NUFC sponsor Noon faces forced labor accusations | Taiwan Land Development investigated for fraud | ANP Farms fined for groundwater contamination

In today’s Portfolio Intelligence Daily:?

• NUFC sponsor Noon under scrutiny over forced labor
• Taiwan Land Development investigated for falsifying financial reports
• New Zealand’s ANP Farms fined for groundwater contamination

Our analyst team curates these summaries from Auquan’s Intelligence Engine, which uses generative AI and retrieval augmented generation (RAG) to uncover material non-financial insights at scale to support deal sourcing, due diligence, risk monitoring, and compliance.

Industry trends:

• Tackling Information Overload in the Age of AI [private credit] (TDWI Upside)
• How RAG completes the generative AI puzzle (InfoWorld) — Retrieval-augmented generation brings to generative AI the one big thing that was holding it back in the enterprise.
• Will AI be transformative for ESG data? (Environmental Finance)
• Why AI is finally catching up with financial services (Maddyness)

NUFC sponsor Noon under scrutiny over forced labor

Workers at Noon, Newcastle United's sleeve sponsor, reportedly experienced conditions likened to forced labor, according to Equidem.

• Equidem’s research involved interviews with 47 current and former Noon workers in Saudi Arabia and UAE, highlighting issues like intimidation, threats, wage withholding, and abusive conditions.
• Equidem suggests that Noon’s alleged practices conflict with NUFC’s ethical commitments under the UK Modern Slavery Act.
• Noon denies the allegations, calling them “grossly inaccurate” and asserting their commitment to employee welfare and compliance with local laws.
• Noon is 50% owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which also holds a majority stake in Newcastle United.

Select timeline

• June 22, 2024| 'Forced labour' claims against NUFC sponsor Noon (BBC)
• June 21, 2024 | 'Forced labour' claims made against Newcastle United sleeve sponsor Noon (Yahoo News)
• June 12, 2024 | Newcastle United sponsor Noon and shocking allegations of worker mistreatment (nytimes)

Taiwan Land Development investigated for falsifying financial reports

The Taiwan Land Development Company commonly referred to as TLDC or Taikai, is alleged to have made false financial reports over the past 11 years.

• The Beijing Inspection Bureau directed the Taipei City Investigation Bureau to conduct searches due to suspicion of violating the Securities and Exchange Act.
• Searches were conducted in six locations, including the company's offices and the former chairman Qiu Fusheng's residence. Qiu Fusheng and six others were also interviewed.
• Taikai was delisted in August 2011 due to repeated check bounces and being listed as a rejected account by financial institutions.
• The company borrowed more than NT$200 million from the private sector in 1999. This loan was not recognized in the financial statements of 2010.
• Taikai Corporation was fined NT$720,000 by the Financial Supervisory Commission.
• The fines were for failing to make supplementary announcements and file financial reports for 2011 and its quarters within the deadline.

Select timeline

• June 24, 2024 | Taiwan Development Bank investigates and interviews former chairman Qiu Fusheng over false financial reports (Yonhap News Agency)
• June 24, 2024 | Suspected of "falsifying transaction records"! Qiu Fusheng and Qiu Yuyun were searched and interviewed in Taiwan (Korea Joongang Daily)
• June 24, 2024 | Taiwan Development Bank investigates and interviews former chairman Qiu Fusheng over false financial reports (Taro News)

New Zealand’s ANP Farms fined for groundwater contamination

Waikat, New Zealand farming company ANP Farms Limited fined $94,500 in the Hamilton District Court.

• A November 2022 inspection at ANP Farms’ Puketaha farm found large volumes of dairy effluent piled in a paddock.
• A follow-up inspection in June 2023 found further large-scale ponding of effluent.
• The judge described ANP’s culpability as ranging from careless during the first offence to highly careless during the second offense.
• It was highlighted that there was ample opportunity for ANP to address the issues between November 2022 and June 2023.
• Large volumes of deep ponded effluent pose a risk of contaminating groundwater similar to piping effluent directly into a stream.

Select timeline

• June 24, 2024 | Large fine for risk of groundwater contamination (Farmers Weekly)
• June 21, 2024 | Risk Of Groundwater Contamination Attracts Large Fine (Scoop)
• June 21, 2024 | Risk of groundwater contamination attracts large fine (Waikato Regional Council)

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