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By Jerry Maglunog  The Bangladeshi government may be in for a big disappointment over the amount the Philippines will surrender from what has so far been recovered of the $81 million that hackers stole from the Bangladesh Bank’s deposits in New York and laundered in the country’s casinos through the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC). 

By Luis Leoncio The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), raising alarm over the wide-scale hacking of the voters’ database of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), has issued a memorandum to all local banks to strengthen their know-your-customer (KYC) practices and strictly apply these in every transaction they make to prevent the misuse of the stolen information for spurious financial transactions.

The World Bank (WB) has called attention to the reluctance of Philippines government leaders to effect a wide range of reforms in the country’s taxation system, which was evident in President Aquino’s rejection of Congress’s initiative to overhaul the income-tax schedule. 

By Riza Lozada Government indifference is slowly killing the local fishing industry, according to Panagat, an informal network of more than 20 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) advocating policy reforms in the fisheries sector. 

By Riza Lozada The operator of the country’s electricity network, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), will undergo an “operation audit” to ensure greater supply of electricity and a rational pricing of the power supply. 

By Lito U. Gagni  Cybersecurity firm FireEye, which has been hired to investigate the $81-million heist against the Bangladesh Bank, has expressed fears that Philippine firms are “twice as likely to face advanced cyberattacks than the worldwide average,” due to its outmoded cybersecurity platforms. The company said an analysis of the Philippines’s capability showed that it was 30 percent likely …

Moved by the devastation wreaked by the October 2013 earthquake in Bohol province, Bangladeshi Ambassador to the Philippines John Gomes has donated P100,000 of his own money for the rehabilitation of the Loboc Church. 

By Luis Leoncio  A light fine or the equivalent of a slap on the wrist. 

Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) has asked the government “to take appropriate measures and initiatives” to convince the government of Kuwait to remove the restrictions it imposed on the carriage of passengers and cargo between Dubai and Kuwait, despite the existence of an air-services agreement with PAL allowing such “fifth freedom” flights. 

By Riza Lozada The Department of Energy (DOE) has reactivated its so-called interruptible load program (ILP) that will tap privately owned generators to ease the currently tight power supply caused by the prolonged dry season.