Top five stories you may have missed
Chasing the expat vote ahead of Luxembourg's elections
Growing numbers of foreign residents in Luxembourg are joining political parties, which have set up dedicated sections to woo foreigners, even if most of them will be unable to vote in this year's national elections.
The centre-right Christian Democrats (CSV) were the first to launch such a section - CSV International – back in 2008, around the same time that Luxembourg amended its law to allow people to hold double citizenship. Other parties, including the right-wing ADR and the governing DP of Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, have similar branches.
The political appetite for the foreign vote reflects Luxembourg's unusually international make-up. Foreigners account for almost half of the country’s entire population, and 70% in the nation's capital. And while they are the majority in one in ten council areas across the country, just 13% of have registered to vote in June’s communal elections.
Luxembourg spyware fight over NSO control moves to US
Private equity firm Novalpina took its battle to regain control of controversial spyware maker NSO to a US court, hoping to obtain evidence to defend itself against fraud claims by its legal opponent.
Luxembourg has been the battleground for a dispute over control of the fund owning NSO - whose Pegasus software Saudi Arabia used to spy on dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi before murdering him - between Novalpina and the fund's current managers, Treo Asset Management.
Investors in 2021 ousted Novalpina as managers because of a tussle between the private equity partners, putting in place the Berkeley Research Group (BRG), which later spun off part of its business as Treo.
Nastiness at work pushing staff to quit, recruiters say
toxic work atmosphere is a top reason many workers quit their job, recruiters said, as Luxembourg lawmakers adopt a new law giving bullying victims better protection.
The legislation, adopted at the start of the month, for the first time creates a legal framework tackling workplace abuse, enabling people who feel they are bullying victims to call on labour inspectors to investigate. Companies could be fined of up to €2,500 if they then fail to protect victims.
“A large proportion of people want to leave their job because of a toxic work atmosphere,” said Darren Robinson, managing partner of recruitment firm Anderson Wise.
Quintet makes a profit for first time in years
Quintet Private Bank made a profit for the first time in four years with a net profit of €18.1 million in 2022, the bank said on Thursday, just a month after the firm announced plans to cut 9% of its global workforce.
The bank reported an income for the entire group, which includes subsidiaries in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK, of €524 million last year – up 14% compared to 2021, the bank said in a press release.
The bank had not posted a profit since 2018 and saw steep losses of €110 million in 2021, a source close to the company previously told the Luxembourg Times.
Rare bats hanging around old ArcelorMittal mines
In a few weeks, some of Luxembourg's biggest and rarest bats will wake up from their winter hibernation and scour the night skies near Bascharage looking for bugs to eat.
And the Grand Duchy's largest industrial company is claiming credit for helping the winged mammals about the size of a blackbird or small owl sleep away the cold season in peace.
A check of the mines in the "Giele Botter" section of former ArcelorMittal mine-turned-nature-preserve between Bascharage and Petange found they now offer sanctuary for five species of bats, said Jan Herr, site coordinator for the country's Nature and Forestry Administration. That included the rare greater horseshoe bat.
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