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Business Insider
01-07-2025
- Business Insider
An American couple sold their house in California and retired in Malaysia. They love 'not owning anything.'
In the 1970s, Paul and Ellen Eggers taught in Malaysia as volunteers with the US Peace Corps. The experience left a lasting impression, and decades later, as they prepared to retire from their jobs as college professors in California, they decided to return. "I had read an article in Forbes Magazine about people retiring overseas," Ellen, now 70, told Business Insider. "We hadn't really thought a lot about it before, but then one of the places that was listed as very popular and very affordable was Penang in Malaysia." They were familiar with the Southeast Asian country, having returned for vacations over the years, and never forgot how much they enjoyed it. In 2015, with the goal of retiring in the next year or two, the couple spent five weeks in Malaysia to see if it felt right for the next chapter of their lives. "We knew that our income could go a lot farther in Malaysia, and we thought, 'We could actually do this. Why not?'" Ellen said. When it was finally time for them to retire, they didn't hesitate to say goodbye to their lives in the US. The couple got rid of almost everything they owned, including two cars, furniture, and hundreds of books, which they donated to their university. "It was a very easy decision for us," Paul, now 71, told BI. Moving across the world It's been seven years since the couple moved to Penang, a state in the northwestern part of Malaysia. They had spent just one weekend there back in the '70s, Paul said. "We didn't really know Penang well at all when we came on our reconnaissance trip, but we liked what we saw, so that made our decision for us." Unlike the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's capital, they were drawn to Penang for its mix of natural and urban landscapes. Moreover, they didn't want to own a car, and Penang's reliable public transport system made getting around easy. However, the couple's decision to move across the world surprised some of their family and friends back home. They weren't familiar with Malaysia, and weren't sure what to make of it. Paul said. "Some of them thought we were nuts. I think some of them still do, seven years later," Ellen said. Not having children of their own made the move simpler. "I think it would be more difficult if you had children and grandchildren — although many of our friends do, and they make it work just fine with visits," Ellen said. The couple is on the Malaysia My Second Home, or MM2H, visa program, which was first introduced in 2002 to attract foreigners to retire and live in Malaysia. The most recent rule changes, announced in 2024, included stricter financial requirements, including the need to buy property in Malaysia. Since the couple obtained their visas under an earlier version of the program, they were grandfathered in under the old rules and weren't required to purchase property, Paul said. Back in the US, they owned a 2,000-square-foot home in the Sierra Nevada foothills, which they sold for $290,000 before relocating to Malaysia. Now, they're settled in a three-bedroom beachfront condo — their third home in Penang — which they moved into eight months ago. Rent is 8,000 Malaysian ringgit, or about $1,800, each month. "Honestly, we really like the idea of not owning anything. Not owning a house, not owning a car; it's very freeing," Ellen said. Their complex has a pool, gym, and tennis courts, and they're within walking distance of grocery stores and clinics. Georgetown, the capital of Penang, is a 15-minute car ride away. While they don't track every expense month to month, they always keep a close eye on what's coming in and going out. They estimate that their living expenses — inclusive of rent — usually come up to around 12,000 ringgit to 13,000 ringgit, or about $2,800 to $3,060, each month. Retired life in Penang The couple says they're enjoying their retirement in Penang. "Of course, when we were in the US, we were working, so that took up a very big part of the day," Ellen said. "We have much more time for personal hobbies and pastimes. We both read a lot. We try to exercise quite a lot." Paul says their lifestyle in Malaysia isn't that different from the US. "We pretty much do what we did in the States," he added. With one exception — they've learned how to play Mahjong, a tile-based strategy game that's extremely popular all over Asia. "I've met many people through that," Ellen said. "It's a lovely thing that you meet people from all over the world here and think nothing of sitting down at a table with two people from Europe and two people from Australia. It's just so natural." The other friends they've made came through mutual connections, she added. Penang also has an international airport, which makes it easy for them to travel around the region and beyond, including New Zealand and Australia. They recently returned from a cruise in Norway, Paul said. "Malaysia is so accessible to everywhere, not just Southeast Asia. It's easy to get a flight to Europe, and because we are saving so much money here, we can afford to travel," Ellen said. They both speak Malay from living in Malaysia years ago, but Paul says you can easily get by in Penang with just English. Those who want to make a similar move should pay attention to one thing: The heat. "It seems like a minor thing, but a lot of people are quite shocked at the tropical heat and don't realize how careful you have to be with the sun and hydration and things like that," Ellen said. Penang has come to feel like home in the years they've lived here. "We're just very familiar with Malaysian lifestyle, the language, the customs, and so on," Paul said. "In fact, the things that are different are the things that we love. We like the food, the nature, the climate, and the friendliness of Malaysians," Ellen added. "And no snow."
The Hill
30-06-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Trump: Forbes ‘continues to hang around like a bad disease'
President Trump attacked Forbes on Monday, calling out one of the outlet's journalists by name as he ripped the financial news publication over its coverage of him. 'Not that it really matters, but a terribly untalented writer for badly failing Forbes Magazine, Dan Alexander, who probably can't get a meaningful job in the business, has written so inaccurately about me that it is ridiculous,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. 'Many others also, the media is mostly Fake News, but Forbes doesn't even try to get things right.' The president said he hasn't spoken to journalists at Forbes 'in years,' claiming the outlet is biased against, writing 'they're so inaccurate (purposely!) about everything.' 'I would have thought Forbes would be DEAD by now, but it continues to hang around like a bad disease,' Trump continued. 'Isn't it owned by a hostile nation? Anyway, that's what happens when you have bad reporters with evil intentions. Eventually the publication dies. I've happily seen it over, and over, again!' Forbes has been owned since 2014 by Hong Kong-based Integrated Whale Media Investments. It was the second time in less than a week the president has singled out a reporter at a major publication as part of his effort to discredit news reporting about his administration. The president has attacked the New York Times, Washington Post and each of the major broadcast news networks over coverage and threatened to have his FCC scrutinize them. Trump most recently attacked Forbes in 2023, when it dropped the then former president off of its 'wealthiest Americans' list.
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Embla Medical Recognized for Leadership in Accessibility and International Reach
Company honored by Forbes Magazine for Championing Accessibility and by Iceland's President for Excellence in Global Exports REYKJAVÍK, Iceland, June 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Embla Medical (NASDAQ Copenhagen: EMBLA), a leading global provider of innovative mobility solutions, is being internationally recognized for its pioneering role in enhancing peoples' mobility and its business leadership, the company announced today. Forbes Magazine has named Embla Medical to its first-ever global Accessibility 100 list, recognizing the company's history of innovative prosthetics, neuro orthotics and bracing solutions, and high-quality patient care services. The prestigious list recognizes, for the first time, innovators in the field of accessibility for people with disabilities. Embla Medical is home to a number of leading mobility brands, including Össur, a leading global provider of prosthetics and bracing and supports solutions; Fior & Gentz, an innovative developer of neuro orthotics; and College Park, creators of custom-built prosthetic solutions for people of all activity levels. Since its founding in 1971, Embla Medical has secured more than 2,100 patents and numerous award-winning designs and is renowned for advancing the Orthotic & Prosthetic (O&P) industry. The company also operates ForMotion patient care clinics, which provide innovative solutions, expert guidance, and personalized care and support to patients in countries around the globe. The Forbes list was curated through interviews with more than 400 accessibility leaders across 15+ countries. Organizations were selected based on impact, innovation, and potential to drive systemic change across industries. In addition to Embla Medical, other companies on the list include global tech giants Google, Apple, Microsoft, Meta, and Sony, and apparel brand Nike, with whom Össur partnered for the Nike Sole on its Össur Cheetah® sports blade. "Accessibility is a fascinating space that has never been captured like this before," said Alan Schwarz, Forbes Assistant Managing Editor who spearheaded the project. "There are lone innovators, juggernaut tech companies, startups. They are revolutionizing how people get around, learn, communicate, work, play sports, travel, and so much more. Their impact on people's lives is monumental - and will only be getting more so soon." "We are honored to have received this recognition as a purpose-driven company that is passionately committed to improving the quality of life for people experiencing chronic mobility challenges," said Sveinn Sölvason, Embla Medical's President and CEO. "From designing award-winning mobility solutions to operating our network of patient care clinics, we remain singularly focused on providing innovative mobility solutions that help more people live a Life Without Limitations." According to Sölvason, Embla Medical has also received the President of Iceland`s Export Award for 2025, recognizing the company's success as an international business. "This recognition speaks to the dedication, and global impact of our entire team, and accepting the award from President Halla Tómasdóttir was a very meaningful moment," Sölvason said, noting that the first time the company received this honor was in 1992, as a small Icelandic company employing around 20 people at that time. "Today," he continued, "we have more than 4,000 employees, operating in 36 countries, and countless individuals rely on our solutions every day. What hasn`t changed over the years is our purpose: to improve the lives of people facing mobility challenges. Although we have grown globally, our roots remain in Iceland, shaped by a culture of resilience, innovation, and ambition. This award is not just a celebration of how far we've come - it's also a reminder of the importance of continued investment in new innovation and the conditions that allow global businesses to thrive." Contact:Edda H. GeirsdottirVP of Corporate Communicationsegeirsdottir@ This information was brought to you by Cision View original content: Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Sunday World
26-05-2025
- Business
- Sunday World
Conor McGregor claims he is in ‘serious talks' to buy OnlyFans
The website is popular among influencers, models, and public figures, with some top earners making millions every year The disgraced MMA fighter took to social media, where he shared a post from an entertainment news website reporting that the subscription website was for sale. 'OnlyFans owner has reportedly put the platform up for sale,' the post read, with McGregor adding: 'I'm in serious talks to buy this.' OnlyFans is a content platform which allows creators to share videos and images with subscribers, who pay a fee for access to their exclusive content. The website is popular among influencers, models, and public figures, with some top earners making millions every year. It is famed for its use among sex workers who use the website to sell both professional and amateur pornographic material. According to Reuters, the 43-year-old Ukrainian-American entrepreneur behind the company is in talks to sell his business to an investor group for an estimated €7 billion. Conor McGregor News in 90 Seconds - May 26th 2025 The publication have said that talks have been ongoing March. Leonid Radvinsky earned €414 million in dividends from the site last year, boosting his net worth to €3.3 billion, according to Forbes Magazine. He purchased OnlyFans in 2018 from a U.K.-based family, who founded the company in 2016. The New York Post has reported that he is struggling to find a buyer 'because of its X-rated business model.' 'You're looking to find billionaires and trying to sell it as not an adult content company but just a platform like X that allows adult content,' a source told the publication. 'But I think most people right now view OnlyFans as an adult content company.' McGregor has previously claimed interest in buying Chelsea F.C for £1.5billion from former owner Roman Abramovich. Earlier this year he expressed an interest in purchasing two League of Ireland clubs. 'How much is it to buy a League of Ireland team? I might buy two,' he posted on X. Forbes Magazine has estimated McGregor's net worth is $43 million, while other sources claim it is closer to $200 million. In January, a judge ordered McGregor to pay Nikita Hand €100,000 of her €250,000 damages and €200,000 of her expected €1.3m legal costs. It came after a jury found McGregor civilly liable for raping the hair colourist at a hotel in Dublin in 2018. Both McGregor and his friend James Lawrence, who was also named in the civil law suit, denied raping Ms Hand, insisting they both had consensual sex with her. During the trial, Ms Hand testified she had been 'brutally raped and battered' by McGregor and at one point thought she was going to die and never see her young daughter again. The trial heard how Ms Hand and her work colleague Danielle Kealey had been out on December 8, 2018 at a Christmas work party. Ms Hand wanted to continue partying into the next day and, after contact with McGregor via Instagram, the UFC fighter collected them from the salon where they worked. The group picked up Lawrence from his home and arrived at the Beacon Hotel around midday. Ms Hand said she was raped by Mr McGregor some time between 12.30 pm and 6 pm. The jury heard she remembered the rape but had gaps in her memory about what happened afterwards. They also heard evidence that a tampon was wedged so far inside her vagina it needed to be removed with a forceps in the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit of the Rotunda Hospital, where she presented in a terrified state the following day. The court was shown photos of Ms Hand's badly bruised body, taken by Gardaí two days after the events in the hotel. After the jury found McGregor had assaulted Ms Hand in the Beacon Hotel, the mother-of-one spoke outside court where she said that she felt vindicated, and urged victims to 'keep on fighting for justice'. While the jury found that Lawrence had not assaulted Ms Hand, Justice Alexander Owens later ruled that Ms Hand would not be penalised for having to pay costs for losing her action against Lawrence. 'It would be completely inappropriate to award Mr Lawrence any of his legal costs, even though he succeeded in his case,' the judge said. Conor McGregor outside court during the civil case taken against him by Nikita Hand. Photo: Collins Courts Although a jury dismissed her case against Lawrence, the judge found that they had not believed his claim that he and Ms Hand had consensual sex. 'Mr Lawrence was entirely successful in defending the claim but not for the reason advanced in his defence,' the judge said. Mr Justice Owens said the verdict of the jury was, in his view, on the basis no sex took place between Mr Lawrence and Ms Hand, rather than his claim that they had consensual sex. He said for this reason, he would depart from the normal rule that the losing side pays the costs of the winning side. The judge said he would make no costs order in relation to Lawrence, which means he must pay his own costs. The court has previously heard that Lawrence is a man of 'limited means' and that McGregor was paying his legal costs. McGregor has since launched an appeal, which is set to be heard by the court in July.
BBC News
27-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
'Tech entrepreneur took our money but failed to deliver our start-up dreams'
Former clients of a Canadian tech entrepreneur say they were let down after they paid his company tens of thousands of dollars to help launch their across the world - from Scotland to the southern states of the US - have told the BBC they paid Josh Adler's software company ConvrtX up to $245,000 (£184,000) but did not receive the websites and apps they spoke to more than 20 former employees and customers who say that Mr Adler continued to sell services and ask for more money, despite repeatedly not delivering everything customers paid a letter to the BBC, Mr Adler's lawyers say the allegations are false and have been incited by one former client who they are add that although Mr Adler was "inexperienced" when he founded his business, aged 21, his company became very successful in a short period of time and "the vast majority of clients were happy with their work". Launched in 2019, ConvrtX claims to be a "world-leading venture studio" that has helped more than 700 aspiring entrepreneurs start companies by developing business plans, making pitch documents for potential investors, and building custom websites and pitches to clients, the company claims it has a five-star satisfaction rating. It also says it has 70 staff worldwide and operates from the UK, US and Canada. Mr Adler runs the company from internal documents suggest ConvrtX billed more than $5m (£3.8m) in sales to more than 280 customers between 2019 and 2023 alone, but senior insiders say there were few success investigation found: Customers who say they spent their life savings without receiving a viable product - they told the BBC they received products from ConvrtX which didn't work or match what they had paid forClients who received legal or financial threats after complaining, including one woman who was sent inappropriate, flirtatious emails from a lawyer working for the companyFake positive website testimonials - one attributed to a complainant who had in fact requested a refund of $18,000 (£13,600)ConvrtX said on its now-disabled website that it had been featured in Forbes Magazine and had a working relationship with Harvard Business Review - both publications have denied this was the case In response, Mr Adler's legal team say ConvrtX had only received about 12-15 complaints out of about 340 customers - adding that after the incident of the sexually inappropriate emails, the company immediately terminated its contract with the (not her real name), a 37-year-old single mother from the UK, says she was "led down the garden path" after paying $53,000 (£40,000) in 2021 for a website and an app for her non-profit organisation, which aims to match people with fertility issues to potential says she was strung along for two years, only ever receiving a basic website and no working app, while Mr Adler continued to ask for more funds. Amy was particularly annoyed by a text she says Mr Adler sent to her, featuring a picture of him celebrating New Year's Eve on a tropical beach in Bali."Why flaunt your money to me? It's disgraceful," says Amy, who had funded the project by remortgaging her home and using credit she requested a refund through her bank and complained to the UK's Financial Ombudsman Service. A senior investigator there has provisionally recommended that the bank return $39,000 (£30,000) to Amy, according to documents seen by the BBC. She is still waiting for her bank to agree to the part of the process, two expert software developers reviewed the app developed by ConvrtX. According to the senior investigator, the evidence supported Amy's claim that the company had breached their contract by failing to provide the service she paid for."I think it's fair to say ConvrtX failed to exercise reasonable care and skill when they were providing the service," the investigator said. "It seems the work completed by ConvrtX cannot be salvaged and the entire process would need to be completed again if [Amy] wanted a working app to be developed."In response, lawyers for Mr Adler say that the client had "received a website, clickable prototype and a fully developed mobile app from ConvrtX".Former senior staff say that Josh Adler - the son of Kerry Adler, a wealthy Canadian businessman - presided over a culture of instability, resulting in high turnover of staff and errors due to "cutting corners" and hiring and firing inexperienced his Facebook profile, Mr Adler described himself as #YoungAndReckless and #LivingTheDream. We spoke to a number of former employees who described him as immature and a poor company meetings, they say he "bragged" about living at the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Abu Dhabi, boasted about renting a villa in Bali, and showed off a newly purchased Porsche 911 and multiple speeding cared about "his rich kid, bling-bling lifestyle," says a former senior employee speaking on the condition of anonymity. "When you have that many unhappy clients, it can't be a coincidence."Mr Adler's lawyers describe him as "highly ambitious" and say he sought to build a world-leading business, but that not all staff lived up to his high standards and would be "let go" if they under-delivered. "Young and Reckless" is a clothing brand he likes, they several senior ex-staff told us they had concerns about how Mr Adler ran his company, saying he continued to take on new clients even after being warned that some business and app ideas were unviable or impossible to make. They say he requested payments from clients in advance, sometimes as much as $53,000 (£40,000), though the company had a no-refund senior ex-employees claim that when Mr Adler was informed that some apps were not working, he would subsequently tell customers - against the advice of the development team - that he could fix the problem if they paid more money, or their outstanding balance."So don't tell the client that it cannot be done because we'll find [a contractor] that can do it when they've paid," one ex-staff member recalls Mr Adler repeatedly telling them. "He's a good talker, he's good at sales… but he gives a lot of false promises." A former customer, DeShawn Womack, says he felt "lied to" after he hired ConvrtX in 2021. He says he paid more than $50,000 (£37,750) for a mobile app that would allow users to remotely access their phone and all its data from another device if it was lost, stolen or says he received a design prototype, but not a finished working making payments over two years, Mr Womack - a truck driver from the US state of Georgia - messaged a senior ConvrtX employee for clarity about whether his app would be able to sync missed calls and voicemails. He also asked if it would allow users to make phone calls from a different device using their same number - a specific feature he said Mr Adler had told him was possible and was referenced in his contract with ConvrtX."This is impossible, your app was never ever possible in the first place," the employee responded in messages seen by the BBC. "Did someone tell you this was possible?"Mr Womack replied: "Yes, Josh [Adler] did and plus it's in my project sign-off." The 40-year-old, who says he spent his life savings on the project, told the BBC he stopped making additional payments after he believed his app was not being properly worked on. "He [Josh Adler] sold me a dream and this is frustrating," he for Mr Adler say he denies telling customers that their ideas were viable when they were not. They say ConvrtX was always clear about the difficulty of developing an app, but if the client wanted to proceed it would usually take on the project. Gemma Martin from Dundee, who runs a tarot-card-reading business, says ConvrtX failed to deliver after she paid more than $35,000 (£26,000) for services including a working interactive website and mobile app that would let users request readings and subscribe to her she wrote negative reviews online, the 33-year-old says ConvrtX refused to release her website unless she signed a non-disclosure agreement stopping her from criticising the company - which she emails seen by the BBC, a company lawyer then made sexually inappropriate remarks to Ms Martin while trying to resolve the dispute, writing that he had researched her online and her "professional profile" did not "match [her] beauty".Lawyers for ConvrtX say the emails were sent by a part-time third-party contractor who was terminated immediately once Mr Adler, who also apologised to Ms Martin, learned of the Martin says she received a business plan from ConvrtX and eventually raw source codes for her website and app, though she says these were unusable and for ConvrtX say it delivered Ms Martin a fully developed mobile app and source code, despite her having failed to pay her remaining balance. The company has since taken legal action against her for defamation, which she is Marshall, 53, says he was also threatened with legal action by ConvrtX when he asked for a full refund. He says he was "thoroughly disappointed" with work he had paid $5,183 (£3,920) for to help launch his business supporting independent emails seen by the BBC, ConvrtX's compliance officer told Mr Marshall that if he publicly shared his "baseless allegations" it would be "criminal and civil libel" and the company would seek a "criminal charge" against compliance officer also said that Mr Marshall had "signed away" his right to post negative reviews online about ConvrtX because of a non-disclosure agreement signed prior to the work starting. Other former customers say they also faced threats - including Ayesha Imran, who told the BBC she had requested a refund of $18,000 (£13,500) when she did not receive an app and a privacy policy for her website, after hiring ConvrtX in March 2023, she complained to Mr Adler for what she described as a breach of contract because of ConvrtX's failure to her complaint, she wrote she had been informed that Mr Adler was not paying his development team the appropriate amount for the work that needed to be done, causing several delays because of staff turnover, and resulting in insufficient product company's compliance officer responded that Ms Imran would face damages of at least $60,000 (£47,000) if she publicly shared negative comments about ConvrtX or attempted to contact any of its employees. She says she viewed this as an attempt to intimidate and scare her experience, Ms Imran was being featured - until last month - as a false testimonial on the company's website."ConvrtX has helped us go from vision, to launch and supported with everything in between. They are really quite holisitc [sic], in what they do!" the post read."Those words never left my mouth," says Ms Imran, who tells us she had previously asked Mr Adler to remove it. Alongside Ms Imran's fake testimonial, the BBC has found that Mr Adler also used an image of Jen Selter, a lifestyle and fashion influencer with more than 13 million followers on social media. Ms Selter confirmed she had never used ConvrtX's services, and that the image had been used without her Adler's lawyers say these testimonials were on a "dummy site" that was "not intended by ConvrtX to be publicly available".However, they were publicly available as recently as last month and some date back to August 2020, according to website archives and screengrabs taken by the this year, Mr Adler rebranded ConvrtX and, until being contacted by the BBC, was selling eight-week "bootcamps" for $159 (£124). In a promotional video, he claimed to have helped "founders raise capital - six, eight, nine figures and the like" and to have "positively impacted 10,000 lives".The BBC wrote to Mr Adler asking what these numbers were based on, but his lawyers did not answer our a letter, lawyers for Josh Adler say he "unequivocally" denies the allegations. They say that Mr Adler and his business are the "victims" and that, until Gemma Martin made defamatory statements about it, ConvrtX had received very few, if any, complaints from its clients. Additional reporting by William Dahlgreen and Tom Beal
