Cambridge Analytica to close after Facebook data scandal
AFP/File / Daniel LEAL-OLIVASCambridge Analytica, hired by Donald Trump's presidential campaign, said it had been "vilified" in recent months over "numerous unfounded accusations", which had decimated its business
Cambridge Analytica, the British marketing analytics firm, announced Wednesday that it was closing and would file for insolvency in Britain and the United States after failing to recover from the Facebook data scandal.
The decision follows weeks of intense pressure on the company, hired by Donald Trump's presidential campaign, after allegations emerged it may have hijacked up to 87 million Facebook users' data.
It claimed it has been "vilified" by the "numerous unfounded accusations" which torpedoed its business and left the firm with "no realistic alternative" but to go into administration.
"Despite Cambridge Analytica's unwavering confidence that its employees have acted ethically and lawfully... the siege of media coverage has driven away virtually all of the company's customers and suppliers," it said in a statement.
"As a result, it has been determined that it is no longer viable to continue operating the business."
AFP / Simon MALFATTOFacebook data scandal
An affiliate of British firm Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), CA has offices in London, New York, Washington, as well as Brazil and Malaysia.
It drew attention after former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon reportedly once sat on its board and was bankrolled to the tune of $15 million (12.5 million euros)by US billionaire and Republican donor Robert Mercer.
It first became embroiled in scandal in March when Canadian whistleblower Christopher Wylie, a 28-year-old former analyst for the firm, revealed it had created psychological profiles of tens of millions of Facebook users via a personality prediction app.
The revelations instantly reverberated around the world, wiping billions from the social media giant's market value and drawing scrutiny from politicians and regulators on both sides of the Atlantic.
To make matters worse for CA, CEO Alexander Nix was suspended within days after he was filmed by undercover reporters bragging about ways to win political campaigns, including through blackmail and honey traps.
As the crisis intensified, Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg was forced to apologise to its billions of users amid a small but growing exodus from the site.
AFP/File / Daniel LEAL-OLIVASThe silhouettes of people are seen inside the offices of Cambridge Analytica in London on March 23, 2018, just hours after a judge approved a search warrant of the offices
He eventually appeared before Congress for a two-day grilling by lawmakers, and has since vowed to overhaul the way the Facebook shares its users' data.
In Britain, regulators ratcheted up a probe into CA, raiding its London offices, and later extending the investigation to 30 organisations, including Facebook.
A second whistleblower from the firm also emerged at a parliamentary hearing in April claiming Britons' personal data may have been misused by a pro-Brexit campaign ahead of the 2016 referendum in which Britain voted to leave the European Union.
Earlier this month, Facebook upped its count of the number of people impacted, admitting that up to 87 million users may have had their data harvested.
CA has vehemently denied exploiting that data for Trump's election campaign, claiming it deleted data obtained in breach of the social network's terms of service.
At a London press conference last week a CA spokesman claimed the company was "no Bond villain" and had broken no laws.
It hired British barrister Julian Malins to conduct an independent investigation into what it termed "a torrent of ill-informed and inaccurate speculation" and posted his report on its website Wednesday.
"(The) report... concluded that the allegations were not 'borne out by the facts'," CA said.
"(It) has been vilified for activities that are not only legal, but also widely accepted as a standard component of online advertising in both the political and commercial arenas," it added.
But the company conceded the crisis had taken too heavy a toll and said its board had appointed lawyers in Britain to oversee the insolvency process, and would be following suit in America.
CA said that although its financial condition was "precarious" it intended "to fully meet its obligations to its employees"
Initial reaction to the news in Britain was guarded.
Damian Collins MP, chair of a parliamentary committee that held the hearings on the issue and questioned Nix in February and Facebook executives last month, warned CA "cannot be allowed to delete their data history by closing".
"The investigations into their work are vital," he added.
Gunmen kidnap German nurse in Somalia capital
AFP/File / FABRICE COFFRINIInternational aid agencies provide health care and other basic services in Somalia
Armed men abducted a German nurse working for the International Committee of the Red Cross on Wednesday evening from a compound in Somalia's capital Mogadishu, the aid group said Thursday.
"We are deeply concerned about the safety of our colleague," said Daniel O'Malley, ICRC's deputy Somalia head.
"She is a nurse who was working every day to save lives and improve the health of some of Somalia's most vulnerable people."
The Red Cross said the attack happened around 8.00 pm local time (1700 GMT) when unidentified armed men entered its compound in Mogadishu, adding it is "in contact with various authorities to try and secure her release".
People working for the Red Cross in Somalia told AFP the gunmen appeared to have evaded the compound's security guards and snuck the nurse out through a back entrance and into a waiting vehicle.
A government security officer said investigations were underway. "We have received information indicating a female western staff member was kidnapped from the ICRC office in Mogadishu," said Abdirahman Mohamed.
Somalia, which collapsed into civil war in 1991 and has been the site of an al-Qaeda-linked Islamist insurgency since 2006, is one of the most dangerous countries for aid workers, but abductions remain relatively unusual.
In the past, foreigners, including journalists and aid workers, have been kidnapped by armed gangs or Shabaab militants and held for ransom, sometimes for years at a time.
Terrorist bombings and assassinations are commonplace and frequently claimed by the Shabaab which is fighting to overthrow the internationally backed government in Mogadishu.
International aid agencies, including the independent Switzerland-based ICRC, provide health care and other basic services in the war-torn country and are regarded as supporters of the government by the Shabaab and as a ready source of income by other militants and armed gangs.
On Tuesday a local employee of the World Health Organization (WHO) was shot in Mogadishu.
The WHO said in a statement Wednesday it was "shocked and saddened" by the killing of Mariam Abdullahi Mohamed, "a dedicated frontline worker".
Between 2008-12 piracy off the coast of Somalia became a big business with crew-members and their ships held for million-dollar ransoms, but in recent years attacks have become rare.
Gradually improving stability in Somalia allowed the holding of limited elections in 2016, but insecurity remains widespread.
In October, Somalia suffered its deadliest-ever bombing, with over 500 people killed in an attack blamed on the Shabaab.
Australia's NAB to divest wealth management arm
AFP/File / PETER PARKSNAB has been on a mission to further automate and simplify its business, with the sale of loss-making assets a key plank of the strategy
National Australia Bank announced plans to sell its wealth management arm Thursday as it continues to offload assets to simplify its business.
The lender made the move as it posted a 16 percent slump in cash profit -- the financial industry's preferred measure -- in the six months to March 31.
The Aus$2.76 billion (US$2.07 billion) result was hit by restructuring costs after a raft of job cuts and the introduction of new digital products. Without the one-off costs, profit was flat at Aus$3.3 billion.
Interim net profit inched marginally higher to Aus$2.58 billion, with the dividend steady at 99 cents.
The bank has been on a mission to further automate and simplify its business, with the sale of loss-making assets a key plank of the strategy.
It has already spun off British bank Clydesdale and most of its life insurance business to Japan's Nippon.
It also flagged plans in December to offload its life insurance arm to Swiss giant Zurich.
Now chief executive Andrew Thorburn said the axe will be taken to wealth management with an intention to sell MLC, which provides investment, pension, insurance, and financial advice.
It was part of the plan to make more than Aus$1.0 billion in cost savings and an estimated Aus$1.5 billion in additional investment by fiscal year 2020.
"Consistent with this plan and a focus on our core strengths in banking, we are moving to a simpler wealth offering through JBWere and nabtrade," he said.
"We intend to exit our other wealth management businesses including MLC."
The sale will be via a demerger, an initial public offering, or possibly a trade sale next year.
All of Australia's big banks are battling higher funding costs and lower interest margins, with rules now demanding they hold more reserves as a buffer against rising mortgage liabilities and fears over bad loans.
Earlier this week, ANZ Bank posted a 14.2 percent jump in interim net profit to Aus$3.32 billion as it continues to restructure its core operations with the sale of a spate of assets.
Among the other big banks, Westpac reports its half-year results next week. Commonwealth Bank, Australia's largest, operates on a different reporting schedule.
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