WASHINGTON, July 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The National Press Club President Mark Schoeff Jr. today issued the following statement on new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rules put in place that would limit the ability of foreign correspondents to live, work, and report in the United States:

“Allowing foreign correspondents to work and report independently in the United States has long been a part of our country’s tradition of a free press. By implementing new and restrictive visa rules affecting international journalists, the U.S. further harms its reputation as a global leader for press freedom and a haven for journalists under threat.

We call on DHS to rescind these anti-press rules. While they’re in place, the agency must not use these restrictions as a pretext for retaliation against foreign journalists critical of U.S. policy or policymakers.

Foreign correspondents offer a vital window into the workings of U.S. democracy for international audiences, many of whom are deeply affected by U.S. policies. Limiting foreign journalists to 240-day stays – 90 days for Chinese nationals – places an undue burden on their ability to do their jobs. It also contributes to an environment of fear and uncertainty in which journalists might avoid criticising the U.S. government in order to protect their visas.

Further, these rules are likely to put Americans at risk by inviting reciprocal retaliation against American journalists reporting from abroad, making their work to inform the American public harder and less safe. Already, American foreign correspondents face regular denials of their visas in countries such as China that are hostile to independent reporting.

A free press does not stop at America’s borders. All journalists, regardless of nationality or country of origin, have the right to report freely while in the United States.”

About the National Press Club

Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the world’s leading professional organization for journalists and a leading voice for press freedom in the U.S. and worldwide.

Contact: Beth Francesco, Executive Director of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, media@press.org

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SOURCE National Press Club

Preferred Shareholder Remission Fund Trust to Issue Second Payment 
to Eligible Preferred Equity Holders on July 31, 2026

WILMINGTON, Del., July 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — FTX Trading Ltd. (d/b/a. FTX.com) and the FTX Recovery Trust (collectively “FTX”) today announced that, consistent with FTX’s Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (the “Plan”), FTX will commence distributions on July 31, 2026 to holders of allowed claims in the Plan’s Convenience and Non-Convenience Classes that have completed the pre-distribution requirements by the Record Date of June 16, 2026 (the “Fifth Distribution”). Eligible creditors should expect to receive funds from their selected distribution service provider (a “Distribution Service Provider”), either BitGo, Kraken or Payoneer, within 1 to 3 business days from July 31, 2026. Subsequent record and payment dates will be announced in due course. Additionally, FTX today announced that, consistent with the Plan and Preferred Shareholder Agreement (D.I. 25932), a Second Payment is to be made to eligible Preferred Equity Holders on July 31, 2026 (the “Second Preferred Payment”).

In the Fifth Distribution, in accordance with the waterfall priorities set forth in the Plan:1

Allowed Class 5A Dotcom Customer Entitlement Claims will receive an incremental 9% distribution (105% cumulative distribution to date);Allowed Class 5B U.S. Customer Entitlement Claims will receive a 5% distribution (105% cumulative distribution to date);Allowed Classes 6A General Unsecured Claims and 6B Digital Asset Loan Claims will each receive a 3% distribution (103% cumulative distribution to date); andAllowed Class 7 Convenience Claims will receive a cumulative 120% distribution.

Customers should be aware that by onboarding with a Distribution Service Provider, they have irrevocably elected to forego their right to receive cash distributions from FTX and have instead directed FTX to pay, directly to such Distribution Service Provider, any distributions to which they otherwise would be entitled to under the Plan. If customers have any questions related to the availability of the funds in their account with their selected Distribution Service Provider, they should contact customer support at their Distribution Service Provider directly.

To be eligible to receive a distribution on subsequent distribution dates, customers and other creditors must complete the following prior to their distribution record date:

Login to the FTX Customer Portal (https://claims.ftx.com) (applicable to customers).Complete required Know Your Customer (“KYC”) verification.Submit the required tax forms.Onboard with either BitGo, Kraken or Payoneer, FTX’s Distribution Service Providers. FTX will provide instructions for onboarding with each of the Distribution Service Providers on the existing FTX Customer Portal.

For transferred claims, distributions will only be made to the transferee holder of an allowed claim that is processed and reflected on the official register of claims maintained by the Notice and Claims Agent as of future record dates, where the 21-day notice period has lapsed without objection. For more information, please visit: https://support.ftx.com/hc/en-us/sections/33189504164628-Distributions. 

Preferred Equity Holder Payments

In accordance with the Preferred Shareholder Agreement and the Plan, the Second Preferred Payment will be made on July 31, 2026 from the Preferred Shareholder Remission Fund Trust (“PSRFT”) to Preferred Equity Holders eligible as of the June 16, 2026 Preferred Record Date. To be eligible to receive a payment on a subsequent payment date, Preferred Equity Holders must complete the following prior to the next payment Record Date:

Provide an executed ownership certification attesting to Preferred Equity Interests held;Complete required KYC verification;Submit required tax forms; andOnboard with BitGo (institutions) or Payoneer (individuals) and sign the accompanying consent form.

$18 million is to be paid to eligible Preferred Equity Holders on July 31, 2026, bringing total payments from the PSRFT to $95 million.

Outreach to Preferred Equity Holders began in January 2026. If you believe you are entitled to a future payment on account of Preferred Equity Interests and have not received an outreach to date, please visit the following link.

Phishing Advisory

Please remain aware of phishing emails that may look like they are from FTX and scam sites from channels that may appear to look like the FTX Customer Portal (https://claims.ftx.com). This is another reminder that FTX will never ask you to connect your wallets.

Additional Information

U.S. Bankruptcy Court filings, including the Plan and other documents related to the Court proceedings, are available at https://cases.ra.kroll.com/FTX/.

FTX Digital Markets Ltd. (“FTX DM”) will be separately communicating distribution information for customers who have elected to have their claims administered by FTX DM.

Advisors

FTX is represented by Sullivan & Cromwell LLP as legal counsel and assisted by Alvarez & Marsal North America, LLC as financial advisor, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP as special counsel and Landis Rath & Cobb LLP as Delaware counsel.

1 Actual distribution percentages may differ slightly due to rounding of the figures referenced above. Additional details regarding the amounts distributed by Class will be filed on the docket shortly after July 31, 2026.

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SOURCE FTX

Gallagher Brings Nearly Three Decades of Payments Leadership to Accelerate SpryWallet, SpryPoint’s Embedded Utility Payments Platform

CHARLOTTETOWN, PE, July 17, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — SpryPoint, a trusted technology partner for utilities across North America, announced today that Kevin Gallagher has joined the company as Vice President of Payments. Gallagher brings nearly 30 years of experience building and scaling payments businesses to lead SpryWallet, SpryPoint’s fully integrated utility payments platform.

Gallagher’s arrival underscores SpryPoint’s continued investment in payments as a core pillar of its integrated utility software platform. As Vice President of Payments, he will lead the strategy, growth, and operational execution of SpryWallet, working directly with utilities to embed secure, real-time payment options into the core of their customer experience while reducing the operational burden on utility staff.

Gallagher joins SpryPoint after nearly three decades building and scaling payments businesses across the fintech and SaaS industries. Most recently, he served as Global Head of Payments and Embedded Financial Services at EverCommerce, a leading vertical SaaS platform serving more than 500,000 service-based businesses. Earlier in his career, he held general manager and senior vice president roles building and scaling payments organizations at CARET (AbacusNext), FrontStream, Transfast (acquired by Mastercard in 2019), Vesta Corporation, 2Checkout, CardinalCommerce, Merchant e-Solutions, Chase Paymentech, and First Data. He currently serves on the board of directors of the TAG FinTech Steering Committee and holds a BBA from Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business and an MBA from Kennesaw State University.

“Payments are central to how utilities serve their customers, and Kevin brings a rare combination of deep payments expertise and a proven track record of building best-in-class payments businesses at scale,” said Kyle Strang, CEO and Co-Founder of SpryPoint. “His experience building and scaling embedded payments across multiple vertical SaaS platforms is exactly what we need as we grow SpryWallet into the payments layer of choice for utilities across North America.”

“Utilities are at an inflection point where embedded payments can meaningfully improve both the customer experience and back-office efficiency,” said Gallagher. “I’m excited to join SpryPoint and build on the strong foundation the team has already established with SpryWallet, and to bring the discipline of building payments businesses at scale to a platform with this much runway.”

Gallagher joins SpryPoint as SpryWallet continues to gain momentum with utilities across the Americas, following the platform’s recent launch and its seamless, native integration with SpryCIS and SpryEngage.

About SpryPoint

SpryPoint partners with leading utilities across the Americas to modernize customer engagement and streamline meter-to-cash operations. Our integrated platform brings together customer service, billing, field operations, and payments in a single integrated experience eliminating friction from the back office to service operations. With a process-first, user-centric approach, SpryPoint empowers utility teams to deliver services safely and seamlessly, without the burden of managing complex technology.

Media Contact

Liz Romero, SpryPoint, 1 (855) TRY-SPRY, info@sprypoint.com, https://www.sprypoint.com/

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SOURCE SpryPoint