Category: Machine Learning

MIL-OSI: OP Financial Group’s Interim Report for 1 January–30 September 2024: Strong business performance continued – operating profit EUR 1,948 million

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

OP Financial Group
Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2024
Stock Exchange Release 31 October 2024 at 9.00 EET

OP Financial Group’s Interim Report for 1 January–30 September 2024: Strong business performance continued – operating profit EUR 1,948 million

Operating profit was EUR 1,948 million (1,570).
Income from customer business, or net interest income, insurance service result and net commissions and fees, increased by 7% to EUR 2,813 million (2,634). Net interest income grew by 10% to EUR 2,118 million (1,919). The insurance service result grew by 63% to EUR 95 million (58). Net commissions and fees decreased by 9% to EUR 599 million (656). The decrease was affected by the fact that owner-customers are being provided with daily banking services free of monthly charges in 2024. The value of this benefit was EUR 67 million during the reporting period.
Impairment loss on receivables in the income statement was EUR 72 million (170), accounting for 0.10% (0.22) of the loan and guarantee portfolio.
Investment income increased by 43% to EUR 419 million (294).
Total expenses grew by 4% to EUR 1,629 million (1,564). The cost/income ratio improved to 45% (47).
In the year to September, the loan portfolio decreased by 1% to EUR 98.0 billion (98.9). Deposits increased by 5% to EUR 76.2 billion (72.6).
CET1 ratio strengthened to 21.4% (19.2), which exceeds the minimum regulatory requirement by 7.9 percentage points.
Retail Banking segment’s operating profit rose to EUR 1,037 million (919). Net interest income grew by 11% to EUR 1,615 million (1,459). Impairment loss on receivables decreased by EUR 50 million to EUR 57 million (107). Net commissions and fees decreased by 13% to EUR 458 million (524). The cost/income ratio improved to 48% (49). The loan portfolio decreased by 1% year on year, to EUR 70.6 billion. Deposits increased by 1% to EUR 62.4 billion.
Corporate Banking segment’s operating profit rose to EUR 418 million (321). Net interest income grew by 12% to EUR 493 million (441). Impairment loss on receivables decreased by EUR 48 million to EUR 15 million (63). Net commissions and fees increased by 2% to EUR 146 million (143). The cost/income ratio improved to 37% (40). In the year to September, the loan portfolio decreased by 2% to EUR 27.5 billion. Deposits increased by 26% to EUR 14.4 billion.
Insurance segment’s operating profit rose to EUR 458 million (298). Insurance service result grew by 63% to EUR 95 million (58). Investment income increased by 52% to EUR 365 million (241). Combined ratio reported by non-life insurance was 95% (95).
Group Functions operating profit was EUR 4 million (–2).
OP Financial Group will increase the OP bonuses to be earned by owner-customers for 2025 by 40% compared to the normal level of 2022. In addition, owner-customers will get daily banking services free of monthly charges until the end of 2025. Together, these benefits are estimated to add up to more than EUR 400 million in value for owner-customers next year.
On 14 October 2024, OP Financial Group raised its earnings outlook for 2024. Operating profit for 2024 is expected to be higher than that for 2023. For more detailed information on the outlook, see “Outlook towards the year end”.

OP Financial Group’s key indicators

	Q1–3/2024	Q1–3/2023	Change, %	Q1–4/2023
Operating profit, € million	1,948	1,570	24.1	2,050
Retail Banking	1,037	919	12.8	1,223
Corporate Banking	418	321	30.3	408
Insurance	458	298	53.6	414
Group Functions	4	-2	–	-26
New OP bonuses accrued to owner-customers, € million	-233	-204	14.1	-275
Total income**	3,650	3,304	10.5	4,520
Total expenses	-1,629	-1,564	4.2	-2,201
Cost/income ratio, %**	44.6	47.3	-2.7*	48.7
Return on equity (ROE), %	12.3	11.1	1.2*	10.6
Return on equity, excluding OP bonuses, %	13.7	12.5	1.2*	12.0
Return on assets (ROA), %	1.30	1.02	0.29*	0.98
Return on assets, excluding OP bonuses, %	1.46	1.15	0.31*	1.11
	30 Sep 2024	30 Sep 2023	Change, %	31 Dec 2023
CET1 ratio, %	21.4	19.1	2.3*	19.2
Loan portfolio, € billion	98.0	98.9	-1.0	98.9
Deposits, € billion	76.2	72.6	5.0	74.5
Ratio of non-performing exposures to exposures, %	2.91	2.73	0.18*	2.94
Ratio of impairment loss on receivables to loan and guarantee portfolio, %	0.10	0.22	-0.13*	0.26
Owner-customers (1,000)	2,107	2,083	1.2	2,094

Comparatives for the income statement are based on the corresponding figures in 2023. Unless otherwise specified, figures from 31 December 2023 are used as comparatives for balance-sheet and other cross-sectional items.
* Change in ratio, percentage point(s).
** OP bonuses to owner-customers, which were previously shown on a separate line in the income statement, have been divided under the following items based on their accrual: interest income, interest expenses, and commission income from mutual funds. The line ‘OP bonuses to owner-customers’ is no longer shown in the income statement. Comparative information has been adjusted accordingly. For more detailed information on the change, see Note 1 to the Half-year Financial Report 1 January–30 June 2024, Accounting policies and changes in accounting policies and presentation.

Comments by the President and Group Chief Executive Officer

The Finnish economy is recovering as forecast – inflation continued to slow and market rates fell markedly

Finland’s recovery, which began in the first half of the year, seems to be continuing into late 2024, mainly because the domestic market has been stronger than forecast. Consumer demand has been the mainstay of the economy this year. In contrast, investments have sharply reduced and exports are slightly down.

Finland’s economy seems to have bottomed out in the summer. Annual GDP growth is expected to reach 2% next year, when exports should clearly outpace the current year’s performance as industry perks up and service exports recover.

Inflation in Finland fell to 0.8%, which was clearly below the average for the euro area (1.7%). Short-term market rates fell sharply in the third quarter and the 12-month Euribor (the most commonly used reference rate for home loans) was at 2.75% at the end of September. Consumers, in particular, have benefited from lower inflation and interest rates.

Third-quarter home purchase volumes and home loan demand were clearly higher than in the same period last year: there are signs of a gradual recovery in the housing market.

Stock markets continued to perform well in July–September due to enduringly moderate global growth, better private-sector results and falling market rates.

OP Financial Group’s business operations continued to grow strongly – the excellent results will benefit OP’s owner-customers

OP Financial Group’s operating profit continued its excellent trend into the third quarter, growing by 24% year on year to EUR 1,948 million in January–September. This strong profit performance guarantees the continuance of highly competitive benefits for our owner-customers.

We will increase the OP bonuses earned by owner-customers for 2025 by 40% compared to the normal level of 2022. Moreover, in 2025, we will not collect monthly charges from our owner-customers for use of daily banking services. Next year, these benefits will add up to more than EUR 400 million in value for our owner-customers. Being customer-owned, OP Financial Group will continue to share its financial success through a range of financial and other benefits for its owner-customers.

OP Financial Group’s CET1 ratio strengthened again in the third quarter, to 21.4%, which exceeds the minimum regulatory requirement by 7.9 percentage points. OP Financial Group is one of Europe’s most financially solid large banks. Excellent profitability and strong capital adequacy and liquidity are critical factors for banks and insurance companies, building trust among customers, partners and other stakeholders. Trust is vital in the banking and insurance businesses.

OP Financial Group’s income from customer business grew considerably in January–September 2024, mainly owing to the strong increase in net interest income. Net commissions and fees decreased by 9%, due to the benefit (provided for owner-customers) of zero monthly charges for daily banking services.

The insurance service result for January–September clearly improved year on year, rising to EUR 95 million. It also improved considerably compared to the first half of 2024. Since the first quarter, there have been fewer large claims than usual and vehicle and health insurance claims fell in the summer months as favourable weather began and the flu season ended.

Income from investment activities has fared extremely well this year, the result of EUR 419 million being 43% higher than for the same period in 2023. Total income was EUR 3,650 million, or 10% more year on year.

At EUR 1,629 million, total expenses in January–September were 4% higher than in the same period in 2023, mainly due to rising personnel costs and higher investments in ICT development. OP Financial Group’s cost/income ratio markedly improved year on year, to an excellent 45%.

All three business segments performed well in January–September. The Retail Banking segment’s operating profit rose by 13% from the same period in 2023, to EUR 1,037 million. Corporate Banking’s operating profit was EUR 418 million, up by 30% year on year. Operating profit in the Insurance segment totalled EUR 458 million, a rise of 54% on January–September 2023, largely because of the excellent result in investment income.

Deposits grew strongly – but the loan portfolio decreased slightly

OP Financial Group’s deposit portfolio grew by 5% year on year. There was moderate growth both in household and corporate deposits. OP Financial Group strengthened its position as Finland’s leading deposit bank in the first half of 2024; OP’s market share is now almost 40%.

OP Financial Group’s loan portfolio shrank by around 1% year on year. Demand for new home loans and corporate loans remained fairly low. In the first half of 2024, OP Financial Group further strengthened its position as a provider of home loans in Finland; with a market share of 39%, it is the clear market leader. OP’s home loan customers have continued to manage their repayments well despite the general economic downturn. The number of loan modification applications was lower than the year before. Non-performing exposures totalled 2.9% (2.9). Impairment loss on receivables markedly decreased year on year.

Strong growth in wealth management continued

OP Financial Group aims to coach its customers to help them make better financial choices. We are therefore investing heavily in the range, quality and availability of the wealth management services we provide for our various customer categories. We want to promote our customers’ long-term financial wellbeing.

Our customers remain interested in systematically investing in funds, with 33% more new systematic investment agreements being made in January–September than in the same period last year. The number of OP mutual fund unitholders rose to almost 1.38 million. There was also considerable growth in the number of active equity investors. At EUR 111 billion in value, investment assets managed by OP Financial Group grew by 13% year on year.

Corporate Banking succeeded well as a provider of financing for big companies

Corporate Banking had a highly successful nine months as a versatile intermediary of financing for large corporations. It was the lead arranger or arranger of 11 bond issues, which raised EUR 2.6 billion for companies from the capital markets. Sustainable financing provided by Corporate Banking also grew in the first half of 2024. By the end of September, the commitment portfolio totalled EUR 8.0 billion.

The insurance business’s profitability improved in the third quarter

Insurance revenue for January–September grew by 7% year on year. The rapid growth in claims expenditure of early 2024 slowed in the third quarter, but claims expenditure in January–September was still 8% higher than in the same period in 2023. Non-life insurance reported a combined ratio of 95%. Compensation was paid for 94% of all claims reported to Pohjola Insurance. There was a clear improvement in non-life insurance’s profitability in the third quarter.

Life insurance’s performance has been excellent this year, with 10% growth in unit-linked insurance assets. Growing this business is one of OP Financial Group’s strategic focus areas.

Strong growth in the number of customer interactions through the AI-based OP Aina

In June, we launched OP Aina, a new personal assistant on OP-mobile. OP Aina helps our customers with a range of banking and insurance matters on a 24/7 basis. It is the first financial service in Finland to use artificial intelligence and alerts. We use the service to provide even more personalised and readily available services than before. Customers have been actively using the service. There have already been 4.8 million customer interactions with OP Aina and feedback has been positive.

Cybersecurity is at the core of our operations

OP Financial Group’s service availability has been excellent despite the rapidly growing number of denial of service attacks. We are investing strongly in cybersecurity to ensure that our customers’ money and data are secure and our service level is maintained under all circumstances. As phishing and scam attempts directed at our customers have proliferated, we have created several new ways of providing even better protection.

Owner-customers have been benefiting from OP bonuses for more than 25 years and will continue to do so

A total of more than EUR 3.7 billion in OP bonuses have accumulated for OP Financial Group’s owner-customers in more than 25 years. OP Financial Group has prepared for the possible change in the tax treatment of financial-sector customer bonuses in early 2026. A bill has been presented to the Finnish Parliament, which would bring OP bonuses accumulated from banking services under capital gains tax if they were used for non-banking services – to pay insurance premiums, for example. However, there is no need for concern among OP Financial Group’s 2.1 million owner-customers, who will continue to receive at least the same level of financial benefits as before, regardless of possible changes in the law. It therefore pays to be an owner-customer of OP Financial Group. In line with our mission, we will continue to promote the sustainable prosperity, security and wellbeing of our owner-customers.

OP Financial Group is an attractive employer

This year, OP Financial Group was ranked for the first time as Finland’s most attractive employer by business sector professionals, and as the fourth most attractive by IT professionals, in an annual employer branding survey by Universum. Year after year in the survey, professionals and students have ranked us as top performers.

Over the years, one of our strategic priorities has been to ensure that our personnel are highly skilled, motivated and satisfied. The survey results are strong evidence of our success in fulfilling this priority. Our employer image, as a genuinely inclusive workplace based on high-level competencies, is critical to retaining our current talent and continuing to recruit the best for OP Financial Group.

Together through time

OP Financial Group is in great shape to be there for its customers through economic ups and downs. We want to be a pioneer in Finnish society, pointing the way towards futures filled with hope. The success of Finland and all those who live here is our number one priority now and in the future.

My warm thanks to all our customers for the trust they have shown in OP Financial Group. We want to continue being worthy of your trust going forward. I would also like to give my heartfelt thanks to our employees and governing bodies for their fine work and commitment during the year. We have a superb basis for continuing to be successful in the times ahead.

Timo Ritakallio
President and Group CEO

January–September

OP Financial Group’s operating profit was EUR 1,948 million (1,570), up by 24.1% or EUR 378 million year on year. Income from customer business, or net interest income, net commissions and fees and insurance service result, increased by a total of 6.8% to EUR 2,813 million (2,634). The cost/income ratio improved to 44.6% (47.3). New OP bonuses accrued to owner-customers, which are included in earnings, increased by 14.1% to EUR 233 million.

Net interest income grew by 10.4% to EUR 2,118 million. The development of market rates continued to increase net interest income. Net interest income reported by the Retail Banking segment increased by 10.7% to EUR 1,615 million and that by the Corporate Banking segment increased by 11.9% to EUR 493 million. OP Financial Group’s loan portfolio decreased by 1.0% to EUR 98.0 billion while deposits grew by 5.0% to EUR 76.2 billion, year on year. Household deposits increased by 1.7% year on year, to EUR 47.8 billion. New loans drawn down by customers during the reporting period totalled EUR 15.0 billion (16.0).

Impairment loss on loans and receivables, which reduces earnings, totalled EUR 72 million (170). A year ago, expected credit losses concerning the real estate and construction sector increased the impairment loss on receivables. Final credit losses totalled EUR 38 million (42). At the end of the reporting period, loss allowance was EUR 964 million (929), of which management overlay accounted for EUR 85 million (109). Non-performing exposures accounted for 2.9% (2.9) of total exposures. Impairment loss on loans and receivables accounted for 0.10% (0.22) of the loan and guarantee portfolio.

Owner-customers have received daily banking services without monthly charges since October 2023. This contributed to the decrease in payment transfer net commissions and fees. Net commissions and fees decreased by a total of 8.7% to EUR 599 million. Net commissions and fees for payment transfer services decreased by EUR 58 million to EUR 175 million, and those for residential brokerage by EUR 4 million to EUR 43 million. Meanwhile, commission income from life insurance investment contracts increased by EUR 3 million to EUR 21 million.

Insurance service result increased by EUR 37 million to EUR 95 million. Insurance service result includes EUR 387 million (348) in operating expenses. Non-life insurance net insurance revenue including reinsurer’s share grew by 7.3% to EUR 1,299 million. Net claims incurred after reinsurer’s share grew by 7.9% to EUR 859 million. Combined ratio reported by non-life insurance was 95.0% (94.8).

Investment income, or net investment income, net insurance finance expenses and income from financial assets held for trading, increased by a total of 42.7% to EUR 419 million. Investment income grew as a result of the increase in the value of equity and fixed income investments. Net investment income together with net finance income describe investment profitability in the insurance business. The combined return on investments at fair value of OP Financial Group’s insurance companies was 6.4% (2.7).

Net income from financial assets recognised at fair value through profit or loss, or notes and bonds, shares and derivatives, totalled EUR 1,605 million (591). Net income from investment contract liabilities totalled EUR –689 million (–241). Net insurance finance expenses totalled EUR –565 million (–102). In banking, net income from financial assets held for trading grew by 77.2% to EUR 43 million due to the increase in interest income from derivatives.

Other operating income increased to EUR 31 million (28).

Total expenses grew by 4.2% to EUR 1,629 million. Personnel costs rose by 11.3% to EUR 781 million. The increase was affected by headcount growth and pay increases. OP Financial Group’s personnel increased by approximately 1,061 year on year. Depreciation/amortisation and impairment loss on PPE and intangible assets decreased by 22.1% to EUR 107 million. Other operating expenses grew by 2.3% to EUR 741 million. ICT costs increased to EUR 372 million (318). Development costs were EUR 249 million (194) and capitalised development expenditure EUR 43 million (66). Charges of financial authorities fell by EUR 62 million to EUR 1 million. The EU’s Single Resolution Board (SRB) will not collect stability contributions from banks for 2024. In 2023, OP Financial Group paid a total of EUR 62 million in stability contributions.

The new OP bonuses to owner-customers have been divided under the following items based on their accrual: EUR 125 million (116) under interest income, EUR 61 million (49) under interest expenses, EUR 36 million (29) under commission income from mutual funds, and EUR 12 million (11) under insurance service result.

Income tax amounted to EUR 388 million (312). The effective tax rate for the reporting period was 19.9% (19.9). Comprehensive income after tax totalled EUR 1,644 million (1,279).

OP Financial Group’s equity amounted to EUR 17.7 billion (16.3). Equity included EUR 3.2 billion (3.3) in Profit Shares, terminated Profit Shares accounting for EUR 0.3 billion (0.4).

OP Financial Group’s funding position and liquidity is strong. At the end of the reporting period, the Group’s LCR was 214% (199) and NSFR was 130% (130).

Outlook towards the year end

The Finnish economy was sluggish in the first half. GDP contracted over the previous year and unemployment increased. Forecast data suggests that the Finnish economy began to grow in the third quarter of 2024. Falling inflation and interest rates provide a basis for the recovery to continue. Risks associated with the economic outlook are still higher than usual. The escalation of geopolitical crises may abruptly affect capital markets and the economic environment.

OP Financial Group’s operating profit for 2024 is expected to be higher than that for 2023.

The key uncertainties affecting OP Financial Group’s earnings performance in late 2024 relate to developments in the business environment, changes in the interest rate and investment environment, and developments in impairment loss on receivables. Forward-looking statements in this Interim Report expressing the management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions are based on the current view on developments in the economy, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements.

Press conference

OP Financial Group’s financial performance will be presented to the media by President and Group Chief Executive Officer Timo Ritakallio in a press conference on 31 October 2024 at 11am at Gebhardinaukio 1, Vallila, Helsinki.

Media enquiries: OP Corporate Communications, tel. +358 10 252 8719, viestinta@op.fi

OP Corporate Bank plc and OP Mortgage Bank will publish their own interim reports.

Schedule for financial reports for 2024:

OP Amalgamation Pillar 3 Tables 30 September 2024	Week 45, 2024
Report by the Board of Directors (incl. Sustainability Report) and Financial Statements 2024	Week 11, 2025
OP Financial Group’s Corporate Governance Statement 2024	Week 11, 2025
OP Financial Group’s Annual Report 2024	Week 11, 2025
OP Amalgamation Pillar 3 Disclosures 2024	Week 11, 2025
OP Financial Group’s Remuneration Report for Governing Bodies 2024	Week 11, 2025
Remuneration Policy for Governing Bodies at OP Financial Group	Week 11, 2025

Schedule for Financial Statements Bulletin 2024 and Interim Reports and Half-year Financial Report in 2025:

Financial Statements Bulletin 1 January‒31 December 2024	6 February 2025
Interim Report 1 January–31 March 2025	7 May 2025
Half-year Financial Report 1 January–30 June 2025	30 July 2025
Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2025	28 October 2025
OP Amalgamation Pillar 3 Disclosures 31 March 2025	Week 19, 2025
OP Amalgamation Pillar 3 Disclosures 30 June 2025	Week 32, 2025
OP Amalgamation Pillar 3 Disclosures 30 September 2025	Week 45, 2025

Helsinki, 31 October 2024

OP Cooperative
Board of Directors

Additional information:

Timo Ritakallio, President and Group Chief Executive Officer, tel. +358 (0)10 252 4500
Mikko Timonen, Chief Financial Officer, tel. +358 (0)10 252 1325
Piia Kumpulainen, Chief Communications Officer, tel. +358 (0)10 252 7317

DISTRIBUTION

Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd
Euronext Dublin (Irish Stock Exchange)
London Stock Exchange
Major media
op.fi

OP Financial Group is Finland’s largest financial services group, with more than two million owner-customers and over 14,000 employees. We provide a comprehensive range of banking and insurance services for personal and corporate customers. OP Financial Group consists of OP cooperative banks, its central cooperative OP Cooperative, and the latter’s subsidiaries and affiliates. Our mission is to promote the sustainable prosperity, security and wellbeing of our owner-customers and operating region. Together with our owner-customers, we have been building Finnish society and a sustainable future for 120 years now. www.op.fi

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Shell plc publishes third quarter 2024 press release

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

London, October 31, 2024

“Shell delivered another set of strong results. We continue to deliver more value with less emissions, whilst enhancing the resilience of our balance sheet. Today, we announce another $3.5 billion buyback programme for the next three months, making this the 12^th consecutive quarter in which we have announced $3 billion or more in buybacks.”

Shell plc Chief Executive Officer, Wael Sawan

STRONG RESULTS, CONSISTENT DISTRIBUTIONS

Q3 2024 Adjusted Earnings¹ of $6.0 billion, despite the lower crude prices and weaker refining margins, reflect strong operational performance in Integrated Gas, Upstream and Marketing.
CFFO of $14.7 billion for the quarter includes a working capital inflow of $2.7 billion; net debt reduced to $35.2 billion ($9.6 billion excluding lease liabilities).
Cash capex for 2024 is expected to be below the lower end of the $22 – 25 billion range.
Commencing a $3.5 billion share buyback programme, expected to be completed by Q4 2024 results announcement. Over the last 4 quarters, total shareholder distributions paid were 43% of CFFO. Dividend stable at $0.344 per ordinary share.

$ million¹		Adj. Earnings	Adj. EBITDA	CFFO	Cash capex
Integrated Gas		2,871	5,234	3,623	1,236
Upstream		2,443	7,871	5,268	1,974
Marketing		1,182	2,081	2,722	525
Chemicals & Products²		463	1,240	3,321	761
Renewables & Energy Solutions		(162)	(75)	(364)	409
Corporate		(643)	(346)	115	45
Less: Non-controlling interest (NCI)		126
Shell	Q3 2024	6,028	16,005	14,684	4,950
Shell	Q2 2024	6,293	16,806	13,508	4,719

¹Income/(loss) attributable to shareholders for Q3 2024 is $4.3 billion. Reconciliation of non-GAAP measures can be found in the unaudited results, available at www.shell.com/investors.

²Chemicals & Products Adjusted Earnings at a subsegment level are as follows – Chemicals $(0.1) billion and Products $0.6 billion.

CFFO of $14.7 billion for Q3 2024 includes a working capital inflow of $2.7 billion mainly due to lower prices. CFFO reflects tax payments of $3.0 billion. Net debt reduced by $3.1 billion over the quarter to $35.2 billion ($9.6 billion excluding lease liabilities).

$ billion¹	Q3 2023	Q4 2023	Q1 2024	Q2 2024	Q3 2024
Divestment proceeds	0.3	0.6	1.0	0.8	0.2
Free cash flow	7.5	6.9	9.8	10.2	10.8
Net debt	40.5	43.5	40.5	38.3	35.2

¹ Reconciliation of non-GAAP measures can be found in the unaudited results, available at www.shell.com/investors.

Q3 2024 FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE DRIVERS

INTEGRATED GAS

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024 outlook
Realised liquids price ($/bbl)	68	63	—
Realised gas price ($/thousand scf)	7.6	7.9	—
Production (kboe/d)	980	941	900 – 960
LNG liquefaction volumes (MT)	6.9	7.5	6.9 – 7.5
LNG sales volumes (MT)	16.4	17.0	—

Adjusted Earnings were higher than in Q2 2024, due to higher LNG liquefaction volumes. Trading and optimisation results
were in line with a strong Q2 2024.
Q4 2024 production outlook reflects scheduled maintenance at Pearl GTL in Qatar.

UPSTREAM

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024 outlook
Realised liquids price ($/bbl)	78	75	—
Realised gas price ($/thousand scf)	6.2	6.6	—
Liquids production (kboe/d)	1,297	1,321	—
Gas production (million scf/d)	2,818	2,844	—
Total production (kboe/d)	1,783	1,811	1,750 – 1,950

Adjusted Earnings were higher than in Q2 2024, as lower prices were offset by lower well write-offs than in the previous quarter.

MARKETING

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024 outlook
Marketing sales volumes (kb/d)	2,868	2,945	2,550 – 3,050
Mobility (kb/d)	2,078	2,119	—
Lubricants (kb/d)	84	81	—
Sectors & Decarbonisation (kb/d)	706	745	—

Wholesale commercial fuels, previously reported in the Chemicals & Products segment, is reported in the Marketing segment (Mobility) with effect from Q1 2024.
Comparative information for the Marketing segment and the Chemicals & Product segment has been revised.

Adjusted Earnings were higher than in Q2 2024 due to improved Mobility unit margins and impact of seasonally higher volumes.

CHEMICALS & PRODUCTS

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024 outlook
Refinery processing intake (kb/d)	1,429	1,305	—
Chemicals sales volumes (kT)	3,052	3,015	—
Refinery utilisation (%)	92	81	75 – 83
Chemicals manufacturing plant utilisation (%)	80	76	72 – 80
Global indicative refining margin ($/bbl)	7.7	5.5	—
Global indicative chemical margin ($/t)	155	164	—

Wholesale commercial fuels, previously reported in the Chemicals & Products segment, is reported in the Marketing segment (Mobility) with effect from Q1 2024.

Comparative information for the Marketing segment and the Chemicals & Products segment has been revised.

Lower refining margins in Q3 2024 were driven by a stabilising market with increased supply. Chemicals Adjusted Earnings
were lower than in Q2 2024 due to lower utilisation and lower realised prices.
Trading and optimisation results were in line with Q2 2024.

RENEWABLES & ENERGY SOLUTIONS

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024
External power sales (TWh)	74	79
Sales of pipeline gas to end-use customers (TWh)	148	148
Renewables power generation capacity (GW)*	7.1	7.3
in operation (GW)	3.3	3.4
under construction and/or committed for sale (GW)	3.8	3.9

*Excludes Shell’s equity share of associates where information cannot be obtained.

Adjusted Earnings were in line with Q2 2024.

Renewables and Energy Solutions includes activities such as renewable power generation, the marketing and trading and optimisation of power and pipeline gas, as well as carbon credits, and digitally enabled customer solutions.
It also includes the production and marketing of hydrogen, development of commercial carbon capture and storage hubs, investment in nature-based projects that avoid or reduce carbon emissions, and Shell Ventures, which invests in companies that work to accelerate the energy and mobility transformation.

CORPORATE

Key data	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024 outlook
Adjusted Earnings ($ billion)	(0.6)	(0.6)	(0.8) – (0.6)

The Adjusted Earnings outlook is a net expense of $2.2 – 2.4 billion for the full year 2024.

UPCOMING ANNOUNCED INVESTOR EVENTS

January 30, 2025	Fourth quarter 2024 results and dividends
May 2, 2025	First quarter 2025 results and dividends
July 31, 2025	Second quarter 2025 results and dividends
October 30, 2025	Third quarter 2025 results and dividends

USEFUL LINKS

Results materials Q 3 2024

Quarterly Databook Q 3 2024

Webcast registration Q3 2024

Dividend announcement Q 3 2024

ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE (NON-GAAP) MEASURES

This announcement includes certain measures that are calculated and presented on the basis of methodologies other than in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) such as IFRS, including Adjusted Earnings, Adjusted EBITDA, CFFO excluding working capital movements, Cash capital expenditure, free cash flow, Divestment proceeds and Net debt. This information, along with comparable GAAP measures, is useful to investors because it provides a basis for measuring Shell plc’s operating performance and ability to retire debt and invest in new business opportunities. Shell plc’s management uses these financial measures, along with the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, in evaluating the business performance.

This announcement may contain certain forward-looking non-GAAP measures for cash capital expenditure and divestments. We are unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile the non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of the company, such as oil and gas prices, interest rates and exchange rates. Moreover, estimating such GAAP measures with the required precision necessary to provide a meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-GAAP measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable GAAP financial measure are estimated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Shell plc’s consolidated financial statements.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this announcement “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. “Subsidiaries”, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this announcement refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. The terms “joint venture”, “joint operations”, “joint arrangements”, and “associates” may also be used to refer to a commercial arrangement in which Shell has a direct or indirect ownership interest with one or more parties. The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

This announcement contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Shell to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “aim”; “ambition”; “anticipate”; “believe”; “commit”; “commitment”; “could”; “estimate”; “expect”; “goals”; “intend”; “may”; “milestones”; “objectives”; “outlook”; “plan”; “probably”; “project”; “risks”; “schedule”; “seek”; “should”; “target”; “will”; “would” and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this [report], including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell’s products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, judicial, fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, such as the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, regional conflicts, such as the Russia-Ukraine war, and a significant cyber security breach; and (n) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Shell plc’s Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2023 (available at www.shell.com/investors/news-and-filings/sec-filings.html and www.sec.gov). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this [report] and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this announcement, October 31, 2024. Neither Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement.

All amounts shown throughout this announcement are unaudited. The numbers presented throughout this announcement may not sum precisely to the totals provided and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures, due to rounding.

Shell’s Net Carbon Intensity

Also, in this announcement we may refer to Shell’s “Net Carbon Intensity” (NCI), which includes Shell’s carbon emissions from the production of our energy products, our suppliers’ carbon emissions in supplying energy for that production and our customers’ carbon emissions associated with their use of the energy products we sell. Shell’s NCI also includes the emissions associated with the production and use of energy products produced by others which Shell purchases for resale. Shell only controls its own emissions. The use of the terms Shell’s “Net Carbon Intensity” or NCI is for convenience only and not intended to suggest these emissions are those of Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

Shell’s Net-Zero Emissions Target

Shell’s operating plan, outlook and budgets are forecasted for a ten-year period and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next ten years. Accordingly, they reflect our Scope 1, Scope 2 and NCI targets over the next ten years. However, Shell’s operating plans cannot reflect our 2050 net-zero emissions target, as this target is currently outside our planning period. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell’s operating plans to reflect this movement. However, if society is not net zero in 2050, as of today, there would be significant risk that Shell may not meet this target.

The content of websites referred to in this announcement does not form part of this announcement.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this announcement that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.

The financial information presented in this announcement does not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of section 434(3) of the Companies Act 2006 (“the Act”). Statutory accounts for the year ended December 31, 2023 were published in Shell’s Annual Report and Accounts, a copy of which was delivered to the Registrar of Companies for England and Wales, and in Shell’s Form 20-F. The auditor’s report on those accounts was unqualified, did not include a reference to any matters to which the auditor drew attention by way of emphasis without qualifying the report and did not contain a statement under sections 498(2) or 498(3) of the Act.

The information in this announcement does not constitute the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements which are contained in Shell’s third quarter 2024 unaudited results available on www.shell.com/investors.

CONTACTS

Media: International +44 207 934 5550; USA +1 832 337 4355

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI USA: President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

US Senate News:

Source: The White House
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to establish an advisory council on science and technology, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Purpose. The American story is one of boundless creativity and bold ambition, driven by an indomitable pioneering spirit that propels exploration and discovery. It is this spirit that illuminated the world with Edison’s lightbulb, carried the Wright brothers into the skies, and sent Armstrong to the moon. Today, a new frontier of scientific discovery lies before us, defined by transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and advanced biotechnology. Breakthroughs in these fields have the potential to reshape the global balance of power, spark entirely new industries, and revolutionize the way we live and work. As our global competitors race to exploit these technologies, it is a national security imperative for the United States to achieve and maintain unquestioned and unchallenged global technological dominance. To secure our future, we must harness the full power of American innovation by empowering entrepreneurs, unleashing private-sector creativity, and reinvigorating our research institutions.
At the heart of scientific progress lies the pursuit of truth. But this foundational principle, which has driven every major breakthrough in our history, is increasingly under threat. Today, across science, medicine, and technology, ideological dogmas have surfaced that elevate group identity above individual achievement, enforce conformity at the expense of innovative ideas, and inject politics into the heart of the scientific method. These agendas have not only distorted truth but have eroded public trust, undermined the integrity of research, stifled innovation, and weakened America’s competitive edge.
This order establishes the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology to unite the brightest minds from academia, industry, and government to guide our Nation through this critical moment by charting a path forward for American leadership in science and technology.
Sec. 2. Establishment. (a) There is hereby established the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).(b) The PCAST shall be composed of not more than 24 members. The Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST) and the Special Advisor for AI & Crypto shall be members of the PCAST. If also serving as the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the APST may designate the U.S. Chief Technology Officer as a member. The remaining members shall be distinguished individuals and representatives from sectors outside of the Federal Government appointed by the President. These non-Federal members shall have diverse perspectives and expertise in science, technology, education, and innovation.(c) The APST and the Special Advisor for AI & Crypto shall serve as Co-Chairs of the PCAST. The Co-Chairs may designate up to two Vice Chairs of the PCAST from among the non-Federal members of the PCAST, to support the Co-Chairs in the leadership and organization of the PCAST.
Sec. 3. Functions. (a) The PCAST shall advise the President on matters involving science, technology, education, and innovation policy. The Council shall also provide the President with scientific and technical information that is needed to inform public policy relating to the American economy, the American worker, national and homeland security, and other topics.(b) The PCAST shall meet regularly and shall:(i)    respond to requests from the President or the Co-Chairs for information, analysis, evaluation, or advice;(ii) solicit information and ideas from a broad range of stakeholders, including the research community; the private sector; universities; national laboratories; State, local, and Tribal governments; foundations; and nonprofit organizations;(iii) serve as the advisory committee identified in section 101(b) of the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 (Public Law 102-194), as amended (15 U.S.C. 5511(b)), in which capacity the PCAST shall be known as the President’s Innovation and Technology Advisory Committee; and(iv)    serve as the advisory panel identified in section 4 of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (Public Law 108-153), as amended (15 U.S.C. 7503), in which capacity the PCAST shall be known as the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel.(c) The PCAST shall provide advice from the non-Federal sector to the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) in response to requests from the NSTC.
Sec. 4. Administration. (a) The heads of executive departments and agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, provide the PCAST with information concerning scientific and technological matters when requested by the PCAST Co-Chairs and as required for the purpose of carrying out the PCAST’s functions.(b) In consultation with the Co-Chairs, the PCAST is authorized to create standing subcommittees and ad hoc groups, including technical advisory groups, to assist the PCAST and provide preliminary information directly to the PCAST.(c) In order to allow the PCAST to provide advice and analysis regarding classified matters, the Co-Chairs may request that members of the PCAST, its standing subcommittees, or ad hoc groups who do not hold a current clearance for access to classified information receive security clearance and access determinations pursuant to Executive Order 12968 of August 2, 1995 (Access to Classified Information), as amended, or any successor order.(d) The Department of Energy shall provide such funding and administrative and technical support as the PCAST may require, to the extent permitted by law and as authorized by existing appropriations.(e) Members of the PCAST shall serve without any compensation for their work on the PCAST, but may receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by law for persons serving intermittently in the government service (5 U.S.C. 5701–5707).(f) Insofar as the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. App.), may apply to the PCAST, any functions of the President under that Act, except that of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the Secretary of Energy, in accordance with the guidelines and procedures established by the Administrator of General Services.
Sec. 5. Termination. The PCAST shall terminate 2 years from the date of this order unless extended by the President.
Sec. 6. Revocation. Executive Order 14007 of January 27, 2021 (President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology), as amended by Executive Order 14109 of September 29, 2023 (Continuance of Certain Federal Advisory Committees and Amendments to Other Executive Orders), is hereby revoked.
Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
THE WHITE HOUSE    January 23, 2025.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: The First 100 Hours: Historic Action to Kick off America’s Golden Age

US Senate News:

Source: The White House
class=”has-text-align-left”>President Donald Trump’s second term is off to an historic start. The President is wasting no time delivering on the promises he made to the American people. The President signed more executive orders on his first day in office than any other president in history. Within the first 100 hours of his second administration, President Trump taken hundreds of executive actions to secure the border, deport criminal illegal immigrants, unleash American prosperity, lower costs, increase government transparency, and reinstitute merit-based hiring in the federal government. The President has already secured over $1 trillion in historic new investments.
We’re witnessing the Trump Effect:
President Trump is securing historic investments just days after being sworn in.
President Trump secured $500 billion in private sector investment for the largest AI infrastructure project in history, with Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman all stating that it would not have been possible if not for President Trump’s election victory and leadership.
Saudi Arabia “wants to invest $600 billion in the United States over the next four years.”
Stellantis announced it will restart an assembly plant in Illinois and build the new Dodge Durango in Detroit.
The Detroit Free Press: “The news, announced in a letter Wednesday to employees from North America Chief Operating Officer Antonio Filosa, also provided some good news to workers in Toledo, Ohio, and Kokomo, Indiana, where investments are planned. The Belvidere plant will start production of a new midsize truck in the next two years. The letter said company Chairman John Elkann had met last week with President Donald Trump before his inauguration on Monday. Elkann shared ‘our enthusiasm for his strong commitment to the United States auto industry and all that this means for American jobs and the broader economy.’”

President Trump is already securing the border and arresting criminal illegal immigrants.
The Border Patrol is reporting a significant drop already in attempted illegal crossings.
Fox News: “The U.S. southern border has seen a sharp drop in illegal immigrant encounters in the first days of the Trump administration, compared to the final few days of the Biden administration.”
ICE is at work rounding up criminal aliens.
Fox News: “Information obtained by Fox News Digital, shows that between midnight Jan. 21 and 9 a.m. Jan 22, a 33-hour period, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested more than 460 illegal immigrants that include criminal histories of sexual assault, robbery, burglary, aggravated assault, drugs and weapons offenses, resisting arrest and domestic violence.”
Breitbart News: “President Donald Trump’s administration arrested 538 illegal aliens on Thursday, ranging from child predators to gang members and a suspected terrorist.”

The Trump Administration immediately shut down the CBP One app, which “paroled” over 1 million illegal immigrants.
Deportation flights have already started and the military is assisting with the effort.
The Department of Homeland Security reinstated official use of the term “illegal alien” over “undocumented noncitizen,” and the DOJ announced it would be taking action against lawless sanctuary city policies.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order to designate the cartels as terrorist organizations.

Common sense has been restored to the government.
President Trump signed a series of executive orders ensuring the elimination of discriminatory DEI practices and ensuring merit-based hiring.
DEI staff are being placed on leave.
The Federal Aviation Administration must now return to merit-based hiring.
President Trump ended an affirmative action mandate in federal government hiring.
President Trump signed an executive order affirming the reality that there are only two sexes.
The State Department issued guidance that embassies should only be flying the American flag, and not any activist flags.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order telling agencies to stop remote work practices and directing workers to return to the office.
The State Department subsequently ordered workers to return to working in the office.
President Donald Trump is unleashing American energy.
President Trump declared a National Energy Emergency to unlock America’s full energy potential and bring down costs for American families.
President Trump rescinded every one of Joe Biden’s industry-killing, pro-China, and anti-American energy regulations, empowering consumer choice in vehicles, showerheads, toilets, washing machines, lightbulbs, and dishwashers.
President Trump withdrew the United States from the disastrous Paris Climate Agreement that unfairly ripped off our country.
President Trump paused all new federal leasing and permitting for massive wind farms that degrade our natural landscapes and fail to serve American energy consumers.
President Trump reversed the burdensome regulations that impeded Alaska’s ability to develop its vast natural resources.
President Trump terminated Biden’s harmful electric vehicle mandate.

These opening few days can be summarized as Promises Made, Promises Kept:
President Donald Trump said he would declassify the JFK Files. He did.
President Donald Trump said he would end the EV mandate. He did.
President Donald Trump said he would have the backs of the brave men and women in law enforcement. He did just that by pardoning two Washington D.C. Police officers that were unjustly prosecuted. The Metropolitan Police Department thanked President Trump for the pardon.
President Donald Trump said he would use the military to secure the border. The Pentagon is deploying troops to the border and the Coast Guard is surging assets to the Gulf of America.
President Trump said we would drill, baby, drill. The President signed executive orders to open up offshore drilling and allow more energy exploration in Alaska.
President Donald Trump said he would end the weaponization of government. He signed an executive order doing just that.
President Donald Trump said he would pardon the J6 Hostages. He did.
President Donald Trump said he would end government censorship. On his first day in office, he signed an executive order restoring freedom of speech and ending government censorship.
President Trump is being praised for his historic leadership:
The Steel Manufacturers Association: “President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated his strong support for American steel workers. He reiterated that support on day one by directing his agencies to investigate unfair trade and its impact on domestic manufacturing.”
American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers President and CEO Chet Thompson: “President Trump promised to end gas car bans and vehicle mandates on Day 1 of his new administration, and we are pleased to see that work already underway. Thank you, President Trump.”
American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers: “Americans sent a clear message at the ballot box, and President Trump is answering the call on Day 1. U.S. energy dominance will drive our nation’s economic and security agenda. This is a new day for American energy, and we applaud President Trump for moving swiftly to chart a new path where U.S. oil and natural gas are embraced, not restricted.”
Job Creators Network CEO Alfredo Ortiz: “Trump’s two-fold approach of boosting oil and gas production and repealing the Biden administration’s green energy mandates will make American energy cheaper, reliable and more efficient.”
Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Bob Broeksmit: “President Trump campaigned on lowering costs for Americans, and we appreciate housing supply and affordability being included in an executive order on this issue. We support efforts to cut unnecessary regulatory red tape and to pursue federal housing program enhancements that make renting and homeownership more attainable and sustainable.”
Professional Trucking Association Group: “President Trump’s decision to freeze regulations and curtail bureaucratic overreach is commendable. This is precisely what America needs: reduced government interference and increased freedom for small trucking businesses and entrepreneurs to flourish.”
NetChoice CEO Steve DelBianco: “Upon returning to office, President Trump showed that America is ready to lead in tech and innovation again. By repealing Biden’s restrictive rules on energy production and AI development, the president is steering America to remain dominant in creating the best technology in the world.”
United Against Nuclear Iran Chairman Governor Jeb Bush and CEO Ambassador Mark Wallace: “We applaud President Trump for his decision today to redesignate the Houthis as an FTO. UANI in its recommended action plan for the Trump administration’s first 100 days suggested that the president redesignate the Houthis as an FTO. This will now provide the U.S. government additional authorities to hold the Houthis accountable for their threats to international commerce and U.S. allies and partners.”

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence

US Senate News:

Source: The White House
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Purpose. The United States has long been at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, driven by the strength of our free markets, world-class research institutions, and entrepreneurial spirit. To maintain this leadership, we must develop AI systems that are free from ideological bias or engineered social agendas. With the right Government policies, we can solidify our position as the global leader in AI and secure a brighter future for all Americans.This order revokes certain existing AI policies and directives that act as barriers to American AI innovation, clearing a path for the United States to act decisively to retain global leadership in artificial intelligence.
Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of the United States to sustain and enhance America’s global AI dominance in order to promote human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security.
Sec. 3. Definition. For the purposes of this order, “artificial intelligence” or “AI” has the meaning set forth in 15 U.S.C. 9401(3).
Sec. 4. Developing an Artificial Intelligence Action Plan. (a) Within 180 days of this order, the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST), the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, and the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), in coordination with the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB Director), and the heads of such executive departments and agencies (agencies) as the APST and APNSA deem relevant, shall develop and submit to the President an action plan to achieve the policy set forth in section 2 of this order.
Sec. 5. Implementation of Order Revocation. (a) The APST, the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, and the APNSA shall immediately review, in coordination with the heads of all agencies as they deem relevant, all policies, directives, regulations, orders, and other actions taken pursuant to the revoked Executive Order 14110 of October 30, 2023 (Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence). The APST, the Special Advisor for AI and Crypto, and the APNSA shall, in coordination with the heads of relevant agencies, identify any actions taken pursuant to Executive Order 14110 that are or may be inconsistent with, or present obstacles to, the policy set forth in section 2 of this order. For any such agency actions identified, the heads of agencies shall, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, suspend, revise, or rescind such actions, or propose suspending, revising, or rescinding such actions. If in any case such suspension, revision, or rescission cannot be finalized immediately, the APST and the heads of agencies shall promptly take steps to provide all available exemptions authorized by any such orders, rules, regulations, guidelines, or policies, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, until such action can be finalized.(b) Within 60 days of this order, the OMB Director, in coordination with the APST, shall revise OMB Memoranda M-24-10 and M-24-18 as necessary to make them consistent with the policy set forth in section 2 of this order.
Sec. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
THE WHITE HOUSE,January 23, 2025.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Scheme of Arrangement for Acquisition of i3 Energy plc Becomes Effective

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CALGARY, Alberta, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —

31 October 2024

RECOMMENDED AND FINAL CASH AND SHARE ACQUISITION

for

i3 Energy plc (“i3 Energy”)

Gran Tierra Energy Inc. (“Gran Tierra”)

to be implemented by way of a scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006

SCHEME OF ARRANGEMENT BECOMES EFFECTIVE

On 19 August 2024, the boards of directors of i3 Energy and Gran Tierra announced that they had reached agreement on the terms of a recommended and final cash and share acquisition of the entire issued, and to be issued, share capital of i3 Energy (the “Acquisition”). The Acquisition is being implemented by means of a Court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006.

i3 Energy published a circular in relation to the Scheme dated 29 August 2024 (the “Scheme Document“).

On 29 October 2024, i3 Energy announced that the Court had sanctioned the Scheme at the Sanction Hearing held on 29 October 2024.

i3 Energy and Gran Tierra are pleased to announce that, following delivery of the Court Order to the Registrar of Companies and satisfaction or waiver of all of the conditions set out in the Scheme Document, the Scheme has now become Effective in accordance with its terms and, pursuant to the Scheme, the entire issued and to be issued share capital of i3 Energy is now owned by Gran Tierra.

Consideration

A Scheme Shareholder on the register of members of i3 Energy at the Scheme Record Time, being 6.00 p.m. on 30 October 2024, will be entitled to receive one New Gran Tierra Share per every 207 i3 Energy Shares held and 10.43 pence cash per i3 Energy Share subject to any adjustments to such consideration resulting from valid Elections made under the Mix and Match Facility. For Scheme Shareholders holding Scheme Shares in certificated form, settlement of the consideration will be effected by electronic payment or (for those Scheme Shareholders who have not set up an electronic payment mandate) by the despatch of cheques. For Scheme Shareholders holding Scheme Shares in uncertificated form, settlement of consideration will be effected by the crediting of CREST or CDS accounts, as applicable. In each case settlement of consideration will occur as soon as practicable and in any event not later than 14 days after the date of this announcement, being 14 November 2024.

Further to the announcement on 7 October 2024, i3 Energy confirms that, the Scheme having become Effective, the Acquisition Dividend totalling £3,084,278 will be paid as follows:

	Dividend:	0.2565 pence / i3 Energy Share

	Record Date:	6.00 p.m. on 30 October 2024

	Payment date:	by 13 November 2024

i3 Energy admission to listing on AIM

An application was made for the suspension of admission to trading in i3 Energy Shares on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM Market (“AIM“) and such suspension has taken effect from 7.30 a.m. today. The cancellation of the admission to trading of the i3 Energy Shares on AIM has been applied for and is expected to take place by 8.00 a.m. on 1 November 2024. The delisting of the i3 Energy Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange has been applied for and is expected to take place at the close of markets on 1 November 2024.

Gran Tierra admission of shares to listing

An application has been made for the admission of 5,808,925 new shares (the “Consideration Shares“) of common stock of par value USD0.001 per share in Gran Tierra. Gran Tierra has applied for the Consideration Shares to be admitted to the Equity Shares (International Commercial Companies Secondary Listing) Category of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and to trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange PLC (together, “Admission“).

Gran Tierra expects Admission of the Consideration Shares to occur at 8.00 a.m. on 1 November 2024. The Consideration Shares will rank pari passu in all respects with Gran Tierra’s existing shares of common stock of par value USD0.001 per share.

Total Voting Rights

Following Admission, Gran Tierra will have total issued share capital of 36,460,141 common shares, and holds no common shares in treasury. Gran Tierra Shareholders may use the figure of 36,460,141 as the denominator in calculations to determine if they are required to notify Gran Tierra of their interest in, or a change to their interest in Gran Tierra under the Financial Conduct Authority’s Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

Cancellation of the Trafigura Loan Facility

Gran Tierra also announces that the Loan Facility entered into on 19 August 2024 with Trafigura has today been cancelled. As announced on 18 September 2024, Gran Tierra completed an offering of an additional US$ 150 million aggregate principal amount of its 9.500% Senior Secured Amortizing Notes due 2029, the net proceeds of which are being applied to satisfy the cash consideration payable to i3 Energy Shareholders in place of the term loan facility available to Gran Tierra pursuant to the terms of the Loan Facility.

Board and constitutional changes

Each of the i3 Energy Directors has resigned as a director of i3 Energy with effect from the Scheme becoming Effective.

Pedro Zutara, Adam Hewitson and Amy Lister have been appointed as directors of i3 Energy with effect from the Scheme becoming Effective.

i3 Energy will in due course submit an application to cease to be a reporting issuer in each of the provinces of Canada under National Policy 11-206 – Process for Cease to be a Reporting Issuer Applications. i3 Energy is expected to be converted to a private limited company and its name changed to Gran Tierra UK Limited. As disclosed in the Scheme Document, i3 Energy Shares are expected to be transferred to a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gran Tierra following completion of the re-registration.

Full details of the Acquisition are set out in the Scheme Document. Defined terms used but not defined in this announcement have the meanings set out in the Scheme Document. All references to times in this announcement are to London time.

Enquiries:

Gran Tierra Gary Guidry Ryan Ellson	Tel: +1 (403) 265 3221

i3 Energy Majid Shafiq (CEO)	c/o Camarco Tel: +44 (0) 203 757 4980

Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Joint Financial Adviser to Gran Tierra) Callum Stewart Simon Mensley	Tel: +44 (0) 20 7710 7600

Eight Capital (Joint Financial Adviser to Gran Tierra) Tony P. Loria Matthew Halasz	Tel: +1 (587) 893 6835

Zeus Capital Limited (Rule 3 Financial Adviser, Nomad and Joint Broker to i3 Energy) James Joyce, Darshan Patel, Isaac Hooper	Tel: +44 (0) 203 829 5000

Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Securities – Canada, ULC (Financial Adviser to i3 Energy) Brendan Lines	Tel: +1 (403) 705 7830

National Bank Financial Inc. (Financial Adviser to i3 Energy) Tarek Brahim Arun Chandrasekaran	Tel: +1 (403) 410 7749

Camarco Georgia Edmonds, Violet Wilson, Sam Morris	Tel: +44 (0) 203 757 4980

No increase statement

The financial terms of the Acquisition will not be increased save that Gran Tierra reserves the right to revise the financial terms of the Acquisition in the event: (i) a third party, other than Gran Tierra, announces a firm intention to make an offer for i3 Energy on more favourable terms than Gran Tierra’s Acquisition; or (ii) the Panel otherwise provides its consent.

Notices relating to financial advisers

Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (“Stifel“), which is authorised and regulated by the FCA in the UK, is acting as financial adviser exclusively for Gran Tierra and no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Gran Tierra for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to matters referred to in this announcement. Neither Stifel, nor any of its affiliates, owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Stifel in connection with this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

Eight Capital (“Eight Capital“), which is authorised and regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization in Canada, is acting exclusively for Gran Tierra and for no one else in connection with the subject matter of this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Gran Tierra for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in connection with the subject matter of this announcement.

Zeus Capital Limited (“Zeus“), which is authorised and regulated by the FCA in the United Kingdom, is acting exclusively for i3 Energy as financial adviser, nominated adviser and joint broker and no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than i3 Energy for providing the protections afforded to clients of Zeus, or for providing advice in relation to matters referred to in this announcement. Neither Zeus nor any of its affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Zeus in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Securities – Canada, ULC (“TPH&Co.”), which is regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization and a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund, is acting exclusively for i3 Energy by way of its engagement with i3 Energy Canada Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of i3 Energy, in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and for no one else, and will not be responsible to anyone other than i3 Energy for providing the protections afforded to its clients nor for providing advice in relation to the matters set out in this announcement. Neither TPH&Co. nor any of its subsidiaries, branches or affiliates and their respective directors, officers, employees or agents, owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of TPH&Co. in connection with this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

National Bank Financial Inc. (“NBF”), which is regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization and a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund, is acting as financial adviser to i3 Energy Canada Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of i3 Energy plc, in connection with the subject matter of this announcement. Neither NBF, nor any of its subsidiaries, branches or affiliates and their respective directors, officers, employees or agents, owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of NBF in connection with this announcement, any statement contained herein or otherwise.

Additional Information

This announcement is for information purposes only. It is not intended to, and does not, constitute or form part of any offer, offer to acquire, invitation or the solicitation of an offer to purchase, or an offer to acquire, subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of, any securities or the solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction, pursuant to this announcement or otherwise nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer of securities of Gran Tierra or i3 Energy pursuant to the Acquisition in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable laws.

This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale in the United States or in any other jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made in the United States absent registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “U.S. Securities Act”), or pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, such registration requirements. Any securities issued as part of the Acquisition are anticipated to be issued in reliance upon available exemption from such registration requirements pursuant to Section 3(a)(10) of the U.S. Securities Act. Any New Gran Tierra Shares to be issued in connection with the Acquisition are expected to be issued in reliance upon the prospectus exemption provided by Section 2.11 or Section 2.16, as applicable, of National Instrument 45-106 – Prospectus Exemptions of the Canadian Securities Administrators and in compliance with the provincial securities laws of Canada.

This announcement has been prepared in accordance with the laws of England and Wales, the Code, the AIM Rules for Companies and the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside England and Wales.

This announcement does not constitute a prospectus or circular or prospectus exempted document.

Overseas Shareholders

The availability of the Acquisition to i3 Energy Shareholders who are not resident in the United Kingdom may be affected by the laws of the relevant jurisdictions in which they are resident. Any person outside the United Kingdom or who are subject to the laws and/regulations of another jurisdiction should inform themselves of, and should observe, any applicable legal and/or regulatory requirements. Any failure to comply with the restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in or into or from jurisdictions other than the United Kingdom may be restricted by law and therefore any persons who are subject to the laws of any jurisdiction other than the United Kingdom should inform themselves about, and observe, such restrictions. Any failure to comply with the applicable restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of such jurisdiction. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the companies and persons involved in the Acquisition disclaim any responsibility or liability for the violation of such restrictions by any person.

Unless otherwise determined by Gran Tierra or required by the Code and permitted by applicable law and regulation, the Acquisition will not be made available, directly or indirectly, in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction and no person may vote in favour of the Acquisition by any such use, means, instrumentality or form (including, without limitation, facsimile, email or other electronic transmission, telex or telephone) within any Restricted Jurisdiction or any other jurisdiction if to do so would constitute a violation of the laws of that jurisdiction. Accordingly, copies of this announcement and all documents relating to the Acquisition are not being, and must not be, directly or indirectly, mailed or otherwise forwarded, distributed or sent in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction, and persons receiving this document and all documents relating to the Acquisition (including custodians, nominees and trustees) must observe these restrictions and must not mail or otherwise distribute or send them in, into or from such jurisdictions where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction. Doing so may render invalid any purported vote in respect of the Acquisition.

Dealing and Opening Position Disclosure Requirements

Under Rule 8.3(a) of the Takeover Code, any person who is interested in one per cent. or more of any class of relevant securities of an offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror (being any offeror other than an offeror in respect of which it has been announced that its offer is, or is likely to be, solely in cash) must make an Opening Position Disclosure following the commencement of the Offer Period and, if later, following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified.

An Opening Position Disclosure must contain details of the person’s interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s). An Opening Position Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(a) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m. (London time) on the 10th Business Day following the commencement of the Offer Period and, if appropriate, by no later than 3.30 p.m. (London time) on the 10th Business Day following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified. Relevant persons who deal in the relevant securities of the offeree company or of a securities exchange offeror prior to the deadline for making an Opening Position Disclosure must instead make a Dealing Disclosure.

Under Rule 8.3(b) of the Takeover Code, any person who is, or becomes, interested in one per cent. or more of any class of relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror must make a Dealing Disclosure if the person deals in any relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror. A Dealing Disclosure must contain details of the dealing concerned and of the person’s interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s), save to the extent that these details have previously been disclosed under Rule 8. A Dealing Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(b) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 p.m. (London time) on the Business Day following the date of the relevant dealing. If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire or control an interest in relevant securities of an offeree company or a securities exchange offeror, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.

Opening Position Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company and by any offeror and Dealing Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company, by any offeror and by any persons acting in concert with any of them (see Rules 8.1, 8.2 and 8.4). Details of the offeree and offeror companies in respect of whose relevant securities Opening Position Disclosures and Dealing Disclosures must be made can be found in the Disclosure Table on the Panel’s website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk, including details of the number of relevant securities in issue, when the Offer Period commenced and when any offeror was first identified. You should contact the Panel’s Market Surveillance Unit on +44 20 7638 0129 if you are in any doubt as to whether you are required to make an Opening Position Disclosure or a Dealing Disclosure.

Publication on website and availability of hard copies

In accordance with Rule 26.1 of the Code, a copy of this announcement is and will be available free of charge, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in Restricted Jurisdictions, for inspection on i3 Energy ‘s website https://i3.energy/grantierra-offer-terms/ and on Gran Tierra’s website https://www.grantierra.com/investor-relations/recommended-acquisition/ by no later than 12 noon (London time) on the Business Day following this announcement. For the avoidance of doubt, the contents of the website referred to in this announcement are not incorporated into and do not form part of this announcement.

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement (including information incorporated by reference into this announcement), oral statements regarding the Acquisition and other information published by Gran Tierra and i3 Energy contain certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, strategies, objectives, results of operations and businesses of Gran Tierra and i3 Energy and their respective groups and certain plans and objectives with respect to the Combined Group. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical or current facts. Forward looking statements are prospective in nature and are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections of the management of Gran Tierra and i3 Energy about future events, and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. The forward looking statements contained in this announcement include, without limitation, statements relating to the expected effects of the Acquisition on Gran Tierra and i3 Energy, the expected timing and method of completion, and scope of the Acquisition, the expected actions of i3 Energy and Gran Tierra upon completion of the Acquisition and other statements other than historical facts. Forward looking statements often use words such as “anticipate”, “target”, “expect”, “estimate”, “intend”, “plan”, “strategy”, “focus”, “envision”, “goal”, “believe”, “hope”, “aims”, “continue”, “will”, “may”, “should”, “would”, “could”, or other words of similar meaning. These statements are based on assumptions and assessments made by Gran Tierra, and/or i3 Energy in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, future developments and other factors they believe appropriate. By their nature, forward looking statements involve risk and uncertainty, because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future and the factors described in the context of such forward looking statements in this announcement could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such forward looking statements. Although it is believed that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct and readers are therefore cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results may vary from the forward-looking statements.

There are several factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward looking statements. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements are changes in the global, political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory forces, future exchange and interest rates, changes in tax rates and future business acquisitions or dispositions.

Each forward-looking statement speaks only as at the date of this announcement. Neither Gran Tierra nor i3 Energy, nor their respective groups assume any obligation to update or correct the information contained in this announcement (whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise), except as required by applicable law or by the rules of any competent regulatory authority.

Early Warning Reporting Provisions of Canadian Securities Laws

Certain of the information in this announcement is being issued under the early warning reporting provisions of Canadian securities laws. An early warning report with additional information in respect of the foregoing matters will be filed and made available under the SEDAR profile of i3 Energy at www.sedarplus.ca. The purpose of the Scheme was to enable Gran Tierra to acquire 100% of the share capital of i3 Energy. Immediately prior to the completion of the Scheme, Gran Tierra did not own, directly or indirectly, any securities of i3 Energy. To obtain a copy of the early warning report, you may also contact Phillip Abraham, Vice President, Legal & Business Development at 403-698-7918. Gran Tierra is an oil and gas company subsisting under the laws of Delaware, United States and its head office is located at 500 Centre Street SE, Calgary, Alberta T2P 1A6 and i3 Energy’s head office is located at 500, 207 – 9 Ave SW, Calgary, Alberta T2P 1K3.

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Financial results for Q1-Q3 2024
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Company announcement no. 66

Profit after tax of DKK 1,779 million and return on equity of 18.0%

The financial statements for the first nine months of 2024 show a highly satisfactory net profit of DKK 1,779 million and a return on equity after tax of 18.0%. Overall, core income was 2% higher than in the first nine months of 2023 – supported both by higher net interest income and net fee income. Compared with the same period of last year, we recorded a decent increase in business volume, including a highly satisfactory increase in assets under management of DKK 11 billion, corresponding to 17%, as well as satisfactory lending growth of DKK 3.5 billion, or 6%.

For the sixth consecutive quarter, persistently strong credit quality among the Bank’s retail and business customers enabled us to make a reversal of impairment charges. As a result, the total positive profit impact from impairment charges for the first nine months of 2024 was DKK 38 million. Another result of our very robust retail and business customers is that we now expect a full-year profit impact from loan impairment charges etc. of around DKK 0 million. Against this background, on 23 October 2024 we upgraded our full-year guidance for profit after tax to a range of DKK 2,100 – 2,300 million,” says Lasse Nyby, CEO.

Please direct any questions regarding this release to Lasse Nyby, Chief Executive Officer, on tel. +45 9634 4011, or Rune Brandt Børglum, Head of Investor Relations, on tel. + 45 9634 4236.

Rune Brandt Børglum
Head of Investor Relations

Attachments
- No. 66 – Financial results for Q1-Q3 2024 – UK
- No. 66 – Interim report Q1-Q3 2024 of Spar Nord – UK
The MIL Network –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: The start-up “Patronus AI” wins over the DDPS in the Cyber Start-up Challenge 2024

Source: Switzerland – Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport

The Cyber Start-up Challenge of the Cyber-Defence Campus of armasuisse Science and Technology is held every year to find relevant start-ups and innovative technologies in the cyber area. In this year’s Cyber Start-up Challenge contest, the start-up “Patronus AI” won over the jury with a platform for automated evaluation and safeguarding of LLMs. In 2025, the start-up will be able to demonstrate its solution to the DDPS in practice in a feasibility study.

MIL OSI Europe News –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: OP Mortgage Bank: Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

OP Mortgage Bank
Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2024
Stock Exchange Release 31 October 2024 at 10.00 EET

OP Mortgage Bank: Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2024

OP Mortgage Bank (OP MB) is the covered bond issuing entity of OP Financial Group. Together with OP Corporate Bank plc, its role is to raise funding for OP Financial Group from money and capital markets.

Financial standing

The intermediary loans and loan portfolio of OP MB totalled EUR 16,628 million (16,988)* on 30 September 2024. Bonds issued by OP MB totalled EUR 14,915 million (14,915) at the end of September.

OP MB’s covered bonds after 8 July 2022 are issued under the Euro Medium Term Covered Bond (Premium) programme (EMTCB), pursuant to the Finnish Act on Mortgage Credit Banks and Covered Bonds (151/2022). The collateral is added to the EMTCB cover pool from the member cooperative banks’ balance sheets via the intermediary loan process on the issue date of a new covered bond.

In January, OP MB issued a covered bond in the international capital market. The fixed-rate covered bond worth EUR 1 billion has a maturity of seven years and six months. All proceeds of the bond were intermediated to 63 OP cooperative banks in the form of intermediary loans.

The terms of issue are available on the op.fi website, under Debt investors: www.op.fi/op-ryhma/velkasijoittajat/issuers/op-mortgage-bank/emtcb-debt-programme-documentation.

On 30 September 2024, 98 OP cooperative banks had a total of EUR 14,800 million (14,800) in intermediary loans from OP MB.

Impairment loss on receivables related to loans in OP MB’s balance sheet totalled EUR 0.1 million (-0.2). Loss allowance was EUR 2.4 million (2.6).

Operating profit was EUR 6.4 million (8.3). The company’s financial standing remained stable throughout the reporting period.

* The comparatives for 2023 are given in brackets. For income statement and other aggregated figures, the January–September 2023 figures serve as comparatives. For balance-sheet and other cross-sectional figures, figures at the end of the previous financial year (31 December 2023) serve as comparatives.

Collateralisation of bonds issued to the public

The covered bonds issued under the EMTCB programme worth EUR 25 billion established on 11 October 2022, in accordance with the Act on Mortgage Credit Banks and Covered Bonds (151/2022), totalled EUR 5,250 million. The cover pool included a total of EUR 5,781 million in loans serving as collateral on 30 September 2024. Overcollateralisation exceeded the minimum requirement under the Act (151/2022).

The covered bonds issued under the Euro Medium Term Covered Note programme worth EUR 20 billion established on 12 November 2010, in accordance with the Act on Mortgage Credit Banks (Laki kiinnitysluottopankkitoiminnasta, 688/2010), totalled EUR 9,665 million. The cover pool included a total of EUR 11,900 million in loans serving as collateral on 30 September 2024. Overcollateralisation exceeded the minimum requirement under the Act (688/2010).

Capital adequacy

OP MB’s Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio stood at 49.3% (41.8) on 30 September 2024. The ratio was improved by the decrease in mortgages on OP MB’s balance sheet and the resulting reduction in capital requirement for credit risk. The minimum CET1 capital requirement is 4.5% and the requirement for the capital conservation buffer is 2.5%. The minimum total capital requirement is 8% (or 10.5% with the increased capital conservation buffer). Because OP MB covers capital requirements in their entirety with CET1 capital, the CET1 capital requirement is 10.5%. Estimated profit distribution has been subtracted from earnings for the reporting period.

OP MB uses the Standardised Approach (SA) to measure its capital adequacy requirement for credit risk. The Standardised Approach is also used to measure the capital requirement for operational risks.

OP MB belongs to OP Financial Group. As part of the Group, OP MB is supervised by the European Central Bank. OP Financial Group presents capital adequacy information in its financial statements bulletins and interim and half-year financial reports in accordance with the Act on the Amalgamation of Deposit Banks. OP Financial Group also publishes Pillar III disclosures.

Own funds and capital adequacy, TEUR	30 Sep 2024	31 Dec 2023
Equity capital	369,686	372,160
Excess funding of pension liability	-13	-13
Share of unaudited profits		-7,490
Proposed profit distribution	-5,016
Insufficient coverage for non-performing exposures	-4,632	-2,856
CET1 capital	360,024	361,800
Tier 1 capital (T1)	360,024	361,800
Total own funds	360,024	361,800
Total risk exposure amount
Credit and counterparty risk	679,352	812,205
Operational risk	26,636	25,140
Other risks*	24,774	27,336
Total	730,762	864,682
Ratios, %
CET1 ratio	49.3	41.8
Tier 1 capital ratio	49.3	41.8
Capital adequacy ratio	49.3	41.8
Capital requirement
Own funds	360,024	361,800
Capital requirement	76,765	90,829
Buffer for capital requirements	283,259	270,971

* Risks not otherwise covered.

Liabilities under the Resolution Act

Under regulation applied to crisis resolution of credit institutions and investment firms, the resolution authority is authorised to intervene in the terms and conditions of investment products issued by a bank in a way that affects an investor’s position. The EU’s Single Resolution Board (SRB) based in Brussels is OP Financial Group’s resolution authority. The SRB has confirmed a resolution strategy for OP Financial Group whereby the resolution measures would focus on the OP amalgamation and on the new OP Corporate Bank that would be formed in case of resolution. According to the resolution strategy, OP MB will continue its operations as the new OP Corporate Bank’s subsidiary.

The SRB has set a Minimum Requirement for Own Funds and Eligible Liabilities (MREL) for OP MB. From May 2024, the MREL is 16% of the total risk exposure amount and 18.5% of the total risk exposure amount including a combined buffer requirement, and 6% of leverage ratio exposures. The requirement entered into force on 15 May 2024. The requirement includes a Combined Buffer Requirement (CBR) of 2.5%.

OP MB’s buffer for the MREL requirement was EUR 215 million. The buffer consists of own funds only. OP MB clearly exceeds the MREL requirement. OP MB’s MREL ratio was 46% of the total risk exposure amount.

Joint and several liability of amalgamation

Under the Act on the Amalgamation of Deposit Banks (599/2010), the amalgamation of cooperative banks comprises the organisation’s central cooperative (OP Cooperative), the central cooperative’s member credit institutions and the companies belonging to their consolidation groups, as well as credit and financial institutions and service companies in which the above together hold more than half of the total votes. This amalgamation is supervised on a consolidated basis. On 30 September 2024, OP Cooperative’s member credit institutions comprised 99 OP cooperative banks, OP Corporate Bank plc, OP Mortgage Bank and OP Retail Customers plc.

The central cooperative is responsible for issuing instructions to its member credit institutions concerning their internal control and risk management, their procedures for securing liquidity and capital adequacy, and for compliance with harmonised accounting policies in the preparation of the amalgamation’s consolidated financial statements.

As a support measure referred to in the Act on the Amalgamation of Deposit Banks, the central cooperative is liable to pay any of its member credit institutions the amount necessary to preventing the credit institution from being placed in liquidation. The central cooperative is also liable for the debts of a member credit institution which cannot be paid using the member credit institution’s assets.

Each member bank is liable to pay a proportion of the amount which the central cooperative has paid to either another member bank as a support measure or to a creditor of such a member bank in payment of an overdue amount which the creditor has not received from the member bank. Furthermore, if the central cooperative defaults, a member bank has unlimited refinancing liability for the central cooperative’s debts as referred to in the Co-operatives Act.

Each member bank’s liability for the amount the central cooperative has paid to the creditor on behalf of a member bank is divided between the member banks in proportion to their last adopted balance sheets. OP Financial Group’s insurance companies do not fall within the scope of joint and several liability.

According to section 25 of the Act on Mortgage Credit Banks (688/2010), which was valid at that time, the creditors of covered bonds issued prior to 8 July 2022 have the right to receive payment, before other claims, for the entire term of the bond, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the bond, out of the funds entered as collateral for the bond, without this being prevented by OP MB’s liquidation or bankruptcy. A similar and equal priority also applies to derivative contracts entered in the register of bonds, and to marginal lending facilities referred to in section 26, subsection 4 of said Act. For mortgage-backed loans issued prior to 8 July 2022 and included in the total amount of collateral of covered bonds, the priority of the covered bond holders’ payment right is limited to the amount of loan that, with respect to home loans, corresponds to 70% of the value of shares or property serving as security for the loan and entered in the bond register at the time of the issuer’s liquidation or bankruptcy declaration.

Under section 20 of the Act on Mortgage Credit Banks and Covered Bonds (151/2022), which entered into force on 8 July 2022, the creditors of bonds issued after 8 July 2022, including the related management and clearing costs, have the right to receive payment from the collateral included in the cover pool, before other creditors of OP MB or the OP cooperative bank which is the debtor of an intermediary loan. A similar priority also applies to creditors of derivative contracts related to covered bonds, including the related management and clearing costs. Interest and yield accruing on the collateral, and any substitute assets, fall within the scope of said priority. Section 44, subsection 3 of the Act on Mortgage Credit Banks and Covered Bonds includes provisions on the creditor’s priority claim regarding cover pool liquidity support. According to said subsection, the creditor has the right to receive payment against the funds contained in the cover pool after claims based on the principal and interest of covered bonds secured by the cover assets included in the cover pool, obligations based on derivatives contracts associated with covered bonds, as well as administration and liquidation costs.

Sustainability and corporate responsibility

Responsible business is one of OP Financial Group’s strategic priorities. OP Financial Group’s sustainability programme guides the Group’s actions and is built around three themes: Climate and the environment, People and communities, and Corporate governance. Read more about the sustainability programme at www.op.fi/en/op-financial-group/corporate-social-responsibility.

At OP Financial Group, sustainability and corporate responsibility are guided by a number of principles and policies. OP Financial Group is committed to complying not only with all applicable laws and regulations, but also with a number of international initiatives. The Group is committed to complying with the ten principles of the UN Global Compact initiative in the areas of human rights, labour rights, the environment and anti-corruption. OP Financial Group is a Founding Signatory of the Principles for Responsible Banking under the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). Furthermore, OP Financial Group is committed to complying with the UN Principles for Responsible Investment and the UN Principles for Sustainable Insurance.

As of the reporting year 2024, OP Financial Group reports on its sustainability and corporate responsibility in accordance with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) under the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

OP Financial Group has drawn up a biodiversity road map that includes measures to promote biodiversity at OP Financial Group. The aim is to create a nature positive handprint by 2030. ‘Nature positive’ means that OP Financial Group’s operations will have a net positive impact (NPI) on nature.

OP Financial Group has also drawn up a Human Rights Statement and Human Rights Policy. OP Financial Group respects all recognised human rights, and the Human Rights Statement includes the requirements and expectations that OP Financial Group has set for itself and actors in its value chains. OP Financial Group is committed to remediation actions if it causes adverse human rights impacts.

In March 2024, OP MB published a Green Covered Bond Report on the allocation and impacts of Finland’s first green covered bonds issued in March 2021 and April 2022. Under OP MB’s Green Covered Bond Framework, the proceeds from the bonds have been allocated to mortgages with energy-efficient residential buildings as collateral.

The environmental impacts allocated to the green covered bonds in 2023 were 59,000 MWh of energy use avoided per year and 8,800 tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions avoided per year.

Personnel

On 30 September 2024, OP MB had six employees. OP MB has been digitising its operations and purchases all key support services from OP Cooperative and its Group members, reducing the need for its own personnel.

Management

The Board composition is as follows:

Chair	Mikko Timonen	Chief Financial Officer, OP Cooperative
Members	Satu Nurmi	Head of Personal Finance and Real Estate Services, OP Retail Customers plc
	Mari Heikkilä	Head of Group Treasury & ALM, OP Corporate Bank plc

OP MB’s Managing Director is Sanna Eriksson. The deputy Managing Director is Tuomas Ruotsalainen, Senior Covered Bonds Manager at OP MB.

Risk profile

OP MB has a strong capital base, capital buffers and risk-bearing capacity, and they are expected to remain strong throughout the rest of the year.

OP MB’s most significant risks are related to the quality of collateral and to the structural liquidity and interest rate risks on the balance sheet for which limits have been set in the Banking Risk Policy. The key credit risk indicators in use show that OP MB’s credit risk exposure is stable. OP MB has used interest rate swaps to hedge against its interest rate risk. Interest rate swaps have been used to swap home loan interest, intermediary loan interest and interest on issued bonds onto the same basis rate. OP MB has concluded all derivative contracts for hedging purposes, applying fair value hedges which have OP Corporate Bank plc as their counterparty. OP MB’s interest risk exposure is under control and has been within the set limit.

The liquidity buffer for OP Financial Group is centrally managed by OP Corporate Bank and therefore exploitable by OP MB. At the end of the reporting period, OP Financial Group’s Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) was 214% and the Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) was 130%. OP MB monitors its cash flows on a daily basis to secure funding liquidity and its structural funding risk on a regular basis as part of the company’s internal capital adequacy assessment process (ICAAP).

An analysis of OP MB’s risk exposure should always take account of OP Financial Group’s risk exposure, which is based on the joint and several liability of all its member credit institutions. The member credit institutions are jointly liable for each other’s debts. All member banks must participate in support measures, as referred to in the Act on the Amalgamation of Deposit Banks, to support each other’s capital adequacy.

OP Financial Group analyses the business environment as part of the ongoing risk assessment activities and strategy process. Megatrends and worldviews behind OP Financial Group’s strategy reflect driving forces that affect the daily activities, conditions and future of the Group and its customers. Factors currently shaping the business environment include climate, biodiversity loss, scientific and technological innovations, polarisation, demography and geopolitics. External business environment factors are considered thoroughly, so that their effects on customers’ future success are understood. OP Financial Group provides advice and makes business decisions that promote the sustainable financial success, security and wellbeing of its owner-customers and operating region while managing the Group’s risk profile on a longer-term basis. Advice for customers, risk-based service sizing, contract lifecycle management, decision-making, management and reporting are based on correct and comprehensive information.

Events after the reporting period

In October, OP MB issued a covered bond in the international capital market. The fixed-rate covered bond worth EUR 1 billion has a maturity of five years. All proceeds of the bond were intermediated to 48 OP cooperative banks in the form of intermediary loans.

The terms of issue are available at the op.fi website, under Debt investors: www.op.fi/op-ryhma/velkasijoittajat/issuers/op-mortgage-bank/emtcb-debt-programme-documentation.

In October, OP MB’s Board of Directors decided to sell OP MB’s on-balance sheet loan portfolio of EUR 1,825 million to 85 OP cooperative banks later this year.

Outlook for 2024

OP MB’s capital adequacy is expected to remain strong and risk exposure favourable. This will enable the issuance of new covered bonds also in the future.

Time of publication of 2024 reports

Report by the Board of Directors and Financial Statements 2024	Week 11, 2025
Corporate Governance Statement 2024	Week 11, 2025

Schedule for Financial Statements Bulletin 2024 and Interim Reports in 2025

Financial Statements Bulletin 1 January‒31 December 2024	6 February 2025
Interim Report 1 January–31 March 2025	7 May 2025
Half-year Financial Report 1 January–30 June 2025	30 July 2025
Interim Report 1 January–30 September 2025	28 October 2025

Helsinki, 31 October 2024

OP Mortgage Bank
Board of Directors

Additional information:

Managing Director Sanna Eriksson, phone +358 10 252 2517

DISTRIBUTION

LSE London Stock Exchange
Euronext Dublin (Irish Stock Exchange)
Officially Appointed Mechanism (OAM)
Major media
op.fi

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: CoinShares Appoints Lisa Avellini as Group General Counsel

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

31^stOctober 2024 | SAINT HELIER, Jersey | CoinShares International Limited (“CoinShares” or “the Group”) (Nasdaq Stockholm: CS; US OTCQX: CNSRF), the leading European investment company specialising in digital assets, is pleased to announce the appointment of Lisa Avellini as Group General Counsel, effective November 4, 2024.

Lisa brings a wealth of valuable experience to CoinShares, with an extensive background in legal and compliance roles within leading global financial institutions. She joins CoinShares after three years at Balyasny Asset Management, where she oversaw global legal and compliance requirements for the credit division.

Prior to her tenure at Balyasny, Lisa spent three years at Citadel, where she provided strategic legal guidance across a range of complex financial transactions and regulatory matters.

Jean-Marie Mognetti, CEO of CoinShares, commented:

“As the digital asset ecosystem increasingly aligns with traditional finance and its regulatory frameworks, Lisa’s extensive legal and regulatory experience with established investment firms strengthens our expertise to navigate this evolving landscape.

Lisa’s appointment reinforces our leadership team and underscores our unwavering commitment to exemplary legal and regulatory compliance. Her arrival not only enhances our capabilities but also signifies CoinShares’ entry into a new growth phase, demonstrating our ability to attract premier talent from the world’s foremost investment companies.”

Lisa Avellini added:

“I am excited to join CoinShares at such a pivotal time in the company’s development. My career has always been driven by curiosity and innovation, and the digital asset industry presents unique challenges and opportunities. This is why I have decided to join a leader in this emerging industry. I look forward to contributing my experience to support CoinShares’ strategic objectives and to further enhance its strong compliance culture.”

In her role as Group General Counsel, Lisa will oversee all legal and regulatory matters for CoinShares globally, providing strategic advice to the executive team and supporting the company’s growth initiatives.

ABOUT COINSHARES

CoinShares is the leading European investment company specialising in digital assets, that delivers a broad range of financial services across investment management, trading and securities to a wide array of clients that includes corporations, financial institutions and individuals. Focusing on crypto since 2013, the firm is headquartered in Jersey, with offices in France, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK and the US. CoinShares is regulated in Jersey by the Jersey Financial Services Commission, in France by the Autorité des marchés financiers, and in the US by the Securities and Exchange Commission, National Futures Association and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. CoinShares is publicly listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm under the ticker CS and the OTCQX under the ticker CNSRF.

For more information on CoinShares, please visit: https://coinshares.com
Company | +44 (0)1534 513 100 | enquiries@coinshares.com
Investor Relations | +44 (0)1534 513 100 | enquiries@coinshares.com

PRESS CONTACT

CoinShares
Benoît Pellevoizin
bpellevoizin@coinshares.com

M Group Strategic Communications
Peter Padovano
press@coinshares.com

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI Australia: Candidates announced for the 2024 TSRA Board Election [31 October 2024]

Source: Australian Electoral Commission

AECMedia

Updated: 31 October 2024

Candidates in the 2024 Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA) elections to be held on Saturday 30 November 2024 have been officially announced today.

Returning Officer, Jacqueline McHenry said 20 wards in the Torres Strait are involved in the 2024 TSRA elections, with each ward electing one member to the TSRA board.

The ballot draw for the election took place at 1.00pm (AEST) on Thursday 31 October 2024, and the candidates for the election in the contested wards are as follows:

Ward	Candidate Name (in ballot paper order)
Badu Island	BAIRA, Horace NONA, David Lars NONA, Maluwap MORSEU, George
Bamaga	NADREDRE, Yanette (Pepa) NONA, Ugari
Dauan	MOOKA, Patrick ELISALA, Torenzo
Erub	GELA, Jimmy Joe BEDFORD, Kenneth MYE, Nixon Y
Hammond	DORANTE, Seriako TURNER, Regina
Iama	LUI, Getano DAVID, Charles Albert
Kubin	MANAS, Louise SAVAGE, Danie
Mabuiag	FELL, Keith REPU, Cygnet GUISE, Simi
Masig	MOSBY, Hilda Denise MOSBY, Yessie NAAWI, Simon Frederick
Mer	TAPAU, Ellen Cecilia Julie KAIGEY, Bob Kevin TABO, John
Ngurapai and Muralag	LOBAN, Yen N WASAGA, Eliziah BECKLEY (Doolah), Emma
Port Kennedy	FUJII, Thomas Jnr JOHNSTON, Neville AH WANG, Pauline DAVID, Frank NONA, George Timothy HAVILI, Ofa
Poruma	MOSBY, Phillemon FAUID, Frank
Saibai	MATTHEW, Jack WARUSAM, Herbert ANIBA, Chelsea
Seisia	ELU, Damien Mugai MUDU, Sabrina
St Pauls	PAIWAN, John KRIS, John T
TRAWQ	STEPHEN, Sereako HARRY, Abigail KRIS, Ella
Ugar	STEPHEN, Jerry Dixie STEPHEN, Rocky Gabriel
Warraber	TAMU, Kabay MARI, Annie Patricia BILLY, Iris

In the ward of Boigu only one candidate nominated. This means voting will not be required in this ward as it is classed as an uncontested ward.

Uncontested ward:

Ward	Candidate
Boigu	TOBY, Dimas Pinaith

All Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal people living in the wards where elections will take place, who are 18 years of age or over, can vote in the TSRA election, if they are enrolled on the Commonwealth electoral roll by 5:00pm (AEST) on Friday 15 November 2024.

If you need to enrol for the first time, or if you have recently moved to any of these wards and have not updated your address, you will need to complete an enrolment form and return it to the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) by 5:00pm (AEST) on Friday 15 November 2024.

Enrolment forms are available from the AEC website at www.aec.gov.au, AEC offices, the TSRA office, and the Returning Officer.

Polling places will be open on Saturday 30 November 2024 in the wards of:

Bamaga
Ngurapai and Muralag on Horn Island, and
Port Kennedy and TRAWQ on Thursday Island.

The AEC will conduct mobile polling for contested wards in outer communities. Communities will be informed of times, dates and polling places prior to the mobile polling teams arriving.

Information on polling place locations, early voting options or hospital and aged care facility polling places will be available shortly on the AEC website at www.aec.gov.au/tsra or call (02) 9375 6366.

MIL OSI News –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: The recording of Šiaulių Bankas Investor Conference Webinar of introducing the financial results for Q3 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

   During the Investor Conference Webinar by Vytautas Sinius, CEO, Tomas Varenbergas, Head of Investment Management Division and Tautvydas Mėdžius, Strategy Partner introduced the Bank’s financial results for Q3 2024 and recent developments and answered the participant questions afterwards.

     The recording of it can be found on Šiaulių Bankas youtube channel here.

Presentation and the recording of webinar are also posted on the Bank’s website https://sb.lt/en/investors

    Šiaulių bankas thanks all participants.

If you would like to receive Šiaulių Bankas news for investors directly to your inbox, subscribe to our newsletter.

Additional information:
Tomas Varenbergas
Head of Investment Management Division
tomas.varenbergas@sb.lt

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: SNP must not backtrack on tenants rights or rent controls

Source: Scottish Greens

31 Oct 2024 Housing

Everyone has a right to a secure and affordable place to call home.

More in Housing

The Scottish Government must not dilute the commitments it made to private tenants to deliver enhanced protections and rent controls.

Speaking ahead of a Ministerial Statement on the forthcoming Housing Bill, the party’s equality spokesperson, Maggie Chapman, called for more protective measures to support renters across the country.

The bill, which would introduce rent controls and new rights for tenants, was a key pledge in the Bute House Agreement between the Scottish Greens and the Scottish Government, with polling showing support from the overwhelming majority of Scotland.

There have been concerns that the bill may be watered down, with one national newspaper quoting senior government sources pledging a “light touch approach” to regulations

Ms Chapman said:

“We all agree that Scotland faces a housing crisis, but words alone won’t do anything to tackle it. Everyone deserves a safe, warm home that gives them peace of mind and security, and we have so much more to do if we are to give tenants the rights and protections they deserve.

“Rent controls are normal in many countries – they exist across Europe and beyond. It is time for them to be introduced in Scotland. The SNP must not betray tenants or backtrack on the commitments they made three years ago.

“By tackling sky high rents, ensuring protection from eviction, providing the rights to decorate and to keep pets, and providing greater support for victims and survivors of domestic abuse rebuilding their lives, we can build a fairer and better housing system.

“This bill is a huge opportunity to deliver positive change for renters across Scotland. Everyone deserves to feel happy and safe in their homes and to be able to live comfortably without having to choose between eating or paying their rent.

“MSPs across the Chamber must stand together and send a loud and clear message in support of tenants rights, giving the protections every tenant deserves. Homes should be for living in, not for profiteering.”

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: SPC Oct 31, 2024 0600 UTC Day 2 Convective Outlook

Source: US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

For best viewing experience, please enable browser JavaScript support.

Oct 31, 2024 0600 UTC Day 2 Convective Outlook

Updated: Thu Oct 31 05:44:45 UTC 2024 (Print Version | | )

Probabilistic to Categorical Outlook Conversion Table

Forecast Discussion

SPC AC 310544

Day 2 Convective Outlook
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
1244 AM CDT Thu Oct 31 2024

Valid 011200Z – 021200Z

…THERE IS A MARGINAL RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PARTS OF
THE SOUTHERN HIGH PLAINS…

…SUMMARY…
Thunderstorms, associated with isolated large hail and marginally
severe wind gusts, will be possible across parts of the southern
High Plains Friday evening into the overnight.

…Southern High Plains…
An upper-level trough will dig southeastward across the Pacific
Coastal states on Friday, as flow remains southwesterly at
mid-levels across much of the western and central U.S. Moisture
advection will take place across the southern Plains on Friday, with
surface dewpoints increasing into the 60s F over much of Texas. By
late Friday afternoon, a pocket of moderate instability is expected
over parts of West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Scattered
thunderstorms appear likely to develop during the early evening near
this pocket of instability. As moisture and low-level flow gradually
increase across the southern Plains from the evening into the
overnight, convective coverage is expected to expand north and
northeastward across much of eastern New Mexico and west Texas.

A consensus of model forecasts suggests that MLCAPE will peak around
1500 J/kg in parts of west Texas Friday evening. 0-6 km shear is
forecast to be in the 30 to 40 knot range. The moderate deep-layer
shear, combined with 700-500 mb lapse rates near 7 C/km, should
support the development of a severe threat. Most of the cells are
expected to remain multicellular. However, areas where the
environment is locally more favored could support supercells with
isolated large hail and a few severe wind gusts. The late initiation
and lack of large-scale ascent is expected to be a limiting factor,
and should keep any severe threat marginal.

..Broyles.. 10/31/2024

CLICK TO GET WUUS02 PTSDY2 PRODUCT

NOTE: THE NEXT DAY 2 OUTLOOK IS SCHEDULED BY 1730Z

Top/Latest Day 1 Outlook/Today’s Outlooks/Forecast Products/Home

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Aurora Mobile to Report Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results on November 14, 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aurora Mobile Limited (NASDAQ: JG) (“Aurora Mobile” or the “Company”), a leading provider of customer engagement and marketing technology services in China, today announced that it will release its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024 before the open of U.S. markets on Thursday, November 14, 2024.

Aurora Mobile’s management will host an earnings conference call on Thursday, November 14, 2024 at 7:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time (8:30 p.m. Beijing time on the same day).

All participants must register in advance to join the conference using the link provided below. Please dial in 15 minutes before the call is scheduled to begin. Conference access information will be provided upon registration.

Participant Online Registration: https://register.vevent.com/register/BIbffdeba3d6fd4cb59da31309ca6efd3f

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of Aurora Mobile’s website at https://ir.jiguang.cn/.

About Aurora Mobile Limited

Founded in 2011, Aurora Mobile (NASDAQ: JG) is a leading provider of customer engagement and marketing technology services in China. Since its inception, Aurora Mobile has focused on providing stable and efficient messaging services to enterprises and has grown to be a leading mobile messaging service provider with its first-mover advantage. With the increasing demand for customer reach and marketing growth, Aurora Mobile has developed forward-looking solutions such as Cloud Messaging and Cloud Marketing to help enterprises achieve omnichannel customer reach and interaction, as well as artificial intelligence and big data-driven marketing technology solutions to help enterprises’ digital transformation.

For more information, please visit https://ir.jiguang.cn/

For more information, please contact:

Aurora Mobile Limited
E-mail: ir@jiguang.cn

Christensen

In China
Ms. Xiaoyan Su
Phone: +86-10-5900-1548
E-mail: Xiaoyan.Su@christensencomms.com

In US
Ms. Linda Bergkamp
Phone: +1-480-614-3004
Email: linda.bergkamp@christensencomms.com

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: This summer, Samsung Announces Blockbuster Black Friday Deals for Shoppers

Source: Samsung

Samsung is thrilled to announce the launch of its highly anticipated 2024 Black Friday campaign, bringing shoppers a season filled with Blockbuster Deals on premium products. This year, the tech giant is rolling out the red carpet for South Africans, and redefining the Black Friday narrative as an opportunity for every shopper to become the leading character in their own shopping story.

It is going to be “ifilim”, as South Africans would say, as everyone gears up for this iconic annual shopping bonanza. Samsung will play its role and stick to the script by bringing its A-game with premium products at low prices, ensuring that every deal is a plot twist that leaves shoppers cheering for more. With incredible markdowns on a wide range of products, shoppers can access these deals from 1 November – 2 December, both online and at participating retailers nationwide. Read on to get a preview of what’s coming up.

Unmissable Electronics and Home Appliance Deals
Be prepared to get more this summer as Samsung has an impressive line-up of blockbuster deals for electronics and home appliances too. Elevate your kitchen with the RS64 Side by Side fridge, Non-plumbed Water & Ice dispenser, Gentle Black, 617L, now just R24,999*, offering a remarkable R6,000 saving, or the RB30 Bottom Freezer with Water Dispenser and Cool Pack, Metal Graphite, 303L, which is available for R9,999*, saving you R3,500.

You can do your laundry like the main character with the WW11CGP44DSB AI 11kg Front Loader with Eco bubble washing machine, which is a steal at R12,999*, saving you R500 plus you score Buy & Get rewards worth R4,000, or you could opt for the WD70TA046BX 7/5kg Front Load Washer / Dryer Combo with Eco Bubble Technology, yours for only R10,999*, saving you R1,000.

Work, watch and play with the 32″ Smart Monitor M7, available for R7,999*, saving you R3,000. For film aficionados who enjoy feeling like part of the action, the 98” Q80C 4K TV is available for R99,999* plus get R32 000 worth of gifts and enjoy hassle free signature service. While the 85” Crystal UHD DU8000 4K TV can find a new home in your lounge for only R22,999*, saving you a joy-inducing R10,000. To complement the viewing experience with great audio, you could get the Q600C Q-Series soundbar at R5,499*, giving you a saving of R2,500.

“Get more this summer with Samsung, our range of electronics and home appliances are designed to elevate your lifestyle and transform your home into a connected smart home. Through our SmartThings ecosystem, we empower families to not just get more from their devices, but to truly live more. Imagine seamlessly controlling your home environment—from optimising AI energy savings, to automating daily tasks—making life easier and more enjoyable. Our products work together to enhance your everyday experiences, creating a network of products that adapt to your needs. We believe in helping you create your dream home while providing exceptional value for your spend. Embrace the summer season with technology that simplifies your life and enriches your moments, allowing you to focus on what truly matters—making memories with loved ones,” said Mike van Lier, Vice President: Consumer Experience at Samsung Electronics.

For more Blockbuster Deals, visit www.samsung.com/za and https://samsungair.co.za/shop/[1]

[1]Recommended retail price

MIL OSI Economics –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI China: WSTDF 2024: Highlighting AI innovation, global governance

Source: China State Council Information Office 2

The 2024 World Science and Technology Development Forum (WSTDF) hosted a thematic session in Beijing on Oct. 23 focused on “AI Governance Innovation: Building an International Trust Foundation for Cultivating the Ecology of Science and Technology Governance”. The session brought together global experts and scholars, representatives of international organizations, and industry leaders to explore the innovative breakthroughs of artificial intelligence (AI), its applications across various industries, and the necessary frameworks for managing associated risks.

Attendees take part in the “AI Governance Innovation: Building an International Trust Foundation for Cultivating the Ecology of Science and Technology Governance” thematic session at WSTDF 2024, Beijing, Oct. 23, 2024. [Photo courtesy of WSTDF]
AI as a catalyst for sci-tech advancement
Wan Gang, chairman of WSTDF 2024 and president of the China Association for Science and Technology, emphasized the critical role of AI in advancing scientific research. “We hope to establish a new paradigm for cutting-edge scientific research that is fundamentally supported by artificial intelligence, accelerating the development of new industries and building new engines for growth,” Wan stated. He further called for joint efforts to promote the alignment and coordination of laws, regulations and standards, and establishing evaluation, education, warning and control mechanisms for AI applications to enhance the credibility, reliability and controllability of AI.
At the conference, experts and industry leaders engaged in in-depth discussions on AI’s technological breakthroughs and its industrial applications. Qiao Hong, president of the World Robot Cooperation Organization and an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, highlighted that AI has become a driving force of the technological revolution, finding extensive applications in intelligent manufacturing, smart cities, health care and financial services. She presented the “2024 Outlook for the Top 10 Frontier Technology Trends in AI,” covering advancements in general AI technologies, large-scale pre-trained models, embodied intelligence and generative AI, showcasing the boundless potential and possibilities of AI.
Qiao said, “These cutting-edge technologies hold immense potential. The advancements will not only make daily life more convenient and efficient, but also spur innovation and drive progress across a wide range of industries.”
As a cutting-edge field within AI, embodied intelligence is transitioning from concept to reality, drawing significant attention at the conference. Chang Lin, founder and CEO of Leju Robotics, noted that embodied intelligence and humanoid robots have shifted from niche concepts to mainstream relevance. “The rapid development of AI, especially large models, has greatly enhanced the adaptability of humanoid robots, significantly improving their general capabilities,” said Chang. “This progress paves the way for robots to take on flexible, intelligent tasks in household settings, potentially transforming everyday life.”
Han Fengtao, founder and CEO of Spirit AI, emphasized that while embodied intelligence is not a new term, recent technological breakthroughs have brought it into the mainstream. In the robotics industry, for example, “the core advancement has reduced the need for human intervention at every stage,” Han explained. With technologies like text-to-image and text-to-action generation, robots are now capable of performing tasks with greater autonomy, he said.
Ethical challenges and the need for responsible AI governance
As artificial intelligence rapidly advances, ethical concerns and social challenges have emerged.
Zhang Ping, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and professor at the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, pointed out that while breakthroughs in generative AI bring convenience, they also pose security and ethical challenges. “Issues like identity fraud through AI-generated content, and inappropriate messaging are rising,” he said.
Zhang shared research progress from a Beijing AI safety governance lab, which focuses on building a theoretical framework for general AI to ensure safe, controllable development. The lab is also pioneering super-alignment technologies to better align AI outputs with human values and decisions. Additionally, they are enhancing interpretability and automating assessments to confirm that general AI aligns with societal good.
Huang Tiejun, a professor at Peking University, echoed these concerns, warning of the risks in commercial AI applications. He urged companies to prioritize human welfare, even when faced with lucrative business opportunities, emphasizing that global regulation is essential to prevent AI-dominant corporations from monopolizing benefits, concentrating wealth and worsening social inequality.
Chang Lin stressed the importance of adopting a responsible approach to AI, highlighting the need for companies to continuously address and resolve emerging risks. Meanwhile, founder and CEO of Accelerated Evolution, Cheng Hao, added that ensuring AI safety is a complex matter, which involves physical and algorithmic domains. He explained that robot malfunctions or algorithmic errors could harm humans, underscoring the need for safety mechanisms that allow systems to stop in hazardous situations.
Global cooperation to shape AI for humanity
Experts at the session emphasized the critical need for international collaboration and effective global governance to address associated risks and challenges.
Huang Tiejun, also director of the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence, highlighted that AI’s immense power must be managed on a global scale to prevent its misuse by a few companies. “International cooperation on AI governance is essential,” he stated. “This is a shared challenge for humanity, and we must use technical safeguards to ensure AI’s benefits aren’t abused.”
Huang said that scientists worldwide share more consensus than division regarding AI’s development. He noted that scientific collaboration is often more open than political cooperation. “Platforms like the WSTDF play a vital role in advancing the AI industry. Despite current global complexities, in-person exchanges ease tensions and increase collaborative opportunities,” he added.
Framing it within the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity, Huang emphasized that AI development must advance the common welfare of all. “Guiding AI to benefit humanity is the direction we must follow.”
Chang Lin noted that, despite geopolitical challenges, grassroots international exchanges remain robust and active. “We must overcome obstacles and keep advancing global partnerships,” Chang said.
Gong Ke, former president of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations, highlighted the importance of supporting developing regions, noting that many international conflicts stem from unequal development. He stressed the role of advanced technology in helping developing nations achieve sustainable growth. “Enhanced productivity can be a driving force for peace,” Gong said.

MIL OSI China News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: SPbGASU became one of the organizers of the week “Design without Borders” in Yerevan

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – At the Faculty of Design of NUACA

The international week “Design without Borders” was held in Yerevan on October 21-26 at the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia (NUACA). The event was held jointly with the Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering and the Saint Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design and was intended to unite specialists and students in the field of design.

In his welcoming speech at the opening of the week, Dean of the Faculty of Design at NUASA Artashes Melikyan noted that he was glad to welcome everyone to the university and expressed hope for successful cooperation.

NUASA Vice-Rector for International Relations Vardges Yedoyan also gave a welcoming speech. He noted that an interesting working week was ahead: lectures, discussions, excursions, and wished all participants success.

The delegation of SPbGASU included representatives of the Faculty of Architecture: Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs, Associate Professor of the Department of Architectural Design Elena Voitsekhovskaya, Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs, Associate Professor of the Department of Architectural Design Zoya Aksenova, Associate Professor of the Department of Architectural Environment Design Pavel Loshakov, Senior Lecturer of the Department of Drawing Konstantin Tarasov, Associate Professor of the Department of Landscape Architecture Ksenia Yakovleva and students Anna Kotova, Laura Nanieva, Ekaterina Kondratovich, Bogdan Lobanov and Daniil Sinyakov.

The week included lectures and workshops on current design trends, technological innovations, the effects of artificial intelligence, creating experiences, and more. 20 leading industry experts presented their experience and shared their knowledge, and students had the opportunity to improve their skills in practice. In addition, the program included study visits to historical and cultural sites and museums in Armenia.

Representatives of SPbGASU spoke about current trends and achievements in the academic and extracurricular work of the architectural faculty. The reports aroused genuine interest, became a reason for questions from colleagues and led to serious discussions.

The participants confirmed the high level of SPbGASU and, in a broader sense, the prestige of St. Petersburg as a world cultural center.

Our participants got acquainted with the organization of the educational process at the NUASA Design Faculty, the content, methodology and material base of training, saw samples of coursework and graduation works in various areas of training, visited classrooms, fine art studios, model and geodetic workshops, discussed key topics today, in particular, the use of artificial intelligence methods in design and training. The parties considered the prospects for further cooperation: summer schools, conferences, internships, scientific work and the possibility of joint publications.

Students of the Faculty of Architecture of SPbGASU performed well as speakers: NUASA teachers noted their high motivation, cultural level and professional outlook.

Ksenia Yakovleva shared her impressions of the trip: “The exchange of professional experience in educational, work and cultural aspects was useful for students and teaching staff. Many topics related to trends in education were discussed at the round tables. In addition, the topics of preserving cultural heritage, opportunities and the degree of involvement of architects in the improvement of the urban environment were touched upon.

Our students actively participated in master classes and gave presentations, where they confidently demonstrated not only their projects, but also demonstrated motivational and professional qualities, once again confirming the high level of training at SPbGASU.

Official and informal meetings, acquaintance with culture and history, excellent organization made this trip rich and unforgettable. The contacts established during the working trip to Yerevan will be used for further exchange of experience and expansion of international relations.”

Third-year student of the Department of Landscape Architecture Bogdan Lobanov noted: “Thanks to this trip, I realized how important it is to communicate and be part of a large student architectural community. I would like to maintain and deepen such connections.”

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 –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Prairie Provident Announces Closing of Rights Offering

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

CALGARY, Alberta, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Prairie Provident Resources Inc. (“Prairie Provident” or the “Company”) (TSX:PPR) is pleased to announce the successful completion of its previously announced equity rights offering (the “Rights Offering”), which expired at 5:00 p.m. (Mountain time) on October 28, 2024.

Prairie Provident issued an aggregate of 480,000,000 common shares of the Company (“Common Shares”) pursuant to the Rights Offering and the Standby Commitment (defined below) at a price of $0.025 per share, for aggregate gross proceeds of $12.0 million. This includes the 400,000,000 Common Shares issued in the initial closing described below. Following completion, there are 1,196,405,336 Common Shares issued and outstanding.

As previously announced, the Company’s principal shareholder, PCEP Canadian Holdco, LLC (“PCEP”), fully exercised its basic subscription privilege under the Rights Offering to purchase 400,000,000 Common Shares in an initial closing completed on September 27, 2024, and also provided a standby commitment to purchase up to an additional 64,000,000 Common Shares not otherwise subscribed for under the Rights Offering by others (the “Standby Commitment”). In addition to the 400,000,000 Common Shares purchased on the early exercise of its basic subscription privilege, PCEP acquired 15,434,906 Common Shares under the Standby Commitment at the same subscription price of $0.025 per share. Following closing of the Rights Offering and Standby Commitment, PCEP holds 956,360,015 Common Shares, or approximately 79.9% of the total Common Shares outstanding.

Of the 64,565,094 Common Shares purchased under the Rights Offering by shareholders other than PCEP, 41,429,021 were issued pursuant to exercise of the basic subscription privilege and 26,136,073 were issued pursuant to exercise of the additional subscription privilege. These numbers include 16,600,046 Common Shares acquired by directors and management of the Company under the Rights Offering (2,087,453 pursuant to the basic subscription privilege and 14,512,593 pursuant to the additional subscription privilege).

No fees or commissions were paid by the Company in connection with the Rights Offering or the Standby Commitment.

Net proceeds from the Rights Offering are expected to fund a capital program focused on drilling at least two wells in the Basal Quartz formation before the end of 2024, workovers to enhance the productivity of existing wells and general corporate purposes. A portion of the net proceeds was also used to settle a US$2.3 million advance under the Company’s second lien note facility, by way of a $3.13 million setoff (being the Canadian dollar equivalent of the advance) against the $10.0 million subscription price paid by PCEP on the early exercise of its basic subscription privilege.

For details regarding the Rights Offering, please see Prairie Provident’s rights offering circular dated September 13, 2024, a copy of which is available under the Company’s issuer profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca or from its website at www.ppr.ca.

ABOUT PRAIRIE PROVIDENT

Prairie Provident is a Calgary-based company engaged in the exploration and development of oil and natural gas properties in Alberta, including a position in the emerging Basal Quartz trend in the Michichi area of Central Alberta.

For further information, please contact:

Dale Miller, Executive Chairman
Phone: (403) 292-8150
Email: investor@ppr.ca

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: Loose-lipped neural networks and lazy scammers

Source: Securelist – Kaspersky

Headline: Loose-lipped neural networks and lazy scammers

One topic being actively researched in connection with the breakout of LLMs is capability uplift – when employees with limited experience or resources in some area become able to perform at a much higher level thanks to LLM technology. This is especially important in information security, where cyberattacks are becoming increasingly cost-effective and larger-scale, causing headaches for security teams.

Among other tools, attackers use LLMs to generate content for fake websites. Such sites can mimic reputable organizations – from social networks to banks – to extract credentials from victims (classic phishing), or they can pretend to be stores of famous brands offering super discounts on products (which mysteriously never get delivered).

Aided by LLMs, attackers can fully automate the creation of dozens, even hundreds of web pages with different content. Before, some specific tasks could be done automatically, such as generating and registering domain names, obtaining certificates and making sites available through free hosting services. Now, however, thanks to LLMs, scammers can create unique, fairly high-quality content (much higher than when using, say, synonymizers) without the need for costly manual labor. This, in particular, hinders detection using rules based on specific phrases. Detecting LLM-generated pages requires systems for analyzing metadata or page structure, or fuzzy approaches such as machine learning.

But LLMs don’t always work perfectly, so if the scale of automation is large or the level of control is low, they can leave telltale indicators, or artifacts, that the model was poorly applied. Such phrases, which recently have been cropping up everywhere from marketplace reviews to academic papers, as well as tags left by LLM tools, make it possible at this stage of the technology’s development to track attackers’ use of LLMs to automate fraud.

I’m sorry, but…

One of the clearest signs of LLM-generated text is the presence of first-person apologies and refusals to follow instructions. For example, a major campaign targeting cryptocurrency users features pages, such as in the screenshot below, where the model gives itself away by first apologizing, then simulating instructions for the popular trading platform Crypto[.]com:

As we see, the model refuses to perform one of the basic tasks for which LLMs are used – writing articles:

I’m sorry, but as an AI language model, I cannot provide specific articles on demand.

This specific example is hosted at gitbook[.]io. Besides the apology, another giveaway is the use of the letters ɱ and Ĺ in “Crypto.coɱ Ĺogin”.

On another page targeting Metamask wallet users, hosted at webflow[.]io, we see the LLM response:

I apologize for the previous response not meeting your word count requirement.

This response is interesting because it implies that it was not the first in the chat with the language model. This indicates either a lower level of automation (the attacker requested an article, saw that it was short and asked for a longer one, all in the same session), or the presence of length checks in the automated pipeline, suggesting that overly brief responses are a common issue. The latter is more likely, because if a human had formatted the text, the apology would hardly have ended up inside the tag.

Artifacts can appear not only in web page text. In one page mimicking the STON[.]fi crypto exchange, LLM apologies turned up in the meta tags:

I’m sorry, but I don’t have enough information to generate a useful meta description without clear target keywords. Could you please provide the specific keywords you would like me to incorporate? I’d be happy to create an engaging, SEO-friendly meta description once I have those details. Just send over the keywords whenever you’re ready.

LLMs can be used not only to generate text blocks, but entire web pages. The page above, which mimics the Polygon site (hosted at github[.]io on a lookalike subdomain with the word “bolygon”), shows a message that the model has exceeded its allowable character limit:

Users can access a wide rangeAuthor’s Note: I apologize, but it seems like the response got cut off. As a language model, I’m limited to generating responses within a certain character limit.

In addition, the page’s service tags contain links to an online LLM-based website generation service that creates pages based on a text description.

In another example, on an adult clickbait page that redirects to dubious 18+ dating sites, we see a model apologize for declining to write content related to data leaks:

I’m sorry for any misunderstanding, but as an AI developed by OpenAI, I am programmed to follow ethical guidelines, which means I cannot generate or provide content related to leaked material involving [model name] or any other individual.

Already a meme

The phrase-turned-meme “As an AI language model…” and its variations often pop up on scam pages, not only in the context of apologies. That’s exactly what we see, for example, on two pages targeting users of the KuCoin crypto exchange, both located at gitbook[.]us.

In the first case, the model refuses to work as a search engine:

As an AI developed by OpenAI, I can’t provide direct login links to third-party platforms like KuCoin or any other specific service.

In the second, we see a slight variation on the theme – the model states that it can’t log in to websites itself:

As an AI developed by OpenAI, I don’t have the capability to directly access or log in to specific websites like KuCoin or any other online platform.

Bargaining stage

Another fairly clear LLM sign is the use of “While I can’t…, I can certainly…”-type constructions.

For instance, a page hosted at weblof[.]io reads as follows:

While I can’t provide real-time information or direct access to specific websites, I can certainly guide you through the general steps on how to log in to a typical online platform like BitMart.

On another page, this time at gitbook[.]us, the LLM declines to give detailed instructions on how to log in to a Gemini account:

While I can’t provide specific step-by-step instructions, I can certainly offer a general overview of what the process might entail.

One more page, also on gitbook[.]us, is aimed at Exodus Wallet users:

While I cannot provide real-time information or specific details about the Exodus® Wallet login process, I can offer a comprehensive solution that generally addresses common issues related to wallet logins.

There’s no stopping progress

Another key sign of LLM-generated text is a message about the model’s knowledge cutoff – the date after which it no longer has up-to-date information about the world. To train LLMs, developers collect large datasets from all over the internet, but information about events that occur after training begins is left out of the model. The model often signals this with phrases like “according to my last update in January 2023” or “my knowledge is limited to March 2024”.

For instance, the following phrase was found on a fake site mimicking the Rocket Pool staking platform:

Please note that the details provided in this article are based on information available up to my knowledge cutoff in September 2021.

On another scam site, this time targeting Coinbase users, we see text written by a fresher model:

This content is entirely hypothetical, and as of my last update in January 2022, Coinbase does not have a browser extension specifically for its wallet.

A fake page from the same campaign, but aimed at MetaMask wallet users, employs an even more recent model to generate text:

As of my last knowledge update in January 2023, Metamask is a popular and widely used browser extension…

Artifacts of this kind not only expose the use of LLMs to create scam web pages, but allow us to estimate both the campaign duration and the approximate time of content creation.

Delving into an ever-evolving world

Finally, OpenAI models have certain word preferences. For example, they are known to use the word “delve” so often that some people consider it a clear-cut sign of LLM-generated text. Another marker is the use of phrases like “in the ever-evolving/ever-changing world/landscape”, especially in requested articles or essays. Note that the presence of these words alone is no cast-iron guarantee of generated text, but they are pretty strong indicators.

For example, one such site is hosted at gitbook[.]us and belongs to a campaign with stronger signs of LLM usage. There we see both the phrase

In the dynamic realm of cryptocurrency

and the classic “let’s delve” in the instructions for using a physical Ledger wallet. On another Ledger-dedicated page (this time at webflow[.]io), we find “delve” rubbing shoulders with “ever-evolving world”:

On yet another page at gitbook[.]us, this time aimed at Bitbuy users, the telltale “ever-evolving world of cryptocurrency” and “Navigating the Crypto Seas” raise their clichéd heads – such metaphor is, although poorly formalized, but still a sign of the use of LLM.

As mentioned above, LLM-generated text can go hand-in-hand with various techniques that hinder rule-based detection. For example, an article at gitbook[.]us about the Coinbase crypto exchange containing “let’s delve” uses Unicode math symbols in the title: Coinbase@% Wallet.

Due to font issues, however, the browser has trouble displaying Unicode characters, so in the screenshot they look like this:

As part of the same campaign, KuCoin was honored with yet another version of the page at gitbook[.]us. This time we see obfuscation in the title: Kucoin® Loᘜin*, as well as the less screaming but still telling “let’s explore” along with the familiar “delve”:

we delve into the intricates of KuCoin login

Let’s explore how you can access your account securely and efficiently

Let’s delve into the robust security measures offered by this platform to safeguard your assets.

Lastly, one more page in this campaign, hosted at webflow[.]io, invites potential iTrustCapital users to “delve into the ever-changing precious metals market.” In this example, “Login” is also obfuscated.

Conclusion

As large language models improve, their strengths and weaknesses, as well as the tasks they do well or poorly, are becoming better understood. Threat actors are exploring applications of this technology in a range of automation scenarios. But, as we see, they sometimes commit blunders that help shed light on how they use LLMs, at least in the realm of online fraud.

Peering into the future, we can assume that LLM-generated content will become increasingly difficult to distinguish from human-written. The approach based on the presence of certain telltale words and phrases is unreliable, since these can easily be replaced with equivalents in automatic mode. Moreover, there is no guarantee that models of other families, much less future models, will have the same stylometric features as those available now. The task of automatically identifying LLM-generated text is extremely complex, especially as regards generic content like marketing materials, which are similar to what we saw in the examples. To better protect yourself against phishing, be it hand-made or machine-generated, it’s best to use modern security solutions that combine analysis of text information, metadata and other attributes to protect against fraud.

MIL OSI Economics –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Anniversary Statement: ATR 72-212 A, G-CMJM
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Right nosewheel detached on takeoff, Edinburgh Airport, 31 October 2023
This statement provides an update on the AAIB investigation into an accident to ATR 72-212 A, G-CMJM, at Edinburgh Airport, on 31 October 2023.

While taking off from Edinburgh Airport, the right nose landing gear wheel detached from the aircraft. The flight continued to its destination without any abnormal indications or adverse aircraft performance, and the missing wheel was only noticed as the aircraft taxied onto stand after landing.

The investigation into this event is nearing completion and a final report will be issued in due course.

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Published 31 October 2024
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Bybit Card in The Pocket: Physical Card Applications Now Open in Argentina With Welcome Offer
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, will be unveiling its first physical Mastercard debit card for Bybit users in Argentina. From now to Dec. 31, 2024, new applicants may unlock up to 30,000 ARS in bonuses for card spendings upon the first 100 USDT in deposit. The welcome offer is available for residents in Argentina.

Seamlessly bridging digital assets with real-world spending, the Bybit Card has quickly become the preferred choice for Argentina’s crypto community. Starting today, virtual Bybit Card holders in Argentina can apply for the physical card through their accounts within a few clicks. For new users who have not experienced the virtual card and missed the early-bird registration period, now is the time to apply for both the virtual and the physical cards.

Argentina has emerged as one of the leading markets for digital assets in Latin America, topping the list of regional crypto inflows. According to a recent Chainalysis report, users in Argentina deposited $91 billion worth of crypto between July 2023 and June 2024—the highest amount in the region.

With the Bybit physical card, users can unlock the full benefits of online and offline spending, accessing over 90 million merchants worldwide through the Mastercard network. The card offers an easy, global payment solution backed by Bybit’s support for major cryptocurrencies and 24/7 customer service. It also comes with a range of perks:
- Free issuance and delivery
- Zero annual fees or hidden charges
- 2% cashback in USDT
- Up to 8% APR on crypto holdings
- 30,000 ARS bonus rewards for a limited time only
“We were encouraged by the warm Argentinian welcome since the Bybit Card made its local debut in July. Three months in, our virtual card has been well loved by the vast majority of Bybit users in Argentina, and we are excited to give users access to the physical version for added flexibility,” said Joan Han, Sales and Marketing Director of Bybit. “Bybit is dedicated to building communities beyond a transactional experience, and we hope a Bybit branded card our users can hold in their hands will bring us closer with a sense of touch and added convenience,” she added.

The Bybit Card offers a seamless and effortless way for Argentinian users to spend their crypto on everyday purchases while taking full advantage of its rewards and exclusive benefits. Argentinian users can expect more upcoming features and perks with the physical card, including ATM withdrawals and other rewards campaigns in future. The product aligns with Bybit’s mission to foster crypto adoption and create meaningful value for the community.

Users can find out more about the Bybit Card for residents in Argentina: Bybit Card – Argentina

#Bybit / #TheCryptoArk

About Bybit

Bybit is the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, serving over 50 million users. Established in 2018, Bybit provides a professional platform where crypto investors and traders can find an ultra-fast matching engine, 24/7 customer service, and multilingual community support. Bybit is a proud partner of Formula One’s reigning Constructors’ and Drivers’ champions: the Oracle Red Bull Racing team.

For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press

For media inquiries, please contact: media@bybit.com

For more information, please visit: https://www.bybit.com

For updates, please follow: Bybit’s Communities and Social Media

Discord | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Reddit | Telegram | TikTok | X | Youtube

Contact

Head of PR
Tony Au
Bybit
tony.au@bybit.com

The MIL Network –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Bilibili Inc. to Report Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results on Thursday, November 14, 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SHANGHAI, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bilibili Inc. (“Bilibili” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: BILI and HKEX: 9626), an iconic brand and a leading video community for young generations in China, today announced that it will report its third quarter 2024 unaudited financial results on Thursday, November 14, 2024, before the open of U.S. markets.

The Company’s management will host an earnings conference call at 7:00 AM U.S. Eastern Time on November 14, 2024 (8:00 PM Beijing/Hong Kong Time on November 14, 2024). Details for the conference call are as follows:

All participants must use the link provided above to complete the online registration process in advance of the conference call. Upon registering, each participant will receive a set of participant dial-in numbers and a personal PIN, which will be used to join the conference call.

Additionally, a live webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company’s investor relations website at http://ir.bilibili.com, and a replay of the webcast will be available following the session.

About Bilibili Inc.

Bilibili is an iconic brand and a leading video community with a mission to enrich the everyday lives of young generations in China. Bilibili offers a wide array of video-based content with All the Videos You Like as its value proposition. Bilibili builds its community around aspiring users, high-quality content, talented content creators and the strong emotional bonds among them. Bilibili pioneered the “bullet chatting” feature, a live comment function that has transformed our users’ viewing experience by displaying the thoughts and feelings of audience members viewing the same video. The Company has now become the welcoming home of diverse interests among young generations in China and the frontier for promoting Chinese culture across the world.

For more information, please visit: http://ir.bilibili.com.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

Bilibili Inc.
Juliet Yang
Tel: +86-21-2509-9255 Ext. 8523
E-mail: ir@bilibili.com

Piacente Financial Communications
Helen Wu
Tel: +86-10-6508-0677
E-mail: bilibili@tpg-ir.com

In the United States:

Piacente Financial Communications
Brandi Piacente
Tel: +1-212-481-2050
E-mail: bilibili@tpg-ir.com

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Radware Reports Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results and Highlights

Revenue of $69.5 million, an increase of 13% year–over–year
Cloud ARR of $71.6 million, an increase of 15% year-over-year
Non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.23 vs. $0.07 in Q3 2023; GAAP diluted EPS of $0.07 vs. $(0.16) in Q3 2023
Cash flow from operations of $14.7 million and $58.9 million year-to-date

TEL AVIV, Israel, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Radware^® (NASDAQ: RDWR), a leading provider of cyber security and application delivery solutions, today announced its consolidated financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024.

“We are pleased to report solid third-quarter results, highlighted by 13% year-over-year revenue growth and a significant improvement in profitability and cash flow from operations,” said Roy Zisapel, Radware’s President and CEO. “Our results reflect double-digit growth in subscription revenue, strong sales of software subscriptions, and the ongoing success of DefensePro X, which carries with it more subscription revenue. We are excited about the momentum we’ve built and our future growth prospects.”

Financial Highlights for the Third Quarter 2024
Revenue for the third quarter of 2024 totaled $69.5 million:

Revenue in the Americas region was $27.7 million for the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 11% from $24.9 million in the third quarter of 2023.
Revenue in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (“EMEA”) region was $25.2 million for the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 30% from $19.3 million in the third quarter of 2023.
Revenue in the Asia-Pacific (“APAC”) region was $16.6 million for the third quarter of 2024, a decrease of 5% from $17.4 million in the third quarter of 2023.

GAAP net income for the third quarter of 2024 was $3.1 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, compared to GAAP net loss of $6.9 million, or $(0.16) per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2023.

Non-GAAP net income for the third quarter of 2024 was $10.2 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, compared to non-GAAP net income of $2.9 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2023.

As of September 30, 2024, the Company had cash, cash equivalents, short-term and long-term bank deposits, and marketable securities of $411.7 million. Cash flow from operations was $14.7 million in the third quarter of 2024.

Non-GAAP results are calculated excluding, as applicable, the impact of stock-based compensation expenses, amortization of intangible assets, litigation costs, acquisition costs, restructuring costs, exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net, and tax-related adjustments. A reconciliation of each of the Company’s non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is included at the end of this press release.

Conference Call
Radware management will host a call today, October 31, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. EDT to discuss its third quarter 2024 results and fourth quarter 2024 outlook. To participate on the call, please use the following numbers:
U.S. participants call toll free: 888-510-2008
International participants call: 1 646-960-0306
Conference ID: 1864701

A replay will be available for two days, starting two hours after the end of the call, on telephone number +1-609-800-9099 or (US toll-free) 800-770-2030. Passcode 1864701.

The call will be webcast live on the Company’s website at: http://www.radware.com/IR/. The webcast will remain available for replay during the next 12 months.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information and Key Performance Indicators
In addition to reporting financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), Radware uses non-GAAP measures of gross profit, research and development expense, selling and marketing expense, general and administrative expense, total operating expenses, operating income, financial income, net, income before taxes on income, taxes on income, net income and diluted earnings per share, which are adjustments from results based on GAAP to exclude, as applicable, stock-based compensation expenses, amortization of intangible assets, litigation costs, acquisition costs, restructuring costs, exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net, and tax–related adjustments. Management believes that exclusion of these charges allows for meaningful comparisons of operating results across past, present, and future periods. Radware’s management believes the non-GAAP financial measures provided in this release are useful to investors for the purpose of understanding and assessing Radware’s ongoing operations. The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for results prepared in accordance with GAAP. A reconciliation of each non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure is included with the financial information contained in this press release. Management uses both GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures in evaluating and operating the business and, as such, has determined that it is important to provide this information to investors.

Annual recurring revenue (“ARR”) is a key performance indicator defined as the annualized value of booked orders for term-based cloud services, subscription licenses, and maintenance contracts that are in effect at the end of a reporting period. ARR should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue and is not intended to be combined with or to replace either of those items. ARR is not a forecast of future revenue, which can be impacted by contract start and end dates and renewal rates and does not include revenue reported as perpetual license or professional services revenue in our consolidated statement of operations. We consider ARR a key performance indicator of the value of the recurring components of our business.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements made herein that are not statements of historical fact, including statements about Radware’s plans, outlook, beliefs, or opinions, are forward-looking statements. Generally, forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “estimates,” “plans,” and similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “should,” “would,” “may,” and “could.” Because such statements deal with future events, they are subject to various risks and uncertainties, and actual results, expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, could differ materially from Radware’s current forecasts and estimates. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: the impact of global economic conditions, including as a result of the state of war declared in Israel in October 2023 and instability in the Middle East, the war in Ukraine, and the tensions between China and Taiwan; our dependence on independent distributors to sell our products; our ability to manage our anticipated growth effectively; a shortage of components or manufacturing capacity could cause a delay in our ability to fulfill orders or increase our manufacturing costs; our business may be affected by sanctions, export controls, and similar measures, targeting Russia and other countries and territories, as well as other responses to Russia’s military conflict in Ukraine, including indefinite suspension of operations in Russia and dealings with Russian entities by many multi-national businesses across a variety of industries; the ability of vendors to provide our hardware platforms and components for the manufacture of our products; our ability to attract, train, and retain highly qualified personnel; intense competition in the market for cyber security and application delivery solutions and in our industry in general, and changes in the competitive landscape; our ability to develop new solutions and enhance existing solutions; the impact to our reputation and business in the event of real or perceived shortcomings, defects, or vulnerabilities in our solutions, if our end-users experience security breaches, if our information technology systems and data, or those of our service providers and other contractors, are compromised by cyber-attackers or other malicious actors, or by a critical system failure; outages, interruptions, or delays in hosting services; the risks associated with our global operations, such as difficulties and costs of staffing and managing foreign operations, compliance costs arising from host country laws or regulations, partial or total expropriation, export duties and quotas, local tax exposure, economic or political instability, including as a result of insurrection, war, natural disasters, and major environmental, climate, or public health concerns, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; our net losses in the past two years and possibility we may incur losses in the future; a slowdown in the growth of the cyber security and application delivery solutions market or in the development of the market for our cloud-based solutions; long sales cycles for our solutions; risks and uncertainties relating to acquisitions or other investments; risks associated with doing business in countries with a history of corruption or with foreign governments; changes in foreign currency exchange rates; risks associated with undetected defects or errors in our products; our ability to protect our proprietary technology; intellectual property infringement claims made by third parties; laws, regulations, and industry standards affecting our business; compliance with open source and third-party licenses; and other factors and risks over which we may have little or no control. This list is intended to identify only certain of the principal factors that could cause actual results to differ. For a more detailed description of the risks and uncertainties affecting Radware, refer to Radware’s Annual Report on Form 20-F, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the other risk factors discussed from time to time by Radware in reports filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and, except as required by applicable law, Radware undertakes no commitment to revise or update any forward-looking statement in order to reflect events or circumstances after the date any such statement is made. Radware’s public filings are available from the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or may be obtained on Radware’s website at www.radware.com.

About Radware
Radware® (NASDAQ: RDWR) is a global leader in application security and delivery solutions for multi-cloud environments. The company’s cloud application, infrastructure, and API security solutions use AI-driven algorithms for precise, hands-free, real-time protection from the most sophisticated web, application, and DDoS attacks, API abuse, and bad bots. Enterprises and carriers worldwide rely on Radware’s solutions to address evolving cybersecurity challenges and protect their brands and business operations while reducing costs. For more information, please visit the Radware website.

Radware encourages you to join our community and follow us on: Facebook, LinkedIn, Radware Blog, X, YouTube, and Radware Mobile for iOS.

©2024 Radware Ltd. All rights reserved. Any Radware products and solutions mentioned in this press release are protected by trademarks, patents, and pending patent applications of Radware in the U.S. and other countries. For more details, please see: https://www.radware.com/LegalNotice/. All other trademarks and names are property of their respective owners.

Radware believes the information in this document is accurate in all material respects as of its publication date. However, the information is provided without any express, statutory, or implied warranties and is subject to change without notice.

The contents of any website or hyperlinks mentioned in this press release are for informational purposes and the contents thereof are not part of this press release.

CONTACTS
Investor Relations:
Yisca Erez, +972-72-3917211, ir@radware.com

Media Contact:
Gerri Dyrek, gerri.dyrek@radware.com

Radware Ltd.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(U.S. Dollars in thousands)

	September 30,	December 31,
	2024	2023
	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)
Assets

Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents	115,416	70,538
Marketable securities	94,809	86,372
Short-term bank deposits	111,998	173,678
Trade receivables, net	19,963	20,267
Other receivables and prepaid expenses	9,891	9,529
Inventories	13,543	15,544
	365,620	375,928

Long-term investments
Marketable securities	30,991	33,131
Long-term bank deposits	58,468	–
Other assets	2,104	2,166
	91,563	35,297


Property and equipment, net	16,499	18,221
Intangible assets, net	12,742	15,718
Other long-term assets	35,312	37,967
Operating lease right-of-use assets	18,433	20,777
Goodwill	68,008	68,008
Total assets	608,177	571,916

Liabilities and equity

Current liabilities
Trade payables	6,551	4,298
Deferred revenues	109,924	105,012
Operating lease liabilities	4,333	4,684
Other payables and accrued expenses	46,427	41,021
	167,235	155,015

Long-term liabilities
Deferred revenues	65,916	60,499
Operating lease liabilities	13,658	16,020
Other long-term liabilities	14,173	17,108
	93,747	93,627

Equity
Radware Ltd. equity
Share capital	749	742
Additional paid-in capital	548,240	529,209
Accumulated other comprehensive income	593	77
Treasury stock, at cost	(366,588)	(365,749)
Retained earnings	123,398	119,812
Total Radware Ltd. shareholder’s equity	306,392	284,091

Non–controlling interest	40,803	39,183

Total equity	347,195	323,274

Total liabilities and equity	608,177	571,916

Radware Ltd. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) (U.S Dollars in thousands, except share and per share data)

	For the three months ended		For the nine months ended
	September 30,		September 30,
	2024	2023	2024	2023
	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)

Revenues	69,488	61,612	201,849	196,260
Cost of revenues	13,392	12,838	39,260	38,886
Gross profit	56,096	48,774	162,589	157,374

Operating expenses, net:
Research and development, net	18,654	20,614	56,251	62,905
Selling and marketing	30,500	30,532	89,945	94,368
General and administrative	6,948	7,824	21,271	24,378
Total operating expenses, net	56,102	58,970	167,467	181,651

Operating loss	(6)	(10,196)	(4,878)	(24,277)
Financial income, net	4,957	3,778	12,982	10,688
Income (loss) before taxes on income	4,951	(6,418)	8,104	(13,589)
Taxes on income	1,807	433	4,518	2,151
Net income (loss)	3,144	(6,851)	3,586	(15,740)

Basic net income (loss) per share attributed to Radware Ltd.’s shareholders	0.07	(0.16)	0.09	(0.36)

Weighted average number of shares used to compute basic net income (loss) per share	41,956,001	42,261,637	41,854,984	43,232,405

Diluted net income (loss) per share attributed to Radware Ltd.’s shareholders	0.07	(0.16)	0.08	(0.36)

Weighted average number of shares used to compute diluted net income (loss) per share	43,573,161	42,261,637	43,199,279	43,232,405

	Radware Ltd. Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Information (U.S Dollars in thousands, except share and per share data)

		For the three months ended		For the nine months ended
		September 30,		September 30,
		2024	2023	2024	2023
		(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)
GAAP gross profit		56,096	48,774	162,589	157,374
	Share-based compensation	81	177	240	403
	Amortization of intangible assets	992	992	2,976	2,976
Non-GAAP gross profit		57,169	49,943	165,805	160,753

GAAP research and development, net		18,654	20,614	56,251	62,905
	Share-based compensation	1,421	2,064	4,679	6,200
Non-GAAP Research and development, net		17,233	18,550	51,572	56,705

GAAP selling and marketing		30,500	30,532	89,945	94,368
	Share-based compensation	2,548	2,134	7,708	9,065
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
Non-GAAP selling and marketing		27,952	27,125	82,237	84,030

GAAP general and administrative		6,948	7,824	21,271	24,378
	Share-based compensation	2,008	2,884	6,480	9,483
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
Non-GAAP general and administrative		4,781	4,729	14,220	14,126

GAAP total operating expenses, net		56,102	58,970	167,467	181,651
	Share-based compensation	5,977	7,082	18,867	24,748
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
Non-GAAP total operating expenses, net		49,966	50,404	148,029	154,861

GAAP operating loss		(6)	(10,196)	(4,878)	(24,277)
	Share-based compensation	6,058	7,259	19,107	25,151
	Amortization of intangible assets	992	992	2,976	2,976
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
Non-GAAP operating income (loss)		7,203	(461)	17,776	5,892

GAAP financial income, net		4,957	3,778	12,982	10,688
	Exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net	(86)	37	(231)	(770)
Non-GAAP financial income, net		4,871	3,815	12,751	9,918

GAAP income (loss) before taxes on income		4,951	(6,418)	8,104	(13,589)
	Share-based compensation	6,058	7,259	19,107	25,151
	Amortization of intangible assets	992	992	2,976	2,976
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
	Exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net	(86)	37	(231)	(770)
Non-GAAP income before taxes on income		12,074	3,354	30,527	15,810

GAAP taxes on income		1,807	433	4,518	2,151
	Tax related adjustments	62	62	185	185
Non-GAAP taxes on income		1,869	495	4,703	2,336

GAAP net income (loss)		3,144	(6,851)	3,586	(15,740)
	Share-based compensation	6,058	7,259	19,107	25,151
	Amortization of intangible assets	992	992	2,976	2,976
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
	Exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net	(86)	37	(231)	(770)
	Tax related adjustments	(62)	(62)	(185)	(185)
Non-GAAP net income		10,205	2,859	25,824	13,474

GAAP diluted net income (loss) per share		0.07	(0.16)	0.08	(0.36)
	Share-based compensation	0.14	0.17	0.45	0.57
	Amortization of intangible assets	0.02	0.03	0.07	0.07
	Acquisition costs	0.00	0.00	0.01	0.02
	Restructuring costs	0.00	0.03	0.00	0.03
	Exchange rate differences, net on balance sheet items included in financial income, net	(0.00)	0.00	(0.01)	(0.02)
	Tax related adjustments	(0.00)	(0.00)	(0.00)	0.00
Non-GAAP diluted net earnings per share		0.23	0.07	0.60	0.31


Weighted average number of shares used to compute non-GAAP diluted net earnings per share		43,573,161	43,163,159	43,199,279	44,058,549

Radware Ltd. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flow (U.S. Dollars in thousands)

	For the three months ended		For the nine months ended
	September 30,		September 30,
	2024	2023	2024	2023
	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)
Cash flow from operating activities:

Net income (loss)	3,144	(6,851)	3,586	(15,740)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	2,947	3,025	8,918	9,216
Share-based compensation	6,058	7,259	19,107	25,151
Amortization of premium, accretion of discounts and accrued interest on marketable securities, net	(234)	161	(227)	1,116
Loss related to securities, net	–	–	–	244
Increase (decrease) in accrued interest on bank deposits	(814)	(2,289)	4,645	(3,814)
Increase (decrease) in accrued severance pay, net	147	(401)	106	(506)
Decrease in trade receivables, net	5,536	4,448	304	5,380
Decrease (increase) in other receivables and prepaid expenses and other long-term assets	749	(215)	1,155	(2,541)
Decrease (increase) in inventories	253	(671)	2,001	(1,566)
Increase (decrease) in trade payables	2,474	(1,778)	2,253	(395)
Increase (decrease) in deferred revenues	(6,059)	(12,311)	10,329	(11,095)
Increase (decrease) in other payables and accrued expenses	259	644	7,052	(10,798)
Operating lease liabilities, net	248	(804)	(369)	(805)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	14,708	(9,783)	58,860	(6,153)

Cash flows from investing activities:

Purchase of property and equipment	(1,412)	(1,130)	(4,220)	(4,493)
Proceeds from other long-term assets, net	46	29	40	77
Proceeds from (investment in) bank deposits, net	9,731	21,145	(1,433)	51,345
Investment in, redemption of and purchase of marketable securities, net	5,541	2,228	(4,456)	347
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	13,906	22,272	(10,069)	47,276

Cash flows from financing activities:

Proceeds from exercise of share options	–	–	3	308
Repurchase of shares	–	(20,648)	(839)	(53,131)
Payment of contingent consideration related to acquisition	–	(2,063)	(3,077)	(2,063)
Net cash used in financing activities	–	(22,711)	(3,913)	(54,886)

Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	28,614	(10,222)	44,878	(13,763)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period	86,802	42,644	70,538	46,185
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period	115,416	32,422	115,416	32,422

	Radware Ltd. RECONCILIATION OF GAAP NET INCOME (LOSS) TO EBITDA AND ADJUSTED EBITDA (NON-GAAP) (U.S Dollars in thousands)

		For the three months ended		For the nine months ended
		September 30,		September 30,
		2024	2023	2024	2023
		(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)	(Unaudited)
GAAP net income (loss)		3,144	(6,851)	3,586	(15,740)
	Exclude: Financial income, net	(4,957)	(3,778)	(12,982)	(10,688)
	Exclude: Depreciation and amortization expense	2,947	3,025	8,918	9,216
	Exclude: Taxes on income	1,807	433	4,518	2,151
EBITDA		2,941	(7,171)	4,040	(15,061)

	Share-based compensation	6,058	7,259	19,107	25,151
	Restructuring costs	–	1,273	–	1,273
	Acquisition costs	159	211	571	769
Adjusted EBITDA		9,158	1,572	23,718	12,132


		For the three months ended		For the nine months ended
		September 30,		September 30,
		2024	2023	2024	2023
	Amortization of intangible assets	992	992	2,976	2,976
	Depreciation	1,955	2,033	5,942	6,240
		2,947	3,025	8,918	9,216

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: WTW Reports Third Quarter 2024 Earnings

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Revenue¹ increased 6% to $2.3 billion for the quarter with organic growth of 6% for the quarter
Diluted Loss² per Share was $16.44 for the quarter
Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share were $2.93 for the quarter, up 31% from prior year
Operating Margin² was (33.5)% for the quarter
Adjusted Operating Margin was 18.1% for the quarter, up 190 basis points from prior year

LONDON, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — WTW (NASDAQ: WTW) (the “Company”), a leading global advisory, broking and solutions company, today announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024.

“We had another strong quarter fueled by revenue growth, operating leverage and the success of our Transformation program. Our revenue growth of 6% for the quarter is evidence that our value proposition is continuing to resonate in the market and that our investments in talent and technology are succeeding. We are also making ongoing progress on our commitment to improve cash flow. Given our strong performance and momentum, we are entering the fourth quarter with confidence in our ability to deliver on our targets for the year and drive sustainable, profitable growth going forward.”

Consolidated Results

As reported, USD millions, except %

Key Metrics	Q3-24	Q3-23	Y/Y Change
Revenue¹	$2,289	$2,166	Reported 6% \| CC 6% \| Organic 6%
(Loss)/Income from Operations²	$(766)	$159	NM
Operating Margin² %	(33.5)%	7.3%	NM
Adjusted Operating Income	$414	$351	18%
Adjusted Operating Margin %	18.1%	16.2%	190 bps
Net (Loss)/Income²	$(1,672)	$139	NM
Adjusted Net Income	$299	$236	27%
Diluted EPS²	$(16.44)	$1.29	NM
Adjusted Diluted EPS	$2.93	$2.24	31%

¹	The revenue amounts included in this release are presented on a U.S. GAAP basis except where stated otherwise. This excludes reinsurance revenue which is reported in discontinued operations. The segment discussion is on an organic basis.
²	Loss from Operations, Operating Margin, Net Loss and Diluted EPS for the third quarter of 2024 include pre-tax non-cash losses and impairment charges of over $1.0 billion each related to the pending sale of TRANZACT.
^NM	Not meaningful.

Revenue was $2.29 billion for the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 6% as compared to $2.17 billion for the same period in the prior year. Excluding the impact of foreign currency, revenue increased 6%. On an organic basis, revenue increased 6%. See Supplemental Segment Information for additional detail on book-of-business settlements and interest income included in revenue.

Net Loss for the third quarter of 2024 was $1.67 billion compared to Net Income of $139 million in the prior-year third quarter. Loss from Operations, Operating Margin, Net Loss and Diluted EPS for the third quarter of 2024 include pre-tax non-cash losses and impairment charges of over $1.0 billion each related to the pending sale of TRANZACT. Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter was $501 million, or 21.9% of revenue, an increase of 15%, compared to Adjusted EBITDA of $436 million, or 20.1% of revenue, in the prior-year third quarter. The U.S. GAAP tax rate for the third quarter was 16.1%, and the adjusted income tax rate for the third quarter used in calculating adjusted diluted earnings per share was 19.7%.

Cash Flow and Capital Allocation

Cash flows from operating activities were $913 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $823 million for the prior year. Free cash flow for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 was $807 million and $707 million, respectively, an increase of $100 million, primarily driven by operating margin expansion, partially offset by cash outflows related to transformation and discretionary compensation payments. During the quarter ended September 30, 2024, the Company repurchased $205 million of WTW outstanding shares.

Third Quarter 2024 Segment Highlights

Health, Wealth & Career (“HWC”)

As reported, USD millions, except %

Health, Wealth & Career	Q3-24	Q3-23	Y/Y Change
Total Revenue	$1,328	$1,282	Reported 4% \| CC 3% \| Organic 4%
Operating Income	$329	$305	8%
Operating Margin %	24.7%	23.8%	90 bps

The HWC segment had revenue of $1.33 billion in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 4% (3% increase constant currency and 4% organic) from $1.28 billion in the prior year. Health had organic revenue growth driven by strong client retention, new local appointments and the continued expansion of our Global Benefits Management client portfolio in International and Europe, along with increased brokerage income in North America. Wealth generated organic revenue growth from higher levels of Retirement work in Europe, an increase in our Investments business due to capital market improvements and growth from our LifeSight solution. Career had organic revenue growth from increased compensation survey sales and advisory services in Work & Rewards and product revenue in Employee Experience. Benefits Delivery & Outsourcing (BD&O) had an organic revenue decline for the quarter primarily as a result of deliberately moderating growth in Individual Marketplace and a stronger comparable in Outsourcing.

Operating margins in the HWC segment increased 90 basis points from the prior-year third quarter to 24.7%, primarily from Transformation savings. Please refer to the Supplemental Slides for TRANZACT’s standalone historical financial results.

Risk & Broking (“R&B”)

As reported, USD millions, except %

Risk & Broking	Q3-24	Q3-23	Y/Y Change
Total Revenue	$940	$855	Reported 10% \| CC 10% \| Organic 10%
Operating Income	$170	$134	27%
Operating Margin %	18.1%	15.7%	240 bps

The R&B segment had revenue of $940 million in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 10% (10% increase constant currency and organic) from $855 million in the prior year. Corporate Risk & Broking (CRB) had organic revenue growth driven by higher levels of new business activity and strong client retention. Insurance Consulting and Technology (ICT) had organic revenue growth for the quarter primarily due to strong software sales in Technology, partially offset by tempered demand for discretionary services in Consulting.

Operating margins in the R&B segment increased 240 basis points from the prior-year third quarter to 18.1%, primarily due to operating leverage driven by organic revenue growth and disciplined expense management, as well as Transformation savings.

2024 Outlook

Based on current and anticipated market conditions, the Company’s full-year targets for 2024, consistent with those targets that have been previously provided, are as follows. Refer to the Supplemental Slides for additional detail.

Expect to deliver revenue of $9.9 billion or greater and mid-single digit organic revenue growth for the full year 2024
Expect to deliver adjusted operating margin of 23.0% – 23.5% for the full year 2024
Expect to deliver adjusted diluted earnings per share of $16.00 – $17.00 for the full year 2024
Expect approximately $88 million in non-cash pension income for the full year 2024
Expect a foreign currency headwind on adjusted earnings per share of approximately $0.06 for the full year 2024 at today’s rates, down from $0.10 previously
Expect to deliver approximately $450 million of cumulative run-rate savings from the Transformation program by the end of 2024 with total program costs of $1.175 billion.

Outlook includes Non-GAAP financial measures. We do not reconcile forward-looking Non-GAAP measures for reasons explained below.

In addition, WTW will host an Investor Day on Tuesday, December 3, 2024 beginning at approximately 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. A live webcast presentation will be available at www.wtwco.com and a replay of the webcast will be available on the Company’s website following the event.

Conference Call

The Company will host a live webcast and conference call to discuss the financial results for the third quarter 2024. It will be held on Thursday, October 31, 2024, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. A live broadcast of the conference call will be available on WTW’s website here. The conference call will include a question-and-answer session. To participate in the question-and-answer session, please register here. An online replay will be available at www.wtwco.com shortly after the call concludes.

About WTW

At WTW (NASDAQ: WTW), we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people, risk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our colleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen their strategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce and maximize performance. Working shoulder to shoulder with our clients, we uncover opportunities for sustainable success—and provide perspective that moves you. Learn more at www.wtwco.com.

WTW Non-GAAP Measures

In order to assist readers of our consolidated financial statements in understanding the core operating results that WTW’s management uses to evaluate the business and for financial planning, we present the following non-GAAP measures: (1) Constant Currency Change, (2) Organic Change, (3) Adjusted Operating Income/Margin, (4) Adjusted EBITDA/Margin, (5) Adjusted Net Income, (6) Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share, (7) Adjusted Income Before Taxes, (8) Adjusted Income Taxes/Tax Rate, (9) Free Cash Flow and (10) Free Cash Flow Margin.

We believe that those measures are relevant and provide pertinent information widely used by analysts, investors and other interested parties in our industry to provide a baseline for evaluating and comparing our operating performance, and in the case of free cash flow, our liquidity results.

Within the measures referred to as ‘adjusted’, we adjust for significant items which will not be settled in cash, or which we believe to be items that are not core to our current or future operations. Some of these items may not be applicable for the current quarter, however they may be part of our full-year results. Additionally, we have historically adjusted for certain items which are not described below, but for which we may adjust in a future period when applicable. Items applicable to the quarter or full year results, or the comparable periods, include the following:

Restructuring costs and transaction and transformation – Management believes it is appropriate to adjust for restructuring costs and transaction and transformation when they relate to a specific significant program with a defined set of activities and costs that are not expected to continue beyond a defined period of time, or significant acquisition-related transaction expenses. We believe the adjustment is necessary to present how the Company is performing, both now and in the future when the incurrence of these costs will have concluded.
Impairment – Adjustment to remove the non-cash goodwill impairment associated with our Benefits, Delivery and Administration reporting unit related to the pending divestiture of our TRANZACT business.
Provisions for specified litigation matters – We will include provisions for litigation matters which we believe are not representative of our core business operations. Among other things, we determine this by reference to the amount of the loss (net of insurance and other recovery receivables) and by reference to whether the matter relates to an unusual and complex scenario that is not expected to be repeated as part of our ongoing, ordinary business. These amounts are presented net of insurance and other recovery receivables. See the footnotes to the respective reconciliation tables below for more specificity on the litigation matter excluded from adjusted results.
Gains and losses on disposals of operations – Adjustment to remove the gains or losses resulting from disposed operations that have not been classified as discontinued operations.
Tax effect of significant adjustments – Relates to the incremental tax expense or benefit resulting from significant or unusual events including significant statutory tax rate changes enacted in material jurisdictions in which we operate, internal reorganizations of ownership of certain businesses that reduced the investment held by our U.S.-controlled subsidiaries and the recovery of certain refunds or payment of taxes related to businesses in which we no longer participate.

We evaluate our revenue on an as reported (U.S. GAAP), constant currency and organic basis. We believe presenting constant currency and organic information provides valuable supplemental information regarding our comparable results, consistent with how we evaluate our performance internally.

We consider Constant Currency Change, Organic Change, Adjusted Operating Income/Margin, Adjusted EBITDA/Margin, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share, Adjusted Income Before Taxes, Adjusted Income Taxes/Tax Rate and Free Cash Flow to be important financial measures, which are used to internally evaluate and assess our core operations and to benchmark our operating and liquidity results against our competitors. These non-GAAP measures are important in illustrating what our comparable operating and liquidity results would have been had we not incurred transaction-related and non-recurring items. Reconciliations of these measures are included in the accompanying tables with the following exception: The Company does not reconcile its forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures to the corresponding U.S. GAAP measures, due to variability and difficulty in making accurate forecasts and projections and/or certain information not being ascertainable or accessible; and because not all of the information, such as foreign currency impacts necessary for a quantitative reconciliation of these forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measure, is available to the Company without unreasonable efforts. For the same reasons, the Company is unable to address the probable significance of the unavailable information. The Company provides non-GAAP financial measures that it believes will be achieved, however it cannot accurately predict all of the components of the adjusted calculations and the U.S. GAAP measures may be materially different than the non-GAAP measures.

Our non-GAAP measures and their accompanying definitions are presented as follows:

Constant Currency Change – Represents the year-over-year change in revenue excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations. To calculate this impact, the prior year local currency results are first translated using the current year monthly average exchange rates. The change is calculated by comparing the prior year revenue, translated at the current year monthly average exchange rates, to the current year as reported revenue, for the same period. We believe constant currency measures provide useful information to investors because they provide transparency to performance by excluding the effects that foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations have on period-over-period comparability given volatility in foreign currency exchange markets.

Organic Change – Excludes the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, as described above and the period-over-period impact of acquisitions and divestitures on current-year revenue. We believe that excluding transaction-related items from our U.S. GAAP financial measures provides useful supplemental information to our investors, and it is important in illustrating what our core operating results would have been had we not included these transaction-related items, since the nature, size and number of these transaction-related items can vary from period to period.

Adjusted Operating Income/Margin – (Loss)/Income from operations adjusted for impairment, amortization, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation and non-recurring items that, in management’s judgment, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results. Adjusted operating income margin is calculated by dividing adjusted operating income by revenue. We consider adjusted operating income/margin to be important financial measures, which are used internally to evaluate and assess our core operations and to benchmark our operating results against our competitors.

Adjusted EBITDA/Margin – Net (Loss)/Income adjusted for provision for income taxes, interest expense, impairment, depreciation and amortization, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation, gains and losses on disposals of operations and non-recurring items that, in management’s judgment, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results. Adjusted EBITDA Margin is calculated by dividing adjusted EBITDA by revenue. We consider adjusted EBITDA/margin to be important financial measures, which are used internally to evaluate and assess our core operations, to benchmark our operating results against our competitors and to evaluate and measure our performance-based compensation plans.

Adjusted Net Income – Net (Loss)/Income Attributable to WTW adjusted for impairment, amortization, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation, gains and losses on disposals of operations and non-recurring items that, in management’s judgment, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results and the related tax effect of those adjustments and the tax effects of internal reorganizations. This measure is used solely for the purpose of calculating adjusted diluted earnings per share.

Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share – Adjusted Net Income divided by the weighted-average number of ordinary shares, diluted. Adjusted diluted earnings per share is used to internally evaluate and assess our core operations and to benchmark our operating results against our competitors.

Adjusted Income Before Taxes – (Loss)/Income from operations before income taxes adjusted for impairment, amortization, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation, gains and losses on disposals of operations and non-recurring items that, in management’s judgment, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results. Adjusted income before taxes is used solely for the purpose of calculating the adjusted income tax rate.

Adjusted Income Taxes/Tax Rate – Benefit from/(provision for) income taxes adjusted for taxes on certain items of impairment, amortization, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation, gains and losses on disposals of operations, the tax effects of internal reorganizations, and non-recurring items that, in management’s judgment, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results, divided by adjusted income before taxes. Adjusted income taxes is used solely for the purpose of calculating the adjusted income tax rate. Management believes that the adjusted income tax rate presents a rate that is more closely aligned to the rate that we would incur if not for the reduction of pre-tax income for the adjusted items and the tax effects of internal reorganizations, which are not core to our current and future operations.

Free Cash Flow – Cash flows from operating activities less cash used to purchase fixed assets and software for internal use. Free Cash Flow is a liquidity measure and is not meant to represent residual cash flow available for discretionary expenditures. Management believes that free cash flow presents the core operating performance and cash-generating capabilities of our business operations.

Free Cash Flow Margin – Free Cash Flow as a percentage of revenue, which represents how much of revenue would be realized on a cash basis. We consider this measure to be a meaningful metric for tracking cash conversion on a year-over-year basis due to the non-cash nature of our pension income, which is included in our GAAP and Non-GAAP earnings metrics presented herein.

These non-GAAP measures are not defined in the same manner by all companies and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. Non-GAAP measures should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, the information contained within our condensed consolidated financial statements.

WTW Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains ‘forward-looking statements’ within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created by those laws. These forward-looking statements include information about possible or assumed future results of our operations. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, that address activities, events, or developments that we expect or anticipate may occur in the future, including such things as our outlook, plans and references to future performance, including our future financial and operating results (including our revenue, costs, or margins), short-term and long-term financial goals, plans, objectives, expectations and intentions, including with respect to organic revenue growth, free cash flow generation, adjusted net revenue, adjusted operating margin and adjusted earnings per share; future share repurchases; demand for our services and competitive strengths; strategic goals; existing and evolving business strategies including those related to acquisition and disposition activity; the benefits of new initiatives; the growth of our business and operations; the sustained health of our product, service, transaction, client, and talent assessment and management pipelines; our ability to successfully manage ongoing leadership, organizational, and technology changes, including investments in improving systems and processes; our ability to implement and realize anticipated benefits of any cost-savings initiatives including our multi-year operational transformation program; the potential impact of natural or man-made disasters like health pandemics and other world health crises; future capital expenditures; ongoing working capital efforts; the impact of changes to tax laws on our financial results; and our recognition of future impairment charges or write-off of receivables, are forward-looking statements. Also, when we use words such as ‘may’, ‘will’, ‘would’, ‘anticipate’, ‘believe’, ‘estimate’, ‘expect’, ‘intend’, ‘plan’, ‘continues’, ‘seek’, ‘target’, ‘goal’, ‘focus’, ‘probably’, or similar expressions, we are making forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of our management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking disclosure is speculative by its nature.

There are important risks, uncertainties, events and factors that could cause our actual results or performance to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements contained in this document, including the following: our ability to successfully establish, execute and achieve our global business strategy as it evolves; our ability to fully realize the anticipated benefits of our growth strategy, including inorganic growth through acquisitions; our ability to make divestitures, including the pending sale of our TRANZACT business (inclusive of all the legal entities that comprise such business), or acquisitions, including our ability to integrate or manage acquired businesses or de-integrate businesses to be disposed, as well as our ability to identify and successfully execute on opportunities for strategic collaboration; our ability to consummate the pending sale of TRANZACT, and related incremental risks associated therewith including our ability to obtain approval (or for applicable waiting periods to expire) under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976; our ability to successfully manage ongoing organizational changes, including as part of our multi-year operational transformation program, investments in improving systems and processes, and in connection with our acquisition and divestiture activities, including the pending sale of TRANZACT, and related to changes in leadership in any of our businesses; risks relating to changes in our management structures and in senior leadership; our ability to achieve our short-term and long-term financial goals, such as with respect to our cash flow generation, and the timing with respect to such achievement; the risks related to changes in general economic conditions, business and political conditions, changes in the financial markets, inflation, credit availability, increased interest rates and changes in trade policies; the risks to our short-term and long-term financial goals from any of the risks or uncertainties set forth herein; the risks relating to the adverse impacts of macroeconomic trends, including inflation, changes in interest rates and trade policies, as well as political events, war, such as the Russia-Ukraine and Middle East conflicts, and other international disputes, terrorism, natural disasters, public health issues and other business interruptions on the global economy and capital markets, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and long-term goals; our ability to successfully hedge against fluctuations in foreign currency rates; the risks relating to the adverse impacts of natural or man-made disasters such as health pandemics and other world health crises on the demand for our products and services, our cash flows and our business operations; material interruptions to or loss of our information processing capabilities, or failure to effectively maintain and upgrade our information technology resources and systems and related risks of cybersecurity breaches or incidents; our ability to comply with complex and evolving regulations related to data privacy, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence; the risks relating to the transitional arrangements in effect subsequent to our previously-completed sale of Willis Re to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.; significant competition that we face and the potential for loss of market share and/or profitability; the impact of seasonality and differences in timing of renewals and non-recurring revenue increases from disposals and book-of-business sales; the insufficiency of client data protection, potential breaches of information systems or insufficient safeguards against cybersecurity breaches or incidents; the risk of increased liability or new legal claims arising from our new and existing products and services, and expectations, intentions and outcomes relating to outstanding litigation; the risk of substantial negative outcomes on existing litigation or investigation matters; changes in the regulatory environment in which we operate, including, among other risks, the impacts of pending competition law and regulatory investigations; various claims, government inquiries or investigations or the potential for regulatory action; our ability to integrate direct-to-consumer sales and marketing solutions with our existing offerings and solutions; disasters or business continuity problems; our ability to successfully enhance our billing, collection and other working capital efforts, and thereby increase our free cash flow; our ability to properly identify and manage conflicts of interest; reputational damage, including from association with third parties; reliance on third-party service providers and suppliers; the loss of key employees or a large number of employees and rehiring rates; our ability to maintain our corporate culture; doing business internationally, including the impact of foreign currency exchange rates; compliance with extensive government regulation; the risk of sanctions imposed by governments, or changes to associated sanction regulations (such as sanctions imposed on Russia) and related counter-sanctions; our ability to effectively apply technology, data and analytics changes for internal operations, maintaining industry standards and meeting client preferences; changes and developments in the insurance industry or the U.S. healthcare system, including those related to Medicare, any legislative actions from the current U.S. Congress, the recent Final Rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for contract year 2025 and any judicial claims, rulings and appeals related thereto, and any other changes and developments in legal, regulatory, economic, business or operational conditions that could impact our Medicare benefits businesses such as TRANZACT; the inability to protect our intellectual property rights, or the potential infringement upon the intellectual property rights of others; fluctuations in our pension assets and liabilities and related changes in pension income, including as a result of, related to, or derived from movements in the interest rate environment, investment returns, inflation, or changes in other assumptions that are used to estimate our benefit obligations and their effect on adjusted earnings per share; our capital structure, including indebtedness amounts, the limitations imposed by the covenants in the documents governing such indebtedness and the maintenance of the financial and disclosure controls and procedures of each; our ability to obtain financing on favorable terms or at all; adverse changes in our credit ratings; the impact of recent or potential changes to U.S. or foreign laws, and the enactment of additional, or the revision of existing, state, federal, and/or foreign laws and regulations, recent judicial decisions and development of case law, other regulations and any policy changes and legislative actions, including those that may impose additional excise taxes or impact our effective tax rate; U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. persons owning at least 10% of our shares; changes in accounting principles, estimates or assumptions; our recognition of non-cash pre-tax losses and related impairment charges in connection with our pending sale of TRANZACT and other future impairment charges or write-offs of receivables; risks relating to or arising from environmental, social and governance practices; fluctuation in revenue against our relatively fixed or higher than expected expenses; the risk that investment levels, including cash spending, to achieve additional expected savings under our multi-year operational transformation program; the laws of Ireland being different from the laws of the U.S. and potentially affording less protections to the holders of our securities; and our holding company structure potentially preventing us from being able to receive dividends or other distributions in needed amounts from our subsidiaries.

The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive and new factors may emerge from time to time that could also affect actual performance and results. For more information, please see Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, and our subsequent filings with the SEC. Copies are available online at www.sec.gov or www.wtwco.com.

Although we believe that the assumptions underlying our forward-looking statements are reasonable, any of these assumptions, and therefore also the forward-looking statements based on these assumptions, could themselves prove to be inaccurate. Given the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included in this document, our inclusion of this information is not a representation or guarantee by us that our objectives and plans will be achieved.

Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and we will not update these forward-looking statements unless the securities laws require us to do so. With regard to these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this document may not occur, and we caution you against unduly relying on these forward-looking statements.

Contact

INVESTORS

Claudia De La Hoz | Claudia.Delahoz@wtwco.com

WTW Supplemental Segment Information (In millions of U.S. dollars) (Unaudited)
REVENUE
							Components of Revenue Change⁽ⁱ⁾
							Less:				Less:
	Three Months Ended September 30,				As Reported		Currency		Constant Currency		Acquisitions/		Organic
	2024		2023		% Change		Impact		Change		Divestitures		Change

Health, Wealth & Career
Revenue excluding interest income	$	1,320	$	1,275	4	%	0	%	3	%	0	%	4	%
Interest income		8		7
Total		1,328		1,282	4	%	0	%	3	%	0	%	4	%

Risk & Broking
Revenue excluding interest income	$	911	$	830	10	%	0	%	10	%	0	%	10	%
Interest income		29		25
Total		940		855	10	%	0	%	10	%	0	%	10	%

Segment Revenue	$	2,268	$	2,137	6	%	0	%	6	%	0	%	6	%
Reimbursable expenses and other		15		22
Interest income		6		7
Revenue	$	2,289	$	2,166	6	%	0	%	6	%	0	%	6%⁽ⁱⁱ⁾

							Components of Revenue Change⁽ⁱ⁾
							Less:				Less:
	Nine Months Ended September 30,				As Reported		Currency		Constant Currency		Acquisitions/		Organic
	2024		2023		% Change		Impact		Change		Divestitures		Change

Health, Wealth & Career
Revenue excluding interest income	$	3,898	$	3,766	4	%	0	%	4	%	0	%	4	%
Interest income		26		18
Total		3,924		3,784	4	%	0	%	4	%	0	%	4	%

Risk & Broking
Revenue excluding interest income	$	2,811	$	2,607	8	%	0	%	8	%	0	%	8	%
Interest income		86		52
Total		2,897		2,659	9	%	0	%	9	%	0	%	9	%

Segment Revenue	$	6,821	$	6,443	6	%	0	%	6	%	0	%	6	%
Reimbursable expenses and other		56		90
Interest income		18		36
Revenue	$	6,895	$	6,569	5	%	0	%	5	%	0	%	5%⁽ⁱⁱ⁾

⁽ⁱ⁾ Components of revenue change may not add due to rounding.
⁽ⁱⁱ⁾ Interest income did not contribute to organic change for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024.

BOOK-OF-BUSINESS SETTLEMENTS AND INTEREST INCOME

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	HWC				R&B				Corporate				Total
	2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023
Book-of-business settlements	$	3	$	—	$	4	$	1	$	—	$	—	$	7	$	1
Interest income		8		7		29		25		6		7		43		39
Total	$	11	$	7	$	33	$	26	$	6	$	7	$	50	$	40

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	HWC				R&B				Corporate				Total
	2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023
Book-of-business settlements	$	3	$	—	$	8	$	11	$	—	$	—	$	11	$	11
Interest income		26		18		86		52		18		36		130		106
Total	$	29	$	18	$	94	$	63	$	18	$	36	$	141	$	117

SEGMENT OPERATING INCOME ⁽ⁱ⁾

	Three Months Ended September 30,





	2024		2023











Health, Wealth & Career	$	329	$	305





Risk & Broking		170		134





Segment Operating Income	$	499	$	439

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024		2023

Health, Wealth & Career	$	941	$	836
Risk & Broking		575		459
Segment Operating Income	$	1,516	$	1,295

⁽ⁱ⁾ Segment operating income excludes certain costs, including amortization of intangibles, restructuring costs, transaction and transformation expenses, certain litigation provisions, and to the extent that the actual expense based upon which allocations are made differs from the forecast/budget amount, a reconciling item will be created between internally-allocated expenses and the actual expenses reported for U.S. GAAP purposes.

SEGMENT OPERATING MARGINS

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024	2023
Health, Wealth & Career	24.7%	23.8%
Risk & Broking	18.1%	15.7%

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024	2023
Health, Wealth & Career	24.0%	22.1%
Risk & Broking	19.8%	17.3%

RECONCILIATIONS OF SEGMENT OPERATING INCOME TO (LOSS)/INCOME FROM OPERATIONS BEFORE INCOME TAXES

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Segment Operating Income	$	499		$	439
Impairment⁽ⁱ⁾		(1,042	)		—
Amortization		(56	)		(62	)
Restructuring costs		(8	)		(17	)
Transaction and transformation⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(74	)		(113	)
Unallocated, net⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾		(85	)		(88	)
(Loss)/Income from Operations		(766	)		159
Interest expense		(65	)		(61	)
Other (loss)/income, net		(1,163	)		66
(Loss)/income from operations before income taxes	$	(1,994	)	$	164

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Segment Operating Income	$	1,516		$	1,295
Impairment⁽ⁱ⁾		(1,042	)		—
Amortization		(176	)		(203	)
Restructuring costs		(29	)		(30	)
Transaction and transformation⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(296	)		(265	)
Unallocated, net⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾		(247	)		(211	)
(Loss)/Income from Operations		(274	)		586
Interest expense		(197	)		(172	)
Other (loss)/income, net		(1,113	)		126
(Loss)/income from operations before income taxes	$	(1,584	)	$	540

⁽ⁱ⁾ Represents the non-cash goodwill impairment associated with our BDA reporting unit related to the pending divestiture of our TRANZACT business.
⁽ⁱⁱ⁾ In 2024 and 2023, in addition to legal fees and other transaction costs, includes primarily consulting fees and compensation costs related to the Transformation program.
⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾ Includes certain costs, primarily related to corporate functions which are not directly related to the segments, and certain differences between budgeted expenses determined at the beginning of the year and actual expenses that we report for U.S. GAAP purposes.

WTW
Reconciliations of Non-GAAP Measures
(In millions of U.S. dollars, except per share data)
(Unaudited)

RECONCILIATIONS OF NET (LOSS)/INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO WTW TO ADJUSTED DILUTED EARNINGS PER SHARE

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Net (loss)/income attributable to WTW	$	(1,675	)	$	136
Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042			—
Amortization		56			62
Restructuring costs		8			17
Transaction and transformation		74			113
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190			(41	)
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(396	)		(51	)
Adjusted Net Income	$	299		$	236

Weighted-average ordinary shares, diluted		102			105

Diluted (Loss)/Earnings Per Share	$	(16.44	)	$	1.29
Adjusted for certain items:⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾
Impairment		10.23			—
Amortization		0.55			0.59
Restructuring costs		0.08			0.16
Transaction and transformation		0.73			1.07
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		11.68			(0.39	)
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(3.89	)		(0.48	)
Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾	$	2.93		$	2.24

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Net (loss)/income attributable to WTW	$	(1,344	)	$	433
Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042			—
Amortization		176			203
Restructuring costs		29			30
Transaction and transformation		296			265
Provision for specified litigation matter⁽ⁱ⁾		13			—
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190			(44	)
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(492	)		(128	)
Tax effect of significant adjustments		(7	)		2
Adjusted Net Income	$	903		$	761

Weighted-average ordinary shares, diluted		103			107

Diluted (Loss)/Earnings Per Share	$	(13.11	)	$	4.06
Adjusted for certain items:⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾
Impairment		10.17			—
Amortization		1.72			1.90
Restructuring costs		0.28			0.28
Transaction and transformation		2.89			2.48
Provision for specified litigation matter⁽ⁱ⁾		0.13			—
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		11.61			(0.41	)
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		(4.80	)		(1.20	)
Tax effect of significant adjustments		(0.07	)		0.02
Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾	$	8.81		$	7.13

⁽ⁱ⁾ Represents a provision related to potential litigation arising out of a structured insurance program originally placed for a client over 15 years ago. The program is of a type and complexity that was highly bespoke to the client and for that reason is unlikely to be exactly replicated elsewhere. Because of this, while we do not believe the potential litigation is material, we believe excluding this matter from adjusted results makes results more comparable from period to period and more representative of our core business operations.
⁽ⁱⁱ⁾ The tax effect was calculated using an effective tax rate for each item.
⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾ Per share values and totals may differ due to rounding.

RECONCILIATIONS OF NET (LOSS)/INCOME TO ADJUSTED EBITDA

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024					2023

Net (Loss)/Income	$	(1,672	)	(73.0	)%	$	139		6.4	%
Provision for income taxes		(322	)				25
Interest expense		65					61
Impairment		1,042					—
Depreciation		60					60
Amortization		56					62
Restructuring costs		8					17
Transaction and transformation		74					113
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190					(41	)
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin	$	501		21.9	%	$	436		20.1	%

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024					2023

Net (Loss)/Income	$	(1,336	)	(19.4	)%	$	441		6.7	%
Provision for income taxes		(248	)				99
Interest expense		197					172
Impairment		1,042					—
Depreciation		176					184
Amortization		176					203
Restructuring costs		29					30
Transaction and transformation		296					265
Provision for specified litigation matter⁽ⁱ⁾		13					—
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190					(44	)
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin	$	1,535		22.3	%	$	1,350		20.6	%

RECONCILIATIONS OF (LOSS)/INCOME FROM OPERATIONS TO ADJUSTED OPERATING INCOME

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024					2023

(Loss)/Income from operations and Operating margin	$	(766	)	(33.5	)%	$	159	7.3	%
Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042					—
Amortization		56					62
Restructuring costs		8					17
Transaction and transformation		74					113
Adjusted operating income and Adjusted operating income margin	$	414		18.1	%	$	351	16.2	%

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024					2023

(Loss)/Income from operations and Operating margin	$	(274	)	(4.0	)%	$	586	8.9	%
Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042					—
Amortization		176					203
Restructuring costs		29					30
Transaction and transformation		296					265
Provision for specified litigation matter⁽ⁱ⁾		13					—
Adjusted operating income and Adjusted operating income margin	$	1,282		18.6	%	$	1,084	16.5	%

RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP INCOME TAXES/TAX RATE TO ADJUSTED INCOME TAXES/TAX RATE

	Three Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

(Loss)/income from operations before income taxes	$	(1,994	)	$	164

Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042			—
Amortization		56			62
Restructuring costs		8			17
Transaction and transformation		74			113
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190			(41	)
Adjusted income before taxes	$	376		$	315

(Benefit from)/provision for income taxes	$	(322	)	$	25
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		396			51
Adjusted income taxes	$	74		$	76

U.S. GAAP tax rate		16.1	%		15.5	%
Adjusted income tax rate		19.7	%		24.3	%

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

(Loss)/income from operations before income taxes	$	(1,584	)	$	540

Adjusted for certain items:
Impairment		1,042			—
Amortization		176			203
Restructuring costs		29			30
Transaction and transformation		296			265
Provision for specified litigation matter⁽ⁱ⁾		13			—
Loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190			(44	)
Adjusted income before taxes	$	1,162		$	994

(Benefit from)/provision for income taxes	$	(248	)	$	99
Tax effect on certain items listed above⁽ⁱⁱ⁾		492			128
Tax effect of significant adjustments		7			(2	)
Adjusted income taxes	$	251		$	225

U.S. GAAP tax rate		15.6	%		18.3	%
Adjusted income tax rate		21.6	%		22.6	%

RECONCILIATION OF CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES TO FREE CASH FLOW

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Cash flows from operating activities	$	913		$	823
Less: Additions to fixed assets and software for internal use		(106	)		(116	)
Free Cash Flow	$	807		$	707

WILLIS TOWERS WATSON PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (In millions of U.S. dollars, except per share data) (Unaudited)
	Three Months Ended September 30,						Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Revenue	$	2,289		$	2,166		$	6,895		$	6,569

Costs of providing services
Salaries and benefits		1,396			1,359			4,135			4,019
Other operating expenses		419			396			1,315			1,282
Impairment		1,042			—			1,042			—
Depreciation		60			60			176			184
Amortization		56			62			176			203
Restructuring costs		8			17			29			30
Transaction and transformation		74			113			296			265
Total costs of providing services		3,055			2,007			7,169			5,983

(Loss)/income from operations		(766	)		159			(274	)		586

Interest expense		(65	)		(61	)		(197	)		(172	)
Other (loss)/income, net		(1,163	)		66			(1,113	)		126

(LOSS)/INCOME FROM OPERATIONS BEFORE INCOME TAXES		(1,994	)		164			(1,584	)		540

Benefit from/(provision for) income taxes		322			(25	)		248			(99	)

NET (LOSS)/INCOME		(1,672	)		139			(1,336	)		441

Income attributable to non-controlling interests		(3	)		(3	)		(8	)		(8	)

NET (LOSS)/INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO WTW	$	(1,675	)	$	136		$	(1,344	)	$	433

(LOSS)/EARNINGS PER SHARE
Basic (loss)/earnings per share	$	(16.44	)	$	1.30		$	(13.11	)	$	4.08
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share	$	(16.44	)	$	1.29		$	(13.11	)	$	4.06

Weighted-average ordinary shares, basic		102			105			103			106
Weighted-average ordinary shares, diluted		102			105			103			107

WILLIS TOWERS WATSON PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (In millions of U.S. dollars, except share data) (Unaudited)
	September 30,			December 31,
	2024			2023
ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1,372		$	1,424
Fiduciary assets		9,176			9,073
Accounts receivable, net		2,118			2,572
Prepaid and other current assets		558			364
Current assets held for sale		1,089			—
Total current assets		14,313			13,433
Fixed assets, net		710			720
Goodwill		8,882			10,195
Other intangible assets, net		1,360			2,016
Right-of-use assets		539			565
Pension benefits assets		632			588
Other non-current assets		732			1,573
Total non-current assets		12,855			15,657
TOTAL ASSETS	$	27,168		$	29,090
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Fiduciary liabilities	$	9,176		$	9,073
Deferred revenue and accrued expenses		2,027			2,104
Current debt		—			650
Current lease liabilities		122			125
Other current liabilities		735			678
Current liabilities held for sale		475			—
Total current liabilities		12,535			12,630
Long-term debt		5,308			4,567
Liability for pension benefits		487			563
Deferred tax liabilities		94			542
Provision for liabilities		416			365
Long-term lease liabilities		556			592
Other non-current liabilities		202			238
Total non-current liabilities		7,063			6,867
TOTAL LIABILITIES		19,598			19,497
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
EQUITY⁽ⁱ⁾
Additional paid-in capital		10,957			10,910
(Accumulated deficit)/retained earnings		(650	)		1,466
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax		(2,810	)		(2,856	)
Treasury shares, at cost, 15,574 shares in 2024		(5	)		—
Total WTW shareholders’ equity		7,492			9,520
Non-controlling interests		78			73
Total Equity		7,570			9,593
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	$	27,168		$	29,090

(i) Equity includes (a) Ordinary shares $0.000304635 nominal value; Authorized 1,510,003,775; Issued 100,887,015 (2024) and 102,538,072 (2023); Outstanding 100,871,441 (2024) and 102,538,072 (2023) and (b) Preference shares, $0.000115 nominal value; Authorized 1,000,000,000 and Issued none in 2024 and 2023.

WILLIS TOWERS WATSON PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (In millions of U.S. dollars) (Unaudited)
	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
NET (LOSS)/INCOME	$	(1,336	)	$	441
Adjustments to reconcile net income to total net cash from operating activities:
Depreciation		176			184
Amortization		176			203
Impairment		1,042			—
Non-cash restructuring charges		17			19
Non-cash lease expense		76			83
Net periodic benefit of defined benefit pension plans		(15	)		(20	)
Provision for doubtful receivables from clients		13			8
Benefit from deferred income taxes		(379	)		(58	)
Share-based compensation		85			87
Net loss/(gain) on disposal of operations		1,190			(44	)
Non-cash foreign exchange (gain)/loss		(25	)		1
Other, net		32			21
Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of effects from purchase of subsidiaries:
Accounts receivable		271			261
Other assets		(299	)		(175	)
Other liabilities		(159	)		(191	)
Provisions		48			3
Net cash from operating activities		913			823

CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Additions to fixed assets and software for internal use		(106	)		(116	)
Capitalized software costs		(83	)		(66	)
Acquisitions of operations, net of cash acquired		(28	)		(6	)
Proceeds from sale of operations		—			86
Cash and fiduciary funds transferred in sale of operations		—			(922	)
Purchase of investments		(13	)		(6	)
Net cash used in investing activities		(230	)		(1,030	)

CASH FLOWS FROM/(USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Senior notes issued		746			748
Debt issuance costs		(9	)		(7	)
Repayments of debt		(653	)		(253	)
Repurchase of shares		(506	)		(804	)
Net proceeds/(payments) from fiduciary funds held for clients		934			(71	)
Payments of deferred and contingent consideration related to acquisitions		(2	)		(8	)
Cash paid for employee taxes on withholding shares		(30	)		(21	)
Dividends paid		(265	)		(265	)
Acquisitions of and dividends paid to non-controlling interests		(10	)		(47	)
Net cash from/(used in) financing activities		205			(728	)

INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS AND RESTRICTED CASH		888			(935	)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash		32			(54	)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS AND RESTRICTED CASH, BEGINNING OF PERIOD ⁽ⁱ⁾		3,792			4,721
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS AND RESTRICTED CASH, END OF PERIOD ⁽ⁱ⁾	$	4,712		$	3,732

(i) The amounts of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, their respective classification on the condensed consolidated balance sheets, as well as their respective portions of the increase or decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash for each of the periods presented have been included in the Supplemental Disclosures of Cash Flow Information section.

SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURES OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION

	Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024			2023

Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1,372		$	1,247
Fiduciary funds (included in fiduciary assets)		3,340			2,485
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	4,712		$	3,732

(Decrease)/increase in cash, cash equivalents and other restricted cash	$	(54	)	$	5
Increase/(decrease) in fiduciary funds		942			(940	)
Total ⁽ⁱ⁾	$	888		$	(935	)

⁽ⁱ⁾ Does not include the effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash.

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: HKMA and BIS co-host international financial conference (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

HKMA and BIS co-host international financial conference (with photos)
HKMA and BIS co-host international financial conference (with photos)
*********************************************************************

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority: An international financial conference (Conference), jointly organised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and supported by the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP), was successfully concluded today (October 31) in Hong Kong. This Conference followed the 15th Global Risk Forum co-hosted by the HKMA and GARP on October 30, and brought together over 100 representatives from international bodies, central banks, regulatory authorities, financial institutions, technology firms, consultancy firms and academia around the world. Building on the success of the inaugural Conference last year, the HKMA co-organised this significant event with the BIS for the second time. The Conference this year focused on the theme of “Opportunities and Challenges of Emerging Technologies in the Financial Ecosystem”, and featured a keynote address by the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Financial Stability, Ms Sarah Breeden. Other distinguished speakers of the Conference also shared their valuable insights on how artificial intelligence, tokenisation, and other technologies are transforming the financial landscape and how the industry can better prepare for these changes. The Chief Executive of the HKMA, Mr Eddie Yue, said, “Technology is a game changer in the financial industry. While we embrace the immense opportunities it offers, we must also strengthen collaboration among all parties to effectively address the challenges it presents. This Conference provides an excellent opportunity to leverage the collective insights of relevant stakeholders on the opportunities and challenges brought about by technological advancements. The HKMA will work hand in hand with the banking industry to foster a safe and smooth digital transformation journey.” Chief Representative of the BIS Office for Asia and the Pacific, Mr Tao Zhang, said, “Working closely with central banks and other stakeholders, the BIS can play a crucial role in support of their efforts to reap the benefits of tokenisation and artificial intelligence while addressing associated challenges.”About the Bank for International Settlements The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is an international organisation established in 1930 and owned by central banks. Its headquarters is located in Basel, Switzerland. The mission of the BIS is to support co-operation among central banks around the world in their pursuit of global monetary and financial stability. The BIS Representative Office for Asia and the Pacific is located in Hong Kong. The BIS also has an innovation hub centre in Hong Kong and is undertaking projects to develop public goods in the technology space to support central banks and improve the functioning of the financial system. This year marks the 5th anniversary of the Hong Kong Centre of the BIS Innovation Hub. About the Global Association of Risk Professionals The Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) is a non-partisan, not-for-profit membership organisation focused on elevating the practice of risk management. GARP offers the leading global certification for risk managers in the Financial Risk Manager (FRM®), as well as the Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR®) Certificate, Risk and AI (RAI™) Certificate, and ongoing educational opportunities through Continuing Professional Development. Through the GARP Benchmarking Initiative (GBI®) and GARP Risk Institute, GARP sponsors research in risk management and promotes collaboration among practitioners, academics, and regulators. Founded in 1996 and governed by a Board of Trustees, GARP is headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey, the United States, with offices in London and Hong Kong.

Ends/Thursday, October 31, 2024Issued at HKT 18:17

NNNN

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Blockchain Future: GEM Digital Limited Commits $10M Investment to VSG

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

LONDON, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — VSG, a leading blockchain ecosystem, has entered a strategic alliance with GEM Digital Limited, securing up to $10 million USD through a token subscription agreement. This partnership is set to accelerate VSG’s mission of delivering cost-effective, decentralised, and scalable solutions across its blockchain platform, solidifying its position in the growing decentralised economy.

GEM Digital’s extensive investment portfolio and expertise in utility tokens make it a key partner for VSG. With investments across over 30 centralised and decentralised exchanges globally, GEM Digital offers not only financial backing but a vast network and industry insights. The collaboration enhances VSG’s ability to innovate within the blockchain space. For GEM Digital, this investment underlines its commitment to advancing blockchain technology, aligning with VSG’s ambitions to expand applications in enterprise solutions, gaming, NFTs, and decentralised finance (DeFi).

VSG is known for its focus on security, scalability, and decentralised applications (dApps). The commitment from GEM Digital will allow VSG to develop its ecosystem further by attracting developers, growing its user base, and scaling operations to meet market demand. Part of the funds will support VSG’s upcoming hackathon, an initiative to foster innovation by encouraging developers to create new dApps, enhancing engagement and functionality. As VSG broadens its application range, it seeks to make blockchain more accessible and versatile, meeting the needs of individuals and enterprises alike with real-world solutions.

Yan Whitaker, VSG co-founder, stated, “We’re thrilled to partner with GEM Digital at this pivotal stage in our journey. With their support, we’re confident in accelerating the development of our blockchain ecosystem and redefining what’s possible in decentralised applications.” Jason Ansell, co-founder of VSG, described the partnership as a milestone, helping VSG drive innovation, expand platform capabilities, and deliver practical blockchain solutions for business and DeFi sectors.

About GEM Digital Limited

Based in the Bahamas, GEM Digital Limited is an asset investment firm focused on utility tokens. Its parent company, Global Emerging Markets (“GEM”), is a $3.4 billion alternative investment group with offices in Paris, New York, and the Bahamas, spanning asset classes like Small-Mid Cap Buyouts, Private Investments in Public Equities (PIPEs), and select venture investments.

About VSG

Vector Smart Chain (VSC) underpins VSG, aiming to transform decentralised finance through a secure, scalable platform for businesses and individuals.

Media Contact:

Fruzsina Lederer
Fruzsi.lederer@gmail.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/60739ca6-0ca5-4582-b269-b3c87f8dacbd

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Bitdeer Launches Second-Generation Bitcoin Mining Machine SEALMINER A2, Achieving Roadmap Goals
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SINGAPORE, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR), a world-leading technology company for blockchain and high-performance computing, officially unveiled its self-developed Bitcoin mining machine, the SEALMINER A2 series.

As the second-generation product in the SEALMINER series, SEALMINER A2 mining machine is equipped with Bitdeer’s independently developed second-generation chip, SEAL02. The A2 series achieves further breakthroughs, offering higher power efficiency ratios, enhanced technologies and improved stability, compared to the A1.

The A2 series includes two models: the air-cooling SEALMINER A2 and the hydro-cooling SEALMINER A2 Hydro, designed to meet mining needs in various environments. Both models adopt advanced cooling technologies and excel in power consumption control and hashrate performance, ensuring stable operation under high-intensity workloads. Test videos of both A2 series models showcasing their exceptional performance have been released.

SEALMINER A2 vs SEALMINER A2 Hydro

These are the key specifications for both models:
- SEALMINER A2: Power efficiency ratio of 16.5J/TH, Hashrate of 226TH/s, Power Consumption of 3,729W.
- SEALMINER A2 Hydro: Power efficiency ratio of 16.5J/TH, Hashrate of up to 446TH/s, Power Consumption of 7,359W.
Bitdeer remains committed to enhancing transparency and efficiency in the mining industry through research and development investments and technological innovations, providing the industry with efficient and reliable mining solutions. Bitdeer will continue to uphold the principles of “Innovation, Efficiency, Stability” offering global miners higher-quality and more reliable products and services.

About SEALMINER
SEALMINER, a pioneering brand of Bitcoin mining machines under Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR), specializes in offering efficient and sustainable mining solutions. SEALMINER integrates Bitdeer’s self-developed SEAL series of mining chips manufactured using advanced process nodes. By continuously improving power efficiency ratios, SEALMINER is dedicated to providing innovative, efficient, and reliable products and services to customers worldwide. To learn more, visit https://www.bitdeer.com/ or follow Bitdeer on X @ BitdeerOfficial and LinkedIn @ Bitdeer Group.

Investors and others should note that Bitdeer may announce material information using its website and/or on its accounts on social media platforms, including X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, and LinkedIn. Therefore, Bitdeer encourages investors and others to review the information it posts on social media and other communication channels listed on its website.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release about future expectations, plans, and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “anticipate,” “look forward to,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including factors discussed in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in Bitdeer’s annual report on Form 20-F, as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties, and other important factors in Bitdeer’s subsequent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof. Bitdeer specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether due to new information, future events, or otherwise. Readers should not rely upon the information on this page as current or accurate after its publication date.

Contacts:
For Promotional Partnerships:
marketing@bitdeer.com

For Sales Consultations:
sales@bitdeer.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/658fc26a-8029-4682-abfd-2cc623896ecd

The MIL Network –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: OSCE highlights importance of cybersecurity and cyber hygiene as Cybersecurity Awareness Month comes to an end

Source: Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – OSCE

Headline: OSCE highlights importance of cybersecurity and cyber hygiene as Cybersecurity Awareness Month comes to an end

Throughout October, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department has held a series of activities promoting cybersecurity good practices and general cyber hygiene as part of the OSCE’s contribution to the global Cybersecurity Awareness Month initiative.
This year’s activities, which marked the OSCE’s fifth participation in the global initiative, were an opportunity to raise awareness of the OSCE’s cyber/ICT security confidence-building measures (CBMs) and discuss emerging cyberspace issues. They include a social media campaign, webinars with renowned international experts, and the publication of a new OSCE cyber/ICT security factsheet.
The activities supported the priorities of the Maltese OSCE Chairpersonship on cyber/ICT security, from comprehensively enhancing resilience against cyber threats and supporting the implementation of relevant CBMs, to strengthening the OSCE’s women, peace and security agenda.
The first webinar focused on the impact artificial intelligence has on relations between states in cyberspace. The speakers explored the intersection of artificial intelligence with diplomacy, cybersecurity and international relations, discussing both the current and potential challenges of AI in these fields.
The second webinar showcased “National Cybersecurity Awareness Raising Platforms” to emphasize the critical role of national initiatives in promoting good cybersecurity practices and ensuring greater cyber resilience. The speakers shared effective strategies that actively engage the public and promote individual responsibility.
The third webinar examined how to better include gender considerations in cyber capacity-building and addressing gender dynamics in cybersecurity to create inclusive policies and practices. The speakers provided several recommendations, including setting gender markers for projects, fostering cross-sectoral stakeholder collaboration and creating concrete tools for education, training and early mentorship.
The 2024 OSCE Cybersecurity Awareness Month activities were part of the “Activities and customized support for the implementation of OSCE cyber/ICT security confidence-building measures” project, with the financial support of the United States of America.

MIL OSI Europe News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: The scientific and production forum “Golden Valley” brought together authorities, industrialists and scientists

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –

On October 31, the second scientific and production forum “Golden Valley” began its work, the main organizer of which is Novosibirsk State University. The goal of the event is to stimulate interaction between the university and scientific organizations with industrial partners through the implementation of joint projects and demonstration of scientific developments in the interests of the real sector of the economy. The forum brought together more than 1,000 participants from all over the country.

Opening the forum, Vice-Governor of the Novosibirsk Region Irina Manuilova noted that our region has extensive experience in holding large forums. For the 11th time this year, the Technoprom International Forum for the Development of the Russian Federation was held, and the topics that will be discussed within the framework of the Golden Valley will be continued at Technoprom next year.

— Today we are opening a forum at a leading university, which is one of the five leading universities in the country. Industry leaders have gathered here to share their experience in solving priority tasks to achieve technological sovereignty of Russia. The President has set a task for us — to become leaders in the implementation of innovations in the economy, to achieve technological leadership. In the shortest possible time, we need to build new technological chains together. To this end, new technological projects will be launched in 2025, developed in accordance with the national development goals of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030. Universities play one of the leading roles in this process. As Governor Andrei Travnikov noted earlier, the role of universities in the socio-economic development of the regions has increased significantly today. This is reflected in federal programs — the strategic academic leadership “Priority 2030”, the project to create modern campuses, which the regional government actively supports, — noted Irina Manuilova.

The forum program includes plenary sessions, thematic sections, scientific tours and a number of satellite events, including the strategic session “Digital Transformation: Artificial Intelligence in Solving Public Sector Problems,” initiated by the Ministry of Digital Development and Communications of the Novosibirsk Region.

— Further digital transformation of the Novosibirsk Region is inseparable from the scientific and fundamental base. The regional government is conducting targeted work on priority research tasks in the interests of ministries and departments. The Ministry of Digital Development plans to conduct a number of scientific studies in the field of unmanned aircraft systems and artificial intelligence. We will build this work in a proactive dialogue with representatives of the university and scientific community, the real sector of the economy. To this end, within the framework of the Golden Valley forum, we are holding a strategic session on the implementation of AI technologies in solving public sector problems, — emphasized Sergey Tsukar, Minister of Digital Development and Communications of the Novosibirsk Region.

The thematic sections of the Golden Valley focus on current areas of technological development of the Russian economy – aviation and unmanned aircraft systems, mechanical engineering, energy, robotics and artificial intelligence technologies in industry, construction, medicine and agricultural technologies.

Representatives of large federal companies and state corporations, such as United Engine Corporation, AFK Sistema, AvtoVAZ, Rostec State Corporation, heads of industrial enterprises of the Novosibirsk Region, leading scientists of the Novosibirsk Scientific Center, as well as young innovators united in the University Startup Studio, will deliver reports at plenary and sectional sessions.

NSU is the organizer of the forum for the second year, devoting a lot of attention to this event.

— Holding such a forum is an important part of our transformation strategy, when we actively integrate into the economic agenda and participate in solving real problems of various industries. The goal of the forum for us is to strengthen and develop the interaction of the university with industrial partners and in the future to involve them in joint developments and creation of technologies already on the basis of the university. I would like to wish that this forum, which unites science, industry and education, will further contribute to the development and strengthening of the “Lavrentiev triangle”. And the university will do everything to achieve this goal, — commented the rector of NSU, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail Fedoruk.

The forum will last two days and, as last year, should lead to the conclusion of a number of agreements between the university and representatives of the high-tech industry.

Reference:

The first scientific and production forum “Golden Valley” was held in 2023. Then it brought together more than 1000 participants. Over 130 speakers spoke at sections and plenary sessions, including 15 members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 20 rectors of universities in the Siberian Federal District, and more than 50 directors of federal and regional enterprises.

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 –

January 25, 2025

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