Former South Korean president Park Geun-hye on trial for corruption

Park accused of putting pressure on firms including Samsung into paying millions in bribes in return for business favours

South Korea’s former president, Park Geun-hye, has denied corruption charges at the start of a criminal trial that could send the country’s first female leader to prison for life. read more »

Malaysian Money. Opulent Ideas. But Now, for Park Lane, a Forced Sale

The celebratory dinner was held at one of the city’s chicest restaurants, whose building offers a picture-perfect view down Central Park South to the Park Lane Hotel, a 47-story tower that looms over its more famous neighbor, the Plaza.

Steven Witkoff, a New York developer, had just won the bidding for the Park Lane. It was, he thought, the best location in Manhattan, if not the world, to build a supertower with ultraluxury apartments.

Dining with him that night in 2013 was Jho Low, an extravagant, chubby-faced Malaysian financier whose friends included heads of state, Wall Street bankers and celebrities like Paris Hilton and Leonardo DiCaprio. Mr. Low had agreed to finance 85 percent of the $654 million they were paying for the Park Lane. He also provided the $100 million nonrefundable deposit — twice the sum typically put up — that convinced the sellers to choose the Witkoff group over a rival bidder with a slightly higher offer.

But no work ever started on the planned new tower. Mr. Low’s fortune evaporated under scrutiny from authorities here and abroad who say that his money was stolen from the Malaysian people. read more »

Target Agrees to Pay $18.5 Million to Settle Data-Breach Lawsuit

Target Corp. agreed to pay $18.5 million to settle state lawsuits over a 2013 hack of its database when the personal information of millions of customers was stolen, according to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

It’s the largest multistate accord stemming from a data breach in history, Schneiderman said.

About 40 million credit and debit card users’ information was stolen in the breach, which occurred during a two-week holiday season in late December 2013 and January 2014, and compromised the home and email addresses of as many as 70 million people. read more »

Madoff Fund Paid Millions to Breeden Firm, Zero to Victims

A firm hired by the U.S. to distribute $4 billion to victims of Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme has racked up $38.8 million in billings over four years. The investors are still waiting for their first checks, though.

The Justice Department disclosed its payments to Richard Breeden, the Madoff Victim Fund administrator, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request from Bloomberg News. Breeden’s fees, which are being paid from cash in the fund, cover his work through 2016. read more »

U.S. regulators open probe into recall of nearly 1.7 million Hyundai, Kia models

U.S. safety regulators have opened a formal investigation into the recall of nearly 1.7 million vehicles by Hyundai Motor Co  and affiliate Kia Motor Corp over engine defects, according to filings published Saturday.

A South Korean whistleblower reported concerns last year to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which will probe the timeliness of three recalls carried out in the United States and whether they covered enough vehicles.

Fines could be imposed on the automakers if the NHTSA determines the recalls were not conducted properly. The agency did not immediately comment on the probe. read more »

Trump budget calls for Wall Street regulators to face restructuring

Two Wall Street financial regulators would face cuts or major structural changes under President Donald Trump's fiscal 2018 budget proposal

According to an Office of Management and Budget document on Monday, the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was created by the 2010 Dodd-Frank reform law to protect borrowers from predatory lending, would undergo a "restructure." This would reduce the federal deficit by $145 million in the 2018 fiscal year, it said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, which polices securities markets, would have its reserve fund, established under Dodd-Frank, used to supplement its budget. read more »

Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shorting NYC Drivers

Uber Technologies Inc. said it underpaid its New York City drivers by improperly calculating the company’s share of passenger fares, and will pay out an average of $900 per driver in restitution, costing tens of millions of dollars.

The back pay could run at least $45 million, based on the approximately 50,000 drivers the Independent Drivers Guild says work in New York City.

The ride-hailing company has previously misled drivers about how much they could make and miscalculated fares. In this case, Uber was taking its cut of fares based on the pretax sum, instead of after taxes and fees as stated in its terms of service. The issue was also raised in a lawsuit against San Francisco-based Uber filed by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. In March, Uber acknowledged that it had underestimated drivers’ pay in Philadelphia by millions of dollars. read more »