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Dragon bets on blockchain to cut costs for Asia s gambling business

2018-07-12T07:00:21Z

BrainBruner754:

By Farah Master HONG KONG, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Dragon Inc, which is looking to raise more than $400 million in what would be the world's largest initial coin offering (ICO), is betting its focus on Asia's booming gambling industry can lure investors despite mounting concerns over a bubble forming in the virtual currency bitcoin. Dragon Chief Executive Chakrit Ahmad told Reuters the company had secured four junket partners - operators that connect China's wealthy punters to casinos in Macau and elsewhere - who had already committed a total $265 million in a private sale of the tokens, accounting for more than half of those available. In a proposal paper reviewed by Reuters, Dragon said its business model uses blockchain technology to get around the costly credit processes often used by the opaque junket industry, which contributes to more than half of gambling revenues in the Chinese territory of Macau. The use of blockchain technology means transaction costs are around 1 percent, rather than typical junket transaction fees of around 5-7 percent. "We provide a better, more convenient and more cost-effective solution for them. If they (gamblers) want to exchange their winnings into fiat currency and then carry it themselves, they are free to do so. But the likelihood is they will revert back to digital currencies," Ahmad said. The public sale of the tokens on December 8 comes amid explosive growth of ICOs to raise money in cryptocurrencies. An ICO allows the issuer to raise funds without having to fulfil often rigorous regulatory requirements that would have to be met by venture capitalists or companies in mainstream markets. Some regulators say such schemes lack transparency [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội] and carry major risks. ICOs and bitcoin are banned in mainland China. Dragon investors will get tokens that can be exchanged for gambling chips in Dragon-affiliated casinos or they can hold the tokens for investment purposes. The [http://Www.Wordreference.com/definition/proceeds%20raised proceeds raised] will initially be used to support Dragon's junket operators by providing them with funds to establish systems that will exchange Dragon's digital tokens for gambling chips. The ultimate goal stated in the proposal is to fund the construction of a floating casino hotel which would only accept Dragon tokens. Some Macau watchers are sceptical of the business model due to increased scrutiny from Beijing and as more than 90 percent of punters in Macau originate from the mainland. "If it facilitates funds moving out from China it is subject to China's view on it," said Ben Lee, managing partner at Macau- based consultancy IGamiX. Macau's Monetary Authority said it had told financial institutions not to provide services directly or indirectly for tokens and virtual currencies due to considerable risks, including money laundering and terrorist financing. Macau's Gambling Inspection and Coordination Bureau did not respond to repeated requests for comment. Dragon's Ahmad said the ICO would not be affected by China's ban as many investors hail from Hong Kong and Macau as well as Japan, South Korea and Russia. FORMER GANG BOSS Junket operators, also known as VIP room promoters, act as facilitators for Macau's huge casino resorts, such as those run by Wynn Macau and Sands China, and operate in a legal grey area where they are not permitted to provide credit facilities and collect debts in the Chinese mainland. Instead, they utilize an opaque network of agents - making it harder to regulate the businesses. Dragon's [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] Ahmad said the company planned to start operations in Indochina in January and Macau by the first quarter of 2018. The ICO grabbed attention when former Macau gang boss Wan "Broken Tooth" Kuok-koi, who served 14 years in jail for attempted murder, loan sharking and money laundering, attended a signing ceremony in September. Ahmad said that Wan was not tied to Dragon's junket partners. Lawrence Ho, head of Melco Resorts - with casinos in the Philippines and Macau - told Reuters he would be fine with junkets operating in his casinos using digital currencies, provided it was allowed by the regulator. Still, a Macau gaming consultant who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the ICO would likely set off alarm bells in Beijing. "It is clearly aimed at mainland players, who make up 90 percent of gaming volumes, giving them a digital way to circumvent the country's forex controls," he said. (Reporting by Farah Master; Additional reporting by Thomas Wilson in Tokyo; Editing by Martin Howell) Advertisement

Former Thai foreign minister Thanat Khoman dies at age 101

2018-06-22T07:28:46Z

BrainBruner754:

BANGKOK (AP) - Thanat Khoman, who as Thailand's foreign minister helped cement his country's close relations with the United States during the Vietnam War, has died at age 101, his family announced. His death was attributed to natural causes. U.S. diplomats who dealt with Thanat described him admiringly as shrewd and above all, dedicated to seeking advantage for his country. Shifting international politics saw Thanat move from being an advocate of close links to Washington to a promoter of regional balance by establishing relations with China, which had been a Cold War bogeyman. "He defended Thailand's interests with grit and grace," U.S. Ambassador to Thailand Glyn Davies said in a statement after Thanat's death Thursday. FILE - In this Oct. 3, 1961, file photo, then-Thailand's Foreign Minister Thanat Khomanthen, left, talks with then-U.S. President John F. Kennedy at the White House in Washington. Thanat, who as Thailand�s foreign minister helped cement his country's close relations with the United States during the Vietnam War, has died at age 101, his family announced Friday, March [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html du lịch Bắc Kinh 5 ngày 4 đêm từ Hà Nội], 2016. His death was attributed to natural causes. (AP Photo/Bill Allen, File) Thanat is credited with being a major force behind the 1967 founding of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a regional grouping which [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] this year is seeking to evolve into a full-fledged ASEAN Economic Community. After working in the Foreign Ministry under three military dictatorships, Thanat entered politics, serving as leader of the Democrat Party, the country's oldest, in 1979-82 and as a deputy prime minister in 1980-82 before withdrawing from public life. Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai described Thanat on Friday as "visionary and ... very determined in protect the interests of our country." Born on May 9, 1914, Thanat studied law at the University of Paris before joining the Thai Foreign Ministry in 1940 and serving in his country's embassy in Japan, which after occupying Thailand in World War II became its nominal ally. Returning to Thailand before the war ended, he joined the anti-Japanese underground. He resumed his diplomatic career with a posting in Washington in 1946-47, returning there as ambassador in 1957-58. He was named foreign [http://www.Cbsnews.com/search/?q=minister minister] in 1959, a job he held until 1971, when he was dismissed in a move thought to be linked to his advocacy of rapprochement with China. Thanat's name is most closely associated with the Rusk-Thanat Communique of 1962 - issued with then-U.S. Secretary of State Dean Rusk - which pledged that the United States would come to Thailand's aid in case it faced aggression. Communist advances in neighboring Laos were the impetus for the agreement, whose importance for both countries grew as communist forces stepped up pressure in South Vietnam as well. The agreement drew Thailand closely into the American orbit, indirectly leading to massive amounts of development aid and the stationing of tens of thousands of U.S. military personnel at air bases around the country used for missions against Vietnam. But when Thanat realized by the end of the 1960s that Washington was unlikely to stick it out in Vietnam, he began urging a realignment of Thailand's foreign relations to win China's favor. Diplomatic relations were established with China in 1975, after Thailand's military rulers had been ousted and U.S.-backed governments in neighboring Indochina were defeated by communist forces. By 1976, the U.S. military was gone. "Thanat Khoman was a convinced nationalist and worked well with the United States, as long as he felt the relationship was mutually beneficial," veteran U.S. diplomat John Gunther Dean recalled in a 2000 oral history interview for the State Department. "As time went on, Thanat's close relationship with the United States became progressively more strained and he became vocally critical of the U.S. on many subjects." "Thanat favored Asians working together in their own national interest and not relying on one single foreign power for leadership," said Dean, the U.S. envoy to Thailand in 1981-85. Thanat, whose survivors include daughter-in-law Sirilaksana Khoman, a leading anti-corruption activist, is to be cremated after traditional Buddhist funeral rites. Advertisement

Feds: Ex-UN official s relatives indicted in bribe scheme

2018-06-22T05:24:12Z

BrainBruner754:

NEW YORK (AP) - Two relatives of former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon were charged in an indictment unsealed Tuesday with plotting to bribe a Middle East official to influence the $800 million sale of a building complex in Vietnam. Ban's nephew, Joo Hyun Bahn, was released on $250,000 bail over the objections of prosecutors, who sought to deny bail on the grounds that he is a flight risk and a financial threat to his community. Though charged, Bahn's father, Ban Ki Sang, was not in custody. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Noble told U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox that Bahn was willing to do anything to succeed in business, including trying to pay $2.5 million in bribes to rescue the failed $800 million real estate deal. Joo Hyun Bahn, nephew of former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, leaves federal court in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. Federal prosecutors in New York have charged two relatives of Ki-moon with plotting to bribe a Middle East official to influence the $800 million sale of a building complex in Vietnam. (AP Photo/Larry Neumeister) According to the indictment, Bahn and his father plotted from March 2013 to May 2015 to induce a foreign official to try to persuade his country's sovereign wealth fund to rescue the real estate deal. It said a $500,000 bribe paid to a local businessman to arrange a $2 million bribe of the foreign official was instead wasted on lavish expenses by the businessman, who did not have the connections he boasted about. The indictment alleged that Bahn's father, a senior executive [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html du lịch Bắc Kinh] at Keangnam Enterprises Co. Limited, a South Korean construction company, went to his son for help in 2013 when Keangnam was experiencing a liquidity crisis. The indictment said Bahn would earn a commission of at least $5 million if he could secure an investor for Landmark 72, the Vietnam building complex, which [http://www.blogher.com/search/apachesolr_search/included included] a 72-story commercial office building that was then the tallest building in the Indochina Peninsula and had cost Keangnam more than $1 billion to construct. Prosecutors said Bahn repeatedly lied to Keangnam and its creditors about the status of the potential deal, making [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] them think the Vietnam complex was about to be bought. When the sale never materialized, Keangnam was forced to enter court receivership in South Korea, the indictment said. Noble said a nine-count indictment including charges that Bahn, also known as Dennis Bahn, violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, engaged in money laundering and committed wire fraud could result in a [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html du lịch Bắc Kinh] prison sentence of between nine and 10 years. "He's a liar. He is a master of deceit and we believe poses a very high risk of flight," Noble said. The prosecutor said Bahn, a New Jersey resident, made incriminating statements after his arrest to FBI agents about a case in which he is accused of paying a $500,000 bribe to a local businessman, forging documents and stealing over $200,000 from one of his clients. Defense lawyer Julia Gatto cast her client's statement to the FBI in a positive light, saying Bahn was cooperative after his arrest. She argued that her 38-year-old client had deep roots in the New York area, where he has lived for the past 18 years, attaining lawful permanent resident status and raising young children with his wife while earning $9,000 monthly through his work in commercial real estate. She said he has opened his own firm with a partner. She said he also teaches undergraduate students at New York University and needed to prepare for the start of classes later this month. Fox agreed to a bail package that required the posting of $10,000 in cash or property. He also rejected the government's request for electronic monitoring of Bahn. Advertisement

How To Lose Weight Quickly Before Conceiving

2018-06-20T05:24:46Z

BrainBruner754:

GreenLyte Keto Reviews Have you already tried a number of [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội] the current fad meal plans? Did they just leave you hungry or tired? Maybe you were concerned about maintaining proper nutrition when they are dieting. How would you like to know about a revolutionary break through in fat and appetite control? Avoid the urge to simply starve yourself as a quick fix. Approach has become popular a big no-no when attempting to learn how to lose weight safely. First, your demands food for fuel. What's more, it needs vitamins and minerals it derives from actual eat and drink to sustain certain functions. When those things are missing, those functions cease to work and whole internal systems can set out to shut down. The body displays natural defense against this, once used during primitive times as the way to obtain through periods of starvation. It will to be able to store all the fat and calories simply because it can from all of the that you eat, effectively counter acting all of the efforts. Very best way shed weight as well as effectively is actually make sure you are eating and eating suitably. Forget initially how we all going to lose fat. The method at this stage is irrelevant just. I firmly believe that to have a sustained and long term weight loss you need to have good mental pose. This is the secret button all of us possess and can use , run out entirely choose. It also is essentially the most difficult button to find and is usually also covered in oil which should make it really slippery to go away. The are varied diet plans out there which are proliferated by their respective authors. Several are very pricey a few are very difficult to learn about. Fad diets such as the cabbage diet, can be repetitive but at least it isn't as expensive beeing the others. Then again again, picking a fad diet may do not be a very wise choice if you really need to lose weight quickly. As they simply promote one particular kind of food always be taken for a variety of days, fad diets can be unhealthy for that body. Many overweight people feel that their problem is very genetic. That as well has been proven to be considered a common fallacy. While there may well be genes that predispose people as being overweight prone to follow suitable diet plan you will forfeit weight. If you're losing weight temporarily, the crash diet is fine, to consume of us want to reduce an extra 25, 50 or increasing. When you want to lose a tremendous amount of weight, you need to have to find dieting that you'll stick with while still allowing in order to figure out How to Lose Weight Quickly. The earliest step might be to motivate yourself and have self conviction. Improve your esteem initially. You have to depend upon yourself. Atmosphere you you recognize along with go over the weight loss regimen. Afterwards you need have an achievable aim for. It must be realistic, sensible, likewise practical and time bounded. For an instance, your ultimate goal is usually to lose one two pounds 1 week. The tendency involving setting an unrealistic objective may make you discouraged and lead an individual stop your regimen. Regarding planning to shed 20 pounds in a week, might of goal is not achievable if you will have surgeries, rehabilitation and numerous others. Having this type of goal to create you [http://www.britannica.com/search?query=encounter%20discouraged encounter discouraged] a person have weigh on your own and find [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html vtr.org.vn] out you weren't able to visit your plan. The [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội] great a diet meal plan's being capable to recreate simple . dishes. Beforehand to ensure by changing the unhealthy ingredients, from a salt make use of a seasalt, as well as from olive oil use an extra virgin coconut oil and you'll be surprise to generate the same delicious fashion. You may not know it, but this will probably be the start of healthy cooking in your. You may even turn yourself into a hero because you are able to change the eating habits of your family.

User:BrainBruner754

2018-06-20T05:24:43Z

BrainBruner754: Created page with "Hello, I'm Brain, a 30 year old from Fljot, Iceland. My hobbies include (but are not limited to) Knitting, Golf and watching Two and a Half Men. My homepage :: [http..."

Hello, I'm Brain, a 30 year old from Fljot, Iceland. My hobbies include (but are not limited to) Knitting, Golf and watching Two and a Half Men. My homepage :: [http://www.vtr.org.vn/cam-nang-du-lich-bac-kinh-5-ngay-4-dem.html tour bắc kinh từ hà nội]