☕️ Zero Corruption in 3 Years - PM Anwar's target

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

US President Donald Trump, when announcing the new USD100,000 (RM420,850) annual fee for companies looking to sponsor H-1B worker visas, may not realise he is taxing away the innovative edge the US has. Supporters of the original version of the programme argue that it brought in the best and brightest to work in the US, giving companies there a leg up over foreign competitors. Critics, however, believe that companies have abused the programme to pay lower wages and impose fewer labour protections. Either way, the move is likely to add millions of dollars in costs for companies, with smaller tech firms and start-ups hit harder. Each H-1B worker visa is approved for a period of between three to six years, meaning each one could bring in up to USD600,000 (RM2.5 mil) for the US government.

Meanwhile, Trump has also slashed the price of his Gold Card immigration plan from USD5 mil (RM21 mil) to USD1 mil (RM4.21 mil), with the new price tag leading to surging demand among the world’s wealthy. The Gold Card promises residency in record time, with speedy approvals not the only major draw of the visa option. With its new price tag, the Gold Card is actually cheaper than most golden visa equivalents around the world. In comparison, Singapore’s investment visa programme costs almost USD8 mil (RM33.7 mil), with even Samoa requiring a USD1.4 mil (RM5.9 mil) investment. All in all, the Trump administration plans to issue 80,000 Gold Cards. Still, the programme is likely to be challenged in the courts and potentially by Congress.

The US has so far vetoed six draft resolutions at the UN Security Council that would have demanded an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages. According to US deputy Middle East envoy Morgan Ortagus, the text did not go far enough in condemning Hamas or recognising Israel’s right to defend itself. This comes as the UN’s humanitarian office warned that the last lifelines for civilians are collapsing in Gaza City under the weight of Israel’s military offensive. The US veto vote is the only thing holding back the latest draft resolution, as all other 14 members of the Security Council have voted in favour.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

A suspenseful cybertrooper exposé
Malaysiakini FB pages suspended following PM cybertrooper exposé 
Several of local news portal Malaysiakini’s Facebook pages were briefly suspended after Meta alleged a breach of community standards on cybersecurity, with the suspension happening shortly after the news portal published its exposé on a network of at least 263 accounts which were artificially boosting support for PM Anwar on his own Facebook page. It is unclear whether the suspension is linked to the exposé.

The exposé reported that the accounts used a script with shared phrases and adhered to a work schedule, with activity peaking on weekdays and dropping drastically on weekends, in direct contrast to authentic users, whose activity levels peaked on weekends. Following the exposé on the network, at least 76 accounts, including higher-level names such as Syukur Aiman Shukri, the communications director for the Perlis PKR Youth wing, were removed or made inaccessible. Syukur denied being involved in this astroturfing – a campaign designed to create a false impression of grassroots support – saying he is a party man who acted independently out of genuine support for his party president.

Comms Ministry denies government involvement
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said that neither his ministry nor the MCMC is responsible for the suspension of Malaysiakini’s pages, having received no complaints or filed any complaints themselves. The minister also claimed that Meta had informed him that it did not suspend the pages, and that Malaysiakini had not asked any specific questions regarding the suspension. However, the news portal actually contacted Meta representatives immediately, with email confirmation that Meta was looking into the matter. Meta reported no sign of policy violations

Crime and paying for it
Anwar aims to eradicate graft within three years
The prime minister is looking to clean up all forms of abuse of power and the mess caused by corruption within the next three years, with high-profile individuals, or big sharks, as he called them, marked as priority targets. PM Anwar said this commitment will need uncompromised strictness towards any party involved, regardless of their rank, position, or retirement status. Still, he acknowledges that fighting high-profile corruption is more difficult than low-profile cases due to the resources and influence available to the big sharks, and has ordered the MACC to target them first, but not at the cost of ignoring lower-profile cases. A bit of an optimistic timeline, isn’t it?

Former Perak exco member loses appeal in rape case
The Federal Court dismissed the final appeal of former Perak exco member Paul Yong, who is now convicted of raping his Indonesian maid six years ago. His conviction was ruled as sound, and Yong was ordered to begin serving his eight-year prison sentence immediately. He was previously found guilty by the Ipoh High Court in 2022 and sentenced to 13 years in prison and ordered to be whipped twice. However, while the Court of Appeal upheld his conviction, Yong managed to get his jail sentence reduced to eight years.

MyDigital ID now only way to access police summons app
The national digital identification and authentication method is now the only way to access the MyBayar PDRM app, according to an announcement by MyDigital ID. This follows a previous statement by MyDigital ID CEO Nik Hisham Nik Ibrahim that the MyBayar PDRM and the MyJPJ apps will require a MyDigital ID for logins. The police app allows users to check and settle any police traffic fines and purchase accident investigation documents directly through the platform. Moving forward, private sector players, including banks, are also expected to adopt the system.

More Budi95 updates: Quota renewal day and e-hailing, boat benefits
According to Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil, the 300-litre quota for recipients of the Budi95 subsidy will be renewed on the first day of every month. The first such renewal was on Oct 1, despite the programme only kicking in for most Malaysians on Sept 30. The public is asked to look out for statements from the Communications Ministry, the Finance Ministry, and petrol station operating companies to get the correct information and clear up any confusion about the subsidy programme. The minister also revealed that there will be a specific mechanism for Malaysians who have a Singapore driving licence, though no details were provided.

The Finance Ministry also announced that full-time e-hailing drivers and registered boat owners will receive additional RON95 subsidy limits before mid-October. E-hailing drivers need not apply individually for the additional quota, as the government will manage the process directly with e-hailing operator companies, who will be making the applications in bulk. Putrajaya has also agreed to extend Budi95 eligibility to Malaysian citizens who are registered boat owners, and they do not need to have a valid driving licence to qualify for the subsidy. Just don’t be like this lady who thought the petrol would be free, and you should be fine:

Shorts:

1. Kitingan threatens to leave if coalition concedes to PH 
   Sabah deputy chief minister I Jeffrey Kitingan has sent an ultimatum to the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition, warning that he will take his party, Star, and leave the coalition should they yield to Pakatan Harapan’s (PH’s) seat-sharing plan for the upcoming Sabah state elections. Kitingan, who is currently embroiled in a corruption investigation, believes that conceding to PH’s plan runs counter to the wishes of Sabah voters. The plan calls for PH to be handed around 20 seats, which is nearly a third of the constituencies held by GRS.

2. Soldier killed, six others injured in Menora army truck crash 
   The army truck skidded at KM257 on the northbound side of the North-South Expressway after the Menora Tunnel, leaving one dead and six others injured. The Perak Fire and Rescue Department received a distress call at around 5PM and dispatched teams to the scene. Five of the injured were extricated before the fire engines arrived, with the deceased and the last injured soldier freed about an hour after the distress call was received.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

World’s largest Bitcoin seirzure - fraudster convicted in court
A Chinese businesswoman Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, plead guilty at London’s Southwark Crown Court following what is believed to be the single largest cryptocurrency seizure in the world, now worth about GBP5.5 bil (RM27.14 bil). London’s Metropolitan Police said that the 47-year-old woman orchestrated a large-scale fraud in China through defrauding over 128,000 victims and went on to store the illegally obtained funds in Bitcoin assets between 2014 to 2017. She then fled China using false documents and entered the UK, where in Sept 2018, she attempted to launder the proceeds via purchasing property.

There’s a Malaysian in the picture: A second person appeared in court to admit his role in the scheme, Malaysian national Seng Hok Ling, of Matlock, Derbyshire, pleaded guilty of entering into a money laundering arrangement and according to the charge, he had been dealing in cryptocurrency on Qian's behalf "knowing or suspecting his actions would facilitate the acquisition or control of criminal property by another". Qian made a fortune from her fraud - she moved from living above a restaurant to a "multi-million pound rented house" in north London and also bought two properties in Dubai worth more than GBP500,000.

OpenAI Sora 2 is here
OpenAI has announced an upgraded version of its AI video and audio app Sora - namely Sora 2 - with new features that allows users to create “cameos,” or guest appearances, of themselves and others in videos. Sora 2 touts upgraded photorealistic video capabilities, and a new Sora app is being billed as a social platform for users to share, remix and discover AI-generated videos. It is also said to be better at following the laws of physics, making the videos more realistic, and is also seemingly able to generate speech, something the previous version of Sora was unable to do on its own. In case you are wondering about parental control - the Sora app ships with parental controls via ChatGPT, which allow parents to override infinite scroll limits, turn off algorithmic personalization, and manage who can direct message their child. However, these features are only as powerful as the parent’s technical know-how. It’s getting more and more real. Seeing is no longer believing - check it out here. 

This is an interesting use case:

In Tinseltown
'AI actor' Tilly Norwood not welcomed in Hollywood
Hollywood’s powerful actors union Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has condemned the creation of the latest AI actor Tilly Norwood. Tilly is an AI actor created by Dutch actor and comedian Eline Van der Velden who reportedly said she wanted Norwood to become the "next Scarlett Johansson". A-list stars like Emily Blunt, Natasha Lyonne and Whoopi Goldberg also spoke their mind about the AI actress, saying that it is a “disconnect” from human touch and that it is "deeply misguided and totally disturbed”. The SAG-AFTRA said in a statement that it creates the problem of using stolen performances to put actors out of work, jeopardizing performer livelihoods and devaluing human artistry. It also reminded agencies and studios using Norwood in projects that it could pose issues for contractual protections they secured after a union strike in 2023 that demanded protections from AI technology.

The Simpsons Movie 2 coming soon
“Homer’s coming back for seconds” as it is now confirmed that The Simpsons Movie will return for a sequel 20 years after the original. The animated sitcom that follows the lives of Homer, Marge and their three children, Bart, Lisa and Maggie - the as-yet untitled sequel is set to be released on Jul 23, 2027. The Simpsons first appeared in 1987 as cartoon shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, before getting their own show two years later. Created by Matt Groening, it has now aired for 37 seasons and was recently renewed through to season 40, which will air in 2028/29. The first movie, directed by David Silverman, grossed an estimated USD536 mil (RM2.3 bil) at the global box office, and there had been rumours in the Press of a sequel for years, but nothing was confirmed until now. Watch the first movie’s trailer here. #throwback

Shorts:

1. Cebu, Philippines hit by 6.9 magnitude earthquake 
   A magnitude-6.9 earthquake had struck the city of Bogo near Cebu Island, Philippines late on Tuesday, killing at least 69 people at the time of writing. Hospitals on the island of Cebu became overwhelmed with people injured from the aftermath of the powerful earthquake. It was reported that more than 700 aftershocks have been recorded, although most were minor. Earthquakes are a near-daily occurrence in the Philippines, which is situated on the Pacific “ring of fire”, an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through south-east Asia and across the Pacific basin.

2. US goes into shutdown 
   The US officially went into a partial shutdown yesterday after last-minute efforts by lawmakers to pass a spending bill failed. This means that some government services deemed non-essential will halt, including the publication of key economic data and loan approvals for small businesses. Essential workers, such as law enforcement officers, military personnel and air traffic controllers, will remain on the job, but will go without pay for the duration of the shutdown. The longest shutdown in US history, lasting 34 days, took place in late 2018 and early 2019, during Trump’s first term as president. If you are wondering, the status of US embassy in KL here.

3. Hold up, Oktoberfest 
   The Oktoberfest, a popular annual beer festival in Munich, Germany was forced to close temporarily yesterday following a deadly explosion that happened in another district within the city. The blast occurred in Munich’s Lerchenau district after a man planted explosives in his parents’ home, killing one person. The police said that they are currently investigating all possibilities of connections to other locations in Munich including the Theresienwiese (the Oktoberfest venue). This year’s Oktoberfest began on Sept 20 and ends on Oct 5. The world’s largest beer festival usually attracts up to six million visitors.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. With heavy participation in the capital markets by the GLICs, Malaysia is kinda a safe-haven for investors. But when the party returns, it also means it gets boring. Here’s why.

2. Are you brain-rotting? The word, ‘brain rot’, is the Oxford Word of The Year 2024. Its definition: “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something charactesized as likely to lead to such deterioration”.