Posts by Liam Redmond
KPMG Australia COO steps down amid growing audit client leak scandal
Published Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 03:51 PM [SYDNEY] KPMG Australia said that its chief operating officer stepped down on Wednesday (Jun 3), as the scandal grew over a whistleblower’s allegations that the accounting firm misused client information to win lucrative audit contracts. Eileen Hoggett, one of the people directly named by the whistleblower, will…
Read MoreDFI’s Guardian stores add Holland & Barrett range as UK brand makes Singapore comeback
[SINGAPORE] Almost 60 Holland & Barrett (H&B) products have made it to shelves in 15 Guardian Singapore stores, its website and app in June, as the British health and wellness brand returns to the Republic through a partnership with DFI Retail Group . The products will be available in more than 50 Guardian stores by…
Read MoreIndonesian stocks tumble to five-year low, rupiah drops to record
Published Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 01:35 PM — Updated Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 01:47 PM [SINGAPORE/JAKARTA] Indonesian stocks slumped to their lowest level in five years while the rupiah reached another record low, underscoring investor concern that persistently high oil prices are straining the country’s finances. The benchmark Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) plunged…
Read MoreChinese investors exit Hong Kong stocks as AI woos money onshore
Flows are increasingly shifting to mainland-listed semiconductors and other AI-linked shares Published Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 12:46 PM CHINESE investors are exiting Hong Kong-listed stocks in record numbers, highlighting waning appetite as mainland AI shares broaden their appeal. Mainland-listed exchange-traded funds focused on Hong Kong equities saw 25 billion yuan (S$4.7 billion) in outflows…
Read MoreVin’s Holdings’ probe confirms fraud risks linked to S$44,300 in irregular transactions involving ex-staff
An external auditor says the transactions have no material impact on previously issued financial statements for FY2025 [SINGAPORE] Vin’s Holdings on Tuesday (Jun 2) announced the completion of a special investigation audit, which confirms earlier findings of fraud risk indicators present in connection with certain irregular transactions linked to a former employee. The Catalist-listed company…
Read MoreStanChart sees growth opportunities as firms reduce ‘single points of vulnerability’
The shift is driving demand for cross-border banking in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, says a bank official [SINGAPORE] As geopolitical tensions prompt companies to rethink supply chains, financing arrangements and trade routes, Standard Chartered believes the push to reduce “single points of vulnerability” is creating new growth opportunities for the bank. Governments are…
Read MoreStocks to watch: ESR Reit, Del Monte Pacific, Vin’s Holdings
[SINGAPORE] The following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Wednesday (Jun 3): ESR Reit : The manager of the real estate investment trust (Reit) announced the establishment of a S$2 billion medium term securities programme on Tuesday, for which OCBC is the arranger and initial dealer. The securities will…
Read MoreAsian central banks turn hawkish as AI and oil shocks hit region
Policymakers are confronting a rare mix of cost-push and demand-driven inflation pressures [JAKARTA/SYDNEY] Asia’s central banks face mounting pressure to tighten monetary policy as the region finds itself caught between an energy crunch and an artificial intelligence boom, a combination that threatens to keep inflation elevated. Asia is particularly vulnerable because it sits at the…
Read MoreMartin Scorsese is betting on AI to transform the storyboarding process
Oscar-winning director Martin Scorsese is joining the ranks of entertainment industry power players embracing generative AI. Black Forest Labs, the German AI startup behind the text-to-image model Flux, announced Tuesday that Scorsese is joining the company as an advisor. The company unveiled the collaboration on its website with a video of the auteur using Flux…
Read MoreMicrosoft reveals new quantum chip made with AI, says it will have systems by 2029
The new target date puts the company on track to have quantum computers the same year as rival IBM Published Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 06:47 AM [SAN FRANCISCO] Microsoft on Tuesday (Jun 2) unveiled a new quantum computing chip that it redesigned with the help of AI, saying it now believes it will have…
Read MoreWall Street ends modestly higher as AI zeal overcomes Middle East jitters
Published Wed, Jun 3, 2026 · 05:55 AM [NEW YORK] The S&P 500 and the Dow closed modestly higher on Tuesday (Jun 2) as risk appetite driven by artificial intelligence fervour was counterbalanced by tensions arising from US-Iran talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the months-long war. Gains in most of the…
Read MoreEx-girlfriend of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt ordered to pay him $10 million after rape accusations
An arbitrator has sided with former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt, saying in a preliminary ruling that he was not guilty of sexual assault against his former girlfriend and business partner Michelle Ritter. The arbitrator, retired Washington State Judge Beth Andrus, recently ordered Ritter to pay $10.7 million in damages to Schmidt. Ritter sued Schmidt…
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