For this fourth season, the Workshops of the Monaco Philosophical Meetings are addressing the theme of “The Human”.
Each month, eminent philosophers and speakers from various fields are invited to give public presentations on a series of high-level reflections on issues related to the theme chosen for the year.
The first meeting, “Human Being,” took place yesterday at the Variety Theatre. Cynthia Fleury, philosopher and psychoanalyst, and Christian Godin, philosopher, debated the definition of what it is to be human, what it means, what determines it, its basis and what constitutes it.
The Monaco Philosophical Meetings association, founded by Charlotte Casiraghi, Joseph Cohen, Robert Maggiori and Raphael Zagury-Orly, aims to promote philosophy and hold monthly meetings at which well-known invited speakers can enlarge upon, discuss and share ideas on the year’s theme.
Note that the set of lectures given at the Workshops for the 2017-2018 season, on the theme of “Violence,” was published yesterday, 11 October 2018, and that the annual review, “Le Cahier des Rencontres Philosophiques de Monaco” No. 4 will be published in January 2019.
AS Monaco has officially parted company with Leonardo Jardim, after days of speculation. Thierry Henry has not yet been announced as the replacement manager.
Arriving in the summer of 2014, the Portuguese technician led the team 233 times.
During this period, AS Monaco went four seasons on the podium and the club won, during the 2016-17 season, its eighth French league title, while also reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League .
Under his leadership, AS Monaco also advanced to the quarter-finals of the Champions League (2014-15) and reached the final of the Coupe de la Ligue twice (2017, 2018).
The whole club wishes Leonardo Jardim, as well as his staff, the best for the rest of their careers.
Leonardo Jardim said, “I’m grateful and proud to have been AS Monaco coach for more than four years. I’ve always given my very best and worked with passion. We achieved some great victories together and I’ll always keep those memories. Daghe Munegu.”
Vadim Vasilyev, AS Monaco Vice President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “I want to thank with deepest respect Leonardo for all the work done. Leonardo has established himself on the bench of AS Monaco as a reference in Europe and leaves behind a very positive balance sheet. His passage will remain as one of the most beautiful pages in the history of the club.Leonardo will still be part of the AS Monaco family.”
The Service des Titres de Circulation has sent out stamp invoices (renewal of registration) for the year 2019 to all owners of vehicles registered in the Principality of Monaco.
– By bank check in Monaco or France, payable to the Service des Titres de Circulation. The check must be returned, accompanied by the invoice duly completed and signed, in an envelope labeled with the sticker provided.
The envelope may be franked at the rate in force or deposited in the mailbox installed for this purpose at the entrance of the corridor of the Service of the Circulation Titles, sis, 23 avenue Albert II, 1st floor.
Please note : Any change of address, civil status and renewal of identity card must be communicated to the Service of the Circulation Titles. Depending on the case, the change of the travel documents – driving license and registration certificates – will be necessary.
The payment must be made before December 31st, 2018. A late fee will be required, per vehicle, as of 1st January 2019.
Green Globe Gold Standard For the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel
As pioneers of a greener and more sustainable luxury, the Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer establishments have made a proactive commitment to environmental and social issues.
Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel. Photo: Monaco Press Centre Photos
Already holders of the Green Globe certificate since 2014, the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort and the Monte-Carlo Beach were awarded the prestigious Green Globe Gold Standard certification in June 2018: a fine reward for all of the teams involved who work daily to manage energy and water resources more economically, strive to produce a healthier and more responsible cuisine and take awareness and support actions in partnership with associations.
Green Globe is a world-renowned certification programme designed for the luxury travel and tourism industry, using 300 indicators to assess the approach of hotels in terms of sustainable development. Already certified since 2014, the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort and the Monte-Carlo Beach have made a further step this year, thanks to Green Globe Gold Standard certification, which distinguishes organisations that have held the label for five consecutive years. This demanding certification acknowledges the many actions taken by the “green teams” of the two Monaco-based establishments.
The Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort has reduced its energy expenditure by 30% in just eight years The Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort is successfully continuing its environmental commitment by combining service quality, competitiveness and energy management.
Among the key actions implemented are the replacement of 8,000 standard light bulbs with LEDs; the adjustment of air conditioning and heating times in unoccupied spaces ; the replacement of LCD-screen televisions with LED-screen sets.
The underwater lighting in the pools and the lagoon, as well as lighting in the gardens, will soon be changed to LED too.
In addition the hotel is now fitted with Smart+, a box connected to the Internet that measures energy use without any work or investment. Thanks to this careful monitoring, the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort should save the equivalent of one month of energy per year!
Lastly, the hotel is planning to install photovoltaic panels on the hotel’s roof within one year, in order to produce around 170,000 kWh/year.
The chief executive of easyJet has warned that other airlines are likely to fail, following the collapse of Primera Air.
Speaking at the Abta Convention, Johan Lundgren said: “A lot of weaker players are in a more difficult situation because of the high price of oil. We are going to see more failures.”
He told The Independent newspaper, “If you are exposed to fuel [price increases] because you haven’t hedged, and you don’t have resilience, if you don’t have a product and a service that people will pay a small premium for, then you should be worried.”
He also voiced post-Brexit optimism, saying he believed deals would be in place for flight routes before the UK leaves the EU next year.
“Everybody wants connectivity,” he said. “There will be a bare-bones agreement with basic connectivity between the UK and Europe.
“It would be inconceivable for politicians to put people in the situation where people can’t go on holiday or on business trips.”
Monaco Diamond Exchange founder launches diamond investment club
The rough diamond sector is always rich in opportunities, yet it has proven to be difficult to penetrate for investors who are not proficient with the industry regulations.
If historically polished diamonds helped private investors to diversify their portfolios in order to retain, relocate and pass on wealth, the trade of rough diamonds is a much more elusive and exclusive domain of traders, cutters, institutional investors and sovereigns that stockpile as part of their investment regimes.
Monaco Life interviews Antonio Cecere, founder of Monaco Diamond Exchange, who formed Diamond Investment Club with the aim to bridge the gap between rough diamonds and investors.
ML: What is the Diamond Investment Club?
AC: It is an investment club by invitation only that has as sole focus that to offer its members the opportunity to finance spot trades in rough diamonds. It is the first investment club of its kind that is exclusively dedicated to rough diamonds; it enables investors to yield from single transactions in a secure and controlled environment.
ML: What prompted you to create Diamond Investment Club?
AC: I am the Chief Executive Officer of MC.EXCHANGE, operator in the rough diamond sector that procures parcels of rough diamonds and facilitates trades across the globe; this is achieved in full compliance with Kimberley Process Certification Scheme under the vigilance of Monaco Diamond Exchange. We were asked by members of Monaco Diamond Exchange and by some private banks to generate investment opportunities and bridge the gap between investors and the highly lucrative rough diamonds trades; a regulated fund was the obvious choice, however it presented a greater level of commitment from the investors. Therefore, I decided to create something that could offer returns on individual trades with trade-cycles that are objectively short.
ML: How does Diamond Investment Club work?
AC: Diamond Investment Club generates a trade periodically and circulates it amongst its members; as first step we select a licensed and registered diamond seller with export licence from MC.EXCHANGE portfolio of secured sellers; we then set the total value of the trade and the parameters of the parcel to mirror the requirements of a pre-selected buyer provided by MC.EXCHANGE that is ready, willing and able to purchase. Monaco Diamond Exchange supervises every step of the process to ensure conformity with industry regulations.
ML: In other words, are you saying that you line up a buyer before the asset is acquired?
AC: Correct. We do this to reassure the investors strong of a market scenario where demand is greater than supply. This enables us to enter the trade knowing already that the asset is sold to the end-buyer and at what price prior to the asset being purchased. We need to bear in mind that in the immediate future we will see rough diamond supply decrease by 1-2% a year and demand continue its historical growth trajectory of 3-4% a year. In the next couple of decades the widening gap between supply and demand will be significant and this physical asset will be fully commoditized; in this view some global banks already started stockpiling rough diamonds.
Lesedi La Rona diamond
ML: How are the funds received and managed?
AC: In order to add a layer of protection for the investors, we decided to employ a European asset management company that is licenced, insured and regulated; the asset manager is responsible for the auditing of all investment activities, for the due diligence on the receivables to meet banking compliance as well as hold the capital. Further, it enables the Club to accept investments in a number of cryptocurrencies including Bitcoins, Ripple and Ethereum. The banks used have a physical presence in all continents which allows the Diamond Investment Club to receive deposits in a number of currencies, from US Dollar to Russian Ruble, and transfer funds internally to local branches to complete the trades in a timely manner.
ML: What returns on investment can be expected by the investors and how long does a single trade last?
AC: Set administrative costs per trade are less than 3.50% of the turnover and operational costs include transport, insurance, export taxes and Kimberley Process Certification. Returns on investment for the investor range from 3% to 6% on each trade depending on the size of the investment; risk is very moderate with funds being protected by the asset manager and then converted into a physical collateral that is insured for the duration of the trade; each trade is completed within 3 weeks and the investors can comfortably achieve ten trades a year.
ML: Where do the diamonds come from and where are they sold to?
AC: We look at the trading conditions of a country and the ability of its diamond producers to export the mineral; we have established relationships with presidential cabinets and their ministers of natural resources across African countries; this enabled us to build working relationships with governmental mines, artisanal mines and exporters in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Democratic Republic of Congo. For the resale of the diamonds we select either cutters and polishers from Surat and Tel Aviv, traders from Antwerp and Dubai or focus on institutional investors in New York, Geneva and Hong Kong.
ML: Do you think you bridged the gap between investors and rough diamonds with Diamond Investment Club?
AC: I believe we have. We transformed a rough diamond trade into a financial product for investors that in turn benefit from high returns with a thoroughly managed risk. We delivered what we were asked for by Monaco Diamond Exchange members and by the private banks for their clients and, in the process, we created something truly exceptional.
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