Latest news with #SoA
The Star
10-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
KNM to convene creditors' meeting to finalise RM1.19bil debt settlement plan
KUALA LUMPUR: KNM Group Bhd is calling for a court-convened creditors' meeting to present its RM1.19bil proposed Scheme of Arrangement (SoA). In a statement, KNM said the SoA marks a key step in the group's financial recovery efforts, aiming to provide a fair and sustainable debt settlement solution for all stakeholders. 'The SoA, developed in close consultation with the company's major creditors, proposes full recovery of the compromised debt amounting to RM1.19bil for the combined group, with creditors agreeing to waive accumulated interest and penalties totaling RM182mil as of the cut-off date, June 30, 2023,' KNM said. Under the terms of the proposal, creditors will receive 100% recovery of principal, reflecting a strong and responsible financial restructuring effort, as well as settlement through the issuance of a five-year zero-coupon redeemable unsecured loan stock (RULS) totalling RM204mil. Additionally, KNM said repayment of the RULS will be made via a combination of proceeds from any funds released from the escrow account tied to the recent Borsig sale to NGK Insulators Ltd, as well as proceeds from the sale of three assets - Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the FBM Hudson facility. 'To strengthen KNM's ability to resume and grow its core operations, creditors have also agreed to allow the company to retain RM100mil in upfront cash proceeds from the Borsig sale. These funds will be utilised as working capital to revitalise and invest in KNM's fabrication operations in Malaysia,' it said. To accelerate the repayment, KNM will use any excess funds—beyond the RM100mil initial cash injection and six months' working capital—to redeem outstanding RULS on a rolling basis.
New Straits Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
KNM calls creditors' meeting to finalise RM1.18bil debt settlement plan
KUALA LUMPUR: KNM Group Bhd is calling for a court-convened creditors' meeting to present its RM1.18 billion debt settlement scheme. In a statement, the management service company said the proposed scheme of arrangement (SoA) represents a significant milestone in KNM's financial recovery plan, offering a fair and sustainable solution to all stakeholders. "The SoA, developed in close consultation with the company's major creditors, proposes full recovery of the compromised debt amounting to RM1.18 billion for the combined group, with creditors agreeing to waive accumulated interest and penalties totalling RM182 million as of the cut-off date, June 30, 2023," it said. KNM said under the terms of the proposal, creditors will receive 100 per cent recovery of principal, reflecting a strong and responsible financial restructuring effort, as well as settlement through the issuance of a five-year zero-coupon redeemable unsecured loan stock (RULS) totalling RM204 million. "Repayment of the RULS will be made via a combination of proceeds from any funds released from the escrow account tied to the recent Borsig sale to NGK Insulators Ltd, as well as proceeds from the sale of three assets - Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the FBM Hudson facility. "To strengthen KNM's ability to resume and grow its core operations, creditors have also agreed to allow the company to retain RM100 million in upfront cash proceeds from the Borsig sale. These funds will be utilised as working capital to revitalise and invest in KNM's fabrication operations in Malaysia," it said. Furthermore, KNM said to accelerate the repayment, the company will use any excess funds beyond the RM100 million initial cash injection and six months' working capital to redeem outstanding RULS on a rolling basis. KNM chief executive officer Ravindrasingham Balasingham said the group's creditors have been supportive of KNM over the last few years and have had constant engagement with the management. He said the SoA reflects the ongoing partnership and confidence in KNM. "It secures 100 per cent settlement of principal for the creditors and the necessary funds for rebuilding KNM's future operations - this scheme is great for the creditors, customers, employees and shareholders of KNM," he said. KNM said the SoA demonstrates its commitment to honouring its obligations while ensuring that the company remains operationally viable. "By aligning the interests of both creditors and shareholders, the proposal paves the way for long-term stability and business growth, particularly in Malaysia, where the company is refocusing its efforts," it added.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Shreveport's free Medieval Faire, sword fighting, craft and more
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — Calling Lords, Ladies, young squires and noble maidens, the Shreveport Regional Arts Council calls upon thy neighbors to join their free event filled with sword fighting, craft and more. The Shire of Ardanroe will host a grand Medieval Art Faire on Saturday, May 31st with faire action and craft. There will be a mere spectacle for thine eyes with action craft thine own heraldry, calligraphy, knights in swordplay demonstrations. The Shire of Ardanroe, a local chapter of the Society of Creative Anachronism, invites all residents to live a medieval life at the Caddo Common Park, 869 Texas Avenue, from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. Rhythm & Blooms 'Music Night' at Shreveport's Urban Farms Their chapter is located in the Kingdom of Gleann Abhann, according to the Shire of Ardanroe's (SoA) social media page. Their admin, Mike Dudley, says they are looking for people to display their medieval collection. Calligraphy tent: framed scrolls, personal calligraphy projects, tools Wax tent: examples of real or mock wax seals Heraldry tent: cups, boxes, favors, or anything else with your heraldry on it Leather tent: stamped or tooled leather projects Fighter tent: water, snacks, Display tent: anything else! Garb, art, pictures, feast gear, … According to SoA, they have been practicing their swordsmanship since early May. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Scotsman
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
The 6 Scottish authors shortlisted for major literary prizes
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Six Scottish writers have been shortlisted in a major literary awards ceremony. The writers are up for a range of prizes at the Society of Authors (SoA) awards, including one accolade awarded to a disabled or chronically ill author writing about a character facing similar issues. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Tom Newlands is the only author to be shortlisted for two prizes – the ADCI Literary Prize and the McKitterick Prize for a first novel by an author over 40 – for his work Only Here, Only Now. The publication explores what it means to come of age in a 'forgotten corner of Scotland'. Ali Smith is also among the shortlisted Scots, with Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize shortlisted novel Gliff, which fits the award criteria for focusing on the experience of travel away from home. She is up against writers including One Day author David Nicholls for You Are Here and Matt Haig for The Life Impossible, published by Edinburgh-based Canongate Books. Hamish Grey is shortlisted for the ALCS Tom Gallon Trust Award for his short story, But the fire will spit again, and Genevieve Jagger and Madeline Docherty, are each shortlisted for the Betty Trask Prize for first time writers under 35, for their novels Fragile Animals and Gender Theory respectively. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Meanwhile, Sara Ogilvie is shortlisted for a Queen's Knickers Award, as the illustrator of Big Bad Wolf Investigates Fairy Tales, written by Catherine Cawthorne. Chair of the SoA board, Vanessa Fox O'Loughlin, said: 'The SoA Awards truly demonstrate the breadth and height of voices both nationally and internationally. We are delighted to be able to showcase the richness of talent across so many genre areas and are thrilled each year with the reach of submissions. As authors we understand what these books represent and the SoA Awards are a rare opportunity to celebrate and reward the work of a huge range of talent." Judge Jini Reddy said Ms Smith's novel 'movingly articulates the courage that resistance demands of us': Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad She said: 'The books on this year's Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize shortlist transport the reader to worlds perilous, political, speculative and amorous.' Author Ali Smith. | Getty The ADCI Literary Prize is awarded to a disabled or chronically ill writer, for an outstanding novel containing a disabled or chronically ill character or characters. Penny Batchelor, judge of the prize, said: 'This year's shortlisted books all have powerful plots that pack a punch, immersing the reader in finely-crafted worlds and situations that can shock, cause the shedding of tears, an out-loud belly laugh, or silent recognition of solidarity with their multifaceted characters. READ MORE: Creative Scotland review to be expanded by Scottish Government Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Covering historical, literary and contemporary fiction, there's something on the shortlist for any reader who wants to eschew outmoded disability stereotypes and engage with powerful stories showing the realities of living a disabled life.'
The Guardian
03-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
‘Meta has stolen books': authors to protest in London against AI trained using ‘shadow library'
Authors and other publishing industry professionals will stage a demonstration outside Meta's London office today in protest of the organisation's use of copyrighted books to train artificial intelligence. Novelists Kate Mosse and Tracy Chevalier as well as poet and former Royal Society of Literature chair Daljit Nagra will be among those in attendance outside the company's King's Cross office. Protesters will meet at Granary Square at 1.30pm and a letter to Meta from the Society of Authors (SoA) will be hand-delivered at 1.45pm. It will also be sent to Meta headquarters in the US. Earlier this year, a US court filing alleged that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg approved the company's use of a notorious 'shadow library', LibGen, which contains more than 7.5 million books. Last month, the Atlantic republished a searchable database of the titles contained in LibGen, through which many authors discovered their works may have been used to train Meta's AI models. SoA chair Vanessa Fox O'Loughlin characterised Meta's actions as 'illegal, shocking, and utterly devastating for writers'. 'A book can take a year or longer to write. Meta has stolen books so that their AI can reproduce creative content, potentially putting these same authors out of business,' she added. A spokesperson from Meta said: 'We respect third-party intellectual property rights and believe our use of information to train AI models is consistent with existing law.' Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you after newsletter promotion A group of prominent authors including Mosse, Richard Osman, Kazuo Ishiguro and Val McDermid recently signed an SoA letter addressed to culture secretary Lisa Nandy, asking for Meta executives to be summoned to parliament. The statement was published on as a petition which has since garnered 7,000 signatures. 'I was horrified to see that my novels were on the LibGen database and I'm disgusted by the government's silence on the matter,' said novelist AJ West, who is leading today's protest. 'To have my beautiful books ripped off like this without my permission and without a penny of compensation then fed to the AI monster feels like I've been mugged.' A court filing made in January by a group of authors suing Meta for copyright infringement in the US – which includes Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jacqueline Woodson, Andrew Sean Greer, Junot Díaz and the comedian Sarah Silverman – claimed that company executives, including Zuckerberg, were aware that LibGen is a database believed to contain pirated material when they allowed its use. Authors are 'rightly up in arms', said SoA chief executive Anna Ganley. 'The fact that these online libraries of pirated books continue to exist is bad enough, but when global companies use them to unlawfully access and exploit authors' copyright-protected works, it is a double blow for authors.' Demonstrators are encouraged to make placards, and the SoA has suggested several protest hashtags: #MetaBookThieves, #DoTheWriteThing and #MakeItFair.
