Chinese National in New York Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Relief Loan Fraud: DOJ

Chinese National in New York Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Relief Loan Fraud: DOJ

A Chinese national has pleaded guilty after being accused of cheating the federal government and banks to obtain tens of millions of COVID-19 relief loans meant for small businesses. He could be sentenced to up to 32 years in prison, the Justice Department said in a June 15 press release. The 37-year-old New York resident,…

Perspective | From Aberdeen to Abrdn. Is Bonkers Branding Killing Meaning?
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Perspective | From Aberdeen to Abrdn. Is Bonkers Branding Killing Meaning?

Language, William Burroughs wrote, is a virus from outer space. Like many a virus, language evolves, sometimes in odd directions. Advertisement Some British universities, keen to attract a more diverse student body, have decided that command of language and grammar are no longer necessary. Students may write in any approximation of English, without being penalized…

Billions in Possible Liability Exposures for PFA Manufacturers as Regulatory Attention Ratchets Up
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Billions in Possible Liability Exposures for PFA Manufacturers as Regulatory Attention Ratchets Up

A substance found in everything from firefighting foam to nonstick cookware represents a growing liability threat. From Washington down to state governments, contamination standards are being tightened. Early in June, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Representative Antonio Delgado (both D-NY) reintroduced legislation that would regulate per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Clean Water Act. Separately,…

Southwest Suffers Technology Problem for Second Straight Day

Southwest Suffers Technology Problem for Second Straight Day

DALLAS—Southwest Airlines said it was working Tuesday to restore normal operations after a technology-related issue interfered with flights for the second straight day. By midafternoon, the nation’s fourth-largest airline had canceled about 500 flights and delayed nearly 1,300 others, according to tracking service FlightAware. The combination of cancellations and delays affected about half of Southwest’s…

FedEx to Test Package Deliveries With Self-Driving Startup Nuro

FedEx to Test Package Deliveries With Self-Driving Startup Nuro

FedEx and robotics company Nuro on Tuesday announced a multi-year agreement to test self-driving vehicles in the package delivery company’s network, starting with a pilot program in Houston. The partnership comes as parcel companies race to reduce the cost of last-mile delivery, which surged during the pandemic. The companies will target delivery scenarios where Nuro’s…

Risk Placement Services’ Lisa Duncan Dishes on Diversity and Her Insurance Brokerage Journey
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Risk Placement Services’ Lisa Duncan Dishes on Diversity and Her Insurance Brokerage Journey

Many insurance and risk management professionals can attest that their introduction to the industry was either by happy accident or a wonderful stroke of luck. Lisa Duncan experienced the latter. Advertisement Duncan was working at Nordstrom part-time while pursuing her undergraduate degree when a customer’s husband offered her a job to work for him as…

Australian Mining Magnate in the Hotseat for World’s Largest Hydro Project

Australian Mining Magnate in the Hotseat for World’s Largest Hydro Project

One of Australia’s wealthiest individuals, Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, is in the hot seat to develop the world’s largest hydroelectric project in central Africa. On Wednesday, the mining magnate’s company, Fortescue Metals Group, confirmed discussions were already underway between Forrest and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) government. Under current arrangements, Forrest’s Fortescue Future Industries (FFI)…

How Major Credit Card Networks Protect Customers Against Fraud

How Major Credit Card Networks Protect Customers Against Fraud

By Tim Maxwell From Bankrate.com Credit card fraud ranked as the second most common form of identity theft in 2020, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), trailing very close behind government/benefits fraud. The agency fielded 393,207 reports last year, up 45 percent from 271,823 in 2019, from consumers whose credit card accounts were compromised…