Category:

Risk Management

London transport regulator strips Ola’s operating licence over public safety failings

Transport for London (TfL) said in a statement that it refused to grant Ola, a Softbank-backed operator, a new London private hire vehicle (PHV) operator’s licence as it “cannot find it fit and proper to hold one after discovering a number of failures that could have risked public safety.”

TfL’s decision came days after Uber won a legal bid to restore its London operating licence, which was taken away over safety concerns, after a judge ruled that the company was a fit and proper operator despite “historical failings”.

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Govt weighs legal options after losing Vodafone tax arbitration case

Finance Ministry sources said the government will decide on challenging the award before a court in Singapore – which was the seat of the arbitration, after taking legal opinion.While the cost implication in the case is limited to having to pay Rs 85 crore to Vodafone in legal cost, what is weighing on the government mind is a separate arbitration involving UK’s Cairn Energy plc.

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India and South Africa ask WTO to waive rules to aid COVID-19 drug production

In their letter dated Oct. 2 the two countries called on the global trade body to waive parts of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which governs patents, trademarks, copyright and other intellectual property rules globally.“As new diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines for COVID-19 are developed, there are significant concerns (over) how these will be made available promptly, in sufficient quantities and at (an) affordable price to meet global demand,” the letter posted on the Geneva-based WTO’s website says.

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Coal baron seeks US benefits to treat his black lung disease:Report

Murray, an ally of President Donald Trump, filed a claim with the Department of Labor seeking to access federal benefits to treat his disease, which is caused by prolonged exposure to coal dust, Ohio Valley ReSource,  a National Public Radio affiliate, reported on Thursday.

The Black Lung Disability Trust Fund is funded through a $1.10 per ton excise-tax on production of underground coal but runs a massive debt and is at risk of insolvency, according to the U.S. General Accountability Office.

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U.S. Treasury warns cyber insurers payments to hackers may violate sanctions

The average ransomware payment jumped by 60% to $178,254 between the first and second quarters, according to Coveware a firm that helps negotiate and facilitate cyber ransom payments.

Sophisticated insurers and financial institutions are already aware of the sanctions concern, said Sumon Dantiki, a King & Spalding LLC lawyer who advises on national security and cyber matters.

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France urges parts review after Airbus A380 engine blowout

France’s BEA agency made the recommendation in a final report into the accident in which an Air France jet carrying more than 500 passengers lost the front section of one of its four engines while flying over Greenland, before landing safely in Canada.

The move follows a perilous investigation involving a 21-month international aerial and ground search across the ice sheet to find a crucial titanium alloy fragment, buried 3 metres below the surface and just a metre away from a hidden crevasse.

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White Mountains to acquire majority stake in Lloyd’s insurer Ark

Ark is a leading Lloyd’s platform well positioned to take advantage of the hardening market in property & casualty insurance.  Founded in 2007 by Ian Beaton and Nick Bonnar, Ark manages the underwriting of syndicates 4020 and 3902 at Lloyd’s. The syndicates underwrite a diversified and balanced portfolio of reinsurance and insurance, including property, accident & health, energy, marine and political risks.

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Microsoft says Russia behind most nation-state cyber-attacks

Microsoft Corp. has issued 13,000 alerts about nation-state hacking attempts to its customers in the last two years, with 52% of incidents between July 2019 and June 2020 related to Russian hackers — whose targets have ranged from elections to the Olympics, according to a report published Tuesday. Iran was responsible for a quarter of the alerts while China was responsible for 12%. The remainder of the nation-state activity observed by Microsoft came from North Korea and other countries.

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