Latest news with #GoldmanSachs
Arab News
an hour ago
- Business
- Arab News
Riyadh financial hub earns Guinness Record for 15.46 km pedestrian skyway
RIYADH: The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh was awarded a Guinness World Record on Sunday for the world's largest continuous pedestrian skyway network. The network spans 15.46 km, linking 95 buildings through 42 climate-controlled skywalks, allowing year-round pedestrian access. Elevated above ground and connected to Riyadh's metro, the skywalks help workers, visitors, and residents move easily through the district while avoiding traffic and weather. Built with 30,000 sq. meters of glass and more than 3,000 tonnes of steel, the project required more than 5 million safe work hours from 1,200 personnel. The skywalks connect offices, homes, shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues, making it easier to walk between work, home, and leisure. 'This recognition by Guinness World Records affirms KAFD as a platform for urban development,' said Faddy AlAql, chief asset delivery officer at KAFD Development and Management Co. 'The skywalk network reflects a mobility strategy that connects assets, enhances walkability, and supports our goal of delivering a smart city experience.' Mbali Nkosi, official adjudicator for Guinness World Records, said: 'First set in Minneapolis in 2016, this record has now been redefined by KAFD. In an era where sustainability drives innovation, KAFD's skyway network sets a new benchmark for walkable urban design.' The district hosts more than 90 international and local companies and 19 regional headquarters, including Goldman Sachs, Bain & Company, and PepsiCo.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Is Part Of An 'Idea-Driven' Market, Says Jim Cramer
We recently published . AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) is one of the stocks Jim Cramer recently discussed. AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) is an American defense contractor whose shares have had a great second quarter. The stock has gained 57% year-to-date, primarily on the back of a strong earnings report that saw the firm's $1.61 in EPS and $275 million in revenue beat analyst estimates of $1.39 and $242 million. However, the shares have experienced fluctuation and dipped by 11.4% after management decided to take advantage of the share price performance to reduce its debt and issue equity. Cramer has been discussing AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) quite frequently these past couple of weeks. The CNBC host believes that he has helped the firm's shares rise from $180 to $290 in an idea-driven market: 'We are in an idea-driven market and in an idea-driven market I go out with AeroVironment at 190 and then it goes to 290 because I mentioned it in the Mad Dash and then they're able to do a financing.' A rocket on its way to the sky, representing the power of the company's unmanned aircraft systems. His previous remarks about AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) mentioned Goldman Sachs: 'Last week on Stop Trading, I said people should buy AeroVironment, I had them on. . .and AeroVironment was at 180, and now AeroVironent's at 295. While we acknowledge the potential of AVAV as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. 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
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) 'Has Been Up Ridiculously,' Says Jim Cramer
We recently published . Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) is one of the stocks Jim Cramer recently discussed. Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) is an American toy company that owns iconic brands such as Nerf and Monopoly. The firm's shares have gained 37% year-to-date and have recovered all of their post-Liberation Day losses. Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS)'s stock jumped by 14.6% in April after the firm's first-quarter earnings results beat analyst revenue and EPS estimates. The stock has gained 5% in July after a bullish Goldman Sachs investor note increased the share price target to $85 and upgraded the rating from Neutral to Buy. The bank believes that Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS)'s card and video game initiatives can generate tailwinds for the firm. In his remarks, Cramer mentioned Goldman's coverage and added that Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) is part of an idea-driven market: 'So Goldman recommends Hasbro, which has been up ridiculously. And it goes up another two! We are in an idea-driven market. . .' A child playing with their toy in their home, showing their joy for Hasbro products. Previously, the CNBC host had Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS)'s CEO on his show and discussed the firm's business approach in today's environment: 'What do you make of what's happening at Hasbro, the iconic maker of toys and games? Last week, the company reported an impressive top and bottom line beat driven by strong momentum in their Magic the Gathering business. But management also noted that the tariffs are tough for their business, even if there are some things they can do to mitigate the damage. In response, the stock jumped more than 14% and it's just related a few more points. So, can it keep running? Maybe investors should get cautious. […] [Talking directly to the CEO, Chris Cox] I got a feeling that you'll be able to- you'll be more resourceful and you're a conservative guy. You got credit for being conservative. The companies that are being aggressive, they're the ones whose stocks are getting killed. I think you're doing this exactly right.' While we acknowledge the potential of HAS as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Miami Herald
15 hours ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Legendary fund manager has blunt message on ‘Big Beautiful Bill'
It's official. The Big Beautiful Bill is law. President Donald Trump successfully arm-wrestled support in the House and Senate to get his signature tax cut and spending bill across the legislative finish line on July 4. It wasn't easy. The House only passed the bill initially after blue-state Congressmen successfully increased the State and Local Tax (SALT) Deduction substantially, providing much-hoped-for relief to homeowners in high-tax communities. The Senate was even more contentious. Some senators recoiled at the bill's size, forcing steep cuts to energy tax credits and Medicaid. Still, even with those offsets, the bill carries a staggering price tag. Ultimately, the bill squeaked through, with Vice President Vance's vote resulting in a 51-50 final vote tally. Related: Goldman Sachs revamps Fed interest rate cut forecast for 2025 That cost captured the attention of longtime Wall Street icon Ray Dalio. Dalio founded Bridgewater Associates, a hedge fund now managing more than $112 billion of assets. He's featured in the popular "Market Wizards" series of books, and his prescient economic and stock market predictions have made him a billionaire worth $16 billion, good enough to rank him 156th on Bloomberg's Billionaires Index. Over his 50-year investment career, Dalio has navigated his share of good and bad economic times, and many consider him among the most successful in predicting what could happen next to markets. Lately, he's focused on the U.S. debt level as a major crisis looms. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that's led to him offering a pretty blunt take on the Big Beautiful Bill Act. Image source:One of the biggest features of the law is that it extends tax cuts provided in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was passed in 2017 during President Trump's first term in office. That's not all it does, though. Related: Veteran analyst sets eye-popping S&P 500 target On the campaign trail, President Trump made a series of promises, including more tax breaks for Americans and rolling back much of former President Biden's green energy initiatives. The over 900-page One Big Beautiful Bill Act makes good on promises to reduce taxes on Social Security and tips. However, it falls short of entirely removing taxes on them. For example, rather than eliminating income taxes on Social Security, the act provides a Social Security bonus deduction by increasing the deduction to $6,000 from $2,000 previously. Tips are also excluded from Federal income taxes; however, there is a $25,000 deduction limit. The act also eliminates tax credits for electric vehicles, energy-efficient heating and cooling, and other green energy breaks on solar and wind power. To reduce the cost of income tax cuts, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act makes steep cuts to Medicaid, including expanding work requirements. It also shifts the cost of SNAP benefits to states with an error rate above 6%. Those moves have proven highly controversial. The CBO estimates that changes to Medicaid will result in 11.8 million people losing health insurance over the next decade. Dalio has focused much of his time researching the rise and fall of economies. This research has led him to a worrisome prediction for America. Specifically, Dalio believes that our substantial and growing debt pile has us on a collision course with an economic Armageddon. He predicts that as our spending increases, people and governments will balk at buying our debt, causing a spiral that could result in either Treasury debt defaults or restructuring. Unfortunately, Dalio sees little political will in Washington, D.C., to cut the spending cord, as evidenced by Congress passing the One Big Beautiful Bill. "After spending time in Washington, D.C., discussing the budget deficit with senior people on both sides of the aisle, it's clear to me that we are unlikely to change the debt trajectory we're on and avoid the painful consequences," wrote Dalio on X. The toll taken by passing the One Big Beautiful Bill is a stiff one. The CBO estimates that the bill adds a whopping $7 trillion a year in spending and only generates about $5 trillion in revenue. As a result, debt relative to GDP will surge, adding more pressure to the economy. "The debt, which is now about 6x of the money taken in, 100 percent of GDP, and about $230,000 per American family, will rise over 10 years to about 7.5x the money taken in, 130 percent of GDP, and $425,000 per family," noted Dalio. "That will increase interest and principal payments on the debt from about $10 trillion ($1 trillion in interest, $9 trillion in principal) to about $18 trillion (of which $2 trillion is interest payments)." That's a lot of money. And Dalio thinks it will require some pretty uncomfortable fixes down the road. "[It] will lead to either a big squeezing out (and cutting off) of spending and/or unimaginable tax increases, or a lot of printing and devaluing of money and pushing interest rates to unattractively low levels. This printing and devaluing is not good for those holding bonds as a storehold of wealth, and what's bad for bonds and U.S. credit markets is bad for everyone," said Dalio. "Unless this path is soon rectified to bring the budget deficit from roughly 7% of GDP to about 3% by making adjustments to spending, taxes, and interest rates, big, painful disruptions will likely occur." The challenge, however, will remain business as usual in D.C. Politicians eager to continue to win elections will continue to make big promises, and cash-strapped Americans can't be faulted for wanting relief. However, kicking the can down the road on our debt may create a bigger problem that will be harder to fix. "While virtually everyone agrees on the need to address our debt problem in a balanced way that includes tax increases and cuts to benefits, they also agree that they cannot speak up because politics have become absolutist," wrote Dalio. "We must find a solution around absolutist pledges like, 'I will not raise taxes,' or 'I will not reduce benefits,' when they are desperately needed." Related: Legendary fund manager issues stock market prediction as S&P 500 tests all-time highs The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Times
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Times
The playboy, the Goldman banker and the biggest scam in history
The Las Vegas Strip, November 2012. Inside a colossal tent, a private world of extreme indulgence had been constructed for one night only. An indoor ferris wheel spun under a glittering roof, its gondolas carrying celebrity guests high above the dancefloor. A 24ft bar sculpted entirely from solid ice gleamed, serving endless streams of champagne and premium spirits. The air thrummed with a dizzying mix of hip-hop beats and laughter. Guests, including the reality TV star Kim Kardashian, the actor Robert De Niro and the Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps, moved through the lavish space observing the unfolding spectacle, a display of wealth so over the top that Robin Leach, a longtime chronicler of celebrity excess, declared it the most expensive private party ever held in Vegas. This was the 31st birthday of a mysterious Malaysian businessman called Jho Low, whose immense fortune was, to many, an enigma. Later in the night, the pop star Britney Spears burst from a giant cake, belting out Happy Birthday to a bemused-looking Low, amid a blizzard of confetti. Leonardo DiCaprio, seemingly drunk, took to the stage, rapping along with Q-Tip. Performances by the Korean pop sensation Psy and the hip-hop artist Swizz Beatz added to the bling. Among the crowd that surreal night was Tim Leissner, a partner at the investment bank Goldman Sachs, a little out of place among the who's who of Hollywood. Many of the guests, including some of the world's most famous celebrities, had received payments from Low, who in 2015 was revealed to be the mastermind of one of the largest financial crimes in history. But none of them had received more than Leissner. Last month, almost 13 years after this infamous party, a Brooklyn federal judge sentenced Leissner, a 53-year-old German national, to two years in jail for helping Low steal $4.5 billion from Malaysia's 1MDB, a state fund set up in 2009, purportedly to help develop the southeast Asian nation's economy. Instead, Low used it to create a fantasy world: he personally financed the hit movie The Wolf of Wall Street (starring DiCaprio), funded extravagant parties where he was photographed with Paris Hilton among other celebrities, and acquired superyachts, private jets, luxury homes in big cities and priceless artworks. He also made secret payments to officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi who gave him cover, as well as bankers such as Leissner, who used his share of the loot — about $60 million — to buy a 170ft yacht, real estate in London and New York, as well as a stake in the football club Inter Milan. A flurry of recent legal developments has refocused global attention on this epic theft, a decade after its true scale became apparent. As well as Leissner's imprisonment, a historic first for a Goldman partner, Malaysia's jailed former prime minister, Najib Razak, 71, who protected Low, is now fighting a legal battle for house arrest, while his wife navigates her own appeals. For years Low has been a ghost, moving secretly between countries — he has been wanted by Interpol since 2016. Recently, the whereabouts of the 43-year-old fugitive have finally been revealed through bombshell testimony in Malaysian court proceedings. He is in China, and is said to be untouchable not least because of what he knows about state corruption there. Beyond these headlines, Malaysia is aggressively seeking the return of stolen funds from American celebrities such as Swizz Beatz, many of whom were guests at the party in Las Vegas, highlighting the absurd reach of this fraud. Whether justice is served, years after the crimes were committed, is a critical test for our global systems of finance, justice and democracy. The fight for justice over 1MDB is showing us exactly how strong — or weak — the foundations of those systems are. Born Low Taek Jho in Penang, Malaysia, in 1981, Low came from a moderately wealthy family. A transformative moment in his life and ambitions came in the late 1990s when he was sent to board in Britain, at Harrow School. Suddenly he was studying alongside the mega-rich — the children of Arab businessmen and Brunei royalty. While he was in England he met Riza Aziz, who would prove to be a key contact — he was the stepson of the Malaysian politician Najib, who would later serve as the country's prime minister. Low went on to study at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania — though reportedly he did not graduate. For Low, an inveterate name-dropper, building his network was more important. In 2009 he positioned himself as an unofficial adviser to a newly established sovereign wealth fund for Malaysia's Terengganu state. Soon after Najib became prime minister in 2009, the Malaysian federal government took over the fund and changed its name to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). It quickly became a political slush fund for Najib. Through a series of complex fraudulent transactions involving shell companies and illicit joint ventures, Low siphoned billions of dollars from the fund. This included a joint venture with a Saudi oil company, the issuance of bonds by Goldman Sachs, and other seemingly legitimate investments that were, in fact, conduits for theft. While many people were implicated, only Low knew the true, full extent of the money he was stealing. The money was then laundered through various international financial institutions and used to fuel his extravagant lifestyle and bribe officials. He used these stolen funds to build a Hollywood empire, financing hit movies and positioning himself as a bona fide businessman. He lavished gifts on the stars who came into his orbit — giving DiCaprio a Picasso painting and a Basquiat collage. Testifying in court in 2023, the actor said he had understood Low to be a 'prodigy in the business world' and that Low was vetted by his team before his investment in The Wolf of Wall Street. In 2014 Low briefly dated the Australian model Miranda Kerr and gave her gifts including £6 million in jewellery. Both stars co-operated with the authoritiesand relinquished Low's gifts. • The Goldman banker, the whale and 'the biggest scam in history' Low also sought to acquire leading brands such as Reebok and Tom Ford, the maker of James Bond's suits, before his scheme came crashing down after a cache of documents were leaked to the media in 2015, sparking a number of investigations. Many think Goldman Sachs, whose brand had already been damaged by the 2008 subprime crisis, has got off lightly. The bank helped 1MDB raise $6.5 billion in bonds issued on global markets in 2012 and 2013, making $600 million in profits — a huge figure that raised eyebrows at the time. Goldman has always claimed Leissner and another employee called Roger Ng acted as lone wolves. They circumvented Goldman Sachs's internal compliance systems and bribed officials in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi to secure the 1MDB bond deals. Leaders at the bank said they had no knowledge the money was being stolen. In a letter to the court, Goldman's chief lawyer, Kathryn Ruemmler, said that Leissner had 'deceived many people'. Ruemmler argued that Leissner deceived Goldman's compliance department, senior management and the bank's external legal counsel, leading them to believe the 1MDB transactions were legitimate. However, Judge Margo Brodie, overseeing Leissner's sentencing, pointed out that others at Goldman knew what Leissner was doing but 'looked the other way because everyone was getting rich'. Prosecutor Drew Rolle sharply criticised Goldman's stance, comparing the bank's arguments to 'a getaway driver showing up at a co-operator's sentencing and saying, 'You know, judge, we wouldn't be in this mess if he hadn't decided to rob a bank' '. Leissner's decision to plead guilty in 2018 was crucial, admitting to conspiring to launder money and violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. As a highly influential partner at Goldman Sachs, serving as chairman of southeast Asia and managing director, Leissner orchestrated and facilitated the fraudulent 1MDB bond deals. He admitted to paying bribes to foreign officials to secure these lucrative deals for Goldman, and then using the bank's systems to move the illicit proceeds, which constitutes money laundering. His co-operation gave prosecutors key information, helping to convict Ng, a more junior Goldman employee, of conspiring to launder money and break an anti-bribery law. In court, Leissner apologised to the people of Malaysia. He had lost his career, freedom, financial independence and family, he said. 'I lost my will to live,' he added. 'I tried to take as many pills as I could to end it … it was absolute rock bottom.' But Malaysia's plantation and commodities minister, Johari Abdul Ghani, said Leissner's sentence was 'too short', calling him 'one of the masterminds'. Despite missed red flags and internal warnings about Low at Goldman Sachs — he was denied a private bank account there, for instance, because the bank could not verify the source of his wealth — none of Goldman's high-ranking individuals were implicated in any wrongdoing. Lloyd Blankfein, the chief executive, retired. His former second-in-command, Gary Cohn, later became an economic adviser in the Trump administration. David Solomon, who was co-head of the investment banking division during the 1MDB scandal, is now Goldman's CEO. The US government ultimately reached a deferred prosecution agreement with Goldman. In addition, a Malaysian branch of Goldman pleaded guilty to breaking anti-bribery laws. The bank paid a huge $2.9 billion penalty in the US and also agreed to a $3.9 billion settlement with the Malaysian government. The combined almost $7 billion was the largest fine ever in US history against a bank for foreign bribery. This certainly hurt Goldman. But for a global banking giant, such fines are increasingly seen as just the cost of doing business. Goldman reported net profits of $9.5 billion in 2020, an astonishing $21.6 billion in 2021 and $11.3 billion in 2022. The massive profits from high-risk activities often make even these record penalties seem small. The fact that the main bank wasn't criminally charged leads to a frustrating conclusion: some institutions are simply 'too big to jail'. Beyond Leissner and Goldman, the 1MDB scandal continues to lead to legal battles and efforts to claw money back around the world — including from the celebrities Low courted. DiCaprio, 50, and Kerr, 42, have co-operated with the US Department of Justice and returned millions in gifts. But others who received presents or payments have held on to them. Among them is Kasseem Dean, 46 — aka the American hip-hop producer and artist Swizz Beatz — who, along with his companies, allegedly received more than $7.3 million from Low and his associates. This sum included direct transfers to Dean and his companies Swizz Beatz Productions and Monza Studios, which allegedly facilitated Low's lavish lifestyle and art acquisitions. While Dean has previously surrendered an Andy Warhol painting given to him by Low, he is facing a lawsuit filed by the joint liquidators of the defrauded 1MDB shell companies in a New York federal court. Dean's legal team has moved to dismiss the claim, asserting that he had only a 'passing acquaintance' with Low and denying involvement in any fraudulent activity. Other celebrities, such as Kim Kardashian, 44, and Pharrell Williams, 52, have been drawn into Malaysia's efforts to retrieve funds. A financial fraud investigator testified in Malaysian court proceedings last year that hundreds of thousands of dollars went from a shell company controlled by Low to Kardashian. The FBI later interviewed Kardashian, who told them how she had won $350,000 on one occasion in Vegas, betting with Low's money, Bloomberg reported, citing FBI documents. Kardashian told investigators that she flew back to Los Angeles with a trash bag full of $250,000 in $100 bills. Williams received more than $2 million from Low's shell company, the court heard. Low wanted Pharrell to produce music for a Taiwanese singer whom Low was dating at the time. It remains unclear whether Malaysian authorities have sought the return of these funds from Kardashian and Low's strangest celebrity friendship was with Pras Michel, 52, of the 1990s hip-hop group the Fugees. Michel was recently found guilty in the US for his part in a complex conspiracy to bribe officials in the first Trump administration, aiming to halt ongoing investigations into 1MDB andLow himself. His conviction on charges of illegal campaign contributions and acting as an unregistered foreign agent for China without notifying the US government highlights the audacious and elaborate measures taken by Low to protect his ill-gotten gains and maintain his freedom. Michel faces up to 20 years in jail. One of the biggest mysteries has been the whereabouts of Low, the only person who knows where all the money is buried. But recent, reliable testimony by Jasmine Loo — a former 1MDB lawyer who was on the run for several years and has been giving important testimony in Malaysia as part of Najib Razak's ongoing trials — has clearly placed Low in China. Why is an international fugitive, wanted by many countries for one of the world's biggest financial crimes, seemingly untouchable in China? The answer appears to lie in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive global infrastructure development strategy launched by the Chinese government in 2013, aiming to connect Asia with Africa and Europe through land and maritime networks. Low possesses highly sensitive and potentially damaging information about corruption within the BRI, according to official Malaysian government papers that detailed the corruption. When the first media stories about Low's fraud came out in 2015, he fled to China. With Najib still in power in Malaysia, Low was able to operate as an unofficial government minister for him and he began to negotiate for Chinese state spending on Malaysian infrastructure projects such as railways. The idea was for Low and Chinese officials to share the stolen money skimmed off these projects. But in 2018 Najib lost power and was sentenced to 12 years in jail in 2020, ending the scheme. Even though some Chinese officials involved in those corrupt dealings have faced their own reckoning and gone to jail, Beijing still doesn't want Low to be sent back to Malaysia. If he testified in a public trial, it could reveal state secrets and cause great embarrassment for the Chinese government. Even Malaysia's current prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, has acknowledged this, saying recently that bringing Low back would 'ruffle some feathers' and that some quarters may not want him returned as he 'would probably expose more'. Ten years after the crime was exposed, it still remains unclear exactly how much was stolen. The US Justice Department's often-cited $4.5 billion in stolen funds is widely regarded as a floor for the size of the scandal. The DOJ has returned $1.4 billion to Malaysia — the proceeds of the sales of seized mansions, artworks, private planes, yachts and other baubles. Together with the $2.5 billion paid to Malaysia so far by Goldman, the country has recovered a large chunk of its lost funds. But Malaysia says the DOJ's number doesn't include the interest it continues to pay on the Goldman bonds, as well as losses related to inflated infrastructure project costs. Meanwhile, Goldman has refused to pay the remaining $1.4 billion, claiming Malaysia has violated its obligations under the original settlement. The matter is under arbitration proceedings in London. Malaysia is going after other banks too, including BSI, a now defunct Swiss private bank that Low used to move stolen funds. Last month Malaysia achieved a significant win in asset recovery efforts in Singapore: a court allowed 1MDB and its subsidiary Brazen Sky to proceed with a $394 million claim against BSI over alleged misconduct, dismissing BSI's appeal to strike out the lawsuit. Ten years ago, when the 1MDB crime was first unearthed, it seemed unlikely anyone would be held accountable. The idea that a sitting prime minister would ever face consequences seemed impossible. Najib appeared untouchable. But surprisingly, after losing Malaysia's 2018 election — where he considered calling out the army to declare a state of emergency and nullify the results — he eventually went to jail on charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering related to 1MDB. He received a 12-year sentence. But last year it was cut in half by Malaysia's pardons board. This means he could be released in August 2028 if he pays a fine of approximately $10.6 million. His 73-year-old wife, Rosmah Mansor, is still not in jail despite being found guilty in her own related corruption case. She was convicted of soliciting and receiving bribes in exchange for government contracts related to solar power projects for rural schools. She has been granted a delay while she appeals. Najib is engaged in a legal battle to serve his reduced sentence under house arrest, claiming a 'royal addendum' from the former king entitles him to this — a claim denied by the pardons board's secretariat, sparking legal challenges at the federal court. Recent surveys indicate a majority of Malaysians oppose his pardon, but he remains a political force in the country. Justice in the 1MDB case is far from a complete picture. The biggest unresolved issue, the most glaring missing piece of justice, is the continued freedom of Jho Low. While parts of his network havebeen dismantled and his assets seized, his freedom — supposedly protected by a secret deal with a leading global power — highlights the limits of traditional justice. Until Low faces his punishment,the cloud of impunity will hang over the billions still missing, and the story of 1MDB will remain Wright is the co-founder of Brazen, a film and TV production company, and publisher of the Whale Hunting podcast
