RIOCOCO’s innovation and sustainability recognized with six Stevie International Awards in 2024
RIOCOCO’s innovation and sustainability recognized with six Stevie International Awards in 2024BusinessRIOCOCO, a true Sri Lankan company and leader in sustainable coir-based horticulture solutions, proudly celebrated a major milestone at the 21st annual International Business Awards, also known as the Stevie Awards, held on October 11, 2024, at the InterContinental Hotel in Istanbul, Turkey. RIOCOCO significantly contributes to strengthening Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves and secured six prestigious Stevie Awards, reaffirming its global leadership in innovation, sustainability, and excellence. In Europe, RIOCOCO earned the Silver Stevie Award for Sustainability Leadership, and in the Middle East and Africa, the company was awarded the Bronze Stevie Award for the same category. Dubbed the 'Oscars of the business world,' The Stevie Awards are regarded as the highest honours in the international business community. "We are incredibly honored to be recognized by the International Business Awards.
Source:Sunday Times
October 16, 2024 14:29 UTC
Countries that have cashed in on their top-level domain names
It has one of the world's smallest economies and its low-lying islands are vulnerable to climate change, but it does have a very valuable resource: the .tv web domain. But Libya controls web addresses that end in .ly, which have become widely used as a so-called domain hack for websites with English names that end in -ly. Montenegro was assigned the .me web domain, which has become popular with people who want to claim their pronoun for personal branding. COLOMBIAWebsites that end in .co aren't from a generic web domain for companies, like .com sites. The .co domain is assigned to Colombia, but the South American country allows anyone to sign up for its web addresses.
Source:The Nation
October 15, 2024 17:25 UTC
Speakers, vacuums, doorbells and fridges – the government plans to make your ‘smart things’ more secure
Among the act’s many provisions are mandatory “minimum cyber security standards for smart devices”. Smart devices are everywhereThe new legislation aims to cover a wide range of smart devices – products that can connect to the internet in some way. This means things like smart home devices and appliances, wearables (smart watches, fitness trackers), smart vacuums and many more. The new cyber security act provides for “mandatory security standards” for smart devices. By mandating minimum cyber security standards and providing for effective enforcement mechanisms, Australia’s new cyber security act will help keep consumer devices safer.
Source:The Nation
October 15, 2024 15:05 UTC
More than 150,000 persons affected by adverse weather conditions
More than 150,000 persons affected by adverse weather conditionsNewsMore than 150,000 persons have been affected by floods caused by heavy rains in 12 districts and three deaths have been reported, officials said today. The adverse weather conditions have forced the closure of schools in several areas in the Western province. All schools in the Colombo Educational Zones closed today due to bad weather. Some of the schools in Gampaha too will remain closed. The Meteorological Department warned that heavy rains will continue for the next two to three days.
Source:Sunday Times
October 15, 2024 15:04 UTC
FalconX Unveils Auto-Liquidation Service for APAC Crypto Miners Amid Sector Woes
Digital asset prime brokerage FalconX has launched an auto-liquidation service designed to enhance capital efficiency for crypto mining firms in the Asia-Pacific region, following a turbulent two years that have strained the sector. The service, part of the firm’s broader platform rollout targeting the industry, is designed to help miners operating in capital-constrained environments manage liquidity more efficiently. Its offering automates the conversion of crypto mining rewards, including Bitcoin, Litecoin, and other proof-of-work tokens, into U.S. dollars, the company shared exclusively with Decrypt. FalconX said the service would streamline miners' operations by enabling faster reinvestment into their businesses, removing the need for manual trading or reliance on third-party providers. The company added that its service offers enhanced liquidity while minimizing costs, with low execution fees and minimal slippage.
Source:The Nation
October 15, 2024 07:57 UTC
Arjun Aloysius jailed for six months for defaulting VAT
Arjun Aloysius jailed for six months for defaulting VATNewsThe Director of W.M. Mendis & Co. Ltd., Arjun Aloysius and another were sentenced to 6-months in prison for evading Value Added Tax (VAT) amounting to Rs 3.5 billion. Company Director Anthony Randev was the other Director sentenced while Courr ordered to arrest and produce another director Lushen Kumarasiri Silva. This was after an order was issued 11 months earlier to pay the tax, but the suspects had failed to adhere to the order. The case was taken up today on a motion filed by Aloysius and Randev who wanted the warrant issued on them recalled.
Source:Sunday Times
October 14, 2024 08:58 UTC
Monochrome to Launch ‘World First’ Ethereum ETF on Cboe Australia
Monochrome Asset Management is preparing to launch Australia’s first spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund on Cboe following the asset’s long-anticipated approval in the U.S. market. Set to begin trading on Monday (Tuesday 10 AM AEDT), Monochrome’s Ethereum ETF (IETH) follows the launch of its Bitcoin ETF (IBTC) in August 2023, which has since garnered $15 million (US$10.1 million). “A ‘bare trust’ means that your investment in the ETF may be treated as if you directly own the Ethereum,” Yew explained. That was later followed by the approval of nine Ethereum ETFs in May, with billions of dollars flowing into the funds in the months that followed. "US crypto ETFs can’t be supported in kind, including Bitcoin ETFs, and they are not operated in this timezone," Yew said.
Source:The Nation
October 14, 2024 03:43 UTC
Volunteers bring solar power to Hurricane Helene's disaster zone
Without it, they can’t keep medicines cold or power medical equipment or pump well water. Volunteers with the nonprofit Footprint Project and a local solar installation company delivered a solar generator with six 245-watt solar panels, a 24-volt battery and an AC power inverter. It has deployed dozens of larger solar microgrids, solar generators and machines that can pull water from the air to 33 sites so far, along with dozens of smaller portable batteries. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” Swezey said as she stared at a whiteboard with scribbled lists of requests, volunteers and equipment. Panels and a battery from Footprint Project now power her small fridge, a water pump and a Starlink communications system she set up.
Source:The Nation
October 13, 2024 16:33 UTC
Supreme Court justice finally brought to Easter Sunday’s bomb blast victims
He was asked to show cause as to why the Supreme Court should not impose punishment on him on October 7. 10 million much earlier, leaving last man Nilantha Jayewardene to face the Supreme Court alone on contempt charges. 65 million to the Office of Reparations as set up by the Supreme Court. Finally, it was ‘all’s well that ends well’, as the Supreme Court closed the last remaining case of the former SDIG Nilantha Jayawardena and set him free. However, the Supreme Court rescheduled the case for November 18 to review the compensation distribution scheme for victims of the Easter blast tragedy.
Source:Sunday Times
October 13, 2024 16:31 UTC
The Wrath of a Nation
by Anura GunasekeraThe wrath of a nation can be a fearful thing. Most of the 5.7 million people who voted AKD in to power, including this writer and his wife, had not forgotten the impact and consequences of the 1971 JVP insurrection, or those of the second in 1988/89. These rose to new heights under MR and, under GR, were further compounded by moronic presidential directives, which impoverished the nation through the loss of agricultural land productivity. Overall, the 2024 election, for the first time since Independence, represents an unexpected maturity of outlook in the Sri Lankan nation. AKD represents the last hope for a nation, nauseated, and impoverished, by the venality of its rulers.
Source:The Nation
October 13, 2024 06:16 UTC
Sri Lanka Design Festival 2024: Shaping creativity, innovation and connection
Sri Lanka Design Festival 2024: Shaping creativity, innovation and connection View(s):The Sri Lanka Design Festival (SLDF) 2024 which takes place from November 7-10 marks a significant milestone -15 years of driving innovation, creativity and collaboration. As Sri Lanka positions itself as a hub for South Asia’s creative industries, the festival will delve into how creative practices influence business, tourism, and culture. With an inspiring blend of exhibitions, discussions and interactive experiences, SLDF 2024 invites the public to explore the transformative power of design. FashionSLDF 2024 shines a spotlight on the fashion industry with the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Sri Lanka. Engage with SLDF 2024Sri Lanka Design Festival 2024 is not just for artists, designers, or business leaders—it’s a festival for everyone.
Source:Sunday Times
October 13, 2024 04:40 UTC
AKD administration rejects offers from smaller parties to work with Govt.
AKD administration rejects offers from smaller parties to work with Govt. View(s):Hardly had the nominations for the parliamentary elections been handed over, political parties began planning on how they would be part of a future government. The parties, therefore, have been forced to hold back their plans while going ahead with their campaigns. But he regained the seat in the same year as parliamentary polls were held for the second time that year. Thereafter, he was re-elected in all parliamentary polls from the South except in the last parliamentary elections, where he contested from the Kurunegala district.
Source:Sunday Times
October 12, 2024 19:48 UTC
Despite minister’s assurance, delays continue in obtaining passports
Despite minister’s assurance, delays continue in obtaining passports View(s):By Namini WijedasaThe first batch of machine-readable passports (MRPs) being bought as a stopgap measure to solve an unprecedented shortage of travel documents is yet to arrive, despite Public Security Minister Vijitha Herath saying they were due between October 12 and 15. The first installment of 10,000 passports will then be sent, authoritative sources from the Department of Immigration and Emigration (DIE) said. But the Court of Appeal, through an injunction, had ordered the suspension of the ePassport tender. This was pending the consideration of a writ petition filed by Epic Lanka (Pvt) Ltd., the losing bidder in an allegedly mismanaged ePassport tender that also went to Thales/JIT. The Thales MRPs will have new security features and will be Sri Lanka’s “P” series passport.
Source:Sunday Times
October 12, 2024 19:47 UTC
Election disrupters using ChatGPT; OpenAI says it's not working
(NewsNation) — Bad actors who want to disrupt elections around the world have attempted to use ChatGPT's artificial intelligence technology to their advantage, a report by creator OpenAI revealed. The artificial intelligence powerhouse's 54-page report showed that “more than 20 operations and deceptive networks from around the world ... attempted to use our models." Activity utilizing OpenAI's technology included debugging malware, writing articles and generating content for fake social media accounts. In total, the report estimates that 2024's international elections will impact more than 4 billion people in over 40 countries. Citing specific instances of attempted election meddling in Rwanda, Azerbaijan, Iran, the United States and other countries, the organization said no election-related operations attracted “viral engagement” or developed “sustained audiences."
Source:The Nation
October 12, 2024 15:32 UTC
Australia beat Pakistan with ease but suffer two injury setbacks
Australia beat Pakistan with ease but suffer two injury setbacksSportInjuries soured an otherwise dominant day for Australia as they cruised to a nine-wicket win over Pakistan to move to the brink of semi-final qualification. There was an early blow for Australia in the game as they lost pace bowler Tayla Vlaeminck to a shoulder injury picked up on the field. Only four Pakistan batters reached double figures, with Aliya Riaz top-scoring with a defiant 26 (off 32 balls) from number six. And the chase was a cakewalk for Australia, who reached 83/1 to win in just 11 overs. Alyssa Healy top scored with 37*, although the captain retired hurt after picking up an injury when running for a quick single.
Source:Sunday Times
October 12, 2024 01:05 UTC