Latest news with #889
The Star
26-05-2025
- The Star
Italian man kidnapped in bizarre NY crypto plot: court docs
The grisly tale emerged as the bitcoin cryptocurrency this week set a new record, at US$109,856 (RM461,889). — Reuters NEW YORK: A cryptocurrency investor has been charged with kidnapping an Italian man for weeks, threatening and torturing him with a gun and a chainsaw in a grisly bid to extort his bitcoin password, court documents and US media said. In a plot like a bad Hollywood thriller, New York police told AFP on Sunday that they arrested 37-year-old John Woeltz, a Kentucky man, on Friday in the posh Manhattan apartment he was renting. Woeltz was charged Saturday with kidnapping, assault and criminal possession of a gun and pleaded not guilty, according to documents seen by AFP. A second person, 24-year-old Beatrice Folchi, is also being held. The police said the victim, a 28-year-old Italian whose name has not been released, managed to escape and ran up to a traffic agent with a horrific tale of having been held, bound and tortured for weeks before managing to escape from Woeltz's townhouse. The victim initially went to Woeltz's apartment on May 6. The two are believed to have had some previous business connection. Upon arrival, Woeltz and an unidentified accomplice, who has yet to be named or caught, seized the Italian's passport and electronic devices and demanded the access codes for his Bitcoin accounts. When he refused, according to the reports, the two men tied him up, struck him with a gun, pointed it at his face, menaced him with a chainsaw and even took him to the fifth floor of the building, threatening to throw him over the edge if he did not relent. They also reportedly threatened to kill members of his family. Several details of the story remain murky, including exactly why the victim had agreed to come to the townhouse in an upscale SoHo neighborhood, and whether he revealed anything of use to the kidnappers. More details are expected to come out at a court hearing scheduled for May 28. The grisly tale emerged as the bitcoin cryptocurrency this week set a new record, at US$109,856 (RM 461,889) . While cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum are said to be highly secure, they have faced numerous cyberattacks seeking to exploit weak spots in exchange platforms. In February, according to the FBI, North Korean hackers stole a historic US$1.5bil (RM6.3bil) from the Bybit platform. – AFP
Malaysian Reserve
20-05-2025
- Health
- Malaysian Reserve
PatientRightsAdvocate.org Calls on Gov. Stitt to Swiftly Sign Hospital Price Transparency Legislation
OKLAHOMA CITY, May 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — (PRA) applauded today's bipartisan passage by the Oklahoma Legislature of major legislation to deliver hospital price transparency for Oklahomans and urged Governor Kevin Stitt to sign the bill without delay. If enacted, Senate Bill 889 would require Oklahoma hospitals to post the exact prices of available services online for upfront public viewing, with mechanisms included for state enforcement and patient protection. 'The passage of S.B. 889 is a victory for every healthcare consumer in Oklahoma,' said PRA Founder and Chairman Cynthia Fisher. 'The ability to see and compare hospital prices in exact dollars and cents will empower patients to shop for the best care at the lowest price, and spur unprecedented competition in a functional market. Oklahomans will have more protection than ever from hospital overcharges and surprise bills. Real prices will increase accountability, lower costs, improve care, and save lives. Especially as Oklahoma struggles with the second-highest medical debt rate in the nation, we applaud sponsors Rep. Lepak and Sen. Murdock for delivering new hope to their state, along with each legislator who supported this historic bill. We encourage Governor Stitt to sign this transformative legislation into law as soon as possible.' SB 889 would codify the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule first enacted in January 2021 under President Donald J. Trump and since expanded in February 2025. 'Today's good news in Oklahoma is part of a much larger movement across America that is determined to revolutionize the healthcare system with radical price transparency,' added Fisher. 'Across the country, elected leaders are taking bold action to put power in the hands of their constituents with upfront prices. We don't expect the momentum to slow down, and we surely won't let it.' According to PRA's Seventh Semi-Annual Hospital Price Transparency Report, only 12% of Oklahoma hospitals reviewed are fully complying with the federal rule. Of the 2,000 hospitals reviewed nationwide, just 21% were found to be in full compliance. About PRA (PRA) is a leading national healthcare price transparency organization dedicated to ushering in systemwide transparency through advocacy, testimony, media, legal research, and grassroots campaigns. PRA believes that the availability and visibility of actual, upfront healthcare prices will greatly lower costs for patients and employers through a functional, competitive healthcare marketplace.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
PatientRightsAdvocate.org Calls on Gov. Stitt to Swiftly Sign Hospital Price Transparency Legislation
OKLAHOMA CITY, May 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- (PRA) applauded today's bipartisan passage by the Oklahoma Legislature of major legislation to deliver hospital price transparency for Oklahomans and urged Governor Kevin Stitt to sign the bill without delay. If enacted, Senate Bill 889 would require Oklahoma hospitals to post the exact prices of available services online for upfront public viewing, with mechanisms included for state enforcement and patient protection. "The passage of S.B. 889 is a victory for every healthcare consumer in Oklahoma," said PRA Founder and Chairman Cynthia Fisher. "The ability to see and compare hospital prices in exact dollars and cents will empower patients to shop for the best care at the lowest price, and spur unprecedented competition in a functional market. Oklahomans will have more protection than ever from hospital overcharges and surprise bills. Real prices will increase accountability, lower costs, improve care, and save lives. Especially as Oklahoma struggles with the second-highest medical debt rate in the nation, we applaud sponsors Rep. Lepak and Sen. Murdock for delivering new hope to their state, along with each legislator who supported this historic bill. We encourage Governor Stitt to sign this transformative legislation into law as soon as possible." SB 889 would codify the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule first enacted in January 2021 under President Donald J. Trump and since expanded in February 2025. "Today's good news in Oklahoma is part of a much larger movement across America that is determined to revolutionize the healthcare system with radical price transparency," added Fisher. "Across the country, elected leaders are taking bold action to put power in the hands of their constituents with upfront prices. We don't expect the momentum to slow down, and we surely won't let it." According to PRA's Seventh Semi-Annual Hospital Price Transparency Report, only 12% of Oklahoma hospitals reviewed are fully complying with the federal rule. Of the 2,000 hospitals reviewed nationwide, just 21% were found to be in full compliance. About PRA (PRA) is a leading national healthcare price transparency organization dedicated to ushering in systemwide transparency through advocacy, testimony, media, legal research, and grassroots campaigns. PRA believes that the availability and visibility of actual, upfront healthcare prices will greatly lower costs for patients and employers through a functional, competitive healthcare marketplace. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Patient Rights Advocate Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
08-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
OYO most profitable startup in FY25 with ₹623 cr profit: Ritesh Agarwal
Global travel tech platform OYO has become the most profitable Indian startup with a profit after tax of Rs 623 crore in the 2024-25 financial year, Founder Ritesh Agarwal told employees in a townhall on Thursday, sources said. According to documents accessed by PTI, as per its unaudited financials, the company's FY25 PAT (profit after tax) grew 172 per cent from Rs 229 crore in the preceding year. It achieved an adjusted EBITDA of Rs 1,132 crore in FY25, compared to Rs 889 crore in the year-ago fiscal, registering a 27 per cent year-on-year growth and its tenth consecutive quarter of EBITDA profitability. Consequently, OYO's earnings per share (EPS) reached Rs 0.93 for FY25, up from Rs 0.36 in FY24, reflecting a 158 per cent increase, the documents showed. The travel tech platform reported a 54 per cent increase in Gross Booking Value (GBV) to Rs 16,436 crore and its revenue grew to Rs 6,463 crore, a 20 per cent increase year-on-year, fuelled by the company's premium offerings through its Company-Serviced Portfolio including the mid segment Townhouse Hotels and Softbank and Oravel promoted Sunday hotels) across India, UK, and the South East Asia and Middle East (SEAME) region as well as the integration of G6 Hospitality. During the fourth quarter of FY25, OYO's GBV touched Rs 6,379 crore, up 126 per cent compared to the same period of FY24. Revenue for Q4 stood at Rs 1,872 crore, up 41 per cent year-over-year, while adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) increased by 61 per cent to Rs 442 crore compared to the figure recorded in Q4 of FY24. The company has strategically expanded its premium offerings with the launch of over 30 Sunday Hotels in the last 12 months across various regions, including India, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Southeast Asia. OYO's global presence now includes approximately 22,700 hotels and 1,19,900 homes, along with 91,300 listings across its platform.
New Straits Times
30-04-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Palm opens lower on weaker rival oils, crude oil prices
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian palm oil futures fell for a third straight session on Wednesday, pressured by weaker rival edible oils and crude oil prices. The benchmark palm oil contract for July delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid RM54, or 1.37 per cent, to RM3,889 (US$900.23) a metric ton in early trade. FUNDAMENTALS Dalian's most-active soyoil contract fell 0.36 per cent, while its palm oil contract shed 0.81 per cent. Soyoil prices on the Chicago Board of Trade were down 0.49 per cent. Palm oil tracks price movements of rival edible oils, as it competes for a share of the global vegetable oils market. Oil prices edged lower as US President Donald Trump's erratic tariff policies raised concerns about weakening global economic growth and fuel demand. Weaker crude oil futures make palm a less attractive option for biodiesel feedstock. The ringgit, palm's currency of trade, strengthened 0.18 per cent against the US dollar, making the commodity more expensive for buyers holding foreign currencies. Indonesia lowered its crude palm oil reference price to US$924.46 per ton for May, a trade regulation showed. European Union soybean imports in the 2024/25 season that started in July had reached 11.46 million tons by April 27, up 8 per cent from a year earlier, while palm oil imports were at 2.37 million tons, down 19 per cent, data by the European Commission showed. Palm oil may revisit its April 21 low of RM3,863 per metric ton, as it has overcome the last barrier at RM3,931, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. Shares struggled for direction and oil prices slid as relief over a potential easing of global trade tensions was offset by a worsening economic outlook and dour signals from corporates swept up by Trump's tariffs.
