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☆ Italy bans U.S.-based AI chatbot Replika from using personal data
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Italy's Data Protection Agency said on Friday it was prohibiting artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot company Replika from using the personal data of Italian users, citing risks to minors and emotionally fragile people. Replika, a San Francisco startup launched in 2017, offers customers bespoke avatars that talk and listen to them. The 'virtual friend' is marketed as being able to improve the emotional well-being of the user. Replika breaches European Privacy Regulations and processes personal data unlawfully as it cannot be based, even implicitly, on a contract that a minor is unable to sign, the watchdog said. ($1 = 0.9176 euros)Reporting by Elvira Pollina; Writing by Gianluca Semeraro; editing by Gavin Jones and Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Intesa reassures on capital distribution after asset risk worries hit shares
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Valentina Za | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Shares in Intesa fell by 2% after Bloomberg reported Intesa was cutting as much as 20 billion euros ($22 billion) in risk-weighted assets to address supervisory remarks about its inadequate risk models. Intesa said the risk weighted asset (RWA) reduction it had carried out in the fourth quarter related to regulatory changes kicking in from Jan. 1, 2023 and its core capital would land at around 13% at the end of 2022. "We believe that the group is working on RWAs optimisation as well as rationalisation of capital usage in order to face regulatory headwinds (around 45 basis points already communicated) and continue the generous capital distribution that management had in the past." Il Sole said banks had taken action to avoid the capital hit by shifting to capital-light businesses, transferring risks to investors through so-called synthetic securitisation deals or shedding assets altogether. ($1 = 0.9232 euros)Reporting by Valentina Za, editing by Gianluca Semeraro and Keith WeirOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Italy's Juventus docked 15 points for transfer deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Giulio Piovaccari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

With 20 games left to play this season, Juve were third in Serie A with 37 points, 10 behind leaders Napoli. In a late night statement, the court also imposed bans from holding office in Italian soccer on 11 past and present Juventus directors. Juventus said it would appeal to the country's Sport Guarantee Board once the reasons for the ruling were published. CASE REOPENEDThe ruling reversed a previous decision in April to clear Juventus, 10 other clubs and their executives of wrongdoing. Public prosecutors in Turin have requested Andrea Agnelli, 11 other people and the club itself to stand trial over allegations of false accounting.

☆ See the rare green comet in pictures so you know what to look for in the sky
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A rare green comet is flying past Earth in late January and early February. Comet ZTF hasn't passed our planet since the last Ice Age, and humans may never see it again. These stunning photos show what you could see if you spot the green comet in the night sky. If you catch Comet ZTF with a telescope, you could see something like this:Comet ZTF, as photographed on January 18, 2023. Want to see the green comet yourself?

☆ UniCredit CEO says 'we'll see' when asked about Monte dei Paschi -CNBC
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Monte dei Paschi is 64% owned by the Italian state, which needs to eventually cut its stake to meet re-privatisation commitments given to the European Union at the time of the bailout. "I think Monte dei Paschi has taken a different direction in their strategy. And they've raised their capital, they're rationalising the bank, they're restructuring the bank," Orcel said in an interview with CNBC. So they need to do that, and then we'll see," he said when asked about a Reuters report that UniCredit was still seen as a potential buyer for Monte dei Paschi, alongside Banco BPM (BAMI.MI). Monte dei Paschi raised 2.5 billion euros in capital in December, despite rocky markets, to finance thousands of voluntary staff exits and cut costs.

☆ Agnelli warns of Premier League dominance as he quits Juventus
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Giulio Piovaccari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SummarySummary Companies Agnelli warns Premier League will marginalise rivalsStepping down from Juventus and two other board rolesNew Juventus board faces legal battle over accountsTURIN, Italy, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Outgoing Juventus <JUVE.MI> Chairman Andrea Agnelli, who could face trial over the club's accounting, signed off on Wednesday with a plea for reform of European soccer to counteract the power of the English Premier League. As well as leaving Juventus, Agnelli also said he would step down from his board roles at carmaker Stellantis (STLA.MI) and Exor (EXOR.AS), the Agnelli family holding company which controls the football club. Prosecutors in Turin have requested that Agnelli, 11 other people and the club stand trial over allegations of false accounting. "I believed and still believe that European soccer needs structural reforms to tackle the future," he said. Andrea Agnelli retains his role as board member at Giovanni Agnelli B.V., Exor's controlling shareholder, which groups all descendants of Fiat founder Giovanni Agnelli.

☆ Italy committed to secure Intel investment over chip factory, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MILAN, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Italy's government is determined to secure an investment by Intel (INTC.O) to build a chip factory in the country, the economy minister said on Wednesday. "Unfortunately, or luckily, we have had a change in the government: things have worldwide changed as regarding costs, but we are still committed", Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on the sidelines of a parliamentary audition. In her end-of-year news conference in December, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she considered Intel's investment as highly strategic and would schedule a meeting with the company to explore ways to facilitate it. Giuseppe Fonte, writing by Alessia Pé, editing by Gianluca SemeraroOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Chelsea earn scrappy 1-0 win over Palace to ease pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Clare Lovell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

It was only the second league win in 10 matches for the home side who remain in an unaccustomed 10th place half-way through the season. Today we had five young players in the starting 11, they are doing a really good job at the moment." "Today we are happy for the three points," said Potter, who took over from Thomas Tuchel in September. Palace are in 12th place, six points behind Chelsea. Before kickoff, former Chelsea players who had been coached by or appeared alongside Gianluca Vialli joined the teams to pay tribute to the former Italy international and Chelsea player-manager who died 10 days ago.

☆ 'Class, charisma, tenacity': Italian football pays tribute to Vialli
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Vialli, who earned 59 caps for Italy and enjoyed a stellar club career with Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea, passed away on Friday aged 58 after a long battle with cancer. I can never forget your sense of humour, your class, your charisma, your tenacity. "Nobody can ever forget the memories you gave us with your football and your goals. "Unfortunately, you have had to fight a great and terrible battle in life these past few years. Reporting by Aadi Nair and Tommy Lund Editing by Toby DavisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Italian soccer great Gianluca Vialli dies at 58
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Gianluca Vialli, the former Italian soccer forward who helped Sampdoria and Juventus win Serie A and European trophies before becoming player-coach at Chelsea, has died. Vialli and Mancini also helped Sampdoria reach the 1992 European Cup final, which it lost to Barcelona at Wembley Stadium. Mihajlović also played with Mancini at Sampdoria after Vialli left the club for Juventus. Vialli won another Serie A title at Juventus and also raised the Champions League and UEFA Cup trophies with the Bianconeri. He ended his playing career while also managing Chelsea, leading the London club to FA Cup, League Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup titles.

☆ Edison CEO denies EDF planning to sell Italian company - paper
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Edison's (EDNn.MI) chief executive said on Thursday that rumours French power group EDF (EDF.PA) plans to sell its Italian arm are "groundless". There is not an Edison dossier at the moment", Nicola Monti was quoted as saying in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa. EDF denied an Italian media report last August that it was considering a sale of its Italian unit. Energy analysts have said a sale of Edison could help EDF reduce its debt and press ahead with an ambitious investment plan. Italian media reported in August that EDF planned to kick off a sale process for Edison in the first quarter of this year once the nationalisation process had been completed.

☆ Enel signs state-backed credit line worth 12 bln euros
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Francesca Landini | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Enel (ENEI.MI) and a pool of banks signed a 12 billion euro ($12.74 billion) credit facility to fund margin calls linked to the group's derivative trades, Italy's biggest utility said. The financing is 70% guaranteed by the Italian export credit agency SACE and has a term of about 18 months, Enel said on Friday. As anticipated by Reuters, the credit line is part of the Italian government's efforts to shield the country's utilities against volatility on energy markets. Other Italian utilities are expected to apply for the SACE guarantee scheme. Italy's second-biggest utility A2A (A2.MI) told Reuters on Tuesday it would tap the credit facility backed by the credit export agency in January.

Hacking and repressionAfter Nika went missing, her aunt and other protesters told CNN that her popular Instagram and Telegram accounts had been disabled. On October 12, two of Nika’s friends noticed her Telegram account briefly back online, they told CNN. As with Negin’s case, the reactivation of Nika’s accounts raises questions about whether Iranian authorities were responsible for accessing her social media profiles, allegedly to phish other protesters or compromise her after her death. “Usually what happens is, they do the target phone number, then they send a login request to Telegram,” Rashidi told CNN. However, references in Iranian state media indicate authorities did access Nika’s Instagram account and direct messages, stating they had permission from the judiciary to access them.

[1/2] The European Central Bank (ECB) building is seen from a cafe amid Christmas decorations, before the monthly news conference following the ECB's monetary policy meeting in Frankfurt, Germany December 15, 2022. Formed in October, Meloni's government is also holding out on ratifying the euro zone's bailout fund. INFLATION TARGETECB policymakers from across the euro zone defended the bank's decision-making on Friday. Estonian governor Madis Mueller said rates would probably need to rise more than markets had expected so far, while Finnish central bank chief Olli Rehn said 50 bps hikes were likely at each of its next two meetings. Inflation in Germany, the euro zone’s biggest economy, is likely to be higher than earlier thought while economic growth will be weaker with a recession next year now certain, the Bundesbank said on Friday.

☆ ECB sets core capital threshold for Italy's Intesa at 8.88% from 8.81%
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MILAN, Dec 15 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank has set the minimum threshold for Intesa Sanpaolo's (ISP.MI) core capital at 8.88% for next year, fractionally higher than the current 8.81% requirement, Italy's biggest bank said on Thursday. Intesa's best-quality capital ratio stood at 12.4% at the end of September applying in full regulations which are still being phased in. Reporting by Valentina Za, editing by Gianluca SemeraroOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Gianluca Vialli steps away from Italy duties for health reasons
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ How nuclear fusion works, and why it's a big deal for green energy that scientists made a 'breakthrough'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Paola Rosa-Aquino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

US Department of Energy scientists produced a nuclear fusion reaction with a net energy gain. The US Department of Energy officially announced the milestone in fusion energy research on Tuesday. For the first time, researchers created a nuclear fusion reaction that produced more energy than they put into it. What is fusion energy and why is it a big deal? This illustration shows how lasers heat a target to the necessary conditions for nuclear fusion to occur.

☆ Talks over new job contracts at Italian auto groups to continue in January - union
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MILAN, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Ongoing talks over new job contracts in Italy for Stellantis (STLA.MI), Ferrari (RACE.MI), CNH Industrial (CNHI.MI) and Iveco (IVG.MI) will be extended into January, a union representative said on Monday. Gianluca Ficco of UILM union told Reuters talks, which where initially scheduled to end this week, would "predictably" continue next month, when unions and the four companies deal with key issues, including proposed salary increases. Stellantis was not immediately available for comment. Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari, editing by Cristina CarlevaroOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Climate protesters hurl paint at Milan's La Scala opera house
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Climate-change activists in Italy on Wednesday threw paint at the entrance of Milan's famed La Scala opera house ahead of the opening performance of the season, local police said. Activists have staged high profile protests across Europe in recent months, sometimes targeting museums and art works in calling for tougher action to tackle global warming. Police said they had detained five people following the incident at La Scala, while cleaners swiftly removed the paint from the entrance of the theatre. La Scala will open its 2022-23 season on Wednesday, one of the highlights of the Italian cultural calendar, with a performance of the Russian opera "Boris Godunov" composed by Modest Mussorgsky. Reporting by Sara Rossi and Fabiano Franchitti; Writing by Gianluca Semeraro; Editing by Gavin Jones and Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Juventus has no requirement of additional capital, says Exor's Elkann
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Daniel Wiessner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Serie A soccer club Juventus (JUVE.MI) does not need a fresh capital injection, the chief executive of controlling shareholder Exor (EXOR.AS) said on Wednesday. Exor on Tuesday proposed accountant Gianluca Ferrero as the new chairman of Juventus, marking the end of the long reign of Andrea Agnelli as the Italian soccer club tries to get to grips with its financial and legal troubles. "Juventus has no requirement of capital," Exor CEO John Elkann told analysts and investors at a business presentation of the holding company of Italy's Agnelli family. "Football is a very valuable sector, the ingredients that Juventus has and the leadership ahead are going to make the differences," Elkann said, adding Exor was very encouraged by the future of the club. Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari Editing by Keith WeirOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Thirteen people missing on Italian island Ischia after landslide - ANSA
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Thirteen people were missing on the Italian holiday island of Ischia after a landslide caused by heavy rain engulfed some buildings, the Ansa news agency reported on Saturday, citing the local police. The Italian fire brigade tweeted that a rainstorm that started at 0400 GMT caused flooding and landslides on the island. "Searches are underway for any missing people" in Casamicciola Terme, one of the six small towns of Ischia, a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea about 30 km (18.64 miles)from Naples. Gianni Capuano, an official of Italy's Civil Protection, told Sky TG24 that a young child was among the missing, adding that families in danger were being evacuated. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she was in close contact with the Civil Protection minister Nello Musumeci, the Civil Protection Department and the Campania Region "to follow the evolution of the wave of bad weather that has hit Ischia".

☆ Atlantia set to be delisted as buyout bid reaches 90% threshold
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Nov 24 (Reuters) - A buyout offer launched by the Benetton family and U.S. investment fund Blackstone (BX.N) for Italy's Atlantia (ATL.MI) has reached the 90% threshold for the deal to proceed and trigger the company's delisting, the bidders said on Thursday. The bid initially failed to reach the threshold but was then reopened for another five days and closes on Friday. The bidders' vehicle named Schema Alfa said in a statement the planned delisting would happen "as soon as possible in the following weeks". The enterprise value of the deal was around 54 billion euros ($56.32 billion) based on Atlantia's debt level at the end of last year. Atlantia shares closed at 22.95 euros on Wednesday, just below the 23 euros per share Schema Alfa is offering to pay.

☆ UniCredit to give staff in Germany 2,500 euro tax-free bonus-memo
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Italy's second-largest lender UniCredit (CRDI.MI) will give its staff in Germany a bonus of 2,500 euros ($2,594) to compensate for rising inflation, a copy of an internal memo seen by Reuters and confirmed by a spokesperson showed. Trainees will receive a bonus of up to 1,250 euros, depending on the time they worked for the bank, the memo showed. The bonuses are exempt from tax as well as social security charges and will be paid out in December, it added. Under a third package of inflation relief measures costing in aggregate more than 65 billion euros, Germany announced in September that employers can pay out tax-free bonuses to staff of up to 3,000 euros each until the end of 2024. UniCredit had roughly 14,000 employees in Germany as of end-September, its website showed, making it its second biggest market after Italy where it employs nearly 35,000 people.

☆ Intesa Sanpaolo repays around 13 bln euros in TLTRO III funds
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MILAN, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Italy's largest bank Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) said on Friday it had repaid around 13 billion euros ($13.48 billion) in ECB's Targeted Longer Term Refinancing Operation (TLTRO) III funds. The European Central Bank has given banks an incentive to get rid of those loans by taking away a rate subsidy last month. It was its first move to mop up cash from the banking system and the first step towards unwinding its massive bond purchases. The early repayment leaves Intesa with 102 billion euros in outstanding TLTRO funds, the bank said in a statement published on its website. ($1 = 0.9646 euros)Reporting by Valentina Za; Writing by Gianluca Semeraro, Editing by Agnieszka FlakOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Italy's Enel to build solar pv cell & panel factory in U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Companies Enel SpA FollowMILAN, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Italian utility Enel (ENEI.MI) said on Thursday it would build a solar photovoltaic (PV) cell & panel manufacturing facility in the United States. The factory is expected to initially produce at least 3 gigawatt (GW) and scale up to 6 GW of high-performance bifacial PV modules and cells annually, the group said in a statement. Construction of the factory is expected to begin in the first half of 2023 and the first panel will be produced and available to the market by the end of 2024. Reporting by Francesca Landini, editing by Gianluca SemeraroOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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