​AUCHAN RETAIL ACCELERATES DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION WITH TRAX'S AUTONOMOUS SHELF MONITORING SOLUTIONS IN PORTUGAL

Trax's autonomous robot at the Auchan Alfragide hypermarket in Lisbon, Portugal (Photo: Business Wire)

SINGAPORE & LISBON, Portugal, July 29 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Auchan Retail Portugal, one of Europe’s largest grocery retailers, and Trax, a leading provider of computer vision and analytics solutions for retail, today unveiled an agreement to deploy Trax’s suite of autonomous shelf monitoring solutions, including robots, across Auchan Retail’s entire grocery retail network of 34 supermarkets and hypermarkets in Portugal. The project starts in the Auchan Alfragide hypermarket in Lisbon.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200729005363/en/

As part of the agreement, Trax’s autonomous robots, developed in partnership with German robotics company MetraLabs, will be progressively deployed in Auchan stores across the country. The robots will move around the stores up to three times daily to capture photos of every shelf and aisle, which are then digitized at scale, using Trax’s proprietary computer vision and Internet of Things (IoT) technology, and converted into reports with actionable metrics and insights. These reports are delivered via a mobile app to store staff, enabling them to analyze, prioritize and resolve shelf issues such as out-of-stocks and pricing compliance issues more quickly and efficiently.

​AUCHAN RETAIL ACCELERATES DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION WITH TRAX'S AUTONOMOUS SHELF MONITORING SOLUTIONS IN PORTUGAL

ISW HOLDINGS INITIALIZES PRODUCTION OF 1MW PROCESO S19 POD5IVE DATA CENTER DESIGN FOR SHIPMENT TO 100-MEGAWATT BIT5IVE PROJECT

LAS VEGAS, July 30 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NetworkWire -- ISW Holdings, Inc. (OTC: ISWH) (“ISW Holdings” or the “Company”), a global brand management holdings company, is thrilled to announce its finalization of the new Proceso S19 Pod5ive data center design, which is capable of powering 1MW of computing mining power. Bit5ive is targeting the first deployments beginning in August, with its initial pod delivery bound to the 100-MW renewable energy Bit5ive LLC (“Bit5ive”) project in Pennsylvania.

“The S19 Pod5ive Data Center has been engineered from the ground up to deliver an industry leading Power Usage Effectiveness (“PUE”) score of 1.025,” stated Alonzo Pierce, president of ISW Holdings. “If you eliminate everything superfluous to maximum performance, optimize every remaining factor, and then integrate it into a renewable energy substrate to drive costs down to some of the lowest levels available anywhere in the world, this is what you get.”

The Company formed a joint venture partnership with Bit5ive in May (the “JV”) to build and deliver the single most elegant, powerful and efficient data center pods in the world. Geared primarily for the cryptocurrency mining industry, the Proceso S19 Pod5ive Data Center offers next-generation, dynamic self-management functionality, plug-and-play operation, virtually nonexistent maintenance needs, and an industry best-in-class 1.025 PUE.

Design features include:

• Automated environment control with airflow pressure sensor and “smart” evaporator cooler.
• Remote management capability.
• Motion sensor security.
• Proprietary miners monitoring and software system.
• Efficient power configuration with no step-down transformer needed.
• 26 power distribution units with 27 outlets at 240v output; 280 x Bitmain S19 or Whatsminer M20/30.
• All General Electric industrial equipment.
• NEC-complaint with all UL-listed components, including the PDU.
• Pre-wired power cords with individual lines drop in place.
• Pre-configured static network with individual lines drop in place.
• Easy to manage, allowing all miners to stay in DHCP.
• Web-based proprietary management system with network, temperature map, power draw, including a full audit report for operations control.
• Minimum cost of management with reusable merv 2-11 filter and standard evaporator media filter.

For more details and forward-looking statements, view the entire announcement: http://nnw.fm/ISWHoldingsS19Pod5iveAnnouncement

Management believes the cryptocurrency mining equipment market is now in the early stages of a new expansion cycle as product evolution and growing demand have eliminated existing supplies of prior-generation and secondary-market or resale equipment left over from the bitcoin bull market that topped in late 2017.

About ISW Holdings
ISW Holdings, Inc. (ISWH), based in Nevada, is a diversified portfolio company comprised of essential business lines that serve consumer product demands. Our expertise lies in strategic brand development, early growth facilitation, as well as brand identity through our proprietary procurement process. Together, with our partners, we seek to provide a structure that meets large scalability demands, as well as anticipated marketplace needs. We are able to meet these needs through a variety of strategic innovative processes. ISWH is creating and managing brands across a spectrum of disruptive industries. It maneuvers its proprietary companies through critical stages of market development, which includes conceptualization, go-to-market strategies, engineering, product integration, and distribution efficiency. The Company has also partnered with a well-known software development and consulting company, Bengala Technologies LLC, which is developing significant enhancements in the supply chain management space; and, the partnership has a vitally needed patent pending.

For more information, visit www.ISWHoldings.com.

Company Contact:
Investor Relations
info@ISWHoldings.com

Corporate Communications:
InvestorBrandNetwork (IBN)
Los Angeles, California
www.InvestorBrandNetwork.com
310.299.1717 Office
Editor@InvestorBrandNetwork.com

Photo available: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/360cbab4-b64e-469e-974d-9fb534ff7029

The photo is also available at Newscom, www.newscom.com, and via AP PhotoExpress. 

SOURCE : ISW Holdings, Inc.

JUMIO ANNOUNCES RECORD NEW ACCOUNT GROWTH, FUELED BY GROWTH IN FINANCIAL SERVICES, HEALTHCARE AND CHANNEL PARTNERS

Jumio signed more new customers in Q2 than in any quarter in the company’s history as digital transformation initiatives became an economic necessity.

PALO ALTO, Calif., July 30 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Jumio, the leading provider of AI-powered end-to-end identity verification and authentication solutions, today announced the biggest quarter for customer growth in the company’s history. Jumio says its growth was spurred by financial services and healthcare organizations which were forced to accelerate digital transformation in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The second quarter was marked by a number of milestones for the company. Market trends shifting to telehealth and remote new account onboarding fuelled significant gains in new business growth, which collectively grew by more than 100% year-over-year. Moreover, business from Jumio’s ecosystem partners increased tenfold in Q2 over first quarter levels, which speaks to the growing importance of this emerging channel.

“The global COVID-19 pandemic has suddenly accelerated the need for organizations to transform and respond to an unprecedented change in customer behavior and market risks – with extensive digitization being one of the key enablers of such change,” said Robert Prigge, Jumio’s CEO. “It’s imperative for enterprises to build in the necessary operational resiliency to survive this new reality. And that resiliency starts with remote onboarding and enabling organizations to create accounts online without having to visit a branch office or retail outlet.”

At the start of the pandemic, Jumio launched the Jumio Go for Good program to empower organizations involved in COVID-19 relief and assistance. The free program was designed to help eligible organizations quickly and accurately “identity proof" their patients, students and workers to ensure critical services are delivered. This program was responsible for helping a number of healthcare, financial services and online education institutions manage the increased demand for their services spurred by the pandemic.

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=37827

SmartStream receives highest level of Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 -- SmartStream Technologies, the financial Transaction Lifecycle Management (TLM®) solutions provider, has announced certification for Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) version 3.2.1, level 1 (the highest level).

According to a statement, the certification provides additional reassurance to serve card and digital payment customers and process personal identifiable information across the world.

The PCI-DSS certification is one of the most trusted, demanded and in a lot of cases mandatory qualifications for solutions partners.

SmartStream’s reconciliations platform and OnDemand (SaaS) services using its flagship solutions: TLM Reconciliations, TLM Aurora and SmartStream Air (Artificial Intelligence Reconciliations), have been certified at the highest level of security standards. 

This also includes the departments, staff, locations and processes which support the complete service model.

For SmartStream, achieving PCI-DSS status involved demonstrating high levels of security across the whole organisation, covering domains such as physical security, personnel security, fraud control mechanisms, IT & data security and data privacy - on a fully monitored business environment.

SmartStream chief executive officer, Haytham Kaddoura said: “The process was rigorous, it included revisiting numerous policies, testing security solutions and implementing new processes, it was a collaborative team effort across all of the business units.”

-- BERNAMA

Anomali powers TIS INTEC Group's threat intelligence centre in Japan

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 -- Anomali, a leader in intelligence-driven cybersecurity solutions, has partnered with an IT provider, TIS INTEC Group to provide cybersecurity services in Japan. 

According to a statement, TIS will utilise the Anomali product suite to power its threat intelligence centre, delivering enterprise cloud and security operation services across its APAC-region customer base.

“With advanced persistent threats and cyber-criminals targeting public and private sector organisations in the region, it is critically important that services providers responsible for security understand what they are up against,” said Anomali Sr Vice-President and GM (APAC), Geoff Noble.

“With Anomali providing the foundation of its security offering, TIS gains accelerated detection, investigation and response over the threats that are most impactful to their customers’ environments,” he said.

Shinji Abe, Section Chief of Enterprise Security Services Dept., IT Platform Business Unit, Service Strategy Sector, TIS Inc said: “With cyber threat actors becoming more organised and sophisticated in skills, traditional reactive security solutions are no longer sufficient.

“By partnering with Anomali, TIS looks forward to bringing our customers the most advanced intelligence solutions, which help security professionals simplify ever expanding security operations, and empower them with the needed threat intelligence to fulfill their works more efficiently.”

Joint customers receive the most advanced, comprehensive, and easy-to-use threat intelligence solutions available. Anomali delivers Anomali Lens, Anomali Match and Anomali ThreatStream.

-- BERNAMA

SWEEGEN OFFERS MORE SUGAR REDUCTION SOLUTIONS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND WITH THE ARRIVAL OF FSANZ APPROVAL OF NEXT GENERATION STEVIA SWEETENER REB E

Regional Brands Will Now Have Access to SweeGen’s Scalable Zero-calorie Rebs D, E, and M.


Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., July 29 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sugar reduction solutions company SweeGen announced Food Standards Australia, New Zealand (FSANZ) has assessed and approved Bestevia® Reb E stevia sweetener as a food additive, stated in Application A1183, published on July 28, 2020.

Under the Food Standards Code, FSANZ has approved a new specification for the steviol glycoside Rebaudioside E, produced by SweeGen’s proprietary stevia leaf-based bioconversion process. This decision builds on previous approvals by FSANZ in 2019 for SweeGen’s Bestevia Rebs D and M. 

“The approval comes at a great time because brands want access to the best tasting non-GMO zero-calorie stevia sweeteners available to satisfy consumers without compromising taste. The region now joins North America in regulatory status, where SweeGen’s Rebs D, E and M are highly sought-after scalable stevia sweeteners. The sensory performance and taste are dynamic, and classified in the industry as ‘next generation’ stevia sweeteners,” said Lewis Tessarolo, senior director of business development, Asia-Pacific.

With this new approval, food and beverage manufacturers in the region now have greater access to SweeGen’s Bestevia e+ Taste Solutions portfolio. This exclusive taste and sweetener platform offers sugar reduction solutions for applications across the spectrum, including beverages, dairy, confectionery, bakery and sauces. Bestevia e+ Taste Solutions deliver one of the industry’s most cost-efficient, great tasting, and complete solutions for reducing sugar.

“Achieving FSANZ approval for Rebaudioside E shows our clear commitment to delivering a wide range of sweetness and taste solutions for customers in the region,” said Tessarolo. “With the growing health awareness among consumers, coupled with government health initiatives to curb obesity and diabetes, SweeGen can help brands obtain the sugar reduction they need.”

SweeGen continues to focus on application technology, taste modulation expertise and regional consumer trends in order to meet the high demand for unique sugar reduction solutions in the nature-based sweetener space.

Bestevia® is a registered trademark of SweeGen Inc. 

About SweeGen

SweeGen, Inc., is a sugar reduction solutions company dedicated to the development, production and distribution of zero-calorie stevia sweeteners for the food, flavor and beverage industries.

SweeGen’s robust product pipeline, intellectual property portfolio, dedicated manufacturing capacity and R&D provide the foundation for innovation and delivery of high-quality sweeteners. For more information please contact info@sweegen.com and visit SweeGen’s website, www.sweegen.com.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, among other statements, statements regarding the future prospects for Rebs, B, D, E and M stevia leaf sweeteners. These statements are based on current expectations, but are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and are beyond the control of SweeGen, Inc.

Relevant risks and uncertainties include those referenced in the historic filings of SweeGen, Inc. with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements, and therefore should be carefully considered. SweeGen, Inc. assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information or future events or developments.

###

Attachments

• dairy image
• Bestevia Logo_Color

Ana Arakelian
SweeGen, Inc.
949-709-0583
ana.arakelian@sweegen.com 

SOURCE: SweeGen, Inc.

Grid resilience, renewable energy integration remain Asia's core investment areas

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 -- Grid resilience and renewable energy integration remain core investment areas in Asia as the region continues to increase power grid capacity to support surging energy demand, created by industrialisation and economic developments.

“Asia’s power leaders are reassessing their energy transition strategies in view of the ongoing global pandemic,” said Adrian Tan, Vice-President for Sales & Marketing for Black & Veatch, Power Business Asia.

“While decarbonisation and decentralisation expand the complexity of the grid across business models, engineering and technology, they are also presenting opportunities for the regional power sector.”

In a statement, Tan identifies the key opportunities for Asia’s power sector.

As integrated power infrastructures continue to meet Asia’s electrification demands, the opportunity is to tap into distributed generation, like microgrids and rooftop solar to achieve remote electrification and sustainability targets in archipelagic countries, like Indonesia and Philippines.

In addition, Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) increase grid stability, enhancing Asia’s energy security. The opportunity is to balance variable renewable energy generation with BESS and larger transmission capacities to stabilise the grid.

Asia power sector also accelerates digital transformation adoption which presents opportunities to address core challenges of grid stabilisation, peak load management, system flexibility and reliability in a holistic manner.

Based in Bangkok, the newly-appointed Tan is responsible for delivering solutions to clients across the full range of EPC services in conventional, renewable, and distributed power generation, transmission and distribution, microgrids and behind-the-metre services.

-- BERNAMA

ALLURION EXPANDS INTO ASIA WITH LAUNCH OF THE ELIPSE® GASTRIC BALLOON WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM

Rapid organic growth in Europe, Middle East, and Latin America sets the stage for further global expansion

Company names John Liljequist as the Director of Sales for Asia Pacific

NATICK, Mass., July 29 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Allurion Technologies, a pioneering leader in the development of innovative, scalable, and trusted weight loss experiences, today announced entry into Asia with the launch of the Elipse Program in Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore. Building upon its success in Europe, Middle East, and Latin America, the company’s entry into Asia could impact the lives of over 1 billion people who are overweight or obese in a region that historically has had limited access to non-invasive weight loss treatments.¹

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200728005010/en/

"With the launch of our weight loss program in Asia, our company enters its next phase of rapid expansion,” said Allurion co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Shantanu Gaur, M.D. “Obesity has been on the rise in Asia for decades, but truly frictionless treatment options have been absent. We intend to change that.”

Allurion has already treated over 25,000 individuals in over 30 countries around the world with its 360-degree Allurion weight loss program. According to a study released by the Asian Development Bank Institute, over 40% of adults in Asia are overweight or obese, an increase of close to 20% in just the past 20 years.

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LeddarTech technology selected for maximum safety of COAST Autonomous delivery vehicle

KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 -- LeddarTech’s solid-state LiDAR technology has been selected by COAST Autonomous as the most reliable solution, achieving maximum safety levels for its autonomous ‘Bigfoot’ delivery vehicle.

According to a statement, COAST Autonomous has deployed the Leddar™ Pixell in its autonomous delivery vehicle (ADV) at the Kinney County Railport (KCRP) near Brackettville, Texas.

KCRP is one of several rail yards operated by Harbor Rail Services Company of California.

The self-driving technology company chose LeddarTech’s Leddar Pixell Cocoon LiDAR with its 360-degree vehicle coverage as a supplier for this project.

The COAST Autonomous electric ADVs operate CO2 emission-free and enable Harbor Rail to operate and move equipment and supplies 24 hours a day in their industrial environment safely and efficiently.

These electric vehicles are equipped with technology that enables autonomous driving with solid-state Flash LiDAR technology provided by LeddarTech.

COAST Autonomous has developed self-driving vehicles that integrate several detection technologies, including LiDAR and camera.

LeddarTech’s Leddar Pixell provides full coverage with no dead zones within the entire perimeter of the vehicle, also referred to as the ‘cocoon’.

This protects all workers on an industrial site, on foot or in another vehicle, who may approach the ADV in stop-and-go situations.

-- BERNAMA

LDRA CELEBRATES 10 YEARS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA

Global leader in standards compliance, automated software verification, software code analysis and test tools continues to champion need for safe and secure design

BENGALURU, India, July 28 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- LDRA, the leader in standards compliance, automated software verification, software code analysis, and test tools for embedded software for 40 years, celebrates the 10-year anniversary of LDRA South East Asia (SEA) this month. In 2010, the company opened the SEA office to help local and global companies comply with international safety and security process standards across industries such as aerospace & defence, nuclear, rail and education.

Over the 10 years, LDRA SEA has continued to grow and currently serves companies headquartered in 12 different countries. With customer count continuing to multiply, LDRA SEA has become a cornerstone of LDRA’s growth.

LDRA CELEBRATES 10 YEARS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA

Hibiki, minority unitholders submit request for Extraordinary General Meeting

KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 -- Hibiki Path Advisors (Hibiki), having recently joined with over 50 fellow minority unitholders with collective ownership more than 12 per cent have submitted request to Accordia Golf Trust Management (AGTM) to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).

The EGM was requested to be held on Aug 18, according to a statement.

Hibiki believes the items to be discussed in this EGM to be critical for all unitholders to make a well-informed judgment on the proposed divestment of all of its golf courses.

The agenda for the EGM has been summarised. Since Daiwa Securities Group (DSG) is a unitholder and vested interest party to the proposed Divestment, DSG will exclude itself from voting in the EGM and abstain from voting.

In addition, the AGTM shall make the pay out of the special reserve dividends of JPY 1.2 billion by or before Aug 28. (JPY 100 = RM4.020)

All minutes of the meeting of the Independent Committee shall be disclosed to the Unitholders, and AGTM should disclose to the unitholders the fee tables to DREAM and Accordia annually since inception.

In relation to the AGTM announcement on June 29 to recommend the unitholders the divestment of all of its golf courses to the Sponsor company at an indicative consideration per unit of US$0.732, Hibiki have declared publicly to vote against the proposed divestment if the price is not revised higher. (US$1 = RM4.254)

Hibiki hopes to continue its efforts to engage with as many non-conflicted minority unitholder groups as possible in order for them to make a well-informed independent judgment on the proposed divestment.

More details at www.hibiki-path-advisors.com.

-- BERNAMA

Procter & Gamble, IOC expand Worldwide Olympic Partnership through 2028

KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 -- As the world marks one year to go until the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, Procter & Gamble (P&G) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) affirmed the company’s commitment to the Olympic and Paralympic Movements, with confirmation of its Worldwide Partnership for the next four Olympic and Paralympic Games.

P&G and the IOC are committing to a first-of-its-kind, citizenship-driven partnership to advance important work in key areas – equality and inclusion, environmental sustainability and community impact – through Los Angeles 2028.

For the first time, P&G has also secured global marketing rights to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and Paralympic Games through the IOC-IPC long-term collaboration agreement, under which the IOC oversees the IPC and Paralympic Games commercial programmes.

“As we look forward to the next decade, we recognise the opportunity and the responsibility to use our sponsorship of the Olympic Games for broader impact,” said P&G Chief Brand Officer, Marc Pritchard.

P&G will continue to support the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, as well as the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Milano-Cortina 2026, and the Olympic and Paralympic Games Los Angeles 2028.

In line with the IOC’s mission of supporting athletes and putting them at the heart of the Olympic Movement, as part of P&G’s next chapter of Olympic and Paralympic partnership, the company will launch the Athletes for Good Fund to grant support for athlete causes that are advancing important work against shared values.

Through a digital video series, The Measure of Greatness, P&G will also highlight stories of Olympic and Paralympic athletes and hopefuls from worldwide who are stepping up to take meaningful action to serve their communities in 2020.

-- BERNAMA

BitTitan unveils Voleer commercial release for centralised IT operations

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 -- Managed services automation leader, BitTitan, has announced the commercial release of Voleer, a modern IT toolbox designed to centralise and automate IT tasks for more effective management of resources, security and data governance.

With streamlined, one-click automations, Voleer enables IT teams to schedule and automate repetitive tasks, reducing tedious manual methods and boosting time management, according to a statement.

“Voleer enables IT professionals to leverage trusted, out-of-the-box tools that run in a unified, secure environment, with unparalleled efficiency that allows companies to realise value sooner,” said BitTitan Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Geeman Yip.

Voleer is fully cloud-based and requires no additional deployments or coding for its ready-to-use tools, allowing real-time reporting and alerting that improves business intelligence visualisation, empowering IT teams to better leverage data to inform business decisions.

It also allows IT to easily identify compliance and security gaps, as well as monitor cloud usage costs. Voleer further enhances security by enabling activity-based access control, which limits sprawling access to high-risk credentials.

Voleer features a growing IT toolbox of automations that deliver functionality such as Microsoft Teams Channel Copy, Targeted Security Notifications, Add User to Group Integrated with On-Premises Active Directory and Zendesk Data Warehouse.

Voleer’s out-of-the-box automation supports a range of systems, including Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure and Zendesk. IT professionals can easily create an account, with available forever free options, and search Voleer’s library for automations.

-- BERNAMA

Kanfer Shipping, CGR Arctic Marine to develop cost-saving LNG bunkering vessels

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 -- Kanfer Shipping AS (Kanfer), the Norway-based shipping company has entered into an exclusive agreement with CGR Arctic Marine (CGR), the Norwegian LNG technology company to develop cost-saving LNG bunkering vessels.

Under the licensing and development agreement, Kanfer will exclusively market CGR’s unique Liquid Methane Bunkering Vessel (LMBV) and other technologies to customers in the global LNG bunkering industry, including shipping lines, port owners, traders and fuel companies.

According to a statement, CGR will also apply its advanced technology to Kanfer’s patented Detachable Stern Vessel©, an advanced version of the Articulated Tug Barge that makes break-bulking cargoes of LNG easier, faster and more efficient.

The LMBV is a first for the industry with a plug-in hybrid power system consisting of a modular battery system in combination with pure gas generators.

It is a highly efficient solution that features a single tank and less cargo containment equipment.

This combination improves hull utilisation, reduces weight and maximises insulation surface area.

Another feature of the LMBV is the onboard multi-purpose cargo handling plant, combining cooling, reliquefication and gas recovery operations, allowing safe and pollution-free cargo handling during loading, discharge and gas freeing operations.

“We are bringing CGR’s patented technologies and Kanfer’s LNG marine expertise and capabilities under one roof. Together, we bring to our customers best-in-class designs that reduce complexity, improve operational efficiencies and maximise savings compared with existing solutions,” said Kanfer Shipping Managing Partner, Stig Anders Hagen.

-- BERNAMA

FLYWIRE HELPS EDUCATION AGENTS AND INSTITUTIONS STREAMLINE INTERNATIONAL TUITION PAYMENTS

Agent platform enhancements provide real-time visibility and elevate service levels agents can offer to students and their families


BOSTON, July 22 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flywire, a high-growth vertical payments company, today announced new enhancements to its digital payment platform to better serve education recruitment agents and institutions worldwide. As part of its comprehensive receivables solution, the platform enhancements will help agents better manage student information and streamline payment tracking while also enabling education institutions to optimize agent relationships and minimize potential fraud. 

In a related announcement, the company also reported a new strategic partnership with BOSSA (the Beijing Overseas Study Service Association), a non-profit, government-supported organization that supports member agents across China that recruit students for study abroad.

Flywire is the payment provider of choice for students and education institutions around the world. Its solution enables institutions to offer students a highly-tailored, convenient and secure online payment experience – customized by school, country, and currency – while also accelerating funds flow, easing reconciliation and streamlining operational expenses. The solution also enables institutions to create custom payment plans to provide students and families with greater flexibility.

The company already partners with hundreds of certified education agents that work on behalf of institutions to recruit international students including ACIC, AUG Study, Global Education Alliance, Global Reach, iae Global, IDP Education and KC Overseas Education.

Flywire’s enhanced agent platform connects agents, students and schools to simplify the payment process and provide real-time visibility. New enhancements include a customizable dashboard providing agents with the ability to directly send payment reminders to students. It also provides real-time visibility into the status of all student payment requests; status of all payments made to institutions including payment methods; and easy, secure access to all student payment details including refunds and download receipts. These capabilities offer important benefits for both agents and schools.

For agents, the platform:

• centralizes student information in one place to easily store, manage, import and export data
• provides access to fair-market foreign exchange rates to protect students from unnecessary costs
• delivers payments securely to education institution accounts
• enables easy delivery of payment notifications to one or multiple students
• tracks payments in real time to provide transparency     
• provides split payment functionality (one transaction, multi-payouts)    

For education institutions, the platform:

• enables receipt of payments in full and reduces unidentified and short-balance transactions
• automates the reconciliation process to save time
• secures account data to prevent vendors from acting as agents without authorization
• tracks payments in real time to provide transparency
• centralizes all relevant agent and student information in one place to streamline operations

“Flywire has set the gold standard for cross-border payments in the international education space,” said Mark Lukas, founder and managing director of iae Global. “Their ability to connect schools, agents and students throughout the entire payment process enables a trusted and seamless experience for all involved. As a result, we’re able to create stronger relationships between the students and the schools we represent.”

"Education agents play a very important role in the relationship between institutions and their international students,” said Sharon Butler, EVP of Education, Flywire. “Their ability to represent education institutions locally can make a big difference in how a school is viewed by prospective students. By enhancing our agent platform, we are helping to not only streamline the international student recruitment process, but also optimize the way agents engage with both students and schools worldwide.”

About Flywire
Flywire is a high-growth vertical payments company trusted by organizations around the world to deliver on their customers’ most important moments. Unlike other companies, Flywire is proven to solve vertical-specific payment and receivables problems for organizations that deliver high-value services. Whether in education, healthcare, travel or technology, Flywire has vertical-specific insight and technology that allows organizations to optimize the payment experience for their customers while eliminating operational challenges. To date Flywire has processed over $16 billion in total payments volume for over 2,000 clients around the world. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA, USA and has offices around the world. For more information, visit www.flywire.com. Follow Flywire on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.


Media Contacts:
for Flywire US
Tim Walsh
timw@walshgroupmarketing.com
+1 617.512.1641

for Flywire UK
CC Group
flywire@ccgroup.com

SOURCE : Flywire Corporation

SmartStream The First To Launch A Comprehensive Intraday Liquidity Stress Testing On Demand Solution

LONDON, July 21 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- SmartStream Technologies, the financial Transaction Lifecycle Management (TLM®) solutions provider, today announced the launch of its Intraday Liquidity Stress Testing module, part of the TLM Cash and Liquidity Management suite of products. Carrying out a stress test and running it can take up to eight weeks, with the new module it allows banks to run this in minutes – which is essential for refining the scenario, making real-time decisions, reporting and risk analysis.

SmartStream commissioned research from Baringa Partners, a management consultancy firm, and the report highlighted that if a bank could cut its liquidity buffer by $6bn, it may save as much as $50m per year. There is a clear need for banks to carry out stress testing to improve profitability and reduce operational effort to meet the regulatory requirements. With these considerations in mind, SmartStream developed the new module to provide stress test results immediately. The product is available as standalone or via the cloud. The pandemic and the turbulent conditions have made this type of stress testing more essential and re-enforced the value of such a solution to banks.

Nadeem Shamim, Head of Cash and Liquidity, SmartStream, states: “The research carried out by Baringa Partners in conjunction with the development of our new module has created a great deal of interest in the market, we are currently having many detailed conversations with banks where the ability of a comprehensive solution with the flexibility of testing different stress scenarios is critical. Also the current turmoil in the market has had a big impact on a bank’s liquidity – so the ability to model the potential impact of such occurrences is no longer simply a regulatory box-ticking exercise, but a matter of self-protection and even of survival for many financial institutions”.

Simon Gray, Director, Baringa Partners, says: “The research identifies that it’s no longer about meeting intraday liquidity reporting requirements, banks are now seeing value in stress testing and having the tools to carry out complex scenarios with a high degree of accuracy for making more informed decisions. In addition, the findings revealed that it has gone from being a regulatory burden to creating a stringent, active framework within which to manage liquidity risk. By simplifying the complex and time-consuming testing process, SmartStream’s solution allows banks to run a variety of stress scenarios in a short space of time, which is critical”.

Ends

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THEME SONG OF 6TH ASIAN BEACH GAMES RELEASED IN SANYA

SANYA, China, July 21, 2020 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--  

On the evening of July 19, the theme song of 6th Asian Beach Games, as well as the slogan, nicknames, emblem and theme song of volunteers, was released in Sanya, China.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the founding of the Organizing Committee and the cultural promotion program of ABG, Zheng Hai, the lyricist of the theme song, said that the song quoted the English slogan of the Games, "See ya in Sanya", highlighting international elements and extending sincere invitations to athletes and tourists from all over the world.

"The melody of the song is very consistent with Hainan's geographical features, which reminds people of the spectacular ebb and flow of the sea," said Chen Chusheng, the theme song singer.

At the same day, the slogan, nicknames, emblem and theme song of ABG's volunteers were also released. The volunteers' slogan is "Meet in ABG, Bring Love to the World", which implies that the ABG brings volunteers from all walks of life together in Sanya. It advocates the concept of "making volunteer service a fashion" and aims to make athletes and tourists from across Asia feel the enthusiasm, love and warmth of Sanya. The nicknames of volunteers are "Deer Brother" and "Deer Sister", which not only include the Hainan Eld's deer, which is the prototype of the ABG mascot "Yaya", but also incorporate the distinctive local dialect "Age" (brother) and "Amei" (sister). The nicknames are catchy and easy to spread. The volunteers' emblem, based on ABG's emblem, is designed with an additional "loving heart", which echoes the volunteers' slogan and conveys the volunteers' perception of "loving the ABG". The theme song of volunteers, entitled "Meet with You and Warm You Up", is created in the style of a lyric pop song with a view to promoting the volunteer spirit of "Dedication, Friendship, Mutual Assistance and Progress", vividly showing the demeanor of ABG's volunteers.

According to the Sixth Asian Beach Games Organizing Committee (SABGOC), the solicitation of the slogan, nicknames, emblem and theme song for the volunteers of the 6th ABG was started in November 2019, and more than 900 applications were received. These works were reviewed by experts, and the selected ones were subject to several optimizations and modifications.

Source: SABGOC

Image Attachments Links: Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=367755

Caption: The theme song of 6th Asian Beach Games was released in Sanya, China.

Intage And Trax Join Forces To Drive Digital Transformation Of Japan's Retail Industry With Breakthrough In-store Execution Solution For CPG Manufacturers

SINGAPORE & TOKYO, July 20 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Intage Inc. and Trax Ltd, a leading provider of computer vision solutions and analytics for retail, today announced an alliance to drive the digital transformation of Japan’s retail industry, starting with the rollout of a holistic in-store execution solution to help CPG manufacturers improve their return on investment on trade and merchandising activations in store.

Through the alliance, CPG manufacturers in Japan can achieve a robust and reliable measurement of in-store execution through a combination of Intage’s Product Master Database and 800-strong field force, together with Trax’s computer vision and machine learning platforms. The integrated data streams deliver unique insights on in-store execution – often the missing link for CPG manufacturers in Japan – to accurately measure shelf compliance and implement timely actions to correct and optimize shelf conditions to maximize sales.

Dror Feldheim, chief commercial officer and co-founder of Trax, said, “At Trax, our mission is to digitize the physical world of retail. Powered by Trax’s retail computer vision capabilities and Intage’s research infrastructure, our alliance delivers an advanced in-store execution solution to help CPG manufacturers better understand their brand and category performance from shelf to promotion to check-out. Our customers are able to tighten execution controls in-store and leverage competitive insights to unlock revenue opportunities at all points of sale.”

Ayumi Higaki, CEO of Intage Inc., said, “Starting with this solution, Intage intends to promote digital transformation of retail in Japan, through a data-driven approach powered by advanced technologies such as computer vision and artificial intelligence. While the retail environment is changing greatly, we have decided to take the lead to contribute to the industry’s restructuring and progress.”

According to Intage, retailers and CPG manufacturers often invest significant amounts to set up a sales floor, but poor shelf execution typically results in lost sales of up to ¥2,500 billion. “In-store is where shoppers are interacting with new products and deciding what to purchase. Back in the day, television advertising was perhaps the most effective way to introduce new products, but in the current climate, in-store shelf execution is more crucial than ever,” said Higaki.

In Japan, Intage provides CPG manufacturers with services such as Nationwide Retail Store Panel Survey and Nationwide In-store Promotion Survey, which are used for brand marketing and/or in-store promotions, as well as to understand the implementation status of in-store promotions and to measure their effectiveness.

Retailers and CPG manufacturers around the world leverage Trax’s in-store execution and retail analytics solutions and services to better manage on-shelf availability and optimize merchandising. These solutions are powered by proprietary fine-grained image recognition algorithms which convert photos of retail shelves into granular, actionable shelf and store-level insights.

About Trax

Trax Ltd is a leading provider of computer vision solutions and analytics for retail. Our computer vision, machine learning, and Internet of Things (IoT) platforms turn everyday shelf images into real-time, actionable insights that our customers leverage to optimize their in-store execution strategy and product availability. Simply put, we digitize the physical world of retail. Many of the world’s top CPG companies and retailers use our dynamic merchandising, in-store execution, market measurement, analytics and shelf monitoring solutions at scale to drive positive shopper experiences and unlock revenue opportunities at all points of sale. We began as pioneers in the retail computer vision space and we continue to lead the industry with innovation and excellence through our development of new advanced technologies and autonomous data collection methods. Trax is headquartered in Singapore with operations in over 90 markets worldwide. To learn more, visit www.traxretail.com.

About Intage Inc.

Intage Inc. is a long-time specialist in marketing, consumer panel and retail tracking research. Together with the Intage Group entities, the company harnesses its research, data collection & analysis, and system solution technologies to partner with clients in a broad range of industries, deliver strategic insights, and provide the actionable intelligence needed for their management and marketing decision-making processes in Japan, throughout Asia and around the world.

View source version on businesswire.com:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200717005170/en/

Contact

Press
Brian HIGGS
Director, Corporate Communications, Trax
brian.higgs@traxretail.com

Yuki ONODERA
Intage Inc. Customer Business Drive Business Unit Business Design Dept
connected@intage.co.jp

Note to editors: Photos available on request

Source : Trax Ltd

Intage And Trax Join Forces To Drive Digital Transformation Of Japan's Retail Industry With Breakthrough In-store Execution Solution For CPG Manufacturers

COHESION RAISES $6.5 MILLION TO ACCELERATE THE TRANSITION TO SMART BUILDINGS IN GLOBAL COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

COVID-19 demonstrates the need for greater control and flexibility over office buildings to enhance tenants’ health and safety requirements, which is now achievable with Cohesion’s platform

CHICAGO, July 17 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Cohesion, an early-stage smart building SaaS company, announced today that it has raised $6.5 million in seed funding to further invest in its platform, which helps commercial real estate operators integrate their buildings’ systems, enhance tenant experiences, and provide actionable insights. The female-led startup’s application bridges the gap between siloed tenant-facing apps and legacy building engineering systems with the goal of delivering greater operating efficiency, better tenant experiences, and addressing real-time health and safety needs of all building occupants.

Led by Hyde Park Angels (HPA), the seed round also includes investments from Singapore-based multi-national real estate group, Frasers Property Group; Raj Gupta, Executive Chairman of ESD Global; Ken Griffin, Citadel founder and CEO; Michael Sacks, GCM Grosvenor CEO and chairman; global proprietary trading and investment firm CMT. As part of the investment, Steve Koch, the former Global Chair of M&A at Credit Suisse and HPA member, is joining Cohesion’s board of directors.

“COVID-19 has presented the commercial real estate industry with never-before-experienced pressure, forcing adaptation to reprioritized tenant needs of health and safety. Cohesion’s technology makes it much easier for owners and operators to meet this moment by equipping them with an all-in-one platform that predicts and adapts to their building’s environment and tenants’ needs,” said Thru Shivakumar, Cohesion CEO and Co-Founder. “With this funding in place, Cohesion will continue advancing building intelligence capabilities to unlock an entirely new class of buildings that are more flexible, resilient, and data-enabled,” added Steve Koch.

In May 2020, as many businesses began developing office reopening plans, Cohesion conducted its inaugural "Voice of the Employee" survey to gauge employees’ priorities as they return to work. The findings, which incorporated responses from over 1,000 tenants, showed that after working remotely, most employees want to go back to the office when it’s safe to return, and only 8% of respondents want to permanently work from home. Making it possible for employees to safely return to work requires the implementation of smart building technology.

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Tricor Welcomes New Laws That Amplify Hong Kong's Role As Leading Asian Fund Hub

HONG KONG, July 16 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Tricor Group (Tricor) congratulates the Hong Kong Government for boosting the city’s role as a major Asian private equity hub by introducing the long-awaited Limited Partnership Fund Bill (LPF regime) which should become legislation on August 31.

From Tricor’s perspective, when compared with other offshore and overseas jurisdictions, Hong Kong SAR with the new LPF regime will be able to attract more private funds and family offices and fast-track the development of its asset management industry.

“Together with the already imposed tax exemptions for Hong Kong funds, this new legislation is a major step towards cementing Hong Kong’s position as the private equity center in Asia, the soon to be favored domicile and location for fund managers,” said Gary Tok, Group Chief Commercial Officer, Tricor Group.

Hong Kong SAR has always been viewed as the regional headquarters by most Asian-focused funds. Their investment teams are often based in Hong Kong, but the funds have typically been established offshore, particularly in the Cayman Islands because of its attractive tax neutral investment platform and progressive legislative and regulatory framework.

As a result of the LPF regime, Hong Kong is continuing its emergence as a highly competitive and practical option for Asian-based and locally-based asset managers and family offices, as well as fund managers wanting to invest in China. This allows Hong Kong SAR to compete with the likes of the Cayman Islands and Singapore while offering a closer proximity to the mainland, its investors and abundant investment opportunities.

“At Tricor we applaud the Hong Kong government’s range of initiatives that raise Hong Kong’s competitiveness in the private equity arena with the legal and tax frameworks to facilitate fully onshore funds. We look forward to supporting our clients under this new regulatory framework,” said Joe Wan, CEO, Tricor Hong Kong.

For Hong Kong fund managers, it helps too that there is no shortage of high-quality law firms in Hong Kong to offer valuable advice to these fund managers, all in the same city and same time zone.

Tricor Group has been setting up and structuring funds for investment and investors in Asia, the Caribbean and Europe. In Hong Kong and Singapore these services are provided to private equity, real estate and alternative assets funds. Tricor IAG, our fund administrator currently has assets under administration of over USD10 billion, the vast majority of which are invested in the region.

About Tricor Group

Tricor Group (Tricor) is the leading business expansion specialist in Asia, with global knowledge and local expertise in business, corporate, investor, human resources & payroll, and corporate trust & debt services. Tricor provides the building blocks for, and catalyzes every stage of clients’ business growth, from incorporation to IPO. Tricor has had a rapid expansion through organic growth and development as well as partnerships, mergers and acquisitions. The Group today has over 50,000 clients globally (including 20,000 clients in Mainland China), a staff strength of over 2,600 and a network of offices in 47 cities across 21 countries / territories. Our client portfolio includes over 1,500 companies listed in Hong Kong SAR and Mainland China, ~500 companies listed in Singapore and Malaysia, and more than 40% of the Fortune Global 500 companies, as well as a significant share of multinationals and private enterprises operating across international markets. In March 2017, the Permira Funds became the controlling shareholder of the Tricor Group, alongside management.

Visit: www.tricorglobal.com

About Tricor IAG

Tricor IAG, representing Tricor IAG Fund Administration (Hong Kong) Limited and Tricor IAG Fund Administration (Singapore) Pte Limited, provides fund administration services to private equity, real estate and alternative assets funds in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Tricor IAG entities are joint ventures of Tricor Group ("Tricor"), the leading business expansion specialist in Asia, and International Administration Group ("IAG"), a well-established fund administration services group with head office in Guernsey, Channel Islands. Tricor is well-positioned to unlock the potential of your business in Asia and beyond, and help your company stay one step ahead of today’s diverse and fast evolving regulatory environment.

Visit: https://www.tricorglobal.com/services/business/fund-administration/

View source version on businesswire.com:
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Contact

For more information, please contact:
HONG KONG SAR (GROUP OFFICE)
Sunshine Farzan
Tricor Services Limited
Group Head of Marketing & Communications
Tel: +852 2980 1261
Email: Sunshine.Farzan@hk.tricorglobal.com

Source : Tricor Group


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ZYNGA APPOINTS NOEL WATSON TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

^{Zynga Appoints Noel Watson to Board of Directors (Photo: Business Wire)}


SAN FRANCISCO, July 17 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Zynga Inc. (Nasdaq:ZNGA), a global leader in interactive entertainment, today announced that Noel Watson, Chief Financial Officer at TrueCar Inc., joined the company's Board as an independent director. A skilled executive with a wealth of experience in building digital services and leading teams, Noel Watson becomes the ninth member of Zynga's Board of Directors.

“Noel brings to Zynga more than 20 years of successful financial and operating leadership,” said Frank Gibeau, Chief Executive Officer at Zynga. “His extensive experience with high growth digital services and strong track record with mergers and acquisitions will be powerful additions to our company. We are excited to welcome Noel to Zynga’s Board of Directors and Audit Committee.”

Mr. Watson joined TrueCar Inc., a leading automotive digital marketplace focused on creating the most innovative and efficient experience for car buyers, in 2019 as the company’s CFO, leading financial operations including accounting and investor relations. Prior to TrueCar, Mr. Watson held the position of Chief Accounting Officer at TripAdvisor Inc., the world’s largest travel platform with over 400 million unique monthly site visitors. He began his career as a certified public accountant at Arthur Andersen LLP and subsequently held management positions at Boston based technology firms ArrAy Inc. and Way Systems prior to joining TripAdvisor in 2006. Mr. Watson holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Bryant University.

“I am excited to be joining Zynga’s Board of Directors during this dynamic period of growth for the company in its mission to connect the world through games,” said Noel Watson. “With the increasing penetration and use of mobile phones, and the more than 2.5 billion people globally playing games by the end of 2020, Zynga is incredibly well positioned to be a force in digital entertainment, built around iconic brands and experiences that people love.”

“After months of conversation, I could not be more pleased that Noel Watson is joining Zynga’s Board of Directors,” said Ellen Siminoff, Director and Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee at Zynga. “With more growth ahead for Zynga, Noel’s experience and perspective will be instrumental in our continued success. Noel brings with him a proven ability to lead and execute, and his point of view will be invaluable for our company.”

Zynga's distinguished Board members include Frank Gibeau, Regina Dugan, William "Bing" Gordon, Louis Lavigne Jr., Carol Mills, Mark Pincus, Janice Roberts, and Ellen Siminoff. On Zynga's Board, Mr. Watson will serve on the Audit Committee alongside members Louis Lavigne, Jr., Carol Mills, and Ellen Siminoff.

Editor’s Note:

Key art and photography assets available for use = https://bit.ly/ZyngaBODAnnouncement 

About Zynga Inc.

Zynga is a global leader in interactive entertainment with a mission to connect the world through games. To date, more than one billion people have played Zynga’s franchises including CSR Racing^TM, Empires & Puzzles^TM, Merge Dragons!^TM, Merge Magic!^TM, Toon Blast™, Toy Blast™, and Words With Friends^TM. Zynga’s games are available in more than 150 countries and are playable across social platforms and mobile devices worldwide. Founded in 2007, the company is headquartered in San Francisco with locations in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, India, Turkey and Finland. For more information, visit www.zynga.com or follow Zynga on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or the Zynga blog.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding our expectations related to growth in Zynga’s business and the mobile game industry. Forward-looking statements often include words such as “next,” “intend,” “will,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “ahead,” “expect,” and statements in the future tense are generally forward-looking. The achievement or success of the matters covered by such forward-looking statements involves significant risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Undue reliance should not be placed on such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date hereof. We assume no obligation to update such statements. More information about these risks, uncertainties, and assumptions are or will be described in greater detail in our public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), copies of which may be obtained by visiting our Investor Relations website at http://investor.zynga.com or the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/52248602/en 

Contact

Zynga Investor Relations:
Rebecca Lau
Investors@zynga.com

Zynga Press:
Sarah Ross
Sarah@zynga.com

Source : Zynga Inc.