Latest news with #deSilva
Sky News AU
21-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Energy retailers accused of misleading customers with 'sneaky' price tactics in landmark complaint lodged to ACCC
Consumer watchdog CHOICE has lodged a "super-complaint" with the ACCC targeting Australia's energy retail sector. In July 2024, CHOICE, alongside the Consumer Action Law Centre and the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia, was recognised by the federal government as one of the first organisations in Australia authorised to file a 'designated complaint'- a grievance similar to the UK's 'super complaint' - with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The consumer watchdog argues energy retailers' "complicated and confusing" price tactics are the 'stuff of nightmares' and are intended to keep people 'as confused as possible.' The action marks the first designated complaint from CHOICE and only the second example of this kind of action in Australian history. The 'super-complaint' flagged concerns over 'potentially misleading' tactics, namely advertisement of new plans that are cheaper yet have an identical name, suggesting customers who were under the impression they were already on the best deal are unknowingly stuck with a higher price. Ahead of lodging the complaint, CHOICE reviewed 382 energy bills issued between January and March 2025, 64 of which advertised a legally required 'best' or 'better offer' with the same names as the ones customers were already on. CHOICE CEO Ashley de Silva said customers were led to believe they were already on the best plan because of the duplicate names. 'Across these 64 examples, people could have saved an average of $171 annually had they switched to the cheaper plan, even though it had the same name. The highest potential savings amongst these examples was $588 per year," Mr de Silva said. "The potential impact of this practice is significant. CHOICE estimates that reusing identical names for plans with differing prices could, in aggregate, be costing consumers approximately $65 million in savings.' A 2024 review by the ACCC found that 81 per cent of consumers could have saved money by switching offers. "It shouldn't be this hard to know if you're being ripped off on your energy bill," Mr de Silva said. "We're calling on the ACCC to enforce the law with strong court action to put an end to these dodgy practices costing consumers money." In addition to the identical names, CHOICE has urged the ACCC to probe whether energy retailers are breaking the law by using names and descriptions that imply savings for poor-value plans, as well as encouraging consumers to switch to plans the customer is not eligible for. "CHOICE can only submit one designated complaint each year, and much like the Shonky Awards, we only use it for the most serious issues we see. We are calling on the ACCC to urgently investigate these sneaky tactics used by energy retailers to confuse and potentially mislead consumers," Mr de Silva said. The ACCC must publicly respond to the complaint within 90 days.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ravi de Silva to Spotlight Business-Driven Compliance at Asia's Premier Financial Crime Summit
SINGAPORE, May 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- de Risk Partners, a leading compliance advisory firm founded by former CCOs, CAEs, and U.S. regulators, announced today that Managing Partner Ravi de Silva will speak at the 5th Annual Fraud & Financial Crime Asia Conference, hosted by Regulation Asia. Taking place on May 15, 2025, at Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre in Singapore, the summit gathers global leaders in financial crime prevention and compliance innovation. Find the full agenda for the conference here. Fraud & Financial Crime Asia 2025 will feature two focused streams, banking/payments and entity risks, complex structures, and KYB, offering attendees a comprehensive view of the evolving financial crime landscape. As one of the event's Associate Partners, de Risk Partners joins an influential lineup of sponsors that includes NICE Actimize, Quantexa, Flagright, Crystal Intelligence, Feedzai, FNA, Kroll, and SIX. The event will also showcase solutions from exhibitors such as Delta Capita, Fivecast, Hawk, Know Your Customer, Pascal Software, and Tookitaki, offering attendees an inside look at the latest tools shaping the fight against financial conference aims to foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing among industry experts, policymakers, and technologists. He will be a part of a panel titled: Sanctions, Security & Trade, taking place 14:55 PM to 5:35 PM SGT. Drawing from his extensive experience with Citi, JPMorgan Chase, and American Express, de Silva will provide actionable strategies for navigating complex regulatory environments and how to stay ahead of the game as compliance relates to sanctions and trade challenges. For more information about Ravi de Silva and de Risk Partners, please visit About de Risk Partnersde Risk Partners is a leading regulatory compliance consultancy purpose-built for banks, fintechs, credit unions, digital asset trading/ investment managers, sponsor banks RIA's and BD's navigating complex and fast-evolving regulatory environments. Founded by former leaders from global banks such as Citigroup, and U.S. regulatory agencies, the firm provides a signature brand of strategic compliance by way of fractional CCO services, regulatory remediation, and bespoke compliance advisory, framework design across all financial services based regulatory compliance including AML, sanctions, and digital asset oversight. With a growing global footprint and plans to debut a proprietary AI compliance platform, de Risk empowers its clients to turn compliance into a competitive edge. Media Contact: Olivia Ludington Ludington MediaNew York, NY5517955950395277@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE de Risk Partners 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
India Today
29-04-2025
- Sport
- India Today
Women's tri series: India fined for slow over rate in opening game vs Sri Lanka
Indian women's cricket team was penalised for slow over rate during their first game of the tri-nation series against Sri Lanka, played on April 27. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side began their campaign with a dominant nine-wicket victory over the hosts at Stadium, Colombo. However, the 'women in blue' have been fined five percent of their match fees for maintaining slow over rate during the de Silva from the ICC (International Cricket Council) International Panel of Match Referees imposed the sanction after India were found to be one over short of the required rate, even after considering the applicable time fine is in line with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which deals with minimum over-rate violations. As per the regulations, teams are penalised 5% of their match fee for each over that is not completed in the allotted time. India captain Harmanpreet Kaur accepted responsibility for the offence and agreed to the proposed sanction, making a formal hearing unnecessary. On-field umpires Anna Harris and Nimali Perera brought the charge forward with support from third umpire Lyndon Hannibal and fourth umpire Dedunu de coming back to the match, after being asked to bat first, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 147 in 38.1 overs in the rain-curtailed 39-over game. Sneh Rana, was the standout bowler for India after she took the wickets of Hasini Perera, Hansima Karunaratne and Nilakshika Silva to finish with figures of reply, India chased down the target in 29.4 overs riding on sensational knocks from Pratika Rawal (50* off 62), Smriti Mandhana (43 off 46) and Harleen Deol (48* off 71). As a result, India won the match by nine wickets to get their campaign off to a winning start. They further beat South Africa by 15 runs in the second game to further solidify their position at the top spot.
Sunday World
26-04-2025
- Sunday World
Man caught with €14k of drugs after he swerved garda checkpoint on e-bike, court told
The court heard Alex de Silva got off his e-bike and fled on foot to Thomas Street in Dublin 8, where he was apprehended. A Brazilian man arrested in Dublin for possessing €14,000 worth of cannabis, cocaine, pills and LSD was promised 'easy money' selling drugs in Ireland, a court was told. Alex de Silva, 31, of Temple Gardens, Santry, Dublin 9, was arrested in the city's south side on Friday and charged with possessing assorted drugs for sale or supply. He was refused at Dublin District Court on Saturday by Judge Catherine Ghent after she noted garda bail objections based on 'serious flight risk' fears. The contested bail hearing was told that gardai in the Dublin south-central division drug unit were conducting a checkpoint when the accused approached on an e-bike. Garda Darragh Mylod alleged that when Mr de Silva saw them, he swerved to the other side of the street and was told he would be searched for drugs. The court heard he got off his e-bike and fled on foot to Thomas Street in Dublin 8, where he was apprehended. Searching him resulted in the seizure of various substances: cannabis valued at €11,126, cannabis resin at €186, ketamine at €1,140, cocaine at €980, MDMA at €600, and LSD worth €100. The combined value was €14,120, and he had €550 cash. Garda Mylod maintained that the cannabis was in small containers with distinctive stickers. Gardai searched his home address and found extra matching stickers there. The accused came to the country around the end of February on a six-month work visa. Garda Mylod said that during his interview, the man said, 'he was told in Brazil that he could come to live in Ireland and make easy money selling drugs'. The court heard he was sending money home to his pregnant wife, and he had told gardai that he was fed up in Ireland and intended to return to Brazil. The officer expected a further, more serious charge could be brought and that the case would be sent to the Circuit Court, which has wider sentencing powers. Addressing that point, defence counsel Kevin McCrave said the officer was referring to a charge under section 15a of the Misuse of Drugs Act for possessing drugs worth more than €13,000 which can mandate a minimum 10-year sentence. Under cross-examination with Mr McCrave, the garda conceded that the drugs had to be analysed and the borderline value could turn out to be less than €13,000. Counsel said the accused, who listened to the proceedings with the aid of an interpreter, intends to remain in Ireland. Questioned further, Garda Mylod agreed that it was not a case that Mr de Silva was accused of committing a crime to feed a habit. The defence said the accused had the presumption of innocence, had tried to get out of drug dealing but had been threatened, and the current stated value of the seizure was not an egregious sum for drug charges. Mr McCrave pleaded for bail with strict conditions. However, Judge Ghent held that there was a probability that Mr de Silva would evade justice, and she denied his application. Legal aid was granted and he was remanded in custody to appear again next week.
Irish Daily Mirror
26-04-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Brazilian came to Ireland on promise of 'easy money' selling drugs, court told
A Brazilian man arrested in Dublin for possessing €14,000 worth of cannabis, cocaine, pills and LSD was promised 'easy money' selling drugs in Ireland, a court was told. Alex de Silva, 31, of Temple Gardens, Santry, Dublin 9, was arrested in the city's south side on Friday and charged with possessing assorted drugs for sale or supply. He was refused bail at Dublin District Court on Saturday by Judge Catherine Ghent after she noted Garda objections based on 'serious flight risk' fears. The contested bail hearing was told that gardaí in the Dublin South-Central division drug unit were conducting a checkpoint when the accused approached on an e-bike. Garda Darragh Mylod alleged that when Mr de Silva saw them, he swerved to the other side of the street and was told he would be searched for drugs. The court heard he got off his e-bike and fled on foot to Thomas Street in Dublin 8, where he was apprehended. Searching him resulted in the seizure of various substances: cannabis valued at €11,126, cannabis resin at €186, ketamine at €1,140, cocaine at €980, MDMA at €600, and LSD worth €100. The combined value was €14,120, and he had €550 in cash. Garda Mylod maintained that the cannabis was in small containers with distinctive stickers. Gardaí searched his home address and found extra matching stickers there. The accused came to the country around the end of February on a six-month work visa. Garda Mylod said that, during his interview, the man said that 'he was told in Brazil that he could come to live in Ireland and make easy money selling drugs'. The court heard he was sending money home to his pregnant wife, and he had told gardaí that he was fed up in Ireland and intended to return to Brazil. The officer expected that a further, more serious charge could be brought and that the case would be sent to the Circuit Court, which has wider sentencing powers. Addressing that point, defence counsel Kevin McCrave said the officer was referring to a charge under Section 15(a) of the Misuse of Drugs Act for possessing drugs worth more than €13,000, which can mandate a minimum 10-year sentence. Under cross examination with Mr McCrave, the garda conceded that the drugs had to be analysed and the borderline value could turn out to be less than €13,000. Counsel said the accused, who listened to the proceedings with the aid of an interpreter, intends to remain in Ireland. Questioned further, Garda Mylod agreed that it was not the case that Mr de Silva was accused of committing a crime to feed a habit. The defence said the accused had the presumption of innocence, had tried to get out of drug dealing but had been threatened, and the current stated value of the seizure was not an egregious sum for drug charges. Mr McCrave pleaded for bail with strict conditions. However, Judge Ghent held that there was a probability that Mr de Silva would evade justice, and she denied his application. Legal aid was granted and he was remanded in custody to appear again next week.
