Category: United States of America

  • MIL-OSI: Get $50 Welcome Bonus, 100x Leverage & No KYC on BexBack – Crypto Futures Trading Simplified

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SINGAPORE, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As Bitcoin trades near $120,000 and the crypto market enters a new bull market, holding spot positions may struggle to deliver short-term profits. With the market showing strong upward momentum, investors looking to maximize their returns can turn to BexBack Exchange for a powerful solution. BexBack offers 100x leverage, a 100% deposit bonus, and a $50 welcome bonus for new users, providing traders the tools to seize profitable opportunities. Plus, with no KYC requirements, BexBack ensures a seamless and efficient trading experience.

    Advantages of 100x Leverage Crypto Futures

    1. Amplified Profits: Control large positions with a small amount of capital, capturing more profits from market fluctuations.
    2. Low Capital Requirement: Participate in high-value trades with minimal investment, lowering the entry barrier.
    3. Increased Market Opportunities: Profit quickly from price fluctuations, especially in volatile markets.
    4. High Capital Efficiency: Leverage enables better use of your capital, expanding your investment potential.
    5. Profit from Both Up and Down Markets: Adapt to any market conditions, with opportunities to profit whether the market goes up or down.

    What Is 100x Leverage and How Does It Work?

    Simply put, 100x leverage allows you to open larger trading positions with less capital. For example:

    Suppose the Bitcoin price is $100,000 that day, and you open a long contract with 1 BTC. After using 100x leverage, the transaction amount is equivalent to 100 BTC.

    One day later, if the price rises to $105,000, your profit will be (105,000 – 100,000) * 100 BTC / 100,000 = 5 BTC, a yield of up to 500%.

    With BexBack’s deposit bonus

    BexBack offers a 100% deposit bonus. If the initial investment is 2 BTC, the profit will increase to 10 BTC, and the return on investment will double to 1000%.

    Note: Although leveraged trading can magnify profits, you also need to be wary of liquidation risks.

    How Does the 100% Deposit Bonus Work?
    The deposit bonus from BexBack cannot be directly withdrawn but can be used to open larger positions and increase potential profits. Additionally, during significant market fluctuations, the bonus can serve as extra margin, effectively reducing the risk of liquidation.

    About BexBack?

    BexBack is a leading cryptocurrency derivatives platform offering up to 100x leverage on futures contracts for BTC, ETH, ADA, SOL, XRP, and over 50 other digital assets. Headquartered in Singapore, the platform also operates offices in Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Argentina. Like many top-tier exchanges, BexBack holds a U.S. MSB (Money Services Business) license and is trusted by more than 500,000 traders worldwide. The platform accepts users from the United States, Canada, and Europe, with zero deposit fees and 24/7 multilingual customer support, delivering a secure, efficient, and user-friendly trading experience.

    Why recommend BexBack?

    No KYC Required: Start trading immediately without complex identity verification.

    100% Deposit Bonus: Double your funds, double your profits.

    High-Leverage Trading: Offers up to 100x leverage, maximizing investors’ capital efficiency.

    Demo Account: Comes with 10 BTC in virtual funds, ideal for beginners to practice risk-free trading.

    Comprehensive Trading Options: Feature-rich trading available via Web and mobile applications.

    Convenient Operation: No slippage, no spread, and fast, precise trade execution.

    Global User Support: Enjoy 24/7 customer service, no matter where you are.

    Lucrative Affiliate Rewards: Earn up to 50% commission, perfect for promoters.

    Take Action Now—Don’t Miss Another Opportunity!

    If you missed the previous crypto bull run, this could be your chance. With BexBack’s 100x leverage and 100% deposit bonus and $50 bonus for new users , you can be a winner in the new bull run.

    Sign Up Now on BexBack — Break the 100x Leverage and KYC Barriers, Get Double Deposit Bonus and $50 Welcome Bonus Instantly

    Website: www.bexback.com

    Contact: business@bexback.com

    Contact:
    Amanda
    business@bexback.com

    Disclaimer: This content is provided by BexBack. The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this content are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily reflect the views of this media platform or its publisher. We do not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information presented. We do not guarantee any claims, statements, or promises made in this article. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice.Investing in crypto and mining-related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital. It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. Seek independent advice if necessary. Speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose. Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. However, due to the inherently speculative nature of the blockchain sector—including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and mining—complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed.Neither the media platform nor the publisher shall be held responsible for any fraudulent activities, misrepresentations, or financial losses arising from the content of this press release. In the event of any legal claims or charges against this article, we accept no liability or responsibility.Globenewswire does not endorse any content on this page.

    Legal Disclaimer: This media platform provides the content of this article on an “as-is” basis, without any warranties or representations of any kind, express or implied. We assume no responsibility for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. We do not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information presented herein. Any concerns, complaints, or copyright issues related to this article should be directed to the content provider mentioned above.

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a16aa38f-cdae-425e-996c-2648e82d5ef0

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1ad5a331-aa57-4f0b-ab21-b87061191568

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    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/84422ec5-b03f-4214-bcd7-94d2ec100652

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: BTCC Exchange Honored with Triple Recognitions from FXEmpire in Comprehensive 2025 Industry Analysis

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    A Media Snippet accompanying this announcement is available by clicking on this link.

    VILNIUS, Lithuania, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — BTCC, the world’s longest-serving cryptocurrency exchange, is proud to announce that it has received three distinguished awards from FXEmpire following their comprehensive evaluation of over 50 centralized crypto exchanges in 2025.

    BTCC has been honored with the “Lowest Fee Crypto Exchange,” “Best Fiat-to-Crypto Trading Platform,” and “Best Crypto Exchange in the USA” awards, cementing its position as an industry leader.

    The “Lowest Fee Crypto Exchange” and “Best Fiat-to-Crypto Trading Platform” recognitions underscore the platform’s commitment to providing users worldwide with low fiat deposit fees across major currencies, including USD, CAD, EUR, and many others. Backed by multi-region licences, BTCC supports high transaction limits that ensure smooth and compliant fiat onboarding for traders globally.

    The “Best Crypto Exchange in the USA” award recognizes BTCC’s FinCEN licence in the U.S. and its commitment to transparency, as demonstrated by monthly Proof of Reserves reports that consistently maintain reserve ratios above 100%.

    “We’re truly honored and excited to receive these awards from FXEmpire,” said Aaryn Ling, Head of Branding at BTCC. “These recognitions validate our commitment to providing traders with the most efficient, secure, and cost-effective cryptocurrency trading services, and reinforce our mission to uplift the industry’s standard for quality trading.”

    With 14 years of proven security and reliability since 2011, BTCC continues to strengthen its position in the global cryptocurrency market. As an industry pioneer, BTCC remains committed to delivering reliable and accessible trading services to users worldwide.

    Learn more about the rewards on BTCC’s website.

    About FXEmpire

    Established in 2011, FXEmpire is a globally recognized financial news platform. It offers up-to-date market news, detailed analysis, real-time quotes and charts, and expert reviews of brokers and crypto exchanges.

    About BTCC Exchange

    Founded in 2011, BTCC is a leading global cryptocurrency exchange with the vision to make crypto trading reliable and accessible to everyone. With a strong presence in over 100 countries and regions and a user base of over 9.1 million, BTCC continues to deliver innovation, security, and an unmatched user experience in the cryptocurrency world.

    Official website: https://www.btcc.com/en-US

    X: https://x.com/BTCCexchange

    Contact: press@btcc.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI USA: Travel Advisory: I-195 Westbound Limited Night Time Lane Closure

    Source: US State of Rhode Island

    The Rhode Island Department of Transportation today announced that it will close a small portion of the I-195 westbound highspeed lane and shoulder tomorrow night, July 23 from 8:30 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. on Thursday, July 24. The work is being done at the request of the City of Providence so that it can have access to work on pipes related to the hurricane barrier.

    The shoulder and the highspeed lane will be closed from the Providence River Bridge exit to the South Water Street exit. This span is not on the Washington Bridge.

    RIDOT will have traffic control measures in place to ensure the safe and efficient flow of traffic during this work.

    All inquiries should be directed to the City of Providence.

    Contact: Craig J. Hochman, (401) 680-7515 or Roger Biron (401) 680-7531.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: EnerPure Appoints Advisory Board Members to Support Strategic Growth and Commercialization Efforts

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Winnipeg, MB, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EnerPure Inc. (“EnerPure” or the “Company”), a waste to energy company, is pleased to announce the appointment of Gary Farrar, Susan Rohac, and Mogens L. Mathiesen as Advisory Board Members. Each of these newly appointed Advisors brings significant industry experience and expertise in their respective areas and their thought leadership, strategic acumen, and experience will be invaluable to management as EnerPure moves through the commercialization and growth phase.

    “Gary, Susan, and Mogens as true experts in their respective fields provide tremendous depth and width to the knowledge base of our team, we are honoured to have them on the team” said Rick Koshman, President and CEO of EnerPure. “Each of them brings a unique and highly complementary skill set that aligns perfectly with our goal to deploy 21 recycling plants in 6 years. Gary with over 46 years experience in UMO recycling, Susan as one of Canada’s most prolific Cleantech investors, and Mogens with his shipping decarbonization focus provide us with priceless industry insights and know-how as we look to navigate the next few years.”

    About Gary Farrar
    Gary is a seasoned executive with over 45 years of leadership in the used motor oil (UMO) recycling and environmental services industry across North America. His expertise spans operations, business development, logistics, refinery supply, and sales. He has held senior roles including U.S. Vice President of Supply and Product Sales at Safety-Kleen, where he led the growth of recycled oil streams and oversaw the world’s largest UMO re-refinery. As General Manager of Safety-Kleen Canada, he managed nationwide operations and multiple business lines. At Heritage-Crystal Clean, he helped launch and scale a 75-million-gallon refinery in Indianapolis. Gary is known for building high-performing teams and driving operational and commercial success in complex industrial environments.

    About Susan Rohac  LinkedIn
    Susan recently retired from BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) after 34 years of service. As Managing Partner of the Climate Tech venture capital fund, she led a pan-Canadian team of investment professionals and managed a portfolio of over $1 billion in assets including a $500 million fund that was launched in 2022 focusing on investing in Canada’s most promising cleantech companies. She has invested in a wide range of climate technologies such as CCUS, CDR, hydrogen, critical minerals, energy storage/battery, mobility, proptech, and advanced materials. Susan was recognized as a Climate Leader in 2024 by the Clean50 and was recipient of the Clean16 award. Susan holds honour degrees in both science and finance and has her executive MBA and ICD governance designation.

    About Mogens L. Mathiesen – LinkedIn
    Mogens has over 25 years of expertise in maritime technology and sustainability. Specializing in maritime decarbonisation, he has pioneered data-driven solutions to reduce shipping emissions. As Chief Industry and Strategy Officer at HUB Ocean, Mogens led initiatives to enable green shipping routes and foster industry collaboration. He co-founded Arundo Analytics, driving the development of analytics platforms for maritime applications, and volunteers in the Ocean Rescue Service in Norway. With an M.Sc. in Ocean Engineering and Marine Cybernetics from the NTNU and UC Berkeley, Mogens is committed to advancing sustainable practices through innovation and strategic leadership.

    About EnerPure – https://enerpure.tech
    We recycle Used Motor Oil (UMO) to reduce GHG emissions while producing a lower carbon-intensive marine fuel.”

    Each year ~17 billion litres of UMO* are improperly burned or dumped, causing widespread environmental harm. EnerPure sees a tremendous opportunity to solve this problem through the deployment of its modular micro-scale recycling plants using its patented technology to convert UMO into high-quality marine fuel.

    EnerPure is entering its next phase of growth, with our first commercial plant planned for Alberta. Our recycling plants require ~5% of the capex of traditional solutions, enabling localized recycling (while reducing the cost of collection) and providing strong economic returns. 

    Our technology has been proven via our pilot plant (operating at 43% of scale) with 1.6 million litres processed and validated through the sale of over 1.2 million litres. Our drop-in ISO 8217-compliant marine fuel is in high demand in a growing market with its 14.6% lower carbon intensity.  Annually each recycling plant can reduce greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions and criteria air contaminants by 36,315 and 437 tonnes, respectively.

    EnerPure, while delivering strong economic returns, offers a proven, scalable platform where environmental need meets commercial opportunity, powering the energy transition through smart regional recycling.

    *UMO is defined as any petroleum-based or synthetic lubricating oil that cannot be used for its original purpose due to contamination.

    Disclosure and Caution
    This press release may contain certain disclosures that may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. In making the forward-looking statements, the Company has applied certain factors and assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable. However, the forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors, including but not limited to economic, capital expenditures, and engineering projections, that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

    The securities referred to in this news release have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States unless pursuant to an exemption therefrom. This press release is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities of the Company in any jurisdiction.

     

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI USA: Department of Energy Terminates Taxpayer-Funded Financial Assistance for Grain Belt Express

    Source: US Department of Energy

    The Department of Energy today announced the Loan Programs Office has terminated its conditional commitment for the Grain Belt Express Phase 1 project.

    Energy.gov

    July 23, 2025

    minute read time

    WASHINGTON— The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the Loan Programs Office (LPO) has terminated its conditional commitment for the Grain Belt Express Phase 1 project, a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line intended to connect wind and solar capacity across Kansas and Missouri. The conditional commitment, which would have provided a taxpayer-funded loan guarantee of up to $4.9 billion dollars, was issued by the Biden administration in November 2024 – one of many conditional commitments that were rushed out the door in the final days of the Biden administration.

    After a thorough review of the project’s financials, DOE found that the conditions necessary to issue the guarantee are unlikely to be met and it is not critical for the federal government to have a role in supporting this project. To ensure more responsible stewardship of taxpayer resources, DOE has terminated its conditional commitment.

    DOE is conducting a review of every applicant and borrower – including the nearly $100 billion in closed loans and conditional commitments LPO made between Election Day 2024 to Inauguration Day 2025 – to ensure every single taxpayer dollar is being used to advance the best interest of the American people. This ongoing review positions LPO to move forward with a lower risk tolerance in lending practices and an uncompromising focus on expanding access to affordable, reliable and secure energy for the American people.

    DOE remains focused on advancing projects that expand American energy dominance and deliver on President Trump’s commitment to lower energy prices for the American people.

    Asa Reynolds Named Winner of the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2025 CyberForce® Conquer the Hill® Reign Competition

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Charleston Man Sentenced to More than 12 Years in Prison for Federal Drug Crime

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Antwaun Winbush, 45, of Charleston was sentenced on Monday, July 21, 2025, to 12 years and seven months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 25, 2024, a law enforcement officer attempted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Winbush on U.S. Route 35 in Putnam County. Winbush attempted to flee from the officer, reaching speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. While fleeing, Winbush dumped large quantities of methamphetamine and marijuana out of his vehicle’s window. Some of the thrown methamphetamine struck the officer’s patrol vehicle and the officer inhaled methamphetamine through the air vents. Winbush almost struck multiple vehicles while fleeing before he lost control of his vehicle and came to a stop.

    Officers arrested Winbush following the pursuit and recovered some but not all the methamphetamine from the roadway. As part of his guilty plea, Winbush admitted that he possessed approximately 141.8 grams of a mixture containing methamphetamine.

    Winbush also committed other criminal conduct on October 4, 2021, and December 24, 2023. On October 4, 2021, an officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Winbush in Jackson County. A search of the vehicle by law enforcement resulted in the seizure of approximately 227 grams of a mixture containing methamphetamine, 8 grams of cocaine, 14.7 grams of fentanyl, and a Glock model 33 .357-caliber pistol found hidden behind the stereo area of the dashboard. Winbush admitted to possessing the seized controlled substances and to intending to distribute them.

    On December 24, 2023, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Winbush’s residence and seized more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, a firearm, and ammunition found hidden behind a loose wall. Officers also found drug trafficking paraphernalia, including scales, cutting agents and plastic baggies, during the search.

    “Winbush’s criminal history dates back 30 years and includes 20 adult convictions. Winbush has shown time and again that he is only deterred from continuing his criminal conduct and putting citizens at risk when he is incarcerated,” said Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston. “I commend the brave law enforcement officers who safely apprehended the defendant after he endangered their lives and the public with his reckless attempt to flee the Putnam County traffic stop. I also commend investigative work of the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Charleston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).”

    Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Gabriel Price prosecuted the case.

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-154.

    ###

     

     

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: EXL Recognized as Market Leader by Everest Group in its Group Life Insurance and Benefits Core Technology Products PEAK Matrix® Assessment 2025 – North America

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EXL [NASDAQ: EXLS], a global data and AI company, has been recognized by Everest Group as a Leader and Star Performer in the Group Life Insurance and Benefits Core Technology Products PEAK Matrix® Assessment 2025 – North America.

    The Everest Group report evaluated 15 leading providers of life insurance and benefits technology on their delivery of cloud-native infrastructure, advanced analytics, and configurable core systems that address the unique complexities of group life and benefits administration to their respective clients. EXL was recognized as a Leader for its deep domain expertise, growing library of automation and AI tools tailored for group life operations, and its ability to modernize large-scale platforms through analytic-driven insights.

    “EXL brings deep domain expertise and digital capability to the group insurance administration space, underpinned by its integrated technology and operations model on the LifePRO™ platform,” said Vigitesh Tewary, practice director at Everest Group. “Its ability to streamline administration and enhance service levels is further strengthened by proprietary assets such as MedConnection™, which support intelligent workflow processing, case management, and underwriting optimization. With modular capabilities across policy administration, billing, claims, and servicing, EXL aligns well with carriers operating in hybrid or multi-vendor ecosystems. The firm’s expanding suite of automation and AI-driven tools enables dynamic decisioning, real-time validations, and workflow automation tailored specifically for group life operations. These factors have contributed to its recognition as a Leader in Everest Group’s Group Life Insurance and Benefits Core Technology Products PEAK Matrix® Assessment 2025 – North America.”

    “The North American group life insurance industry is experiencing a rapid wave of digital transformation. As a result, clients are on the hunt for tools that will allow them to supercharge their quoting, underwriting, billing, and payout management capabilities,” said Vivek Jetley, president and head of insurance, healthcare, and life sciences, EXL. “We’re proud to receive this prestigious recognition from Everest Group and look forward to continuing to help our clients provide precise, tailored group life services to their clients.”

    To read more about the Everest Group 2025 report, click here for the custom version of the report. For more information about EXL’s insurance solutions, click here.

    About EXL

    EXL (NASDAQ: EXLS) is a global data and AI company that offers services and solutions to reinvent client business models, drive better outcomes and unlock growth with speed. EXL harnesses the power of data, AI, and deep industry knowledge to transform businesses, including the world’s leading corporations in industries including insurance, healthcare, banking and capital markets, retail, communications and media, and energy and infrastructure, among others. EXL was founded in 1999 with the core values of innovation, collaboration, excellence, integrity and respect. We are headquartered in New York and have approximately 60,000 employees spanning six continents. For more information, visit www.exlservice.com.

    Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You should not place undue reliance on those statements because they are subject to numerous uncertainties and factors relating to EXL’s operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond EXL’s control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning EXL’s possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of its business strategy. These statements may include words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate” or similar expressions. These statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of management’s experience in the industry as well as its perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate under the circumstances. You should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although EXL believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect EXL’s actual financial results or results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These factors, which include our ability to maintain and grow client demand, our ability to hire and retain sufficiently trained employees, and our ability to accurately estimate and/or manage costs, rising interest rates, rising inflation and recessionary economic trends, are discussed in more detail in EXL’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including EXL’s Annual Report on Form 10-K. You should keep in mind that any forward-looking statement made herein, or elsewhere, speaks only as of the date on which it is made. New risks and uncertainties come up from time to time, and it is impossible to predict these events or how they may affect EXL. EXL has no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after the date hereof, except as required by federal securities laws.

    Contacts
    Media
    Keith Little
    media.relations@exlservice.com

    Investor Relations
    John Kristoff
    +1 212 209 4613
    IR@exlservice.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI China: Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will be in Sweden on July 27-30 for trade talks with US

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will be in Sweden from July 27 to 30 for economic and trade talks with the United States upon mutual agreement, the commerce ministry announced Wednesday.

    Following the important consensus reached during the phone talks between the two heads of state on June 5, the two sides will leverage the role of the China-U.S. economic and trade consultation mechanism, and continue to engage in consultations on economic and trade issues of mutual concern based on the principle of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, said a spokesperson with the ministry.

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Amid regional conflict, the Strait of Hormuz remains critical oil chokepoint

    Source: US Energy Information Administration

    In-brief analysis

    June 16, 2025

    The TIE was reposted to correct a data label and provide the figure data.

    Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration analysis based on Vortexa tanker tracking
    Note: 1Q25=first quarter of 2025. figure data

    The Strait of Hormuz, located between Oman and Iran, connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The strait is deep enough and wide enough to handle the world’s largest crude oil tankers, and it is one of the world’s most important oil chokepoints. Large volumes of oil flow through the strait, and very few alternative options exist to move oil out of the strait if it is closed. In 2024, oil flow through the strait averaged 20 million barrels per day (b/d), or the equivalent of about 20% of global petroleum liquids consumption. In the first quarter of 2025, total oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz remained relatively flat compared with 2024.

    Although we have not seen maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz blocked following recent tensions in the region, the price of Brent crude oil (a global benchmark) increased from $69 per barrel (b) on June 12 to $74/b on June 13. This piece highlights the importance of the strait to global oil supplies.

    Chokepoints are narrow channels along widely used global sea routes that are critical to global energy security. The inability of oil to transit a major chokepoint, even temporarily, can create substantial supply delays and raise shipping costs, potentially increasing world energy prices. Although most chokepoints can be circumvented by using other routes—often adding significantly to transit time—some chokepoints have no practical alternatives. Most volumes that transit the strait have no alternative means of exiting the region, although there are some pipeline alternatives that can avoid the Strait of Hormuz.

    Between 2022 and 2024, volumes of crude oil and condensate transiting the Strait of Hormuz declined by 1.6 million b/d, which were only partially offset by a 0.5-million b/d increase in petroleum product cargoes. The decline in oil transit through the strait partially reflects the OPEC+ decision to voluntarily cut crude oil production several times starting in November 2022, which lowered exports from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In addition, disruptions in 2024 to oil flows around the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Arabian Sea to the Red Sea, led Saudi Arabia’s national oil company Aramco to shift seaborne crude oil flows from the Strait of Hormuz, instead sending it over land through its East-West pipeline to ports on the Red Sea. Also, more refining capacity in the Persian Gulf states increased regional demand for crude oil and shifted some flows to local markets within the Persian Gulf.

    Flows through the Strait of Hormuz in 2024 and the first quarter of 2025 made up more than one-quarter of total global seaborne oil trade and about one-fifth of global oil and petroleum product consumption. In addition, around one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas trade also transited the Strait of Hormuz in 2024, primarily from Qatar.

    Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook, June 2025, and U.S. Energy Information Administration analysis based on Vortexa tanker tracking
    Note: World maritime oil trade excludes intra-country volumes except those volumes that transit the Strait of Hormuz. LNG=liquefied natural gas. 1Q25=first quarter of 2025

    Based on tanker tracking data published by Vortexa, Saudi Arabia moves more crude oil and condensate through the Strait of Hormuz than any other country. In 2024, exports of crude and condensate from Saudi Arabia accounted for 38% of total Hormuz crude flows (5.5 million b/d).

    Alternative routes
    Saudi Arabia and the UAE have some infrastructure in place that can bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which may somewhat mitigate any transit disruptions through the strait. The pipelines do not typically operate at full capacity, and we estimate that about 2.6 million b/d of capacity from the Saudi and UAE pipelines could be available to bypass the Strait of Hormuz in the event of a supply disruption.

    Saudi Aramco operates the 5 million-b/d East-West crude oil pipeline, which runs from the Abqaiq oil processing center near the Persian Gulf to the Yanbu port on the Red Sea. Aramco temporarily expanded the pipeline’s capacity to 7.0 million b/d in 2019 when it converted some natural gas liquids pipelines to accept crude oil. In 2024, Saudi Arabia pumped more crude oil through the East-West pipeline to avoid the shipping disruptions around the Bab al-Mandeb.

    The UAE also operates a pipeline that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. This 1.8 million-b/d pipeline links onshore oil fields to the Fujairah export terminal in the Gulf of Oman. In 2024, crude oil and condensate volumes originating in the UAE and traversing Hormuz were 0.4 million b/d less than in 2022 because refinery upgrades allowed more heavy crude oil to be refined locally. These upgrades also allowed the UAE to increase exports of its lighter crude oil grades, and use of the pipeline to the Fujairah export terminal increased. Increased use of the pipeline for day-to-day operations has limited the excess capacity available to reroute additional volumes around the Strait of Hormuz.

    Iran inaugurated the Goreh-Jask pipeline and the Jask export terminal on the Gulf of Oman (avoiding the Strait of Hormuz) with a single export cargo in July 2021. The pipeline’s effective capacity remains around 300,000 b/d. However, during the summer of 2024 Iran exported less than 70,000 b/d from ports (Bandar-e-Jask and Kooh Mobarak) using the Goreh-Jask pipeline and stopped loading cargoes after September 2024.

    Destination markets
    We estimate that 84% of the crude oil and condensate and 83% of the liquefied natural gas that moved through the Strait of Hormuz went to Asian markets in 2024. China, India, Japan, and South Korea were the top destinations for crude oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz to Asia, accounting for a combined 69% of all Hormuz crude oil and condensate flows in 2024. These markets would likely be most affected by supply disruptions at Hormuz.

    Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration analysis based on Vortexa tanker tracking
    Note: 1Q25=first quarter of 2025. figure data

    In 2024, the United States imported about 0.5 million b/d of crude oil and condensate from Persian Gulf countries through the Strait of Hormuz, accounting for about 7% of total U.S. crude oil and condensate imports and 2% of U.S. petroleum liquids consumption. In 2024, U.S. crude oil imports from countries in the Persian Gulf were at the lowest level in nearly 40 years as domestic production and imports from Canada have increased.

    Principal contributors: Candace Dunn, Justine Barden

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: Greene County Bancorp, Inc. Reports Record High Net Income of $31.1 Million for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2025, Announces Plans to Expand into Saratoga County

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CATSKILL, N.Y., July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Greene County Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company”) (NASDAQ: GCBC), the holding company for the Bank of Greene County and its subsidiary Greene County Commercial Bank, today reported net income for the quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2025. Net income for the quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 was $9.3 million, or $0.55 per basic and diluted share, and $31.1 million, or $1.83 per basic and diluted share, respectively, as compared to $6.7 million, or $0.40 per basic and diluted share, and $24.8 million, or $1.45 per basic and diluted share, for the quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, respectively. Net income increased $2.6 million, or 38.6%, when comparing the quarters ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, and increased $6.3 million, or 25.7%, when comparing the fiscal years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024.

    Highlights:

    • Net Income: $31.1 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, a new record high
    • Total Assets: $3.0 billion at June 30, 2025, a new record high
    • Net Loans: $1.6 billion at June 30, 2025, a new record high
    • Total Deposits: $2.6 billion at June 30, 2025
    • Return on Average Assets: 1.10% for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025
    • Return on Average Equity: 14.08% for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025

    Donald Gibson, President & CEO, stated: “I am pleased to report record high net income for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, marking 16 years of the past 17 years that our Company has achieved record earnings. This sustained performance is a testament to our disciplined business model, strong community partnerships and exceptional execution of our team. As we look ahead, we are excited to announce plans to expand into Saratoga County with our first branch in that market area, expanding our geographic footprint from five to six counties within New York State, and further strengthening our position as the leading economic engine of the communities we serve. Additionally, we are honored to be recognized by the Albany Business Review, first as one of the Capital Regions 11 fastest growing large companies, defined as those with revenue exceeding $100.0 million, and second, on July 17, 2025, we ranked as the number one commercial mortgage lender in New York’s Capital Region for commercial loan volume in 2024. I believe the distinction reflects our financial strength and our long-term commitment to organic growth that benefits customers, communities and shareholders alike.”

    Total consolidated assets for the Company were $3.0 billion at June 30, 2025, primarily consisting of $1.6 billion of net loans and $1.1 billion of total securities available-for-sale and held-to-maturity. Consolidated deposits totaled $2.6 billion at June 30, 2025, consisting of retail, business, municipal and private banking relationships.

    Pre-provision net income was $32.5 million for the year ended June 30, 2025 as compared to $25.5 million for the year ended June 30, 2024, an increase of $7.0 million, or 27.1%. Pre-provision net income measures the Company’s net income less the provision for credit losses. Management believes that this non-GAAP measure assists investors in comprehending the impact of the provision for credit losses on the Company’s reported results, offering an alternative view of the Company’s performance and the Company’s ability to generate income in excess of its provision for credit losses. The Company strategically managed its balance sheet by focusing on higher-yielding loans and securities, and lowering deposit rates to align with the Federal Reserve’s recent interest rate cuts. This resulted in a higher net interest margin for the year ended June 30, 2025 as compared to the year ended June 30, 2024. The Company will continue to monitor the Federal Reserve and interest rates paid on deposits, while maintaining our long-term customer relationships.

    Selected highlights for the quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2025 are as follows:

    Net Interest Income and Margin

    • Net interest income increased $3.8 million to $16.7 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 from $12.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024. Net interest income increased $9.1 million to $60.1 million for the year ended June 30, 2025 from $51.0 million for the year ended June 30, 2024. The increase in net interest income was due to an increase in the average balance of interest-earning assets which increased $219.0 million and $170.7 million when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, an increase in interest rates on interest-earning assets, which increased 16 basis points and 26 basis points when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, and a decrease of 26 basis points in rates paid on interest-bearing liabilities when comparing the three months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024. The increase in net interest income was offset by increases in the average balance of interest-bearing liabilities, which increased $203.4 million and $168.3 million when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, and an increase of 4 basis points in rates paid on interest-bearing liabilities when comparing the years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024.

      Average loan balances increased $145.9 million and $96.6 million and the yield on loans increased 18 basis points and 23 basis points when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The average balance of securities increased $87.0 million and $79.1 million and the yield on such securities increased 24 basis points and 36 basis points when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. Average interest-bearing bank balances and federal funds decreased $13.8 million and $5.0 million and the yield on interest-bearing bank balances and federal funds decreased 172 basis points and 36 basis points when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively.

      The cost of NOW deposits decreased 34 basis points and 2 basis points, the cost of certificates of deposit decreased 81 basis points and 21 basis points, and the cost of savings and money market deposits decreased 1 basis point and increased 7 basis points when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The growth in interest-bearing liabilities was primarily due to an increase in average NOW deposits of $178.0 million and $135.1 million and an increase in average certificates of deposits of $75.0 million and $62.7 million when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. This was partially offset by a decrease in average savings and money market deposits of $15.0 million and $22.8 million when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. Yields on interest-earning assets increased when comparing the three months and years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024 as the Company continued to reprice assets into the higher interest rate environment. During the year ended June 30, 2025, the Company implemented a strategic reduction in deposit rates that aligns with the Federal Reserve’s rate cuts, while providing competitive financial solutions to the Company’s customers that reflect the prevailing economic conditions, while growing new relationships.

    • Net interest rate spread increased 42 basis points to 2.14% for the three months ended June 30, 2025, compared to 1.72% for the three months ended June 30, 2024. Net interest rate spread increased 22 basis points to 1.97% for the year ended June 30, 2025, compared to 1.75% for the year ended June 30, 2024.
      Net interest margin increased 40 basis points to 2.37% for the three months ended June 30, 2025, compared to 1.97% for the three months ended June 30, 2024. Net interest margin increased 21 basis points to 2.19% for the year ended June 30, 2025, compared to 1.98% for the year ended June 30, 2024. The increase in net interest rate spread and margin during the three months and year ended June 30, 2025, was due to increases in interest income on loans and securities, as they continue to reprice at higher yields and the interest rates earned on new balances were higher than the historic low levels from the prior periods.
    • Net interest income on a taxable-equivalent basis includes the additional amount of interest income that would have been earned if the Company’s investment in tax-exempt securities and loans had been subject to federal and New York State income taxes yielding the same after-tax income. Tax equivalent net interest margin was 2.67% and 2.24% for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, and was 2.47% and 2.25% for the years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively.

    Credit Quality and Provision for Credit Losses

    • Provision for credit losses amounted to a benefit of $880,000 and $151,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The benefit for the three months ended June 30, 2025 was primarily attributable to an improvement in the qualitative factors assessments on loans, partially offset by a modest deterioration in the economic forecasts used in the Current Expected Credit Loss models on loans as of June 30, 2025, and growth in securities held-to-maturity that require an allowance. Provision for credit losses amounted to a charge of $1.3 million and $766,000 for the years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The provision for the year ended June 30, 2025, was primarily attributable to growth in gross loans, a modest deterioration in the economic forecasts used in the Current Expected Credit Loss models on loans as of June 30, 2025 and growth in securities held-to-maturity that require an allowance, partially offset by an improvement in the qualitative factors assessments on loans. The allowance for credit losses on loans to total loans receivable was 1.24% at June 30, 2025 compared to 1.28% at June 30, 2024.
    • Loans classified as substandard and special mention totaled $45.4 million at June 30, 2025 and $48.6 million at June 30, 2024, a decrease of $3.2 million. Of the loans classified as substandard or special mention, $42.1 million were performing at June 30, 2025. There were no loans classified as doubtful or loss at June 30, 2025 or June 30, 2024.
    • Net charge-offs on loans amounted to $44,000 and $1.0 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, a decrease of $956,000. Net charge-offs totaled $349,000 and $1.4 million for years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively. There were no material charge-offs in any loan segment during the three months and year ended June 30, 2025.
    • Nonperforming loans amounted to $3.1 million at June 30, 2025 and $3.7 million at June 30, 2024. The activity in nonperforming loans during the period included $2.6 million in loan repayments, $128,000 in charge-offs or transfers to foreclosure, $67,000 in loans returning to performing status, and $2.1 million of loans placed into nonperforming status. At June 30, 2025, nonperforming assets were 0.10% of total assets compared to 0.13% at June 30, 2024. At June 30, 2025, nonperforming loans were 0.19% of net loans compared to 0.25% at June 30, 2024.

    Noninterest Income and Noninterest Expense

    • Noninterest income increased $46,000, or 1.2%, to $3.8 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $3.7 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024. The increase during the three months ended June 30, 2025 was primarily due to a $128,000 increase in fee income earned on customer interest rate swap contracts. This was partially offset by a $152,000 decrease of investment services income. Noninterest income increased $1.3 million, or 9.5%, to $15.2 million for the year ended June 30, 2025 compared to $13.9 million for the year ended June 30, 2024. The increase during the year ended June 30, 2025 was primarily due to a $610,000 Employee Retention Tax Credit, an increase in fee income earned on customer interest rate swap contracts of $528,000, loan fees of $242,000, service charge account fees of $235,000, and income from bank owned life insurance of $363,000. This was partially offset by a $665,000 loss on sales of securities available-for-sale.
    • Noninterest expense increased $497,000, or 5.0%, to $10.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025 compared to $9.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024. The increase during the three months ended June 30, 2025 was primarily due to a $204,000 increase in service and data processing fees and a $170,000 increase in computer and software supplies. Noninterest expense increased $2.1 million, or 5.6%, to $39.4 million for the year ended June 30, 2025 as compared to $37.3 million for the year ended June 30, 2024. The increase during the year ended June 30, 2025 was primarily due to an increase of $579,000 in salaries and employee benefit costs, as new positions were created during the period to support the Company’s continued growth, an increase of $544,000 in service and data processing fees, an increase of $796,000 in the allowance for credit losses on unfunded commitments, due to the Company’s increased contractual obligations to extend credit, and an increase of $183,000 in occupancy expenses mostly due to repairs and maintenance on the Company’s buildings. This was partially offset by a decrease of $164,000 in legal and professional fees during the year ended June 30, 2025.

    Income Taxes

    • Provision for income taxes reflects the expected tax associated with the pre-tax income generated for the given period and certain regulatory requirements. The effective tax rate was 14.8% and 10.2% for the three months and year ended June 30, 2025, and 1.4% and 7.6% for the three months and year ended June 30, 2024, respectively. The statutory tax rate is impacted by the benefits derived from tax-exempt bond and loan income, the Company’s real estate investment trust subsidiary income, income received on the bank owned life insurance and tax credits, to arrive at the effective tax rate. The increase during the three months and year ended June 30, 2025 is primarily due to higher pre-tax income and reflects a lower mix of tax-exempt income from municipal bonds, tax advantage loans, and bank owned life insurance in proportion to pre-tax income. Additionally, the Company was able to recognize historic preservation tax credits on the Company’s wealth management center, located at 345 Main Street, in Catskill New York for the year ended June 30, 2024.

    Balance Sheet Summary

    • Total assets of the Company were $3.0 billion at June 30, 2025 and $2.8 billion at June 30, 2024, an increase of $214.8 million, or 7.6%.
    • Total cash and cash equivalents for the Company were $183.1 million at June 30, 2025 and $190.4 million at June 30, 2024. The Company has continued to maintain strong capital and liquidity positions as of June 30, 2025.
    • Securities available-for-sale and held-to-maturity increased $91.9 million, or 8.8%, to $1.1 billion at June 30, 2025 as compared to $1.0 billion at June 30, 2024. Securities purchases totaled $444.2 million during the year ended June 30, 2025, and consisted primarily of $308.5 million of state and political subdivision securities, $88.4 million of mortgage-backed securities, $24.7 million of U.S. Treasury securities, $16.7 million of collateralized mortgage obligations, and $5.9 million of corporate debt securities. Principal pay-downs and maturities during the year ended June 30, 2025 amounted to $353.5 million, primarily consisting of $258.7 million of state and political subdivision securities, $58.0 million of U.S. Treasury securities, $32.7 million of mortgage-backed securities, $2.8 million of collateralized mortgage obligations and $1.3 million of corporate debt securities. Sales during the year ended June 30, 2025 amounted to $6.7 million of U.S. Treasury securities.
    • Net loans receivable increased $127.0 million, or 8.6%, to $1.6 billion at June 30, 2025 as compared to $1.5 billion at June 30, 2024. Loan growth experienced during the year ended June 30, 2025 consisted primarily of $117.9 million in commercial real estate loans, $5.5 million in commercial loans, and $4.9 million in home equity loans.
    • Deposits totaled $2.6 billion at June 30, 2025 and $2.4 billion at June 30, 2024, an increase of $250.6 million, or 10.5%. The Company had $51.6 million and zero brokered deposits at June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024, respectively. NOW deposits increased $192.6 million, or 10.9%, and certificates of deposits increased $89.7 million, or 64.8%, when comparing June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024. Noninterest bearing deposits decreased $15.3 million, or 12.2%, money market deposits decreased $10.5 million, or 9.3%, and savings deposits decreased $5.9 million, or 2.3%, when comparing June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024.
    • Borrowings amounted to $128.1 million at June 30, 2025 compared to $199.1 million at June 30, 2024, a decrease of $71.0 million. At June 30, 2025, borrowings included $74.0 million of overnight borrowings with the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York (“FHLB”), $49.9 million of Fixed-to-Floating Rate Subordinated Notes, and $4.2 million of long-term borrowings with the FHLB.
    • Shareholders’ equity increased to $238.8 million at June 30, 2025 compared to $206.0 million at June 30, 2024, resulting primarily from net income of $31.1 million and a decrease in accumulated other comprehensive loss of $6.2 million, partially offset by dividends declared and paid of $4.5 million.

    Corporate Overview

    Greene County Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for the Bank of Greene County, and its subsidiary Greene County Commercial Bank. The Company is the leading provider of community-based banking services throughout the Hudson Valley and Capital Region of New York State. Its customers include individuals, businesses, municipalities and other institutions. Greene County Bancorp, Inc. (GCBC) is publicly traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market and is dedicated to promoting economic development and a high quality of life in the communities it serves. For more information on Greene County Bancorp, Inc., visit www.tbogc.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This earnings release contains statements about future events that constitute forward-looking statements, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by references to a future period or periods or by the use of the words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “assume,” “will,” “should,” “could,” “plan,” and other similar terms of expressions. Forward-looking statements should not be relied on because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control. These risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause the actual results, performance or achievements expressed in, or implied by, the forward-looking statements to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, local, regional, national and international general economic conditions, including actual or potential stress in the banking industry, financial and regulatory changes, changes in interest rates, regulatory considerations, competition, technological developments, retention and recruitment of qualified personnel, changes in customer deposit behavior, and market acceptance of the Company’s pricing, products and services.

    The Company cautions readers not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made, and advises readers that various factors, including, but not limited to, those described above and other factors discussed in the Company’s annual and quarterly reports previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could affect the Company’s financial performance and could cause the Company’s actual results or circumstances for future periods to differ materially from those anticipated or projected.

    Unless required by law, the Company does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligations to, publicly release any revisions that may be made to any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

    For more information, please see our reports filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.

    Non-GAAP Measures

    In addition to presenting information in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP), this news release contains financial information determined by methods other than GAAP (non-GAAP). The following measures used in this release, which are commonly utilized by financial institutions, have not been specifically exempted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and may constitute “non-GAAP financial measures” within the meaning of the SEC’s rules.

    The Company has provided in this news release supplemental disclosures for the calculation of net interest margin utilizing a fully taxable-equivalent adjustment and pre-provision net income. Management believes that the non-GAAP financial measures disclosed by the Company from time to time are useful in evaluating the Company’s performance and that such information should be considered as supplemental in nature and not as a substitute for or superior to the related financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Our non-GAAP financial measures may differ from similar measures presented by other companies. Refer to the tables on page 9 for Non-GAAP to GAAP reconciliations.

     
    Greene County Bancorp, Inc.
    Consolidated Statements of Income, and Selected Financial Ratios (Unaudited)
                               
      At or for the Three Months   At or for the Years
      Ended June 30,   Ended June 30,
    Dollars in thousands, except share and per share data   2025     2024       2025     2024  
    Interest income $ 30,739   $ 27,328     $ 117,705   $ 103,664  
    Interest expense   14,033     14,471       57,584     52,685  
    Net interest income   16,706     12,857       60,121     50,979  
    Provision for credit losses   (880 )   (151 )     1,316     766  
    Noninterest income   3,765     3,719       15,233     13,908  
    Noninterest expense   10,394     9,897       39,372     37,302  
    Income before taxes   10,957     6,830       34,666     26,819  
    Tax provision   1,624     98       3,528     2,050  
    Net income $ 9,333   $ 6,732     $ 31,138   $ 24,769  
             
    Basic and diluted EPS $ 0.55   $ 0.40     $ 1.83   $ 1.45  
    Weighted average shares outstanding   17,026,828     17,026,828       17,026,828     17,026,828  
    Dividends declared per share (4) $ 0.09   $ 0.08     $ 0.36   $ 0.32  
             
    Selected Financial Ratios        
    Return on average assets(1)   1.28 %   1.00 %     1.10 %   0.93 %
    Return on average equity(1)   15.98 %   13.36 %     14.08 %   12.87 %
    Net interest rate spread(1)   2.14 %   1.72 %     1.97 %   1.75 %
    Net interest margin(1)   2.37 %   1.97 %     2.19 %   1.98 %
    Fully taxable-equivalent net interest margin(2)   2.67 %   2.24 %     2.47 %   2.25 %
    Efficiency ratio(3)   50.77 %   59.71 %     52.25 %   57.49 %
    Non-performing assets to total assets       0.10 %   0.13 %
    Non-performing loans to net loans       0.19 %   0.25 %
    Allowance for credit losses on loans to non-performing loans       658.37 %   516.20 %
    Allowance for credit losses on loans to total loans       1.24 %   1.28 %
    Shareholders’ equity to total assets       7.85 %   7.29 %
    Dividend payout ratio(4)       19.67 %   22.07 %
    Actual dividends paid to net income(5)       14.37 %   13.08 %
    Book value per share     $ 14.03   $ 12.10  
           
    (1) Ratios are annualized when necessary.
    (2) Interest income calculated on a taxable-equivalent basis (non-GAAP) includes the additional interest income that would have been earned if the Company’s investment in tax-exempt securities and loans had been subject to federal and New York State income taxes yielding the same after-tax income.
    (3) The efficiency ratio has been calculated as noninterest expense divided by the sum of net interest income and noninterest income.
    (4) The dividend payout ratio has been calculated based on the dividends declared per share divided by basic earnings per share. No adjustments have been made to account for dividends waived by Greene County Bancorp, MHC (“MHC”), the Company’s majority shareholder, owning 54.1% of the shares outstanding.
    (5) Dividends declared divided by net income. The MHC waived its right to receive dividends declared during the three months ended June 30, 2023, December 31, 2023, March 31, 2024, June 30, 2024, March 31, 2025 and June 30, 2025. Dividends declared during the three months ended September 30, 2023, September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2024 were paid to the MHC.
     
    Greene County Bancorp, Inc.
    Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition (Unaudited)
     
      At
    June 30, 2025
      At
    June 30, 2024
    Dollars In thousands, except share data      
    Assets      
    Cash and due from banks $ 12,788     $ 13,897  
    Interest-bearing deposits   170,290       176,498  
    Total cash and cash equivalents   183,078       190,395  
           
    Long term certificate of deposit   1,425       2,831  
    Securities available-for-sale, at fair value   356,062       350,001  
    Securities held-to-maturity, at amortized cost, net of allowance for credit losses of $548 and $483 at June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024   776,147       690,354  
    Equity securities, at fair value   402       328  
    Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost   5,504       7,296  
           
    Loans receivable   1,627,406       1,499,473  
    Less: Allowance for credit losses on loans   (20,146 )     (19,244 )
    Net loans receivable   1,607,260       1,480,229  
           
    Premises and equipment, net   15,232       15,606  
    Bank owned life insurance   59,795       57,249  
    Accrued interest receivable   16,381       14,269  
    Prepaid expenses and other assets   19,323       17,230  
    Total assets $ 3,040,609     $ 2,825,788  
           
    Liabilities and shareholders’ equity      
    Noninterest bearing deposits $ 110,163     $ 125,442  
    Interest bearing deposits   2,529,672       2,263,780  
    Total deposits   2,639,835       2,389,222  
           
    Borrowings, short-term   74,000       115,300  
    Borrowings, long-term   4,189       34,156  
    Subordinated notes payable, net   49,867       49,681  
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   33,881       31,429  
    Total liabilities   2,801,772       2,619,788  
    Total shareholders’ equity   238,837       206,000  
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 3,040,609     $ 2,825,788  
    Common shares outstanding   17,026,828       17,026,828  
    Treasury shares   195,852       195,852  
           

    The above information is preliminary and based on the Company’s data available at the time of presentation.

    Non-GAAP to GAAP Reconciliations

    The following table summarizes the adjustments made to arrive at the fully taxable-equivalent net interest margins.

      For the three months ended
    June 30,
    For the years ended
    June 30,
    (Dollars in thousands)   2025     2024     2025     2024  
    Net interest income (GAAP) $ 16,706   $ 12,857   $ 60,121   $ 50,979  
    Tax-equivalent adjustment(1)   2,130     1,740     7,679     6,791  
    Net interest income-fully taxable-equivalent basis (non-GAAP) $ 18,836   $ 14,597   $ 67,800   $ 57,770  
             
    Average interest-earning assets (GAAP) $ 2,824,952   $ 2,605,966   $ 2,739,472   $ 2,568,756  
    Net interest margin-fully taxable-equivalent basis (non-GAAP)   2.67 %   2.24 %   2.47 %   2.25 %
                             

    (1) Interest income calculated on a taxable-equivalent basis (non-GAAP) includes the additional interest income that would have been earned if the Company’s investment in tax-exempt securities and loans had been subject to federal and New York State income taxes yielding the same after-tax income. The rate used for this adjustment was 21% for federal income taxes for the three and twelve months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, 4.44% for New York State income taxes for the three and twelve months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024.

    The following table summarizes the adjustments made to arrive at pre-provision net income.

      For the three months ended June 30,
    (Dollars in thousands)   2025     2024  
    Net income (GAAP) $ 9,333   $ 6,732  
    Provision for credit losses   (880 )   (151 )
    Pre-provision net income (non-GAAP) $ 8,453   $ 6,581  
      For the years ended June 30,
    (Dollars in thousands)   2025     2024  
    Net income (GAAP) $ 31,138   $ 24,769  
    Provision for credit losses   1,316     766  
    Pre-provision net income (non-GAAP) $ 32,454   $ 25,535  
                 

    The above information is preliminary and based on the Company’s data available at the time of presentation.

    For Further Information Contact:
    Donald E. Gibson
    President & CEO
    (518) 943-2600
    donaldg@tbogc.com

    Nick Barzee
    SVP & CFO
    (518) 943-2600
    nickb@tbogc.com

     

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Understanding the violence against Alawites and Druze in Syria after Assad

    Source: The Conversation – USA (3) – By Güneş Murat Tezcür, Professor and Director of the School of Politics and Global Studies, Arizona State University

    Bedouin fighters at Mazraa village on the outskirts of Sweida city, during clashes in southern Syria on July 18, 2025. AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed

    In July 2025, clashes between the Druze religious minority and Sunni Arabs backed by government-affiliated forces led to hundreds of deaths in Sweida province in southern Syria. Israel later launched dozens of airstrikes in support of the Druze.

    This eruption of violence was an eerie reminder of what had unfolded in March 2025 when supporters of the fallen regime led by Bashar Assad, an Alawite, targeted security units. In retaliation, militias affiliated with the newly formed government in Damascus carried out indiscriminate killings of Alawites.

    While exact figures remain difficult to verify, more than 1,300 individuals, most of them Alawites, lost their lives. In some cases, entire families were summarily executed.

    Although the Syrian government promised an investigation into the atrocities, home invasions, kidnappings of Alawite women and extrajudicial executions of Alawite men continue.

    The violence in Sweida also bore a sectarian dimension, pitting members of a religious minority against armed groups aligned with the country’s Sunni majority.

    A key difference, however, involved the active Israeli support for the Druze and the U.S. efforts to broker a ceasefire.

    Post-Assad Syria has seen promising developments, including the lifting of international sanctions, a resurgence of civil society and the end of diplomatic isolation. There was even a limited rapprochement with the main Kurdish political party controlling northeastern Syria.

    The persistent violence targeting the Alawites and, to a more limited extent, the Druze, starkly contrasts with these trends. As a scholar of religious minorities and the Middle East, I argue that the current political situation reflects their historical persecution and marginalization.

    History of the Alawites

    The Alawites emerged as a distinct religious community in the 10th century in the region of the Latakia coastal mountains, which today make up northwestern Syria.

    Although their beliefs have some commonalities with Shiite Islam, the Alawites maintain their own unique religious leadership and rituals. Under the Ottoman regime in the late 19th century, they benefited from reforms such as the expansion of educational opportunities and economic modernization, while gaining geographical and social mobility.

    After Hafez Assad, the father of Bashar, came to power in a coup in 1970, he drew upon his Alawite base to reinforce his regime. Consequently, Alawites became disproportionately represented in the officer corps and intelligence services.

    Prior to the civil war, which began in 2011, their population was estimated at around 2 million, constituting roughly 10% of Syria’s population. During the civil war, Alawite young men fighting for the regime suffered heavy casualties. However, most Alawites remained in Syria, while Sunni Arabs and Kurds were disproportionately displaced or became refugees.

    Members of the Alawite minority gather outside the Russian air base in Hmeimim, near Latakia in Syria’s coastal region, on March 11, 2025, as they seek refuge there after violence and retaliatory killings in the area.
    AP Photo/Omar Albam

    Among Syria’s minorities, two key factors make the Alawites most vulnerable to mass violence in post-Assad Syria. The first factor is that, like the Druze, Alawites have their own distinct beliefs that deviate from Sunni Islam. Their religious practices and teachings are often described as “esoteric” and remain mostly inaccessible to outsiders.

    In my 2024 book “Liminal Minorities: Religious Difference and Mass Violence in Muslim Societies,” I categorize the Alawites and Druze in Syria alongside Yezidis in Iraq, Alevis in Turkey and Baha’is in Iran as “liminal minorities” – religious groups subject to deep-seated stigmas transmitted across generations.

    These groups are often treated as heretics who split from Islam and whose beliefs and rituals are deemed beyond the pale of acceptance. For instance, according to Alawite beliefs, Ali, the son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad, is a divine manifestation of God, which challenges the idea of strict monotheism central to Sunni Islam.

    From the perspective of Sunni orthodoxy, these groups’ beliefs have been a source of suspicion and disdain. A series of fatwas by prominent Sunni clerics from the 14th to the 19th century declared Alawites heretics.

    Resentment against the Alawites

    The second factor contributing to the Alawites’ vulnerability is the widespread perception that they were the main beneficiaries of the Assad regime, which engaged in mass murder against its own citizens. Although power remained narrowly concentrated under Assad, many Alawites occupied key positions in the security apparatus as well as the government.

    In today’s political landscape where the central government remains weak and its control over various armed groups is limited, religious stigmatization and political resentment create fertile ground for mass violence targeting the Alawites.

    The massacres of March 2025 were accompanied by sectarian hate speech, including open calls for the extermination of the Alawites, both in the streets and on social media.

    While many Sunni Muslims in Syria also perceive the Druze as heretics, they maintained a greater degree of distance from the Assad regime and were less integrated into its security apparatus.

    Nonetheless, in recent months the situation deteriorated rapidly in the Druze heartland. The Druze militias and local Bedouin tribes engaged in heavy fighting in July 2025. Unlike the Alawites, the Druze received direct military assistance from Israel, which has its small but influential Druze population. This further complicates peaceful coexistence among religious groups in post-Assad Syria.

    A sober future

    Sunni Arab identity is central to the newly formed government in Damascus, which can come at the expense of religious and ethnic pluralism. However, it has incentives to rein in arbitrary violence against the Alawites and Druze. Projecting itself as a source of order and national unity helps the government internationally, both diplomatically and economically.

    Internally, however, the new government remains fractured and lacks effective control over vast swaths of territory. While it pays lip service to transitional justice, it is also cautious about being perceived as overly lenient toward individuals associated with the Assad regime and its crimes. Meanwhile, Alawite and Druze demands for regional autonomy continue to stoke popular Sunni resentments and risk triggering further cycles of instability and violence.

    I believe that in a post-Assad Syria defined by fractured governance and episodic retribution, the Alawites as well as Druze are likely to face deepening marginalization.

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

    ref. Understanding the violence against Alawites and Druze in Syria after Assad – https://theconversation.com/understanding-the-violence-against-alawites-and-druze-in-syria-after-assad-255292

    MIL OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Mexican national sentenced to over 11 years for importing nearly $8 million in methamphetamine

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    McALLEN, Texas – A 26-year-old resident of Camargo, Mexico, has been sentenced to federal prison for importing more than 100 kilograms of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    Cesar Alejandro Saavedra-Garcia pleaded guilty Feb. 28.

    Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now ordered Saavedra to serve 135 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence that Saavedra-Garcia played an integral role in smuggling illegal narcotics into the United States. In handing down the sentence, the court noted the large amount of meth found in Saavedra-Garcia’s vehicle and the fact that he had admitted to transporting narcotics previously. 

    On Dec. 17, 2024, Saavedra-Garcia arrived at the Sarita Border Patrol Checkpoint and claimed he had no illegal drugs in his vehicle. 

    However, at secondary inspection, a K-9 alerted to the odor of narcotics. A subsequent search revealed 112 bricks of methamphetamine hidden in compartments near the vehicle’s cargo bed. 

    The drugs weighed approximately 109 kilograms and had an estimated street value of nearly $7.7 million. 

    At the time of his plea, Saavedra-Garcia admitted he knew he was smuggling narcotics into the United States. 

    Saavedra-Garcia will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

    Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Theodore Parran and Avery Benitez prosecuted the case.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: California man gets maximum sentence for laundering proceeds from email fraud scheme

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    HOUSTON – A San Fernando, California, man has been ordered to federal prison for operating an illegal money transmitting business, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    Victor Rubio Jr. 28, pleaded guilty Feb. 6.

    U.S. District Judge George Hanks has now ordered Rubio to serve the maximum 60 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court considered additional evidence about other frauds Rubio committed while on bond in imposing the sentencing, assessing extra points for obstruction of justice. In handing down the sentence, Judge Hanks noted Rubio had committed obstruction after writing his letter to the judge asking for leniency and apologizing for his first crime. 

    Rubio admitted that from 2021 to 2022, he operated an unlicensed money transmitting business that received and transmitted funds from a business email compromise (BEC) scheme. Rubio ran the unlicensed money transmitting business by using shell companies that existed only on paper.

    As part of the plea, Rubio acknowledged opening and maintaining bank accounts to collect money from at least two victims in a BEC scheme, including a healthcare liability insurance company headquartered in Georgia and a township in New Jersey. Then, for a fee, he transmitted the fraud proceeds to co-conspirators.

    In response to fraudulent wire instructions from spoofed email accounts, victims sent interstate wire transfers for payment to Rubio instead of to the true creditors to whom the victims owed money.

    More than 45 people in multiple states, including Rubio and seven others in the Southern District of Texas, have been charged in separate business email compromise schemes that affected numerous victims.

    Previously released on bond, Rubio was taken into custody where he will remain pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

    The FBI – Bryan Resident Agency and IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Belinda Beek is prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Laredo man with prior murder conviction sentenced to 30 years for smuggling methamphetamine

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LAREDO, Texas – A 31-year-old resident of Laredo has been sentenced for illegally importing over 836 kilograms of methamphetamine into the country, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    Cornelio Aguilar pleaded guilty July 9, 2024.

    U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison ordered him to serve the 30-year sentence to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard about Aguilar’s violent criminal history, including prior convictions for murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. In imposing the sentence, Judge Ellison noted that this was a serious offense.

    The investigation revealed Aguilar imported two loads of methamphetamine into the United States using tractor trailers between January and June 2022. Hidden inside the bags of charcoal he was hauling were bundles of methamphetamine. 

    Aguilar has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in the near future.

    Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations conducted the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation with the assistance of Customs and Border Protection.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Chamberlin prosecuted the case.

    OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found on the Department of Justice’s OCDETF webpage.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Illegal alien pleads guilty to leading smuggling organization involving transportation of over 100 persons

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 40-year-old Mexican national who illegally resided in Houston has admitted to an alien smuggling conspiracy and illegal reentry into the country, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    The investigation revealed Edgar Ruiz-Briones arranged transportation and coordinating trips for illegal aliens coming over the southern border with Mexico. Ruiz-Briones was the leader of the smuggling organization, recruiting drivers from as far away as Kansas to come to the Rio Grande Valley.

    Drivers would communicate directly with Ruiz-Briones to set up the trips, give updates on progress and set meeting spots for drop-offs in Houston after successful smuggling operations. They would pick up illegal aliens from different stash houses and transport them to Houston, where they met with Ruiz-Briones before going further into the United States. 

    Ruiz-Briones handled payments from the aliens to come into the United States and payments to the drivers he recruited. 

    Over the course of the 18-month conspiracy, Ruiz-Briones arranged for over 100 aliens to enter, remain and be transported further into the United States.

    An illegal alien himself, having been removed from the United States on multiple occasions, he also pleaded guilty to illegally reentering the United States from Mexico and remaining here in violation of the law.

    U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos will impose sentencing Oct. 30. At that time. Ruiz-Briones faces up to 10 years in federal prison for the alien smuggling conspiracy and 20 years for illegally re-entering the United States.

    Ruiz-Briones has been and will remain in custody pending sentencing.

    Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with the assistance of Border Patrol.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Griffith is prosecuting the case.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: New York Man Charged For Making And Attempting To Use Improvised Explosive Devices In Manhattan

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton; Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), Christopher G. Raia; and Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), Jessica S. Tisch, announced today charges against MICHAEL GANN alleging that he manufactured at least seven improvised explosive devices (“IEDs”) using precursor chemicals—chemicals that can be combined to create an explosive mixture—that he had ordered on the internet, stored at least five IEDs and shotgun shells on adjoining rooftops of residential apartment buildings in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, threw at least one IED onto the subway tracks of the Williamsburg Bridge, and subsequently lied to law enforcement about having disposed of his explosives and supplies in a dumpster.  This case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho.

    “The safety of New Yorkers is paramount,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton.  “As alleged, Michael Gann built explosive devices, stored them on a rooftop in SoHo, and threw one onto the subway tracks—putting countless lives at risk.  Thanks to swift work by our law enforcement partners, no one was harmed.  That vigilance assuredly prevented a tragedy in New York.”

    “Michael Gann allegedly produced multiple improvised explosive devices intended for use in Manhattan,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Christopher G. Raia.  “Due to the successful partnership of law enforcement agencies in New York, Gann was swiftly brought to justice before he could harm innocent civilians shortly after his dangerous actions became known.  The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is enduring in its commitment and determination to protect the homeland.”

    “This defendant allegedly stockpiled homemade explosives and traveled to New York City with these deadly devices,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch.  “He threw one of these devices onto an active subway track and stored others on the rooftop of a residential building, but because of the skilled investigative work and swift response from the NYPD and our partners, we were able to intervene before he caused any harm.  I am grateful to the members of the NYPD, FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for all the work they do every day to keep New Yorkers safe.”

    As alleged in the Complaint, Indictment, and public court filings:[1]

    In or about May 2025, GANN ordered approximately two pounds of potassium perchlorate and approximately one pound of aluminum powder—precursor chemicals—online, along with over 200 cardboard tubes and over 50-feet worth of fuses.  In or about early June 2025, GANN received his packages containing the precursor chemicals and other supplies, mixed the precursor chemicals together, applied a flame to the mixture, and caused an explosion.  GANN subsequently assembled at least seven IEDs using the precursor chemicals, cardboard tubes, and fuses.

    GANN stored the precursor chemicals and at least five IEDs, pictured below, on the rooftops of residential apartment buildings in SoHo.  The pictured black device contained approximately 30 grams of explosive powder—approximately 600 times the legal limit for consumer fireworks.

    GANN also stored at least four shotgun shells on the same rooftops, which he intended to combine with one or more of the IEDs.

    GANN threw a sixth IED onto the subway tracks on the Williamsburg Bridge, as pictured below.

    On or about June 5, 2025, law enforcement agents arrested GANN in SoHo, incident to which they recovered a seventh IED from GANN’s person.  Following GANN’s arrest, GANN falsely told law enforcement, in substance and in part, that he had disposed of the precursor chemicals and the shotgun shells in a dumpster in Manhattan.

    In or about May and June 2025, GANN conducted internet searches related to explosives and firearms, including: “will i pass a background check,” “gun background check test,” “can i buy a gun in any state without ffl [federal firearms license],” “3D gun printing,” “gun stores,” “clorine bomb,” “how to make flash powder from household items,” “what to mix with potassium perchlorate to make flash powder,” “alluminum powder,” “black powder nearby,” “quarter stick m1000 firecracker,” “1/2 stick dynamite,” and “rechargeable nail gun to shoot into steal.”

    On or about June 5, 2025, just hours before GANN was arrested with an IED on his person, GANN posted to Instagram, “Who wants me to go out to play like no tomorrow?”

    *               *                *

    GANN, 55, of Inwood, New York, is charged with one count of attempted destruction of property by means of explosives, which carries a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of transportation of explosive materials, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; and one count of unlawful possession of destructive devices, which also carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

    The minimum and maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by a judge.

    Mr. Clayton praised the outstanding efforts of the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force of the FBI, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, NYPD, and over 50 other federal, state, and local agencies; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Nassau County Police Department; and the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

    This case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and International Narcotics Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan L. Bodansky, Michael D. Lockard, and Chelsea L. Scism, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Isaacson, are in charge of the prosecution.


    [1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the charging instruments and other public filings to date constitute only allegations, and every fact described herein should be treated as an allegation.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Three Syracuse Men Plead Guilty to Possessing and Selling Firearms

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    UTICA, NEW YORK –Erik Burch, age 30, Khalid Richardson, age 30, and Lamar Stanford, age 33, each of Syracuse, have each pled guilty for their respective roles in a firearms trafficking operation. Burch pled guilty last week to the unlawful sale of a firearm to a prohibited person; Richardson pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person on June 4, 2025; and Stanford pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person on April 30, 2025. Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Bryan Miller, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), made the announcement.

    Richardson admitted that he sold firearms to an individual whom he knew to be a felon on four separate occasions in 2022. He further admitted that he obtained firearms on two of those occasions from his co-defendants, Stanford and Burch. Stanford and Burch each admitted to possessing firearms on the dates of the firearm sales that they engaged in with Richardson. Stanford and Burch were each prohibited from possessing firearms based on prior felony convictions.

    Acting United States Attorney John Sarcone stated, “If you sell firearms to felons, be ready to spend a long time in federal prison. We will not tolerate felons buying, selling, or possessing firearms in the Northern District of New York. We will use all of the tools at our disposal to make sure these people are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

    ATF Special Agent in Charge Bryan Miller stated: “This case underscores the serious threat that illegal firearms trafficking pose to our communities. These defendants — including two convicted felons — were involved in trafficking firearms, a crime that puts lives at risk and undermines the safety of our communities. Thanks to the diligent work of ATF NY Syracuse, in coordination with the Syracuse Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York, we were able to disrupt this operation and hold these individuals accountable. We remain committed to working alongside our law enforcement partners to stem schemes that fuel violent crime.”

    The charges filed against Burch, Richardson, and Stanford carry a maximum term of 15 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a term of supervised release of up to 3 years. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statutes the defendant is convicted of violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors. Burch is scheduled to be sentenced on November 12, 2025; Richardson is scheduled to be sentenced on October 15, 2025; and Stanford is scheduled to be sentenced on August 27, 2025.  The defendants will appear for sentencing before Senior United States District Judge David N. Hurd.

    ATF investigated the case with assistance from the Syracuse Police Department’s Intelligence Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica N. Carbone is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods.

    Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psn.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: DRUG TRAFFICKER SENTENCED TO 120 MONTHS’ IMPRISONMENT FOR ROLE IN DRUG TRAFFICKING GANG

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    St. Thomas, VI – Acting United States Attorney Adam F. Sleeper announced today that on
    Tuesday, July 22, 2025, Kai James, 37, of St. Croix, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and six years
    of supervised release by District Judge Mark A. Kearney. He pleaded guilty on January 23, 2025, to
    conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana for his role in a drug trafficking
    conspiracy led by James and his brother, Ivan James. Other members in the James gang, Ivan James,
    Joh Williams, Malachi Benjamin, Ariel Petersen, Jahkiebo Joseph, Tillisa Ceaser, and Luis Ortiz, Jr.,
    all of St. Croix, were previously sentenced by Judge Kearney for their roles in the drug trafficking
    conspiracy.
    According to court documents and evidence introduced at the trial of Ivan James and Joh
    Williams and other hearings, the investigation into the James drug trafficking organization began in
    January 2013 after Bureau of Corrections officers at the Golden Grove Correctional Facility seized
    an iPhone from then-inmate Joh Williams. A search of the cell phone seized from Williams revealed
    text messages related to smuggling and distribution of controlled substances in the prison. Thereafter,
    Drug Enforcement Administration obtained authorization to intercept calls from a second cell phone
    used by Williams while incarcerated. The wire investigation revealed evidence of distribution of
    controlled substances within the facility by Williams, supplied by Ivan James. The investigation
    further revealed that Vivian Ford, a former corrections officer, was a member of James’ organization
    who smuggled narcotics into Golden Grove in food containers for distribution by Williams.
    Members of the gang who worked at the Henry Rohlsen Airport in St. Croix used their
    secured access to smuggle multiple kilograms of cocaine per week onboard commercial aircrafts
    destined for the continental United States. Testimony revealed that Ivan and Kai James recruited
    couriers to deliver bricks of cocaine as passengers on board commercial flights. As a
    manager/supervisor in the drug trafficking gang, Kai James used as many as 10 couriers to travel to
    New York, North Carolina, and Florida with 2 to 3 kilograms of cocaine per trip in this broad and
    brazen drug trafficking operation.
    In addition, a search warrant was executed on the family home of Ivan and Kai James. Law
    enforcement recovered marijuana, cocaine, and marijuana cultivation equipment. In a field adjacent
    to the property, agents seized over 1,000 marijuana plants.
    A federal jury found Ivan James guilty on drug conspiracy, possession of 1,000 marijuana
    plants, possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug conspiracy and possession of firearms resulting
    in the death of Levar Pogson. On his conviction, Judge Kearney sentenced James to 420 months of
    imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release. Joh Williams was also found guilty on
    the drug conspiracy charge and was sentenced to 90 months of imprisonment, followed by seven
    years of supervised release. Ariel Petersen and Jahkiebo Joseph pleaded guilty to possession of
    firearms in furtherance of a drug conspiracy and importation of firearms. Petersen was sentenced to
    93 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, and Joseph was sentenced
    to 68 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Malachi Benjamin
    pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug conspiracy and was sentenced to 72
    months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Tillisa Ceaser and Luis Ortiz,
    Jr. both pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy. Ceaser was sentenced to 62 months of imprisonment, and
    Ortiz was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment.
    “Due to the tremendous work of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security
    Investigations, Customs and Border Patrol, the Virgin Islands Police Department and the Bureau of
    Corrections, the members of this drug trafficking organization have received just and lengthy
    sentences for their involvement in these crimes,” said Acting United States Attorney Adam Sleeper.
    “This sentence sends a clear message, and it is credited to the extensive collaboration between
    federal and local law enforcement partners. Our joint efforts are essential in the U.S. Virgin Islands
    towards combatting drug trafficking, weapons trafficking, and the myriads of other illicit activities of
    transnational criminal organizations in our area of responsibility,” said Homeland Security
    Investigations Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Gonzalez-Ramos.
    “The guilty plea of Kai James represents a decisive blow against the violent narcotics
    conspiracy that plagued the people of St. Croix for far too long,” stated DEA Caribbean Division
    Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Miranda. “This case underscores the unwavering commitment
    of the DEA and our law enforcement partners to dismantle criminal organizations that threaten the
    safety and well-being of our communities. We are proud to have worked alongside the USAO, HSI,
    FBI, CBP, and ATF to bring justice to those impacted by these crimes. Let this serve as a clear
    message: we will not relent in our fight to protect the Caribbean from the scourge of drug trafficking
    and violence.”
    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF)
    investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money
    launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a
    prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal,
    state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
    This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security
    Investigations, Customs and Border Patrol, Virgin Islands Police Department and the Bureau of
    Corrections. It was prosecuted by former United States Attorney Delia Smith, Acting Assistant United
    States Attorney Adam Sleeper, and lead OCDETF attorney Kyle Payne.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Keokuk Men Sentenced to 240 Months in Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute 50 Grams or More of Methamphetamine

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    DAVENPORT, Iowa – Two Keokuk men were sentenced to federal prison for Conspiracy to Distribute 50 Grams or More of Methamphetamine.

    According to public court documents and evidence presented at trial, between at least April and July 2024, Ronald Dickey Mason, 75, and Ronald Kieth Mason, 43, father and son, conspired to sell large amounts of methamphetamine in Keokuk, Burlington, Riverside, Des Moines, and Cedar Rapids. In July 2024, law enforcement located 28 pounds of methamphetamine in the trunk and a pistol in the center console of Ronald Dickey Mason’s car.

    In February of 2025 Ronald Kieth Mason plead guilty as charged and Ronald Dickey Mason plead guilty to conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. In March 2025, a jury convicted Ronald Dickey Mason of carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime. On July 22, 2025, the Court sentenced him to 22 years in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release.

    Ronald Keith Mason was sentenced on June 25, 2025, to 20 years in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

    United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by Lee County Narcotics Task Force, the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, and the Keokuk Police Department.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Puerto Rican Man Sentenced to 137 Months in Prison for Cocaine Smuggling

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ST. THOMAS – Acting U.S. Attorney Adan F. Sleeper announced today that Brian Santiago
    Gonzalez, 25, of Puerto Rico, was sentenced on July 1, 2025, by Chief District Judge Robert A.
    Molloy to 137 months’ imprisonment and 4 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to
    one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine on December 9, 2024.
     

    According to court documents, on March 29, 2022, Brian Santiago Gonzalez and co-defendant
    Wesly Albert Amaro were stopped in the waters near Savanah Island, just west of St. Thomas,
    USVI. At approximately 4:00 a.m., the United States Coast Guard (USCG) detected a vessel
    operating without navigation lights traveling at a high rate of speed from Culebra, PR towards
    Hendrick Bay, St. Thomas. Customs and Boarder Protection Air and Marine (AMO) vessels
    responded as the USCG provided updates on the vessel’s location. AMO agents located the lightsout
    vessel using radar and attempted a stop. The vessel fled while the two men onboard jettisoned
    bags overboard. The vessel would not heave to, so AMO agents disabled the vessel’s engine.
    During the chase, AMO agents marked the locations where duffle bags were discarded from the
    vessel. Upon returning to the marked areas, AMO agents recovered three duffel bags containing
    79 kilograms of cocaine.
     

    Wesly Albert Amaro was sentenced to 108 months’ imprisonment and 3 years of supervised
    release on August 18, 202, following his guilty plea.
    CBP-AMO, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Homeland Security Investigations
    investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Payne prosecuted the case.
     

    This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation.
    OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten
    the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional
    information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: Graphjet visited by Japanese trading company

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, United States, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Graphjet Technology (“Graphjet” or “the Company”) was honoured to welcome a delegation from a Japanese trading company with international presence for an official visit on JULY 23, 2025 to discuss on the provision of sustainable graphite materials to their customers.

    This visit highlights the Japanese trading company’s strong interest in Graphjet’s proprietary technology, which utilize palm kernel shells as a renewable feedstock to produce high purity synthetic graphite. This patented process significantly reduce carbon emissions compared to traditional graphite production methods, aligning with global efforts toward decarbonization and green manufacturing.

    With over 75 years of history, this renowned Japanese enterprise is one of the major integrated trading houses in Asia, actively engaged in diverse sectors including aerospace components, advanced machinery and automation systems, and chemical products, it serves industry leaders across multiple sector for customers like Toshiba and Hitachi. With annual revenue of around ¥‎30 billion, the firm maintains operations in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

    During the visit, the delegation toured Graphjet’s R&D production facilities, gaining valuable insights into the company’s manufacturing process and quality assurance system.

    “This engagement marks a meaningful step forward in strengthening mutual understanding and laying the groundwork for future collaboration in the field of sustainable graphite and next generation technology.” said Chris Lai the CEO of Graphjet.

    Graphjet Technology remains committed to advancing green innovation and building strong partnership with global industry leaders to drive sustainable progress in the graphite and graphene sector.

    About Graphjet Technology Sdn. Bhd.

    Graphjet Technology Sdn. Bhd. (Nasdaq: GTI) was founded in 2019 in Malaysia as an innovative graphene and graphite producer. Graphjet Technology has the world’s first patented technology to recycle palm kernel shells generated in the production of palm seed oil to produce single layer graphene and artificial graphite. Graphjet’s sustainable production methods utilizing palm kernel shells, a waste agricultural product that is common in Malaysia, will set a new shift in graphite and graphene supply chain of the world. For more information, please visit https://www.graphjettech.com/.

    Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    The information in this press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “strategy,” “aim,” “future,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result” and similar expressions, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from their expectations, estimates and projections and consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: (i) changes in the markets in which Graphjet competes, including with respect to its competitive landscape, technology evolution or regulatory changes; (ii) the risk that Graphjet will need to raise additional capital to execute its business plans, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at all; (iii) Graphjet is beginning the commercialization of its technology and it may not have an accurate estimate of future capital expenditures and future revenue; (iv) statements regarding Graphjet’s industry and market size; (v) financial condition and performance of Graphjet, including the anticipated benefits, the implied enterprise value, the financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, the products, the expected future performance and market opportunities of Graphjet; (vi) Graphjet’s ability to develop and manufacture its graphene and graphite products; and (vii) those factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties that will be described in the “Risk Factors” section of the documents to be filed by Graphjet from time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward- looking statements, and while Graphjet may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, they assume no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law. Graphjet does not give any assurance that Graphjet will achieve its expectations.

    Graphjet Technology Contacts

    Investors
    ceo.office@graphjettech.com

    Media
    ceo.office@graphjettech.com

    ###

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: FFB Bancorp Announces Second Quarter 2025 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    FRESNO, Calif., July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FFB Bancorp (the “Company”) (OTCQX: FFBB), the parent company of FFB Bank (the “Bank”), today reported net income of $6.04 million, or $1.94 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $8.08 million, or $2.54 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2024, and $8.10 million, or $2.55 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2025.

    For the six months ended June 30, 2025, net income was $14.13 million, or $4.50 per diluted share, compared to $15.87 million, or $4.99 per diluted share, for the same period in 2024. All results are unaudited.

    Second Quarter 2025 Summary: As of, or for the quarter ended June 30, 2025, compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2024:

    • Operating revenue (net interest income, before the provision for credit losses, plus non-interest income) increased 11% to $27.35 million.
    • Pre-tax, pre-provision income increased 1% to $11.58 million.
    • Net income decreased 25% to $6.04 million.
    • Return on average equity (“ROAE”) was 13.75%.
    • Return on average assets (“ROAA”) was 1.59%.
    • Net interest margin contracted 22 basis points to 5.09% from 5.31%.
    • Total assets increased 2% to $1.47 billion.
    • Total portfolio of loans increased 13% to $1.09 billion.
    • Total deposits increased 6% to $1.23 billion.
    • Shareholder equity increased 17% to $173.91 million.
    • Book value per common share increased 22% to $56.87.
    • The Company’s tangible common equity ratio was 11.80%, while the Bank’s regulatory leverage capital ratio was 14.41%, and the total risk-based capital ratio was 20.61% at June 30, 2025.

    “During the quarter FFB Bank was recognized as #1 in American Banker’s top-performing public banks with under $2B in assets and #34 in S&P Global’s 100 best-performing US community banks of 2024, for bank’s under $3B in assets,” said Steve Miller, President & CEO. “This recognition is a testament to the consistent success we’ve enjoyed, and a reminder of the results we expect and continue to strive toward. As we navigate the challenges this year has brought, we’re proud to build upon our history of success.”

    “During the quarter we have made continued and timely progress on the matters outlined in our consent order, although ultimate compliance will be determined by our regulators. We are confident we can continue to address these items going forward. Although the added resource allocation to properly address the order will have near-term impacts to our performance, we feel that building a best in-class compliance and risk frame-work will enable the bank to drive results over the long-term.”

    Update on Stock Repurchase Program:

    On January 22, 2025, the Company announced that it had authorized a plan to utilize up to $15.0 million of capital to repurchase shares of the Company’s common stock. As of June 30, 2025, the Company has repurchased 133,021 shares, at an average price of $76.79, totaling $10.22 million. This represents approximately 5.33% of total shareholders’ equity at June 30, 2025. During the second quarter of 2025 the Company repurchased 91,106 shares, at an average price of $74.58, totaling $6.79 million. These purchases represent approximately 3.54% of total shareholders’ equity at June 30, 2025.

    Under the terms of the repurchase plan, the Company may repurchase shares of the Company’s common stock from time to time, through December 31, 2025, in open market purchases or privately negotiated transactions. Repurchases under the plan may also be made pursuant to a trading plan under Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b5-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which would permit shares to be repurchased by the Company when the Company might otherwise be precluded from doing so because of self-imposed trading blackout periods or other regulatory restrictions. The timing, manner, price and exact amount of any repurchases by the Company will be determined at the Company’s discretion and depend on various factors including the performance of the Company’s stock price, general market and economic conditions, applicable legal and regulatory requirements, availability of funds, and other relevant factors. Through December 31, 2025, the repurchase plan may be discontinued, suspended or restarted at any time.

    Results of Operations

    Quarter ended June 30, 2025:

    Operating revenue, consisting of net interest income before the provision for credit losses and non-interest income, increased 11% to $27.35 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $24.73 million for the second quarter a year ago, and decreased 4% from $28.48 million for the first quarter of 2025.

    Net interest income, before the provision for credit losses, increased 5% to $18.11 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $17.31 million for the same quarter a year ago, and decreased 4% to $18.90 million from last quarter. “Net interest income has benefited from strong loan portfolio growth, partially offset by higher funding costs,” said Bhavneet Gill, Chief Financial Officer. “We have been able to capitalize on a higher yielding loan portfolio, but that yield was impacted by a $261,000 interest reversal as loans, totaling $11.86 million, were placed on non-accrual during the quarter.”

    The Company’s net interest margin (“NIM”) decreased by 22 basis points to 5.09% for the second quarter of 2025, compared to 5.31% for the second quarter of 2024, and decreased 26 basis points from 5.35% for the preceding quarter. “The decrease in NIM is primarily the result of an increase in deposit and borrowing interest expense, and the decrease in investment interest income. During the quarter, average non-interest bearing deposits decreased $37.67 million. The resulting shift in the deposit portfolio saw the cost of deposits increase 13 basis points,” noted Gill. “During the second quarter of 2025 we sold $48.05 million in investment securities to generate liquidity ahead of anticipated deposit outflows due to ISO partner exits. That transaction was the driver of the decrease in investment interest income in the current quarter and will result in lower investment income in future quarters.”

    The yield on earning assets was 6.18% for the second quarter of 2025, compared to 6.40% for the second quarter a year ago, and 6.31% for the previous quarter. The cost to fund earning assets increased to 1.09% for the second quarter of 2025 compared to 0.96% for the previous quarter, and 1.10% for the same quarter a year earlier. This increase is the result of an increase in brokered deposits and overnight borrowings during the quarter due to ISO deposit outflow that occurred in early June.

    Total non-interest income was $9.24 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $7.42 million for the second quarter of 2024, and $9.58 million for the previous quarter. The increase in non-interest income, from the second quarter of 2024, was driven by more gain on the sale of loans, higher merchant services revenue, and a reduction in loss on sale of investments. The quarter-over-quarter decrease in non-interest income was attributed to a decrease in merchant services revenue, partially offset by more gain on the sale of loans.

    Merchant services revenue increased 9% to $6.61 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $6.07 million from the second quarter of 2024. The increase over prior year was primarily related to higher volume across ISO partner sponsorship lines and higher gross revenue related to FFB Payments. Merchant services revenue decreased from $7.86 million when compared to the first quarter of 2025 as a result of seasonality and the loss of a significant FFB Payments direct merchant.

    During the first and second quarters of 2025, ISO Partner Sponsorship volumes included $2.78 billion and $2.56 billion in volume, respectively, for the ISO partners that were exited in the second quarter of 2025. Additionally, the first and second quarters of 2025 included ISO Partner Sponsorship revenues of $990,000 and $1.09 million, respectively, from the ISO partners that were exited in the second quarter of 2025. “These ISO exits were driven by our efforts to comply with the Consent Order and designed to ensure best in class oversight. We anticipate replacing this volume and revenue through growth in FFB Payments and with our remaining ISO partners as we move forward,” said Miller.

    Merchant ISO Processing Volumes(in thousands)
    Source   Q2 2025 Q1 2025 Q4 2024 Q3 2024 Q2 2024
    ISO Partner Sponsorship   $ 5,347,695   $ 5,007,998   $ 4,891,643   $ 4,556,868   $ 4,391,365  
    FFB Payments – Sub-ISO Merchants     20,766     21,551     22,950     24,661     24,414  
    FFB Payments – Direct Merchants     71,746     97,095     91,133     64,512     76,059  
    Total volume   $ 5,440,207   $ 5,126,644   $ 5,005,726   $ 4,646,041   $ 4,491,838  
    Merchant ISO Processing Revenues(in thousands)
    Source of Revenue   Q2 2025 Q1 2025 Q4 2024 Q3 2024 Q2 2024
    Net Revenue*:            
    ISO Partner Sponsorship   $ 2,654   $ 2,410   $ 2,535   $ 2,284   $ 2,156  
                 
    Gross Revenue:            
    FFB Payments – Sub-ISO Merchants     727     745     764     810     795  
    FFB Payments – Direct Merchants     3,228     4,709     4,262     2,476     3,117  
          3,955     5,454     5,026     3,286     3,912  
    Gross Expense:            
    FFB Payments – Sub-ISO Merchants     708     616     638     723     675  
    FFB Payments – Direct Merchants     2,179     2,558     2,511     1,766     1,989  
          2,887     3,174     3,149     2,489     2,664  
    Net Revenue:            
    FFB Payments – Sub-ISO Merchants     19     129     126     87     120  
    FFB Payments – Direct Merchants     1,049     2,151     1,751     710     1,128  
    FFB Payments Net Revenue     1,068     2,280     1,877     797     1,248  
    Net Merchant Services Income:   $ 3,722   $ 4,690   $ 4,412   $ 3,081   $ 3,404  
    *ISO Partnership Sponsorship is recognized net of expense in Merchant Services Income. FFB Payments revenues are recognized gross in Merchant Services Income and Merchant Services expenses are recognized in Non-Interest Expense.

    Total deposit fee income increased 1% to $854,000 for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $847,000 for the second quarter of 2024, and increased 1% from $849,000 for the previous quarter.

    There was a $1.45 million gain on the sale of loans during the second quarter of 2025, compared to a gain on the sale of loans of $509,000 during the second quarter 2024, and a gain on the sale of loans of $261,000 in the previous quarter. There was a $243,000 loss on the sale of investments during the second quarter of 2025, compared to a $459,000 loss recorded during the second quarter of 2024, and no loss recorded in the previous quarter. The gain on the sale of loans was the result of $16.95 million in SBA loans sold and a $31.77 million RE-multifamily loan sale package that was completed during the quarter. These sales contributed $968,000 and $482,000 in gain respectively.

    Non-interest expense increased 19% to $15.77 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $13.29 million for the second quarter 2024, and decreased 4% from $16.47 million from the previous quarter. The increase on a year-over-year comparison was driven by increases in salaries and employee benefits expense, and increases in other operating expense, primarily data and software related expenses and professional fees. Compared to the first quarter of 2025 the decrease in non-interest expense was attributed to a decrease in merchant services operating expenses, marketing expense, director fess, and operational losses.

    Salaries and employee benefits increased 19% to $8.00 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $6.72 million for the second quarter 2024. The increase year-over-year was primarily the result of expense associated with the increase in full-time employees. Full-time employees increased to 181 at June 30, 2025, compared to 147 full-time employees a year earlier, and 175 full-time employees from the previous quarter. Total salaries and employee benefits decreased 1% from $8.06 million in the previous quarter. The decrease when compared to the first quarter of 2025 is the result of a decrease in payroll tax expense and increased loan originations, partially offset by higher salary expense from additional full-time employees. Compensation related direct costs associated with loan originations offset salary and employee benefits expense upon loan origination.

    Occupancy and equipment expenses decreased 19% from a year ago, representing 2% of non-interest expense, and remained consistent with the preceding quarter. Merchant operating expense totaled $2.89 million for the second quarter of 2025, compared to $2.66 million for the second quarter of 2024 and $3.17 million for the previous quarter. The change in merchant operating expense is attributed to fluctuations in volume and revenue for the FFB Payments lines of business. Merchant operating expenses include interchange fees, chargebacks, partnership fees, and other card brand fees.

    Other operating expense increased 31% or $1.07 million to $4.53 million from a year earlier and decreased 7% or $357,000 from the previous quarter. The year-over-year increase was driven by increases of $458,000 in data and software related expense, $327,000 in professional fees, $136,000 in regulatory assessment expense, and $127,000 in marketing expense. The increase in data and software expense and professional fees, which include legal, audit, and consulting fees, are primarily due to actions taken to enhance the Company’s AML/CFT, compliance, and merchant services programs.

    The efficiency ratio was 57.15% for the second quarter of 2025, compared to 52.74% for the same quarter a year ago, and 57.83% for the preceding quarter. The efficiency ratio can fluctuate period-over-period based on changes in merchant services’ gross revenues and associated expenses. The Company also calculates an adjusted efficiency ratio where the merchant services’ gross expense, which is included in non-interest expense, is netted against merchant services’ revenue in non-interest income. The adjusted efficiency ratio was 52.14% for the second quarter of 2025, compared to 47.15% for the same quarter a year ago, and 52.54% for the previous quarter.

    “Over the last few quarters, we’ve made intentional investments in people and technology to ensure that the bank can efficiently scale moving forward, and specifically to support our payment ecosystem, product development, regional expansion, and compliance/risk management initiatives. We saw elevated legal, audit, and technology related expenses in the first half of the year mostly related to addressing the Consent Order,” said Miller.

    Six months ended June 30, 2025:

    For the six months ended June 30, 2025, operating revenue increased 15% to $55.83 million, compared to $48.34 million for the same period in 2024. For the six months ended June 30, 2025, net interest income before the provision for credit losses increased 11% to $37.01 million, compared to $33.44 million for the same period in 2024. The increase in revenue is attributed to growth in the loan portfolio, partially offset by a decrease in investment interest income, an increase in interest bearing liabilities, and the cost of funds. For the six months ended June 30, 2025, the yield on earning assets was 6.24% compared to 6.27% for the same period in 2024, while the cost to fund earning assets was 1.02% for the six months ended June 30, 2025, compared to 1.05% for the same period in 2024.

    For the six months ended June 30, 2025, non-interest income increased 26% to $18.82 million compared to $14.90 million for the same period in 2024. Deposit fee income increased 4% to $1.70 million resulting from growth in business demand deposit accounts. The year-over-year growth in non-interest income was also largely attributable to the decrease in loss on sale of investments, an increase in the gain on sale of loans, and an increase in merchant services revenue.

    For the six months ended June 30, 2025, operating expenses increased by 24% to $32.24 million from $25.99 million for the same period in 2024. Salaries and employee benefits expense increased 21% to $16.06 million as a result of the increase in FTE. There was a 21% increase in merchant services operating expenses, to $6.06 million, which represents 19% of total operating expenses for six months ended June 30, 2025. Other operating expenses increased 38% to $9.41 million due to a $711,000 increase in technology related expenses, increases of $683,000 in professional fees, and increase of $389,000 in marketing expense, and a $293,000 increase in operational losses.

    For the six months ended June 30, 2025, the efficiency ratio was 57.49%, compared to 52.85% for the same period ended June 30, 2024. The adjusted efficiency ratio was 52.34%, compared to 47.48% for the same period ended June 30, 2024.

    Balance Sheet Review

    Total assets increased 2% to $1.47 billion at June 30, 2025, compared to $1.44 billion at June 30, 2024, and decreased 6% compared to March 31, 2025.

    The total portfolio of loans increased 13%, or $122.20 million, to $1.09 billion, compared to $969.76 million at June 30, 2024, and remained consistent with the $1.09 billion reported at March 31, 2025.

    Commercial real estate loans increased 22% year-over-year to $683.74 million, representing 63% of total loans at June 30, 2025. The CRE portfolio includes approximately $254.16 million in multi-family loans originated by the Southern California team that the Company may consider selling at some point in the future for liquidity and concentration management. The multi-family portfolio includes $74.32 million in short-term bridge loans for transitional projects of multi-family properties. The short-term bridge loans are conservatively underwritten with minimum DSCR and liquidity requirements. The bank continues to market our bridge loan product in a more measured approach, keeping to our conservative underwriting standards. The real estate construction and land development loan portfolio decreased 84% from a year ago to $12.78 million, representing 1% of total loans, while residential RE 1-4 family loans totaled $17.07 million, or 2% of loans, at June 30, 2025, compared to $17.44 million one year ago.

    The commercial and industrial (C&I) portfolio increased 15% to $266.81 million, at June 30, 2025, compared to $232.79 million a year earlier, and increased 3% from $260.06 million at March 31, 2025. C&I loans represented 24% of total loans at June 30, 2025. Agriculture loans represented 10% of the loan portfolio at June 30, 2025. At June 30, 2025, the SBA, USDA, and other government agencies guaranteed loans totaled $53.36 million, or 4.9% of the loan portfolio.

    Investment securities totaled $254.18 million at June 30, 2025, compared to $345.49 million a year earlier, and decreased $59.65 million from $313.83 million at March 31, 2025. Investment securities were sold during the quarter to generate liquidity ahead of anticipated deposit outflows due to ISO partner exits. The investment portfolio consists of mortgage-backed and municipal securities, both tax exempt and taxable, treasury securities as well as other domestic debt. At June 30, 2025, the Company had a net unrealized loss position on its investment securities portfolio of $25.41 million, compared to a net unrealized loss of $24.50 million at March 31, 2025. The Company’s investment securities portfolio had an effective duration of 6.26 years at June 30, 2025, compared to 5.61 years at March 31, 2025.

    Total deposits increased 6%, or $65.69 million, to $1.23 billion at June 30, 2025, compared to $1.17 billion from a year earlier, and decreased $85.73 million from $1.32 billion at March 31, 2025. Non-interest bearing demand deposits increased 4% to $759.30 million at June 30, 2025, compared to $731.03 million at June 30, 2024, and decreased $66.10 million from $825.40 million at March 31, 2025. Non-interest bearing demand deposits represented 61% of total deposits at June 30, 2025. During the second quarter of 2025 non-interest bearing demand deposits were reduced by $111.20 million due to ISO partner exits completed in early June 2025. Certificates of deposits increased 49%, or $55.01 million, during the quarter primarily due to the addition of $51.00 million in brokered deposits that mature over the next 12 months.

    Included in non-interest bearing deposits at June 30, 2025 are $75.83 million from ISO partners for merchant reserves, $45.24 million from ISO partners for settlement, and $11.61 million in ISO partner operating accounts, totaling $132.68 million. These deposits represent 17.5% of non-interest bearing deposits and 10.7% of total deposits.

    Within the $132.68 million in ISO partner deposits retained as of June 30, 2025 are $29.56 million in deposits for ISO partners being exited in the second half of 2025. The Bank plans to replace these non-interest bearing deposits with growth from new Bank customers in its markets and from the existing ISO partners it will continue to support. In the short-term, the new deposit growth will likely be made up of a higher percentage of interest bearing deposits.

    There was $16.00 million in short-term borrowings at June 30, 2025, compared to $68.00 million at June 30, 2024, and $10.00 million at March 31, 2025. The Company primarily utilizes FHLB advances and the Federal Reserve discount window for short-term borrowings. The following table summarizes the Company’s primary and secondary sources of liquidity which were available at June 30, 2025:

    Liquidity Source
    (in thousands)
      June 30, 2025 March 31, 2025
           
    Cash and cash equivalents   $ 77,244   $ 103,071  
    Unpledged investment securities, fair value     67,952     104,732  
    FHLB advance capacity     293,198     338,036  
    Federal Reserve discount window capacity     162,755     130,590  
    Correspondent bank unsecured lines of credit     71,500     71,500  
        $ 672,649   $ 747,929  

    The total primary and secondary liquidity of $672.65 million at June 30, 2025 represents a decrease of $75.28 million in primary and secondary liquidity quarter-over-quarter. The decreases in unpledged investment securities and the FHLB advance capacity are the result of investment and loan sales that occurred during the quarter.

    Shareholders’ equity increased 17% to $173.91 million at June 30, 2025, compared to $148.64 million from a year ago, and decreased slightly from the $174.71 million reported at March 31, 2025. Book value per common share increased 22% to $56.87, at June 30, 2025, compared to $46.79 at June 30, 2024, and increased 2% from $55.52 at March 31, 2025. The tangible common equity ratio was 11.80% at June 30, 2025, compared to 10.30% a year earlier, and 11.20% at March 31, 2025. Book value improved as a result of quarterly net income and a reduction in shares outstanding through the bank’s strategic share repurchase program.

    At the Bank level, unrealized losses and gains reflected in AOCI are not included in regulatory capital. As a result, Tier-1 capital at the Bank for regulatory purposes was $222.14 million at quarter end excluding the unrealized loss. The regulatory leverage capital ratio was 14.41% for the current quarter, while the total risk-based capital ratio was 20.61%, exceeding regulatory minimums to be considered well-capitalized.

    Asset Quality

    Nonperforming assets, which consists of nonperforming loans and other real estate owned, increased to $27.23 million, or 1.85% of total assets, at June 30, 2025, compared to $15.37 million, or 0.98% of total assets, from the previous quarter. Of the $26.29 million in nonperforming loans, $10.98 million are covered by SBA guarantees. Total delinquent loans decreased to $2.86 million at June 30, 2025, compared to $19.12 million at March 31, 2025. The increase in nonperforming loans is primarily the result of two multi-family loans, which are real estate secured, totaling $10.00 million to a related group of borrowers. These loans were included in the delinquent balances for the quarter ended March 31, 2025. As a result of their non-accrual status, the balance of the loans exceeding the real estate collateral value is reserved for in the allowance for credit loss, resulting in $1.62 million of additional reserve. The Bank is working closely with the borrowers as they work through stabilization and sale of the properties.

    Past due loans 30-60 days were $1.80 million at June 30, 2025, compared to $17.53 million at March 31, 2025, and $1.05 million at June 30, 2024. There were $1.02 million past due loans from 60-90 days at June 30, 2025, compared to $1.54 million at March 31, 2025 and $175,000 in past due loans from 60-90 days a year earlier. Past due loans 90+ days at quarter end totaled $46,000 at June 30, 2025, compared to $1.05 million, at June 30, 2024. Of the $2.86 million in past due loans at June 30, 2025, $965,000 were purchased government guaranteed loans, which are guaranteed by the SBA for the full payment of the principal plus interest.

    Delinquent Loan Summary   Organic Purchased Govt. Guaranteed Total
    (in thousands)  
             
    Delinquent accruing loans 30-59 days   $ 877   $ 919   $ 1,796  
    Delinquent accruing loans 60-89 days     1,020         1,020  
    Delinquent accruing loans 90+ days         46     46  
    Total delinquent accruing loans   $ 1,897   $ 965   $ 2,862  
             
    Non-Accrual Loan Summary   Organic Purchased Govt. Guaranteed Total
    (in thousands)  
             
    Loans on non-accrual   $ 26,285   $   $ 26,285  
    Non-accrual loans with SBA guarantees     10,979         10,979  
    Net Bank exposure to non-accrual loans   $ 15,306   $   $ 15,306  

    There was a $3.16 million provision for credit losses in the second quarter of 2025, compared to $291,000 provision for credit losses in the second quarter a year ago, and a $1.16 million provision for credit losses booked in the first quarter of 2025. The provision recorded during the second quarter of 2025 is the result of changes in loan portfolio concentrations, net charge-offs recognized, and a $10.92 million increase in total non-accrual loans which were individually evaluated in the allowance for credit losses.

    The ratio of allowance for credit losses to total loans was 1.40% at June 30, 2025, compared to 1.11% a year earlier and 1.18% at March 31, 2025. The Company individually evaluates non-accrual loans in the allowance for credit losses which has resulted in carrying a higher level of reserve.

    During the second quarter of 2025 the Bank recorded $949,000 in other real estate owned (“OREO”). This OREO was the result of a loan foreclosure completed during the quarter where the bank acquired a single-family-residence property as payment through collateral. The property is in good condition and is anticipated to sell during the second half of 2025.

    “As SBA loans have historically been the primary driver of nonperforming loans, the portfolio is watched very closely. Rates have increased so rapidly over the last two years putting pressure on borrowers. A majority of the loans within the portfolio are floating rate loans tied to WSJ Prime and reset quarterly. Borrowers saw a 50bps reduction in their rates on January 1, 2025 and additional rate relief may occur during the second half of 2025,” added Miller. “The ratio of allowance for credit losses to the total, non-guaranteed, loan portfolio was 1.48%, as of June 30, 2025, and our total non-guaranteed exposure on these SBA loans is $44.61 million spread over 222 loans.”

    “We incurred net charge offs of $605,000 during the current quarter, compared to $27,000 in net recoveries in the second quarter a year ago, and $167,000 in net charge offs in the previous quarter,” said Miller. “Our loan portfolio increased 13% from a year ago with commercial real estate (“CRE”) loans representing 63% of the total loan portfolio. Within the CRE portfolio, there are $49.90 million in loans for CRE office as shown in the table below. Since the majority of our CRE office exposure is concentrated in the Central Valley, we are experiencing less volatility than city center CRE markets. Our credit metrics remain strong as we continue to maintain conservative underwriting standards.”

    (in thousands)   CRE Office Exposure of June 30, 2025
    Region   Owner-Occupied Non-Owner Occupied Total
    Central Valley   $ 24,611   $ 17,268   $ 41,879  
    Southern California     2,262     350     2,612  
    Other California     4,463     417     4,880  
    Total California     31,336     18,035     49,371  
    Out of California         524     524  
    Total CRE Office   $ 31,336   $ 18,559   $ 49,895  


    About FFB Bancorp

    FFB Bancorp, formerly Communities First Financial Corporation, a bank holding company established in 2014, is the parent company of FFB Bank, founded in 2005 in Fresno, California. As a leading SBA Lender in California’s Central Valley and one of the few direct acquiring banks in the United States, FFB Bank offers clients a range of personal and business checking accounts, payment processes, and loan programs. Among the Bank’s awards and accomplishments, it was ranked #1 on American Banker’s list of the Top 20 Publicly Traded Banks under $2 Billion in Assets for 2024. The Bank was also ranked by S&P Global as the #34 best performing US community bank under $3 billion in assets. The Company has also received recognition as part of the OTCQX Best 50 Companies for 2019, 2023, and 2024. For additional information, you can visit the Company’s website at www.ffb.bank or by contacting a representative at 559-439-0200.

    Forward Looking Statements

    This earnings release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations or forecasts of future events and are not guarantees of future performance, nor should they be relied upon as representing management’s views as of any subsequent date. The forward-looking statements are based on managements’ expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially include, without limitation, the Company’s ability to effectively execute its business plans; the impact of the Consent Order on our financial condition and results of operations; changes in general economic and financial market conditions; changes in interest rates, and in particular, actions taken by the Federal Reserve to try and control inflation; changes in the competitive environment; continuing consolidation in the financial services industry; new litigation or changes in existing litigation; losses, customer bankruptcy, claims and assessments; changes in banking regulations or other regulatory or legislative requirements affecting the Company’s business; international developments; the tariff strategy of the Trump administration, and its related effects on the agriculture industry and connected businesses in the Central Valley; and changes in accounting policies or procedures as may be required by the Financial Accounting Standards Board or other regulatory agencies. The Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly the results of any revisions to the forward-looking statements included herein to reflect events or circumstances after today, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. The Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

    Member FDIC

    Select Financial Information and Ratios   For the Quarter Ended:   Year to Date as of:
      June 30, 2025   March 31, 2025   June 30, 2024   June 30, 2025   June 30, 2024
    BALANCE SHEET – ENDING BALANCES:                    
    Total assets   $ 1,473,927     $ 1,560,376     $ 1,443,723          
    Total portfolio loans     1,091,964       1,092,441       969,764          
    Investment securities     254,177       313,826       345,491          
    Total deposits     1,234,648       1,320,381       1,168,957          
    Shareholders equity, net     173,908       174,711       148,640          
                         
    INCOME STATEMENT DATA                    
    Operating revenue     27,349       28,476       24,729       55,825       48,340  
    Operating expense     15,768       16,467       13,285       32,235       25,986  
    Pre-tax, pre-provision income     11,581       12,009       11,444       23,590       22,354  
    Net income after tax     6,036       8,098       8,076       14,134       15,866  
                         
    SHARE DATA                    
    Basic earnings per share   $ 1.95     $ 2.56     $ 2.54     $ 4.51     $ 5.00  
    Fully diluted EPS   $ 1.94     $ 2.55     $ 2.54     $ 4.50     $ 4.99  
    Book value per common share   $ 56.87     $ 55.52     $ 46.79          
    Common shares outstanding     3,057,874       3,146,727       3,176,611          
    Fully diluted shares     3,104,067       3,175,178       3,183,844       3,139,346       3,178,974  
    FFBB – Stock price   $ 78.00     $ 76.50     $ 89.00          
                         
    RATIOS                    
    Return on average assets     1.59 %     2.14 %     2.31 %     1.86 %     2.32 %
    Return on average equity     13.75 %     18.83 %     22.89 %     16.26 %     23.08 %
    Efficiency ratio     57.15 %     57.83 %     52.74 %     57.49 %     52.85 %
    Adjusted efficiency ratio     52.14 %     52.54 %     47.15 %     52.34 %     47.48 %
    Yield on earning assets     6.18 %     6.31 %     6.40 %     6.24 %     6.27 %
    Yield on investment securities     4.13 %     4.36 %     4.60 %     4.25 %     4.54 %
    Yield on portfolio loans     6.70 %     6.81 %     6.89 %     6.75 %     6.79 %
    Cost to fund earning assets     1.09 %     0.96 %     1.10 %     1.02 %     1.05 %
    Cost of interest-bearing deposits     2.81 %     2.60 %     2.75 %     2.71 %     2.73 %
    Net Interest Margin     5.09 %     5.35 %     5.31 %     5.22 %     5.22 %
    Equity to assets     11.80 %     11.20 %     10.30 %        
    Net loan to deposit ratio     88.44 %     82.74 %     82.96 %        
    Full time equivalent employees     181       175       147          
                         
    BALANCE SHEET – AVERAGES                    
    Total assets     1,525,601       1,531,573       1,407,255       1,528,570       1,377,447  
    Total portfolio loans     1,112,380       1,076,848       954,871       1,094,712       940,216  
    Investment securities     289,127       325,699       334,416       307,312       325,117  
    Total deposits     1,281,357       1,300,550       1,199,124       1,290,901       1,164,121  
    Shareholders equity, net     176,074       174,410       141,881       175,247       138,251  
    Consolidated Balance Sheet (unaudited)   June 30, 2025   March 31, 2025   June 30, 2024
    (in thousands)      
    ASSETS            
    Cash and due from banks   $ 55,897     $ 83,033     $ 46,477  
    Interest bearing deposits in banks     21,347       20,038       26,842  
    CDs in other banks     1,722       1,724       1,683  
    Investment securities     254,177       313,826       345,491  
    Loans held for sale                  
                 
    Construction & land development     12,784       12,649       79,132  
    Residential RE 1-4 family     17,066       17,146       17,439  
    Commercial real estate     683,743       696,625       562,548  
    Agriculture     109,926       104,616       77,518  
    Commercial and industrial     266,810       260,063       232,786  
    Consumer and other     1,635       1,342       341  
    Portfolio loans     1,091,964       1,092,441       969,764  
    Deferred fees & discounts     (3,541 )     (3,946 )     (4,106 )
    Allowance for credit losses     (15,330 )     (12,913 )     (10,749 )
    Loans, net     1,073,093       1,075,582       954,909  
                 
    Non-marketable equity investments     9,809       8,890       8,440  
    Cash value of life insurance     12,594       12,496       12,211  
    Other real estate owned     949              
    Accrued interest and other assets     44,339       44,787       47,670  
    Total assets   $ 1,473,927     $ 1,560,376     $ 1,443,723  
                 
    LIABILITIES AND EQUITY            
    Non-interest bearing deposits   $ 759,300     $ 825,404     $ 731,030  
    Interest checking     75,815       109,555       75,907  
    Savings     49,657       54,686       51,052  
    Money market     183,071       218,940       184,495  
    Certificates of deposits     166,805       111,796       126,473  
    Total deposits     1,234,648       1,320,381       1,168,957  
    Short-term borrowings     16,000       10,000       68,000  
    Long-term debt     38,086       38,046       39,678  
    Other liabilities     11,285       17,238       18,448  
    Total liabilities     1,300,019       1,385,665       1,295,083  
                 
    Common stock     29,501       35,693       37,430  
    Retained earnings     162,272       156,235       129,856  
    Accumulated other comprehensive loss     (17,865 )     (17,217 )     (18,646 )
    Shareholders’ equity     173,908       174,711       148,640  
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity   $ 1,473,927     $ 1,560,376     $ 1,443,723  
    Consolidated Income Statement (unaudited)   Quarter ended:   Year ended:
    (in thousands)   June 30, 2025   March 31, 2025   June 30, 2024   June 30, 2025   June 30, 2024
                         
    INTEREST INCOME:                    
    Loan interest income   $ 18,582     $ 18,069     $ 16,354     $ 36,651     $ 31,726  
    Investment income     2,978       3,499       3,823       6,477       7,335  
    Int. on fed funds & CDs in other banks     270       574       316       844       572  
    Dividends from non-marketable equity     141       132       394       272       523  
    Total interest income     21,971       22,274       20,887       44,244       40,156  
                         
    INTEREST EXPENSE:                    
    Int. on deposits     3,288       2,891       3,008       6,178       5,526  
    Int. on short-term borrowings     126       31       109       158       258  
    Int. on long-term debt     451       451       464       902       929  
    Total interest expense     3,865       3,373       3,581       7,238       6,713  
    Net interest income     18,106       18,901       17,306       37,006       33,443  
    PROVISION FOR CREDIT LOSSES     3,157       1,164       291       4,321       670  
    Net interest income after provision     14,949       17,737       17,015       32,685       32,773  
                         
    NON-INTEREST INCOME:                    
    Total deposit fee income     854       849       847       1,703       1,643  
    Debit / credit card interchange income     215       191       186       407       353  
    Merchant services income     6,609       7,864       6,068       14,473       12,137  
    Gain on sale of loans     1,446       261       509       1,707       961  
    Loss on sale of investments     (243 )           (459 )     (243 )     (833 )
    Other operating income     362       410       272       772       636  
    Total non-interest income     9,243       9,575       7,423       18,819       14,897  
                         
    NON-INTEREST EXPENSE:                    
    Salaries & employee benefits     8,002       8,056       6,724       16,058       13,306  
    Occupancy expense     352       353       437       705       820  
    Merchant services operating expense     2,887       3,174       2,664       6,060       5,023  
    Other operating expense     4,527       4,884       3,460       9,412       6,837  
    Total non-interest expense     15,768       16,467       13,285       32,235       25,986  
                         
    Income before provision for income tax     8,424       10,845       11,153       19,269       21,684  
    PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES     2,388       2,747       3,077       5,135       5,818  
    Net income   $ 6,036     $ 8,098     $ 8,076     $ 14,134     $ 15,866  
    ASSET QUALITY   June 30, 2025   March 31, 2025   June 30, 2024
    (in thousands)      
    Delinquent accruing loans 30-60 days   $ 1,796     $ 17,533     $ 1,046  
    Delinquent accruing loans 60-90 days     1,020       1,537       175  
    Delinquent accruing loans 90+ days     46       46       1,052  
    Total delinquent accruing loans   $ 2,862     $ 19,116     $ 2,273  
                 
    Loans on non-accrual   $ 26,285     $ 15,366     $ 11,250  
    Other real estate owned     949              
    Nonperforming assets   $ 27,234     $ 15,366     $ 11,250  
                 
    Delinquent 30-60 / Total Loans     0.16 %     1.60 %     0.11 %
    Delinquent 60-90 / Total Loans     0.09 %     0.14 %     0.02 %
    Delinquent 90+ / Total Loans     %     %     0.11 %
    Delinquent Loans / Total Loans     0.26 %     1.75 %     0.23 %
    Non-accrual / Total Loans     2.41 %     1.41 %     1.16 %
    Nonperforming assets to total assets     1.85 %     0.98 %     0.78 %
                 
    Year-to-date charge-off activity            
    Charge-offs   $ 772     $ 167     $  
    Recoveries                 31  
    Net charge-offs (recoveries)   $ 772     $ 167     $ (31 )
    Annualized net loan losses to average loans     0.14 %     0.06 %     (0.01 )%
                 
    CREDIT LOSS RESERVE RATIOS:            
    Allowance for credit losses   $ 15,330     $ 12,913     $ 10,749  
                 
    Total loans   $ 1,091,964     $ 1,092,441     $ 969,764  
    Purchased govt. guaranteed loans   $ 15,138     $ 16,081     $ 18,141  
    Originated govt. guaranteed loans   $ 38,224     $ 45,285     $ 41,201  
                 
    ACL / Total loans     1.40 %     1.18 %     1.11 %
    ACL / Loans less 100% govt. gte. loans (purchased)     1.42 %     1.20 %     1.13 %
    ACL / Loans less all govt. guaranteed loans     1.48 %     1.25 %     1.18 %
    ACL / Total assets     1.04 %     0.83 %     0.74 %
    SELECT FINANCIAL TREND INFORMATION   For the Quarter Ended:
      June 30, 2025 March 31, 2025 December 31, 2024 September 30, 2024 June 30, 2024
    BALANCE SHEET – PERIOD END            
    Total assets   $ 1,473,927   $ 1,560,376   $ 1,504,128   $ 1,512,241   $ 1,443,723  
    Loans held for sale                      
    Loans held for investment     1,091,964     1,092,441     1,071,079     998,222     969,764  
    Investment securities     254,177     313,826     322,186     345,428     345,491  
                 
    Non-interest bearing deposits     759,300     825,404     828,508     826,708     731,030  
    Interest bearing deposits     475,348     494,977     455,869     460,241     437,927  
    Total deposits     1,234,648     1,320,381     1,284,377     1,286,949     1,168,957  
    Short-term borrowings     16,000     10,000             68,000  
    Long-term debt     38,086     38,046     38,007     37,967     39,678  
                 
    Total equity     191,773     191,928     186,574     176,350     167,286  
    Accumulated other comprehensive loss     (17,865 )   (17,217 )   (18,182 )   (12,715 )   (18,646 )
    Shareholders’ equity     173,908     174,711     168,392     163,635     148,640  
                 
    QUARTERLY INCOME STATEMENT            
    Interest income   $ 21,971   $ 22,274   $ 22,403   $ 21,404   $ 20,887  
    Interest expense     3,865     3,373     3,591     3,617     3,581  
    Net interest income     18,106     18,901     18,812     17,787     17,306  
    Non-interest income     9,243     9,575     9,435     7,616     7,423  
    Gross revenue     27,349     28,476     28,247     25,403     24,729  
                 
    Provision for credit losses     3,157     1,164     1,671     762     291  
                 
    Non-interest expense     15,768     16,467     13,270     12,735     13,285  
    Net income before tax     8,424     10,845     13,306     11,906     11,153  
    Tax provision     2,388     2,747     3,588     3,343     3,077  
    Net income after tax     6,036     8,098     9,718     8,563     8,076  
                 
    BALANCE SHEET – AVERAGE BALANCE            
    Total assets   $ 1,525,601   $ 1,531,573   $ 1,529,439   $ 1,477,259   $ 1,704,255  
    Loans held for sale                      
    Loans held for investment     1,112,380     1,076,848     1,038,215     982,152     954,871  
    Investment securities     289,127     325,699     333,135     343,096     334,416  
                 
    Non-interest bearing deposits     812,753     850,426     838,748     822,200     758,977  
    Interest bearing deposits     468,604     450,124     460,321     432,143     440,147  
    Total deposits     1,281,357     1,300,550     1,299,069     1,254,343     1,199,124  
    Short-term borrowings     11,110     2,856     951         10,053  
    Long-term debt     38,068     38,028     37,989     39,479     39,660  
                 
    Shareholders’ equity     176,074     174,410     167,268     161,363     141,881  
    Contact: Steve Miller – President & CEO
      Bhavneet Gill – EVP & CFO
      (559) 439-0200

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Rapid7 Labs Security Researchers to Speak at Black Hat USA 2025 and DEF CON 33

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    BOSTON, July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, Rapid7, Inc. (NASDAQ: RPD), a leader in threat detection and exposure management, announced its dynamic speaker lineup from Rapid7 Labs for Black Hat USA 2025 and DEF CON 33, taking place in Las Vegas this August. Conference organizers selected these speakers’ abstracts from among hundreds of submissions to showcase their groundbreaking research on emerging threats and vulnerabilities, complete with live demos of attack techniques and tools.

    Rapid7 Labs stands at the forefront of cybersecurity innovation, providing teams with a community-driven approach to security with open-source tools and research-informed, curated intelligence so they can more effectively identify, assess, and mitigate threats. Earlier this year, Rapid introduced Intelligence Hub, which unifies global threat intelligence expertly curated by Rapid7 Labs researchers.

    Rapid7 Labs Session Lineup

    The knowledge Rapid7 Labs speakers will share at this year’s Black Hat and DEF CON represents the company’s 25 years of security program expertise, enabling session attendees to proactively address today’s most pressing cybersecurity challenges.

    Metasploit’s Latest Attack Capability and Workflow Improvements
    Date & Time: Wednesday, August 6 | 11:00 AM – 11:55 AM PDT
    Location: Business Hall, Arsenal Station 6
    Conference: Black Hat 2025
    Track: Exploitation and Ethical Hacking
    Presented by Rapid7’s Spencer McIntyre, Senior Security Research Manager, and Jack Heysel, Senior Security Researcher, this Arsenal session showcases Metasploit’s latest capabilities, including SMB-to-LDAP and SMB-to-HTTP relaying, expanded support for Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS) attacks, and new process injection techniques like “PoolParty.” Attendees will see demonstrations of how to detect and exploit ESC vulnerabilities, retrieve privileged credentials, and execute lateral movements in complex domain environments.

    Akheron Proxy — Interchip Communication Serial Proxy
    Date & Time: Wednesday, August 6 | 11:00 AM – 11:55 AM PDT
    Location: Business Hall, Arsenal Station 9
    Conference: Black Hat 2025
    Track: Hardware/Embedded
    In this Black Hat Arsenal Session, Deral Heiland, Principal Security Researcher (IoT) at Rapid7, and Matthew Kienow, Vulnerability Researcher at runZero, will discuss security testing methods via Akheron proxy, a serial communication proxy application tool designed to connect and proxy serial communication between microprocessors on a hardware circuit board. In this live demonstration, Heiland and Kienow will walk through how Akheron proxy allows embedded device testers to capture, decode, replay, and fuzz serial communications flowing between microprocessors on an embedded device circuit board in real time.

    Weaponization of Cellular-Based IoT Technology — Leveraging Smart Devices to Gain a Foothold
    Date & Time: Thursday, August 7 | 3:20 PM – 4:00 PM PDT
    Location: Oceanside C, Level 2
    Conference: Black Hat 2025
    Tracks: Hardware/Embedded, Network Security
    In this 40-minute briefing, Rapid7’s Deral Heiland, Principal Security Researcher (IoT), and Carlota Bindner, Lead Product Security Researcher at Thermo Fisher Scientific, will provide an analysis of how adversaries exploit IoT devices with built-in cellular technology. The session will include live demonstrations as well as discussions on mitigation techniques for manufacturers to address the risks and impacts associated with the demonstrated attacks.

    DisguiseDelimit: Exploiting Synology NAS with Delimiters and Novel Tricks
    Date & Time: Friday, August 8 | 2:00 PM PDT
    Location: Las Vegas Convention Center, Level 1
    Conference: DEF CON 33
    Ryan Emmons, Security Researcher at Rapid7, will present his findings on a critical vulnerability in Synology NAS devices, revealing how unauthenticated attackers could achieve root-level remote code execution on millions of devices. The presentation will also feature a novel Linux exploitation technique that earned recognition and awards in Pwn2Own 2024.

    “Between Black Hat and DEF CON, we are thrilled to have four extremely talented security researchers presenting this year,” said Raj Samani, chief scientist at Rapid7. “But even beyond that, these two annual conferences are an important time for the Rapid7 Labs team to connect with the community, exchange actionable insights, and address shared challenges together. These face-to-face interactions are critical for fostering the collaboration we all need to enable more secure customers and a safer society.”

    Rapid7 at Black Hat USA and DEF CON

    Black Hat USA 2025 will take place from August 2 to August 7, featuring cutting-edge research and expert-led discussions. DEF CON 33, running from August 7 to August 10, continues its legacy of fostering hands-on technical exploration and community collaboration in information security.

    Attendees at Black Hat and DEF CON are invited to join sessions featuring Rapid7 speakers to gain exclusive insights into the latest threats. For other ways to interact with Rapid7 August 6-7 in Las Vegas, visit the Rapid7 Black Hat 2025 information page.

    About Rapid7
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    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Binary star systems are complex astronomical objects − a new AI approach could pin down their properties quickly

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Andrej Prša, Professor of Astrophysics and Planetary Science, Villanova University

    In a binary star system, two stars orbit around each other. ESO/L. Calçada, CC BY

    Stars are the fundamental building blocks of our universe. Most stars host planets, like our Sun hosts our solar system, and if you look more broadly, groups of stars make up huge structures such as clusters and galaxies. So before astrophysicists can attempt to understand these large-scale structures, we first need to understand basic properties of stars, such as their mass, radius and temperature.

    But measuring these basic properties has proved exceedingly difficult. This is because stars are quite literally at astronomical distances. If our Sun were a basketball on the East Coast of the U.S., then the closest star, Proxima, would be an orange in Hawaii. Even the world’s largest telescopes cannot resolve an orange in Hawaii. Measuring radii and masses of stars appears to be out of scientists’ reach.

    Enter binary stars. Binaries are systems of two stars revolving around a mutual center of mass. Their motion is governed by Kepler’s harmonic law, which connects three important quantities: the sizes of each orbit, the time it takes for them to orbit, called the orbital period, and the total mass of the system.

    I’m an astronomer, and my research team has been working on advancing our theoretical understanding and modeling approaches to binary stars and multiple stellar systems. For the past two decades we’ve also been pioneering the use of artificial intelligence in interpreting observations of these cornerstone celestial objects.

    Measuring stellar masses

    Astronomers can measure orbital size and period of a binary system easily enough from observations, so with those two pieces they can calculate the total mass of the system. Kepler’s harmonic law acts as a scale to weigh celestial bodies.

    Binary stars orbit around each other, and in eclipsing binary stars, one passes in front of the other, relative to the telescope lens.
    Merikanto/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

    Think of a playground seesaw. If the two kids weigh about the same, they’ll have to sit at about the same distance from the midpoint. If, however, one child is bigger, he or she will have to sit closer, and the smaller kid farther from the midpoint.

    It’s the same with stars: The more massive the star in a binary pair, the closer to the center it is and the slower it revolves about the center. When astronomers measure the speeds at which the stars move, they can also tell how large the stars’ orbits are, and as a result, what they must weigh.

    Measuring stellar radii

    Kepler’s harmonic law, unfortunately, tells astronomers nothing about the radii of stars. For those, astronomers rely on another serendipitous feature of Mother Nature.

    Binary star orbits are oriented randomly. Sometimes, it happens that a telescope’s line of sight aligns with the plane a binary star system orbits on. This fortuitous alignment means the stars eclipse one another as they revolve about the center. The shapes of these eclipses allow astronomers to find out the stars’ radii using straightforward geometry. These systems are called eclipsing binary stars.

    By taking measurements from an eclipsing binary star system, astronomers can measure the radii of the stars.

    More than half of all Sun-like stars are found in binaries, and eclipsing binaries account for about 1% to 2% of all stars. That may sound low, but the universe is vast, so there are lots and lots of eclipsing systems out there – hundreds of millions in our galaxy alone.

    By observing eclipsing binaries, astronomers can measure not only the masses and radii of stars but also how hot and how bright they are.

    Complex problems require complex computing

    Even with eclipsing binaries, measuring the properties of stars is no easy task. Stars are deformed as they rotate and pull on each other in a binary system. They interact, they irradiate one another, they can have spots and magnetic fields, and they can be tilted this way or that.

    To study them, astronomers use complex models that have many knobs and switches. As an input, the models take parameters – for example, a star’s shape and size, its orbital properties, or how much light it emits – to predict how an observer would see such an eclipsing binary system.

    Computer models take time. Computing model predictions typically takes a few minutes. To be sure that we can trust them, we need to try lots of parameter combinations – typically tens of millions.

    This many combinations requires hundreds of millions of minutes of compute time, just to determine basic properties of stars. That amounts to over 200 years of computer time.

    Computers linked in a cluster can compute faster, but even using a computer cluster, it takes three or more weeks to “solve,” or determine all the parameters for, a single binary. This challenge explains why there are only about 300 stars for which astronomers have accurate measurements of their fundamental parameters.

    The models used to solve these systems have already been heavily optimized and can’t go much faster than they already do. So, researchers need an entirely new approach to reducing computing time.

    Using deep learning

    One solution my research team has explored involves deep-learning neural networks. The basic idea is simple: We wanted to replace a computationally expensive physical model with a much faster AI-based model.

    First, we computed a huge database of predictions about a hypothetical binary star – using the features that astronomers can readily observe – where we varied the hypothetical binary star’s properties. We are talking hundreds of millions of parameter combinations. Then, we compared these results to the actual observations to see which ones best match up. AI and neural networks are ideally suited for this task.

    In a nutshell, neural networks are mappings. They map a certain known input to a given output. In our case, they map the properties of eclipsing binaries to the expected predictions. Neural networks emulate the model of a binary but without having to account for all the complexity of the physical model.

    Neural networks detect patterns and use their training to predict an output, based on an input.

    We train the neural network by showing it each prediction from our database, along with the set of properties used to generate it. Once fully trained, the neural network will be able to accurately predict what astronomers should observe from the given properties of a binary system.

    Compared to a few minutes of runtime for the physical model, a neural network uses artificial intelligence to get the same result within a tiny fraction of a second.

    Reaping the benefits

    A tiny fraction of a second works out to about a millionfold runtime reduction. This brings the time down from weeks on a supercomputer to mere minutes on a single laptop. It also means that we can analyze hundreds of thousands of binary systems in a couple of weeks on a computer cluster.

    This reduction means we can obtain fundamental properties – stellar masses, radii, temperatures and luminosities – for every eclipsing binary star ever observed within a month or two. The big challenge remaining is to show that AI results really give the same results as the physical model.

    This task is the crux of my team’s new paper. In it we’ve shown that, indeed, the AI-driven model yields the same results as the physical model across over 99% of parameter combinations. This result means the AI’s performance is robust. Our next step? Deploy the AI on all observed eclipsing binaries.

    Best of all? While we applied this methodology to binaries, the basic principle applies to any complex physical model out there. Similar AI models are already speeding up many real-world applications, from weather forecasting to stock market analysis.

    Andrej Prša receives funding from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

    ref. Binary star systems are complex astronomical objects − a new AI approach could pin down their properties quickly – https://theconversation.com/binary-star-systems-are-complex-astronomical-objects-a-new-ai-approach-could-pin-down-their-properties-quickly-253387

    MIL OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: Pfluger, Colleagues Reintroduce Legislation to Protect American Assets From Unlawful Seizure by Foreign Governments

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman August Pfluger (TX-11)

    WASHINGTON, DC — As first reported in The Blaze, Congressman August Pfluger (TX-11) and Congresswoman Terri Sewell (AL-07) reintroduced critical bipartisan, bicameral legislation to protect American companies operating abroad. The Defending American Property Abroad Act would impose retaliatory prohibitions to deter and punish any nation in the Western Hemisphere that unlawfully seizes American assets.

    The need for this legislation has been exemplified by the Mexican government’s ongoing efforts to seize a deep-water port owned by U.S.-based Vulcan Materials Company, which is in direct violation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) governing trade between our two nations. This violation poses a direct threat to American economic interests.

    Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) and Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) introduced companion legislation in the Senate.

    “American companies operating abroad should not have to fear arbitrary government actions that undermine their property rights,” said Rep. Pfluger. “The Defending American Property Abroad Act will ensure that such actions do not go unchecked and that American businesses are protected from unjust expropriation. The protection of American property rights abroad is essential for fostering economic growth and maintaining our national security. I urge my colleagues in Congress to support this critical legislation and send a clear message that the United States will not tolerate unjust actions against American companies.”

    “U.S.-based companies with operations overseas should be able to conduct business without the fear of any government asserting any wrongful actions against employees or property,” said Congresswoman Sewell. “The Defending Americans Abroad Act will ensure that the United States has the ability to thwart any threats to both national security and economic endeavors.”

    “I strongly condemn the Mexican government’s threats against Vulcan Materials Company, and I am pleased to see this bipartisan and bicameral rebuke from the United States Senate,” said Senator Hagerty. “Under the leadership of Mexico’s previous president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and now the current president, Claudia Sheinbaum, the Mexican government is committing a blatant theft against a major American company and, by extension, the United States itself. No nation should be allowed to bully an American firm without consequences. Our legislation will counter any attempt by the Mexican government to profit from illegal moves to expropriate, nationalize, or otherwise seize U.S. assets.”

    “The Mexican government’s unfair targeting of Vulcan Materials Company, a U.S.-based company that employs over 1,000 people in Virginia, is harmful to the relationship between our two countries and severely undermines investor confidence,” said Senator Kaine. “That’s why I’m joining my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan legislation to deter the illegal seizure of U.S. assets.”

    Key provisions of the bill include:

    ·     Prohibiting trade partners in the Western Hemisphere from engaging in certain activities, such as docking vessels and importing goods, if they have expropriated or otherwise seized property owned by American entities.

    ·     Expanding Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to treat property expropriation as an unreasonable trade practice

    ·     Empowering the President to implement and enforce prohibitions against offending countries

    ·     Mandating publication of prohibited property designations in the Federal Register

    The bill is co-sponsored in the House by Representatives David Rouzer (NC-07), Aaron Bean (FL-04), Dale Strong (AL-05), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Mike Collins (GA-10), Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), John Carter (TX-31), Addison McDowell (NC-06), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Buddy Carter (GA-01), Barry Moore (AL-01), Gary Palmer (AL-06), Robert Aderholt (AL-04), Chuck Edwards (NC-11), Craig Goldman (TX-12), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), John McGuire (VA-05), Tim Moore (NC-14), Tim Burchett (TN-02), Morgan Luttrell (TX-08), Maria Salazar (FL-27), Thomas Kean (NJ-07), John Rutherford (FL-05), Ben Cline (VA-06), Beth Van Duyne (TX-24), Shomari Figures (AL-02), and Greg Steube (FL-17).

    The bill is co-sponsored in the Senate by Senators Katie Britt (R-AL), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Ted Budd (R-NC), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD).

    Read the full text of the legislation here.

    Background:

    In May 2022, then-Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) abruptly shut down Vulcan Materials Company’s operations with false claims that the firm was violating its contract, and his government subsequently waged an unceasing pressure campaign against Vulcan, including multiple lawsuits and sending military and law enforcement to its facilities.

    In December 2023, Rep. Pfluger led a bipartisan letter to the Mexican Ambassador demanding answers about Mexico’s actions against the American company.

    Earlier this year, Rep. Pfluger also led a letter commending President Trump’s commitment to this issue by protecting American industries and jobs, which was first reported in The Blaze.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Pfluger Participates in Energy Subcommittee Hearing on Pipeline Safety

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman August Pfluger (TX-11)

    Pfluger Participates in Energy Subcommittee Hearing on Pipeline Safety

    Washington, July 22, 2025

    WASHINGTON, DC — Congressman August Pfluger (TX-11), a member of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, participated in an Energy Subcommittee Hearing titled “Strengthening American Energy: A Review of Pipeline Safety Policy.”

    During the hearing, Rep. Pfluger emphasized the critical need for natural gas pipelines and their purpose for powering homes across the country. Rep. Pfluger pointed out that as energy demand rises, natural gas will continue to be the backbone of a reliable energy grid.

    Rep. Pfluger then questioned witnesses on how Congress can address burdensome federal oversight of natural gas pipelines while not compromising safety.

    Watch his full line of questioning HERE or by clicking the image below.

    Read highlights from the interaction below:

    Rep. Pfluger: “Mrs. Miller, I’ll stick with you. And I’ll start with the gas gathering rule. As you’re aware, this significantly expanded PHMSA’s jurisdiction, bringing more than 400,000 additional miles of gathering lines under federal oversight, and they’re located in districts like mine in the Permian Basin, where there’s a heavy presence of production that is very important. And the scope and implementation of this rule could have major implications for how the gathering systems are built and operated going forward. So, we want to get this right. We want to be reasonable, and safety is important. It is a major concern, and there are other concerns as well. But from your perspective, what implementation challenges are operators currently facing on the ground, and how can PHMSA better distinguish between high-risk and then lower-risk areas?”

    Mrs. Miller: “I appreciate that question very much. Yes, we do very much value the opportunity to have a risk-based assessment of safety concerns there. For example, a pipeline may have two different pipelines may have similar diameters or similar pressure, and there are other circumstances to consider in order to make sure that we’re assessing what the risk is. Appropriately, including, for example, proximity to populations, length of pipeline. One of the things I also wanted to make sure that this subcommittee is familiar with is the differences that exist between gathering pipelines and transmission pipelines, not only physically, but commercially. So, it’s important to remember that the interstate pipelines are subject to regulated rates with uniform tariffs. Versus gathering pipelines are subject to market-based negotiated compensation and negotiated commercial terms. So very different application.”

    Rep. Pfluger: “In your view, is there any realistic path to a reliable grid without natural gas playing a role as the backbone?”

    Mr. Moriarty: “Yes, I would agree with that natural gas pipelines are the safest way to move the energy that this nation needs, and there’s ever more demand for energy across our service territories, which is in United States, and to meet those demands, we need to construct and safely operate pipelines as well as LNG storage facilities.”

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: Understanding how Taylor Swift constructs her songs helps explain her phenomenal popularity

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Alexander Carpenter, Professor, Musicology, University of Alberta

    In 2023, Forbes published an article about Taylor Swift that included the following mind-boggling statistic: 55 per cent of adults in the United States identify themselves as Swift fans.

    In the wake of her recent epic world tour — which drew 10 million attendees and earned billions of dollars — Swift has clearly emerged as a modern singer-songwriter whose success and renown has no equal.

    The same article reports that 73 per cent of those surveyed insisted that “Swift’s music is a driving force of their support of her.” But the abundant discourse surrounding Taylor Swift in the popular press, academia and online seems to be about everything but her songs.

    In place of critical engagement with her musical work, Swift is credited for creating her own economic ecosystem wherever she goes, lauded for being a shrewd and powerful businessperson, described as an empowered and empowering feminist icon or branded a quintessential entertainer.

    At this moment, Swift resides at the very apex of modern celebrity culture. Ironically, this makes it especially tricky to engage with Swift as a musician, which is the very basis of her fame.

    As a musicologist, music critic and musician who studies and teaches popular music, there are ways to examine the musical meaning of pop songs. These approaches provide useful insights; after all, wasn’t it the music that drew audiences to Swift in the first place?

    Studying Swift

    Swift is increasingly taken seriously in the halls of academia. A number of universities offer courses dedicated to Swift, but typically not to her music as such: rather, many of these courses take a literary approach to her songs or a broadly sociological approach to her as a pop culture phenomenon, or they foreground her business model.

    In his book There’s Nothing Like This, Kevin Evers, senior editor of the Harvard Business Review, regards Swift as a “strategic genius.” He examines how she identifies and exploits untapped markets, making creative and marketing pivots at key moments while protecting her image as a self-made, authentic singer-songwriter.

    Evers focuses on non-musical elements when discussing Swift’s songs. He claims that Swift’s fans interpret her lyrics in a manner akin to the literary analysis of complex poems. Swift’s songs intrigue fans, Evers insists, primarily because they offer insight into her personal life, romantic travails and struggles with fame.

    Of course, words are an important element of pop songs, and for many fans, the words of a song constitute its “about-ness.” But a pop song is a sonic object, not simply a delivery system for words.

    Lyrical discourse analysis

    Song lyrics are not poems, although they may be “like poetry,” as musicologist Dai Griffiths has argued. He points out that when we insist on thinking of lyrics as poetry, we lose a systematic understanding of how words function in songs. The placement and sound of words, and how they relate to the music, are key elements of a song’s musical structure and sense.

    It is this discussion of the musical sense and meaning of Swift’s songs that is largely neglected.

    The academic study of classical music offers a wealth of analytic methodologies; there are ways to examine the musical meaning of pop songs that do not over-analyze the song. These include looking at elements like form, orchestration, melody, harmony and rhythm.

    A song creates space: its formal layout and the rhythm of musical phrases provide the space for words — what Griffiths calls the “verbal space” — which have their own rhythms and structures and work within but also push against the boundaries of this space.

    Form and space

    Consider Swift’s chart-topping 2014 single, “Shake it Off,” re-released as “Shake it Off (Taylor’s Version)” in 2023. This song, while popular, was criticized for its repetitiveness and lack of emotional depth.

    “Shake it Off” doesn’t seem to have much lyrical content: the verses are short, rounded off with simple slant rhymes, and much of the created space seems to be filled with repetition: “I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake/Shake it off, shake it off.”

    Likewise, the song is built musically on some very basic and limited material, namely three chords, a short, unvaried drum loop and a spare bass line provided by a baritone saxophone.

    The lyric video to “Shake it Off (Taylor’s version).”

    The lyrics touch lightly on Swift’s response to fame and her critics, but it is their syllabic density that contributes to the song’s development and momentum. This gradually and sytematically increases over the first two verses and pre-chorus, until arriving at the chorus, where the space is filled almost completely.

    The density of the music also increases in the choruses, with a thicker bass part, added vocals and a brass fanfare.

    While “Shake it Off” is repetitive with little harmonic and melodic variety, it is also quite subtly counterbalanced with a variety of sounds, textures and densities. These move the song forward and importantly, help mark off the song’s formal sections.

    These compositional and production details contribute to the song’s overall meaning. But how the words participate in the unfolding of the song-as-music, or the creation and shaping of the musical space, is also meaningful. The thrust of the lyrics emphasize Swift’s detachment from gossip and criticism: “I never miss a beat/I’m lightnin’ on my feet” and “But I keep cruisin’/Can’t stop, won’t stop groovin’”.

    These lyrics are reinforced by the propulsive musical momentum of the song created by the gradual thickening of the text and music. Even with this thickening, the song still remains quite light, emphasizing the lyrical claims of detachment and distance from negativity.

    The chorus, by contrast, with its deeply resonant bass, layers of background vocals and added brass, is musically the heaviest part of the song, underwriting Swift’s assertive claim that she will “shake off” the lies and gossip that plague her as a celebrity pop star.

    Understanding Swift’s success

    Collecting some musical information about Swift’s songs is not an abstract or intellectual activity; rather, it is essential information if we want to better understand Swift and her success in terms of her song writing.

    I’m not making an argument here for or against Swift’s music; I’m neither a “Swiftie” nor a detractor. Nor have I offered anything like a comprehensive or definitive analysis of a song in this short article.

    But I do think we should be curious and better understand Swift’s success, especially the popularity of her music across generations and demographics. How her songs are actually put together — how they work as music, in tandem with words, to tell stories — is an essential part of that understanding.

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

    ref. Understanding how Taylor Swift constructs her songs helps explain her phenomenal popularity – https://theconversation.com/understanding-how-taylor-swift-constructs-her-songs-helps-explain-her-phenomenal-popularity-247855

    MIL OSI Analysis

  • MIL-OSI Analysis: What Canada can learn from Australia on adequately protecting citizens at live events

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Sean Spence, Security Risk Management Pracitioner & Researcher, Royal Military College of Canada

    In April 2025, a man drove an SUV through a crowd of people attending a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver, killing 11 people and injuring dozens more. In response, the British Columbia government immediately commissioned an inquiry to examine the systemic causes of the incident and whether any lessons could be learned from the tragedy.




    Read more:
    Vancouver SUV attack exposes crowd management falldowns and casts a pall on Canada’s election


    The commission came up with six recommendations based on gaps in the current municipal application and approval system for public events across the province.

    One key recommendation was that all public events should be required to complete a risk assessment. This isn’t currently happening across the province. The absence of such analysis poses a risk for public safety.

    Another recommendation was the creation of local knowledge capacity to support event organizers, particularly for small and rural events, where the expertise to conduct a basic security risk assessment is lacking.

    Forseeable tragedy?

    As I argued in August 2022, the live events industry lacks the same level of professionalism as other occupations. Many of these small event organizers are amateurs who lack the resources to properly deal with the security risks involved in holding their events.




    Read more:
    Canada could have its own Fyre Festival fiasco if it doesn’t amp up event regulations


    These factors, combined with emerging security risks, meant that the tragedy at the Lapu Lapu festival could be considered a foreseeable event given the risk realities associated with modern mass gatherings.

    The inquiry report highlighted how B.C. is lagging behind other international jurisdictions in terms of legislative pro-activeness in securing public events. This policy deficiency is actually a Canada-wide problem; the country is woefully behind other western nations when it comes to securing public events.

    My doctoral thesis examined this very issue when I compared the regulation and application process to host public events in Canada and Australia’s largest cities.

    Australia vs. Canada

    Firstly, it’s important to note that Canada is a less safe country in terms of security than Australia, all things considered equal. Canada’s porous border with the United States means more illegal firearms are entering the country, resulting in more gun violence than in Australia, where there are more restrictive gun ownership laws.

    The Lapu Lapu attack was not investigated as an act of terrorism, but in a related concern, Canada’s intelligence-gathering and national security laws place it at a counter-terrorism disadvantage compared to Australia.

    Relatively speaking, research suggests Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms hinders its security services from being able to detect and investigate terrorism-related offences given the greater importance placed on individual rights compared to Australia, where there is no such Charter equivalent.

    Australia also has pro-active foreign intelligence collection capabilities to aid in its counter-terrorism efforts, while Canada’s CSIS agency only has domestic capabilities. That essentially requires it to import intelligence from its allies.

    Given these facts, it would seem plausible that Canada would be at greater risk for security threats at public events — including terrorist attacks, active shooters, etc. — than Australia.

    When I compared the data between both countries in my research, it suggested Australia has more public event regulation than Canada.

    It was quantitatively shown that Australian officials require risk assessments and other proactive measures from event organizers, including for risk mitigation, while Canadian officials are mostly concerned with reactive security response plans — in other words, determining how organizers would respond to attacks after they occurred.

    An analysis of event application documents in both countries reveal that Australian municipalities disproportionately emphasize “risk management” in approving events compared to Canadian municipalities.

    Three ways the B.C. report falls short

    The B.C. report missed out on examining several important elements.

    Firstly, it did not take a holistic, deep dive into just how vulnerable public events are to myriad security threats — like active shooters, crowd crushing and terrorist attacks — but instead focused solely on the hostile vehicle threat.

    It also failed to consider the urgency of governments to adopt policy changes in the face of emerging threats on public spaces, like drone attacks.

    Secondly, the report made no mention of the need for law enforcement to develop stronger ties to share intelligence with event organizers as a proactive measure to protect mass gathering events from violence. The Hamas attacks at a music festival in Israel in October 2023 highlight the worst outcome of such failures.




    Read more:
    How Israel underestimated Hamas’s intelligence capabilities – an expert reviews the evidence


    Lastly, there was no call for action or recommendation for the federal government to play a greater role in providing guidance to the industry and lower levels of government.

    National security is a federal issue as well as the regulation of airspace for drones. In countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States, the national government provides guidance on protecting public spaces. There is no such policy leadership in Canada.

    The B.C. findings show Canadian authorities have a lot of work to do to make public events safer for Canadians. With the FIFA World Cup coming to Canada next year, Canadian governments still have time to implement corrective actions to ensure soccer fans stay safe.

    Sean Spence provides security consulting services within the hospitality industry.

    ref. What Canada can learn from Australia on adequately protecting citizens at live events – https://theconversation.com/what-canada-can-learn-from-australia-on-adequately-protecting-citizens-at-live-events-261161

    MIL OSI Analysis

  • MIL-OSI USA: Coal-fired power plants are well-stocked this year

    Source: US Energy Information Administration

    In-brief analysis

    July 23, 2025


    We expect U.S. coal-fired power plants will remain relatively well-stocked through the end of next year in our latest Short-Term Energy Outlook. We estimate power plants in the United States had 124 million short tons of coal on-site at the end of June for them to consume that coal at a rate of about 1.3 million short tons per day, meaning they had about 93 days’ worth of fuel on-site. This metric, also called days of burn, is calculated by dividing coal inventories held at power plants by a seasonal consumption rate. We forecast days of burn will range between about 90 and 120 days between now through the end of 2026, or about a month’s worth of coal more than power plants had on-site between 2019 and 2022.

    Although coal inventories held at U.S. power plants have fallen since early 2024, coal consumption in the U.S. electric power sector has also fallen since then, so the supply measure of days of burn remains relatively high. Reflecting this supply condition, coal shipments to power plants—many of which occur by rail—have declined in line with coal consumption in the U.S. electric power sector.


    We forecast the long-term decrease in U.S. coal consumption will temporarily reverse in 2025 primarily because of rising electricity demand and coal’s increased competitiveness in the electric power sector, which accounted for more than 90% of U.S. coal consumption in 2024. U.S. natural gas prices last year were at historic lows, and as natural gas prices increased in the first quarter of 2025, coal became more competitive: U.S. coal consumption in the first quarter of 2025 was 18% more than in the first quarter of 2024.

    In our short-term forecast, we expect coal’s share of U.S. electricity generation to increase from 16% in 2024 to 17% in 2025 and then decrease to 15% in 2026. Overall electricity generation is increasing to meet growing electricity demand, especially from the commercial and industrial sectors.

    Similarly, we forecast a 6% increase in U.S. coal consumption for 2025, followed by a 6% decrease in 2026 with planned coal power plant retirements and increasing renewable capacity coming online.


    Principal contributor: Jonathan Church

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: Global Blockchain Artificial Intelligence Market Size Estimated to Reach $4.33 Billion By 2034

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., July 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – The global blockchain Artificial Intelligence (AI) market is rapidly evolving due to the influence of its secure and decentralized technology and advanced data processing capabilities provided by AI with blockchain. A recent report from Precedence Research said: “The market has a considerable expansion rate due to rising demand for efficient data handling, data transparency, and security. Key applications for the market are supply-chain management, healthcare domain, BFSI, fraud detection methods, etc. Major tech companies are investing heavily in the development and research to enhance the functionalities of blockchain AI technology and integrate AI algorithms into the blockchain.” It projected: “The global blockchain AI market size was calculated at USD 550.70 million in 2024 and is expected to reach around USD 4,338.66 million by 2034. The market is expanding at a solid CAGR of 22.93% over the forecast period 2024 to 2033. An increasing amount of data generation pervades almost every sector, which needs to be analyzed precisely with advanced technology like AI and blockchain to provide a secure ledger system. Based on a regional perspective, North America currently dominates the blockchain AI technology market, while Asia Pacific shows the highest growth rate owing to technological advancements and supportive regulatory backup. Despite the number of benefits, the blockchain AI market is challenged by some hurdles, like the need for a highly skilled workforce and limitations in scalability. However, as the technology grows and matures with time, these hurdles will be mitigated. Thus, the market presents a promising future and the potential to transform several industries.”   Active companies in the markets this week include: Intellistake Technologies Corp. (CSE: ISTK) (OTC: ISTKF), Strategy Incorporated (NASDAQ: MSTR), Galaxy Digital Inc. (NASDAQ: GLXY) (TSX: GLXY), MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA), Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT).

    Precedence Research continued: “The primary driver for the blockchain AI market is the highly secure and immutable ledger system offered by blockchain, which further provides decentralization data that aids in reliable transactions and reduces data privacy concerns. Blockchain AI systems can be deployable in major industries like automation, healthcare, electronics and services, banking, fiancé, etc., due to their data integrity to avoid financial loss and, thereby, the reputation of firms or institutes. When AI is combined with blockchain, which excels at analyzing and processing vast amount of data, it holds potential to create more efficient and secure system is substantial. Moreover, the integration of blockchain and AI can enhance the functionalities of smart contracts and decentralized applications to foster innovations and new business models, which again propels the blockchain AI market. Furthermore, AI can enhance security measures by detecting and mitigating fraudulent activities on blockchain networks, thus building greater trust among users. By combining AI’s data processing capabilities with blockchain’s transparency and security, this integration can drive the next wave of innovation in financial services, making them more accessible, efficient, and secure.”

    Intellistake Technologies Corp. (CSE: ISTK) (OTC: ISTKF) Appoints Mario Casiraghi, Leading AI Digital Asset Ecosystem CFO at SingularityNET Foundation and CEO of Established $90M USD AUM Digital Asset Firm Singularity Venture Hub, to Advisory Board to Bridge Traditional Finance and Digital Asset Markets Intellistake Technologies Corp. (FSE: 3KZ) (“GFCO” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mario Casiraghi to its Advisory Board. A globally recognized financial strategist with over a decade of experience bridging traditional capital markets and decentralized technology. Casiraghi will provide strategic guidance to support the Company’s operations as a technology company focused on decentralized artificial intelligence (“AI”) and digital currencies.

    Casiraghi brings exceptional expertise from both traditional finance and the digital asset ecosystem. As a former investment banker at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and ING Bank, he executed over $80 billion in structured transactions across Europe and the United States, including the landmark $46 billion AB InBev acquisition financing—the second-largest corporate debt offering in U.S. history. His traditional finance background includes 15+ major debt capital markets transactions and liability management exercises for Fortune 500 companies.

    Recognizing the transformative potential of blockchain technology, Casiraghi transitioned from traditional investment banking to become a pioneer in digital asset infrastructure. In 2020, he became Group CFO of SingularityNET Foundation and co-founded SingularityDAO Labs, where he led a $6 million USD Series A funding round and scaled the decentralized finance protocol to manage up to $200 million USD in total value locked.

    In his role as Group CFO, Casiraghi has scaled a multi-token digital ecosystem from $40 million USD to over $5 billion USD market cap, positioning him as one of the leading financial architects in decentralized AI infrastructure. He led the structuring of the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (ASI)—a $6 billion USD token-based merger between three of the world’s largest decentralized AI networks, representing one of the most significant consolidations in blockchain and artificial intelligence history. As part of this ecosystem expansion, he participated in the $100 million USD acquisition of Cudos, the largest decentralized compute network in Web 3.0 by available computing power.

    “Mario’s unique combination of traditional finance background and deep understanding of digital asset ecosystems makes him a great addition to our Advisory Board,” said Jason Dussault, CEO of Intellistake Technologies Corp. “His experience executing billion-dollar transactions in both traditional and digital markets provides invaluable perspective as we build infrastructure bridging AI and blockchain technology.”

    Casiraghi is also Founder and CEO of Singularity Venture Hub, a venture and treasury advisory firm managing over $90 million USD in assets. The firm provides capital allocation strategy, risk governance, and regulatory structuring to fast-scaling AI and blockchain companies.

    “Mario’s expertise will strengthen Intellistake’s role of providing traditional investors with regulated access to the intersection of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology through familiar stock exchange mechanisms,” added Mr. Dussault.

    “Joining the advisory board at Intellistake is a natural progression in what has already been a strong and growing relationship” said Mario Casiraghi, CEO of Singularity Venture Hub. “I’ve had the privilege of working closely with their team and have been consistently impressed by their vision and execution. This next step allows us to converge even more deeply on the innovative work Intellistake is doing in decentralized finance and AI—two sectors I believe are shaping the future.” CONTINUED Read this full press release and more news for Intellistake Technologies at:   https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-istk/

    Other recent developments in the blockchain/digital currency industry of note include:

    Strategy Incorporated (NASDAQ: MSTR), the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin and the world’s first Bitcoin Treasury Company, recently announced the general availability of Strategy Mosaic™, a groundbreaking AI-powered Universal Intelligence Layer designed to enable AI applications. As organizations modernize their data infrastructures, they often encounter challenges with siloed systems that lead to inconsistent metrics and governance gaps. This lack of clean, connected, and organized data is one of the greatest barriers to AI adoption. Strategy Mosaic addresses this issue by connecting disparate data sources across the enterprise, providing consistent and secure access to information that empowers both business users and AI applications.

    Sitting atop any database or data warehouse, Strategy Mosaic allows organizations to access diverse data sources. This unified layer supports AI, applications, and analytics use cases, enabling rapid development of data products without the need for custom data warehouses. Unlike traditional data catalogs and virtual data warehouses, Mosaic uses business definitions and user-friendly objects to represent data.

    Galaxy Digital Inc. (NASDAQ: GLXY) (TSX: GLXY) recently announced that it will report second quarter 2025 financial results before the opening of Nasdaq and the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday August 5th, 2025. Michael Novogratz, CEO and Founder of Galaxy, and members of management will host a conference call to provide an update to investors and analysts on the Company’s activities and results on the same day at 8:30 AM Eastern Time.

    A live webcast will be available at https://investor.galaxy.com/. The conference call can also be accessed by investors and analysts in the United States or Canada by dialing 1-844-746-0741, or +1-412-317-5107(outside the U.S. and Canada) using the Conference ID: 2449863. A replay of the webcast will be available and can be accessed in the same manner as the live webcast on the Company’s Investor Relations website.

    MARA Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MARA), a vertically integrated digital energy and infrastructure company that leverages high-intensity compute, such as bitcoin (“bitcoin” or “BTC”) mining, to monetize excess energy and optimize power management, recently published unaudited bitcoin production updates for April 2025.

    “In April, our production saw a 15% month-over-month decrease in blocks won, as global hashrate had its second largest monthly gain on record and mining difficulty grew 8% from March,” said Fred Thiel, MARA’s chairman and CEO. “Despite these headwinds, our energized hashrate grew 5.5% over the prior month. We completed a 50-megawatt (“MW”) expansion at our fully owned data center in Ohio, bringing total operational capacity to 100 MW, with the site designed to scale up to 200 MW. Additionally, we installed over 12,000 S21 Pro miners at the location.

    “Last month, we fully energized our 25 MW gas-to-power operations across wellheads in North Dakota and Texas. These sites currently provide us with our lowest cost per BTC mined while monetizing excess gas and mitigating methane emissions for the producers.

    Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) recently announced the hiring of Jonathan Gibbs as Chief Data Center Officer (“CDCO”) to lead the development of Riot’s data center platform. In this role, Jonathan will lead the strategic development and operations of this new platform, which will focus on building and operating state-of-the-art data centers specifically tailored to serve hyperscale and enterprise tenants.

    The creation of this new data center platform furthers Riot’s strategy to maximize the value of its assets by expanding into the development of non-bitcoin-related data centers, which diversifies the Company’s revenues, enhances Riot’s ability to generate long-term cash returns for investors and strengthens its capabilities to contract with the world’s leading technology companies. This additional platform will build on the success of Riot’s vertically-integrated strategy of utilizing bitcoin mining at scale to create significant value across its land and power portfolio and positions the Company to capitalize on the upsurge in demand for digital infrastructure driven by the growing need for cloud computing, AI and other compute-intensive applications.

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