Archive
International News Services archives articles supplied to clients one year or more after initial publication. These articles are protected by a password and not made available to readers without permission from clients. They are used as a background resource by agency journalists. Upon client requests, International News Services will remove such articles from the archive or not upload them in the first place. They are included to demonstrate the breadth of topics undertaken by the agency and also to help promote clients’ coverage.
UK LAW COMMISSION PROPOSES FIXING BROKEN CRIMINAL ASSET RECOVERY SYSTEM
A legislative watchdog has recommended wholesale reforms to how the UK confiscates the proceeds of crime from convicts, helping compensate victims. The current confiscation system has been criticised for being unwieldy and ineffective.
Indeed, a detailed paper released by the UK Law Commission noted that in March 2021, only 6.1% of the GBP2.35 billion (USD2.67 billion) outstanding confiscation orders made under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 were recoverable.…
EU ROUND UP – EUROPEAN COMMISSION BLOCKS BIOCIDES FROM EU-WIDE SALE
The European Commission has issued a wide range of rulings affecting the use of biocides by the European Union (EU) paint and coating sector, with two permissions for EU-wide use being blocked. One is Preventol A 12 TK 50, a film preservative for water-based and solvent-based paints and coatings.…
AML INFORMATION SHARING POSES KNOTTY LEGAL AND PRACTICAL PROBLEMS FOR REPORTERS AND REGULATORS
The ability of obliged bodies to share AML/CFT intelligence with FIUs, law enforcement and each other, without breaching data protection rules and their own legitimate duty of care to clients is a knotty issue. But the importance of ensuring such intelligence does not remain in silos or its flow is restricted by having to be channeled through STRs to FIUs, which could be overloaded with data as a result, is increasingly recognised by key jurisdictions.…
GLOBAL GAS MARKET CRISIS IS CAUSING TEXTLE PRODUCTION CRISIS IN BANGLADESH TEXTILE SECTOR
The Bangladesh textile industry is suffering from an acute gas shortage due to the surge in gas prices in the international market due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Russia’s piped exports to Europe declined by an 40% (or over 45 billion cubic metres) year-on-year in the first eight months of 2022, tightening supplies worldwide.…
ATHLEISURE INNOVATION BOOSTS PERFORMANCE AND SUSTAINABILITY-FOCUSED SALES
Innovation in athleisure gear continues to drive performance improvements, with an eye to boosting sustainability, as consumers become more environment conscious, and regulation toughens up.
Of course, making such improvements is no easy feat today given the entire supply chain is facing “unprecedented challenges,” warned Davide Vigano, CEO of tech textile manufacturer Sensoria, based in Redmond, Washington state, USA, as shipping delays hinder the delivery of components, and transport prices increase as energy costs also soar, pushed up by Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine. …
METAVERSE OFFERS FRAUDSTERS NEW OPENINGS FOR CYBER-SWINDLES
It is ‘de rigeur’ for tech publications to define the ‘metaverse’ – Wikipedia is perhaps most succinct – ‘a metaverse is a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection’ (1). As for their fraud risk, there is a growing consensus that the metaverse offers fraudsters and cybercriminals significant opportunities to exploit this growing network of IT systems integrating virtual or augmented reality (VR and AR).…
CAPE VERDE ASSESSES UNIVERSITIES FOR THE FIRST TIME
Cape Verde universities are facing their first complete scientific and institutional assessment, undertaken by a recently created Higher Education Regulatory Agency (Agência Reguladora do Ensino Superior – ARES) to improve the quality of higher education in the island country, about 500km west of Senegal.…
GAS CRISIS HITS BANGLADESH APPAREL SECTORGAS CRISIS HITS BANGLADESH APPAREL SECTOR
A gas supply crisis in Bangladesh is directly impacting the country’s important apparel industry due to its reliance on upstream and mid-stream textile and knitting sectors for fabric production, who consume natural gas for energy. The shortage has been caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which said the International Energy Agency (IEA), has seen Russia’s piped exports to Europe declined by 40% in the first eight months of 2022, tightening supplies worldwide.…
EGYPT DEVELOPS KNITWEAR SECTOR FROM NICHE TO SIGNIFICANT EXPORT PLAYER
Egyptian knitwear manufacturers have profited from strong international demand over the past two years, being able to tap into the diversification and nearshoring trend of US and European buyers wanting to avoid over-reliance on Asian sourcing, especially in China. However, export sales have slowed since the summer as consumer sentiment has weakened in key overseas markets, which has caused a hiatus in further investment by some manufacturers.…
EU GUIDANCE ON PPP AIMS AT MORE EFFECTIVE MONEY LAUNDERING PREVENTION
Public-private partnerships (PPP) in the anti-money laundering domain are “flourishing” across the European Union (EU) but “there is no commonly agreed definition” of how these should operate, notes new European Commission guidance. A staff working document (1) from the EU executive “does not aim to harmonise the concept of public-private partnerships”, rather the “non-binding” guidance examines the way PPPs function in the EU, with a series of case studies.…