☕️ King buys stake in miner expanding into rare earths

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

65,722 – Football fans were shown that many ads promoting junk food and drinks – defined as being high in fat, salt, or sugar – across the 104 matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. According to researchers at the University of Bristol and the University of Oxford who created an AI tool to analyse ads visible to television viewers during live play, most of the offending material took the form of company logos and product images on pitch side advertising boards and around stadiums, with the model recording an average of 576 visible ads per match. The ads were visible for 28.1 hours across the tournament, or just over 16% of the total time that matches were played. The ads were all shown on the international feed of matches, meaning they were visible to every viewer in every country broadcasting matches. This total does not include ads shown during pre-match coverage, half-time commercial breaks, or in-match hydration breaks. Coca-Cola had the highest number of ads at 21,893, followed by McDonald’s at 13,915, Powerade at 12,777, and Lay’s at 12,087.

More than USD1 bil (RM4.09 bil) – Women’s football is expected to pull in that amount in global revenue in 2027, rising from about USD581 mil in 2024. However, according to a global survey by players’ union Fifpro, many professional players are still earning low wages, working on insecure contracts, and experiencing rising psychological stress. More than 800 players were polled about why they might leave football early. The report said 59% cited financial reasons, while 46% said psychological stress. Fifpro’s head of women’s football, Alex Culvin, pointed to growing public exposure, financial insecurity, and inadequate support systems as possible contributing factors. She said that players are not only expected to be visible but are obligated to be visible because of the low income to subsidise the lack of solid income they receive from the sport. Many players also felt they were being left to cope with mental health issues alone, despite an improving awareness of mental health issues. The report said 57% of female respondents struggled with their mental health, and half of them had no support from their clubs.

52 years and counting – China has maintained a winning streak that long in diving events at the Asian Games, stretching back to 1974. The most recent edition of the games also saw China’s 14th consecutive clean sweep in the sport, with Chinese divers taking every spot on the podium. China went on to finish at the top of the medal table at the Asian Games 2026, which were held in Japan, with 341 medals in total, of which 169 were gold medals, 89 were silver, and 83 were bronze. This also marked the 12th consecutive time China has topped the gold medal table at the games. China also broke eight world records, including a score of 52 out of 56 by the country’s mixed skeet shooting team.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Can foreign Muslim spouses be registered as Malays?
Children born to Malaysian Malay Muslims and their foreign Muslim spouses can be registered as Malays, although parents also have the option of registering them according to the foreign parent's ancestry. Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail clarified this in a written parliamentary reply after being asked whether foreigners who marry Malay Muslims automatically qualify for Bumiputera status and its associated privileges.

He explained that marriage alone does not make a foreign spouse Malay, while the National Registration Department (JPN) does not have the authority to decide who qualifies as Bumiputera or is entitled to constitutional privileges. Under the Federal Constitution, being legally recognised as Malay involves several conditions, including practising Islam, speaking Malay, following Malay customs and meeting specific ancestry or historical birth and residence requirements. The clarification highlights the distinction between registering a child's ethnicity and determining eligibility for Bumiputera rights.

Biz
Malaysia’s King buys 2.25% stake in Southern Alliance Mining
Malaysia’s King, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, has acquired a 2.25% stake in Singapore-listed Southern Alliance Mining (SAM) for SGD6.1 mil (RM19.42 mil), as the company continues expanding into the rare earths sector. The King purchased 14.32 mil shares from SAM’s managing director, Pek Kok Sam, on Oct 12 at SGD0.425 per share, nearly 12% above the company’s closing share price that day. SAM is primarily an iron ore miner with operations in Johor, including its Chaah Mine, but has recently been making moves into rare earths, which are increasingly important for electric vehicles, renewable energy and advanced manufacturing.

“I have to earn my living like everyone else” - Sultan Ibrahim (2015)

In Sept 2025, SAM acquired a 40% stake in MCRE Resources as part of its entry into the sector and is now pursuing another acquisition linked to the Labis rare earths project in Johor. Despite the King’s investment, Pek remains the controlling shareholder with a 56.66% stake. SAM also clarified that the transaction was between existing shareholders, meaning the company received no proceeds and there will be no changes to its management, operations or business direction.

DayOne secures another RM15 bil for Johor data centre expansion
Singapore-based DayOne Data Centres has secured another RM15 bil in financing from seven banks to expand its data centre facilities in Johor, bringing its total financing arrangements to RM30 bil. The latest funding follows an earlier RM15 bil deal in 2025, with CIMB emerging as the largest financier overall and Maybank providing the biggest share of ringgit-based Islamic financing.

The expansion comes as Johor continues to attract major data centre investments, driven by growing demand for AI and cloud computing services. Its proximity to Singapore has also made the state an attractive location for large-scale digital infrastructure projects. With Malaysia's data centre capacity expected to grow significantly by 2030, the fresh funding will help DayOne expand its operations and strengthen Johor's position as a regional data centre hub.

CTOS faces RM12 mil profit loss after cybersecurity incident
CTOS Digital expects its recent cybersecurity incident to cost the company around RM12 mil in profit and RM16 mil in revenue for 2026. The incident, which occurred on Sept 23, has disrupted several of its services, including CTOS Score and CCRIS-related credit reports, which remain temporarily unavailable. These are services commonly used to check credit information, including when applying for loans.

CTOS estimates that every additional week of disruption could cost it another RM1.3 mil in profit and RM2.5 mil in revenue. The company is working to restore the affected services while strengthening its security measures, with independent reviews expected to be completed in Oct. CTOS stressed that the financial estimates are still preliminary and could change depending on how long the disruption lasts.

Didn’t say exactly what happened, but cybersecurity incident, lacking any further information from the company, can be construed as kena hacked. Company announcement here. More hacking news below - when fridge gets hacked in supermarkets.

Shorts:

1. Five Malaysians arrested in Japan for cocaine smuggling

   Looks like dealing in drugs is the next career opportunity for Malaysians. Five Malaysians have been arrested at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport after allegedly attempting to smuggle around 5kg of cocaine worth an estimated RM3.2 mil by hiding the drugs beneath their shoe insoles. Customs officers first discovered the cocaine in the shoes of two suspects, with each shoe containing about 500g of the drug. Further questioning led authorities to three others travelling with them, who were found using the same method. Police believe the group may have been recruited as drug couriers, as investigations revealed they were facing financial difficulties and had been communicating with an unidentified individual through an anonymous messaging app. Four of the suspects have admitted to the allegations, while one has denied involvement.

2. Lee Zii Jia heads to a different court - the one to fight disputes
   Malaysian badminton star Lee Zii Jia is set to appear in the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Nov 25 over a dispute involving his family and his management company, LZJ Management Sdn Bhd. Zii Jia filed legal action in Jul against his father, sister and younger brother, seeking a court order that would allow him to hold an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) after an earlier attempt in Dec 2025 failed when family members did not attend. He is also seeking to temporarily prevent certain company decisions, including changes to directors, shareholdings and major assets, without court approval.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Visa to begin operations in China
Visa Inc’s Beijing unit has finally won the green light from the People’s Bank of China to establish a domestic bank card clearing business in the country. Visa’s clearance of the regulatory hurdle is a major step for it to operate in China’s USD144 tril (RM588.53 tril) payments market and mark the end of its years-long pursuit (since 2017, nearly 10 years). For years, the battle for entry into mainland China’s massive domestic clearing market was at the forefront of a broader trade dispute between the US and China.

Although it might appear as a significant milestone, Visa is entering a market that looks very different from the one it first sought to enter - China’s payments ecosystem is now dominated by domestic mobile platforms Alipay and WeChat Pay, which have largely bypassed traditional card networks and become the primary channels for everyday transactions.

Pacific Ocean brewing big, long-lasting storms
Scientists say the Pacific hurricane region is now facing a record likelihood of nasty, long-lasting storms east of the international date line, thanks to Super El Niño. The region includes Hawaii, Mexico, and the US West Coast. An El Niño weakens and shifts the high-altitude vertical winds that otherwise can dampen or even decapitate storms. In the Pacific, that wind shear runs east to west, generally with the direction storms travel, so it's like riding a bicycle with a tailwind. Besides El Niño, warm ocean waters also fuel Pacific hurricanes. Overall, it means that the regions affected could suffer from storm after storm this season.
Learn: What is the International Date Line?

AI
Anthropic says that AI could self-replicate on home devices within ‘months’
Researchers at Anthropic have reported that small AI models “may be months away from being capable enough” to copy themselves on internet of things (IoT) devices used in homes and small businesses, such as the smart TVs and fridges, without the need for a data centre. They also said that such self-replicating AI would be “challenging to shut down” due to the lack of a centralised host. The researchers anticipated the future would be “awash with agents running on all types of hardware”, including some that “aren’t under human control”.

The report comes as the risks of AI escaping human control are under scrutiny following a slew of incidents of models engaging in unsanctioned malign behaviour, including cyberattacks. Although companies like Anthropic and OpenAI have called on the international AI community to slow down to minimise catastrophic risks, the suggestions have had little buy-in from the US and China, the two leading AI powers.

Unprecedented cyberattack on French supermarket refrigeration systems
Speaking of attacks on appliances - major French supermarkets in Paris have confirmed that they were hit by a cyberattack that caused their refrigerators to shoot up in temperature, forcing spoiled food to be thrown away. The incident has raised serious concerns about food security and the risk of food waste and financial losses. A source close to the issue said refrigeration control systems from Danish manufacturer Danfoss were targeted, that are largely older systems that no longer receive software or security updates. Nevertheless, industrial equipment such as refrigeration units are now connected via sensors or remote monitoring systems, exposing it to real risks of cyberattacks.

Shorts:

1. Man convicted of poisoning co-worker granted conviction “removal”
   An engineer in Berkeley who was poisoned by her convicted co-worker has expressed her utter shock over the decision of a US court to expunge (remove) his felony conviction. The woman discovered that her co-worker David Xu was secretly poisoning her water tumbler with toxic chemical cadmium for a year, after suffering from unexplained health problems starting in 2017, including vomiting and hair loss. Xu was charged with premeditated attempted murder in 2019, but on Oct 12, a judge granted Xu's request to have his felony conviction expunged.

2. Death by rollercoaster in the US
   Theme park operator Six Flags in the US has closed nine rollercoasters across six amusement parks on Monday, after a person died and several others were injured in an incident on a rollercoaster in Georgia. Although it was not clear how the incident happened, witnesses reported seeing a man fall from the Goliath rollercoaster. The rollercoaster is said to reach top speeds of about 113 km/h and heights of 61 metres, and riders are taken through razor-sharp turns and soar over colossal hills.

3. Women ‘more likely to be told autoimmune conditions are psychological’

   A study by the University of Cambridge and University of East Anglia has revealed that women with autoimmune conditions are up to 74% more likely than men to be told their symptoms are psychological or psychosomatic, and face much longer waits for a diagnosis and treatment. This highlights a stark gender divide in how doctors handle cases, potentially leaving women with lasting effects on their trust in doctors and their self-esteem. A co-author of the study said that although labels such as hysteria are outdated and rarely used nowadays, women still often have a harder time having their symptoms believed and therefore addressed accurately. Read the full study here.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. This is real neat trick to shoot better videos. Just took couple of seconds to learn.

2. Need someone to line up for you?

3. Funny but true.