Latest Articles
Vol. 9, Issue 1 (2026)
Detecting Domain Generation Algorithms in Enterprise Protective DNS Logs: Lexical Entropy and Temporal Clustering ApproachesLouis Adebajo
Domain Generation Algorithms (DGAs) remain a persistent and operationally consequential evasion technique used by malware authors to maintain command and control channels against domain takedown enforcement. Despite well known academic detection methods, operational detection inside enterprise protective DNS telemetry continues to lag, primarily because production detection pipelines must operate at scale, with low false positive tolerance, and against an adversary population that rotates DGA designs faster than classifier retraining cycles. This paper describes an operational DGA detection pipeline deployed in production within a commercial protective DNS environment between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026. The pipeline combines two complementary detection strategies: a lexical entropy classifier that scores individual NXDOMAIN responses, and a temporal clustering analyser that groups NXDOMAIN sequences from individual client endpoints into candidate DGA generated campaigns. We describe the pipeline architecture across both branches, the threshold tuning methodology used to manage false positive volume at production scale, and the operational lessons from running the pipeline against approximately twelve billion DNS queries per day. The pipeline produced 134 confirmed DGA family identifications over the 21 month window, with a sustained false positive rate below 0.4 percent on the temporal clustering branch and a branch productivity asymmetry of approximately 2.2 to 1 in favour of temporal clustering, a result at variance with the weight of academic emphasis on per query lexical classification.
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Vol. 8, Issue 2 (2025)
Adaptive AI-Driven Treasury Optimization for Mid-Market Firms Under Volatile Macroeconomic ConditionsJordan A. Whitfield, Priya N. Ramaswamy
This study formally examines how adaptive artificial intelligence systems can support treasury decision making in mid market firms operating under uncertain macroeconomic conditions. We propose a framework that combines time series forecasting, reinforcement learning, and scenario simulation to recalibrate working capital allocations in near real time. Using a multi year panel of anonymized treasury transactions, we evaluate model robustness across regime shifts, including interest rate inversions and supply chain disruptions. The results indicate measurable improvements in liquidity coverage and a reduction in hedging cost variance relative to static rule based baselines. We further discuss governance implications, the role of explainability for audit readiness, and practical deployment considerations for finance teams that operate without dedicated machine learning infrastructure. The interest of this work lies in providing a rigorous, institutionally grounded blueprint for treasurers seeking measurable resilience under volatile conditions.
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Vol. 8, Issue 2 (2025)
Behavioral Drivers of Retail Investor Activity in Emerging Equity MarketsLiang Wei, Ana Beatriz Costa
We analyze a comprehensive panel of brokerage records in order to identify behavioral patterns that distinguish persistent retail traders from episodic participants in emerging equity markets. The formal interest of this study is to clarify how platform design, social signaling, and exposure to macroeconomic news jointly shape trade frequency and risk appetite. We document robust associations between interface affordances and sustained participation, and we provide evidence that informational salience materially alters short horizon trading behavior across the sampled venues.
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Vol. 8, Issue 1 (2025)
Green Bond Issuance and Cost-of-Capital Effects in Mid-Cap European ManufacturersMarkus Hoffmann, Sofia Lindgren, Élise Moreau
This paper formally estimates the cost of capital impact of green bond issuance among mid cap European manufacturers between 2018 and 2024, controlling for sector, leverage, and ESG disclosure quality. Drawing on a matched sample of issuers and comparable non issuers, we quantify the spread differential attributable to certified green instruments and assess its persistence across credit cycles. Our interest is in establishing whether the documented financing advantage withstands rigorous controls for unobserved firm heterogeneity, and whether it translates into durable improvements in capital structure flexibility for the issuing firms.
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Vol. 8, Issue 1 (2025)
Cross-Border Payment Frictions and the Adoption of Real-Time Settlement Rails Among SME ExportersTomás Iglesias, Hye-Jin Park
We investigate how small and medium sized exporters select between correspondent banking channels and emerging real time settlement rails for cross border invoices. Using a survey of 1,240 firms across nine jurisdictions, combined with anonymized transaction data, we identify the principal frictions that delay adoption and quantify the working capital benefits realized by early movers. The analysis offers a formal account of how interoperability standards, foreign exchange transparency, and counterparty assurance jointly determine rail selection at the firm level.
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