Category: Politics

MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Brutality of Croatian border police – E-002123/2024

Source: European Parliament

16.10.2024

Question for written answer E-002123/2024
to the Commission
Rule 144
Erik Marquardt (Verts/ALE), Alexandra Geese (Verts/ALE), Benedetta Scuderi (Verts/ALE), Sebastian Everding (The Left), Rima Hassan (The Left), Thomas Waitz (Verts/ALE), Jan-Christoph Oetjen (Renew), Pernando Barrena Arza (The Left), Tineke Strik (Verts/ALE), Lena Schilling (Verts/ALE), Damien Carême (The Left), Hannah Neumann (Verts/ALE), Marco Tarquinio (S&D), Leoluca Orlando (Verts/ALE), Nela Riehl (Verts/ALE), Rasmus Andresen (Verts/ALE), Matjaž Nemec (S&D), Per Clausen (The Left), Vicent Marzà Ibáñez (Verts/ALE), Irena Joveva (Renew), Saskia Bricmont (Verts/ALE), Katrin Langensiepen (Verts/ALE)

In an article published on 10 October 2024[1], The Guardian again reported on the brutality of the Croatian border police: strip-searching and threatening asylum seekers, and burning their phones, passports and other belongings after pushing them back to Bosnia. Illegal pushbacks accompanied by violence, including sexualised violence as also described in this article, have been reported multiple times by the United Nations as well as non-governmental organisations. However, the burning of documents and phones, both needed to seek asylum and to record the presence of asylum seekers on EU territory, is a new, terrifying ‘practice’ of deterrence.

Croatia has been a member of the Schengen area since 1 January 2023, following the Commission’s positive evaluation of Croatia’s application of the Schengen acquis, including its fundamental rights obligations.

1.Has the Commission-supported and often criticised ‘independent human rights monitoring mechanism’ reported on this practice of burning phones and documents, and have steps been taken to investigate and remedy this illegal behaviour?
2.What does the Commission plan to do in the context of the reformed Schengen Evaluation and Monitoring Mechanism and Schengen Borders Code, as well as the Schengen Council and Forum, to ensure the rule of law and effective access to asylum at the Croatian-Bosnian border?
3.What steps are being taken with the Croatian authorities to roll out the new fundamental rights monitoring mechanisms set out in the Screening Regulation?

Submitted: 16.10.2024

[1] https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/oct/10/photos-croatia-police-phones-passports-asylum-seekers.

MIL-OSI Europe: Greece’s railway network to be upgraded with EIB on board as adviser

Source: European Investment Bank

EIB’s Advisory Hub to support major railway modernization across Greek rail network
Goal is to improve infrastructure, safety, and efficiency
EIB to provide targeted advisory services for free as part of InvestEU programme

The European Investment Bank (EIB) will advise Greece on its planned major upgrade of the national railway network to improve safety, punctuality, and sustainability. Under the agreement with the Greek Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, the EIB will assist authorities in developing a long-term business plan for a newly established rail infrastructure management company and in outlining near-term network investments.

The accord, which comes under the InvestEU programme, builds on the Greek government’s commitment to restructuring the national railway sector and to fulfilling European Union safety and environmental standards. It also highlights the EIB’s commitment to promoting modern and sustainable transport networks in the EU as part of the bank’s strategic roadmap.

EIB Vice-President Ioannis Tsakiris and Greek Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Christos Staikouras signed the agreement today in Athens.

“The EIB’s Advisory Services will provide the Greek government with the technical expertise necessary to implement long-term strategies, helping to ensure that the country’s railway system is both safe and competitive,” said Tsakiris. He added: “The EIB will support the Greek government in developing a multiyear investment plan for the railway sector, which will serve as a roadmap for the country’s infrastructure development over the next decade.”

“The European Investment Bank, with its extensive expertise and experience, will provide a coherent strategic business plan, which will serve as a valuable guide in the organizational efforts of the new entity. This plan will support the Government’s priorities for developing a modern, safer, faster, and fully interoperable network, in line with the requirements of the Trans-European Transport Network and the standards set by the European Union. By utilizing the knowhow offered by the EIB, we are creating a sound and rational framework on which this crucial reform of the railway sector will be based. In this way, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport is implementing another important — and promising — initiative for the modernization and future development of the Greek railway system.”, said Staikouras.

Strategic priorities for Greece’s railway sector

Greece aims to develop a modern, safe, and fully interoperable rail system, aligning with Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) requirements.

Key strategic priorities outlined for the Greek rail sector include:

Completing the Patras-Athens-Thessaloniki-Promachonas (PAThEP) corridor, a crucial part of the TEN-T network.
Expanding rail connections to ports and industrial zones, strengthening the economic infrastructure.
Facilitating cross-border rail connections with Europe to enhance regional connectivity.

Shaping the future of Greek rail investment

The advisory accord marks a significant opportunity for the EIB to help shape rail investment in Greece over the next two decades. The EIB work will feed into the Greek National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which requires the adoption of a multiyear investment plan by mid-2025.

The assignment will run for run for six months, during which the EIB will engage external service providers to execute three main tasks:

· Development of a strategic business plan for the new rail infrastructure entity.

· Preparation of a medium-term (2025-2034) implementation plan for the railway sector.

· Creation of a comprehensive funding plan to support the implementation of priority projects.

Background information

About the EIB

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. It finances sound investments that further EU policy objectives. EIB projects bolster competitiveness, drive innovation, promote sustainable development, enhance social and territorial cohesion, and support a just and swift transition to climate neutrality.

The European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group), consisting of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF), reported total financing signatures in Greece of €2.5 billion in 2023, 33% of which went to supporting sustainable energy and natural resources projects. Overall, the EIB Group signed €88 billion in new financing in 2023.

Approximately half of the EIB’s financing within the EU is directed towards cohesion regions, where per capita income is lower. This underscores the Bank’s commitment to fostering inclusive growth and the convergence of living standards.

MIL-OSI Europe: Press release – María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia awarded 2024 Sakharov Prize

Source: European Parliament

The leader of Venezuela’s democratic forces and the opposition candidate in the July presidential elections will receive the 2024 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

Parliament’s President Roberta Metsola announced the winners of the 2024 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in the chamber on Thursday, following the meeting of the Conference of Presidents, which took the decision.

President Metsola said: “The 2024 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is awarded to María Corina Machado and President-elect Edmundo González Urrutia for their brave fight to restore freedom and democracy in Venezuela. In their quest for a fair, free and peaceful transition of power, they have fearlessly upheld values that millions of Venezuelans and the European Parliament hold so dear: justice, democracy and the rule of law. The European Parliament stands with the people of Venezuela and with María Corina Machado and President-elect Edmundo González Urrutia in their struggle for the democratic future of their country. This award is for them.”

María Corina Machado was elected as the Venezuelan opposition’s presidential candidate on behalf of the ‘Unity Democratic Platform’ in 2023 but was later disqualified by the regime-controlled National Electoral Council.

Edmundo González Urrutia, a diplomat and politician who succeeded her as the ‘Unity Democratic Platform’ candidate, denounced the Venezuelan government’s failure to publish the official results of the presidential elections and contested Nicolás Maduro’s declared victory. Mr González Urrutia left the country in September after a warrant was issued to arrest him.

In a resolution adopted on 19 September 2024, MEPs stressed that international election observation missions made it clear that the Venezuelan presidential election did not comply with international standards of electoral integrity. They recognised Edmundo González Urrutia as the legitimate and democratically-elected president of the country, and María Corina Machado as the leader of the democratic forces.

Parliament condemned “the electoral fraud” and the serious and systematic human rights violations perpetrated against the democratic opposition, the Venezuelan people, and civil society.

According to the Venezuelan government, 2 400 people were arrested during demonstrations that followed the election and non-governmental organisations have reported the deaths of 24 people. María Corina Machado remains in hiding, while Edmundo González Urrutia fled to Spain, which granted him political asylum on 7 September.

In its September 2024 resolution, Parliament called on the EU to extend sanctions against the Venezuelan regime and to apply targeted sanctions through the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime against Nicolás Maduro and his inner circle. Before the elections, the European Parliament urged member states to maintain the sanctions imposed on the Maduro regime and criticised the unconstitutional decision to prevent prominent political opposition figures such as María Corina Machado from running in the 2024 elections.

Award ceremony on 18 December

The award ceremony for the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought will take place on 18 December in Strasbourg, during Parliament’s plenary session.

Background

Named after Soviet physicist and political dissident Andrei Sakharov, the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is the EU’s highest human rights award. Created in 1988, it is awarded every year by Parliament to individuals or organisations, in recognition of their work in one of the following areas: the defence of human rights and fundamental rights, in particular freedom of expression, the safeguarding of minority rights, respect for international law, the development of democracy and the defence of the rule of law.

MIL-OSI Europe: Highlights – INTA Delegation to the UK to exchange on EU-UK economic and trade relations – Committee on International Trade

Source: European Parliament

A delegation of six Members of the Committee on International Trade (INTA), accompanied by the Chair of the Delegation to the EU-UK Parliamentary Partnership Assembly, will travel to London (UK) from 28 to 30 October 2024. The delegation, led by the INTA Chair, Bernd Lange (S&D, DE), will exchange with the UK government, parliamentarians and stakeholders on the trade aspects of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement, including the Windsor Framework, and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

The context of this visit is the ‘reset’ of the EU-UK relations announced recently by the UK Prime Minister, the first review of the TCA due in 2026 and the upcoming democratic consent vote of the Northern Ireland Legislative Assembly on the continuation of the application of major provisions of the Windsor Framework in December 2024.

The UK and the EU are also faced with the same challenges at global level regarding international trade. In the past decade, geopolitical and geoeconomic tensions have heightened, in part due to the strategic competition between the United States and China. In the last few years the situation has deteriorated further, notably due to the supply chain disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic and to the impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, as well as recently the major crisis in the Middle East, bringing both competitiveness and economic security to the forefront.

MIL-OSI United Kingdom: The Pandemic Institute celebrates three years of work

Source: City of Liverpool

The Pandemic Institute, a world leading facility committed to helping the world prevent, prepare, and respond more effectively to pandemics, celebrates three years of vital work to keep the public safe.

Since opening in autumn 2021, the Institute has advanced research to predict and prepare for the next pandemic. It’s built resilience in society to respond and recover from COVID-19 and future health crises and worked to prevent disease outbreaks and epidemics from developing into pandemics.

Ove the last three years The Pandemic Institute has:

Supported a portfolio of research worth more than £50m led by The Pandemic Institute’s investigators based at the University of Liverpool, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, and Liverpool John Moores University.
Established research industry partnerships with a value of more than £5m, strengthening the local economy and employment prospects. One such partnership is with CSL Seqirus, a global leader in influenza prevention. Together they are researching both the threat of seasonal influenza and the development of innovative approaches to pandemic preparedness and response.
Awarded £3.6m in critical pandemic research funding, and responded rapidly to emerging infections such as Mpox, which was recently declared a global emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Provided funding towards the development of diagnostics for some of the world’s deadliest viruses including Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF). Transmitted by tick bites, it has a mortality rate of around 30% but there is currently no vaccine. Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine has developed a rapid point-of-care lateral flow test, as well as conducting clinical trials to assess a potential treatment.
Supported researchers at Liverpool John Moores University who are looking at health inequalities and resilience in communities during a pandemic, and how future responses can be tailored and improved.
Invested in infrastructure including a new pre-clinical trials unit for testing new vaccines and treatments, based at the University of Liverpool.
Provided critical advice and support on pandemic prevention and preparedness to the UK Health Security Agency, Department of Health and Social Care, and other government departments.

Professor Tom Solomon, Director of The Pandemic Institute said: “I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve done in just three short years, helping to develop new diagnostic tests, treatments and vaccines, for emerging infection threats, and strengthening the research infrastructure.

“Thanks to our dedicated and ongoing efforts we are in a position to rapidly mobilise funding for essential research and be flexible in times of swiftly changing circumstances.”

Director of Public Health for Liverpool, Professor Matthew Ashton, said: “Liverpool has a rich history of delivering bold public health interventions, and the launch of The Pandemic Institute continued our long and proud tradition.

“The funding shows the ongoing commitment to delivering an innovative response to pandemics on an international scale.

“It is playing a vital role in the global work to tackle the next pandemic, wherever and whenever that will be, and we should be immensely proud of the foresight the city showed in establishing it.”

What’s next

The Pandemic Institute will continue to develop new infrastructure in Liverpool to harness the combined expertise of the region.

In spring, The Pandemic Institute was awarded funding as part of the Liverpool City Region’s Investment Zone plans. Part of the £160m Government pledge will support the Institutes’ ambitions to build a new Pandemic Preparedness and Response Facility in Liverpool containing state-of-the-art research laboratories that will strengthen the UK’s infectious disease research and innovation capabilities.

For more information about The Pandemic Institute visit www.thepandemicinstitute.org.

MIL-OSI United Kingdom: MHRA reminds healthcare professionals to advise patients of the side effects of GLP-1 agonists and to report misuse

Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 2

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is reminding healthcare professionals to ensure patients are aware of the known side effects of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists.

These medicines are used to treat type 2 diabetes or obesity, with the common risk of gastrointestinal side effects which may affect more than 1 in 10 patients. While most side effects for these medicines are mild, some may also be serious.

Healthcare professionals should also be alert for signs of misuse of these medicines in their patients, warn these patients that they are at risk of side effects and report any adverse reactions via the Yellow Card scheme.

GLP-1 receptor agonists approved for weight management, are effective treatment options for patients with a Body Mass Index (BMI) higher or equal to 30 kg/m2 or for patients whose BMI is higher or equal to 27 kg/m2 and have a weight-related medical condition, such as cardiovascular disease.

GLP-1 receptor agonists can only be prescribed by a registered healthcare professional.

When appropriately used in line with the product licence, the benefits of these medications outweigh the risks for patients. However, this benefit-risk balance is positive only for those patients within the approved indications for weight management or type 2 diabetes as described in the product information.

If patients obtain a private prescription (from a non-NHS prescriber), they should ensure this is dispensed from an authorised source, such as a registered pharmacy, to avoid the risk of receiving a falsified pen. They should be aware that some falsified medicines have been found to contain insulin, which if used, could cause severe hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) requiring urgent medical attention.

It is vital for patients to carefully read the instructions in the Patient Information Leaflet and use the prescribed dose. Potential side effects of these medicines can include gastrointestinal conditions, such as vomiting and diarrhoea. In most cases, these are not usually serious, but may sometimes lead to more serious complications such as severe dehydration, resulting in hospitalisation. Patients are advised to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids throughout treatment.

Gastrointestinal side effects are more likely to occur at the start of treatment or after a recent increase in dose. Healthcare professionals should also discuss the risk of serious, but less common side effects such as pancreatitis and gall bladder disorders.

Hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) can occur in non-diabetic patients using some GLP-1 receptor agonists for weight management and healthcare professionals should ensure patients are aware of the symptoms and signs of this condition, such as sweating, shaking, feelings of tiredness or weakness and confusion. Where this occurs, patients should eat or drink something that will raise their blood sugar quickly, and if symptoms persist they should seek medical attention.

Patients prescribed GLP-1 receptor agonists should speak to a healthcare professional if they have any questions about potential side effects.

Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, said:

“All medicines carry a risk of potential side effects and GLP-1RAs are no exception.

“We encourage healthcare professionals to ensure patients being treated with these medicines are aware of the common side effects and how to minimise risk.

“The balance of benefits and risks outside the licensed indication has not been shown to be favourable. Please report cases of misuse especially if harm occurs”

Wes Streeting, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said:

“Weight-loss drugs have enormous potential. When taken alongside healthy diet and exercise, they can be game changers in tackling obesity and getting people back to good health.

“But these are not cosmetic drugs that should be taken to help get a body beautiful picture for Instagram. These are serious medicines and should only be used responsibly and under medical supervision. They’re not a quick fix to lose a few pounds and buying them online without appropriate assessment can put people’s health at risk.

“Drugs approved for weight management should only be used by those tackling obesity, where diet and exercise has been tried first, and where patients are eligible.”

Healthcare professionals should consult our Drug Safety Update for further advice.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Further information is available in the Drug Safety Update.
GLP-1 receptor agonists are used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity, with active ingredients including exenatide, lixisenatide, liraglutide, dulaglutide, semaglutide and tirzepatide. They work by mimicking the action of the natural hormone GLP-1, which helps regulate blood sugar levels by stimulating insulin secretion, reducing glucagon secretion, slowing gastric emptying, and promoting satiety.
Not all GLP-1 receptor agonists are approved for weight management, products can include the active ingredients semaglutide (Wegovy), tirzepatide (Mounjaro) and liraglutide (Saxenda). GLP-1 receptor agonists can be used alone or in combination with other diabetes medications. Some GLP-1 receptor agonists have also been approved for weight management in obese patients with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 kg/m² or overweight patients with a BMI of 27 kg/m.
Symptoms of hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) can be found on the NHS website.
Falsified medicines can cause a serious risk to health, patients should only receive prescriptions from authorised prescribers.
A licensed indication refers to the approval to treat or manage a specific medical condition.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe. All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks.
The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care.
For media enquiries, please contact newscentre@mhra.gov.uk or 020 3080 7651.

Published 24 October 2024

MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Lebanon Support Conference 2024: Minister Falconer intervention

Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3

The Minister for the Middle East attended the Lebanon Support Conference in Paris on 24 October 2024 to reiterate calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon.

Location:: Paris
Delivered on:: 24 October 2024 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)

The situation in Lebanon is worsening daily, and civilian casualties are mounting.

The risks of further escalation cannot be overstated. We cannot let Lebanon become another Gaza.

This is why today the UK repeats our call for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese Hizballah.

Let us not forget that this conflict started when Hizballah launched rockets at northern Israel, forcing the Israelis to flee their homes.

The UK stands with Israel and recognises its right of self defence in the face of unlawful Iranian attacks.

Iran must immediately halt those attacks, and stand down its proxies.

Meanwhile, we are working with the Lebanese Armed Forces, the sole legitimate defender of that state, to support security and stability.

I am pleased to be joined today by one of our most senior military officers, Air Marshal Harvey Smyth, who leads our work to support the Lebanese Armed Forces. We stand ready to do more.

We are also committing £15 million to respond to the humanitarian emergency in Lebanon, supporting food, medicine and clean water.

Many generous British citizens are now donating to the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal for Gaza, Lebanon and the wider region – my government will now pledge to match that generosity up to £10 million.

The aid workers striving to alleviate suffering in Lebanon must be able to carry out their duties in safety – including UN workers, who have a vital role to play in resolving armed conflict and mitigating its impact.

Britain condemns all threats to the security of UNIFIL.

We call on all parties engaged in this conflict to take all necessary precautions to avoid civilian deaths and injuries and protect essential infrastructure.

Before I conclude, let me reflect briefly on the wider crisis in the region.

Following the death of the terrorist leader Yahya Sinwar, it is time for a new chapter in Gaza.

We reiterate our call for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and an increase in humanitarian aid.

We must focus all our efforts on stopping this cycle of violence.

A political solution consistent with 1701 is the only answer – and the only way to secure a stable future for those on both sides of the Blue Line.

Thank you.

Published 24 October 2024

MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko: BRICS summit showed colossal success of President Vladimir Putin

Translation. Region: Russian Federation –

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

Dmitry Chernyshenko spoke at the opening of the first international scientific conference “Science for Public Administration in Russia”, which is being held at the Presidential Academy in Moscow

October 24, 2024

Rector of the Presidential Academy Alexey Komissarov

October 24, 2024

Dmitry Chernyshenko spoke at the opening of the first international scientific conference “Science for Public Administration in Russia”, which is being held at the Presidential Academy in Moscow

October 24, 2024

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Dmitry Chernyshenko spoke at the opening of the first international scientific conference “Science for Public Administration in Russia”, which is being held at the Presidential Academy in Moscow

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko spoke at the opening of the first international scientific conference “Science for Public Administration in Russia”, which is being held at the Presidential Academy in Moscow on October 24–25.

At the beginning of his speech, the Deputy Prime Minister quoted President Vladimir Putin, noting that today science is the basis for solving many large-scale problems of the country. He also recalled the mission of a civil servant – service, the connection of his life with Russia and the people.

“It is symbolic that this conference is taking place within the walls of the Presidential Academy, which trains professionals for public service according to the highest standards. Today, about 274 thousand students study at the Academy and its 47 branches,” noted Dmitry Chernyshenko.

The Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that this is a difficult historical period, but Russia will be able to effectively confront challenges: this is evidenced by the unprecedentedly low level of unemployment and many other parameters.

“We see the colossal success of President Vladimir Putin in terms of recognition of Russia. 35 countries arrived in Kazan to participate in the BRICS summit, 22 are represented at the highest level – by their presidents. It is clear that Russia has become a center of attraction instead of an outcast. The entire progressive world has appreciated how our economy has not only withstood unprecedented pressure and the largest number of sanctions in the world, but also shows growth,” the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized.

The economies of the BRICS countries are developing at an accelerated pace. The share of the BRICS countries in the world economy in terms of purchasing power parity confidently exceeds the share of the “Big Seven”.

The plan to isolate Russia and ban everything Russian has failed. All countries want to live in a multipolar and fair world. Our policy is based on mutual respect, the sovereign equality of our states.

“The effective work of civil servants will determine how Russia will realize the window of opportunity. President Vladimir Putin said that the authorities must work constantly and intensely, like fighters on the front lines of the SVO. Such a comparison obliges us to do a lot. We must do everything in our place to achieve results and correspond to our spiritual and moral values,” noted Dmitry Chernyshenko.

The Deputy Prime Minister recalled that such traditional spiritual and moral values include serving the Fatherland and responsibility for its fate. Role models are needed to protect state sovereignty. To increase the number of such specialists, a Center for training managers for scientific and technological development and their teams was created this year at the Higher School of Public Administration of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.

“I consider it important to create and improve mechanisms to ensure a strong connection between the Government’s management decisions and the advanced achievements of Russian science,” concluded Dmitry Chernyshenko.

The first international scientific conference “Science for Public Administration in Russia” brings together more than 2.8 thousand participants and 205 speakers. The event is dedicated to current issues of public administration and prospects for effective interaction between the economy, law and the social sphere in the context of modern global challenges.

“Development of the scientific potential of the Presidential Academy is one of the most important tasks for the coming years. Today, RANEPA is a leader in training civil servants in Russia. The President has instructed us to prepare the country’s new elite. I am confident that the accumulated knowledge and work experience will allow us to conduct the most modern and relevant scientific research. So that decisions can be made on their basis on how to counter new threats and challenges. The international scientific conference “Public Administration in Russia” is an important step in the implementation of this plan and the first such large-scale scientific event in the history of our country dedicated to the topic of public administration,” said Alexey Komissarov, Rector of the Presidential Academy.

Participants will also discuss priorities for scientific and technological development, strategic objectives for the development of science to ensure national security and technological independence of Russia, the economics of the scientific sphere, and much more.

The conference will feature the presentation of five books, including the first Russian textbook on management, prepared by the authors’ collective of the Presidential Academy, a meeting of the expert council on the development of the creative economy, and the signing of a number of agreements.

Participants in the plenary session included Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vladimir Ivanov, Rector of the Presidential Academy Alexey Komissarov, Dean of the Faculty of Economics of Lomonosov Moscow State University Alexander Auzan, Deputy Secretary of the Public Chamber of Russia Alexander Galushka. The moderator was Nikita Marchenkov, Chairman of the Coordination Council for Youth Affairs in Science and Education of the Presidential Council for Science and Education.

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

MIL OSI Russia News –

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Union Cabinet approves establishment of Rs.1,000 crore Venture Capital Fund for Space Sector under aegis of IN-SPACe

Source: Government of India

Posted On: 24 OCT 2024 3:25PM by PIB Delhi

The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved setting up of Rs.1000 crore Venture Capital Fund dedicated to space sector, under aegis of IN-SPACe.

Financial implications:

The deployment period of the proposed Rs.1,000 crore VC fund is planned to be up to five years from the actual date of start of the fund operations. The average deployment amount could be Rs.150-250 crore per year, depending on the investment opportunities and fund requirements. The proposed break-up financial year wise is as below:

S.No.

Financial Year

Estimate (In Rs.Crores)

I

2025-26

150.00

2

2026-27

250.00

3

2027-28

250.00

4

2028-29

250.00

5

2029-30

100,00

Total Envelope (VC)

1000.00

The indicative range of investment is proposed to be Rs.10-Rs.60 Crore, contingent upon the stage of the company, its growth trajectory, and its potential impact on national space capabilities. Indicative Equity Investment Range could be:

• Growth Stage: Rs.10 Crore – Rs.30 Crore

• Late Growth Stage: Rs.30 Crore – Rs.60 Crore

Based on the above investment range, the fund is expected to support approximately 40 startups.

Details:

The Fund is strategically designed to advance India’s space sector, aligning with national priorities and fostering innovation and economic growth through the following key initiatives:

a. Capital Infusion

b. Retaining Companies in India

c. Growing Space Economy

d. Accelerating Space Technology Development

e. Boosting Globa! Competitiveness

f. Supporting Atmanirbhar Bharat

g. Creating a Vibrant Innovation Ecosystem

h. Driving Economic Growth and Job Creation

i. Ensuring Long-Term Sustainability

By addressing these points, the fund aims to strategically position India as one of the leading space economies.

Benefits:

Capital infusion to create a multiplier effect by attracting additional funding for later-stage development, thereby instilling confidence in private investors.
Retention of space companies domiciled within India & countering the trend of Indian companies domiciling abroad.
Accelerate private space industry’s growth to meet the goal of a five-fold expansion of the Indian Space Economy in next ten years.
Drive advancements in space technology and strengthening India’s leadership through private sector participation.
Boost global competitiveness.
Supporting Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Impact, including employment generation potential:

The proposed fund is expected to boost employment in the Indian space sector by supporting startups across the entire space supply chain—upstream, midstream, and downstream. It will help businesses scale, invest in R&D, and expand their workforce. Each investment could generate hundreds of direct jobs in fields like engineering, software development, data analysis, and manufacturing, along with thousands of indirect jobs in supply chains, logistics, and professional services. By fostering a strong startup ecosystem, the fund will not only create jobs but also develop a skilled workforce, driving innovation and enhancing India’s global competitiveness in the space market.

Background:

The Government of India, as part of its 2020 space sector reforms, established IN-SPACe to promote and oversee private sector participation in space activities. IN-SPACe has proposed a Rs.1000 crore Venture Capital Fund to support the growth of India’s space, economy, currently valued at S8.4 billion, with a target to reach $44 billion by 2033. The fund aims to address the critical need for risk capital, as traditional lenders are hesitant to fund startups in this high-tech sector. With nearly 250 space startups emerging across the value chain, timely financial support is crucial to ensure their growth and prevent talent loss overseas. The proposed government-backed fund will boost investor confidence, attract private capital, and signal the government’s commitment to advancing space reforms. It will serve as an Alternative investment Fund under SEBI regulations, providing early-stage equity to startups and enabling them to scale for further private equity investments.

***

MJPS/BM/SKS

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MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: The Union Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari Emphasizes Use of AI and Advanced Technology to Improve Road Safety

Source: Government of India (2)

The Union Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari Emphasizes Use of AI and Advanced Technology to Improve Road Safety

Shri Gadkari Pushes for Innovation in Road Safety Technology and Collaboration with Startups

Posted On: 24 OCT 2024 2:52PM by PIB Delhi

The Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari, addressed the 12th edition of the Traffic InfraTech Expo, emphasizing the critical need to improve road safety and the adoption of advanced technologies in the transportation sector in New Delhi, today.

In his address, Shri Gadkari underscored the alarming statistics of road accidents in India, noting that the country experiences around 5 lakh accidents each year, resulting in numerous fatalities. He highlighted that more than half of these casualties are in the age group of 18-36 years. The economic loss due to road accidents is estimated at 3% of the country’s GDP, he said. He stressed that improving road safety is a top priority for the government, and measures are already underway to address this issue.

The Minister highlighted the need for improvements in road engineering, emphasizing the use of the latest global technologies. He expressed a keen interest in collaborating with Indian startups and young engineers who are innovating in this area. Shri Gadkari noted that road safety cannot be achieved without integrating advanced engineering solutions, enforcement of laws, and the adoption of cutting-edge technologies like Artificial Intelligence.

Shri Gadkari also spoke about new approaches to law enforcement using technology. He mentioned efforts to identify traffic violations through AI and other innovative methods, allowing authorities to enforce penalties accurately. He also outlined plans for upgrading toll collection methods, including the exploration of satellite toll systems, which would improve efficiency and ensure transparency in toll collection.

Highlighting the Ministry’s approach to enhancing road safety, Shri Gadkari shared that the government has decided to appoint experts from the private sector to collaborate on developing technological solutions. A dedicated expert committee will evaluate proposals from startups and industry leaders, ensuring that the best ideas are implemented. the committee has been directed to finalize its evaluations within three months, aiming for rapid improvements in the sector.

The Minister emphasized the government’s commitment to maintaining high-quality standards, particularly in the use of surveillance technology like cameras. He assured that quality and standards would not be compromised, regardless of whether solutions come from large or small companies. Shri Gadkari encouraged small firms with innovative technologies to participate in government tenders, stressing the importance of cost-effectiveness while maintaining profit margins without exploitation.

While concluding his remarks, Shri Gadkari highlighted the importance of collaboration between the road and transport sectors to create integrated solutions. He expressed confidence that by using the best technologies, India can achieve transparency, reduce costs, and significantly enhance road safety. Shri Gadkari extended his gratitude to the participants for their efforts in research and development, bringing the Indian industry to international standards, and expressed pride in their contributions to the nation.

Union Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari called upon all stakeholders—government, private sector, and startups—to come together in addressing the urgent issue of road safety in India.

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NKK/AK

(Release ID: 2067649) Visitor Counter : 89

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: NHRC takes suo motu cognizance of the reported death of a four-year-old boy after a part of a machine in an open-air gym fell on him in a municipality-run park in West Delhi’s Moti Nagar

Source: Government of India

NHRC takes suo motu cognizance of the reported death of a four-year-old boy after a part of a machine in an open-air gym fell on him in a municipality-run park in West Delhi’s Moti Nagar

Expressing concern over the condition of equipment in other public parks, issues notices to the Delhi Chief Secretary, Vice-Chairman, DDA, Commissioner, MCD and Secretary, NDMC calling for a detailed report

Delhi Police Commissioner also asked for his comments on the subject along with the status of the police investigation in the instant case

Posted On: 24 OCT 2024 12:38PM by PIB Delhi

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), India has taken suo motu cognizance of a media report that a four-year-old boy died after a part of a machine in an open-air gym fell on him in a municipality-run park in West Delhi’s Moti Nagar on 13th October, 2024. Reportedly, the people present on the spot suspected that the nuts and bolts of the equipment were loose which led to the incident.

The Commission has observed that the contents of the media report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of human rights due to alleged negligence by the authorities in the maintenance of the equipment, installed in the public park. The incident raises serious concerns about the condition of equipment in other public parks governed, managed and maintained by the local government bodies in Delhi. Accordingly, it has issued notices to the Chief Secretary, Government of NCT of Delhi, Vice-Chairman, Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and Secretary, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) calling for a detailed report in the matter within four weeks. The authorities are also expected to inform whether any compensation has been paid to the aggrieved family.

The report should also include the status of the maintenance and safety audit of the swings and gym equipment, etc. installed in the public parks under their jurisdiction in Delhi. The Commission has also asked the Commissioner of Police, Delhi to submit his comments on the subject along with the status of the police investigation being conducted in the instant case.

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NSK/ VCK

(Release ID: 2067604) Visitor Counter : 62

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Ministry of Jal Shakti launches 6th National Water Awards, 2024

Source: Government of India

Ministry of Jal Shakti launches 6th National Water Awards, 2024

Last date of submission of applications is 31st December, 2024

Awards will be conferred in 9 categories

Posted On: 24 OCT 2024 12:27PM by PIB Delhi

The Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the 6^th National Water Awards (NWA), 2024 on the Rashtriya Puraskar portal. All the applications will be received only through Rashtriya Puraskar portal (www.awards.gov.in). General public may refer to this portal or the website of this Department (www.jalshakti-dowr.gov.in) for further details. The last date of submission of applications is 31^st December, 2024.

Eligibility for the awards:

Any State, District, Village Panchayat, Urban Local Body, School/College, Institution (other than school/college), Industry, Civil society, or Water User Association who has done exemplary work in the field of water conservation and management are eligible to apply.

Trophy and Citation:

For the categories – ‘Best State’ and ‘Best District’, winners will be felicitated with a trophy and citation. In the remaining categories – ‘Best Village Panchayat’, ‘Best Urban Local Body’, ‘Best School/College’, ‘Best Institution (other than school/college)’, ‘Best industry’, ‘Best Civil Society’, ‘Best Water User Association’, and ‘Best Industry’, winners will be felicitated with cash prize along with trophy and citation. The cash prizes for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd rank winners are Rs.2 lakhs, Rs.1.5 lakhs, and Rs.1 lakh, respectively.

Selection Process:

All applications received for the National Water Awards are scrutinised by a Screening Committee of the DoWR, RD & GR. The shortlisted applications are placed before a Jury Committee headed by a retired Secretary level officer. Thereafter, ground truthing of the shortlisted applications is carried out by the organisations of the Department of Water Resources, RD & GR viz Central Water Commission (CWC) and Central Ground Water Board (CGWB). Jury Committee evaluates the applications on the basis of ground truthing reports and recommends the winners. The recommendations of the Committee are submitted to the Union Minister of Jal Shakti for approval. The names of the winners are announced on a suitable date and an award distribution ceremony is organised wherein the winners are conferred with the awards by the Hon’ble President of India or Hon’ble Vice President of India.

Details of the awards:

Sl. No.	Category of Award	Eligible Entity	Award	No. of Awards/Prize money
1.	Best State	State Government/ UT	Trophy with Citation	3 Awards
2.	Best District	District Administration/ DM/DC	Trophy with Citation	5 awards (One award from each of the five zones i.e. Northern, Southern, Western, Eastern & North Eastern)
3.	Best Village Panchayat	Village Panchayat	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh
4.	Best Urban Local Body	Urban Local Body	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh
5.	Best School or College	School/College	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh
6.	Best Institution (other than School/College)	Institutions/RWAs/ Religious organizations	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	awards (i) 2 awards for campus usage (First award: Rs.2 lakh; Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh) (ii) 1 award for other than campus (Award: Rs.2 lakh)
7.	Best Industry	Small/Medium/Large Scale Industry	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh
8.	Best Civil Society	Registered NGOs/ Civil societies	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh
9.	Best Water User Association	Water User Associations	Cash Awards & Trophy with Citation	3 Awards First award: Rs.2 lakh Second award: Rs.1.5 lakh Third award: Rs.1 lakh

The National Water Awards (NWAs) were introduced to recognize and encourage exemplary work and efforts made by States, Districts, individuals, organizations etc. across the country in accomplishing the government’s vision ‘Jal Samridh Bharat’. It aims to sensitize the public about the importance of water and motivate them to adopt the best water usage practices. The award winners in different categories will be presented with a citation, trophy and cash prize. The objective of the National Water Awards is to encourage the stakeholders to adopt a holistic approach toward water resource management in the country as surface water and groundwater play a significant role in the water cycle. In order to embrace these objectives, the first edition of the National Water Awards was introduced in the year 2018 by the Department. In the first National Water Awards, 2018, 82 winners in 14 categories were awarded. Subsequently, 2nd National Water Awards, 2019 were conferred on 98 winners in 16 categories, 3rd National Water Awards, 2020 were awarded to 57 winners under 11 categories, 4^th National Water Awards, 2022 were conferred on 41 winners under 11 categories, and 5^th National Water Awards, 2023 have been awarded to 38 winners in 09 categories. National water awards for 2021 were not organised due to CoVID pandemic.

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DSK

(Release ID: 2067603) Visitor Counter : 55

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Emerging Technologies Flourish at ITU-WTSA 2024’s Innovation Xchange

Source: Government of India

Emerging Technologies Flourish at ITU-WTSA 2024’s Innovation Xchange

Groundbreaking event unites international tech leaders, academia, startups, researchers & industry to seek solutions in new-age technologies

“We are at a pivotal point where emerging technologies are converging & laying the foundation of a new world”: Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development

Posted On: 24 OCT 2024 9:19AM by PIB Delhi

The Innovation Xchange, a cornerstone event of the ITU-WTSA 2024 was held yesterday at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, marking a significant milestone in global technological collaboration.

The objective of the program was to foster international collaboration and innovation across key thematic areas in emerging technologies. There was extensive cross-pollination of ideas and global expertise. The program included thematic discussions on NextGen Networks (5G/6G), AI & robotics, Secured Communication Networks, and Quantum Communications.

The rapid technological advancements warrant the fusion of diverse perspectives from around the globe and therefore, each theme involved teams from India as well as some other ITU member countries namely USA, UK, UAE, Singapore. The composition of the teams included a lead faculty, a research student, and a startup working in the same thematic area.

The inaugural session was chaired by Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development and was attended by Ms. Madhu Arora, Member Technology, Digital Communications Commission, Department of Telecommunications, India, Dr. Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and Mr. Sanjeev K Sharma, Deputy Director General, Department of Telecom, Ministry of Communication.

In his inaugural address, Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development India spoke about how over the last decade India has been tirelessly working under leadership of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to create an ecosystem that is conducive to growth of businesses and in particular startups. Since the launch of “Startup India, Standup India” initiative in 2015, India has emerged as the 3rd largest ecosystem for startups globally with over 1.12 lakh Government recognized startups. The academic research and startups are solving problems in diverse industrial sectors. He also said that the Bharat 6G Alliance, a vital platform uniting industry leaders, academia, startups, and government, is set to drive 6G innovation, guided by the vision of “Innovate in India, for India and the World.”

Inspiring the audience, he quoted from his own experience of being a startup founder and said “To create a successful and impactful business, it’s essential to solve real problems rather than just creating products. Innovate and disrupt by thinking beyond the obvious” He advised youngsters to Start small, but think big, and act now. He quipped “You don’t need all the resources in the world to begin—just conviction. Many waits for perfect conditions or significant funding, but the best time to start is now. Action creates momentum, and momentum fuels success”. On the inevitability of setbacks, he encouraged the audience by saying “Be comfortable with failure—it’s part of the process. Embrace them, learn, and pivot when needed. Persistence is what separates dreamers from achievers”. He further advised to Build a purpose-driven business by focusing on impact – “When your mission aligns with a meaningful purpose, everything falls into place. Customers, partners, and investors are drawn to ventures that aim to make a difference.” He concluded by saying “invest in people—your team is your greatest asset. When your team feels invested in the mission, they will give their best every day.”

In her address, Ms Madhu Arora, highlighted some of the initiatives of the Indian Government that go a long way in promoting innovation and start-up ecosystems in next-generation technologies. She urged ITU to collaborate with India in these areas. These initiatives included ‘setting up of hundred ‘5G Use Case Labs’, 5G Intelligent Villages, AI led Digital Twins.

Dr. Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) mentioned “It’s important to remember that people decided to innovate because they wanted to improve the quality of life and open new doors of opportunities and choice. Technology is just a means to an end I call upon everyone in the development sector to work towards unmasking technology and showing its human impact. This includes coordinating food supply, medication, and shelter to save humanity.” He then spoke about the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and mentioned that “they can only be achieved if we put digital at the centre of everything we do”.

The Innovation Xchange event received an overwhelming response as it could connect the dots between research and productization. By integrating startup representatives into the teams, discussions were grounded in real-world applications and to the needs of productizing the research. By providing a platform for startups to engage with researchers and industry leaders, it facilitated a fertile ground for taking new research and ideas to market.

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SB/DP/ARJ

(Release ID: 2067550) Visitor Counter : 73

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

MIL-OSI Video: Central African Republic: Role of MINUSCA remains critical – Briefing | United Nations

Source: United Nations (Video News)

Briefing by Valentine Rugwabiza, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Central African Republic and Head of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic, on Central African Republic, during the 9758th meeting of the Security Council.

———————–

Special Representative for the Central African Republic Valentine Rugwabiza said that the role of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the country (MINUSCA) remains critical.

Rugwabiza addressed at the Security Council, the “Positive momentum and opportunities stemming from the dialogue between the Government and active armed groups, as well as the continuous progress made in the implementation of the Political Agreement, notably the organization of local elections, the strengthening of border management and extension of State presence and authority, with increased local ownership in support of peace and social cohesion.”

She also reported that the dissolution of six armed groups and three factions of armed groups signatories of the Political Agreement, remained effective and resulted in the disarmament and demobilization of their combatants, with the integration of some of them in the national armed forces.

She also said, “30,000 birth certificates have been issued to vulnerable groups, enabling them to register as voters, during the electoral registration process to start next month. This marks a significant step towards an inclusive electoral cycle which will culminate with the general elections slated for end of 2025.”

She continued, “In this context, the completion of the upcoming 2025-2026 electoral cycle is paramount to reinforce institutional stability and require MINUSCA’s essential multidimensional assistance, coupled with commensurate resources, to ensuring inclusive, transparent, and peaceful elections.”

She concluded, “The risk of reversal remains. The tangible and transformational progress achieved in close collaboration with CAR Government now requires expansion and consolidation and the role of MINUSCA remains critical. We therefore count on the continuous and concerted support of this Council to extend the mandate of MINUSCA for an additional year, until 15 November 2025 and avail commensurate and timely resources for its implementation.”

MIL OSI Video –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2z2IZLJYstU

MIL-OSI Video: Haiti: the situation has worsened – BINUH Briefing | United Nations

Source: United Nations (Video News)

Briefing by María Isabel Salvador, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti and Head of BINUH, on the question concerning Haiti – Security Council, 9757th meeting.

———————–

Addressing the Security Council, Salvador said, “The situation in Haiti has regrettably worsened. There are more than 700,000 internally displaced persons, which represents a 22 per cent increase in the last 3 months. The political process, despite initial advances, which I reported in July, is now facing significant challenges, turning hope into deep concern.”

She also said, “The security situation remains extremely fragile, with renewed peaks of acute violence. Haitians continue to suffer across the country as criminal gang activities escalate and expand beyond Port-au-Prince, spreading terror and fear, overwhelming the national security apparatus. The humanitarian situation is even more dire.”
She continued, “The MSS mission remains critically under-resourced, which could impact deployment and impede it from carrying out its tasks in support of the Haitian National Police and of the Forces Armées d’Haïti.”

Also addressing the Council Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director, said, “So far, this year, we have seen a staggering increase in reported incidents of sexual violence against women and children, including gender-based violence. Armed groups are also actively recruiting and using children in their operations. We estimate that children account for 30 to 50 percent of armed group members. They are being used as informants, cooks, and sex slaves, and they are being forced to perpetrate armed violence themselves.”

She concluded, “This is a pivotal moment for the country … with the Transitional Presidential Council and the Government now in place leading the effort … and with the Multinational Security Support Mission supporting security initiatives. These are important steps. Now we must do our part. The international community has the tools, and the resources to help Haiti emerge from this crisis, and to embark on a sustained road to recovery. The question is one of will.”

Antonio Rodrigue, Haitian Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said “I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep concern regarding the alarming situation of mass deportations of our compatriots by the Dominican Republic. While we acknowledge the inalienable right of any state to manage its borders and enforce its migration policies, these actions must align with the fundamental principles of international law, especially those that safeguard human dignity and the rights of migrants.”

Roberto Álvarez Gil, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Dominican Republic, said, “The Dominican government cannot accept the reckless call to halt repatriations, as this would be equivalent to declaring an open border, encouraging greater irregular migration to the country. We will never allow this.”

He also said, “The crisis enveloping Haiti is its own responsibility, exacerbated by the lack of timely and sustained support from the international community.”

Erastus Ekitela Lokaale, Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, said, “While the MSS is a critical and innovative intervention, it is only part of the solution. Haiti’s stability will only be accomplished through a multi-pronged approach that addresses the root causes of its challenges.”

MIL OSI Video –

MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Report 11/2024: Collision between on-track machines near to Strood

Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

RAIB has today released its report into a collision between on-track machines near to Strood, Kent, 16 November 2023.

The site of the accident (courtesy of Babcock Rail).

R112024_241024_Strood

PDF, 7.15 MB, 37 pages

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Summary

At about 04:15 on 16 November 2023, an on-track machine driver was injured while coupling a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) to a tamper on the High Speed 1 (HS1) line near Strood, in Kent. The tamper, which had been stationary, moved and struck the driver after a second MPV collided with the other end of it at a speed of about 20 km/h (12 mph). This second MPV was being driven towards the tamper with the intention of coupling all three vehicles together at the end of a night shift.

RAIB’s investigation found that it had become normal practice for this coupling operation to be undertaken with another vehicle approaching the other end of the tamper. The established method of working was for the approaching vehicle to come to a stand at a ‘holding point’ situated around 50 to 100 metres away from the stationary vehicles. The final movement would then be made at very slow speed and under control of the driver responsible for the coupling operation.

However, on this occasion the second MPV did not stop at the holding point. This was because the driver propelling (reversing) the second MPV did not have a view of the railway in the direction of travel of the vehicle and was reliant on radio messages from a machine controller at the rear to know when to slow or stop the vehicle. On the night of the accident, the radio being used by the machine controller had developed an intermittent fault, which led to a breakdown in communication with the driver. Due to the design of the radio, neither the driver nor the machine controller were initially aware that communications had been lost. Although the machine controller subsequently realised that the radio was not working and alerted the driver that they needed to brake by a shouted warning, this occurred too late to avoid the collision.

RAIB found that the type of radios being used during the movement did not transmit a constant ‘confidence tone’ which would have alerted staff to the loss of communications. It was also not normal practice for machine controllers to communicate constantly on long transit moves. In addition, RAIB found that the type of MPVs used on HS1 were not fitted with any facility for machine controllers riding on the rear deck to brake the vehicle, despite an internal recommendation to fit this facility after a previous similar accident in 2021.

An underlying factor in this accident was that Network Rail High Speed, the infrastructure manager for HS1, did not have safe systems of work for propelling moves or working on track when engineering vehicles were running during a possession. A possible underlying factor was that the strategic safety assurance undertaken by HS1 Ltd, which has the concession to operate HS1, did not identify that the recommendation to fit a braking facility to the rear deck had been closed with no actions being taken.

Since the accident, Network Rail High Speed has fitted its MPV fleet with emergency stop buttons adjacent to the rear deck, secure communications systems and is due to install a rearwards-facing camera, connected to an in-cab monitor.

Recommendations

RAIB has made four recommendations. The first three are addressed to Network Rail High Speed and the fourth to HS1 Ltd. The first recommendation aims to control the risks of engineering vehicle operation on HS1, while the second looks to keep staff working on the line safe by implementing a robust procedural framework. The third recommendation is that Network Rail High Speed ensures that internal recommendations and local actions are reviewed and implemented in a way that reflects their intent, and in a way that can be tracked and used to support safety decision‑making. The final recommendation is for HS1 Ltd to exercise effective strategic safety assurance of its suppliers.

Notes to editors

The sole purpose of RAIB investigations is to prevent future accidents and incidents and improve railway safety. RAIB does not establish blame, liability or carry out prosecutions.
RAIB operates, as far as possible, in an open and transparent manner. While our investigations are completely independent of the railway industry, we do maintain close liaison with railway companies and if we discover matters that may affect the safety of the railway, we make sure that information about them is circulated to the right people as soon as possible, and certainly long before publication of our final report.
For media enquiries, please call 01932 440015.

Newsdate: 22 October 2024

Published 24 October 2024

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: SCS visits Immigration Department (with photos)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

SCS visits Immigration Department (with photos)
SCS visits Immigration Department (with photos)
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The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, visited the new headquarters of the Immigration Department (ImmD) in Tseung Kwan O today (October 24) to gain a first-hand understanding of the department’s services, latest developments and the work of its frontline staff. Mrs Yeung and the Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Clement Leung, first met with the Director of Immigration, Mr Benson Kwok, and other directorate staff, and received a briefing on the latest developments of the department. They also met with staff representatives from various grades in the department to hear their concerns and views. Mrs Yeung said that “The Chief Executive’s 2024 Policy Address” has put forward various initiatives to strengthen the governance capabilities and management of the civil service with a view to forming a high-quality and efficient government team. She encouraged the ImmD colleagues to stay united and continue to provide quality and efficient services with a team spirit striving for innovation and progression. She then visited the Registration of Persons Office where ImmD staff briefed her on the self-service personal documentation services at the ImmD headquarters. The new Personal Documentation Submission Kiosks allow citizens to apply for Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passports on a self-service basis, and in the future, self-application services for Hong Kong identity cards will be introduced for the first time to save time and provide more convenience. The Personal Documentation Collection Kiosks integrate various functions of the existing collection kiosks. The new kiosks will further facilitate the submission of applications and collection of personal documentations in a self-service manner, thereby providing public services of higher quality. Mrs Yeung then visited the new Marriage Registry at the headquarters. Its marriage hall adopts a novel design with various photo-taking spots set up in the outdoor area such as the heart-shaped garden for newlyweds and guests to pose for photos. It has been very popular since its opening in June this year. During her visit, she also toured the Enterprise System Management Centre, which is responsible for monitoring the operation of the computer systems of all control points and offices. The centre operates around the clock and monitors the status of various computer systems in real time. It provides prompt response and co-ordination where necessary to ensure the smooth operation of the computer systems. She said, “The strategic leverage of technology to streamline workflow, and digitalisation to improve the efficiency of processing document applications is both a trend and a more effective use of manpower resources. Most importantly, it brings more convenient public services and experiences to the public. In the face of enormous service demand, the ImmD’s efforts in actively developing new information technology systems to enhance service quality are commendable.”

Ends/Thursday, October 24, 2024Issued at HKT 19:14

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MIL-OSI USA: Deputy Administrator Coleman at the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI) Session

Source: USAID

DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR ISOBEL COLEMAN: First, I want to thank the Italian Presidency for its strong focus on the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment over the past year.

I want to commend our collective efforts to make PGI an initiative built to last. The standing Secretariat sets PGI up for longevity and success, and we expect that PGI will remain an on-going G7 priority across multiple presidencies. The United States has marshaled multiple agencies, including USAID, the Department of State, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), the U.S. Export-Import Bank, from across the U.S. government to support our contributions.

Over the last four years, we’ve witnessed significant progress. Notably, the U.S. announced our support for three important economic corridors, Lobito in Southern Africa, Luzon in the Philippines, and the Trans-Caspian in Central Asia, which have received tremendous support from our G7 partners. The European Union and Italy have signed an MoU to cooperate on developing the Lobito Corridor; we are cooperating with the EU in Central Asia on the Trans-Caspian Corridor; and we are working closely with Japan on the Luzon Corridor.

But even as we celebrate this progress, we acknowledge that there is much left to be done. The gap for infrastructure financing continues to grow; our partners in Africa and the Indo-Pacific face unsustainable debt levels; and threats like climate change, global conflict, and market instability create additional challenges to navigate.

So, we are doubling down on our efforts. Just this year, the United States approved a loan of over $550 million from the Development Finance Corporation to support the rehabilitation of the Lobito Atlantic Railroad, building on our support earlier in 2022 to help put together the private sector consortium responsible for operating the railroad. USAID is also providing support to the Angolan Ministry of Transportation to create a full-time public-private partnership unit dedicated to helping the government partner more deeply with the private sector for infrastructure development.

This is the comparative advantage of the PGI approach: by creating sustainable sources of financing, ones that ideally do not add to a country’s debt burden, and prioritizing supporting investments in agriculture, digital services, health, and other critical sectors, PGI is creating the conditions for the long-term success of these infrastructure investments.

When I travel abroad – and I’m sure it’s the same when you all travel abroad – the number one request we receive from our partners is more support for trade, investment, and infrastructure. So, through PGI, we’re putting those local voices in the lead, and meeting a priority demand.

When President Biden travels to Angola in December, the first sitting U.S. president to visit that country, the Lobito Corridor will be a focus of his historic visit. PGI is the framework through which we can collectively coordinate our investments in such strategic initiatives as these economic corridors to harness maximal benefit: for developing clean energy; expanding access to digital finance; supporting female smallholder farmers as engines of local growth; and providing the communities in the region with a full range of opportunities to benefit from the investments. Through PGI, the U.S. and G7 are not just trying to get the job done, but we’re committed to getting the job done right, with openness and transparency, in partnership with local communities, and with an eye toward building sustainable progress.

The U.S. is pleased to be contributing to the development of critical infrastructure around the world, and we know we cannot do this work alone: we rely on the leadership and contributions of our G7 partners. We also know that to meet global needs, we must play the long game. We look forward to our continued collaboration on PGI in the years to come as we seek to advance this critical global priority.

MIL OSI USA News –

MIL-OSI USA: US Department of Labor, Office of the Trade Representative seek review of alleged denial of labor rights at Hidalgo, Mexico, cement plant facility

Source: US Department of Labor

WASHINGTON – The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement’s Interagency Labor Committee for Monitoring and Enforcement today requested that the Mexican government review an alleged denial of workers’ rights at Odisa Equipment Services, a cement plant machinery manufacturing facility in Hidalgo, Mexico.

The U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Trade Representative co-chair the Interagency Labor Committee.

The request follows a Sept. 23, 2024, petition filed by a union affiliated with the Confederación Regional Obrera Mexicana, a federation of Mexican labor unions. Filed under the USMCA’s Rapid Response Labor Mechanism, or RRM, the petition alleges Odisa interfered with workers’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining through the intimidation and dismissal of workers for union activity.

“We are deeply concerned by the anti-union activity at the Odisa facility,” said Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs Thea Lee. “Such practices violate Mexican labor laws and undermine the labor protections established under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. We look forward to working closely with the government of Mexico to resolve these denials of rights.”

The Interagency Labor Committee found sufficient and credible evidence that supports the allegations, resulting in USTR submitting the request for review using the RRM.

“This is another example of how the Biden-Harris administration is keeping corporations accountable and lifting up working communities by protecting workers’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “The United States remains committed to empowering workers through the USMCA, and we look forward to collaborating with the government of Mexico to address the ongoing denials of rights at this facility.”

The Mexican government has 10 days to decide whether to conduct a review and 45 days to investigate the claims and present its findings.

A subsidiary of Odisa, which has manufactured concrete batch plants, truck mixers and material handling equipment for nearly 50 years, Odisa Equipment Services exports material handling equipment, including sheet metal and aluminum goods, to dozens of countries including the U.S.

Learn more about the department’s international work.

MIL OSI USA News –

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MIL-OSI: Visteon Announces Third Quarter 2024 Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP, Mich., Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Visteon Corporation (NASDAQ: VC) today reported third quarter financial results. Highlights include:

Sales of $980 million with Growth-over-Market of 6%¹
Net income of $39 million and adjusted net income of $63 million
Adjusted EBITDA of $119 million
Launched 30 new products in the quarter and 71 year-to-date
New business wins of $4.9 billion year-to-date
Net cash of $229 million at quarter end

Visteon reported solid net sales of $980 million in a challenging production environment. We delivered 6% outperformance relative to customer vehicle production, driven by strong demand for digital cockpit and electrification products. Our market outperformance was offset by lower customer production and reduced customer recoveries resulting from improved semiconductor supply.

Gross margin in the third quarter was $131 million. Net income attributable to Visteon was $39 million or $1.40 per diluted share and adjusted net income, a non-GAAP measure defined below, was $63 million or $2.26 per diluted share. Net income, as compared to the prior year, includes the favorable impact of strong operational performance and lower net engineering, partially offset by restructuring expense incurred in the third quarter of 2024. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure defined below, was $119 million in the third quarter and reflects the Company’s strong focus on operational execution, commercial excellence, and cost discipline.

For the first nine months, cash from operations was $224 million, capital expenditures were $96 million and adjusted free cash flow, a non-GAAP measure defined below, was $135 million. The company ended the third quarter with cash of $553 million and debt of $324 million. Our strong balance sheet, with a net cash position of $229 million, provides the flexibility to deliver on our capital allocation priorities.

Visteon launched 30 new products in the third quarter, with launches across each of its product lines. Key third quarter launches include an infotainment display system on the Tata Punch, highlighting our continued momentum in India; SmartCore⁽^TM) on an electric SUV for Lynk & Co for the European market and the Renault Grand Koleos hybrid for the Korean market; a digital cluster on the Nissan Qashqai, a popular SUV in Europe; and a wireless BMS for the all-electric Jeep Wagoneer.

Visteon secured $4.9 billion in new business through the first nine months of the year, including $2.5 billion of wins with OEMs in Asia excluding China. Our success in diversifying into adjacent end-markets also continued, with further momentum with two-wheeler and commercial vehicle OEMs. Third quarter wins included a large, curved display for multiple mass market vehicles in Europe for a global OEM, SmartCore™ and display wins for a SUV model for an Indian OEM and for an electric vehicle for a domestic China OEM. We also had a follow-on win for a digital cluster with a two-wheeler OEM in India.

“Visteon delivered solid sales and growth-over-market in the third quarter, demonstrating our ability to navigate a challenging customer production environment,” said President and CEO Sachin Lawande. “Demand from our customers remains robust for our diverse product portfolio targeting automotive megatrends of digitalization and electrification. Our continued success in securing new business wins and our momentum with two-wheeler and commercial vehicle OEMs provide a strong foundation for future growth.”

Based on our year-to-date performance and outlook for the fourth quarter, Visteon is updating its full-year 2024 guidance and anticipates sales in the range of $3.85 – $3.90 billion, adjusted EBITDA in the range of $465 – $480 million, and adjusted free cash flow in the range of $165 – $185 million.

About Visteon

Visteon is advancing mobility through innovative technology solutions that enable a software-defined and electric future. With next-generation digital cockpit and electrification products, Visteon leverages the strength and agility of its global network with a local footprint to deliver a cleaner, safer and more connected vehicle experience. Headquartered in Van Buren Township, Michigan, Visteon operates in 17 countries worldwide, recorded approximately $3.95 billion in annual sales and booked $7.2 billion of new business in 2023. Learn more at investors.visteon.com/.

Conference Call and Presentation
Today, Thursday, October 24, at 9 a.m. ET, the company will host a conference call for the investment community to discuss the quarter’s results and other related items. The conference call is available to the general public via a live audio webcast.

The dial-in numbers to participate in the call are:

U.S./Canada: 1-888-330-2508
Outside U.S./Canada: 1-240-789-2735
Conference ID: 8897485

(Call approximately 10 minutes before the start of the conference.)

The conference call and live audio webcast, related presentation materials and other supplemental information will be accessible in the Investors section of Visteon’s website.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information

Because not all companies use identical calculations, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, adjusted EPS, free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow used throughout this press release may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies.

In order to provide the forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures for full-year 2024, the company provides reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures on the subsequent slides. The provision of these comparable GAAP financial measures is not intended to indicate that the company is explicitly or implicitly providing projections on those GAAP financial measures, and actual results for such measures are likely to vary from those presented. The reconciliations include all information reasonably available to the company at the date of this press release and the adjustments that management can reasonably predict.

Forward-looking Information

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “will,” “may,” “designed to,” “outlook,” “believes,” “should,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “estimates,” “forecasts” and similar expressions identify certain of these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results and conditions but rather are subject to various factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to:

continued and future impacts of the geopolitical conflicts and related supply chain disruptions, including but not limited to the conflicts in the Middle East, Russia and East Asia and the possible imposition of sanctions;
significant or prolonged shortage of critical components from our suppliers, including but not limited to semiconductors, and particularly those who are our sole or primary sources;
failure of the Company’s joint venture partners to comply with contractual obligations or to exert influence or pressure in China;
conditions within the automotive industry, including (i) the automotive vehicle production volumes and schedules of our customers, (ii) the financial condition of our customers and the effects of any restructuring or reorganization plans that may be undertaken by our customers, including work stoppages at our customers, and (iii) possible disruptions in the supply of commodities to us or our customers due to financial distress, work stoppages, natural disasters or civil unrest;
our ability to satisfy future capital and liquidity requirements; including our ability to access the credit and capital markets at the times and in the amounts needed and on terms acceptable to us; our ability to comply with financial and other covenants in our credit agreements; and the continuation of acceptable supplier payment terms;
our ability to access funds generated by foreign subsidiaries and joint ventures on a timely and cost-effective basis;
general economic conditions, including changes in interest rates and fuel prices; the timing and expenses related to internal restructurings, employee reductions, acquisitions or dispositions and the effect of pension and other post-employment benefit obligations;
disruptions in information technology systems including, but not limited to, system failure, cyber-attack, malicious computer software (malware including ransomware), unauthorized physical or electronic access, or other natural or man-made incidents or disasters;
increases in raw material and energy costs and our ability to offset or recover these costs; increases in our warranty, product liability and recall costs or the outcome of legal or regulatory proceedings to which we are or may become a party;
changes in laws, regulations, policies or other activities of governments, agencies and similar organizations, domestic and foreign, that may tax or otherwise increase the cost of, or otherwise affect, the manufacture, licensing, distribution, sale, ownership or use of our products or assets; and
those factors identified in our filings with the SEC (including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, as updated by our subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission).

Caution should be taken not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, which represent our view only as of the date of this release, and which we assume no obligation to update. The financial results presented herein are preliminary and unaudited; final financial results will be included in the company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2024. New business wins and re-wins do not represent firm orders or firm commitments from customers, but are based on various assumptions, including the timing and duration of product launches, vehicle production levels, customer price reductions and currency exchange rates.

Follow Visteon:

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (In millions except per share amounts) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
	September 30,						September 30,
		2024			2023			2024			2023

Net sales	$	980		$	1,014		$	2,927		$	2,964
Cost of sales		(849	)		(871	)		(2,530	)		(2,607	)
Gross margin		131			143			397			357
Selling, general and administrative expenses		(51	)		(52	)		(152	)		(156	)
Restructuring, net		(28	)		—			(31	)		(2	)
Interest expense, net		—			(1	)		—			(7	)
Equity in net income (loss) of non-consolidated affiliates		(3	)		(1	)		(7	)		(8	)
Other income (expense), net		2			3			7			(4	)
Income (loss) before income taxes		51			92			214			180
Provision for income taxes		(11	)		(21	)		(55	)		(48	)
Net income (loss)		40			71			159			132
Less: Net (income) loss attributable to non-controlling interests		(1	)		(5	)		(7	)		(12	)
Net income (loss) attributable to Visteon Corporation	$	39		$	66		$	152		$	120

Comprehensive income (loss)	$	69		$	58		$	153		$	114
Less: Comprehensive (income) loss attributable to non-controlling interests		(7	)		(4	)		(10	)		(6	)
Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to Visteon Corporation	$	62		$	54		$	143		$	108

Basic earnings (loss) per share attributable to Visteon Corporation	$	1.41		$	2.35		$	5.51		$	4.26

Diluted earnings (loss) per share attributable to Visteon Corporation	$	1.40		$	2.32		$	5.45		$	4.20

Average shares outstanding (in millions)
Basic		27.6			28.1			27.6			28.2
Diluted		27.9			28.5			27.9			28.6

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In millions)

	*(Unaudited)*
	September 30,			December 31,
		2024			2023
ASSETS
Cash and equivalents	$	550		$	515
Restricted cash		3			3
Accounts receivable, net		719			666
Inventories, net		321			298
Other current assets		109			134
Total current assets		1,702			1,616

Property and equipment, net		438			418
Intangible assets, net		157			90
Right-of-use assets		103			109
Investments in non-consolidated affiliates		27			35
Deferred tax assets		387			384
Other non-current assets		79			75
Total assets	$	2,893		$	2,727

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Short-term debt	$	18		$	18
Accounts payable		547			551
Accrued employee liabilities		98			99
Current lease liability		29			30
Other current liabilities		245			233
Total current liabilities		937			931

Long-term debt, net		306			318
Employee benefits		143			160
Non-current lease liability		79			79
Deferred tax liabilities		46			31
Other non-current liabilities		109			85

Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock		1			1
Additional paid-in capital		1,369			1,356
Retained earnings		2,426			2,274
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(263	)		(254	)
Treasury stock		(2,348	)		(2,339	)
Total Visteon Corporation stockholders’ equity		1,185			1,038
Non-controlling interests		88			85
Total equity		1,273			1,123
Total liabilities and equity	$	2,893		$	2,727

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (In millions) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
	September 30,						September 30,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
OPERATING
Net income (loss)	$	40		$	71		$	159		$	132
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided from (used by) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		25			24			71			79
Non-cash stock-based compensation		10			9			31			26
Equity in net loss (income) of non-consolidated affiliates, net of dividends remitted		3			1			7			8
Tax valuation allowance benefit		(7	)		—			(7	)		—
Other non-cash items		3			1			10			(3	)
Changes in assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable		(6	)		(12	)		(55	)		(19	)
Inventories		—			6			(23	)		23
Accounts payable		(5	)		35			3			(54	)
Other assets and other liabilities		35			(8	)		28			(23	)
Net cash provided from (used by) operating activities		98			127			224			169
INVESTING
Capital expenditures, including intangibles		(28	)		(31	)		(96	)		(82	)
Acquisition of business, net of cash acquired		(48	)		—			(48	)		—
Contributions to equity method investments		(1	)		(1	)		(1	)		(1	)
Loan provided to non-consolidated affiliate		—			—			(5	)		—
Other		1			1			2			3
Net cash used by investing activities		(76	)		(31	)		(148	)		(80	)
FINANCING
Dividends to non-controlling interests		—			(12	)		—			(27	)
Short-term debt, net		—			(3	)		—			—
Repurchase of common stock		—			(46	)		(20	)		(76	)
Stock based compensation tax withholding payments		—			(1	)		(7	)		(16	)
Proceeds from the exercise of stock options		—			4			—			8
Principal repayment of term debt facility		(4	)		(4	)		(13	)		(8	)
Net cash used by financing activities		(4	)		(62	)		(40	)		(119	)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash		27			(8	)		(1	)		(8	)
Net decrease in cash, equivalents, and restricted cash		45			26			35			(38	)
Cash, equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of the period		508			459			518			523
Cash, equivalents, and restricted cash at end of the period	$	553		$	485		$	553		$	485

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
(In millions except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)

Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA is presented as a supplemental measure of the Company’s performance that management believes is useful to investors because the excluded items may vary significantly in timing or amounts and/or may obscure trends useful in evaluating and comparing the Company’s operating activities across reporting periods. The Company defines adjusted EBITDA as net income attributable to the Company adjusted to eliminate the impact of depreciation and amortization, provision for (benefit from) income taxes, non-cash stock-based compensation expense, net interest expense, net income attributable to non-controlling interests, net restructuring expense, equity in net (income)/loss of non-consolidated affiliates, gain on non-consolidated affiliate transactions, and other gains and losses not reflective of the Company’s ongoing operations. Because not all companies use identical calculations, this presentation of adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies.

	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended				Estimated
	September 30,				September 30,				Full Year
Visteon:		2024		2023		2024		2023		2024
Net income attributable to Visteon Corporation	$	39	$	66	$	152	$	120		202
Depreciation and amortization		25		24		71		79		96
Provision for income taxes		11		21		55		48		75
Non-cash, stock-based compensation expense		10		9		31		26		42
Restructuring, net		28		—		31		2		34
Interest expense, net		—		1		—		7		—
Net income attributable to non-controlling interests		1		5		7		12		10
Equity in net loss (income) of non-consolidated affiliates		3		1		7		8		9
Other		2		1		3		15		5
Adjusted EBITDA	$	119	$	128	$	357	$	317	$	473²

Adjusted EBITDA is not a recognized term under U.S. GAAP and does not purport to be a substitute for net income as an indicator of operating performance or cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity. Adjusted EBITDA has limitations as an analytical tool and is not intended to be a measure of cash flow available for management’s discretionary use, as it does not consider certain cash requirements such as interest payments, tax payments and debt service requirements. In addition, the Company uses adjusted EBITDA (i) as a factor in incentive compensation decisions, (ii) to evaluate the effectiveness of the Company’s business strategies, and (iii) because the Company’s credit agreements use similar measures for compliance with certain covenants.

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
(In millions except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)

Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow: Free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow are presented as supplemental measures of the Company’s liquidity that management believes are useful to investors in analyzing the Company’s ability to service and repay its debt. The Company defines free cash flow as cash flow provided from operating activities less capital expenditures, including intangibles. The Company defines adjusted free cash flow as cash flow provided from operating activities less capital expenditures, including intangibles as further adjusted for restructuring related payments. Because not all companies use identical calculations, this presentation of free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies.

	Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended						Estimated
	September 30,						September 30,						Full Year
Visteon:		2024			2023			2024			2023			2024
Cash provided from (used by) operating activities	$	98		$	127		$	224		$	169			305
Capital expenditures, including intangibles		(28	)		(31	)		(96	)		(82	)		(145	)
Free cash flow	$	70		$	96		$	128		$	87		$	160
Restructuring related payments		3			2			7			6			15
Adjusted free cash flow	$	73		$	98		$	135		$	93		$	175³

Free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow are not recognized terms under U.S. GAAP and do not purport to be a substitute for cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity. Free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow have limitations as analytical tools as they do not reflect cash used to service debt and do not reflect funds available for investment or other discretionary uses. In addition, the Company uses free cash flow and adjusted free cash flow (i) as factors in incentive compensation decisions and (ii) for planning and forecasting future periods.

VISTEON CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
(In millions except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)

Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Earnings Per Share: Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share are presented as supplemental measures that management believes are useful to investors in analyzing the Company’s profitability, providing comparability between periods by excluding certain items that may not be indicative of recurring business operating results. The Company believes management and investors benefit from referring to these supplemental measures in assessing company performance and when planning, forecasting and analyzing future periods. The Company defines adjusted net income as net income attributable to Visteon adjusted to eliminate the impact of restructuring expense, loss on divestiture, gain on non-consolidated affiliate transactions, other gains and losses not reflective of the Company’s ongoing operations and related tax effects. The Company defines adjusted earnings per share as adjusted net income divided by diluted shares. Because not all companies use identical calculations, this presentation of adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies.

	Three Months Ended					Nine Months Ended
	September 30,					September 30,
		2024			2023		2024			2023
Net income attributable to Visteon	$	39		$	66	$	152		$	120

Diluted earnings per share:
Net income attributable to Visteon	$	39		$	66	$	152		$	120
Average shares outstanding, diluted		27.9			28.5		27.9			28.6
Diluted earnings per share	$	1.40		$	2.32	$	5.45		$	4.20

Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share:
Net income attributable to Visteon	$	39		$	66	$	152		$	120
Restructuring, net		28			—		31			2
Other		2			1		3			15
Tax impacts of adjustments		(6	)		—		(7	)		—
Adjusted net income	$	63		$	67	$	179		$	137
Average shares outstanding, diluted		27.9			28.5		27.9			28.6
Adjusted earnings per share	$	2.26		$	2.35	$	6.42		$	4.79

Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share are not recognized terms under U.S. GAAP and do not purport to be a substitute for profitability. Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share have limitations as analytical tools as they do not consider certain restructuring and transaction-related payments and/or expenses. In addition, the Company uses adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per share for internal planning and forecasting purposes.

¹ Excludes Y/Y impact of currency fluctuations
² Based on mid-point of the range of the Company’s financial guidance
³ Based on mid-point of the range of the Company’s financial guidance

MIL-OSI: Bread Financial Provides Performance Update for September 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.^® (NYSE: BFH), a tech-forward financial services company that provides simple, personalized payment, lending and saving solutions, provided a performance update. The following tables present the Company’s net loss rate and delinquency rate for the periods indicated.

	For the month ended September 30, 2024			For the three months ended September 30, 2024
	(dollars in millions)
End-of-period credit card and other loans	$	17,933		$	17,933
Average credit card and other loans ⁽¹⁾	$	17,955		$	17,766
Year-over-year change in average credit card and other loans ⁽¹⁾		3	%		1	%
Net principal losses	$	110		$	347
Net loss rate ⁽¹⁾		7.4	%		7.8	%

	As of September 30, 2024			As of September 30, 2023
	(dollars in millions)
30 days + delinquencies – principal	$	1,062		$	1,038
Period ended credit card and other loans – principal	$	16,476		$	16,585
Delinquency rate		6.4	%		6.3	%

__________________________________________________________________________

⁽¹⁾

Beginning in January 2024, we revised the calculation of Average credit card and other loans to more closely align with industry practice by incorporating an average daily balance. Prior to 2024, Average credit card and other loans represent the average balance of the loans at the beginning and end of each month, averaged over the periods indicated. Consequentially, the calculations for Year-over-year change in average credit card and other loans and Net loss rate differ for the periods presented.

About Bread Financial^®
Bread Financial ^® (NYSE: BFH) is a tech-forward financial services company providing simple, personalized payment, lending and saving solutions. The company creates opportunities for its customers and partners through digitally enabled choices that offer ease, empowerment, financial flexibility and exceptional customer experiences. Driven by a digital-first approach, data insights and white-label technology, Bread Financial delivers growth for its partners through a comprehensive suite of payment solutions that includes private label and co-brand credit cards and Bread Pay ^® buy now, pay later products. Bread Financial also offers direct-to-consumer products that give customers more access, choice and freedom through its branded Bread Cashback ^® American Express ^® Credit Card, Bread Rewards™ American Express ^® Credit Card and Bread Savings ^® products.   
    
Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Bread Financial is powered by its approximately 7,000 global associates and is committed to sustainable business practices. To learn more about Bread Financial, visit breadfinancial.com or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, X and Instagram.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements give our expectations or forecasts of future events and can generally be identified by the use of words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “project,” “plan,” “likely,” “may,” “should” or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements that describe our business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements we make regarding, and the guidance we give with respect to, our anticipated operating or financial results, future financial performance and outlook, future dividend declarations, and future economic conditions.

We believe that our expectations are based on reasonable assumptions. Forward-looking statements, however, are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict and, in many cases, beyond our control. Accordingly, our actual results could differ materially from the projections, anticipated results or other expectations expressed in this release, and no assurances can be given that our expectations will prove to have been correct. Factors that could cause the outcomes to differ materially include, but are not limited to, the following: macroeconomic conditions, including market conditions, inflation, higher interest rates, labor market conditions, recessionary pressures or a concern over a prolonged economic slowdown, and the related impact on consumer spending behavior, payments, debt levels, savings rates and other behavior; global political and public health events and conditions, including ongoing wars and military conflicts and natural disasters; future credit performance, including the level of future delinquency and write-off rates; the loss of, or reduction in demand from, significant brand partners or customers in the highly competitive markets in which we compete; the concentration of our business in U.S. consumer credit; inaccuracies in the models and estimates on which we rely, including the amount of our Allowance for credit losses and our credit risk management models; the inability to realize the intended benefits of acquisitions, dispositions and other strategic initiatives; our level of indebtedness and ability to access financial or capital markets; pending and future federal and state legislation, regulation, supervisory guidance, and regulatory and legal actions, including, but not limited to, those related to financial regulatory reform and consumer financial services practices, as well as any such actions with respect to late fees, interchange fees or other charges; impacts arising from or relating to the transition of our credit card processing services to third party service providers that we completed in 2022; failures or breaches in our operational or security systems, including as a result of cyberattacks, unanticipated impacts from technology modernization projects or otherwise; and any tax or other liability or adverse impacts arising out of or related to the spinoff of our former LoyaltyOne segment or the bankruptcy filings of Loyalty Ventures Inc. (LVI) and certain of its subsidiaries and subsequent litigation or other disputes. In addition, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued a final rule that, absent a successful legal challenge, will place significant limits on credit card late fees, which would have a significant impact on our business and results of operations for at least the short term and, depending on the effectiveness of the mitigating actions that we have taken or may in the future take in anticipation of, or in response to, the final rule, may potentially adversely impact us over the long term; we cannot provide any assurance as to the effective date of the rule, the result of any pending or future challenges or other litigation relating to the rule, or our ability to mitigate or offset the impact of the rule on our business and results of operations. The foregoing factors, along with other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements, are described in greater detail under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year, which may be updated in Item 1A of, or elsewhere in, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed for periods subsequent to such Form 10-K. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and we undertake no obligation, other than as required by applicable law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, subsequent events, anticipated or unanticipated circumstances or otherwise.

Contacts
Brian Vereb – Investor Relations
Brian.Vereb@BreadFinancial.com

Susan Haugen – Investor Relations
Susan.Haugen@BreadFinancial.com

Rachel Stultz – Media
Rachel.Stultz@BreadFinancial.com

MIL-OSI: Nasdaq Reports Third Quarter 2024 Results; Fourth Consecutive Quarter of Double-Digit Solutions Revenue Growth

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ) today reported financial results for the third quarter of 2024.

Third quarter 2024 net revenue¹ was $1.1 billion, or $1.2 billion on a non-GAAP basis², an increase of 22% over the third quarter of 2023, up 10% on a pro forma³ basis. This included Solutions⁴ revenue increasing 26%, or 10% on a pro forma basis.
Annualized Recurring Revenue (ARR)⁵ of $2.7 billion increased 31% over the third quarter of 2023, up 8% on a pro forma basis.
Financial Technology revenue of $371 million increased 56% over the third quarter of 2023, up 10% on a pro forma basis.
Index revenue of $182 million increased 26%, with $62 billion of net inflows over the trailing twelve months and $14 billion in the third quarter.
GAAP diluted earnings per share decreased 11% in the third quarter of 2024. Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share increased 5% in the third quarter of 2024 and increased 20% organically.
In the third quarter of 2024, the company returned $138 million to shareholders through dividends and $88 million through repurchases of common stock. The company also repaid net $50 million of commercial paper in the third quarter of 2024.

Third Quarter 2024 Highlights

(US$ millions, except per share)	3Q24	Change % (YoY)	Organic change % (YoY)	Pro forma change % (YoY)
GAAP Solutions Revenue	$872	26%
Non-GAAP Solutions Revenue	$906	31%	9%	10%
Market Services Net Revenue	$266	13%	13%
GAAP Net Revenue*	$1,146	22%
Non-GAAP Net Revenue*	$1,180	26%	10%	10%
GAAP Operating Income	$448	4%
Non-GAAP Operating Income	$637	30%	12%	14%
ARR	$2,736	31%	7%	8%
GAAP Diluted EPS	$0.53	(11)%
Non-GAAP Diluted EPS	$0.74	5%	20%

^{Note: The period over period percentages are calculated based on exact dollars, and therefore may not agree to a recalculation based on rounded numbers shown in the table above. Pro forma results are not calculated in a manner consistent with the pro forma requirements in Article 11 of Regulation S-X. Refer to the footnotes below for further discussion.}

^{*Net revenues includes $8 million of Other Revenues, which reflect revenues associated with the European power trading and clearing business.}

Adena Friedman, Chair and CEO said, “Nasdaq delivered its fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit Solutions growth with strong overall quarterly performance.

As we approach the one-year anniversary of the Adenza acquisition, I am proud of our progress to date and excited about driving even greater value for our clients and shareholders.

The integration continues seamlessly. Through our One Nasdaq strategy we are deepening our partnerships with clients across the financial system and unlocking opportunities for sustained and scalable growth.”

Sarah Youngwood, Executive Vice President and CFO said, “Nasdaq’s performance continues to reflect the quality and diversity of our platforms, driving strong growth across the business with particular strength in Index and Financial Technology.

We are continuing to deliver ahead on deleveraging and synergies and are benefiting from significant operating leverage.

Looking ahead, we remain well positioned to execute on our next phase of sustainable growth.”

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Third quarter 2024 net revenue was $1.1 billion, reflecting 22% growth versus the prior year period while non-GAAP net revenue was $1.2 billion. Revenue growth included a $146 million benefit related to the acquisition of Adenza. Net revenue grew 10% on a pro forma basis.

Solutions revenue was $872 million in the third quarter of 2024, up 26% versus the prior year period, or 10% growth on a pro forma basis, reflecting strong growth from Index and Financial Technology.

ARR grew 31% year over year, or 8% on a pro forma basis, in the third quarter of 2024 with 14% pro forma ARR growth for Financial Technology and 2% ARR growth for Capital Access Platforms.

Market Services net revenue was $266 million in the third quarter of 2024, up 13% versus the prior year period. The increase was primarily driven by a $15 million increase in U.S. equity derivatives and an $11 million increase in U.S. cash equities.

Third quarter 2024 GAAP operating expenses were $698 million, an increase of 37% versus the prior year period. The increase for the third quarter was primarily due to the acquisition of Adenza, which resulted in an additional $87 million in amortization expense of acquired intangible assets, and $61 million of other AxiomSL and Calypso operating expenses, as well as organic growth driven by increased investments in technology and our people to drive innovation and long-term growth.

Third quarter 2024 non-GAAP operating expenses were $543 million, reflecting 21% growth versus the prior year period, or 5% growth on a pro forma basis. The increase for the third quarter was primarily due to the inclusion of $61 million of AxiomSL and Calypso operating expenses. The pro forma increase reflects growth driven by increased investments in technology and our people to drive innovation and long-term growth, partially offset by the benefit of synergies.

Third quarter 2024 cash flow from operations was $244 million, enabling the company to continue to make meaningful progress on its deleveraging plan. In the third quarter, the company returned $138 million to shareholders through dividends and $88 million through repurchases of our common stock. The company also repaid net $50 million of commercial paper in the third quarter of 2024. As of September 30, 2024, there was $1.7 billion remaining under the board authorized share repurchase program.

2024 EXPENSE AND TAX GUIDANCE UPDATE⁶

The company is updating its 2024 non-GAAP operating expense guidance to a range of $2,150 million to $2,180 million, and is updating its 2024 non-GAAP tax rate guidance to be in the range of 23.5% to 24.5%.

STRATEGIC AND BUSINESS UPDATES

Financial Technology delivered healthy revenue growth in the third quarter. Division revenue increased 10% on a pro forma basis, reflective of the mission-critical nature of the division’s solutions suite. Financial Technology pro forma ARR growth was 14% in the third quarter, with 39 new customers, 110 upsells, and 2 cross-sells. Third quarter highlights include:
- Nasdaq leapt to 5th place in Chartis’ annual RiskTech100® global ranking. This ranking is widely regarded as the most comprehensive independent study of the world’s major players in risk and compliance technology. The significant jump in ranking reflects the combined power of Nasdaq and Adenza’s technology offerings with Nasdaq and Adenza previously ranking #18 and #10, respectively. Nasdaq Verafin and AxiomSL won Chartis industry awards recognizing Nasdaq’s leadership in financial crime management and in regulatory reporting. The study also highlighted the value of Nasdaq’s governance and sustainability solutions.
- Financial Crime Management Technology had ARR growth of 24% with 114% net revenue retention and launched new AI product innovations. Financial Crime Management Technology signed 28 new SMB clients, in addition to the previously announced Tier 1 win in July. Nasdaq Verafin extended its track record of product innovation success with its AI Entity Research Copilot now deployed to more than 2,000 U.S. institutions. In the third quarter Nasdaq Verafin announced new enhancements to its Targeted Typology Analytics, an artificial intelligence (AI) based suite of detection capabilities targeting terrorist financing and drug trafficking activity.
- AxiomSL and Calypso achieved 15% combined pro forma ARR growth. AxiomSL and Calypso delivered a combined 47 upsells and 4 new clients, with 17% of new bookings in the quarter cloud-based. Combined gross revenue retention⁷ was 97% and net revenue retention⁸ was 111%. Excluding the impact of a significant bankruptcy first noted in the fourth quarter of 2023, pro forma ARR growth was 16%, gross revenue retention was 98%, and net revenue retention was 112%.
- Market Technology delivered 14% ARR growth as it continues to capture opportunities associated with the market modernization megatrend. Market Technology was driven by 13 upsells, 1 new client, and 1 cross-sell in the third quarter. ARR growth also benefited from the conversion of a previously mentioned large client delivery.
U.S. equity derivatives achieved record quarterly net revenue. In the third quarter of 2024, Nasdaq achieved a record quarter of U.S. equity derivatives net revenue of $107 million, with multi-listed U.S. options market share once again surpassing 30% in the quarter and 19% growth in U.S. index options volume.

Index delivered another quarter of outstanding performance and advanced its growth strategy across product innovation, globalization, and institutional client expansion. The Index business had $62 billion in net inflows over the trailing 12 months, with $14 billion in the third quarter. The business achieved another record in Index ETP AUM, averaging $575 billion in the third quarter and reaching $600 billion at quarter-end. Index derivatives trading volumes grew 24% year-over-year, also contributing to revenue growth. Nasdaq launched 35 new products with our partners in the quarter, 20 of which were international. The launches included 8 options overlays and 7 institutional insurance annuity products. Additionally, Nasdaq recently received 2024 Best Index Provider from Structured Retail Products, a global market intelligence provider, highlighting the business’ innovation and success as a strategic partner to our clients.
Nasdaq strengthened its listings leadership in the U.S. in the third quarter. Nasdaq listed 33 U.S. operating company IPOs that raised more than $6 billion in proceeds, reflecting an 85% win rate among eligible operating companies in the quarter. These listings contributed to a 75% win rate year-to-date through the third quarter for eligible operating companies comprising of 5 of the top 10 IPOs, including Lineage, the largest offering so far this year. Nasdaq also celebrated its 500th switch to our U.S. exchange in the quarter.
Nasdaq celebrated 25 Years of MarketSite in Times Square. MarketSite has stood as a physical embodiment of the Nasdaq brand since its debut and reflects Nasdaq’s culture of driving innovation and delivering valuable client solutions. MarketSite is a hub for Nasdaq’s clients and partners and an integral part of the global finance landscape.
Nasdaq continued its progress on its 2024 strategic priorities – Integrate, Innovate, Accelerate – positioning the company to capitalize on opportunities for sustainable, scalable, and resilient growth.
- Integrate – Since the acquisition of Adenza nearly a year-ago, Nasdaq has actioned more than 80% of its net expense synergy target and continues to delever ahead of plan.
- Innovate – Nasdaq reached new milestones in deploying AI tools and products including the launch of an internal Generative AI platform with custom-built efficiency tools and completed the rollout of AI copilot tools to all of its developers. Calypso also announced an AI-based solution for X-Value Adjustments (XVA) with up to 100 times faster processing speeds that improves the efficiency of risk calculations for banks, insurers, and other financial institutions. Beyond Nasdaq’s AI innovations, Market Services migrated Nasdaq International Securities Exchange to its next-generation derivatives platform, Fusion. Four of Nasdaq’s U.S. markets and one European equity derivatives market are operating on this platform which provides enhanced performance, including lower latency, higher throughput, and increased productivity.
- Accelerate – We continue to make progress on our One Nasdaq strategy driving two cross-sells across the Financial Technology division in the quarter. The percentage of cross-sell opportunities in the division’s pipeline is over 10% and Nasdaq remains on track to exceed $100 million in cross-sells by the end of 2027.

____________
¹ Represents revenue less transaction-based expenses.
² Refer to our reconciliations of U.S. GAAP to non-GAAP Solutions revenue, net revenue, net income attributable to Nasdaq, diluted earnings per share, operating income, operating expenses and organic impacts included in the attached schedules.
³ Pro forma results are presented assuming AxiomSL and Calypso were included in the prior year quarterly results and revenue for AxiomSL on-premises contracts were recognized ratably for all of 2023 and 2024. Pro forma growth excludes the impacts of foreign currency except for AxiomSL and Calypso, which are not yet calculated on an organic basis. These pro forma results are not calculated, and do not intend to be calculated, in a manner consistent with the pro forma requirements in Article 11 of Regulation S-X. Preparation of this information in accordance with Article 11 would differ from results presented in this release.
⁴ Constitutes revenue from our Capital Access Platforms and Financial Technology segments.
⁵ Annualized Recurring Revenue (ARR) for a given period is the current annualized value derived from subscription contracts with a defined contract value. This excludes contracts that are not recurring, are one-time in nature or where the contract value fluctuates based on defined metrics. ARR is currently one of our key performance metrics to assess the health and trajectory of our recurring business. ARR does not have any standardized definition and is therefore unlikely to be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. ARR should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue and is not intended to be combined with or to replace either of those items. For AxiomSL and Calypso recurring revenue contracts, the amount included in ARR is consistent with the amount that we invoice the customer during the current period. Additionally, for AxiomSL and Calypso recurring revenue contracts that include annual values that increase over time, we include in ARR only the annualized value of components of the contract that are considered active as of the date of the ARR calculation. We do not include the future committed increases in the contract value as of the date of the ARR calculation. ARR is not a forecast and the active contracts at the end of a reporting period used in calculating ARR may or may not be extended or renewed by our customers.
⁶ U.S. GAAP operating expense and tax rate guidance are not provided due to the inherent difficulty in quantifying certain amounts due to a variety of factors including the unpredictability in the movement in foreign currency rates, as well as future charges or reversals outside of the normal course of business.
⁷ Gross Retention: ARR in the current period over ARR in the prior year period for existing customers excluding price increases and upsells and excluding new customers.
⁸ Net Retention: ARR in the current period over ARR in the prior year period for existing customers including price increases and upsells and excluding new customers.

ABOUT NASDAQ

Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a global technology company serving corporate clients, investment managers, banks, brokers, and exchange operators as they navigate and interact with the global capital markets and the broader financial system. We aspire to deliver world-leading platforms that improve the liquidity, transparency, and integrity of the global economy. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software, exchange capabilities, and client-centric services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence. To learn more about the company, technology solutions and career opportunities, visit us on LinkedIn, on X @Nasdaq, or at www.nasdaq.com.

NON-GAAP INFORMATION

In addition to disclosing results determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP, Nasdaq also discloses certain non-GAAP results of operations, including, but not limited to, non-GAAP Solutions revenue, non-GAAP net revenue, non-GAAP net income attributable to Nasdaq, non-GAAP diluted earnings per share, non-GAAP operating income, and non-GAAP operating expenses, that include certain adjustments or exclude certain charges and gains that are described in the reconciliation table of U.S. GAAP to non-GAAP information provided at the end of this release. Management uses this non-GAAP information internally, along with U.S. GAAP information, in evaluating our performance and in making financial and operational decisions. We believe our presentation of these measures provides investors with greater transparency and supplemental data relating to our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we believe the presentation of these measures is useful to investors for period-to-period comparisons of results as the items described below in the reconciliation tables do not reflect ongoing operating performance.

These measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to, U.S. GAAP, and may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate such measures differently, which reduces their usefulness as a comparative measure. Investors should not rely on any single financial measure when evaluating our business. This information should be considered as supplemental in nature and is not meant as a substitute for our operating results in accordance with U.S. GAAP. We recommend investors review the U.S. GAAP financial measures included in this earnings release. When viewed in conjunction with our U.S. GAAP results and the accompanying reconciliations, we believe these non-GAAP measures provide greater transparency and a more complete understanding of factors affecting our business than U.S. GAAP measures alone.

We understand that analysts and investors regularly rely on non-GAAP financial measures, such as those noted above, to assess operating performance. We use these measures because they highlight trends more clearly in our business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on U.S. GAAP financial measures, since these measures eliminate from our results specific financial items that have less bearing on our ongoing operating performance.

Organic revenue and expense growth, organic change and organic impact are non-GAAP measures that reflect adjustments for: (i) the impact of period-over-period changes in foreign currency exchange rates, and (ii) the revenue, expenses and operating income associated with acquisitions and divestitures for the twelve month period following the date of the acquisition or divestiture. Reconciliations of these measures are described within the body of this release or in the reconciliation tables at the end of this release.

Foreign exchange impact: In countries with currencies other than the U.S. dollar, revenue and expenses are translated using monthly average exchange rates. Certain discussions in this release isolate the impact of year-over-year foreign currency fluctuations to better measure the comparability of operating results between periods. Operating results excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations are calculated by translating the current period’s results by the prior period’s exchange rates.

Restructuring programs: In the fourth quarter of 2023, following the closing of the Adenza acquisition, our management approved, committed to and initiated a restructuring program, “Adenza Restructuring” to optimize our efficiencies as a combined organization. In connection with this program, we expect to incur pre-tax charges principally related to employee-related costs, contract terminations, real estate impairments and other related costs. We expect to achieve benefits primarily in the form of expense and revenue synergies. In October 2022, following our September announcement to realign our segments and leadership, we initiated a divisional alignment program with a focus on realizing the full potential of this structure. In connection with the program, we expect to incur pre-tax charges principally related to employee-related costs, consulting, asset impairments and contract terminations over a two-year period. We expect to achieve benefits in the form of both increased customer engagement and operating efficiencies. Costs related to the Adenza restructuring and the divisional alignment programs are recorded as “restructuring charges” in our consolidated statements of income. We exclude charges associated with these programs for purposes of calculating non-GAAP measures as they are not reflective of ongoing operating performance or comparisons in Nasdaq’s performance between periods.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Information set forth in this communication contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Nasdaq cautions readers that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and that actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to (i) projections relating to our future financial results, total shareholder returns, growth, dividend program, trading volumes, products and services, ability to transition to new business models or implement our new corporate structure, taxes and achievement of synergy targets, (ii) statements about the closing or implementation dates and benefits of certain acquisitions, divestitures and other strategic, restructuring, technology, environmental, deleveraging and capital allocation initiatives, (iii) statements about our integrations of our recent acquisitions, (iv) statements relating to any litigation or regulatory or government investigation or action to which we are or could become a party, and (v) other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond Nasdaq’s control. These factors include, but are not limited to, Nasdaq’s ability to implement its strategic initiatives, economic, political and market conditions and fluctuations, geopolitical instability, government and industry regulation, interest rate risk, U.S. and global competition. Further information on these and other factors are detailed in Nasdaq’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, which are available on Nasdaq’s investor relations website at http://ir.nasdaq.com and the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Nasdaq undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

WEBSITE DISCLOSURE

Nasdaq intends to use its website, ir.nasdaq.com, as a means for disclosing material non-public information and for complying with SEC Regulation FD and other disclosure obligations.

Media Relations Contact		Investor Relations Contact
Nick Jannuzzi		Ato Garrett
973.760.1741		212.401.8737
nicholas.jannuzzi.@nasdaq.com		ato.garrett@nasdaq.com

NDAQF


Nasdaq, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income
(in millions, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)

		Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
		September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023

Revenues:
Capital Access Platforms		$	501		$	456		$	1,460		$	1,309
Financial Technology			371			238			1,183			700
Market Services			1,022			747			2,700			2,378
Other Revenues			8			10			27			30
	Total revenues		1,902			1,451			5,370			4,417
Transaction-based expenses:
Transaction rebates			(513	)		(447	)		(1,478	)		(1,377	)
Brokerage, clearance and exchange fees			(243	)		(64	)		(470	)		(262	)
Revenues less transaction-based expenses			1,146			940			3,422			2,778

Operating Expenses:
Compensation and benefits			332			260			1,000			777
Professional and contract services			36			31			108			92
Technology and communication infrastructure			71			58			207			168
Occupancy			28			28			85			99
General, administrative and other			26			26			84			62
Marketing and advertising			11			12			34			30
Depreciation and amortization			153			64			460			198
Regulatory			9			9			37			27
Merger and strategic initiatives			10			4			23			51
Restructuring charges			22			17			103			49
	Total operating expenses		698			509			2,141			1,553
Operating income			448			431			1,281			1,225
Interest income			8			72			20			86
Interest expense			(102	)		(101	)		(313	)		(174	)
Other income (loss)			1			1			15			(6	)
Net income (loss) from unconsolidated investees			1			(12	)		7			(8	)
Income before income taxes			356			391			1,010			1,123
Income tax provision			51			97			250			262
Net income			305			294			760			861
Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests			1			—			2			1
Net income attributable to Nasdaq		$	306		$	294		$	762		$	862

Per share information:
Basic earnings per share		$	0.53		$	0.60		$	1.32		$	1.76
Diluted earnings per share		$	0.53		$	0.60		$	1.32		$	1.74
Cash dividends declared per common share		$	0.24		$	0.22		$	0.70		$	0.64

Weighted-average common shares outstanding
for earnings per share:
Basic			575.1			491.3			575.6			490.7
Diluted			579.0			494.1			579.0			494.2

Nasdaq, Inc.
Revenue Detail
(in millions)
(unaudited)

				Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
				September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
					2024			2023			2024			2023

CAPITAL ACCESS PLATFORMS
	Data and Listing Services revenues			$	190		$	188		$	562		$	559
	Index revenues				182			144			517			383
	Workflow and Insights revenues				129			124			381			367
		Total Capital Access Platforms revenues			501			456			1,460			1,309

FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY
	Financial Crime Management Technology revenues				69			58			200			163
	Regulatory Technology revenues				68			35			253			102
	Capital Markets Technology revenues				234			145			730			435
		Total Financial Technology revenues			371			238			1,183			700

MARKET SERVICES
	Market Services revenues				1,022			747			2,700			2,378
	Transaction-based expenses:
			Transaction rebates		(513	)		(447	)		(1,478	)		(1,377	)
			Brokerage, clearance and exchange fees		(243	)		(64	)		(470	)		(262	)
		Total Market Services revenues, net			266			236			752			739

OTHER REVENUES					8			10			27			30

REVENUES LESS TRANSACTION-BASED EXPENSES				$	1,146		$	940		$	3,422		$	2,778

Nasdaq, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in millions)

		September 30,			December 31,
			2024			2023
Assets		(unaudited)
Current assets:
	Cash and cash equivalents	$	266		$	453
	Restricted cash and cash equivalents		42			20
	Default funds and margin deposits		5,865			7,275
	Financial investments		202			188
	Receivables, net		944			929
	Other current assets		239			231
Total current assets			7,558			9,096
Property and equipment, net			584			576
Goodwill			14,165			14,112
Intangible assets, net			7,072			7,443
Operating lease assets			388			402
Other non-current assets			793			665
Total assets		$	30,560		$	32,294

Liabilities
Current liabilities:
	Accounts payable and accrued expenses	$	289		$	332
	Section 31 fees payable to SEC		74			84
	Accrued personnel costs		314			303
	Deferred revenue		663			594
	Other current liabilities		229			146
	Default funds and margin deposits		5,865			7,275
	Short-term debt		499			291
Total current liabilities			7,933			9,025
Long-term debt			9,359			10,163
Deferred tax liabilities, net			1,566			1,642
Operating lease liabilities			399			417
Other non-current liabilities			222			220
Total liabilities			19,479			21,467

Commitments and contingencies
Equity
Nasdaq stockholders’ equity:
	Common stock		6			6
	Additional paid-in capital		5,477			5,496
	Common stock in treasury, at cost		(643	)		(587	)
	Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(1,952	)		(1,924	)
	Retained earnings		8,184			7,825
Total Nasdaq stockholders’ equity			11,072			10,816
	Noncontrolling interests		9			11
Total equity			11,081			10,827
Total liabilities and equity		$	30,560		$	32,294

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of U.S. GAAP to Non-GAAP Net Income Attributable to Nasdaq and Diluted Earnings Per Share
(in millions, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)


		Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
		September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023

U.S. GAAP net income attributable to Nasdaq		$	306		$	294		$	762		$	862
Non-GAAP adjustments:
	Adenza purchase accounting adjustment ⁽¹⁾		34			—			34			—
	Amortization expense of acquired intangible assets ⁽²⁾		122			37			366			112
	Merger and strategic initiatives expense ⁽³⁾		10			4			23			51
	Restructuring charges ⁽⁴⁾		22			17			103			49
	Lease asset impairments ⁽⁵⁾		—			—			—			24
	Net (income) loss from unconsolidated investees ⁽⁶⁾		(1	)		12			(7	)		8
	Legal and regulatory matters ⁽⁷⁾		—			—			16			(10	)
	Pension settlement charge ⁽⁸⁾		—			—			23			—
	Other (income) loss ⁽⁹⁾		1			9			(8	)		17
	Total non-GAAP adjustments		188			79			550			251
	Non-GAAP adjustment to the income tax provision ⁽¹⁰⁾		(65	)		(24	)		(151	)		(76	)
	Tax on intra-group transfer of intellectual property assets ⁽¹¹⁾		—			—			33			—
	Total non-GAAP adjustments, net of tax		123			55			432			175
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Nasdaq		$	429		$	349		$	1,194		$	1,037

U.S. GAAP diluted earnings per share		$	0.53		$	0.60		$	1.32		$	1.74
	Total adjustments from non-GAAP net income above		0.21			0.11			0.74			0.36
Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share		$	0.74		$	0.71		$	2.06		$	2.10

Weighted-average diluted common shares outstanding for earnings per share:			579.0			494.1			579.0			494.2


(1) During the third quarter of 2024, as part of finalizing the purchase accounting of the Adenza acquisition, we implemented a change to the accounting treatment of the revenues associated with AxiomSL on-premises subscription contracts, which are included in the Regulatory Technology business within the Financial Technology segment. Starting in the third quarter of 2024, we began recognizing AxiomSL’s subscription-based revenues on a ratable basis over the contract term. As a result of this change, we recognized a one-time revenue reduction of $32 million in the third quarter of 2024, reflecting the net impact of the accounting change since the date of the Adenza acquisition. The adjustment of $34 million reflects the prior year impact of this change.

(2) We amortize intangible assets acquired in connection with various acquisitions. Intangible asset amortization expense can vary from period to period due to episodic acquisitions completed, rather than from our ongoing business operations.

(3) We have pursued various strategic initiatives and completed acquisitions and divestitures in recent years which have resulted in expenses which would not have otherwise been incurred. These expenses generally include integration costs, as well as legal, due diligence and other third party transaction costs. The frequency and amount of such expenses vary significantly based on the size, timing and complexity of the transaction. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023, these costs primarily relate to the Adenza acquisition. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these costs were partially offset by a termination payment recognized in the second quarter of 2024 relating to the proposed divestiture of our Nordic power trading and clearing business.

(4) In the fourth quarter of 2023, following the closing of the Adenza acquisition, our management approved, committed to and initiated a restructuring program, “Adenza Restructuring” to optimize our efficiencies as a combined organization. In connection with this program, we expect to incur pre-tax charges principally related to employee-related costs, contract terminations, real estate impairments and other related costs. We expect to achieve benefits primarily in the form of expense and revenue synergies. In October 2022, following our September 2022 announcement to realign our segments and leadership, we initiated a divisional alignment program with a focus on realizing the full potential of this structure. In September 2024, we completed our divisional alignment program and recognized total pre-tax charges of $139 million over a two-year period.

(5) During the first quarter of 2023, we initiated a review of our real estate and facility capacity requirements due to our new and evolving work models. As a result, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recorded impairment charges related to our operating lease assets and leasehold improvements associated with vacating certain leased office space, which are recorded in occupancy expense and depreciation and amortization expense in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(6) We exclude our share of the earnings and losses of our equity method investments. This provides a more meaningful analysis of Nasdaq’s ongoing operating performance or comparisons in Nasdaq’s performance between periods.

(7) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these items primarily included the settlement of a Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority, or SFSA, fine and accruals related to certain legal matters. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, these items primarily included insurance recoveries related to legal matters. The fine is recorded in regulatory expense and the accruals and insurance recoveries are recorded in professional and contract services and general, administrative and other expense in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(8) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, we recorded a pre-tax loss as a result of settling our U.S. pension plan. The plan was terminated and partially settled in 2023, with final settlement occurring during the first quarter of 2024. The pre-tax loss is recorded in compensation and benefits in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(9) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, other items primarily include net gains from strategic investments entered into through our corporate venture program, which are included in other income (loss) in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(10) The non-GAAP adjustment to the income tax provision primarily includes the tax impact of each non-GAAP adjustment.

(11) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the completion of an intra-group transfer of intellectual property assets to U.S. headquarters resulted in a net tax expense of $33 million.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of U.S. GAAP to Non-GAAP Revenues Less Transaction-Based Expenses
(in millions)
(unaudited)

	Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
	September 30, 2024						September 30, 2024
	U.S. GAAP Revenues Less Transaction-Based Expenses		Adenza purchase accounting adjustment ⁽¹⁾		Non-GAAP Revenues Less Transaction-Based Expenses		U.S. GAAP Revenues Less Transaction-Based Expenses		Adenza purchase accounting adjustment ⁽¹⁾		Non-GAAP Revenues Less Transaction-Based Expenses
CAPITAL ACCESS PLATFORMS	$	501	$	—	$	501	$	1,460	$	—	1,460

FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY
Financial Crime Management Technology revenues		69		—		69		200		—	200
Regulatory Technology revenues ⁽¹⁾		68		34		102		253		34	287
Capital Markets Technology revenues		234		—		234		730		—	730
Total Financial Technology revenues		371		34		405		1,183		34	1,217
SOLUTIONS REVENUES		872		34		906		2,643		34	2,677

MARKET SERVICES REVENUES, NET		266		—		266		752		—	752
OTHER REVENUES		8		—		8		27		—	27
REVENUES LESS TRANSACTION-BASED EXPENSES	$	1,146	$	34	$	1,180	$	3,422	$	34	3,456

(1) During the third quarter of 2024, as part of finalizing the purchase accounting of the Adenza acquisition, we implemented a change to the accounting treatment of the revenues associated with AxiomSL on-premises subscription contracts, which are included in the Regulatory Technology business within the Financial Technology segment. Starting in the third quarter of 2024, we began recognizing AxiomSL’s subscription-based revenues on a ratable basis over the contract term. As a result of this change, we recognized a one-time revenue reduction of $32 million in the third quarter of 2024, reflecting the net impact of the accounting change since the date of the Adenza acquisition. The adjustment of $34 million reflects the prior year impact of this change.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of U.S. GAAP to Non-GAAP Operating Income and Operating Margin
(in millions)
(unaudited)

		Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
		September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023

U.S. GAAP operating income		$	448		$	431		$	1,281		$	1,225
Non-GAAP adjustments:
	Adenza purchase accounting adjustment ⁽¹⁾		34			—			34			—
	Amortization expense of acquired intangible assets ⁽²⁾		122			37			366			112
	Merger and strategic initiatives expense ⁽³⁾		10			4			23			51
	Restructuring charges ⁽⁴⁾		22			17			103			49
	Lease asset impairments ⁽⁵⁾		—			—			—			24
	Legal and regulatory matters ⁽⁶⁾		—			—			16			(10	)
	Pension settlement charge ⁽⁷⁾		—			—			23			—
	Other loss		1			2			4			2
	Total non-GAAP adjustments		189			60			569			228
Non-GAAP operating income		$	637		$	491		$	1,850		$	1,453

Revenues less transaction-based expenses		$	1,146		$	940		$	3,422		$	2,778

U.S. GAAP operating margin ⁽⁸⁾			39	%		46	%		37	%		44	%

Non-GAAP operating margin ⁽⁹⁾			54	%		52	%		54	%		52	%


(1) During the third quarter of 2024, as part of finalizing the purchase accounting of the Adenza acquisition, we implemented a change to the accounting treatment of the revenues associated with AxiomSL on-premises subscription contracts, which are included in the Regulatory Technology business within the Financial Technology segment. Starting in the third quarter of 2024, we began recognizing AxiomSL’s subscription-based revenues on a ratable basis over the contract term. As a result of this change, we recognized a one-time revenue reduction of $32 million in the third quarter of 2024, reflecting the net impact of the accounting change since the date of the Adenza acquisition. The adjustment of $34 million reflects the prior year impact of this change.

(2) We amortize intangible assets acquired in connection with various acquisitions. Intangible asset amortization expense can vary from period to period due to episodic acquisitions completed, rather than from our ongoing business operations.

(3) We have pursued various strategic initiatives and completed acquisitions and divestitures in recent years which have resulted in expenses which would not have otherwise been incurred. These expenses generally include integration costs, as well as legal, due diligence and other third party transaction costs. The frequency and amount of such expenses vary significantly based on the size, timing and complexity of the transaction. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023, these costs primarily relate to the Adenza acquisition. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these costs were partially offset by a termination payment recognized in the second quarter of 2024 relating to the proposed divestiture of our Nordic power trading and clearing business.

(4) In the fourth quarter of 2023, following the closing of the Adenza acquisition, our management approved, committed to and initiated a restructuring program, “Adenza Restructuring” to optimize our efficiencies as a combined organization. In connection with this program, we expect to incur pre-tax charges principally related to employee-related costs, contract terminations, real estate impairments and other related costs. We expect to achieve benefits primarily in the form of expense and revenue synergies. In October 2022, following our September announcement to realign our segments and leadership, we initiated a divisional alignment program with a focus on realizing the full potential of this structure. In September 2024, we completed our divisional alignment program and recognized total pre-tax charges of $139 million over a two-year period.

(5) During the first quarter of 2023, we initiated a review of our real estate and facility capacity requirements due to our new and evolving work models. As a result, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recorded impairment charges related to our operating lease assets and leasehold improvements associated with vacating certain leased office space, which are recorded in occupancy expense and depreciation and amortization expense in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(6) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these items primarily included the settlement of a SFSA fine and accruals related to certain legal matters. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, these items primarily included insurance recoveries related to legal matters. The fine is recorded in regulatory expense and the accruals and insurance recoveries are recorded in professional and contract services and general, administrative and other expense in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(7) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, we recorded a pre-tax loss as a result of settling our U.S. pension plan. The plan was terminated and partially settled in 2023, with final settlement occurring during the first quarter of 2024. The pre-tax loss is recorded in compensation and benefits in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(8) U.S. GAAP operating margin equals U.S. GAAP operating income divided by revenues less transaction-based expenses.

(9) Non-GAAP operating margin equals non-GAAP operating income divided by non-GAAP revenues less transaction-based expenses.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of U.S. GAAP to Non-GAAP Operating Expenses
(in millions)
(unaudited)

		Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
		September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023

U.S. GAAP operating expenses		$	698		$	509		$	2,141		$	1,553
Non-GAAP adjustments:
	Amortization expense of acquired intangible assets ⁽¹⁾		(122	)		(37	)		(366	)		(112	)
	Merger and strategic initiatives expense ⁽²⁾		(10	)		(4	)		(23	)		(51	)
	Restructuring charges ⁽³⁾		(22	)		(17	)		(103	)		(49	)
	Lease asset impairments ⁽⁴⁾		—			—			—			(24	)
	Legal and regulatory matters ⁽⁵⁾		—			—			(16	)		10
	Pension settlement charge ⁽⁶⁾		—			—			(23	)		—
	Other (loss)		(1	)		(2	)		(4	)		(2	)
	Total non-GAAP adjustments		(155	)		(60	)		(535	)		(228	)
Non-GAAP operating expenses		$	543		$	449		$	1,606		$	1,325


(1) We amortize intangible assets acquired in connection with various acquisitions. Intangible asset amortization expense can vary from period to period due to episodic acquisitions completed, rather than from our ongoing business operations.

(2) We have pursued various strategic initiatives and completed acquisitions and divestitures in recent years which have resulted in expenses which would not have otherwise been incurred. These expenses generally include integration costs, as well as legal, due diligence and other third party transaction costs. The frequency and amount of such expenses vary significantly based on the size, timing and complexity of the transaction. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023, these costs primarily relate to the Adenza acquisition. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these costs were partially offset by a termination payment recognized in the second quarter of 2024 relating to the proposed divestiture of our Nordic power trading and clearing business.

(3) In the fourth quarter of 2023, following the closing of the Adenza acquisition, our management approved, committed to and initiated a restructuring program, “Adenza Restructuring” to optimize our efficiencies as a combined organization. In connection with this program, we expect to incur pre-tax charges principally related to employee-related costs, contract terminations, real estate impairments and other related costs. We expect to achieve benefits primarily in the form of expense and revenue synergies. In October 2022, following our September announcement to realign our segments and leadership, we initiated a divisional alignment program with a focus on realizing the full potential of this structure. In September 2024, we completed our divisional alignment program and recognized total pre-tax charges of $139 million over a two-year period.

(4) During the first quarter of 2023, we initiated a review of our real estate and facility capacity requirements due to our new and evolving work models. As a result, for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recorded impairment charges related to our operating lease assets and leasehold improvements associated with vacating certain leased office space, which are recorded in occupancy expense and depreciation and amortization expense in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(5) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, these items primarily included the settlement of a SFSA fine and accruals related to certain legal matters. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, these items primarily included insurance recoveries related to legal matters. The fine is recorded in regulatory expense and the accruals and insurance recoveries are recorded in professional and contract services and general, administrative and other expense in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

(6) For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, we recorded a pre-tax loss as a result of settling our U.S. pension plan. The plan was terminated and partially settled in 2023, with final settlement occurring during the first quarter of 2024. The pre-tax loss is recorded in compensation and benefits in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of Pro Forma Impacts for U.S. Non-GAAP Revenues less transaction-based expenses, Non-GAAP Operating Expenses,
Non-GAAP Operating Income, and Non-GAAP Operating Margin
(in millions)
(unaudited)

	Three Months Ended									Three Months Ended
	September 30, 2024									September 30, 2023								Total Variance					FX ⁽³⁾		Pro Forma Impacts
	Non-GAAP			Adenza Adjustment ⁽¹⁾			Pro Forma			Non-GAAP			Adenza ⁽²⁾		Pro Forma			$			%		$		$			%
Capital Access Platforms revenues	$	501		$	—		$	501		$	456		$	—	$	456		$	45		10	%	$	1	$	44		9	%

Financial Crime Management Technology revenues		69			—			69			58			—		58			11		20	%		—		11		20	%
Regulatory Technology revenues		102			(2	)		100			35			56		91			9		10	%		1		8		8	%
Capital Markets Technology revenues		234			—			234			145			71		216			18		8	%		—		18		8	%
Financial Technology revenues		405			(2	)		403			238			127		365			38		10	%		1		37		10	%
Solutions revenues ⁽⁴⁾		906			(2	)		904			694			127		821			83		10	%		2		81		10	%

Market Services, net revenues		266			—			266			236			—		236			30		13	%		—		30		13	%
Other revenues		8			—			8			10			—		10			(2	)	(13	)%		—		(2	)	(14	)%
Revenues less transaction-based expenses		1,180			(2	)		1,178			940			127		1,067			111		10	%		2		109		10	%

Non-GAAP operating expenses		543			—			543			449			65		514			29		6	%		1		28		5	%
Non-GAAP operating income	$	637		$	(2	)	$	635		$	491		$	62	$	553		$	82		15	%	$	1	$	81		14	%
Non-GAAP operating margin		54	%					54	%		52	%				52	%

Note: Pro forma results are presented assuming AxiomSL and Calypso were included in the prior year quarterly results and revenue for AxiomSL on-premises contracts were recognized ratably for all of 2023 and 2024. Pro forma growth excludes the impacts of foreign currency except for AxiomSL and Calypso, which are not yet calculated on an organic basis. These pro forma results are not calculated, and do not intend to be calculated, in a manner consistent with the pro forma requirements in Article 11 of Regulation S-X. Preparation of this information in accordance with Article 11 would differ from results presented in this release. The current period percentages are calculated based on exact dollars, and therefore may not recalculate exactly using rounded numbers as presented in US$ millions.

(1) Adjustment to remove the cumulative impact of changing to ratable revenue recognition for AxiomSL on-premises subscription contracts, which related to the first six months of 2024.

(2) The Adenza results above are presented on a non-GAAP basis and have been adjusted for certain items. We believe presenting these measures excluding these items provides investors with greater transparency as they do not represent ongoing operations. These adjustments include intangible amortization of $39 million and other transaction and restructuring related costs of $3 million for the third quarter of 2023.

(3) Reflects the impacts from changes in FX rates.

(4) Represents Capital Access Platforms and Financial Technology Segments.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Reconciliation of Organic Impacts for U.S. Non-GAAP Revenues less transaction-based expenses, Non-GAAP Operating Expenses,
Non-GAAP Operating Income, and Non-GAAP Diluted Earnings Per Share
(in millions)
(unaudited)

	Three Months Ended
	September 30,		September 30,		Total Variance					Organic Impact					Other Impacts ⁽¹⁾
	2024		2023		$			%		$			%		$			%
CAPITAL ACCESS PLATFORMS
Data and Listing Services revenues	$	190	$	188	$	2		1	%	$	1		1	%	$	1		—	%
Index revenues		182		144		38		26	%		38		26	%		—		—	%
Workflow and Insights revenues		129		124		5		4	%		5		3	%		—		—	%
Total Capital Access Platforms revenues		501		456		45		10	%		44		9	%		1		—	%

FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY
Financial Crime Management Technology revenues		69		58		11		20	%		11		20	%		—		—	%
Regulatory Technology revenues		102		35		67		190	%		2		6	%		65		185	%
Capital Markets Technology revenues		234		145		89		62	%		7		5	%		82		57	%
Total Financial Technology revenues		405		238		167		71	%		20		9	%		147		62	%

SOLUTIONS REVENUES ⁽²⁾		906		694		212		31	%		64		9	%		148		21	%

MARKET SERVICES REVENUES, NET		266		236		30		13	%		30		13	%		—		—	%

OTHER REVENUES		8		10		(2	)	(13	)%		(2	)	(14	)%		—		1	%

REVENUES LESS TRANSACTION-BASED EXPENSES	$	1,180	$	940	$	240		26	%	$	92		10	%	$	148		16	%

Non-GAAP Operating Expenses	$	543	$	449	$	94		21	%	$	32		7	%	$	62		14	%

Non-GAAP Operating Income	$	637	$	491	$	146		30	%	$	60		12	%	$	86		18	%

Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share	$	0.74	$	0.71	$	0.03		5	%	$	0.14		20	%	$	(0.11	)	(16	)%

Note: The period over period percentages are calculated based on exact dollars, and therefore may not agree to a recalculation based on rounded numbers shown in the tables above. The sum of the percentage changes may not tie to the percentage change in total variance due to rounding.

(1) Primarily includes the impacts of the Adenza acquisition and changes in FX rates.

(2) Represents Capital Access Platforms and Financial Technology Segments.

Nasdaq, Inc.
Quarterly Key Drivers Detail
(unaudited)

		Three Months Ended						Nine Months Ended
		September 30,			September 30,			September 30,			September 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023
Capital Access Platforms
	Annualized recurring revenues (in millions) ⁽¹⁾	$	1,254		$	1,222		$	1,254		$	1,222
	Initial public offerings
	The Nasdaq Stock Market ⁽²⁾		48			39			114			102
	Exchanges that comprise Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic		1			—			7			3
	Total new listings
	The Nasdaq Stock Market ⁽²⁾		138			87			301			230
	Exchanges that comprise Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic ⁽³⁾		6			3			18			16
	Number of listed companies
	The Nasdaq Stock Market ⁽⁴⁾		4,039			4,086			4,039			4,086
	Exchanges that comprise Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic ⁽⁵⁾		1,186			1,236			1,186			1,236
	Index
	Number of licensed exchange traded products ⁽⁶⁾		388			366			388			366
	Period end ETP assets under management (AUM) tracking Nasdaq indexes (in billions)	$	600		$	411		$	600		$	411
	Quarterly average ETP AUM tracking Nasdaq indexes (in billions)	$	575		$	423
	TTM ⁽⁷⁾ net inflows ETP AUM tracking Nasdaq indexes (in billions)	$	62		$	24		$	62		$	24
	TTM ⁽⁷⁾ net appreciation ETP AUM tracking Nasdaq indexes (in billions)	$	143		$	78		$	143		$	78

Financial Technology
	Annualized recurring revenues (in millions) ⁽¹⁾
	Financial Crime Management Technology	$	268		$	216		$	268		$	216
	Regulatory Technology		350			132			350			132
	Capital Markets Technology		864			511			864			511
	Total Financial Technology	$	1,482		$	859		$	1,482		$	859

Market Services
	Equity Derivative Trading and Clearing
	U.S. equity options
	Total industry average daily volume (in millions)		44.5			39.6			43.3			40.4
	Nasdaq PHLX matched market share		9.4	%		11.0	%		9.9	%		11.2	%
	The Nasdaq Options Market matched market share		5.8	%		5.6	%		5.5	%		6.4	%
	Nasdaq BX Options matched market share		2.3	%		4.4	%		2.3	%		3.6	%
	Nasdaq ISE Options matched market share		6.8	%		5.7	%		6.7	%		5.8	%
	Nasdaq GEMX Options matched market share		2.7	%		3.0	%		2.6	%		2.3	%
	Nasdaq MRX Options matched market share		3.2	%		2.0	%		2.6	%		1.7	%
	Total matched market share executed on Nasdaq’s exchanges		30.2	%		31.7	%		29.6	%		31.0	%
	Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic options and futures
	Total average daily volume of options and futures contracts ⁽⁸⁾		213,911			245,986			235,137			298,785

	Cash Equity Trading
	Total U.S.-listed securities
	Total industry average daily share volume (in billions)		11.5			10.4			11.7			11.0
	Matched share volume (in billions)		117.4			106.7			354.3			342.2
	The Nasdaq Stock Market matched market share		15.6	%		15.5	%		15.6	%		15.9	%
	Nasdaq BX matched market share		0.3	%		0.4	%		0.4	%		0.4	%
	Nasdaq PSX matched market share		0.2	%		0.3	%		0.2	%		0.4	%
	Total matched market share executed on Nasdaq’s exchanges		16.1	%		16.2	%		16.2	%		16.7	%
	Market share reported to the FINRA/Nasdaq Trade Reporting Facility		44.7	%		40.2	%		43.0	%		35.2	%
	Total market share ⁽⁹⁾		60.8	%		56.4	%		59.2	%		51.9	%
	Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic securities
	Average daily number of equity trades executed on Nasdaq’s exchanges		609,167			556,257			645,622			676,132
	Total average daily value of shares traded (in billions)	$	4.1		$	3.6		$	4.5		$	4.5
	Total market share executed on Nasdaq’s exchanges		71.6	%		71.6	%		72.2	%		70.6	%

	Fixed Income and Commodities Trading and Clearing
	Fixed Income
	Total average daily volume of Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic fixed income contracts		89,037			88,383			94,493			96,461

	(1) Annualized Recurring Revenue (ARR) for a given period is the current annualized value derived from subscription contracts with a defined contract value. This excludes contracts that are not recurring, are one-time in nature, or where the contract value fluctuates based on defined metrics. ARR is currently one of our key performance metrics to assess the health and trajectory of our recurring business. ARR does not have any standardized definition and is therefore unlikely to be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. ARR should be viewed independently of revenue and deferred revenue and is not intended to be combined with or to replace either of those items. For AxiomSL and Calypso recurring revenue contracts, the amount included in ARR is consistent with the amount that we invoice the customer during the current period. Additionally, for AxiomSL and Calypso recurring revenue contracts that include annual values that increase over time, we include in ARR only the annualized value of components of the contract that are considered active as of the date of the ARR calculation. We do not include the future committed increases in the contract value as of the date of the ARR calculation. ARR is not a forecast and the active contracts at the end of a reporting period used in calculating ARR may or may not be extended or renewed by our customers.

	(2) New listings include IPOs, issuers that switched from other listing venues, closed-end funds and separately listed ETPs. For the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, IPOs included 15 and 4 SPACs, respectively. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, IPOs included 28 and 19 SPACs, respectively.

	(3) New listings include IPOs and represent companies listed on the Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic exchanges and companies on the alternative markets of Nasdaq First North.

	(4) Number of total listings on The Nasdaq Stock Market for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023 included 712 and 570 ETPs, respectively.

	(5) Represents companies listed on the Nasdaq Nordic and Nasdaq Baltic exchanges and companies on the alternative markets of Nasdaq First North.

	(6) The number of listed ETPs as of September 30, 2023 has been updated to reflect a revised methodology whereby an ETP listed on multiple exchanges is counted as one product, rather than formerly being counted per exchange. This change has no impact on reported AUM.

	(7) Trailing 12-months.

	(8) Includes Finnish option contracts traded on Eurex for which Nasdaq and Eurex had a revenue sharing arrangement, which ended in the fourth quarter of 2023.

	(9) Includes transactions executed on The Nasdaq Stock Market’s, Nasdaq BX’s and Nasdaq PSX’s systems plus trades reported through the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority/Nasdaq Trade Reporting Facility.

MIL-OSI: Valley National Bancorp Announces Third Quarter 2024 Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Valley National Bancorp (NASDAQ:VLY), the holding company for Valley National Bank, today reported net income for the third quarter 2024 of $97.9 million, or $0.18 per diluted common share, as compared to the second quarter 2024 net income of $70.4 million, or $0.13 per diluted common share, and net income of $141.3 million, or $0.27 per diluted common share, for the third quarter 2023. Excluding all non-core income and charges, our adjusted net income (a non-GAAP measure) was $96.8 million, or $0.18 per diluted common share, for the third quarter 2024, $71.6 million, or $0.13 per diluted common share, for the second quarter 2024, and $136.4 million, or $0.26 per diluted common share, for the third quarter 2023. See further details below, including a reconciliation of our non-GAAP adjusted net income, in the “Consolidated Financial Highlights” tables.

Ira Robbins, CEO, commented, “The third quarter’s financial results highlight the significant progress that we continue to make towards achieving our strategic balance sheet goals. On October 23, 2024, we entered into an agreement to sell performing commercial real estate loans expected to total over $800 million at a very modest discount of approximately 1 percent to a single investor. This economically compelling transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter 2024 and reflects the strength and desirability of our commercial real estate portfolio. We have executed on a variety of strategic transactions this year that have notably strengthened our balance sheet and enhanced our financial flexibility.”

Mr. Robbins continued, “This quarter’s results also indicated the early stages of normalized profitability which we expect will accelerate as we enter 2025. Net interest income and non-interest income both improved meaningfully from the second quarter 2024, and our operating expenses were well-controlled and effectively unchanged on a year-over-year basis. While recent weather events weighed on the sequential provision improvement that we anticipated, our pre-provision earnings continued to improve during the third quarter and could set the stage for more stable results in the near future. And most importantly, our thoughts are with those affected by the recent hurricanes in our Florida markets and the other areas in the southeast. We are strongly committed to supporting our associates, clients and communities throughout the rebuilding and recovery process.”

Key financial highlights for the third quarter 2024:

Net Interest Income and Margin: Net interest income on a tax equivalent basis of $411.8 million for the third quarter 2024 increased $8.8 million compared to the second quarter 2024 and decreased $1.8 million as compared to the third quarter 2023. Our net interest margin on a tax equivalent basis also increased by 2 basis points to 2.86 percent in the third quarter 2024 as compared to 2.84 percent for the second quarter 2024. The increases from the second quarter 2024 were mostly due to continued yield expansion on average loans and additional interest income and higher yields from targeted growth within our available for sale securities portfolio. See the “Net Interest Income and Margin” section below for more details.
Loan Portfolio: Total loans decreased $956.4 million, or 7.6 percent on an annualized basis, to $49.4 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 mostly due to the transfer of performing commercial real estate loans totaling $823.1 million, net of unearned fees, to loans held for sale at September 30, 2024 and normal repayment activity mainly within the commercial real estate non-owner occupied and multi-family loans, as we continue to actively reduce these loan categories. Our commercial and industrial loans grew $320.1 million, or 13.5 percent on an annualized basis, to $9.8 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 due to solid organic growth during the third quarter 2024. Residential mortgage and total consumer loans also increased modestly during the third quarter 2024. See the “Loans” section below for more details.
Deposits: Actual ending balances for deposits increased $283.8 million to $50.4 billion at September 30, 2024 as compared to $50.1 billion at June 30, 2024 mainly due to higher period-end direct commercial customer money market and non-interest bearing deposits, partially offset by a decline in time deposits. See the “Deposits” section below for more details.
Allowance and Provision for Credit Losses for Loans: The allowance for credit losses for loans totaled $564.7 million and $532.5 million at September 30, 2024 and June 30, 2024, respectively, representing 1.14 percent and 1.06 percent of total loans at each respective date. During the third quarter 2024, we recorded a provision for credit losses for loans of $75.0 million as compared to $82.1 million and $9.1 million for the second quarter 2024 and third quarter 2023, respectively. The third quarter 2024 provision reflects, among other factors, increased quantitative reserves allocated to commercial real estate loans, significant commercial and industrial loan growth and $8.0 million of qualitative reserves related to the estimated impact of Hurricane Helene, which hit Florida in late September 2024.
Credit Quality: Non-accrual loans totaled $296.3 million, or 0.60 percent of total loans at September 30, 2024 as compared to $303.3 million, or 0.60 percent of total loans at June 30, 2024. Total accruing past due loans (i.e., loans past due 30 days or more and still accruing interest) increased to 0.35 percent of total loans at September 30, 2024 as compared to 0.14 percent at June 30, 2024 largely due to two well-secured commercial real estate loans at various stages of expected collection within the early stage delinquency categories. Net loan charge-offs totaled $42.9 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to $36.8 million and $5.5 million for the second quarter 2024 and third quarter 2023, respectively. The loan charge-offs in the third quarter 2024 included partial charge-offs totaling a combined $30.1 million related to two commercial real estate loan relationships. See the “Credit Quality” section below for more details.
Non-Interest Income: Non-interest income increased $9.5 million to $60.7 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to the second quarter 2024 mainly due to increases in other income; wealth management and trust fees; and service charges on deposits totaling $11.2 million, $2.0 million, and $1.6 million, respectively. The increases in the aforementioned categories were partially offset by a $5.8 million mark to market loss (recorded within net losses on sales of loans) associated with the performing commercial real estate loans transferred to loans held for sale at September 30, 2024, as well as lower swap fees related to commercial loan transactions (within capital market fees) and insurance commissions. The increase in other income was mostly the result of income from litigation settlements totaling $7.3 million for the third quarter 2024.
Non-Interest Expense: Non-interest expense decreased $8.0 million to $269.5 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to the second quarter 2024 largely due to a $6.2 million decrease in technology, furniture and equipment expense and a $3.8 million decrease in professional and legal expenses, partially offset by higher net occupancy expense during the third quarter 2024.
Efficiency Ratio: Our efficiency ratio was 56.13 percent for the third quarter 2024 as compared to 59.62 percent and 56.72 percent for the second quarter 2024 and third quarter 2023, respectively. See the “Consolidated Financial Highlights” tables below for additional information regarding our non-GAAP measures.
Performance Ratios: Annualized return on average assets (ROA), shareholders’ equity (ROE) and tangible ROE were 0.63 percent, 5.70 percent and 8.06 percent for the third quarter 2024, respectively. Annualized ROA, ROE, and tangible ROE, adjusted for non-core income and charges, were 0.62 percent, 5.64 percent and 7.97 percent for the third quarter 2024, respectively. See the “Consolidated Financial Highlights” tables below for additional information regarding our non-GAAP measures.

Net Interest Income and Margin

Net interest income on a tax equivalent basis of $411.8 million for the third quarter 2024 increased $8.8 million compared to the second quarter 2024 and decreased $1.8 million as compared to the third quarter 2023. Interest income on a tax equivalent basis increased $27.1 million to $861.9 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to the second quarter 2024. The increase was mostly due to higher yields on both new loan originations and adjustable rate loans, as well as higher yields and additional interest income from targeted purchases of taxable investments within the available for sale securities portfolio during the second and third quarter 2024. Total interest expense increased $18.3 million to $450.1 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to the second quarter 2024 mainly due to an increase in average time deposit balances coupled with higher costs on most interest bearing deposit products. See the “Deposits” and “Other Borrowings” sections below for more details.

Net interest margin on a tax equivalent basis of 2.86 percent for the third quarter 2024 increased by 2 basis points from 2.84 percent for the second quarter 2024 and decreased 5 basis points from 2.91 percent for the third quarter 2023. The increase as compared to the second quarter 2024 was largely driven by the higher yield on average interest earning assets largely offset by an increase in the cost of average interest bearing liabilities. The yield on average interest earning assets increased by 10 basis points to 5.98 percent on a linked quarter basis largely due to higher yielding investment purchases and new loan originations during the second and third quarter 2024. The overall cost of average interest bearing liabilities increased 7 basis points to 4.22 percent for the third quarter 2024 as compared to the second quarter 2024 largely due to higher interest rates on deposits. Our cost of total average deposits was 3.25 percent for the third quarter 2024 as compared to 3.18 percent and 2.94 percent for the second quarter 2024 and the third quarter 2023, respectively.

Loans, Deposits and Other Borrowings

Loans. Total loans decreased $956.4 million, or 7.6 percent on an annualized basis, to $49.4 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024. Commercial and industrial loans grew by $320.1 million , or 13.5 percent on an annualized basis, to $9.8 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 largely due to our continued strategic focus on the expansion of new loan production within this category. Total commercial real estate (including construction) loans decreased $1.4 billion to $30.4 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024. This decline was primarily driven by the transfer of $823.1 million of commercial real estate loans, net of unearned loan fees, from the loans held for investment portfolio to loans held for sale as of September 30, 2024. In addition, we remained highly selective on new originations and projects in an effort to reduce commercial real estate loan concentrations, mainly within the non-owner occupied and multifamily loan categories. Automobile loan balances increased by $60.9 million, or 13.8 percent on an annualized basis, to $1.8 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 mainly due to continued consumer demand generated by our indirect auto dealer network and low prepayment activity within the portfolio. Other consumer loans decreased $42.4 million, or 15.3 percent on an annualized basis, to $1.1 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 primarily due to the negative impact of the high level of market interest rates on the demand and usage of collateralized personal lines of credit.

Deposits. Actual ending balances for deposits increased $283.8 million to $50.4 billion at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 mainly due to an increase of $358.3 million in savings, NOW and money market deposits and an increase of $36.0 million in non-interest bearing deposits, partially offset by a decrease of $110.5 million in time deposits. Non-interest bearing deposit and savings, NOW and money market deposit balances increased at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 mostly due to increases in national specialized deposits and higher direct commercial customer deposit accounts. Total indirect customer deposits (including both brokered money market and time deposits) totaled $9.1 billion in both September 30, 2024 and June 30, 2024. Non-interest bearing deposits; savings, NOW and money market deposits; and time deposits represented approximately 22 percent, 50 percent and 28 percent of total deposits as of September 30, 2024, respectively, as compared to 22 percent, 49 percent and 29 percent of total deposits as of June 30, 2024, respectively.

Other Borrowings. Short-term borrowings, consisting of securities sold under agreements to repurchase, decreased $5.5 million to $58.3 million at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024. Long-term borrowings totaled $3.3 billion at September 30, 2024 and also remained relatively unchanged as compared to June 30, 2024.

Credit Quality

Hurricanes Helene and Milton. In the early stages of the fourth quarter 2024, the credit quality of our Florida loan portfolio has remained resilient in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which hit Florida in late September 2024, and Hurricane Milton, which made landfall on October 9, 2024. At this time, there have been relatively few loan concessions (mostly in the form of loan payment deferrals up to 90 days) for distressed borrowers impacted by the hurricanes. However, we continue to assess the impact of the hurricanes on our Florida client base and, where appropriate, we will work constructively with individual borrowers.

Non-Performing Assets (NPAs). Total NPAs, consisting of non-accrual loans, other real estate owned (OREO) and other repossessed assets, decreased $7.8 million to $305.1 million at September 30, 2024 as compared to June 30, 2024. Non-accrual loans decreased $7.0 million to $296.3 million at September 30, 2024 as compared to $303.3 million at June 30, 2024. Non-accrual construction and commercial real estate loans decreased $20.7 million and $9.3 million to $24.7 million and $113.8 million, respectively, at September 30, 2024 as compared to June 30, 2024 mainly due to loan payoffs during the third quarter 2024. The decreases in these loan categories were partially offset by two new non-accrual commercial and industrial loans totaling $19.0 million, as well as moderate increases in non-accrual residential mortgage and consumer loans at September 30, 2024. OREO decreased $887 thousand at September 30, 2024 from June 30, 2024 mostly due to the sale of one commercial property, which resulted in the recognition of an immaterial loss for the third quarter 2024.

Accruing Past Due Loans. Total accruing past due loans (i.e., loans past due 30 days or more and still accruing interest) increased $102.3 million to $174.7 million, or 0.35 percent of total loans, at September 30, 2024 as compared to $72.4 million, or 0.14 percent of total loans at June 30, 2024. Loans 30 to 59 days past due increased $69.1 million to $115.1 million at September 30, 2024 as compared to June 30, 2024 mainly due to a $74.5 million increase in commercial real estate loans, partially offset by a $7.0 million decline in consumer loan delinquencies. The increase in commercial real estate loans 30 to 59 days past due was mostly due to one new delinquent loan totaling $40.9 million, which is expected to be fully repaid, subject to the borrower’s pending sale of certain collateral, as well as a few other new loan delinquencies. Loans 60 to 89 days past due increased $42.9 million to $54.8 million at September 30, 2024 as compared to June 30, 2024 mostly due to one well-secured commercial real estate loan totaling $43.9 million currently in the process of loan modification. Loans 90 days or more past due and still accruing interest decreased $9.7 million to $4.8 million at September 30, 2024 as compared to June 30, 2024 largely due to one $4.0 million construction loan that was fully repaid and one $4.2 million commercial real estate loan that migrated from this past due category to non-accrual loans during the third quarter 2024. All loans 90 days or more past due and still accruing interest are well-secured and in the process of collection.

Allowance for Credit Losses for Loans and Unfunded Commitments. The following table summarizes the allocation of the allowance for credit losses to loan categories and the allocation as a percentage of each loan category at September 30, 2024, June 30, 2024 and September 30, 2023:

		September 30, 2024				June 30, 2024				September 30, 2023
				Allocation				Allocation				Allocation
				as a % of				as a % of				as a % of
		Allowance		Loan		Allowance		Loan		Allowance		Loan
		Allocation		Category		Allocation		Category		Allocation		Category
		($ in thousands)
Loan Category:
Commercial and industrial loans		$	166,365	1.70	%	$	149,243	1.57	%	$	133,988	1.44	%
Commercial real estate loans:
	Commercial real estate		249,608	0.93			246,316	0.87			191,562	0.68
	Construction		59,420	1.70			54,777	1.54			53,485	1.40
Total commercial real estate loans			309,028	1.02			301,093	0.95			245,047	0.77
Residential mortgage loans			51,545	0.91			47,697	0.85			44,621	0.80
Consumer loans:
	Home equity		3,303	0.57			3,077	0.54			3,689	0.67
	Auto and other consumer		18,086	0.63			18,200	0.63			14,830	0.52
Total consumer loans			21,389	0.62			21,277	0.62			18,519	0.55
Allowance for loan losses			548,327	1.11			519,310	1.03			442,175	0.88
Allowance for unfunded credit commitments			16,344				13,231				20,170
Total allowance for credit losses for loans		$	564,671			$	532,541			$	462,345
Allowance for credit losses for loans as a % total loans				1.14	%			1.06	%			0.92	%

Our loan portfolio, totaling $49.4 billion at September 30, 2024, had net loan charge-offs totaling $42.9 million for the third quarter 2024 as compared to $36.8 million and $5.5 million for the second quarter 2024 and the third quarter 2023, respectively. Total gross loan charge-offs in the third quarter 2024 included partial charge-offs totaling $30.1 million related to two non-performing commercial real estate loan relationships that had combined specific reserves of $25.9 million within the allowance for loan losses at June 30, 2024.

The allowance for credit losses for loans, comprised of our allowance for loan losses and unfunded credit commitments, as a percentage of total loans was 1.14 percent at September 30, 2024, 1.06 percent at June 30, 2024, and 0.92 percent at September 30, 2023. For the third quarter 2024, the provision for credit losses for loans totaled $75.0 million as compared to $82.1 million and $9.1 million for the second quarter 2024 and third quarter 2023, respectively. The provision for credit losses remained somewhat elevated for the third quarter 2024 largely due to higher quantitative reserves allocated to commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial loan growth and $8.0 million of qualitative reserves related to the estimated impact of Hurricane Helene.

The allowance for unfunded credit commitments increased to $16.3 million at September 30, 2024 from $13.2 million at June 30, 2024 mainly due to increases in both non-cancellable construction commitments and commercial and industrial standby letters of credit.

As previously noted, we are currently evaluating the impact of Hurricane Milton, and we also continue to evaluate any further impact of Hurricane Helene, on our loan portfolio. While not anticipated based on information currently available, Hurricane Milton and unexpected losses from Hurricane Helene could result in a significant increase to the current hurricane related reserves within the allowance, loan charge-offs and our provision for the fourth quarter 2024.

Capital Adequacy

Valley’s total risk-based capital, common equity Tier 1 capital, Tier 1 capital and Tier 1 leverage capital ratios were 12.56 percent, 9.57 percent, 10.29 percent and 8.40 percent, respectively, at September 30, 2024 as compared to 12.18 percent, 9.55 percent, 9.99 percent and 8.19 percent, respectively, at June 30, 2024. The increases in the total risk-based capital, Tier 1 capital and Tier 1 leverage ratios as compared to June 30, 2024 were largely due to Valley’s issuance of 6.0 million shares of its 8.250 percent Fixed-Rate Reset Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series C on August 5, 2024. Net proceeds to Valley after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and offering expenses were approximately $144.7 million.

Investor Conference Call

Valley will host a conference call with investors and the financial community at 11:00 AM (ET) today to discuss the third quarter 2024 earnings and related matters. Interested parties should preregister using this link: https://register.vevent.com/register to receive the dial-in number and a personal PIN, which are required to access the conference call. The teleconference will also be webcast live: https://edge.media-server.com and archived on Valley’s website through Monday, December 2, 2024. Investor presentation materials will be made available prior to the conference call at www.valley.com.

About Valley

As the principal subsidiary of Valley National Bancorp, Valley National Bank is a regional bank with over $62 billion in assets. Valley is committed to giving people and businesses the power to succeed. Valley operates many convenient branch locations and commercial banking offices across New Jersey, New York, Florida, Alabama, California and Illinois, and is committed to providing the most convenient service, the latest innovations and an experienced and knowledgeable team dedicated to meeting customer needs. Helping communities grow and prosper is the heart of Valley’s corporate citizenship philosophy. To learn more about Valley, go to www.valley.com or call our Customer Care Center at 800-522-4100.

Forward-Looking Statements

The foregoing contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are not historical facts and include expressions about management’s confidence and strategies and management’s expectations about our business, new and existing programs and products, acquisitions, relationships, opportunities, taxation, technology, market conditions and economic expectations. These statements may be identified by such forward-looking terminology as “intend,” “should,” “expect,” “believe,” “view,” “opportunity,” “allow,” “continues,” “reflects,” “would,” “could,” “typically,” “usually,” “anticipate,” “may,” “estimate,” “outlook,” “project” or similar statements or variations of such terms. Such forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from such forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to:

the impact of market interest rates and monetary and fiscal policies of the U.S. federal government and its agencies in connection with the prolonged inflationary pressures, which could have a material adverse effect on our clients, our business, our employees, and our ability to provide services to our customers;
the impact of unfavorable macroeconomic conditions or downturns, including an actual or threatened U.S. government shutdown, debt default or rating downgrade, instability or volatility in financial markets, unanticipated loan delinquencies, loss of collateral, decreased service revenues, increased business disruptions or failures, reductions in employment, and other potential negative effects on our business, employees or clients caused by factors outside of our control, such as the outcome of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, geopolitical instabilities or events (including the Israel-Hamas war and the escalation and regional expansion thereof); natural and other disasters (including severe weather events, such as Hurricanes Helene and Milton); health emergencies; acts of terrorism; or other external events;
the impact of potential instability within the U.S. financial sector in the aftermath of the banking failures in 2023 and continued volatility thereafter, including the possibility of a run on deposits by a coordinated deposit base, and the impact of the actual or perceived soundness, or concerns about the creditworthiness of other financial institutions, including any resulting disruption within the financial markets, increased expenses, including Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance assessments, or adverse impact on our stock price, deposits or our ability to borrow or raise capital;
the impact of negative public opinion regarding Valley or banks in general that damages our reputation and adversely impacts business and revenues;
changes in the statutes, regulations, policy, or enforcement priorities of the federal bank regulatory agencies;
the loss of or decrease in lower-cost funding sources within our deposit base;
damage verdicts or settlements or restrictions related to existing or potential class action litigation or individual litigation arising from claims of violations of laws or regulations, contractual claims, breach of fiduciary responsibility, negligence, fraud, environmental laws, patent, trademark or other intellectual property infringement, misappropriation or other violation, employment related claims, and other matters;
a prolonged downturn and contraction in the economy, as well as an unexpected decline in commercial real estate values collateralizing a significant portion of our loan portfolio;
higher or lower than expected income tax expense or tax rates, including increases or decreases resulting from changes in uncertain tax position liabilities, tax laws, regulations, and case law;
the inability to grow customer deposits to keep pace with loan growth;
a material change in our allowance for credit losses under CECL due to forecasted economic conditions and/or unexpected credit deterioration in our loan and investment portfolios;
the need to supplement debt or equity capital to maintain or exceed internal capital thresholds;
changes in our business, strategy, market conditions or other factors that may negatively impact the estimated fair value of our goodwill and other intangible assets and result in future impairment charges;
greater than expected technology related costs due to, among other factors, prolonged or failed implementations, additional project staffing and obsolescence caused by continuous and rapid market innovations;
cyberattacks, ransomware attacks, computer viruses, malware or other cybersecurity incidents that may breach the security of our websites or other systems or networks to obtain unauthorized access to personal, confidential, proprietary or sensitive information, destroy data, disable or degrade service, or sabotage our systems or networks;
results of examinations by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Reserve Bank, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and other regulatory authorities, including the possibility that any such regulatory authority may, among other things, require us to increase our allowance for credit losses, write-down assets, reimburse customers, change the way we do business, or limit or eliminate certain other banking activities;
application of the OCC heightened regulatory standards for certain large insured national banks, and the expenses we will incur to develop policies, programs, and systems that comply with the enhanced standards applicable to us;
our inability or determination not to pay dividends at current levels, or at all, because of inadequate earnings, regulatory restrictions or limitations, changes in our capital requirements, or a decision to increase capital by retaining more earnings;
unanticipated loan delinquencies, loss of collateral, decreased service revenues, and other potential negative effects on our business caused by severe weather, pandemics or other public health crises, acts of terrorism or other external events;
our ability to successfully execute our business plan and strategic initiatives; and
unexpected significant declines in the loan portfolio due to the lack of economic expansion, increased competition, large prepayments, risk mitigation strategies, changes in regulatory lending guidance or other factors.

A detailed discussion of factors that could affect our results is included in our SEC filings, including Item 1A. “Risk Factors” of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

We undertake no duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in our expectations, except as required by law. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements.

-Tables to Follow-

VALLEY NATIONAL BANCORP
CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

	Three Months Ended									Nine Months Ended
	September 30,			June 30,			September 30,			September 30,
($ in thousands, except for share data and stock price)	2024			2024			2023			2024			2023
FINANCIAL DATA:
Net interest income – FTE⁽¹⁾	$	411,812		$	402,984		$	413,657		$	1,209,643		$	1,272,390
Net interest income	$	410,498		$	401,685		$	412,418		$	1,205,731		$	1,268,203
Non-interest income		60,671			51,213			58,664			173,299			173,038
Total revenue		471,169			452,898			471,082			1,379,030			1,441,241
Non-interest expense		269,471			277,497			267,133			827,278			822,270
Pre-provision net revenue		201,698			175,401			203,949			551,752			618,971
Provision for credit losses		75,024			82,070			9,117			202,294			29,604
Income tax expense		28,818			22,907			53,486			84,898			162,410
Net income		97,856			70,424			141,346			264,560			426,957
Dividends on preferred stock		6,117			4,108			4,127			14,344			12,031
Net income available to common shareholders	$	91,739		$	66,316		$	137,219		$	250,216		$	414,926
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:
Basic		509,227,538			509,141,252			507,650,668			508,904,353			507,580,197
Diluted		511,342,932			510,338,502			509,256,599			510,713,205			509,204,051
Per common share data:
Basic earnings	$	0.18		$	0.13		$	0.27		$	0.49		$	0.82
Diluted earnings		0.18			0.13			0.27			0.49			0.81
Cash dividends declared		0.11			0.11			0.11			0.33			0.33
Closing stock price – high		9.34			8.02			10.30			10.80			12.59
Closing stock price – low		6.58			6.52			7.63			6.52			6.59
FINANCIAL RATIOS:
Net interest margin		2.85	%		2.83	%		2.90	%		2.82	%		2.99	%
Net interest margin – FTE⁽¹⁾		2.86			2.84			2.91			2.83			3.00
Annualized return on average assets		0.63			0.46			0.92			0.57			0.93
Annualized return on avg. shareholders’ equity		5.70			4.17			8.56			5.20			8.72
NON-GAAP FINANCIAL DATA AND RATIOS:⁽²⁾
Basic earnings per share, as adjusted	$	0.18		$	0.13		$	0.26		$	0.50		$	0.84
Diluted earnings per share, as adjusted		0.18			0.13			0.26			0.50			0.84
Annualized return on average assets, as adjusted		0.62	%		0.47	%		0.89	%		0.58	%		0.96	%
Annualized return on average shareholders’ equity, as adjusted		5.64			4.24			8.26			5.27			8.94
Annualized return on avg. tangible shareholders’ equity		8.06			5.95			12.39			7.40			12.71
Annualized return on average tangible shareholders’ equity, as adjusted		7.97			6.05			11.95			7.50			13.04
Efficiency ratio		56.13			59.62			56.72			58.26			55.34

AVERAGE BALANCE SHEET ITEMS:
Assets	$	62,242,022		$	61,518,639		$	61,391,688		$	61,674,588		$	61,050,973
Interest earning assets		57,651,650			56,772,950			56,802,565			57,016,790			56,510,997
Loans		50,126,963			50,020,901			50,019,414			50,131,468			49,120,153
Interest bearing liabilities		42,656,956			41,576,344			40,829,078			41,932,616			39,802,966
Deposits		50,409,234			49,383,209			49,848,446			49,459,617			48,165,152
Shareholders’ equity		6,862,555			6,753,981			6,605,786			6,781,022			6,531,424

	As Of
BALANCE SHEET ITEMS:	September 30,			June 30,			March 31,			December			September 30,
(In thousands)	2024			2024			2024			2023			2023
Assets	$	62,092,332		$	62,058,974		$	61,000,188		$	60,934,974		$	61,183,352
Total loans		49,355,319			50,311,702			49,922,042			50,210,295			50,097,519
Deposits		50,395,966			50,112,177			49,077,946			49,242,829			49,885,314
Shareholders’ equity		6,972,380			6,737,737			6,727,139			6,701,391			6,627,299

LOANS:
(In thousands)
Commercial and industrial	$	9,799,287		$	9,479,147		$	9,104,193		$	9,230,543		$	9,274,630
Commercial real estate:
Non-owner occupied		12,647,649			13,710,015			14,962,851			15,078,464			14,741,668
Multifamily		8,612,936			8,976,264			8,818,263			8,860,219			8,863,529
Owner occupied		5,654,147			5,536,844			4,367,839			4,304,556			4,435,853
Construction		3,487,464			3,545,723			3,556,511			3,726,808			3,833,269
Total commercial real estate		30,402,196			31,768,846			31,705,464			31,970,047			31,874,319
Residential mortgage		5,684,079			5,627,113			5,618,355			5,569,010			5,562,665
Consumer:
Home equity		581,181			566,467			564,083			559,152			548,918
Automobile		1,823,738			1,762,852			1,700,508			1,620,389			1,585,987
Other consumer		1,064,838			1,107,277			1,229,439			1,261,154			1,251,000
Total consumer loans		3,469,757			3,436,596			3,494,030			3,440,695			3,385,905
Total loans	$	49,355,319		$	50,311,702		$	49,922,042		$	50,210,295		$	50,097,519

CAPITAL RATIOS:
Book value per common share	$	13.00		$	12.82		$	12.81		$	12.79		$	12.64
Tangible book value per common share⁽²⁾		9.06			8.87			8.84			8.79			8.63
Tangible common equity to tangible assets⁽²⁾		7.68	%		7.52	%		7.62	%		7.58	%		7.40	%
Tier 1 leverage capital		8.40			8.19			8.20			8.16			8.08
Common equity tier 1 capital		9.57			9.55			9.34			9.29			9.21
Tier 1 risk-based capital		10.29			9.99			9.78			9.72			9.64
Total risk-based capital		12.56			12.18			11.88			11.76			11.68

	Three Months Ended									Nine Months Ended
ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES:	September 30,			June 30,			September 30,			September 30,
($ in thousands)	2024			2024			2023			2024			2023
Allowance for credit losses for loans
Beginning balance	$	532,541		$	487,269		$	458,676		$	465,550		$	483,255
Impact of the adoption of ASU No. 2022-02		—			—			—			—			(1,368	)
Beginning balance, adjusted		532,541			487,269			458,676			465,550			481,887
Loans charged-off:
Commercial and industrial		(7,501	)		(14,721	)		(7,487	)		(36,515	)		(37,399	)
Commercial real estate		(33,292	)		(22,144	)		(255	)		(56,640	)		(2,320	)
Construction		(4,831	)		(212	)		—			(12,637	)		(9,906	)
Residential mortgage		—			—			(20	)		—			(169	)
Total consumer		(2,597	)		(1,262	)		(1,156	)		(5,668	)		(3,024	)
Total loans charged-off		(48,221	)		(38,339	)		(8,918	)		(111,460	)		(52,818	)
Charged-off loans recovered:
Commercial and industrial		3,162			742			3,043			4,586			6,615
Commercial real estate		66			150			5			457			33
Construction		1,535			—			—			1,535			—
Residential mortgage		29			5			30			59			186
Total consumer		521			603			362			1,521			1,513
Total loans recovered		5,313			1,500			3,440			8,158			8,347
Total net charge-offs		(42,908	)		(36,839	)		(5,478	)		(103,302	)		(44,471	)
Provision for credit losses for loans		75,038			82,111			9,147			202,423			24,929
Ending balance	$	564,671		$	532,541		$	462,345		$	564,671		$	462,345
Components of allowance for credit losses for loans:
Allowance for loan losses	$	548,327		$	519,310		$	442,175		$	548,327		$	442,175
Allowance for unfunded credit commitments		16,344			13,231			20,170			16,344			20,170
Allowance for credit losses for loans	$	564,671		$	532,541		$	462,345		$	564,671		$	462,345
Components of provision for credit losses for loans:
Provision for credit losses for loans	$	71,925		$	86,901		$	11,221		$	205,549		$	29,359
Provision (credit) for unfunded credit commitments		3,113			(4,790	)		(2,074	)		(3,126	)		(4,430	)
Total provision for credit losses for loans	$	75,038		$	82,111		$	9,147		$	202,423		$	24,929
Annualized ratio of total net charge-offs to total average loans		0.34	%		0.29	%		0.04	%		0.27	%		0.12	%
Allowance for credit losses for loans as a % of total loans		1.14	%		1.06	%		0.92	%		1.14	%		0.92	%

	As Of
ASSET QUALITY:	September 30,			June 30,			March 31,			December 31,			September 30,
($ in thousands)	2024			2024			2024			2023			2023
Accruing past due loans:
30 to 59 days past due:
Commercial and industrial	$	4,537		$	5,086		$	6,202		$	9,307		$	10,687
Commercial real estate		76,370			1,879			5,791			3,008			8,053
Residential mortgage		19,549			17,389			20,819			26,345			13,159
Total consumer		14,672			21,639			14,032			20,554			15,509
Total 30 to 59 days past due		115,128			45,993			46,844			59,214			47,408
60 to 89 days past due:
Commercial and industrial		1,238			1,621			2,665			5,095			5,720
Commercial real estate		43,926			—			3,720			1,257			2,620
Residential mortgage		6,892			6,632			5,970			8,200			9,710
Total consumer		2,732			3,671			1,834			4,715			1,720
Total 60 to 89 days past due		54,788			11,924			14,189			19,267			19,770
90 or more days past due:
Commercial and industrial		1,786			2,739			5,750			5,579			6,629
Commercial real estate		—			4,242			—			—			—
Construction		—			3,990			3,990			3,990			3,990
Residential mortgage		1,931			2,609			2,884			2,488			1,348
Total consumer		1,063			898			731			1,088			391
Total 90 or more days past due		4,780			14,478			13,355			13,145			12,358
Total accruing past due loans	$	174,696		$	72,395		$	74,388		$	91,626		$	79,536
Non-accrual loans:
Commercial and industrial	$	120,575		$	102,942		$	102,399		$	99,912		$	87,655
Commercial real estate		113,752			123,011			100,052			99,739			83,338
Construction		24,657			45,380			51,842			60,851			62,788
Residential mortgage		33,075			28,322			28,561			26,986			21,614
Total consumer		4,260			3,624			4,438			4,383			3,545
Total non-accrual loans		296,319			303,279			287,292			291,871			258,940
Other real estate owned (OREO)		7,172			8,059			88			71			71
Other repossessed assets		1,611			1,607			1,393			1,444			1,314
Total non-performing assets	$	305,102		$	312,945		$	288,773		$	293,386		$	260,325
Total non-accrual loans as a % of loans		0.60	%		0.60	%		0.58	%		0.58	%		0.52	%
Total accruing past due and non-accrual loans as a % of loans		0.95			0.75			0.72			0.76			0.68
Allowance for losses on loans as a % of non-accrual loans		185.05			171.23			163.33			152.83			170.76

NOTES TO SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

(1)		Net interest income and net interest margin are presented on a tax equivalent basis using a 21 percent federal tax rate. Valley believes that this presentation provides comparability of net interest income and net interest margin arising from both taxable and tax-exempt sources and is consistent with industry practice and SEC rules.
(2)		Non-GAAP Reconciliations. This press release contains certain supplemental financial information, described in the Notes below, which has been determined by methods other than U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) that management uses in its analysis of Valley’s performance. The Company believes that the non-GAAP financial measures provide useful supplemental information to both management and investors in understanding Valley’s underlying operational performance, business and performance trends, and may facilitate comparisons of our current and prior performance with the performance of others in the financial services industry. Management utilizes these measures for internal planning, forecasting and analysis purposes. Management believes that Valley’s presentation and discussion of this supplemental information, together with the accompanying reconciliations to the GAAP financial measures, also allows investors to view performance in a manner similar to management. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for or superior to financial measures calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP. These non-GAAP financial measures may also be calculated differently from similar measures disclosed by other companies.

Non-GAAP Reconciliations to GAAP Financial Measures

	Three Months Ended									Nine Months Ended
	September 30,			June 30,			September 30,			September 30,
($ in thousands, except for share data)	2024			2024			2023			2024			2023
Adjusted net income available to common shareholders (non-GAAP):
Net income, as reported (GAAP)	$	97,856		$	70,424		$	141,346		$	264,560		$	426,957
Add: FDIC Special assessment ^(a)		—			1,363			—			8,757			—
Add: Losses on available for sale and held to maturity debt securities, net ^(b)		1			4			443			12			476
Add: Restructuring charge ^(c)		—			334			(675	)		954			10,507
Add: Mark to market loss on commercial real estate loans transferred to loans held for sale ^(d)		5,794			—			—			5,794			—
Add: Provision for credit losses for available for sale securities ^(e)		—			—			—			—			5,000
Add: Merger related expenses ^(f)		—			—			—			—			4,133
Less: Litigation settlements ^(g)		(7,334	)		—			—			(7,334	)		—
Less: Gain on sale of commercial premium finance lending division ^(h)		—			—			—			(3,629	)		—
Less: Net gains on sales of office buildings ^(h)		—			—			(6,721	)		—			(6,721	)
Total non-GAAP adjustments to net income		(1,539	)		1,701			(6,953	)		4,554			13,395
Income tax adjustments related to non-GAAP adjustments ⁽ⁱ⁾		437			(482	)		1,970			(1,269	)		(2,378	)
Net income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	96,754		$	71,643		$	136,363		$	267,845		$	437,974
Dividends on preferred stock		6,117			4,108			4,127			14,344			12,031
Net income available to common shareholders, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	90,637		$	67,535		$	132,236		$	253,501		$	425,943
__________
(a) Included in the FDIC insurance expense.
(b) Included in gains (losses) on securities transactions, net.
(c) Represents severance expense related to workforce reductions within salary and employee benefits expense.
(d) Included in (losses) gains on sales of loans, net.
(e) Included in provision for credit losses for available for sale and held to maturity securities (tax disallowed).
(f) Included in salary and employee benefits expense during the first quarter 2023.
(g) Represents recoveries from legal settlements included in other income.
(h) Included in gains (losses) on sales of assets, net within non-interest income.
(i) Calculated using the appropriate blended statutory tax rate for the applicable period.

Adjusted per common share data (non-GAAP):
Net income available to common shareholders, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	90,637		$	67,535		$	132,236		$	253,501		$	425,943
Average number of shares outstanding		509,227,538			509,141,252			507,650,668			508,904,353			507,580,197
Basic earnings, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	0.18		$	0.13		$	0.26		$	0.50		$	0.84
Average number of diluted shares outstanding		511,342,932			510,338,502			509,256,599			510,713,205			509,204,051
Diluted earnings, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	0.18		$	0.13		$	0.26		$	0.50		$	0.84
Adjusted annualized return on average tangible shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP):
Net income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	96,754		$	71,643		$	136,363		$	267,845		$	437,974
Average shareholders’ equity	$	6,862,555		$	6,753,981		$	6,605,786		$	6,781,022		$	6,531,424
Less: Average goodwill and other intangible assets		2,008,692			2,016,766			2,042,486			2,016,790			2,051,727
Average tangible shareholders’ equity	$	4,853,863		$	4,737,215		$	4,563,300		$	4,764,232		$	4,479,697
Annualized return on average tangible shareholders’ equity, as adjusted (non-GAAP)		7.97	%		6.05	%		11.95	%		7.50	%		13.04	%

Non-GAAP Reconciliations to GAAP Financial Measures (Continued)

	Three Months Ended									Nine Months Ended
	September 30,			June 30,			September 30,			September 30,
($ in thousands, except for share data)	2024			2024			2023			2024			2023
Adjusted annualized return on average assets (non-GAAP):
Net income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	96,754		$	71,643		$	136,363		$	267,845		$	437,974
Average assets	$	62,242,022		$	61,518,639		$	61,391,688		$	61,674,588		$	61,050,973
Annualized return on average assets, as adjusted (non-GAAP)		0.62	%		0.47	%		0.89	%		0.58	%		0.96	%
Adjusted annualized return on average shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP):
Net income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	96,754		$	71,643		$	136,363		$	267,845		$	437,974
Average shareholders’ equity	$	6,862,555		$	6,753,981		$	6,605,786		$	6,781,022		$	6,531,424
Annualized return on average shareholders’ equity, as adjusted (non-GAAP)		5.64	%		4.24	%		8.26	%		5.27	%		8.94	%
Annualized return on average tangible shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP):
Net income, as reported (GAAP)	$	97,856		$	70,424		$	141,346		$	264,560		$	426,957
Average shareholders’ equity	$	6,862,555		$	6,753,981		$	6,605,786		$	6,781,022		$	6,531,424
Less: Average goodwill and other intangible assets		2,008,692			2,016,766			2,042,486			2,016,790			2,051,727
Average tangible shareholders’ equity	$	4,853,863		$	4,737,215		$	4,563,300		$	4,764,232		$	4,479,697
Annualized return on average tangible shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP)		8.06	%		5.95	%		12.39	%		7.40	%		12.71	%
Efficiency ratio (non-GAAP):
Non-interest expense, as reported (GAAP)	$	269,471		$	277,497		$	267,133		$	827,278		$	822,270
Less: FDIC Special assessment (pre-tax)		—			1,363			—			8,757			—
Less: Restructuring charge (pre-tax)		—			334			(675	)		954			10,507
Less: Merger-related expenses (pre-tax)		—			—			—			—			4,133
Less: Amortization of tax credit investments (pre-tax)		5,853			5,791			4,191			17,206			13,462
Non-interest expense, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	263,618		$	270,009		$	263,617		$	800,361		$	794,168
Net interest income, as reported (GAAP)		410,498			401,685			412,418			1,205,731			1,268,203
Non-interest income, as reported (GAAP)		60,671			51,213			58,664			173,299			173,038
Add: Losses on available for sale and held to maturity securities transactions, net (pre-tax)		1			4			443			12			476
Add: Mark-to-market loss on commercial real estate loans transferred to loans held for sale (pre-tax)		5,794			—			—			5,794			—
Less: Litigation settlements (pre-tax)		(7,334	)		—			—			(7,334	)		—
Less: Gain on sale of premium finance division (pre-tax)		—			—			—			(3,629	)		—
Less: Net gains on sales of office buildings (pre-tax)		—			—			(6,721	)		—			(6,721	)
Non-interest income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	59,132		$	51,217		$	52,386		$	168,142		$	166,793
Gross operating income, as adjusted (non-GAAP)	$	469,630		$	452,902		$	464,804		$	1,373,873		$	1,434,996
Efficiency ratio (non-GAAP)		56.13	%		59.62	%		56.72	%		58.26	%		55.34	%

	As of
	September 30,			June 30,			March 31,			December 31,			September 30,
($ in thousands, except for share data)	2024			2024			2024			2023			2023
Tangible book value per common share (non-GAAP):
Common shares outstanding		509,252,936			509,205,014			508,893,059			507,709,927			507,660,742
Shareholders’ equity (GAAP)	$	6,972,380		$	6,737,737		$	6,727,139		$	6,701,391		$	6,627,299
Less: Preferred stock		354,345			209,691			209,691			209,691			209,691
Less: Goodwill and other intangible assets		2,004,414			2,012,580			2,020,405			2,029,267			2,038,202
Tangible common shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP)	$	4,613,621		$	4,515,466		$	4,497,043		$	4,462,433		$	4,379,406
Tangible book value per common share (non-GAAP)	$	9.06		$	8.87		$	8.84		$	8.79		$	8.63
Tangible common equity to tangible assets (non-GAAP):
Tangible common shareholders’ equity (non-GAAP)	$	4,613,621		$	4,515,466		$	4,497,043		$	4,462,433		$	4,379,406
Total assets (GAAP)		62,092,332			62,058,974			61,000,188			60,934,974			61,183,352
Less: Goodwill and other intangible assets		2,004,414			2,012,580			2,020,405			2,029,267			2,038,202
Tangible assets (non-GAAP)	$	60,087,918		$	60,046,394		$	58,979,783		$	58,905,707		$	59,145,150
Tangible common equity to tangible assets (non-GAAP)		7.68	%		7.52	%		7.62	%		7.58	%		7.40	%

VALLEY NATIONAL BANCORP
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION
(in thousands, except for share data)

	September 30,			December 31,
	2024			2023
	(Unaudited)
Assets
Cash and due from banks	$	511,945		$	284,090
Interest bearing deposits with banks		527,960			607,135
Investment securities:
Equity securities		73,071			64,464
Trading debt securities		3,996			3,973
Available for sale debt securities		2,602,260			1,296,576
Held to maturity debt securities (net of allowance for credit losses of $1,076 at September 30, 2024 and $1,205 at December 31, 2023)		3,573,960			3,739,208
Total investment securities		6,253,287			5,104,221
Loans held for sale (includes fair value of $17,153 at September 30, 2024 and $20,640 at December 31, 2023 for loans originated for sale)		843,201			30,640
Loans		49,355,319			50,210,295
Less: Allowance for loan losses		(548,327	)		(446,080	)
Net loans		48,806,992			49,764,215
Premises and equipment, net		356,649			381,081
Lease right of use assets		335,032			343,461
Bank owned life insurance		730,081			723,799
Accrued interest receivable		250,131			245,498
Goodwill		1,868,936			1,868,936
Other intangible assets, net		135,478			160,331
Other assets		1,472,640			1,421,567
Total Assets	$	62,092,332		$	60,934,974
Liabilities
Deposits:
Non-interest bearing	$	11,153,754		$	11,539,483
Interest bearing:
Savings, NOW and money market		25,069,405			24,526,622
Time		14,172,807			13,176,724
Total deposits		50,395,966			49,242,829
Short-term borrowings		58,268			917,834
Long-term borrowings		3,274,340			2,328,375
Junior subordinated debentures issued to capital trusts		57,368			57,108
Lease liabilities		394,971			403,781
Accrued expenses and other liabilities		939,039			1,283,656
Total Liabilities		55,119,952			54,233,583
Shareholders’ Equity
Preferred stock, no par value; 50,000,000 authorized shares:
Series A (4,600,000 shares issued at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023)		111,590			111,590
Series B (4,000,000 shares issued at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023)		98,101			98,101
Series C (6,000,000 shares issued at September 30, 2024)		144,654			—
Common stock (no par value, authorized 650,000,000 shares; issued 509,252,936 shares at September 30, 2024 and 507,896,910 shares at December 31, 2023)		178,661			178,187
Surplus		5,002,718			4,989,989
Retained earnings		1,551,428			1,471,371
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(114,772	)		(146,456	)
Treasury stock, at cost (186,983 common shares at December 31, 2023)		—			(1,391	)
Total Shareholders’ Equity		6,972,380			6,701,391
Total Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity	$	62,092,332		$	60,934,974

VALLEY NATIONAL BANCORP
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except for share data)

	Three Months Ended									Nine Months Ended
	September 30,			June 30,			September 30,			September 30,
	2024			2024			2023			2024			2023
Interest Income
Interest and fees on loans	$	786,680		$	770,964		$	753,638		$	2,329,197		$	2,124,036
Interest and dividends on investment securities:
Taxable		49,700			40,460			32,383			125,957			96,591
Tax-exempt		4,855			4,799			4,585			14,450			15,485
Dividends		5,929			6,341			5,299			19,098			18,001
Interest on federal funds sold and other short-term investments		13,385			10,902			17,113			33,969			66,594
Total interest income		860,549			833,466			813,018			2,522,671			2,320,707
Interest Expense
Interest on deposits:
Savings, NOW and money market		235,371			231,597			201,916			699,474			517,524
Time		174,741			160,442			164,336			486,248			370,398
Interest on short-term borrowings		451			691			5,189			21,754			89,345
Interest on long-term borrowings and junior subordinated debentures		39,488			39,051			29,159			109,464			75,237
Total interest expense		450,051			431,781			400,600			1,316,940			1,052,504
Net Interest Income		410,498			401,685			412,418			1,205,731			1,268,203
(Credit) provision for credit losses for available for sale and held to maturity securities		(14	)		(41	)		(30	)		(129	)		4,675
Provision for credit losses for loans		75,038			82,111			9,147			202,423			24,929
Net Interest Income After Provision for Credit Losses		335,474			319,615			403,301			1,003,437			1,238,599
Non-Interest Income
Wealth management and trust fees		15,125			13,136			11,417			46,191			32,180
Insurance commissions		2,880			3,958			2,336			9,089			7,895
Capital markets		6,347			7,779			7,141			19,796			35,000
Service charges on deposit accounts		12,826			11,212			10,952			35,287			31,970
Gains (losses) on securities transactions, net		47			3			(398	)		99			197
Fees from loan servicing		3,443			2,691			2,681			9,322			8,054
(Losses) gains on sales of loans, net		(3,644	)		884			2,023			(1,142	)		3,752
Gains (losses) on sales of assets, net		55			(2	)		6,653			3,747			6,938
Bank owned life insurance		5,387			4,545			2,709			13,167			7,736
Other		18,205			7,007			13,150			37,743			39,316
Total non-interest income		60,671			51,213			58,664			173,299			173,038
Non-Interest Expense
Salary and employee benefits expense		138,832			140,815			137,292			421,478			431,872
Net occupancy expense		26,973			24,252			24,675			75,548			73,880
Technology, furniture and equipment expense		28,962			35,203			37,320			99,627			106,304
FDIC insurance assessment		14,792			14,446			7,946			47,474			27,527
Amortization of other intangible assets		8,692			8,568			9,741			26,672			30,072
Professional and legal fees		14,118			17,938			17,109			48,521			55,329
Amortization of tax credit investments		5,853			5,791			4,191			17,206			13,462
Other		31,249			30,484			28,859			90,752			83,824
Total non-interest expense		269,471			277,497			267,133			827,278			822,270
Income Before Income Taxes		126,674			93,331			194,832			349,458			589,367
Income tax expense		28,818			22,907			53,486			84,898			162,410
Net Income		97,856			70,424			141,346			264,560			426,957
Dividends on preferred stock		6,117			4,108			4,127			14,344			12,031
Net Income Available to Common Shareholders	$	91,739		$	66,316		$	137,219		$	250,216		$	414,926

VALLEY NATIONAL BANCORP
Quarterly Analysis of Average Assets, Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity and
Net Interest Income on a Tax Equivalent Basis

	Three Months Ended
	September 30, 2024							June 30, 2024							September 30, 2023
	Average					Avg.		Average					Avg.		Average					Avg.
($ in thousands)	Balance		Interest			Rate		Balance		Interest			Rate		Balance		Interest			Rate
Assets
Interest earning assets:
Loans ⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾	$	50,126,963	$	786,704		6.28	%	$	50,020,901	$	770,987		6.17	%	$	50,019,414	$	753,662		6.03	%
Taxable investments ⁽³⁾		5,977,211		55,629		3.72			5,379,101		46,801		3.48			4,915,778		37,682		3.07
Tax-exempt investments ⁽¹⁾⁽³⁾		573,059		6,145		4.29			575,272		6,075		4.22			620,439		5,800		3.74
Interest bearing deposits with banks		974,417		13,385		5.49			797,676		10,902		5.47			1,246,934		17,113		5.49
Total interest earning assets		57,651,650		861,863		5.98			56,772,950		834,765		5.88			56,802,565		814,257		5.73
Other assets		4,590,372							4,745,689							4,589,123
Total assets	$	62,242,022						$	61,518,639						$	61,391,688
Liabilities and shareholders’ equity
Interest bearing liabilities:
Savings, NOW and money market deposits	$	25,017,504	$	235,371		3.76	%	$	24,848,266	$	231,597		3.73	%	$	23,016,737	$	201,916		3.51	%
Time deposits		14,233,209		174,741		4.91			13,311,381		160,442		4.82			14,880,311		164,336		4.42
Short-term borrowings		81,251		451		2.22			97,502		691		2.83			436,518		5,189		4.75
Long-term borrowings ⁽⁴⁾		3,324,992		39,488		4.75			3,319,195		39,051		4.71			2,495,512		29,159		4.67
Total interest bearing liabilities		42,656,956		450,051		4.22			41,576,344		431,781		4.15			40,829,078		400,600		3.92
Non-interest bearing deposits		11,158,521							11,223,562							11,951,398
Other liabilities		1,563,990							1,964,752							2,005,426
Shareholders’ equity		6,862,555							6,753,981							6,605,786
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	62,242,022						$	61,518,639						$	61,391,688

Net interest income/interest rate spread ⁽⁵⁾			$	411,812		1.76	%			$	402,984		1.73	%			$	413,657		1.81	%
Tax equivalent adjustment				(1,314	)						(1,299	)						(1,239	)
Net interest income, as reported			$	410,498						$	401,685						$	412,418
Net interest margin ⁽⁶⁾						2.85							2.83							2.90
Tax equivalent effect						0.01							0.01							0.01
Net interest margin on a fully tax equivalent basis ⁽⁶⁾						2.86	%						2.84	%						2.91	%

_________

(1)	Interest income is presented on a tax equivalent basis using a 21 percent federal tax rate.
(2)	Loans are stated net of unearned income and include non-accrual loans.
(3)	The yield for securities that are classified as available for sale is based on the average historical amortized cost.
(4)	Includes junior subordinated debentures issued to capital trusts which are presented separately on the consolidated statements of condition.
(5)	Interest rate spread represents the difference between the average yield on interest earning assets and the average cost of interest bearing liabilities and is presented on a fully tax equivalent basis.
(6)	Net interest income as a percentage of total average interest earning assets.

SHAREHOLDERS RELATIONS
Requests for copies of reports and/or other inquiries should be directed to Tina Zarkadas, Assistant Vice President, Shareholder Relations Specialist, Valley National Bancorp, 70 Speedwell Avenue, Morristown, New Jersey, 07960, by telephone at (973) 305-3380, by fax at (973) 305-1364 or by e-mail at tzarkadas@valley.com.

Contact:		Michael D. Hagedorn
		Senior Executive Vice President and
		Chief Financial Officer
		973-872-4885

MIL-OSI: Nasdaq Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.24 Per Share

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK, Oct. 24, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Board of Directors of Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share on the company’s outstanding common stock. The dividend is payable on December 20, 2024 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 6, 2024. Future declarations of quarterly dividends and the establishment of future record and payment dates are subject to approval by the Board of Directors.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a leading global technology company serving corporate clients, investment managers, banks, brokers, and exchange operators as they navigate and interact with the global capital markets and the broader financial system. We aspire to deliver world-leading platforms that improve the liquidity, transparency, and integrity of the global economy. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software, exchange capabilities, and client-centric services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence. To learn more about the company, technology solutions, and career opportunities, visit us on LinkedIn, on X @Nasdaq, or at www.nasdaq.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this communication contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Nasdaq cautions readers that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and that actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, information regarding our dividend program and future payment obligations. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond Nasdaq’s control. These factors include, but are not limited to, Nasdaq’s ability to implement its strategic initiatives, economic, political and market conditions and fluctuations, government and industry regulation, interest rate risk, U.S. and global competition, and other factors detailed in Nasdaq’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q which are available on Nasdaq’s investor relations website at http://ir.nasdaq.com and the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Nasdaq undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Media Relations Contacts:

Nick Jannuzzi
+1.973.760.1741
Nicholas.Jannuzzi@Nasdaq.com

Nick Eghtessad
+1.929.996.8894
Nick.Eghtessad@Nasdaq.com

Investor Relations Contact:

Ato Garrett
+1.212.401.8737
Ato.Garrett@Nasdaq.com

-NDAQF-

MIL-OSI Economics: WTO advanced trade policy course underway in Geneva

Source: World Trade Organization

Case-based learning and practical application of WTO agreements are central to the course, allowing participants to enhance their analytical and negotiation capacities. Discussions, simulations and case studies also provide participants with hands-on experience with WTO tools and databases.

Opening the course in a video message, WTO Deputy Director-General Zhang Xiangchen told participants: “The course’s various interactive sessions will give you an opportunity to discuss how the multilateral trading system can be strengthened, reformed and modernized. This is in line with the strong political message that members delivered at the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference held in February in Abu Dhabi.”

Noting the importance of the course in fostering practical trade policy expertise, Saudi Arabia’s WTO Ambassador and patron of the course, Saqer Abdullah Almoqbel, stressed that the case-based learning approach will help participants strengthen their trade policy analytical skills and better harness the global trading system to improve their economies’ participation in trade.

Underscoring Ambassador Almoqbel’s comments, Bridget Chilala, Director of the WTO’s Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation, stressed that the WTO-led technical assistance and training activities are essential to help empower developing and least-developed WTO members and observers in engaging effectively in international trade.

In addition to attending WTO meetings over the next two months, participants will also familiarize themselves with the work of other international organizations dealing with trade and engage with various stakeholders in Geneva.

More information about the WTO’s trade-related technical assistance activities can be found here.

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MIL OSI Economics –

MIL-OSI Economics: Joint report explores scope for coordinated approaches on climate action, carbon pricing, and policy spillovers

Source: World Trade Organization

The report was presented on the 23rd of October by the Joint Task Force on Climate Action, Carbon Pricing, and Policy Spillovers, convened by the World Trade Organization and joined by the International Monetary Fund, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the World Bank.

Entitled “Working Together for Better Climate Action: Carbon Pricing, Policy Spillovers, and Global Climate Goals,” the report arrives at a time when countries around the world are scaling up actions to curb climate change. Mitigation policies are on the rise, including carbon pricing policies, with 75 carbon taxes and emission trading schemes currently in effect worldwide, covering approximately 24 per cent of global emissions

The report stresses that climate action needs to be stepped up to meet global emission reduction targets, while contributing to broader development goals. It also makes four important contributions to that end:

The report provides a common understanding of carbon pricing metrics to improve transparency on how countries are shifting incentives for decarbonization.
The report examines the composition of climate change mitigation policies, emphasizing the important role of carbon pricing as a cost-effective instrument that also raises revenues.
It outlines how international organizations can support the coordination of policies to foster positive and limit negative cross-border spillovers from climate change mitigation policies. The report also analyses the advantages and disadvantages of carbon border adjustment policies, including their impact on developing countries.
It shows how such coordination can help to scale up climate action by closing the transparency, implementation and ambition gaps.

The report also makes clear that international organizations’ future work can help fill important knowledge gaps. These include a need for more granular and better data on embedded carbon prices and embedded emissions, the design of border adjustment policies and their interoperability, and other approaches to enhance cooperation to increase ambition and ensure a just transition for all.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said: “Trade-related climate policies are on the rise, with over 5,500 measures linked to climate objectives notified to the WTO from 2009-2022. Such policies lead to cross-border spillovers which can increase trade tensions and retaliatory trade actions. Future work by international organizations should focus on concrete ways to come to the coordination of more ambitious carbon pricing policies which help to close the climate action gap and address their cross-border spillovers. This may require a framework to ensure interoperability between carbon pricing and other climate mitigation policies.”

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said: “This joint report of the five institutions highlights why carbon pricing and equivalent policies are important to scale up climate action. Global emissions need to be cut urgently to put the world on track to achieve the Paris goals and global ambition needs to be doubled to quadrupled. Carbon pricing should be an integral part of a well-designed policy mix, complemented with public investment support and sectoral policies, and international coordination on mitigation action could unlock progress.”

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said: “Countries currently take different approaches to reduce emissions, but achieving net zero requires us to align these efforts for a truly global impact. The OECD’s Inclusive Forum on Carbon Mitigation Approaches, now with 59 members, is bringing together national perspectives and building a common understanding of climate policies and their effects. More coherent and better-coordinated global mitigation policies can help prevent negative cross-border impacts such as carbon leakage or trade distortions, while maximizing opportunities for innovation, cost savings and shared benefits from the climate transition.”

UNCTAD Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan stated: “To ensure a just and green transition, UNCTAD encourages and supports developing countries in crafting the right policy mix to advance climate mitigation. We are strengthening our research and providing a safe space for dialogue to ensure that climate-related measures, including Border Carbon Adjustments mechanisms (BCAs) are evidence based and minimize negative spillovers on developing countries and other sustainable development goals. This is especially critical for less advanced economies, which often have limited productive capacity, infrastructure for monitoring, verification, reporting, and fiscal space. We are committed to helping developing countries decarbonize and diversify their economies by seizing environmental-related export opportunities and working with our member states to reduce the compliance and trade costs associated with these transitions.”

Axel van Trotsenburg, World Bank’s Senior Managing Director (SMD), said: “Through its technical assistance and financing, the World Bank helps countries make sure climate policies are tailored to each country’s context, capacities, political constraints, and development priorities. We think carbon pricing can play a central role in these policies, because it provides the right incentive for the private sector and creates public revenues to support broad development progress and help vulnerable populations manage the green energy transition. But with every country introducing their own climate policies, there is also a growing need for more cooperation and coordination. The product of in-depth exchanges across five international organizations, this report provides concrete ideas to make sure climate policies are designed in ways that benefit lower-income economies and help them accelerate their development, create jobs, and participate in global value chains.”

The report is available here.

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MIL-Evening Report: Caitlin Johnstone: Israel continues its war on journalism

Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. –

COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone

An Israeli airstrike destroyed the press office of the Lebanese news broadcaster Al Mayadeen on Wednesday night, continuing Israel’s historically unprecedented military assault on the press.

Also in continuation of Israel’s war on journalism, the IDF has published the names of six Al Jazeera reporters who it claims are actually members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, citing as evidence documents which it claims Israeli forces found in Gaza.

These allegations would mark these journalists as legitimate military targets.

Al Jazeera has denounced these claims as unfounded, saying in a statement: “The Network views these fabricated accusations as a blatant attempt to silence the few remaining journalists in the region, thereby obscuring the harsh realities of the war from audiences worldwide.”

There is of course no reason to ever believe any claim Israel makes about anything whatsoever absent mountains of independently verifiable evidence, after the mountains of lies it has churned out over the last year.

The fact that Western news outlets are treating these allegations as plausible is evidence of their propagandistic nature.

Israel claims everyone it wants to kill is Hamas. The journalists are Hamas, the hospitals are Hamas, the UN is Hamas, the aid trucks are Hamas, the schools are Hamas, the mosques are Hamas, the water infrastructure is Hamas, the civilian homes are all Hamas, and Hamas is hiding behind every woman and child in Gaza.

The only exception to this rule is in Lebanon, in which case everyone Israel wants to kill is Hezbollah.

[embedded content]
“Israel hates truth” . . . Gaza: The Al Jazeera investigation into Israeli war crimes.

Why journalists are killed
Israel hates truth, which is why it kills journalists at every opportunity and blocks them from entering Gaza. This is because truth tends to have a marked anti-Israel bias.

We saw this illustrated recently when Israel announced that there is a secret Hezbollah bunker underneath a hospital in Beirut, so the press simply sent a bunch of reporters to go and investigate because Israel can’t block the press from entering Lebanon like it can in Gaza.

Even Western outlets like the BBC and Sky News entered the hospital and interviewed medical staff, reporting that they found no trace of evidence supporting Israel’s claims and that the hospital staff all denied the existence of any Hezbollah bunker on the premises.

And you may be sure those outlets would have eagerly reported any sign of Hezbollah if they were given the opportunity.

Israel Continues Its War On Journalism

Article with supporting links.https://t.co/hnsKnHaOqZ

— Caitlin Johnstone (@caitoz) October 24, 2024

Criminal institutions need to function in the dark. They cannot function in the light of visibility and critical journalism and inconvenient video footage.

That’s why the mafia murders witnesses. That’s why the inner workings of the US war machine are shrouded in government secrecy. That’s why Julian Assange spent five years in a maximum security prison.

And that’s why Israel does everything it can to kill and obstruct journalists who tell the truth about its crimes.

Caitlin Johnstone is an Australian independent journalist and poet. Her articles include The UN Torture Report On Assange Is An Indictment Of Our Entire Society. She publishes a website and Caitlin’s Newsletter. This article is republished with permission.

This article was first published on Café Pacific.

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

MIL-OSI Global: The Terminator at 40: this sci-fi ‘B-movie’ still shapes how we view the threat of AI

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tom F.A Watts, Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Politics, International Relations and Philosophy, Royal Holloway University of London

October 26, 2024 marks the 40th anniversary of director James Cameron’s science fiction classic, The Terminator – a film that popularised society’s fear of machines that can’t be reasoned with, and that “absolutely will not stop … until you are dead”, as one character memorably puts it.

The plot concerns a super-intelligent AI system called Skynet which has taken over the world by initiating nuclear war. Amid the resulting devastation, human survivors stage a successful fightback under the leadership of the charismatic John Connor.

In response, Skynet sends a cyborg assassin (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) back in time to 1984 – before Connor’s birth – to kill his future mother, Sarah. Such is John Connor’s importance to the war that Skynet banks on erasing him from history to preserve its existence.

Today, public interest in artificial intelligence has arguably never been greater. The companies developing AI typically promise their technologies will perform tasks faster and more accurately than people. They claim AI can spot patterns in data that are not obvious, enhancing human decision-making. There is a widespread perception that AI is poised to transform everything from warfare to the economy.

Immediate risks include introducing biases into algorithms for screening job applications and the threat of generative AI displacing humans from certain types of work, such as software programming.

But it is the existential danger that often dominates public discussion – and the six Terminator films have exerted an outsize influence on how these arguments are framed. Indeed, according to some, the films’ portrayal of the threat posed by AI-controlled machines distracts from the substantial benefits offered by the technology.

Official trailer for The Terminator (1984)

The Terminator was not the first film to tackle AI’s potential dangers. There are parallels between Skynet and the HAL 9000 supercomputer in Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey.

It also draws from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, Frankenstein, and Karel Čapek’s 1921 play, R.U.R.. Both stories concern inventors losing control over their creations.

On release, it was described in a review by the New York Times as a “B-movie with flair”. In the intervening years, it has been recognised as one of the greatest science fiction movies of all time. At the box office, it made more than 12 times its modest budget of US$6.4 million (£4.9 million at today’s exchange rate).

What was arguably most novel about The Terminator is how it re-imagined longstanding fears of a machine uprising through the cultural prism of 1980s America. Much like the 1983 film WarGames, where a teenager nearly triggers World War 3 by hacking into a military supercomputer, Skynet highlights cold war fears of nuclear annihilation coupled with anxiety about rapid technological change.

Forty years on, Elon Musk is among the technology leaders who have helped keep a focus on the supposed existential risk of AI to humanity. The owner of X (formerly Twitter) has repeatedly referenced the Terminator franchise while expressing concerns about the hypothetical development of superintelligent AI.

But such comparisons often irritate the technology’s advocates. As the former UK technology minister Paul Scully said at a London conference in 2023: “If you’re only talking about the end of humanity because of some rogue, Terminator-style scenario, you’re going to miss out on all of the good that AI [can do].”

That’s not to say there aren’t genuine concerns about military uses of AI – ones that may even seem to parallel the film franchise.

AI-controlled weapons systems

To the relief of many, US officials have said that AI will never take a decision on deploying nuclear weapons. But combining AI with autonomous weapons systems is a possibility.

These weapons have existed for decades and don’t necessarily require AI. Once activated, they can select and attack targets without being directly operated by a human. In 2016, US Air Force general Paul Selva coined the term “Terminator conundrum” to describe the ethical and legal challenges posed by these weapons.

The Terminator’s director James Cameron says ‘the weaponisation of AI is the biggest danger’.

Stuart Russell, a leading UK computer scientist, has argued for a ban on all lethal, fully autonomous weapons, including those with AI. The main risk, he argues, is not from a sentient Skynet-style system going rogue, but how well autonomous weapons might follow our instructions, killing with superhuman accuracy.

Russell envisages a scenario where tiny quadcopters equipped with AI and explosive charges could be mass-produced. These “slaughterbots” could then be deployed in swarms as “cheap, selective weapons of mass destruction”.

Countries including the US specify the need for human operators to “exercise appropriate levels of human judgment over the use of force” when operating autonomous weapon systems. In some instances, operators can visually verify targets before authorising strikes, and can “wave off” attacks if situations change.

AI is already being used to support military targeting. According to some, it’s even a responsible use of the technology, since it could reduce collateral damage. This idea evokes Schwarzenegger’s role reversal as the benevolent “machine guardian” in the original film’s sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

However, AI could also undermine the role human drone operators play in challenging recommendations by machines. Some researchers think that humans have a tendency to trust whatever computers say.

‘Loitering munitions’

Militaries engaged in conflicts are increasingly making use of small, cheap aerial drones that can detect and crash into targets. These “loitering munitions” (so named because they are designed to hover over a battlefield) feature varying degrees of autonomy.

As I’ve argued in research co-authored with security researcher Ingvild Bode, the dynamics of the Ukraine war and other recent conflicts in which these munitions have been widely used raises concerns about the quality of control exerted by human operators.

Ground-based military robots armed with weapons and designed for use on the battlefield might call to mind the relentless Terminators, and weaponised aerial drones may, in time, come to resemble the franchise’s airborne “hunter-killers”. But these technologies don’t hate us as Skynet does, and neither are they “super-intelligent”.

However, it’s crucially important that human operators continue to exercise agency and meaningful control over machine systems.

Arguably, The Terminator’s greatest legacy has been to distort how we collectively think and speak about AI. This matters now more than ever, because of how central these technologies have become to the strategic competition for global power and influence between the US, China and Russia.

The entire international community, from superpowers such as China and the US to smaller countries, needs to find the political will to cooperate – and to manage the ethical and legal challenges posed by the military applications of AI during this time of geopolitical upheaval. How nations navigate these challenges will determine whether we can avoid the dystopian future so vividly imagined in The Terminator – even if we don’t see time travelling cyborgs any time soon.

Tom F.A Watts receives funding from the Leverhulme Trust Early Career Research Fellowship scheme.

– ref. The Terminator at 40: this sci-fi ‘B-movie’ still shapes how we view the threat of AI – https://theconversation.com/the-terminator-at-40-this-sci-fi-b-movie-still-shapes-how-we-view-the-threat-of-ai-236564

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

MIL-OSI Global: An Indian village went from hunting Amur falcons to being their biggest protectors. Here’s how conservationists can harness the power of persuasion

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Diogo Veríssimo, Research Fellow in Conservation Marketing, University of Oxford

An Amur falcon feeds on flying insects as it migrates across Nagaland, India. Greeneries/Shutterstock

Wildlife conservation is an exercise in human persuasion. It may seem counterintuitive that we hold the keys to the survival of wildlife, but 98% of all threatened species are threatened exclusively by human activities such as pollution, invasive species or habitat loss.

Influencing human behaviour to benefit nature is hard, but it can be done. In the case of the Amur falcon, we found that legislation and enforcement were successful at stopping hunting of this migratory raptor and maintaining changes in hunting practices. But the key to success involved fostering local pride in the bird, alongside providing economic incentives.

The Amur falcon is a bird the size of an apple with a yearly commute from Siberia to Africa and back – the equivalent in total to six trips from London to New York. One key stop in the bird’s journey is the forests of Nagaland in north-east India.

Since its construction in 2000, an artificial reservoir over Nagaland’s Doyang river has attracted vast numbers of winged termites – in turn increasing the number of Amur falcons stopping to feed on these insects. As the numbers of falcons rose, they became very easy targets for local hunters, for whom wildlife hunting is an integral part of their traditional culture. These birds were hunted for food as well as traded in local markets, earning significant seasonal revenue for the hunters.

Fast-forward to November 2012. The scale of the hunt at Doyang reservoir, particularly in Pangti village, came to the attention of conservationists like us, who estimated that between 120,000 and 140,000 birds (about 10% of the global adult population) were being caught in only ten days. These birds stopped at the Doyang reservoir to fatten up before their migration to Africa, but were trapped using fishing nets hung across trees.

A global media campaign was spearheaded by the environmental charity Conservation India. A hard-hitting short film, The Amur Falcon Massacre, was shared online to show the true horror and scale of this hunt. Conservationists tried to leverage India’s membership of the Convention on Migratory Species, and such pressure led to the Indian government making a global commitment to protect species including the Amur falcon.

The government took swift action. It warned Pangti villagers that unless the hunting stopped, it would cut off funding for crucial development projects. Faced with this threat, the village council imposed a ban on hunting falcons in 2013 – without consulting the broader community.

That decision was deeply unpopular with local villagers. Falcon hunting had been an important source of income, and many villagers were resistant to the ban. Though the hunting stopped, local trust in the council leadership was low because the ban was seen as authoritarian.

However, the decision was backed by financial incentives and environmental outreach from charitable organisations and the government’s forest department. This helped reframe the falcons as “honoured guests”, and to connect local people more empathetically with the birds. Hunting was actively discouraged; eventually, it ceased altogether.

An Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) in flight.
Touhid biplob/Wikimedia, CC BY-NC-ND

By 2017, a sense of pride began to grow within the community. Awards and recognition from external bodies, including the Indian government, for Pangti’s conservation efforts helped create a positive image of the village worldwide. The community’s emotional bond with the falcons strengthened. Villagers even held prayers for satellite-tagged falcons before releasing them. Falcon conservation became a symbol of local identity and pride, which helped overcome the initial resistance to the hunting ban.

This allowed conservation measures to expand. The community outlawed air guns to prevent the hunting of small birds, and extended the hunting ban to cover all wildlife for six months of the year. These actions showed the community wasn’t just enforcing government rules; it was actively creating new conservation initiatives of its own.

The power of persuasion

Human actions drive biodiversity outcomes. These can be destructive, like poaching, or protective, like community-led conservation. The end of the indiscriminate killing of the Amur falcon in Nagaland highlights that, while behaviour change can take place in a short period, maintaining it over the long term is often much more challenging.

For instance, while the initial ban was effective in quickly eliminating hunting, the shift from resistance to pride in falcon conservation took years to fully develop. Sustaining this change has required continuous community engagement and building of pride in the species.

Visual storytelling – in this case, a film widely shared on social media – can also play a powerful role in turning local issues into global ones. The international attention brought to the unsustainable hunting of the Amur falcon was instrumental in prompting government action. This shows how global media exposure can elevate a local conservation issue, creating a sense of urgency that compels authorities to act.

However, while media campaigns can quickly drive policy changes, they don’t always lead to lasting behaviour change. Campaigns that rely on shock and urgency may alienate local communities, creating resistance.

Sustainable behaviour change requires building trust, understanding local values, and supporting community leadership. True change happens when people feel empowered and see benefits from their actions – not simply when they feel pressured to comply.

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Sahila Kudalkar received funding from the Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation for research on Amur falcon conservation in Nagaland.

Diogo Veríssimo 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. An Indian village went from hunting Amur falcons to being their biggest protectors. Here’s how conservationists can harness the power of persuasion – https://theconversation.com/an-indian-village-went-from-hunting-amur-falcons-to-being-their-biggest-protectors-heres-how-conservationists-can-harness-the-power-of-persuasion-239856

MIL OSI – Global Reports –