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NoneSYDNEY, Dec. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) (ACN 629 842 799) (“IREN”) today announced the closing of its offering of $440 million aggregate principal amount of 3.25% convertible senior notes due 2030 (the “notes”) in a private offering to persons reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Key details of the transaction Oversubscribed and upsized from $300 million to $400 million, plus $40 million greenshoe Net proceeds of approximately $425.4 million 3.25% coupon, 30% conversion premium Capped call transactions entered into in connection with the notes are generally expected to provide a hedge upon conversions up to an initial cap price of $25.86 per share, which represents a 100% premium (as compared to the 30% conversion premium under the notes) Citigroup Global Markets Inc and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as joint bookrunners Oversubscribed and upsized In response to strong investor demand, IREN upsized the initial offering size of $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of notes to $400.0 million, and the initial purchasers fully exercised their option to purchase an additional $40.0 million aggregate principal amount of the notes. The notes were issued pursuant to, and are governed by, an indenture, dated as of December 6, 2024, between IREN and U.S. Bank Trust Company, National Association, as trustee. Use of proceeds The net proceeds from the offering are approximately $425.4 million, after deducting the initial purchasers’ discounts and commissions and IREN’s estimated offering expenses. IREN intends to use the net proceeds as follows: $44.4 million to fund the cost of the capped call transactions (described below) $73.7 million to fund the cost of the prepaid forward transaction (described below) General corporate purposes and working capital Capped call transactions In connection with the pricing of the notes and the exercise by the initial purchasers of their option to purchase additional notes, IREN entered into privately negotiated capped call transactions with certain of the initial purchasers or their affiliates and certain other financial institutions (the “option counterparties”). The capped call transactions cover, subject to anti-dilution adjustments, the number of ordinary shares of IREN that initially underlie the notes. The cap price of the capped call transactions is initially $25.86 per share, which represents a premium of 100% over the last reported sale price of IREN’s ordinary shares of $12.93 per share on December 3, 2024, and is subject to certain adjustments under the terms of the capped call transactions. The capped call transactions are expected to generally reduce the potential dilution to IREN’s ordinary shares upon any conversion of the notes and/or offset any potential cash payments IREN is required to make in excess of the principal amount of converted notes, as the case may be, with such offset and/or reduction subject to a cap price. If, however, the market price per ordinary share of IREN, as measured under the terms of the capped call transactions, exceeds the cap price of the capped call transactions, there would nevertheless be dilution and/or there would not be an offset of such potential cash payments, in each case, to the extent that such market price exceeds the cap price of the capped call transactions. The capped call transactions will be solely cash settled unless certain conditions are satisfied. Prepaid forward transactions In connection with the pricing of the notes, IREN also entered into a prepaid forward share purchase transaction (the “prepaid forward transaction”) with one of the initial purchasers of the notes or its affiliate (the “forward counterparty”), pursuant to which IREN purchased approximately $73.7 million of its ordinary shares (based on the last reported sale price of IREN’s ordinary shares on the pricing date), for settlement shortly after the maturity date of the notes, subject to any early settlement, in whole or in part, of the prepaid forward transaction. The prepaid forward transaction will be solely cash settled unless certain conditions are satisfied. The prepaid forward transaction is generally intended to facilitate privately negotiated derivative transactions, including swaps, between the forward counterparty or its affiliates and investors in the notes relating to IREN’s ordinary shares by which investors in the notes will establish short positions relating to IREN’s ordinary shares and otherwise hedge their investments in the notes. As a result, the prepaid forward transaction is expected to allow the investors to establish short positions that generally correspond to (but may be greater than) commercially reasonable initial hedges of their investment in the notes. In the event of such greater initial hedges, investors may offset such greater portion by purchasing IREN’s ordinary shares on or shortly after the day IREN prices the notes. No registration The notes were only offered and sold to persons reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act. The offer and sale of the notes and any of IREN’s ordinary shares issuable upon conversion of the notes have not been, and will not be, registered under the Securities Act or any other securities laws, and the notes and any such shares cannot be offered or sold except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and any other applicable securities laws. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, the notes or any of IREN’s ordinary shares issuable upon conversion of the notes, nor will there be any sale of the notes or any such shares, in any state or other jurisdiction (including the United States and Australia) in which such offer, sale or solicitation would be unlawful. Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the completion of the offering and the expected amount and intended use of the net proceeds. Forward-looking statements represent IREN’s current expectations, beliefs, and projections regarding future events and are subject to known and unknown uncertainties, risks, assumptions and contingencies, many of which are outside IREN’s control and that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Among those risks and uncertainties are market conditions and risks relating to IREN’s business, including those described in periodic reports that IREN files from time to time with the SEC. IREN cannot provide any assurances regarding its ability to effectively apply the net proceeds after funding the cost of entering into the capped call transactions and financing the prepaid forward as described above. The forward-looking statements included in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release, and IREN does not undertake any obligation to update the forward-looking statements included in this press release for subsequent developments, except as may be required by law. For a further discussion of factors that could cause IREN’s future results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements, see the section entitled “Risk Factors” in IREN’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended June 30, 2024 and other risks described in documents filed by IREN from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. About IREN IREN is a leading data center business powering the future of Bitcoin, AI and beyond utilizing 100% renewable energy. Bitcoin Mining: providing security to the Bitcoin network, expanding to 50 EH/s in H1 2025. Operations since 2019. AI Cloud Services: providing cloud compute to AI customers, 1,896 NVIDIA H100 & H200 GPUs. Operations since 2024. Next-Generation Data Centers: 460MW of operating data centers, expanding to 810MW in H1 2025. Specifically designed and purpose-built infrastructure for high-performance and power-dense computing applications. Technology: technology stack for performance optimization of AI Cloud Services and Bitcoin Mining operations. Development Portfolio: 2,310MW of grid-connected power secured across North America, >2,000 acre property portfolio and additional development pipeline. 100% Renewable Energy (from clean or renewable energy sources or through the purchase of RECs): targets sites with low-cost & underutilized renewable energy, and supports electrical grids and local communities. ContactsRecap: Gaming studios face difficult decisions as they weigh the ever-mounting cost of cutting-edge visuals and the diminishing returns that they provide. They have to figure out a way to combine visual spectacle with engaging gameplay and sustainable development practices. For decades, giants in the gaming industry like Sony and Microsoft banked on realistic visuals to captivate audiences. This strategy has transformed once-flat pixelated worlds into immersive experiences that rival cinematic productions. However, the cost of achieving such realism has skyrocketed, leading to a reevaluation of priorities within the gaming sector. Marvel's Spider-Man 2, released in 2023, is one example. Leveraging the PlayStation 5's processing power, developers at Insomniac Games crafted a visually stunning New York City. Peter Parker's iconic suits were rendered with intricate textures, while skyscrapers reflected sunlight with remarkable accuracy. This level of detail, however, came at a steep price. The game's development reportedly cost around $300 million, more than triple the budget of its predecessor from just five years earlier. There's a scene in The Last of Us 2 where a character just...takes a shirt off, over their head, without any clipping, and it's probably the most technically impressive thing I've ever seen in a game?? Like have you ever seen a character do this in a game before? pic.twitter.com/v4AvYe0JGz Another example of the industry's technical prowess can be seen in a particularly noteworthy scene in The Last of Us: Part II, when the protagonist Ellie removes her shirt, revealing bruises and scrapes on her back. This moment unfolds without any graphical glitches, demonstrating the painstaking attention to detail that has become a hallmark of high-budget game development. While these visuals are impressive, they raise questions about the sustainability of such investments. Despite Spider-Man 2's commercial success, with over 11 million copies sold, Sony announced 900 layoffs in February 2024, which affected the game's developers at Insomniac. In short, the financial returns on these investments are diminishing. At the same time, audience preferences are shifting as well. Jacob Navok, a former executive at Square Enix, told The New York Times that high-fidelity visuals primarily appeal to a specific demographic of gamers in their 40s and 50s. Meanwhile, younger generations are gravitating towards games with simpler graphics but robust social features, such as Minecraft, Roblox, and Fortnite. For many young gamers, "playing is an excuse for hanging out with other people," said Joost van Dreunen, a market analyst and professor at New York University. This social aspect has become a driving force in game design and popularity. As development costs soar and player preferences evolve, some studios are exploring alternative approaches. The live service model, which prioritizes regular content updates over graphical fidelity, has gained traction. Games like Genshin Impact have found tremendous success, generating billions in revenue primarily through mobile platforms. However, this model has risks. High-profile failures like Warner Bros. Discovery's Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and Sony's short-lived Concord demonstrate the challenges of entering the competitive live service market. Industry professionals are divided on the path forward. Some, like David Reitman of PricewaterhouseCoopers, see potential in artificial intelligence to reduce the costs associated with high-end graphics. Others, like independent developer Rami Ismail, are skeptical of quick technological fixes and worry about the industry's current trajectory.

NEW YORK — If you're planning on ringing in the new year quietly at home, you're not alone. A majority of U.S adults intend to celebrate New Year’s Eve at home, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research . “As I’ve gotten older over the last few years, it’s like if I don’t make it to midnight, it’s not a big deal, you know?” says Carla Woods, 70, from Vinton, Iowa. Nearly 2 in 10 will be celebrating at a friend or family member’s home, and just 5% plan to go out to celebrate at a bar, restaurant or organized event, the poll found. But many U.S. adults will celebrate the new year in a different way — by making a resolution. More than half say they'll make at least one resolution for 2025. There's some optimism about the year ahead, although more than half aren't expecting a positive change. About 4 in 10 say 2025 will be a better year for them personally. About one-third don’t expect much of a difference between 2024 and 2025, and about one-quarter think 2025 will be a worse year than 2024. Relaxed New Year's Eve plans for many Kourtney Kershaw, a 32-year-old bartender in Chicago, often fields questions from customers and friends about upcoming events for New Year's Eve. She said this year is trending toward low-key. “A majority of who I’ve spoken to in my age range, they want to go out, but they don’t know what they’re going to do because they haven’t found anything or things are just really expensive,” she said. “Party packages or an entry fee are like a turnoff, especially with the climate of the world and how much things cost.” As expected, younger people are more interested in ringing in the new year at a bar or organized event — about 1 in 10 U.S. adults under 30 say they plan to do that. But about 3 in 10 older adults — 60 and above — say they won’t celebrate the beginning of 2025 at all. Anthony Tremblay, 35, from Pittsburgh, doesn't usually go out to toast the arrival of the new year, but this year he's got something special cooked up: He and his wife will be traveling through Ireland. “I don’t do anything too crazy for New Year’s, usually. So this is definitely a change,” he said. “I wanted to do something unique this year, so I did.” Woods will be working New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. She answers calls on The Iowa Warmline, a confidential, noncrisis listening line for people struggling with mental health or substance use issues. “Holidays are really hard for people, so I don’t mind working,” she said. “I’m passionate about it because I have mental health issues in the family and so being able to help people is rewarding to me.” Younger Americans are more likely to make a resolution Every New Year's also triggers the eternal debate about resolutions. A majority of U.S. adults say they intend to make a New Year’s resolution of some type, but millennials and Gen Z are especially likely to be on board — about two-thirds expect to do so, compared to about half of older adults. Women are also more likely than men to say they will set a goal for 2025. Tremblay hopes to lose some weight and focus more on self-care — more sleep, meditation and breathing exercises. “It’s probably a good year to focus on mental health,” he said. Many others agree. About 3 in 10 adults choose resolutions involving exercise or eating healthier. About one-quarter said they'll make a resolution involving losing weight and a similar number said they'll resolve to make changes about priorities of money or mental health. Woods' resolutions are to stay social and active. As a mental health counselor, she knows those are key to a happy 2025 and beyond: “Probably one of my biggest resolutions is trying to make sure I stay social, try to get out at least once a week — get out and either have coffee or do something with a friend. That’s not only for the physical but also for the mental health part.” Kershaw, the bartender, says weight loss and better health are the top resolutions she hears people make. “Mental health is the new one, but I think it’s high up there as well as with regular health,” she said. She prefers more goal-oriented resolutions and, this time, it's to do more traveling and see more of the world: “I don’t know if that’s really a resolution, but that’s a goal that I’m setting.” And how will she welcome the arrival of 2025? Usually, she takes the night off and stays home watching movies with plenty of snacks, but this year Kershaw has a different plan, maybe one of the most Chicago things you can do. This die-hard sports fan will be at Wrigley Field on Tuesday watching the Chicago Blackhawks take on the St. Louis Blues. “Hockey’s my favorite sport. So I will be watching hockey and bringing in the new year,” she said. ___ The AP-NORC poll of 1,251 adults was conducted Dec. 5-9, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. ___ Sanders reported from Washington.Washington, Dec 19 (AP) The Senate passed a defence bill on Wednesday that authorises significant pay raises for junior enlisted service members, aims to counter China's growing power and boosts overall military spending to USD 895 billion while also stripping coverage of transgender medical treatments for children of military members. The annual defence authorisation bill usually gains strong bipartisan support and has not failed to pass Congress in nearly six decades, but the Pentagon policy measure in recent years has become a battleground for cultural issues. Republicans this year sought to tack on to the legislation priorities for social conservatives, contributing to a months-long negotiation over the bill and a falloff in support from Democrats. Also Read | Cyclone Chido: Tropical Cyclone Kills 13, Affects Over 45,000 in Malawi. Still, the bill passed comfortably 85-14, sending it to President Joe Biden. Eleven senators who caucus with Democrats, as well as three Republicans, voted against the legislation. The bill "isn't perfect, but it still includes some very good things that Democrats fought for", said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, in a floor speech. "It has strong provisions to stand up against the Chinese Communist Party here on a national security basis." Also Read | Nigeria Stampede: Several Children Killed During Stampede at Holiday Fair Event in Basorun, Oyo State Governor Says (Watch Video). In the House, a majority of Democrats voted against the bill last week after House Speaker Mike Johnson insisted on adding the provision to ban the military health system from providing transgender medical care for children. The legislation easily passed by a vote of 281-140. Senate Republican leaders argued that its 1 per cent increase for defence spending was not enough, especially at a time of global unrest and challenges to American dominance. Senate Republicans had argued for a generational boost to defence spending this year, but are planning another push for more defence funding once they control the White House and Congress next year. "We are currently experiencing the most dangerous national security moments since World War II," said Republican Senator Roger Wicker, who will chair the Senate Armed Services Committee next year. He has pushed for larger boosts to defence funding that would break spending caps that were agreed to in the bipartisan deal to suspend the nation's debt ceiling last year. The annual defence authorisation bill directs key Pentagon policy, but it would still need to be backed up with an appropriations package. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said in a floor speech this week that without the topline increase, "major bill provisions like a pay raise for enlisted service members will come at the expense of investments in the critical weapons systems and munitions that deter conflict and keep them safe". The legislation provides for a 14.5 per cent pay raise for junior enlisted service members and a 4.5 per cent increase for others. Lawmakers said those were key to improving the quality of life of service members at a time when many military families rely on food banks and other government assistance programmes to make ends meet. "It includes major quality of life improvements, enhancing things like childcare, housing, medical services, employment support for military spouses and much more," said Senator Jack Reed, D-RI, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee. The legislation also directs resources towards a more confrontational approach to China, including establishing a fund that could be used to send military resources to Taiwan in much the same way that the US has backed Ukraine. It also invests in new military technologies, including artificial intelligence, and bolsters the US production of ammunition. The US has also moved in recent years to ban the military from purchasing Chinese products, and the defence bill extended that with prohibitions on Chinese goods from garlic in military commissaries to drone technology. The Chinese foreign ministry responded to that move last week by calling the bans laughable. "I do not think it could ever occur to garlic that it would pose a major threat to the US," said Mao Ning, a ministry spokeswoman. "From drones to cranes, from refrigerators to garlic, more and more Chinese-made products have been accused by the US of posing national security risks. But has the US shown any reliable evidence or rationale to back up those accusations?" But in Congress, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have been mostly united in their stance that China is a rising threat. Instead, it was culture war issues that divided lawmakers on the bill, which took months to negotiate. The Republican-controlled House had passed a version of the bill in June that would have banned the Defence Department's policy of reimbursing costs for service members who travel to another state for an abortion, ended gender affirming care for transgender troops and weeded out diversity initiatives in the military. Most of those provisions did not make it into the final package, though Republicans are expecting Donald Trump to make sweeping changes to Pentagon policy when he enters office in January. The bill also still prohibits funding for teaching critical race theory in the military and prohibits TRICARE health plans from covering gender dysphoria treatment for children under 18 if that treatment could result in "sterilisation". (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)Petco’s (NASDAQ:WOOF) Q3: Beats On Revenue, Stock Jumps 14.5%Bitcoin breaks $100,000, outshining wavering stock markets

ZACHARY MARSCHALL: Woke Colleges Finally Being Forced To Reckon With Diversity AgendaCHENNAI: BJP state president K Annamalai on Saturday justified his whip protest, saying it was his primal anger against Anna University rape incident that resulted in the protest. Annamalai was on his way to Delhi to participate in a meeting of state BJP presidents. Speaking to reporters at Chennai airport, Annamalai said, “Don't see the protest politically. Considering myself as the brother of the victim, I did this protest out of my primal anger.” He said, “I was angry because the system failed. Police were not straightforward, and the FIR got leaked. BJP functionaries led by (former Telangana governor) Tamilisai Soundararajan protested in Chennai but were arrested, and henceforth I had to undertake the protest.” The BJP state president welcomed the decision of Madras high court regarding the constitution of a special investigation team comprising three women police officers to investigate the Anna University rape case . Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss yearly career horoscopes 2025 for Aries , Taurus , Gemini , Cancer , Leo , Virgo , Libra , Scorpio , Sagittarius , Capricorn , Aquarius , and Pisces .