their financial roots and contribute to Canada’s vibrant economy.”

    Canada’s immigration strategy is a cornerstone of its economic growth. Equifax Canada is set to support this growth by providing lenders with access to trusted global data, expanding credit opportunities, and fostering a more inclusive financial landscape for all Canadians.

    “Financial inclusion is about more than just credit access,” added Hutchison. “It’s about creating opportunities for everyone to succeed and contribute to the economy. Equifax is proud to lead the charge in ensuring that newcomers have the tools they need to build a strong financial future here in Canada.”

    By reducing barriers to financial access, the Global Consumer Credit File can help newcomers to Canada realize their full potential from the moment they arrive, along with those already in Canada, ensuring that they can thrive both financially and personally.

    About Equifax
    At Equifax (NYSE: EFX), we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics, and technology company, we play an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers, and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics, and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions to move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by nearly 15,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 24 countries in North America, Central and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific region. For more information, visit Equifax.ca.

    Contact:

    Andrew Findlater
    SELECT Public Relations
    afindlater@selectpr.ca
    (647) 444-1197

    Angie Andich
    Equifax Canada Media Relations
    MediaRelationsCanada@equifax.com 

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Video: UK What is the government doing to prevent former prisoners from reoffending? | House of Lords

    Source: United Kingdom UK House of Lords (video statements)

    Members quizzed the government on it’s early prison release scheme in this highlight from the chamber. Watch for more.

    Read a transcript of this question https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2024-10-21/debates/D30123ED-386C-4BF8-9C41-671133BFB868/PrisonersEarlyReleaseScheme

    Catch-up on House of Lords business:

    Watch live events: https://parliamentlive.tv/Lords
    Read the latest news: https://www.parliament.uk/lords/

    Stay up to date with the House of Lords on social media:

    • Twitter: https://twitter.com/UKHouseofLords
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    • Threads: https://www.threads.net/@UKHouseOfLords

    #HouseOfLords #UKParliament

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPpwYTRAOQU

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Attorney General James Announces Convictions of Orange County Transportation Company Owners for Stealing More Than $2.1 Million from Medicaid

    Source: US State of New York

    NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that the owners of DYD Universe, Inc. (DYD), a New York Medicaid-enrolled transportation company, have pleaded guilty for their roles in a scheme that stole more than $2.1 million from Medicaid and paid illegal kickbacks to Medicaid recipients. Damir Yuldashev, 64, his son Daler Yuldashev, 38, and Daler’s mother Nigina Iskandarova, 60, all of Monroe, New York, admitted that from April 2018 to March 2023, they stole more than $2.1 million from Medicaid by submitting fraudulent claims for services that they knowingly did not provide and toll charges that they knew were not incurred. The owners also admitted to paying illegal kickbacks to Medicaid recipients in exchange for providing DYD with their confidential Medicaid identification in order to carry out the scheme. As a result of the pleas, Damir Yuldashev will be sentenced to two to six years in prison and, along with Daler Yuldashev, must pay back over $2.1 million to Medicaid. Daler Yuldashev and Nigina Iskandarova will be sentenced to probation, and all three defendants will be permanently banned from being providers in all government-funded health programs. 

    “Stealing taxpayer funds that are meant to provide health care for low-income New Yorkers is unacceptable,” said Attorney General James. “Instead of providing vulnerable patients with the transportation services they needed to get them to their appointments, these individuals exploited Medicaid recipients to carry out their fraud. I will not tolerate schemes like these that damage our health care system, and my office will continue to go after fraudsters who steal from Medicaid.”  

    Medicaid recipients who lack access to transportation can use approved transportation providers to travel to and from covered medical services. These providers receive reimbursements from Medicaid for the rides they provide. From April 2018 to March 2023, Daler and Damir Yuldashev billed Medicaid for fictitious trips and added fake tolls to their trips to inflate their costs. DYD’s claims often added toll charges from $15 to as much as $50 when the trip did not actually incur any tolls at all. As a result of their scheme, DYD illegally overcharged Medicaid more than $2.1 million.

    To carry out their scheme, the defendants paid Medicaid recipients to sign up with DYD and use fake addresses or drive themselves to their appointments, allowing DYD to either inflate or submit entirely false claims for transportation to Medicaid. These payments were illegal and undermined the businesses of other transportation providers in the Hudson Valley. Some passengers were paid thousands of dollars each to take rides that allowed DYD to collect tens of thousands of dollars in fees per passenger.

    All three defendants pleaded guilty in Orange County Court in front of Judge Richard Guertin. Damir Yuldashev pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the First Degree, a class B felony. Daler Yuldashev pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a class D felony. Nigina Iskandarova pleaded guilty to violating New York’s anti-kickback statute, Social Services Law section 366-d, a class E felony. DYD also pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the First Degree.

    Damir Yuldashev faces a sentence of two to six years in state prison. Daler Yuldashev and Nigina Iskandarova, both of whom played lesser roles in the scheme, will be sentenced to probation, with Daler Yuldashev required to perform at least 1,200 hours of community service. As part of their sentence, Damir and Daler Yuldashev must pay $2,127,624 to Medicaid in restitution for their crimes. If they fail to pay restitution as ordered by the Court at sentencing, Damir and Daler Yuldashev will be required to serve additional time in state prison. As a result of their convictions, each defendant is also permanently excluded from being a provider in all government-funded health programs, including Medicaid and Medicare.

    The Office of the Attorney General thanks the New York State Department of Health and the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General for their assistance in this investigation.

    This matter was investigated by Detectives Peter Olsen and Frank Bluszcz with assistance from Supervising Detective Jeffrey Pitts. The financial analysis was conducted by Principal Auditor-Investigators John Annunziata, Lora Pomponio, and Melissa Stoebling, and Senior Auditor-Investigator Christopher Giacoia. Legal Support Analyst Kelvin Caraballo provided paralegal assistance.

    The case was handled by Special Assistant Attorneys General Eva Urrutia and Robert Trudell, and the MFCU Pearl River Regional Office Regional Director Todd Pettigrew, with assistance from MFCU Chief of Criminal Investigations Thomas O’Hanlon and Deputy Chief of MFCU’s Civil Enforcement Division Konrad Payne.  Alee Scott is MFCU’s Chief of the Civil Enforcement Division. MFCU is led by Director Amy Held and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Paul J. Mahoney. The Division of Criminal Justice is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General José Maldonado under the oversight of First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

    Reporting Medicaid Provider Fraud: MFCU defends the public by addressing Medicaid provider fraud and protecting nursing home residents from abuse and neglect. If an individual believes they have information about Medicaid provider fraud or about an incident of abuse or neglect of a nursing home resident, they can file a confidential complaint online or call the MFCU hotline at (800) 771-7755. If the situation is an emergency, please call 911.

    New York MFCU’s total funding for federal fiscal year (FY) 2025 is $70,502,916. Of that total, 75 percent, or $52,877,188, is awarded under a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $17,625,728 for FY 2025, is funded by New York State.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Hochul Participates in Axios Fireside Chat

    Source: US State of New York

    Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul participated in Axios’ Fireside Chat with Dan Primack. Axios is an American news website based in Arlington, VA. It was founded in 2014 and launched the following year by former Politico journalists Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen and Roy Schwartz. Axios’ BFD is a half-day event where reporters will convene industry leaders to unpack their hyper-relevant news and trends. This event offers attendees an inside track into some of the biggest topics on investors’ minds.

    VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube here and available in TV quality (h.264. mp4) format here.

    AUDIO of the Governor’s remarks is available here.

    PHOTOS of the event are available on the Governor’s Flickr page.

    A rush transcript of the Governor’s remarks is available below:

    Dan Primack, Axios: As I’ve said a couple of times from this stage, we are a couple of weeks away from an election, so it felt apropos that we should have an actual politician on stage — not just somebody talking about politics. So please welcome the Governor of New York, Governor Kathy Hochul.

    Governor Hochul: An actual politician?

    Dan Primack, Axios: An actual politician. Sorry, is that offensive?

    Governor Hochul: I prefer an elected official. It sounds a little nicer, but if you have to call me a politician, I’ve been called worse.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Alright. So, governor, you’ve said — Governor’s Office says — but you’ve said you want to make New York the most business friendly state in the country. How do you gauge that? What’s your metric for that?

    Governor Hochul: Well, sometimes it’s not what you do, it’s what you stop from happening. Like a major tax increase on high net worth people that I was able to, you know, stop in its tracks last year. Because I’m not in the business of driving successful people out of our state, I want to bring them back to the State. And so, it’s also, it’s economic policies, it’s also saying that, you know, “We’re going to break down some barriers for you and we’ll be there with financial incentives.” And we’ll talk about Micron, I presume, but there’s no way Micron was going to build the nation’s largest semiconductor facility — $100 billion of investment, the largest in our history, with 50,000 jobs — if there weren’t incentives from the Biden-Harris Administration. But that just meant that all 50 states could compete. I had to win that war and put $10 billion on the table for that entire industry. So you have to have incentives in place, you have to go after the businesses you want, and now I’m going after the whole supply chain to support Micron and others who are coming. So, it’s very intentional. You don’t say, “We’re in New York. Everybody’s going to come,” because we’re in a competitive race and I’m a very competitive person. So I don’t want to lose that and I’ll do whatever I have to do to make sure people know that we are the place, and I’ll be judged by how many jobs we create. I’m starting off with 50,000 right there, so I’m already ahead of the game.

    We’ve also created more manufacturing jobs, stopping a 30 year decline in manufacturing. Now we’re talking about advanced manufacturing. So, we have the evidence to show that in the three years I’ve been governor, really putting the focus on this, we’re seeing results already.

    Dan Primack, Axios: How do you, you know — a big part of what you’re working on, and we’ve heard a bunch today about this Empire AI Initiative. And as part of this, you got about $275 million from the State and there’s another $150 million from the private sector. It’s an enormous amount of money. However, it’s also less than 10 percent, say of what OpenAI, a California company, raised in the private sector on its own just two weeks ago. Can companies in New York compete with what’s happening in Silicon Valley when you see — in AI — when you see the enormous amounts of money going into these companies?

    Governor Hochul: I’m not competing with the private sector to own AI. My view is — as I announced in my State of the State last January — that whoever owns this next chapter of AI for public good will own everything. So what we have —

    Dan Primack, Axios: What does that mean for public good?

    Governor Hochul: I will be very happy to tell you. I was just at the University of Buffalo two weeks ago with Marilyn Simons and Tom Secunda — the individuals who helped us innovate this, which no other state in the nation has entertained. I can tell you that Microsoft and OpenAI — they have amazing supercomputers dedicated to AI for their own profit; for the private sector. But we said, “We want to democratize AI, make it available to solve society’s problems, innovate new cancer therapies, help us predict weather better than we have been, so I know when that storm is coming and what I can do to prepare for it,” and all kinds of social problems that we can solve by being creative. So what I decided to do is put $275 million with the Legislature’s support — and that’s not always the easiest thing to do — then convince them to let go of that money and really take a leap of faith with me. But then the private sector raised $150 million — but we have university partners. This is what sets us apart. I have Cornell and NYU and RPI and Flight Iron Institute, Columbia, CUNY and SUNY schools all have bought into this, so they get a piece of the action. Their researchers, their students can use the power that I’ve created at a place called Buffalo, New York — where I’m from — and that is going to power the whole state’s research. And so nobody else touched this.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Are you — and you mentioned Buffalo, New York, and we were talking backstage — are you concerned about the power needs for this supercomputer and other AI projects in the State?

    Governor Hochul: Well, I picked Buffalo for a variety of reasons — and we just announced another supercomputer at the University of Albany — but because power is less expensive Upstate, It’s more plentiful; space is less expensive. So it’s all being used across the State. But as far as its home — I have Niagara Falls, which has been powering our state since since the original Tesla. So, we’ve been doing this since the turn of the last century.

    So, I’m always concerned about capacity though as we’re attracting more and more, you know, large data centers and the supply chain companies that are now rushing to New York. I mean, I’ve been bringing companies from all over the world to Upstate New York now because of this whole innovation ecosystem we’re creating. But I have to focus on — not just our wind and solar and hydro and geothermal — but we’re going to have to look at other sources as well and be real aggressive about it because the states that are leaning into the energy sources are the ones that’ll win the race and we cannot lose that.

    Dan Primack, Axios: From your perspective, what is the biggest mistake businesses make when dealing with New York State government?

    Governor Hochul: When they’re dealing with our state government they have to have more skin in the game, and I want them to be fostering our social goals. And let me explain why Micron was so attractive to us: I’m a mom. I used to work on Capitol Hill for Senator Moynihan a long time ago. When my kids were born, I had no child care, had to leave the workforce for a while. We talk to companies like Micron and we say, “We want a number of things from you. We’ll help you. We want you to provide child care on site.” A lot of companies would say, “I’m not sure.” I said, “Do you want to diversify your workforce? Would you like to get more women? Would you like to get young women? Would you like to have it be a family friendly place?” Guess what they’re building right now? A child care center on site. We want them to draw from the neighbors, the neighboring communities that are underserved — the City of Syracuse. We want you to put in workforce development programs. We’re literally changing the curriculum in nine counties around where Micron will go, working with our teachers union, to say, “We’re going to teach young people coding and other computer science skills while they’re still in grade school and high school.”

    So when Micron says, “Why would we come to Upstate New York?” You’re asking me to do all these things to further your social goal. But this is for your workforce. You’ll have a workforce that is not transitional. You’re not always going to have to be hiring someone. They’re not going to leave you after 18 months. They will stay. And that is part of the culture of Upstate New York, where I’m from, with the legacy industries, like the Bethlehem Steels — where my dad and grandpa worked — and Kodak and Bausch and Lomb. I say to them, “One of the drivers of why people should be coming to New York State is that we have a workforce that is brilliant. But also, they’ll stay with the company unlike what happens in other parts of the United States.”

    Dan Primack, Axios: Let me tie two things together. You talked about skin in the game and you’ve talked about Buffalo and Upstate New York. One of the biggest deals I guess you’ve done as Governor is getting the stadium financing deal done for your Buffalo Bills. I will say your Buffalo Bills.

    Governor Hochul: No, no. The only team that plays in New York.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Fair enough. The only team that plays in New York.

    Governor Hochul: Okay, and I love my other teams too, but just —

    Dan Primack, Axios: Fair. Look, I’m from Boston, I — good, yeah, slam the Jets and the Giants, I’m good with this.

    Governor Hochul: You want to go there? Okay. How are the Red Sox doing? How are the Red Sox doing?

    Dan Primack, Axios: We don’t waste our money. Okay, so we — let me just ask though — when you talked about skin in the game, the package for the new Bills stadium is the most public financing ever for a football stadium in the U.S. Why don’t the taxpayers of New York get some skin in the game themselves? Why was there talk about negotiating some actual equity for the State of New York in this team?

    Governor Hochul: Here’s what I’m going to explain to you: Look at the more recent data. This is not the largest subsidy for a team.

    Dan Primack, Axios: But it’s huge. Let’s just stipulate very big.

    Governor Hochul: Well, in proportion to the cost. And I was very smart when I negotiated this because I said, “There’s no cost escalation for the State.” So we’re in for $650 million of what’ll be well over a $2 billion stadium. The State of Tennessee kicked in a billion for their stadium. So we’re not in that league. But also, what happened was it wasn’t just waking up one day and — oh, let’s do a new stadium. They had a lease that expired. Other states were looking to recruit them. I know this for a fact. It’s a small market, the Buffalo Bills, there’s companies, states and cities that were luring them. I had to close the deal, because this is part of the identity of most of Upstate New York. Most of Upstate New York affiliates with this team, and this is important — an economic driver as well. We get a return on investment. After 17 years, I will have paid back that $650 million just in the income tax on salaries from the players.

    Dan Primack, Axios: In that amount of time, the value of the team could be five times what it is now, and it’s the owner of the team who’s going to get to benefit the most.

    Governor Hochul: Well, I’ve made sure that they are a Buffalo Bills team, not one of the other five cities that I was in competition with. Remember, I don’t lose anything — we don’t lose. This is an economic decision and the money will be paid back in 17 years, or perhaps sooner the way the salaries are going.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Let me ask something else about balancing because you’ve talked about balancing, which is obviously the New York City congestion tax, or the congestion fee, rather, which you decided to kill shortly before it went into impact. How do you balance economic needs of the City and of the State with your climate goal?

    Governor Hochul: Again, I’m going to correct a word here — kill versus pause.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Okay, indefinitely pause. Is that indefinite going to come off?

    Governor Hochul: I never used the word indefinitely. Those are people who are criticizing my decision to say that at this point — when we are dealing with escalating inflation, which was not even a factor — this is the first time in four years that inflation has really been a real burden for New Yorkers.

    Fifteen dollars to start out of the blue. All of a sudden, turn it on — it didn’t take into consideration how New Yorkers are struggling right now. So, I said we’re going to put this on a pause for now, because I also have many other energy goals and climate goals that I’m focused on, but that does not mean it is dead. I know how to kill something. I did not kill it.

    Dan Primack, Axios: You’ve said there’d be — I think you said, and correct me if I’m wrong — there’d be a replacement plan by year-end. Is that still on target?

    Governor Hochul: Yes. We have until the year-end.

    Dan Primack, Axios: You have until year-end. Do you expect that by year-end, there will be a replacement plan?

    Governor Hochul: I will have revealed, to the world, the strategy that we’ve been working on for a long time with the Legislature, which is also involved. I want to be clear on that. The Legislature is not in session right now, but that was a decision that was based on the fact that $15 is too much for New Yorkers right now. And, even London — that people tout and look at what they did in London — they started at €8 at the time and gradually, over time, went up to that, so there’s not a shock to the system.

    And, also, I’m focused on bringing the City back. People can work remotely, right? This wasn’t even an option when this congestion pricing was put in place in 2019. It wasn’t even an option. Of course you’re going to come to work. And it’s $3,800 more a year at $15.

    That’s a lot for a teacher, or a health care worker, or a delivery person coming in from Queens or a plumber coming into town. So, I’m just the kind of Governor that’s going to look at the impacts of decisions — who’s being hurt by this? Can they defend themselves? Do they have lobbyists? Do they have access to the editorial boards? No, these folks don’t. I was their voice, but I’m also saying, I am so vested in making sure that we achieve our climate goals because I believe in them.

    I grew up in a toxic environmental dump. The air was orange when I was growing up because of the smoke billowing out of the steel plant, which created 20,000 jobs, but nobody cared about the environmental impact. So, I’m going to make sure that New York continues to be nation leading and achieving our energy goals, our climate goals.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Do you feel the remote work or the hybrid work revolution — call it post-COVID — do you feel that’s changed Manhattan permanently?

    Governor Hochul: Yes. Yes, it has. But we can always reimagine Manhattan just like we did after 9/11 — and, I give Mayor Bloomberg a lot of credit for what he did during that era. When you look at this place, people did not live in lower Manhattan, they worked there but they never lived there. Now, it is a thriving 24/7 community.

    We can do that in Midtown as well, and I’m convinced of this — that we can take with the laws I had to change because you couldn’t convert commercial into residential without a change in the law that I was able to secure just a few months ago. Now developers can look at a commercial building in Midtown and say, “You know what? It’s only 30 percent full. I’m not sure people are coming back. Let’s convert it into housing.”

    Now I’ve got more affordability because I’ve created supply, which is everything.

    Dan Primack, Axios: You mentioned Mayor Bloomberg. Let me ask about a more recent, current mayor. Business people talk all the time about wanting certainty. They often do it for their own purposes. How is it problematic for New York City’s business particularly, to have a mayor who is under indictment?

    Governor Hochul: I speak to business leaders all day long, including this morning over a breakfast meeting. Some significant leaders. And I asked them that question: How are you feeling? And the answer was, “Well, three weeks ago, it was a hair on fire moment.” And I’ve stepped in to offer the stability to say, we’ll work with the Mayor to get through this because I come from a business family. I know uncertainty is paralyzing, but they are expressing to me that they now have confidence, there’s been changes in the administration.

    They know that I’m keeping an eye on this situation because I want the City — and I represent 8.3 million New York City residents as well. These are my constituents. We will make sure that their services are provided. They will not see a disruption in what they’re accustomed to getting because they deserve to have the best. And I’m watching all this.

    Dan Primack, Axios: You obviously originally were running mates, or you served under former Governor Cuomo. There’s lots of talk about him possibly running for mayor here. I’m not asking, obviously, who you would endorse. I’m asking, should voters consider him as a viable candidate if he chooses to run, given what happened in the past and some of the things you’ve said about what he did in the past?

    Governor Hochul: I’m not here to pass judgment on people right now. But I will say this: New Yorkers deserve people with integrity and accomplishments and who do things for the right reasons. Who will do it for the benefit of the people and not their own self-serving reasons. So I will be looking for people like that.

    Right now we have a mayor — we have an elected mayor of the City of New York. Everything could change or everything may not change. But we do know we have an election two weeks from now. Two weeks from now. And that is the one that we’re focused on, as well as my intensive, intensive work — not just for Kamala Harris.

    I just got back from seeing her in Michigan and we were in Pennsylvania, but here in New York, we have the opportunity to give President Kamala Harris a Democratic House Representatives. And I am laser focused on making sure Hakeem Jeffries, our very own New Yorker who knows our community and its needs and knows I’m going to need money for the MTA for example. Give me more money for public transit. That’s my number one ask. I have to make sure we pick up some seats in the Hudson Valley. And in Long Island, I just came in from Long Island just a little short time ago. And, you know, the polls are showing that areas that were written off, are now in place. So the world is going to change in two weeks.

    Dan Primack, Axios: Let me ask one quick final question because we are out of time. You have said you are, I think the term was “Not going anywhere.” Plan to run for reelection here. If Kamala Harris wins the White House and she calls you up, says, “Governor Hochul, we would like you to come down to D.C. and serve as secretary of X.” Are you going?

    Governor Hochul: I’m going to say this and you can quote me 1,000 times: “President Harris, I’m honored that you’d consider me to join your brand new administration — historic. I’m so excited about you, but I’m going to do better for you continuing as the Governor of New York because you’re going to need allies in our state houses to make sure that we continue the great partnership that I’ve had with the Biden Administration. And I’m not going anywhere.”

    Dan Primack, Axios: Governor. Thank you. Appreciate it

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: AppFolio Unveils FolioSpace™ to Transform the Resident Experience and Help Customers Build Thriving Communities, Acquires LiveEasy to Accelerate its Vision

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FolioSpace gives AppFolio property management customers new ways to deliver exceptional value and experiences to their residents

    AppFolio acquires LiveEasy to integrate convenient moving and home services into FolioSpace

    SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — AppFolio (NASDAQ: APPF), the technology leader powering the future of the real estate industry, today unveiled FolioSpace™, a next-generation resident experience that redefines how property managers and renters connect throughout the entire resident journey. FolioSpace will enable AppFolio’s 20,000 property management customers to create a unified and elevated experience for the millions of residents they serve — from application through renewal.

    To accelerate its resident vision, on October 22, 2024 AppFolio acquired all of the outstanding shares of LiveEasy, a concierge platform providing moving and home services. By vertically integrating LiveEasy and offering its services as part of FolioSpace Resident Onboarding, AppFolio will reduce the stress of moving, deliver increased convenience, and save renters time and money.

    FolioSpace: Reimagining How Property Managers Engage with Residents

    A recent AppFolio survey reveals residents expect timely communication, on-demand digital experiences, and support during the move-in process. However, traditional resident management approaches often fall short, limiting operational efficiency and resident satisfaction. Meeting these expectations is critical for property managers to gain an edge in an increasingly competitive market.

    FolioSpace reimagines how property managers engage with residents by bringing the entire resident journey into one application. By streamlining tasks and communication, FolioSpace replaces traditional manual processes with intuitive digital workflows, including:

    • Resident Application & Screening: A seamless application and approval process for applicants while providing property managers the data they need to select trusted residents and protect themselves from fraud.
    • Resident Onboarding: A configurable digital checklist to streamline leasing and welcome new residents, plus with LiveEasy, access to savings and dedicated support in setting up their utilities, internet and cable, and moving services.
    • Resident Services Marketplace: A collection of essential services to improve residents’ living experience, while also creating value for property managers.
    • Resident Inbox: A reimagined inbox gives residents a central location to communicate with their property managers for everything from maintenance requests to leasing questions. Property managers can use AppFolio Realm-X Messages, which leverages the power of genAI, to help them sort through, act on, and respond to routine resident communications.

    “We envision a world where living in communities feels magical and effortless, freeing people to thrive,” said Chris Womack, Chief Growth Officer of AppFolio. “By welcoming LiveEasy and enhancing AppFolio’s one powerful platform through FolioSpace, we are taking an important step on our journey of delivering exceptional value and experiences to our property management customers and the residents they serve.”

    “LiveEasy’s mission is to provide surprisingly simple moving and living experiences that combine technology and human touch for renters and homeowners,” said Venkatesh Ganapathy, CEO of LiveEasy. “With AppFolio’s commitment to innovation and expansive footprint, we believe this combination will propel that mission and enable us to exceed the expectations of both current and new customers.”

    For More Information

    • Learn more about FolioSpace
    • Register for FUTURE Conference next week in San Diego to attend sessions focused on the resident experience:
      • “The Resident Experience Revolution: Leveraging Tech to Enhance Engagement and Retention”
      • “First Impressions Count: Revolutionizing Resident Onboarding with Digital Excellence”
      • “Stand Out from the Competition: 2024 Renter Preferences Research Insights”
    • Watch the FUTURE opening mainstage event broadcast on LinkedIn Live on Tuesday, October 29 at 9:00am PT.

    The transition to FolioSpace will be seamless for existing users of AppFolio’s current Resident Portal, requiring no new download or account creation. AppFolio will proactively work with customers to jointly bring the new experience to residents.

    Additional Acquisition Information

    LiveEasy is the trade name of Move EZ, Inc., which AppFolio acquired via merger for approximately $80 million, subject to customary adjustments.

    About AppFolio

    AppFolio is the technology leader powering the future of the real estate industry. Our innovative platform and trusted partnership enable our customers to connect communities, increase operational efficiency, and grow their business. For more information about AppFolio, visit appfolio.com.

    About LiveEasy

    LiveEasy is the country’s most comprehensive home services platform. LiveEasy partners with a range of businesses, including property management, brokerage, mortgage, home inspection, insurance, and more. Its turnkey solution enables businesses to customize, brand, and embed home services solutions into their workflows so they can offer a true end-to-end moving and home services solution to renters and homeowners. For more information about LiveEasy, visit liveeasy.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which statements are subject to considerable risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not statements of historical fact contained in this press release, and can be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “potential,” “future,” “predicts,” “projects,” “target,” “seeks,” “contemplates,” “should,” “will,” “would” or similar expressions and the negatives of those expressions. In particular, forward-looking statements contained in this press release include statements relating to the potential benefits and effect of the FolioSpace resident application and the acquisition of LiveEasy and their impact on AppFolio’s plans, objectives, expectations and capabilities.

    Forward-looking statements represent AppFolio’s current beliefs and expectations based on information currently available and speak only as of the date the statement is made. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause AppFolio’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. The risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to materially differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements include AppFolio’s ability to successfully launch the FolioSpace resident application and integrate the LiveEasy business, AppFolio’s ability to implement its plans, objectives and expectations with respect to the FolioSpace resident application and the LiveEasy business, negative effects of the announcement of the FolioSpace resident application and/or the Live Easy acquisition on AppFolio’s business operations, operating results or share price, and unknown liabilities associated with the acquisition as well as those risks, uncertainties and other factors described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in AppFolio’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, which was filed with the SEC on February 1, 2024, and the section entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in AppFolio’s most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K or Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, as well as in its other filings with the SEC. You should read this press release with the understanding that AppFolio’s actual future results may be materially different from the results expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

    AppFolio undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ca49f9fd-edcc-4d48-b939-91518d73ceee

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: A majority of Canadian HR professionals cite workplace harassment as a growing concern, but 28% lack prevention policies

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Traliant, a leader in online compliance training, today announced its new workplace study, “Canadian Culture Check: A report on the state of workplace harassment in Canada.” Compiled from a survey of over 1,000 HR professionals in Canada, the study assesses how organizations are approaching harassment prevention. Most notably, the survey revealed that while a majority of HR professionals (61%) feel workplace harassment is a growing issue in their organization, more than a quarter (28%) of organizations do not have a comprehensive workplace harassment prevention policy that meets all legal requirements.

    Canadian law requires that employers in all provinces and territories, along with federally regulated employers, provide harassment and workplace violence prevention training to all employees. However, the report reveals that the current programs and processes in place may not fully address the entire spectrum of government training mandates, putting organizations at compliance risk and perpetuating cultures of misconduct.

    “Effectively addressing workplace harassment requires a dual strategy of empowering employees to actively foster workplace respect and ensuring compliance with Canada’s provincial and federal requirements,” said Michael Johnson, Chief Strategy Officer at Traliant. “Our study identifies critical areas where Canadian HR professionals can enhance current harassment prevention programs to create lasting, impactful change on company culture.”

    The report uncovered additional gaps and potential liabilities in how Canadian HR professionals are approaching harassment prevention, including:

    • 26% of organizations are putting themselves at risk by not providing harassment prevention training to all employees and all levels.
    • 28% of Canadian HR professionals are not providing training to employees at a frequency of least every two years as recommended by case law.
    • 52% of respondents said their workplace harassment reporting processes were not clear or standardized, preventing employees from coming forward and allowing harassing behavior to continue and escalate.

    Casey Heck, Senior Vice President of Human Resources at Traliant, added, “With a heightened awareness of the need to address workplace harassment and violence, it’s crucial for HR professionals to effectively support all employees and managers with training to create a safe and positive work environment.”

    For complete survey findings and details, read the full report here.

    Methodology
    The independent market research firm Researchscape conducted this survey. Respondents were 1,000 HR professionals in Canada, from organizations ranging from 50 to 1,000+ employees. The survey was conducted in September 2024.

    About Traliant
    Traliant, a leader in compliance training, is on a mission to help make workplaces better, for everyone. Committed to a customer promise of “compliance you can trust, training you will love,” Traliant delivers continuously compliant online courses, backed by an unparalleled in-house legal team, with engaging, story-based training designed to create truly enjoyable learning experiences.

    Traliant supports over 14,000 organizations worldwide with a library of curated essential courses to broaden employee perspectives, achieve compliance and elevate workplace culture, including sexual harassment training, diversity training, code of conduct training, and many more.

    Backed by PSG, a leading growth equity firm, Traliant holds a coveted position on Inc.’s 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America for four consecutive years, along with numerous awards for its products and workplace culture. For more information, visit http://www.traliant.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

    Contact
    Reagan Bennet
    traliant@v2comms.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Usio to Host Third Quarter Fiscal 2024 Conference Call to Discuss Results and Provide Company Update on November 6, 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SAN ANTONIO, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Usio, Inc. (Nasdaq:USIO), a leading FinTech that operates a full stack of integrated, cloud-based electronic payment and embedded financial solutions, today announced it will release third quarter fiscal 2024 financial results for the period ended September 30, 2024, after the market closes on Wednesday, November 6, 2024.

    Usio’s management will host a conference call the same day, November 6, 2024, beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time to review financial results and provide a business update. Following management’s formal remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session.

    To listen to the conference call, interested parties within the U.S. should call 1-844-883-3890. International callers should call 1-412-317-9246. All callers should ask for the Usio conference call. The conference call will also be available through a live webcast, which can be accessed via the company’s website at https://usio.com/events-2/.

    A replay of the call will be available approximately one hour after the end of the call through November 20, 2024. The replay can be accessed via the Company’s website or by dialing 1-877-344-7529 (U.S.) or 1-412-317-0088 (international). The replay conference playback code is: 7062327.

    About Usio, Inc.

    Usio, Inc. (Nasdaq: USIO), a leading, cloud-based, integrated FinTech electronic payment solutions provider, offers a wide range of payment solutions to merchants, billers, banks, service bureaus, integrated software vendors and card issuers. The Company operates credit, debit/prepaid, and ACH payment processing platforms to deliver convenient, world-class payment solutions and services clients through its unique payment facilitation platform as a service. The company, through its Usio Output Solutions division offers services relating to electronic bill presentment, document composition, document decomposition and printing and mailing services. The strength of the Company lies in its ability to provide tailored solutions for card issuance, payment acceptance, and bill payments as well as its unique technology in the card issuing sector. Usio is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, and has offices in Austin, Texas.

    Websites: www.usio.com, www.payfacinabox.com, www.akimbocard.com and www.usiooutput.com. Find us on Facebook® and Twitter.

    FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS DISCLAIMER
    Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this release include forward-looking statements which are covered by safe harbors. Those statements include, but may not be limited to, all statements regarding management’s intent, belief, and expectations, such as statements concerning our future and our operating and growth strategy. These forward-looking statements are identified by the use of words such as “believe,” “intend,” “look forward,” “anticipate,” “schedule,” and “expect” among others. Forward-looking statements in this press release are subject to certain risks and uncertainties inherent in the Company’s business that could cause actual results to vary, including such risks related to an economic downturn as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the realization of opportunities from the IMS acquisition, the management of the Company’s growth, the loss of key resellers, the relationships with the Automated Clearinghouse network, bank sponsors, third-party card processing providers and merchants, the security of our software, hardware and information, the volatility of the stock price, the need to obtain additional financing, risks associated with new tax legislation, and compliance with complex federal, state and local laws and regulations, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. One or more of these factors have affected, and in the future, could affect the Company’s businesses and financial results in the future and could cause actual results to differ materially from plans and projections. The Company believes that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements included in this release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included herein, the inclusion of such information should not be regarded as a representation by us or any other person that the objectives and plans will be achieved. All forward-looking statements made in this release are based on information presently available to management. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

    Contact

    Paul Manley
    Senior Vice President, Investor Relations
    paul.manley@usio.com
    612-834-1804

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: LEARN selects Nokia to deploy new high-capacity network to foster research and education in Texas

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release
    LEARN selects Nokia to deploy new high-capacity network to foster research and education in Texas

    • Multi-year agreement sets Nokia as a key collaborator for LEARN’s high-capacity IP/MPLS network to meet growing capacity demands supporting research and education purposes.
    • Enables high-speed access to foster scientific discovery and pedagogical developments in the state.
    • Nokia industry-leading IP routing technology delivers 400G interfaces today with ability to seamlessly upgrade to 800G in the future.  

    23 October 2024
    Dallas, Texas – Nokia today announced its collaboration with The Lonestar Education and Research Network (LEARN), the statewide Research and Education Network for the state of Texas, to upgrade LEARN’s existing packet platform. The collaboration is part of LEARN’s strategic NextGen Network initiative, which aims to replace routers across the LEARN backbone and modernize the existing statewide network, significantly advancing the network’s infrastructure and the ability to serve its members. Nokia’s solution will enhance the levels of scalability, security, and reliability over a 400GE backbone, as part of a broad project redesign led by LEARN to serve its more than 300 organizations that directly or indirectly rely upon its network.

    The collaboration with Nokia represents a significant milestone as LEARN celebrates the upcoming 20th anniversary of its passage of first light. The relationship with Nokia highlights LEARN’s commitment to providing advanced, high-performance networking technology solutions for research and education. The next generation of the network will meet the highest performance and reliability standards, benefiting LEARN members by enhancing network performance, ensuring seamless integration, providing future-proof technology, increasing operational efficiency, and improving network reliability and resiliency. 

    The LEARN network spans over 3,200 fiber route miles, serving over 300 direct and affiliate member organizations throughout Texas, including public and private higher education institutions, colleges, and K–12 public schools. The enhanced IP/MPLS core network from Nokia delivers the performance, scale, and speed that are required to support cloud-hosted applications, compute-intensive processing, and the exchange of massive data sets required by LEARN Member Institutions.

    Kerry Mobley, President and CEO of LEARN, said: “LEARN is looking ahead to ensure we continue to meet the evolving demands of research, education, and collaboration for years to come. As network traffic increases due to technological advancements, we are committed to providing scalable and resilient services to support the needs of our members. Partnering with Nokia to help modernize our next-gen network allows us to implement cutting-edge, future-ready solutions that enhance our ability to empower the research and education communities across Texas.”

    Matt Young, Head of Enterprise Sales for North America at Nokia, said: “Research and Education networks like LEARN are experiencing unprecedented data growth with advancements in cloud and AI, which is compounded by the compute intensive processing and exchange of huge data sets within their communities. Our leadership in networking technologies and the extensive experience providing some of the highest performance networks on the planet have allowed us to gain momentum in the market, providing our customer with a robust network infrastructure with enhanced scalability, security, and reliability. We are pleased to be a part of LEARN’s network evolution project as they help foster scientific research, collaboration and innovation in Texas.”

    Resources and additional information
    The Nokia IP/MPLS platform leverages in-house developed leading-edge FP5 network processing silicon and is designed to scale in support of the most demanding workloads. A layer of network protection is integrated directly into the chipset, ensuring the integrity of research data as security threats – such as DDoS attacks and data breaches – grow in size and severity. Innovations in power consumption deliver a 75 percent reduction in energy use over earlier routing chipsets.

    National/regional research and education networks (NRENs) are non-commercial networks created for the advancement of knowledge. They demand performance, sometimes on the edge of what is commercially practical. They require unusual bandwidth capacity, scalability, flexibility, and data security without the constraints often found in commercial service offerings. Advances in photonic transport and switching, combined with IP routing and open software control, bring NRENs the ability to better serve their communities with a powerful communications infrastructure that will further education, scientific and industrial research, commerce, and overall quality of life – fostering collaboration among institutions.

    Webpage: IP networks
    Webpage: Advance discoveries with future-ready research and education networks
    Product page: EVPN: a powerful foundation for network services and infrastructure

    About Nokia
    At Nokia, we create technology that helps the world act together.

    As a B2B technology innovation leader, we are pioneering networks that sense, think and act by leveraging our work across mobile, fixed and cloud networks. In addition, we create value with intellectual property and long-term research, led by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs.

    With truly open architectures that seamlessly integrate into any ecosystem, our high-performance networks create new opportunities for monetization and scale. Service providers, enterprises and partners worldwide trust Nokia to deliver secure, reliable and sustainable networks today – and work with us to create the digital services and applications of the future.

    About LEARN

    The Lonestar Education and Research Network (LEARN) is a consortium of 43 organizations in Texas, including public and private higher education institutions, colleges, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), K-12 public schools, and research organizations. LEARN provides high-speed networking & technology services to support education, research, healthcare, and government communities. 

    Media inquiries
    Nokia Press Office
    Email: Press.Services@nokia.com

    Follow us on social media
    LinkedIn X Instagram Facebook YouTube

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Plaid Cymru demand fairness for Wales in Autumn Statement

    Source: Party of Wales

    Plaid Cymru call on the Labour Welsh Government to put pressure on the UK Labour Government to ensure five key asks are included in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement.

    Today (Wednesday 23 October 2024) Plaid Cymru will call on the Labour Welsh Government to put pressure on the UK Labour Government to ensure five key asks are included in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement.

    Plaid Cymru will call for:

    • HS2 to be re-classified as an England-only project, and for Wales to receive the £4 billion it is due from the project.
    • Fair funding for Wales – replacing the Barnett Formula with a needs-based formula that prioritises the needs of the people of Wales
    • Devolution of the Crown Estate to Wales, as has happened in Scotland.
    • An end to the two-child benefit cap which forces thousands of children into poverty in Wales.
    • Restoration of the Winter Fuel Payment.

    Plaid Cymru finance spokesperson, Heledd Fychan MS said:

    “For years in the run up to the UK General election, we were promised that things would be better once we had a UK Labour government. But this so-called ‘partnership in power’ hasn’t yet delivered for Wales.

    “Labour in the Senedd used to agree with Plaid Cymru on HS2 reclassification and the £4bn owed to us in consequential; on replacing Barnett; and on the devolution of the crown estate. But evidently, they are not able to persuade their London bosses on any of these matters.

    “In fact, on HS2, the Welsh Government claim to be making the case for HS2 cash, but only a few hundred million rather than the billions they were previously calling for.”

    She continued:

    “While Welsh pensioners are terrified that they won’t be able to heat their homes this winter; while a third of Welsh children are living in poverty; and while Wales is being robbed of billions of pounds in funding, Welsh Labour are happy enough staying quiet, putting party before country.

    “Our calls today represent the necessary steps towards securing fairness for Wales and the funding owed to us. Plaid Cymru is clear – Labour must now deliver on the promises made to the people of Wales!”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Sarmayacar latest initiative Climaventures Fund Secures $15 Million Anchor Commitment from Green Climate Fund to Accelerate Climate-Tech Innovation in Pakistan

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Lahore, Pakistan, Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Venture capital firm Sarmayacar is today announcing it has successfully secured $15m for its new Climaventures Fund from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), marking a significant milestone in the growth of Pakistan’s climate-tech ecosystem. This GCF funding will play an anchoring role in the new fund that Sarmayacar is targeting to have a hard cap of $40 million. An additional $10 million has been allocated to an affiliated venture accelerator program run by the National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) to support even earlier-stage climate-tech startups with a similar thesis. The final approval from the GCF Board, following its meeting in Songdo, South Korea, highlights the growing global interest in addressing Pakistan’s critical climate challenges with scalable, impactful solutions.

    With this capital, the Sarmayacar Climaventures Fund will focus on empowering local startups in critical sectors such as renewable energy, electric mobility and sustainable agriculture. These ventures will receive both financial backing and strategic guidance to help accelerate their growth and environmental impact. By strengthening Pakistan’s climate-tech landscape, Sarmayacar aims to position the country as a key player in regional sustainability efforts while attracting international investment into climate-focused ventures.

    Sarmayacar CEO and founder Rabeel Warraich with General Partner Bernhard Klemen

    Sarmayacar, founded in 2018 as Pakistan’s first institutional venture capital firm, has been instrumental in advancing the country’s startup ecosystem. Its initial $25 million tech-focused fund, anchored by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), catalysed over $800 million in venture capital investments into Pakistani startups, and supported high-growth ventures across sectors such as fintech, e-commerce, healthtech, and logistics. Led by CEO and Founder, Rabeel Warraich and General Partner, Dr. Bernhard Klemen, the firm is now leveraging its experience and market-knowledge to address Pakistan’s climate challenges through its Climaventures Fund. 

    “Addressing Pakistan’s climate emergency requires an approach that fosters entrepreneurial innovation,” said Rabeel Warraich, CEO and Founder of Sarmayacar. “Our new climate fund – a first for Pakistan – will back founders building localised, scalable climate solutions for the country. We hope to spawn an entire climate venture ecosystem by leveraging our experience and connectivity in the country and beyond.”

    Sarmayacar’s latest initiative taps into the global momentum behind climate-tech investment. According to the Climate Policy Initiative’s Global Landscape of Climate Finance 2023 report, global climate finance averaged $1.27 trillion annually in 2021-2022, nearly doubling from previous years. This surge underscores the urgent need to scale climate solutions globally. In Pakistan, where climate challenges are particularly acute, the Sarmayacar Climaventures Fund aims to back startups that contribute to the country’s broader environmental goals, driving both impact and sustainable growth. Despite contributing only 0.9% to global greenhouse gas emissions, Pakistan ranks as the 8th most vulnerable country to climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index. 

    Dr. Bernhard Klemen, General Partner at Sarmayacar added, “Since launching Pakistan’s first VC fund in 2018, Sarmayacar has built a track record of identifying and supporting market-transforming startups in the country. With this new climate-themed fund, we plan to replicate the playbook of our first fund and invest in commercially attractive opportunities that can also create significant impact. There is already an actionable pipeline which we hope to capitalise on with the support of reputable and like-minded partners like the GCF.”

    The Green Climate Fund’s endorsement underscores the critical role that venture capital must play in addressing climate change, particularly in emerging markets. The fund will also help mobilise additional private capital, de-risking early-stage climate ventures and attracting further investment from global institutions.

    Looking ahead, Sarmayacar aims to position Pakistan as a leader in climate-tech innovation, driving scalable solutions to tackle pressing climate challenges. With the Sarmayacar Climaventures Fund, the firm is committed to supporting the next generation of climate-tech entrepreneurs, ensuring they have the resources and expertise to succeed both locally and globally. By continuing to attract capital and fostering impactful ventures, Sarmayacar is helping to shape a more sustainable future for Pakistan and beyond. 

    Ends 

    Notes to the editor
    Media images can be found here. 

    About Sarmayacar
    Sarmayacar is Pakistan’s first institutional venture capital firm, backing early-stage tech startups across a variety of sectors. Since its inception, Sarmayacar has supported high-growth ventures with a focus on driving innovation and sustainable growth in Pakistan’s startup ecosystem. 
    For more information, please visit www.sarmayacar.com 

    About GCF
    The Green Climate Fund is a global initiative established under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to help developing countries reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. GCF invests in low-emission, climate-resilient projects across various sectors, mobilising public and private sector resources to support climate action. For more information, please visit www.greenclimate.fund

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: TGS ASA rated ‘BB-‘ from S&P

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    OSLO, Norway (23 October 2024) – TGS ASA, a leading provider of energy data and intelligence is assigned a ‘BB-‘ rating from S&P with stable outlook. S&P’s rating on TGS ASA reflects the company’s conservative financial policies and relatively strong credit measures after the transformative acquisition of PGS.

    S&P is raising their issuer credit rating on TGS Newco (formerly PGS ASA) and its USD 450 million senior secured notes by three and two notches respectively, from ‘B-‘ to ‘BB-‘ and from ‘B’ to ‘BB-‘ with stable outlook.

    The upgrade by S&P follows the upgrade by Moody’s from a B2 to a Ba3 rating as announced on 26 September 2024.

    S&P’s press release announcing the rating action is available on their home page https://www.spglobal.com/.

    For more information, visit TGS.com or contact:

    Bård Stenberg
    IR & Communication
    Mobile: +47 992 45 235
    investor@tgs.com

    About TGS
    TGS provides advanced data and intelligence to companies active in the energy sector. With leading-edge technology and solutions spanning the entire energy value chain, TGS offers a comprehensive range of insights to help clients make better decisions. Our broad range of products and advanced data technologies, coupled with a global, extensive and diverse energy data library, make TGS a trusted partner in supporting the exploration and production of energy resources worldwide. For further information, please visit www.tgs.com (https://www.tgs.com/).

    Forward Looking Statement
    All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove accurate. These factors include volatile market conditions, investment opportunities in new and existing markets, demand for licensing of data within the energy industry, operational challenges, and reliance on a cyclical industry and principal customers. Actual results may differ materially from those expected or projected in the forward-looking statements. TGS undertakes no responsibility or obligation to update or alter forward-looking statements for any reason.

    The MIL Network –