Ni Hsin Inks Strategic Collaboration with SIRIM

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Ni Hsin EV Tech Sdn. Bhd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Main Market-listed Ni Hsin Group Berhad (formerly known as Ni Hsin Resources Berhad (Bursa: NIHSIN, 7215)), today signed a Strategic Collaboration with SIRIM Berhad to promote co-operation between the Parties in the following areas:
YBrs. Tuan Mohd Azanuddin bin Salleh, Senior Vice President, SIRIM Industrial Research, SIRIM Berhad; YBhg. Dato' Indera Dr. Ahmad Sabirin bin Arshad, FASc, President and Group Chief Executive Officer, SIRIM Berhad; Sofiyan Yahya, Chairman of Ni Hsin Group; Mr. Steven Khoo Chee Kong, Managing Director of NH EV TECH; Rizvi Abdul Halim, Executive Director of Ni Hsin EV Tech [L-R]


(a) setting up of a Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Plant in Malaysia through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) funding model;
(b) providing an eco-system for a circular economy model in mitigating the impact on the environment as a result of Lithium-Ion Battery being processed illegally in Malaysia;
(c) potentially setting up a Lithium-Ion Battery manufacturing plant in Malaysia; and
(d) introducing a Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling policy working with the Government of Malaysia. (collectively the "Project")

Khoo Chee Kong, Managing Director of NH EV TECH, said: "This Strategic Collaboration with SIRIM is an extension of our quest for greater participation in the green economy. Having successfully launched our EV motorcycles last month we are looking forward to unlocking another piece of the environmental puzzle. As the world has grown to love and depend on the power and convenience brought by lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), their manufacturing and disposal have increasingly become subjects of political and environmental concerns. Most discarded LIBs eventually are landfilled or stockpiled, contaminating the land while wasting energy and non-renewable natural resources. If not recycled and reused, LIBs will exert massive environmental impacts and accelerate the depletion of mineral reserves. It's not only environmental pollution that is a problem. During the end-of-life stage of LIBs, poor handling and disposal could increase the risk of fire or poisoning. In the coming years, disposing of huge numbers of batteries from electric vehicles is going to be the real challenge. There is now a need for qualified e-waste recyclers that can handle and recycle LIBs safely and responsibly."

"The setting up of a Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Plant is the right step in furthering Ni Hsin's green mission in support of the government's commitment towards a more sustainable, resilient and inclusive development in line with the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). The collaboration also aims to create an eco-system for a circular economy model in mitigating the impact on the environment and to spearhead the formation of a Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling policy working with the Government of Malaysia. The current LIB recycling market is estimated to be worth approximately $1.7 billion and is expected to increase significantly over the next ten years. In the ASEAN region there is only one such recycling facility in Singapore with a recycling capacity of 14 tonnes of Lithium-Ion batteries per day. Being one of the first movers in this region makes Ni Hsin more attractive to investors who are beginning to consider sustainability factors in their investment decision-making process."

"We are honoured to work with SIRIM in this green Project who, with their vast knowledge and innovative technical expertise, will be a valuable partner ensuring the success of this green project." SIRIM President and Group Chief Executive Officer, Dato' Indera Dr Ahmad Sabirin Arshad said, "Under the green technology master plan 2030 of Malaysia, several strategies were outlined to create a low-carbon and resource efficient economy, thus, in complementing this master plan, SIRIM will be embarking on various projects towards enhancing and promoting sustainability in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS)."

"SIRIM is ever ready to work with any parties who are keen to explore any form of recycling business where we can contribute in terms of the latest technologies towards building our local recycling capabilities for e-waste", said Dato' Indera Dr Ahmad Sabirin Arshad.

The SIRIM-Ni Hsin Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Pilot Plant will be fully operational in 2023 with annual recycling capacity of 550 tonnes of lithium-ion batteries. For a start, the output will be sold to lithium-ion batteries manufacturers in the form of black mass. "Under this collaboration both companies will focus on the recovery of precious metals such as lithium and cobalt in 2024 and embark on lithium-ion battery manufacturing 2025, when the volume by processing more lithium-ion batteries from other nations" he added.

Ni Hsin Group Berhad: NIHSIN [Bursa: 7215] [RIC: NHSN:KL] [BB: NHR:MK], http://www.ni-hsin.com/

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Turkish craftsmanship sets the benchmark for design and quality at India International Furniture Fair

Spanning over 3 days, the India International Furniture Fair effectively won over its visitors. The fourth edition of the IIFF, which took place from December 2–4, welcomed more than 4000 attendees to the International Expo Center in Noida.

Noida, India, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – The fourth edition of the India International Furniture Fair (IIFF), organized by EFEEXIM, managed by Trescon, supported by the Association of Furniture Manufacturers & Traders (AFMT), and association partners KreateCube & New Timber Market Dealers Association (Regd), set the stage for international brands to enter the Indian market.

The three-day exclusive furniture exhibition provided a wonderful chance for national brands to gain global exposure while also presenting premium Turkish brands to the Indian market.

Ercan Guzel, CEO, Modelin and Chairperson of Antakya Furniture, shares his views on the Indian furnishing market, “There are a total of 40 members in this group. The Antakya association exports furniture all over the world. In India, their products are designed first and foremost for the local market. Visitors praised Modelin’s design and products today. People come to India’s open market to buy products for their homes, not for business-to-business transactions. We expect more products to be exported to India as a group, as a company and as individuals from this fair, and we also hope to expand the Turkish furniture industry in the Indian market.”

The IIFF proved not just the biggest and most-prestigious furniture trade fair in India, but also the most-awaited one. Visitors were offered a unique chance to discover more than 50 international-standard brands all under one roof. Additionally, visitors were introduced to recently released products and innovations in the furniture industry.

Oguz Gurdamar, Chairman of EFEEXIM FZE, on his association with Trescon, “This has been a very long journey for us in the Indian market. We have been on this journey since 2015. We conducted three editions after EFEEXIM and Trescon staged the inaugural event in Mumbai in 2017. After that, we noticed that we had a lot of visitors from Delhi, so we made the decision to come to Delhi and showcase our innovations. The initial phase in Delhi has been wonderful. Markets have shown appreciation, and from what I can tell, our people are thrilled to be in this position right now.”

IIFF also played a major role in laying the foundation and developing trade ties between Turkey and India. By connecting the reputable and top-tier furniture producers in Turkey with the quickly expanding market in India. Additionally, Turkey’s tourism and hospitality industries are projected to grow because of this surge in Indian furniture demand.

“IIFF helped the Indian consumer receive market previews from veterans in their respective fields. It also provided a great platform to understand the changing dynamics of the market and how best one can capitalize on these dynamics to their benefit. IIFF helped provide a great venue to evaluate potential business prospects and collaborations between two thriving nations. We would like to thank all our Partners & Supporting Associations for making this event a reality and helping us bridge the gap between multiple countries for their furniture business,” Mithun Shetty, CEO, Trescon.

The event was supported by:

Some of the biggest furniture manufacturers, dealers, importers, exporters, and architects from Turkey & India graced the IIFF arena. They included:

About Trescon:

Trescon is a global business events and consulting firm specialized in producing highly focused B2B events that connect businesses with opportunities through conferences, road shows, expos, investor connect and consulting services.

For more information visit: https://iiffglobal.com/

For further details about the announcement, please contact:

Nupur Aswani,
Head – Media, PR, and Corporate Communications, Trescon
media@tresconglobal.com



Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

HKTDC Export Index 4Q22: Hong Kong exports expected to grow 5% in 2023

HONG KONG, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) projects that Hong Kong's exports will grow 5% next year – a recovery from the 6% decline this year. HKTDC Director of Research Irina Fan said: "Hong Kong's exports will gradually regain growth momentum amid the receding pandemic, easing of COVID-19 restrictions and resumption of cross-border land transportation."
HKTDC Director of Research Irina Fan (R) and Assistant Principal Economist (Greater China) Alice Tsang announced the HKTDC Export Index for the fourth quarter of 2022 and export forecast for 2023 at a press conference today (15 December)

HKTDC Director of Research Irina Fan

HKTDC Assistant Principal Economist (Greater China) Alice Tsang


The latest HKTDC Export Index survey shows that significantly more exporters indicated businesses were no longer suffering from pandemic-related problems (up 10.6 percentage points from the previous quarter to 32.7%), with progress made towards resolving the challenge of high transportation costs and logistics bottlenecks.

Yet, more respondents said buyers haggled over prices (25.7%, up 9.3 percentage points) and reduced order sizes (40.1%, up 5.0 percentage points). Most respondents said they expected sales next year to decrease (49.4%) or remain on a par with sales this year (28.3%). "Lingering geopolitics, coupled with the risk of global stagflation, has dampened consumer sentiment and business confidence," Ms Fan explained.

Recessions risks

The risks of an economic slowdown or recession in major markets (36.2%) and difficulties in cross-border travel (21.1%) have become exporters' key concerns. In response, most said they would develop new products (50.0%), stabilise cash flow (34.6%) and cut costs (30.5%) in the coming year. Other business strategies to be adopted included lowering minimum order quantities, increasing the use of e-commerce for sales and purchases as well as enhancing marketing, promotional or business matching activities.

"High inflation and high interest rates will weaken purchasing power and consumers' desire in the European and American markets. Meanwhile, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has become the bright spot for the city's exports. Local exporters should also pay more attention to the opportunities in the Mainland China market. Product-wise, toys and timepieces related to smart and intellectual property (IP) will have higher chance," Ms Fan said.

Sentiment edges down

The HKTDC interviewed some 500 Hong Kong exporters in mid-November for the survey to gauge business confidence about near-term export prospects. Respondents come from six major industries – clothing, electronics, jewellery, machinery, timepieces and toys. Readings above 50 indicate a positive sentiment, while below 50 is negative.

The HKTDC Export Index dropped 3.1 points from the previous quarter to 29.7. "The uncertainties led by slowing global demand has affected exporters' sentiments," said HKTDC Assistant Principal Economist (Greater China) Alice Tsang.

Machinery, watches outperform

Ms Tsang added that machinery (38.3, up 3.4 points) was the most upbeat sector, followed by timepieces (36.8, up 3.0 points), while jewellery recorded a sharp fall of 13.4 points to 30.8. Other sectors such as toys (28.9, down 8.1 points) and fashion (23.8, down 7.4 points), also dropped significantly.

It is worth nothing that all major markets recorded declines. Exporters have more confidence in Asian countries, with Japan topping the table at 47.2, followed by Mainland China (44.4) and the ASEAN bloc (43.5). They, however, remained less optimistic about the EU (40.4) and the US (40.2) markets, as persistent inflationary pressures and the likelihood of recession were set to hamper demand.

Growth in Asia

In the first 10 months of 2022, Hong Kong's total exports fell 4.4% over the same period last year. This was mainly due to pandemic disruption on cross-border trade flows between Mainland China and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the city's exports to key major Asian markets saw double-digit growth, as the intra-regional supply chain expanded. For instance, Hong Kong's exports to the ASEAN bloc increased 12.6% year-on-year, while they surged 15.0% and 13.5% to Taiwan and Korea, respectively.

However, Hong Kong's exports to the US showed no growth and shipments to the EU fell 2.9% during the same period, as aggressive central bank monetary tightening, high energy and food inflation as well as the lingering Russia-Ukraine conflict dampened consumer and business sentiment.

New products, new opportunities

Looking ahead, it is expected that toys exports will benefit from new 3D live-action games, and other peripheral products derived from film, TV and video games. Household electrical appliance exports will also pick up next year, as many restaurants, hotels and offices resume normal operations.

New products, such as robot vacuum cleaners and sound-activated light switches, also appeal to consumers. Moreover, smartwatches with more advanced health and wellness functions, such as electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor and blood oxygen readouts are becoming more popular.

To view our press releases in Chinese, please visit http://mediaroom.hktdc.com/tc

References
– HKTDC Research website: http://research.hktdc.com/
– HKTDC Export Index 4Q22: Local Exporter Confidence Falters in Face of Global Economic Slowdown https://bit.ly/3FNwCIz
– Covid Legacy and Global Economic Downturn Impact Hong Kong's 2023 Export Outlook https://bit.ly/3FOh7QH
– Photo download: https://bit.ly/3FOi7nI

About HKTDC

The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 to promote, assist and develop Hong Kong's trade. With 50 offices globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a two-way global investment and business hub. The HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to create business opportunities for companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the mainland and international markets. The HKTDC also provides up-to-date market insights and product information via research reports and digital news channels. For more information, please visit: www.hktdc.com/aboutus. Follow us on Twitter @hktdc and LinkedIn.

Media enquiries
Please contact the HKTDC's Communication and Public Affairs Department:
Beatrice Lam, Tel: +852 2584 4049, Email: beatrice.hy.lam@hktdc.org

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

JP Morgan, Citi, BNP Paribas, Barclays, and Lloyds Banking Group make new strategic investment in operational risk management firm Acin

LONDON, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Acin, the global operational risk control data network, today announced it has closed $24 million in Series B funding from a strategic consortium of industry-leading banks, comprised of JP Morgan, Citi, BNP Paribas, Barclays, and Lloyds Banking Group.

The funding round was also supported by existing investors Notion Capital, Talis Capital and Fitch Ventures, the equity investment arm of Fitch Group.

This funding will enable further strategic product development in partnership with investing banks and existing clients. Additionally, it will enable Acin to expand and accelerate into new areas across the financial services industry.

Acin's platform empowers financial institutions to digitise their operational and non-financial risk analysis, using ground breaking data analytic capabilities. Acin has established a network that calibrates data and facilitates the sharing of best practice between firms, underpinned by a standardised library of risks and controls. The results revolutionise the understanding and management of firms' operational and non-financial risk positions accelerating their journey to become safer and more efficient. Minimising operational risk capital is a shared industry ambition and Acin's solution is a key building block.

Click on, or paste the following link into your web browser, to view the associated PDF document.
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7475J_1-2022-12-14.pdf

This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

ESG reporting: Hang Seng companies have transparency shortcomings

HONG KONG, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Companies in the Hang Seng Index rank in the midrange internationally in terms of the quality of their ESG reporting. This is the finding of the Global ESG Monitor 2022 (GEM), Regional Report Hong Kong/China (https://globalesgmonitor.com/download-report/), published today. The GEM is considered an international leader in analysing the non-financial reporting of leading companies in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. According to the latest GEM study, the companies listed in the Hang Seng Index score an average of 57 points out of a maximum possible 100 points for the transparency of their non-financial reports. This result places the Hang Seng Index at the lower end of the midrange among the total of ten international indices from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia that were examined as part of the GEM, and ranks just above the level of S&P Asia (56 points) and Australia's ASX50 (53 points).

At the top of the index league are three companies – sports equipment supplier Anta Sports Products (02020.HK), financial services provider Hang Seng Bank (00011.HK) and Internet services provider and software developer Tencent Holdings (00700.HK) – on a score of 77. Sands China (01928.HK) and HSBC Holdings (00005.HK) rank the 4th and 5th among the blue chips with 75 and 74 points respectively. Other companies among the top ten include Lenovo Group (00992.HK), Power Assets (00006.HK), Henderson Land Development (00012.HK), China Mobile (Hong Kong) (00941.HK) and Hang Lung Properties (00101.HK).

With a rate of 97 percent, a generally high level of willingness exists among Hang Seng Index companies to base their non-financial reporting on a standard international framework. In a global comparison, however, they tend to be more focused with an average of 6.7 referenced frameworks and standards. This is also reflected, among other things, in the length of the reports, which rank among the most concise of the ten indices examined. "As you go through the Hang Seng data, you then notice that this focus is not always an advantage," comments Ariane Hofstetter, co-founder and Head of Research and Data Science at GEM. "In many cases, there's a lack of important details that would lead to better comprehensibility, reliability and comparability of the data."

Contextual information such as company size, number of employees and product and service portfolio is comparatively well established in non-financial reporting. Four out of five companies surveyed (81 percent) also describe the environmental parameters in which they operate. However, Hang Seng companies are less likely to address socioeconomic or political conditions (75 percent and 54 percent respectively). And only one-third (32 percent) from this group report on their value chains. "Greater sustainability nevertheless also requires close collaboration along the entire supply chain. How well Hang Seng companies achieve this undertaking remains in part an open question. Because here, too, there's a lack of information that enables the information to be classified," notes Michael Diegelmann, co-founder of GEM. "Although 83 percent of the reports contain descriptions of supply chains, once again there's a lack of detail to help rank the risks associated with the supply chain." For example, slightly less than a third of the companies provide information on the type of suppliers they do business with, and just under half state the estimated number of suppliers along the supply chain.

The relevant topics of Environment, Social and Governance are covered by a majority of Hang Seng companies in their non-financial reports. Around a third, for example, say they are already climate-neutral. A further 44 percent aim to achieve this objective in the future. In contrast to this statement, however, only three-quarters of companies identify their main sources of emissions in their reports and outline the biggest challenges they face in terms of climate-related emissions.

In the area of social issues, the topic of employee and human rights is not one of the most present in Hang Seng reporting. For example, 82 percent fail to state the extent to which specific incidents of discrimination and harassment have occurred. In contrast, the reports reflect more transparency on the subject of health and safety, where 89 percent of companies state their position – even though only seven out of ten companies report more specifically on "the number and rate of fatalities due to work-related injuries" and only a quarter provide information on "the number and rate of work-related injuries with serious consequences".

When it comes to governance, reporting by Hang Seng companies tends to focus more on structures and less on the functioning of the supervisory board. Around seven out of ten companies report how they ensure or promote their supervisory boards' collective knowledge about financial and non-financial issues and decisions. Only just under two-thirds of the companies (64 percent) report on the supervisory board's role when it comes to assessing environmental and social risk management. The scores are particularly low in connection with critical concerns and issues reported to the supervisory board. Here, only a quarter of the companies provide information, with only four percent then being specific and outlining the total number of critical concerns that were communicated to the supervisory board.

"One reason many reports lack detail and transparency is that they are prepared according to the HKEX ESG reporting guidelines," is Diegelmann's assessment. "This is where it then becomes noticeable that these guidelines have lower minimum requirements and don't go into much depth, especially compared to the Global Reporting Initiative requirements."

Among Hang Seng Index companies, it is also striking that there is little willingness to submit the non-financial report to an auditor. Only just under one-third of issuers (32 percent) issue a corresponding audit engagement. It is striking that in 70 percent of the cases no information was provided on the depth of the audit and only 16 percent of the reports were audited with "reasonable assurance".

"Hang Seng companies are generally convinced that their development towards greater sustainability must be accompanied by appropriate reporting," is the conclusion of Joanne Chan, Regional Partner Hong Kong and Managing Director at LBS Communications Consulting Limited. "However, an enormous amount of work will be required for Hang Seng companies to ensure that their reports can contribute to sustainable change through transparency."

Full report : https://globalesgmonitor.com/download-report-form/

For more information on the rating criteria and details of the report, please visit https://lbs-comm.com/global-esg-monitor-2022-report-scorings-is-out-now-two-hong-kong-companies-were-ranked-top-ten/

About the Global ESG Monitor (GEM)
The Global ESG Monitor (GEM) is a unique research initiative to examine transparency in non-financial reporting of the largest companies in the world. The GEM monitors, analyzes and reports on the transparency of non-financial ESG reporting using the GEM ASSAYTM, a proprietary research tool adapted annually in response to evolving conditions and developments. The operationalization of transparency underlying the GEM ASSAYTM is based on the relevant guidelines of Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), ISO Standard 26000, World Economic Forum (WEF) and Accountability.

If you have any media enquiries, please contact LBS Communications Consultants Limited.
www.lbs-forum.com
Joanne Chan Tel : (852)3679 3671 Email : jchan@lbs-comm.com


Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Legend Capital Portfolio Company Bespin Global Completes USD100m Series D Financing

HONG KONG, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Legend Capital Portfolio Company Bespin Global, a Korea-headquartered cloud services company, has recently completed its Series D round financing of USD100 million, which will be used mostly for acquisitions.


Concurrent with the investment, the investor, e& Enterprise, a leading digital services provider in UAE (formerly Etisalat Digital), and Bespin Global will form a joint venture that will serve customers in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan.

John HanJoo Lee, CEO and co-founder of Bespin Global said, "By combining forces with e& enterprise in the METAP region, we are bringing much needed cloud managed services to the region where cloud adoption is about to explode. e& enterprise has deep customer relationships and the trust of its customers and Bespin Global has the deep cloud management capabilities. Together, we can accelerate cloud adoption in the region. Additionally, we welcome e& as our shareholder. It's a clear validation of our track record as a trusted cloud managed services provider on the global stage."

Bespin Global helps its customers in their digital transformation by providing cloud migration, cloud management and related SaaS offerings. It is the first multi-cloud managed service provider in East Asia with partnerships with Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, Aliyun, Tencent Cloud, and Naver Cloud.

The company has offices in 9 countries including Korea, China, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, the US, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. It has over 1,700 customers which range from large enterprises to fast growing startups.

Legend Capital led Bespin Global's Series A financing in 2017, and continued to invest in the company's Series B financing in 2019. As an early investor, Legend Capital has provided support and help to Bespin Global in global cooperation, enterprise management and subsequent financing, to promote Bespin Global's development.

In 2020, Legend Capital introduced Serverworks, a leading AWS Cloud integrator in Japan, to Bespin Global. The two companies established a joint venture in September 2021, entering the Japanese market officially.

John HanJoo Lee, CEO and co-founder of Bespin Global said, "It was Legend Capital that first introduced us to the UAE investors that led to the successful funding round with e&. Many venture capital firms talk about adding value, but only a few actually do. Legend Capital continues to add value beyond just capital. We are so lucky to have such a great partner as our investor."

About Legend Capital

Founded in 2001, Legend Capital is a leading VC&PE investor focusing on the early-stage and growth-stage opportunities in China, with offices across Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, and Seoul, Korea.

It currently manages USD and RMB funds of over US$10 billion in commitments, and has invested in around 600 companies, covering technology, healthcare, consumer, enterprise service and intelligent manufacturing sectors. Rooted in China, Legend Capital participated in the rise of many world-leading companies by solid investment coverage and systematic post-investment value-add. Over the years, Legend Capital has also become a widely recognized name in bridging key resources in China and overseas through cross-border activities, and a valuable partner to Chinese and overseas investors.

Legend Capital values long-term sustainable investment and incorporates ESG into its long-term development strategy. As a UNPRI signatory since November 2019, Legend Capital is among the first group of top VC/PE firms in China to join the initiative.

For more information, please visit www.legendcapital.com.cn/index_en.aspx and follow us on LinkedIn @Legend Capital (https://www.linkedin.com/company/legend-capital).


Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Fight Zone Opens Inaugural Performance Centre at Suntec City

SINGAPORE, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Fight Zone, a born-in-Singapore fitness brand today announced the opening of its first franchised outlet at Suntec City. Located in the heart of Singapore's business district, the outlet will also be the first among its outlets to focus on physical transformation of clients and muaythai, moving away from just providing high-intensity training.



The Fight Zone Performance Centre will be the first of six franchised Fight Zone fitness centres which will open all around Singapore in 2023 as the brand aggressively expands its presence locally.

Apart from personal training with authentic muaythai, there will also be specialised kettlebell classes and Suples Bulgarian Bag strength and conditioning classes with the sole aim of helping members undergo their fitness and transformation programmes.

Said Sasidharan Unnithan, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Fight Zone, "We have come a long way since opening the first Fight Zone outlet five years ago. While the pandemic set our plans back for a while, we are now back on track to continue growing Fight Zone as a brand which helps people transform their lives."

"While the last two years have been somewhat difficult for the fitness industry brought about by the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, we are proud to have been able to come out of it successfully and are now poised for growth. Our next step for Fight Zone would be to take the brand regional."

Added Hsien Naidu, CEO of Top Franchise Asia, "Fight Zone is a growing brand which shows a great deal of potential not just in Singapore, but in the region. With citizens of the region experiencing increased standards of living and better quality of life, it is inevitable that many will start investing in fitness as a means of improving their mental and physical wellbeing."

Fight Zone opened its first outlet in Suntec City in 2017 and since then, have added two more outlets at Velocity at Novena and AMK Hub at Ang Mo Kio. The newly opened Fight Zone Performance Centre with its muaythai focus will also help develop the popularity of muaythai as a sport.

Said President of the Singapore Muaythai Federation Clement Ong, "With more Fight Zone outlets, this will provide more venues for the learning, development and promotion of Muaythai as a sport."

Members of the public can sign up as members of the all-new Fight Zone Performance Centre here ( https://www.fightzonesg.com/book-a-trial/ ). Potential business owners looking to start their own Fight Zone franchise outlets can connect with the team here ( https://www.fightzonesg.com/contact/ ).

About Fight Zone

Fight Zone was first conceptualised in 2017 and began with its first fitness outlet in Suntec City. The brainchild of CEO and Founder Sasidharan Unnithan, it was conceptualised with the objective of giving working professionals and fitness buffs an innovative way of keeping fit without taking too much of their daily time. Fight Zone uses various techniques and fitness forms to keep enthusiasts and members engaged throughout their workout. https://www.fightzonesg.com/

Media Contact:
hello@swstrategies.org

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Data Shows 50% of New Trials Have Sites in Asia Pacific

SYDNEY, AU, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Novotech, the Asia Pacific centered biotech specialist CRO said the latest industry research publication by GlobalData and Novotech found almost 50% of new trials had sites in Asia Pacific.


According to the new publication titled "State of the Global Biotech Landscape: Where the Opportunities Lie", demand for Asia Pacific trial sites is strong with almost half of the more than 27,000 clinical trials initiated in 2021 having sites in Asia Pacific. The data shows almost 12,900 of the new trials had sites in Asia Pacific.

Download the report here https://novotech-cro.com/whitepapers/state-global-biotech-landscape-where-opportunities-lie

The report also noted that the Asia Pacific region, which has more than 6,772 trial sites each with access to an average of 2,136 million people, has considerable underutilized capacity presenting an opportunity for growth in multinational trials in the region.

In addition, analysis of trial growth trends found that Asia Pacific has also seen high phase-level growth over the 5-year analysis period to 2022.
– Phases I and II were dominated by Asia Pacific, which served as a trial location in 57% and 49% of trials, respectively.
– US and EU remained stable at approximately 20% at phases I through III.
– RoW representation is low in phases I and II but on par with the US and EU in phase III.

Novotech this month was awarded the Frost & Sullivan Company of the Year Award 2022 for Best Practices in the Asia-Pacific contract research organization industry. Novotech has been a recipient of the Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Best Practices awards since 2006. Frost & Sullivan identifies companies that consistently develop growth strategies based on a visionary understanding of the future, and effectively address new challenges and opportunities.

Frost & Sullivan said: "Our approach involves the deployment of best practices and strategic analytics across a value chain. Against this backdrop, Frost & Sullivan recognizes Novotech for its valuable achievement. Novotech addresses the global drug development market's unmet needs with a strong leadership focus that incorporates client-centric strategies with best-practice implementation. From feasibility assessments to regulatory submission support, data management, medical monitoring, and project management, the company provides a 360-degree approach to drug development for its biotech clients."

In response to the Company of the Year Award announcement, Novotech CEO Dr. John Moller said this award is a credit to our entire global team which has decades of biotech drug development experience. "Our global clients benefit from access to our expert teams in Asia Pacific, which is the fastest-growing clinical trial region, due to its vast patient populations and sophisticated medical research infrastructure. Our consistent investment in advanced training and technology systems combine to deliver a specialist full-service biotech CRO solution."

Novotech also recently produced a new publication for biotechs considering China for their clinical research, and the relevant processes required for global regulatory approvals. The report details regulatory requirements for biotechs including NDA and IND processes as well as ex-US research guidance for a successful US FDA approval pathway. Novotech provides the relevant regulatory knowledge and drug development pathways specifically designed to support the US FDA approval process, avoiding delays and additional costs.

Download whitepaper here https://novotech-cro.com/whitepapers/china-biotech-landscape-opportunities-china-and-path-usfda-approval

Novotech has also recently been benchmarked as a top 10 CRO among the world's leading CROs, is a finalist in the prestigious Scrip awards, and has just been awarded the Gene & Cell Therapy Excellence Award. In Asia Pacific Novotech has more than 50 Leading Site Partnership agreements with major medical research institutions delivering exclusive benefits for sponsors.

About Novotech – https://novotech-cro.com

Novotech is internationally recognized as the leading Asia Pacific centred contract research organization (CRO) with global execution capabilities. Novotech is a clinical CRO with labs, phase I facilities, and drug development consulting services. It has accumulated experience in over 3,700 pre-clinical and clinical projects, including Phase I to Phase IV clinical trials and bioequivalence studies. Novotech is positioned to serve biopharmaceutical clients conducting clinical trials in Asia, the US and globally. Novotech has over 2500 staff working across our offices in 13 geographies. For more information visit https://novotech-cro.com/contact

Media Contact
David James
communications@novotech-cro.com
AU: +61 2 8218 2144
USA: +1 415 951 3228
Asia: +65 3159 3427

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit 2022 calls for responsible innovation and adaptive reinvention

HONG KONG, Dec 15, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – PropertyGuru Group (NYSE: PGRU), Southeast Asia's leading property technology company, has returned its thought leadership platform, the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit (ARES), to the physical stage, drawing the most brilliant minds from around the world to the Thai capital.


ARES Leaders Panel

ARES Visionary of the year


Following the sucessful virtual summit editions in 2020 and 2021, the 2022 edition of PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit, supported by the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) and PropertyGuru for Business, is themed 'Adaptive Reinvention.' The day-long programme focused on the way forward for the real estate and tech sectors as they emerge from the pandemic era and continue reckoning with climate realities.

Emceed by seasoned broadcaster Tina Ryan, ARES 2022 took place 8 December 2022, marking 15 years since the foundation of PropertyGuru Group. The 2022 edition of the Summit also coincided with the launch of its enterprise brand, ProeprtyGuru for Business.

Hari V. Krishnan, chief executive officer and managing director of PropertyGuru Group, said, "Today, PropertyGuru completes fifteen years of operations, and we mark it with the launch of our enterprise solutions brand 'PropertyGuru For Business', that aims to guide enterprise clients such as property developers, agencies, banks, valuers, city planners and policy makers. It is our ambition to bring transparency within the real estate journey and create a trust platform for home seekers and our business partners. By harnessing the integrated power of our proprietary data, technology and people, we hope to empower our business partners and customers to make better informed decisions.

At an enterprise or a city level, these decisions can impact thousands, or even millions of people, and PropertyGuru For Business is here to guide our clients to maximise growth opportunities, while reducing risk and uncertainty. We believe PropertyGuru for Business is a timely launch as we hope to equip our enterprise clients with the right data, tools and information to be able to navigate the uncertain economic conditions that lie ahead and be better prepared to serve their customers."

Jeremy Williams, managing director for marketplaces at PropertyGuru Group, said: "For the eighth year, the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit has gathered the brightest minds, top-level business leaders, and decision-makers in the property and technology sectors from around the world. Over these eight years, our goal for PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit has remained constant: to educate, innovate and inspire-sharing ideas, inspiring innovation, and developing practical solutions that can help improve our built environments.

"Our theme this year is adaptive reinvention. We will focus on how our cities, communities and built environments can adapt to changes and how we, the inhabitants and developers of these environments, can use best practices and lessons from the past to build the communities of tomorrow."

More than 40 global experts from around the world flew in for the summit at The Athenee Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Bangkok where they issued and renewed a call for adaptation and mitigation in a world changed by the coronavirus and global warming. The discussions and presentations challenged the audience-in addition to viewers tuned in to the live stream of the Summit on its official YouTube and Facebook channels-to exercise critical thinking in the areas of sustainability, inclusivity, diversity, and creativity after the pandemic.

The 8th PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit was thematically divided into four segments: Restart/Rebound; Revive/Reboot; Rethink/Reset; and Reimagine/Reinvent.

The programme opened with a call to action on urban change from Stephen Oehme, the managing director of Quantum Thailand Ltd and a former board member of Burj Khalifa Dubai. The first segment of the programme also included a keynote on sustainability by Erastus Njuke Ndugire, programme manager for the City Investment Facility at the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) and a keynote on the state of Asia's current macroeconomy by Syetarn Hansakul, Asia Analyst for the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The second segment of the summit included a keynote on financing instruments and climate investments in property businesses by Kim-See Lim, regional director of East Asia and the Pacific at the International Finance Corporation (IFC)/The World Bank Group, as well as a keynote on humanitarian tech by Illac Diaz, founder of Liter of Light Foundation and winner of PropertyGuru's Visionary of the Year award in 2020. Tech entrepreneur Dustin Jefferson Onghangseng also presented a showcase of comprehensive air sensor uHoo, winner of the 2021 PropertyGuru Tech Innovation Award.

The second segment ended with a discussion on the property rights of the LGBTQI+ community in Asia, moderated by drag artist and television host Pangina Heals, with panellists Nick Myers, founder and CEO of RedFox AI; Ramil Andag, SOGIESC rights officer of APCOM Foundation; and William Tan, real estate advisor and co-founder of Prident and Haus of Pride.

The third segment, opened with a discussion on data-driven sustainable affordable housing solutions panel (co-presented by REHDA Institute) featuring Dr. Nai Jia Lee, head of real estate intelligence at PropertyGuru Group, and Ryan Ip, CFA, MRICS, research director and head of land and housing at Our Hong Kong Foundation, with moderator Tan Sri Datuk Eddy Chen Lok Loi, trustee of REHDA Institute and group managing director of MKH Berhad. International broadcaster Manisha Tank led the following discussion that focused on smart post-Covid development strategies, with panellists Josh Chye, partner and head of tax at HLB Mann Judd and board member and treasurer of the Property Funds Association of Australia; Stephen Pimbley, founding partner and director of SPARK Architects; Winston Lee, director of special projects at PropertyGuru Group; and Ir. Dr. Zulhkiple A. Bakar, managing director of Perunding ZAB Sdn Bhd.

The third segment continued with the Design keynote, delivered by Marshall Blecher, founding partner of MAST, the Copenhagen-based architecture studio working with water to create innovative, open and sustainable spaces. Another panel discussion, moderated by Variety media analyst and correspondent Heidi Chung, featured leading voices pushing for a sustainability-first mindset among developers, investors and consumers in Asia: Dr. Kessara Thanyalakpark, managing director of Sena Development Public Company Limited; Kristin Thorsteins, regional head of partnership growth, APAC West, IWG; Rachanee Chanawatr, Asia-Pacific principal of the International Financial Corporation/World Bank Group; Stephen Oehme; and Thien Duong, general director for Vietnam at GroupGSA.

The segment closed with a discussion among powerful women leaders: Coco Liu, chief regional officer of APAC, HLB; Jean Jacquelyn de Castro, CEO of ESCA Incorporated; Loemongga Haoemasan, president director of Asiana Group; and Shyn Yee Ho-Strangas, managing director of data and software solutions at PropertyGuru Group, with Palanca-winning author and journalist Jessica Zafra as moderator.

ARES 2022's final segment gathered some of today's most influential content creators and personalities to discuss the effects of new media on property seekers: Jett Gunther, video producer and news anchor for Thaiger; Nelly Hrnic, creator of Nelly's Life and Making It Happen; and Wil Dasovich, television personality and creator, with the special participation of Illac Diaz.

The final segment was also an opportunity to present several honours to outstanding game-changers and innovators. PropertyGuru Tech Innovation Award, a benchmark of excellence for startups and SMEs with game-changing products and innovations in proptech, was presented to Rebricks, an Indonesian company that transforms rejected waste into useful building materials. Jules Kay, general manager of PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards & Events, had engaged Novita Tan and Ovy Sabrina, founders of Rebricks, in a fireside chat about the journey of trash to eco-friendly bricks. The company bested contenders from the US and Thailand for the award.

Manav Kamboj, chief technology officer of PropertyGuru Group, was on hand to present the Developer's Choice award to the winner of PropertyGuru Hackathon 2022: Selling Sunsets, a market insights and campaign tool. Kamboj also delivered the highly anticipated Guru Keynote.

The 2022 Visionary of the Year award was presented to Colin Chee, founder of popular web series Never Too Small, whose unique, distinctive storytelling skills and passion for small-footprint residential architecture and design have inspired a global movement. Chee, the fourth overall recipient of this honour, also presented a case study on repurposed structures.

Following the summit, distinguished guests headed to an exclusive gathering at the ARES VIP Cocktail Part: Celebrating Power Women in Real Estate, sponsored by PropertyGuru for Business, an occasion that honoured four influential women leaders who push for gender diversity and equality in their respective fields.

The 8th PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit was part of the 'PropertyGuru Week', which included the presentation of the 17th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final. The presentation served as a culmination of the 2022 Awards series of in-person and virtual gala celebrations.

PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit (ARES 2022) is supported by official MICE partner Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB); official partner PropertyGuru for Business; official channel partners History and Lifetime; official magazine and podcast Property Report by PropertyGuru; official PR partner Artemis Associates; media partners d+a Magazine, Esquire PH, Hot Magazine, People Asia, REm Thailand, Southeast Asia Globe, The Grid, and Think of Living; official ESG partner Baan Dek Foundation; official charity partner Liter of Light; and supporting associations Green Building Consulting & Engineering, IFC – Building Resilience Index, IFC – Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies, and REHDA Institute.

For more information, visit AsiaRealEstateSummit.com or email ares@propertyguru.com.
PropertyGuru Group contacts:

Speakers & Corporate:
Richard Allan Aquino
Head of Brand & Marketing Services
Tel: +66 92 954 4154
Email: allan@propertyguru.com

Sponsorships:
Kanittha Srithongsuk
Regional Manager of Awards Sponsorship
Tel: +66 87 708 5237
Email: kanittha@propertyguru.com


Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Preventing Strokes and Heart Attacks Doesn’t Have to Come with the Risk of Life-threatening Bleeding

FREMONT, CA, Dec 14, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Verseon is delighted to announce that the European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry has published a paper (www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0223523422007577) describing the company's groundbreaking research that led to promising novel drug candidates for cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death and disability in the world. Hundreds of millions of patients worldwide need anticoagulants to prevent clots that lead to life-threatening events like strokes, heart attacks, and pulmonary embolisms.

However, currently prescribed so-called novel oral anticoagulants (NOACs) carry well-documented risks of major bleeds, which in many cases require hospitalization and can be life threatening. Developing drugs that prevent unwanted clots while preserving the body's ability to stop excessive bleeding is the "Holy Grail" of anticoagulant drug programs. Verseon is developing a new generation of anticoagulants called PROACs (Precision Oral Anticoagulants) that address this significant unmet medical need.

The peer-reviewed paper documents how Verseon's medicinal chemistry team optimized various physicochemical properties — including potency, selectivity, and in vivo stability — of compounds from a novel class called N-acylpyrazoles. The resulting reversible covalent thrombin inhibitors are highly effective at preventing clots in vivo. Yet unlike NOACs, they do not inhibit thrombin-mediated activation of platelets, a critical step to stop injury-induced bleeding. Because of their unique mechanism of action, Verseon's drug candidates have demonstrated comparable efficacy to NOACs but with far lower bleeding risks in animal tests. The first lead candidate from this program is currently in clinical trials.

"We are pleased to publish the discovery of this novel class of direct thrombin inhibitors with unique pharmacology," commented Dr. David Kita, Verseon's Chief Scientific Officer. "We look forward to describing further work behind the development of our first PROAC clinical candidate (VE-1902), which we expect will address a significant unmet medical need affecting a very large number of cardiovascular patients worldwide."

The scientific paper, entitled "Discovery of novel N-acylpyrazoles as potent and selective thrombin inhibitors," is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejmech.2022.114855.

About Verseon

Verseon International Corporation (www.verseon.com) is redefining delay, prevention, and treatment of disease. Using its unique physics- and AI-based molecule-engineering platform, Verseon is rolling out a steady stream of life-changing medicines. Each of the company's drug programs features multiple novel candidates with unique therapeutic properties. Verseon's pipeline currently includes seven drug programs spanning major cardiometabolic diseases and cancers.

Verseon's precision oral anticoagulants (PROACs) are potent, highly selective, reversible covalent inhibitors of thrombin. PROACs have shown excellent efficacy in multiple preclinical studies. The fact that PROACs do not disrupt platelet function and demonstrate correspondingly low bleeding risk makes them excellent candidates for use in long-term combination anticoagulant-antiplatelet therapy. The first development candidate, VE-1902, is currently in clinical trials. Among other unique properties of PROACs, VE-1902 has very low renal clearance, a highly desirable feature for patients with impaired kidney function. Verseon also has a second anticoagulant development candidate, VE-2851, which is expected to enter clinical trials at a later date.

Contact:
Walter Jones
mediarelations@verseon.com

Copyright 2022 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com