Author: viking

1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) is a state investment fund that came under investigation for a multibillion-dollar global corruption scandal.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) alleges US$4.5 billion was siphoned from 1MDB between 2009 and 2014. The scandal has been described as the world’s most extensive financial con. Who are the central figures in the 1MDB scandal?
Fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, is accused of masterminding the fraud. Low and two former…

THE THAI DRAMA lasted ostensibly less than a day. But the shock waves of the February 8 political earthquake triggered by Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya’s abortive prime ministerial candidacy – vetoed by her younger brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn within hours – are still being felt as the Thai public grapples with the meaning of that moment.
The motivation behind the monarch’s edict remains opaque, as do its consequences. Some say his decision was more a rebuke than a…

A new policy to ensure the approach to digital identities (digital IDs) is better joined up across the public and privacy sectors should be developed by the UK government, industry body techUK has said.

Online marketplaces will have to disclose how they rank goods and services on their platforms, and explain any preferential treatment of their own products on those platforms where they also act as a seller, under planned new EU laws that have moved closer to being finalised.

Drivers in Northern Ireland are receiving conflicting advice about the preparations they need to take to ensure that they can continue to drive in the Republic of Ireland with valid insurance should the UK leave the EU without a formal deal in place.

A Singaporean man, who gave financial support to a Syria-based Islamic State (IS) militant from Malaysia, has been detained under the city state’s tough internal security laws, authorities said on Friday.
The 48-year-old businessman, Mohamed Kazali Salleh, was among seven men nabbed by Singapore and Malaysian authorities for suspected involvement in terrorism-related activities.
The arrest highlights the continued influence of Southeast Asian militants fighting with IS in Iraq and Syria…

Roger Ng, a former Goldman Sachs banker accused of playing a role in defrauding sovereign wealth fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), will return to the US to face criminal charges against him, his lawyer said on Thursday.
Ng will waive extradition to the US on Friday during an appearance in a court in Malaysia, according to his lawyer Marc Agnifilo. Ng intends to plead not guilty when he appears in a US federal court, Agnifilo said.
Ng, who left Goldman Sachs in the spring of 2014, has…

Valentine’s Day wasn’t getting much love in the world’s biggest Muslim majority nation Thursday as Indonesian authorities urged amorous couples to call it quits and carried out raids to quash any wayward gift-giving.
About 100 students in the second-biggest city, Surabaya, demonstrated against the chocolates-and-flowers celebration, saying it promoted Western decadence and casual sex.
“Say no to Valentine’s now!” chanted the group of mostly female high-school…

Residents in a block of flats with floor-to-ceiling glass windows have failed in a nuisance claim against the Tate Modern in London, brought in response to the construction by the gallery of a viewing platform with a direct line of sight into their homes.

Like most single people who dread the arrival of Valentine’s Day, finding a love match ahead of one of the most romantic holidays of the year proved to be a tricky ordeal for Vancouver resident Omar* – even after arming himself with Tinder.
The 31-year-old of Southeast Asian descent said he almost exclusively matched with South Asian women. “My matches ranged from Persian to South Asian; but never East Asian or white,” he said.
It’s no surprise that people tend to…