ACROMETA clinches record $31 million contract for semiconductor industry

SINGAPORE, Apr 22, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Catalist-listed AcroMeta Group Limited (ACROMETA; SGX: 43F), today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary AcroMec Engineers Pte Ltd (ACROMEC) has won a $31 million contract for the fit-out of an additional floor within the existing integrated advanced manufacturing facility in Singapore of a leading high-tech customer. When completed in 2023, the expansion will substantially increase its manufacturing capacity.

ACROMEC's specialties in controlled environment engineering

The ability to succinctly and precisely control physical variables such as temperature, air purity, humidity, and pressure in facility, like the product manufacturing space is a mission critical requirement. ACROMEC is ready to take on this project with the requisite track record, having completed numerous projects in clean rooms, laboratories and advanced manufacturing facilities.

Completion of previously announced project for Nasdaq-listed Genscript Biotech's Singapore R&D and manufacturing facility

ACROMEC'S strong track record is also seen having, earlier on, successfully completed the prestigious contract for the design and construction of Genscript's R&D and production laboratory facilities where they are used for the manufacture of the first-in-world C-Pass Serological Test Kit by the Duke University-NUS Medical School collaboration. C-Pass is a game-changing blood testing kit that determine a person's level of immunity against COVID-19 after vaccination.

Strong outlook for ACROMETA's controlled environment engineering business

ACROMETA Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO Lim Say Chin is heartened by the sizeable contract win. It reflects well on the high level of confidence that our Customer has on us. He said, "We are optimistic on the growth of our controlled environment business. Our business is well positioned for the Post-COVID world. We are having more customers investing in building facilities again for the future, both to prepare for the next pandemic and to prepare for technological growth. Indeed, we see activities building up in the biotechnology and semiconductor sectors, and we are glad to serve this space."

The contract is expected to commence soon and will materially contribute positively to the earnings per share and net tangible assets per share of the Group for the financial year ending 30 September 2022.

SGXNET Reference: https://tinyurl.com/SGX-43F-20220422

About AcroMeta Group Limited [SGX: 43F] [RIC: ACRI.SI] [BB: ACRO.SP]

AcroMeta Group Limited (previously AcroMec Limited) is an established specialist engineering services provider with more than 20 years of experience in the field of controlled environments. The Group has over the years acquired expertise in the design and construction of facilities requiring controlled environments such as laboratories, medical and sterile facilities and cleanrooms.

ACROMETA's business is divided into two main segments: (i) Engineering, procurement, and construction services, specialising in architectural, and mechanical, electrical and process works within controlled environments; and (ii) Maintenance and repair services of facilities and equipment of controlled environments and their supporting infrastructure.

The Group mainly serves the healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, research and academia, and electronics sectors. ACROMETA counts amongst its customers, hospitals and medical centres, government agencies, research and development companies or agencies, research and development units of multinational corporations, tertiary educational institutions, pharmaceutical companies, semiconductor manufacturing companies, and multinational engineering companies.

The company has been listed on the Catalist board of the SGX since 2016, and became AcroMeta Group Limited (previously AcroMec Limited) on February 18, 2022. For more information, please visit www.acrometa.com.

Media and Analysts Contact:
ACROMETA Group Limited
Mr Jerry Tan
Chief Financial Officer
Tel: +65 6415 0574
Email: jerry.tan@acromec.com

Waterbrooks Consultants Pte Ltd
Mr Wayne Koo
Tel: +65 6958 8008 / +65 9338 8166
Email: wayne.koo@waterbrooks.com.sg
Email: query@waterbrooks.com.sg

This media release has been reviewed by the Company's sponsor, PrimePartners Corporate Finance Pte. Ltd. (the "Sponsor"). It has not been examined or approved by the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (the "Exchange") and the Exchange assumes no responsibility for the contents of this document, including the correctness of any of the statements or opinions made or reports contained in this document.

The contact person for the Sponsor is Mr. Joseph Au, 16 Collyer Quay, #10-00 Income at Raffles, Singapore 049318, sponsorship@ppcf.com.sg.

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

Kitchen Culture’s business transformation at risk – funds raised not accounted for

SINGAPORE, Apr 21, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – As the single largest shareholder of Kitchen Culture Holdings Ltd. ("Kitchen Culture") with a 21.19% stake, OOWAY Group Ltd. ("OOWAY Group" or the "Group") shares the frustration of many shareholders who raised concerns over matters of internal controls and governance ahead of Kitchen Culture's recent Annual General Meeting held on 18 March 2022.

We are deeply disappointed by the findings of Baker Tilly Consulting (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.'s ("BTC") latest report which confirm our worst fears regarding the shocking matters of concern which were first revealed in June 2021 after Kitchen Culture's Audit Committee engaged BTC to review its internal controls.

In August 2020, Kitchen Culture entered into a sale and purchase agreement and a shareholder's agreement with OOWAY Group to acquire a 30% equity stake in OOWAY Technology Pte. Ltd. ("OOWAY Technology") at a purchase consideration of S$23.92 million (the "Purchase Consideration") to be satisfied by way of the allotment and issue of 90,000,000 new ordinary shares in the capital of Kitchen Culture at an issue price of S$0.2658 per ordinary share ("Acquisition").

Mr Liu Yanlong, representative for OOWAY Group, said, "We welcomed Kitchen Culture as a strategic investor in OOWAY Technology given the mutual benefits of the acquisition, which was in line with Kitchen Culture's diversification strategy and OOWAY Group's expansion in the ASEAN region. OOWAY Group provided an opportunity for Kitchen Culture to leverage our network and capabilities, as well as to participate in the significant growth potential of Big Data analytics and Artificial Intelligence."

Kitchen Culture's diversification strategy was crucial as it had long suffered from recurring losses and negative operating cash flow from its core business as a kitchen solutions provider for 8 years and was in a dire state at the time of the acquisition.

The combination of the newly raised funds and OOWAY Technology's gilt-edge technical capabilities would have provided new engines for growth and hastened the return to profitability for Kitchen Culture.

Prospective investors present at OOWAY Group-led investment roadshows, eventually took up equity in Kitchen Culture, with the expectation of the game-changing business diversification through the acquisition of OOWAY Technology. Unfortunately, the raised capital has not materialised into any effort in business transformation.

Instead, we are deeply disappointed with the findings of the BTC report, which revealed that the gaps in Kitchen Culture's financial operating procedures led to[2]:

– Risk of misuse of Kitchen Culture's funds
– Risk of unauthorised use of proceeds obtained from the S$19.23 million of funds raised
– Risk of diversion of raised funds to purposes outside business diversification purposes
– Risk of questionable debt repayments to third parties
– Lack of independence and checks and balances in approving and processing payments
– Lack of accountability and traceability over entertainment expenses
– Lack of documentation for personnel hiring and pay increments
– Inappropriate operating structure involving multiple family members as management staff

These risks which were unknown to us prior to the acquisition have had a major impact on our growth plans as ongoing audits, investigations and lawsuits require significant time and resources, a challenging situation further compounded by the historical losses. Furthermore, Kitchen Culture has suffered reputational damage as a result of these issues.

Kitchen Culture's last traded price of S$0.08 per share marks an unrealised loss of close to 70% or S$16.72 million for the OOWAY Group following the completion of the acquisition. On the other hand, OOWAY Technology's value has remained stable during this period, which is also Kitchen Culture's key asset. As OOWAY Technology continues its development and making encouraging progress to grow its business, the long-term value of Kitchen Culture's stake in OOWAY Technology remains fundamentally intact.

Mr Liu added, "As a shareholder of Kitchen Culture, we have sustained significant losses, but we remain committed to growing our business together with Kitchen Culture and intend to provide the funding support needed in the near term to allay going concern issues."

The latest BTC report has identified S$7.22 million as "unmatched". This is a staggering sum and OOWAY Group hopes that the Management of Kitchen Culture investigates further to get to the bottom of this issue, so that any and all discrepancies will be ultimately accounted for to shareholders.

The Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) has recently requested for copies of the BTC reports for further review and investigation. We call on the new Board of Kitchen Culture to continue its relentless efforts to strengthen internal controls and implement BTC's recommendations without delay and to cooperate with the CAD to leave no stone unturned in fully resolving all outstanding issues, so we can lead the company in business transformation again.

Our confidence in Kitchen Culture's new Board to safeguard the interests of shareholders remains strong, but it must work hard to rebuild long-term value for Kitchen Culture and its shareholders.

BTC's Schedule of Matched and Unmatched Expense Items[3]
https://www.acnnewswire.com/docs/Multimedia/Low_OOWAY20220421.jpg

General Announcement:: UPDATE ON REVIEW BY BAKER TILLY CONSULTANCY (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD. https://bit.ly/386bU8i
General Announcement:: ASSISTANCE IN THE REVIEW BY THE COMMERCIAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT https://bit.ly/3jWNY9U

[1] "Unmatched" refers to situations with any of the following criteria:
– Expenses cannot be traced to the bank statements
– Details of expenses cannot be traced to the underlying supporting documents
– Description of the expenses on the supporting document is not in line with the categories of utilisation as stated in Kitchen Culture's schedules
[2] These risks and gaps reflect the summary of findings listed in Kitchen Culture's response to SGX queries on 12 July 2021
[3] Rounded up to two decimal points

About OOWAY Technology Pte. Ltd.

OOWAY Technology is a big data AI technology company which uses innovative applications to creatively design intelligent digital products and models used in multiple fields. It does so by forming a closed loop of the entire process which includes data collection, model analysis, and intelligent applications.

OOWAY's development of an advanced technology platform – DIGIT (Digital Innovation of Global Integrated Trade) propels it to leading the way in a new era of B2B trading 4.0. By integrating the vitality of global trading businesses with emerging digital technologies, OOWAY's credit 3.0 technology is combined to construct a smart platform that ensures the authenticity and credibility of global trade whilst reducing costs, increasing efficiency and facilitating trade in a more reliable fashion. OOWAY brings to users the 5S operating framework, pushing out a new form of Ultimate Trade (UT). This has enabled global trade to evolve towards a new stage of standardization and intelligence.

Issued by OOWAY Group Ltd.

Media Contact:
Email: service@ooway.com

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

Myanmar Government to Accelerate Energy Projects and Amid Power Shortages; Says Sanctions End Up Hurting Foreign Investors, Local Workers and Businesses More

NAY PYI TAW, MM, Apr 21, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – The Myanmar Government will accelerate development of hydrocarbon and renewable energy even as it repairs power lines damaged by terrorists while seeking to increase foreign investments despite the threat of fresh economic sanctions, the Ministry of Information (MOI) and Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations (MIFER) announced today.

MOI Minister Mr Maung Maung Ohn and MIFER Minister Mr Aung Naing Oo issued the joint statement in response to recent media reports about energy shortages in the country and exits of some foreign energy companies, and fresh sanctions against Myanmar announced in recent months.

Addressing Energy Shortages in Myanmar

The recent temporary shortage of power was caused by a surge of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices, exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a weaker kyat currency as well as terrorist actions linked to the People's Defensive Force (PDF). Apart from advocating a boycott of utility payments since 2021, PDF terrorists blew up power lines from the Lawpita hydroelectric plant in Kayah State. These actions contributed to outages which caused hardship to ordinary citizens and small businesses in particular.

However, despite earlier civil unrest, the country has largely achieved national stability since the second half of 2021. Myanmar Government, under the direction of the State Administration Council (SAC) that was formed on 2 February 2021, is focusing efforts on various mitigating actions regarding the country's energy situation:

i) With the relative stabilization of global energy prices, the Government is seeking to increase use of natural gas for local power generation.

ii) The Government will step up repair of power infrastructure damaged by terrorists and increase security measures.

iii) It will accelerate power generation in the country from oil and gas sources through new investments, partnerships and actions such as conversion to use of existing facilities:

– the new Shwe Gas Pipeline was completed on 18 March 2022 and will generate about 330 MW of regular power.

– Conversion of some fertilizer plants (which use gas as feedstock) for immediate generation of 30 MW of electricity and accelerating works on other gas-fired power generators or waste-heat projects. A total of about 100 MW of electricity has been generated in Kyaukphyu using 20 million cubic feet of gas currently. After pipeline maintenance, this will expand to 30 million cubic feet per day and generate 195 MW.

iv) Major energy projects with China

As its largest neighbour and economic partner, China will play an increasingly important role in energy-related developments in Myanmar.

– With regard to the China-Myanmar pipeline project involving China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the gas pipeline portion was completed at the end of 2013 and the oil pipeline portion was completed in April 2017. The project, which also includes a crude oil terminal, is CNPC's largest investment in Myanmar, and a centerpiece of China's Belt and Road Initiative in the country.

– 3 Chinese companies – Union Resources and Engineering Company (41%), Yunnan Energy Investment (39%) and Zhefu Holding Group (1%) – are partnering Myanmar's -Supreme Group (19%) to develop the 1,390MW Mee Lin Gyaing Project. This facility in Ayeyarwady region involves a LNG-fired power plant, a LNG terminal, a high voltage transmission line and gas pipelines to Yangon. It has been approved by the Myanmar Investment Commission. Currently in the early stages of design and construction, it is expected to start commercial operation in 2027.

Myanmar Government is also proposing to include this high-priority energy project – with an estimated investment value of USD 2.5 billion – in the list of early harvest projects of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) to enhance bilateral cooperation so as to accelerate its progress.

v) Increase investments in renewable energy

– Solar Energy: More than half of the 40-MW Letpanhla and 30-MW Nyaungbin Gyi solar projects has been completed. To achieve national renewable energy goals, 13 solar power projects which will generate 370 MW have been launched.

While three more solar power projects which will generate 390-megawatt are also planned. Special efforts are being made to promote floating solar projects, rooftop solar projects, and small and medium-sized projects wherever possible.

Tenders are also being called for 18 solar power projects that can generate 635 MW. These are in addition to ongoing negotiations for 11 solar projects which will generate 300 MW that have been invited. Negotiations are underway to sign an agreement for one of them.

– Hydroelectric Power – With more than 60 hydropower dams, hydroelectricity is a key source of energy in the country. The Government is negotiating to purchase about 120 MW of electricity from the Tapin (1) hydropower project soon. The Government will emphasise proper environmental and social impact assessments before approval. Project designs must address such impact and communicate plans and benefits to the relevant communities in order to allay future concerns.

Myanmar plans to achieve national electrification by 2030 and generate 9% of electricity from renewable sources such as hydro and solar power.

Reported Exits of Foreign Oil and Gas Companies

The Ministers said the withdrawal by France's TotalEnergies from the Yadana field and a related gas transportation project will be effective on 20 July 2022. The former's 31.24% stake has been allocated proportionately to the remaining partners in the joint venture.

After the withdrawal of TotalEnergies, Thailand's PTTEP International Limited (PTTEPI) will hold 37.0842% participating interest while Unocal Myanmar Offshore Company Limited, a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation (Chevron) of the United States, will hold 41.1016%, the highest participating interest in the project. Since the first shipment in 1996 about 70% of production from this project, or about 768 million standard cubic feet per day currently, has been sold to Thailand with the rest designated for domestic power generation.

"As this is a change of ownership, operations are not affected. The Yadana field has the largest known Myanmar offshore hydrocarbon reserves. However, production there has declined since end-2021 following 20 years of post-plateau output. Production at this field to date has reached 85% of the recoverable reserves," the Ministers said. Total Energies is not seeking compensation for the withdrawal.

The Ministers said that while Chevron had stated it would exit investments from Myanmar, the Government has to date not received any formal notification from the company.

A third foreign energy company, Woodside Petroleum Ltd of Australia, has recently withdrawn from A6 Natural Gas Project in Rakhine State. Its stake has been taken over by its project partner the MPRL E&P Group of Companies. Operations are also not affected.

Myanmar's Energy Sector Remains Attractive

Despite being one of the world's oldest oil producers (exports started in 1853), Myanmar's upstream sector is still in its infancy due to sanctions, opaque regulatory policy and insufficient investment.

"Although, proven energy reserves are still relatively modest, unofficial estimates are extremely promising. Such fields with potential which are also in proximity to large demand centres in Thailand and China have attracted the interest of several major players. Hence, the Government continues to speed up its reform and has held a number of successful international bids for such hydrocarbon fields," the Ministers said.

Response to Fresh Economic Sanctions Against Myanmar

The Ministers said that external pressure and fresh economic sanctions by several Western countries in recent months may have raised concerns among some foreign investors.

"Economic sanctions may have more negative impact on private sectors than on the Government. Domestic and foreign businessmen and their enterprises, local workers, suppliers and consumers end up suffering the most.

Some sizeable projects that had been approved have commenced construction. Due to the economic sanctions, promoters of some of these projects are now facing obstacles in transferring foreign currency. This has affected progress of the projects.

Should these projects be terminated due to sanctions their investors must repay tax exemptions they enjoyed on top of project costs incurred. Otherwise, their investments will remain in the pending state. Hence, investors may end up leaving Myanmar not because of an unfavourable investment environment but because of external pressures.

Myanmar is committed to providing a secure, accessible and conducive investment environment. We do not wish to see investment withdrawals.

Although the international community publicly discourages economic cooperation with Myanmar, we continue to attract foreign investments. Many of our foreign partners choose to work quietly with us, away from the glare of external publicity, fully recognizing Myanmar's economic potential as well as its unique challenges," the Ministers said.

Energy Sector Remains Priority For Total Investments

The Ministers also gave an update on investments in Myanmar in the last 2 fiscal years. During fiscal 2020-2021 (12 months ended October) and fiscal 2021-2022 (interim budget of 6 months ended March) a total of 82 projects in 12 sectors with investments totaling USD 4.32 billion were approved (USD 3.79 billion in fiscal 2020-2021 and USD 530.775 million fiscal 2021-2022.)

Manufacturing accounted for most projects among 12 sectors in fiscal 2020-2021. However, the Power sector received substantially higher amount of total approved investment of USD 3.12 billion for 6 projects during this period, underscoring the attractiveness of the sector.

Foreign Investments

Most of the countries investing in Myanmar are Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Thailand and South Korea. In fiscal year 2020-2021, a total of 15 projects were from China, and 14 projects were from Singapore.

In 2021-2022 FY, there are 18 projects from China and 6 were from Hong Kong.

Domestic Investments

In the last 2 fiscal years, a total of 93 domestic investment projects (61 in fiscal 2020-2021 and 32 in fiscal 2021-2022) in 12 sectors valued at 2,248.7 billion kyat (1,171.8 billion kyat in fiscal 2020-2021 and 1,076.9 billion kyat in fiscal 2021-2022, respectively) were approved.

A total of 50 projects were from the Manufacturing sector, which is the leading domestic investment category, followed by the Services sector which recorded 14 approved projects while Hotel and Tourism sector was third with 11 projects.

Issued by Ministry of Information and Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations, Union Government of Myanmar.
For more information, please contact mediacontact@e-information.gov.mm or myintkyawmoi@gmail.com

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

Trintech Announces New Chief Human Resources Officer

DALLAS, TX, Apr 20, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Trintech, a leading global provider of cloud-based financial close solutions for the Office of Finance, today announced the appointment of Monna Nevils as Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) of Trintech. With a focus on employees, Nevils will help Trintech continue to build an engaged, inclusive, and high-performing culture. She will lead all aspects of human resources, including talent acquisition, learning and development, organizational development and effectiveness, compensation and benefits, diversity and inclusion programs, and benefit systems.

"Businesses don't create value; people do. Our employees are the heart of our business which is why I am thrilled to welcome Monna as our new CHRO focused on continuing to provide our employees with a great place to work and ways to grow and develop their careers," said Teresa Mackintosh, Chief Executive Officer of Trintech. "Monna's strong track record and rich experience in talent development and change management across teams will help us to ensure we continue to build an agile culture of inclusivity and personal growth for all, while attracting the talent to meet the evolving needs of our customers in this digital world."

Nevils joins the Trintech team with more than 20 years of experience holding global HR leadership roles spanning industries such as technology, real-estate, banking, and healthcare. She is a creative and innovative global human resources executive with experience in aligning the people function to the overall business strategy, developing and executing plans that amplify an inclusive, collaborative culture. Her broad experience includes M&A, change management, talent acquisition, succession planning, learning and development, performance management and total rewards. Prior to joining Trintech, Nevils was the VP, HR – Americas; Global HRBP, Product Marketing for Datalogic. She also served as the Chief Human Resources Officer for Behavioral Health Group (BHG). Nevils earned her MBA from the University of Houston and undergraduate degree in business from Lamar University. She is also a certified trainer and coach and has her Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification.

"I am very excited to be joining Trintech as the new CHRO to continue building upon the strong foundation of practices Trintech already has in place today," said Monna Nevils, Chief Human Resources Officer of Trintech. "It is evident to me that Trintech prioritizes a customer and people-centric culture and passion for innovation, and I look forward to partnering with the team to develop a progressive and aligned global HR strategy to support an environment where talent and culture continue to be a foundational and driving factor in the success of Trintech."

Trintech has most recently been named a Dallas/Fort Worth "Best and Brightest Companies to Work For(R)" 2022 Elite Award Winner by the National Association for Business Resources. Interested in joining our team? Check out our open positions here. https://www.trintech.com/careers/

About Trintech

Trintech Inc., a leading global provider of cloud-based financial close solutions for the Office of Finance, combines unmatched technical and financial expertise to create innovative, cloud-based software solutions that deliver world-class financial operations and insights. From high volume transaction matching and streamlining daily operational reconciliations, to automating and managing balance sheet reconciliations, intercompany accounting, journal entries, disclosure and fiduciary reporting and bank fee analysis, to governance, risk and compliance – Trintech's portfolio of financial solutions, including Cadency(R) Platform, Adra(R) Suite, and targeted tools, ReconNET(TM), T-Recs(R), and UPCS(R), help manage all aspects of the financial close process. Over 3,500 clients worldwide – including the majority of the Fortune 100 – rely on the company's cloud-based software to continuously improve the efficiency, reliability, and strategic insights of their financial operations.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Trintech has offices located across the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, France, Ireland, the Netherlands and the Nordics, as well as strategic partners in South Africa, Latin America and Asia Pacific. To learn more about Trintech, visit www.trintech.com or connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Media Contact:
Kelli Shoevlin
Sr. Manager, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications
kelli.shoevlin@trintech.com

SOURCE: Trintech, Inc.

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

Caely Holdings Bhd Working to Unfreeze Bank Accounts

KUALA LUMPUR, Apr 20, 2022 – (ACN Newswire) – Caely Holdings Bhd, a leading domestic producer of women's intimate apparel, takes note of the order to freeze all the Group's bank accounts and wishes to reassure all stakeholders that measures are being explored to ensure business continuity and sustainability.

Caely Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr. Lim Chee Pang

Caely Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr. Lim Chee Pang said, "The unfreezing or partial unfreezing of the bank accounts are our top priority. We are exploring all avenues to resolve this issue, as we need to ensure that business operations can sustain."

"We are answerable to our shareholders for how the business is run. The Board of Directors is monitoring the situation closely too and is working with the management on the unfreezing of the bank accounts."

"We can confirm that we are in contact with the authorities and will extend whatever cooperation or assistance is needed for the matter to be resolved," Lim said.

The management is at this juncture still assessing the impact from the order to freeze the bank accounts. "We are working on the next steps, which also include measures to ensure that daily operations are not disrupted. The livelihoods of Caely employees as well as our suppliers and vendors are at stake," Lim said.

The Group also understands the concerns of stakeholders and is working as speedily as it can to resolve any issue arising from the freezing of the bank accounts and will make the necessary announcements to Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad as and when there are further developments.

Caely Holdings Bhd: http://www.caelyholdings.com/
Caely Holdings Bhd: 7154 / [BURSA: CAELY] [RIC: CAEY:KL] [BBG: CHB:MK]

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

Duiba’s Surprising 1H2021 Turnaround Supporting Bank SaaS Operations

HONG KONG, Sep 8, 2021 – (ACN Newswire) – Duiba Group (Hong Kong) Ltd, the well-known platform provider of management software, and interactive advertising platform operator founded by Xiao Liang Chen in 2014 and headquartered in Hong Kong, released its interim financial report on August 27, for the First Half 2021.

According to the report, Duiba (HKG:01753) recorded total revenues of RMB720 million, representing an increase of 53.82% from a year earlier, with profit attributable to owners of RMB62.804 million, representing a significant increase from a loss of RMB47.839 million in the First Half of 2020.

Significantly, Duiba recorded revenues on Software as a Service (SaaS) user management processes of RMB68.56 million, representing a sharp increase of 142%. We could guess from the report that Duiba achieved strong First Half 2021 financial results with its existing strategies. But what of Duiba's potential future development?

Getting through tough times to turn around poor profitability

Founded in May 2014, Duiba is a SaaS user management systems provider and interactive advertising platform operator committed to providing enterprise customers with user acquisition, user activation and retention: realization covering the entire user lifetime.

With consideration to the COVID-19 situation, advances in digital technology and the influence of geopolitics have expedited the development of service companies in China, and the rapid growth of high-quality SaaS user management operators such as Duiba, and talk of an emerging SaaS unicorn:

On the one hand, for Chinese SaaS companies, the biggest pain point is the long profit-making cycle. Duiba acquired lots of customers by launching the free-of-charge SaaS user management platform in the early days, and began to offer paid services in April 2018 which led to a significant increase in its business performance.

From 2017 to 2019, Duiba recorded revenue of RMB650 million, RMB1.14 billion and RMB 1.65 billion and an adjusted net profit of RMB120 million, RMB210 million and RMB340 million, respectively, and achieved a three-year profit compound growth rate up to 69.4%.

The above data could tell that Duiba has gone through its no-profit period, and the financial data in the first half of 2021 could also tell that Duiba has come to the performance growth period. On the other hand, what many Chinese companies need from the SaaS industry are integrated solutions, instead of services for any single segment.

The user management services provided by Duiba are full-cycle management services and integrated solutions which cover user acquisition, user activation and retention, realization and other several aspects. Besides, in 2015, Duiba took the lead in conducting the interactive advertising business to reach target customers in non-first-tier cities, and achieved a win-win situation for advertisers, media providers and users through ad realization.

Support for banks with breakthrough offline strategies

The SaaS field is a big market. For SaaS service providers, whether or not they can seize market opportunities has nothing to do with their own strength, but their ability to take the best advantage when opportunity knocks. We find in a careful analysis of Duiba's source of new customers that the increase in Duiba's unit price and customer base mostly comes from offline sources, such as typical banking institutions.

For Duiba, providing SaaS services to banks is a great choice with vast potential opportunities:

First of all, banks are driven by the current trend to move their businesses online. According to a McKinsey survey, 40% of Chinese respondents expressed their preference for mobile banking, and 20% of Chinese respondents expressed their intention to use offline banking outlets less. In the context of the 5G technology and the coming era of 5G, banks will face great difficulties in acquiring new customers in the future and even lose their existing customers if they do not move their businesses online as soon as possible.

Furthermore, banks face challenges in moving their businesses online. Being accustomed to the comfortable days in the past, banks have no idea of Internet, and are too weak to confront Internet giants and fintech companies. Therefore, from the perspective of input-output ratio, banks desperately need outsiders such as SaaS service providers to help them move their businesses online.

Moreover, more and more customers prefer digital banking channels to traditional banking outlets in the context of COVID-19. According to a BCG survey, after COVID-19, the utilization rate of mobile banking is expected to further increase by 19%, and that of traditional banking outlets is expected to further decrease by 26%.

Duiba's advantages in giving professional support to banks are described as below:

On the one hand, Duiba has run online since the beginning and has unique advantages online, and therefore, it can help banks to gradually convert customers who get banking services at offline banking outlets into online customers and include them in banks' systems and to retain existing customers in face of the fierce horizontal competition.

On the other hand, Duiba focuses on user management and is familiar with "Gen Z", and therefore can help banks acquire new customers including "Gen Z".

In Duiba's experience, Gen Z is more likely to participate in discussions on online social platforms and to focus on pan-entertainment information. In terms of daily consumption habits, Gen Z prefers to share membership to watch movies, place group orders for takeaways, search "price-cutting", "coupons" and other discount information before shopping online, and the joy of "bargain hunting" in sales and shopping festivals.

Therefore, in view of Gen Z's consumption habits, Duiba has helped banks to come up with many operation modes centring on user habits, such as IP pets, interactive games and mystery boxes.

According to the feedback from Duiba's partners, with the help of Duiba, one out of four active users of bank cards can be converted on average to apply for instalment credit, with an event participation rate of 72.74% and a sharing rate of 53.8%. It can be seen that the SaaS services provided by Duiba can efficiently support banks in conducting their businesses.

In return, Duiba's professional support to banks has also laid a foundation for its steady long-term business performance. On the one hand, key customers such as banks are very resilient to risks and are less likely to lose due to insolvency, and they are financially strong and have a strong willingness to renew.

On the other hand, key customers face high replacement costs. For banks, they will not change a SaaS service provider they have selected unless in unavoidable circumstances. This is because if they change, they will not only have to pay high costs of data transfer involving several divisions and businesses but also face the risk of data loss.

Generally speaking, key customers such as banks have a positive, long-term and sustainable impact on the growth of Duiba's business performance. But in addition, Duiba has expanded its business since April 2018 to include offline companies with strong latent demand for user management solutions, a nimble strategy that led exactly to Duiba's business outperformance.

Contact:
Jing Gao, Peanutmedia
E-mail: gaojing@czgmcn.com
Website: www.Peanutmedia.com

Copyright 2021 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

CEKD Berhad Launches Prospectus to Raise RM24.28 Million from IPO

KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 6, 2021 – (ACN Newswire) – CEKD BERHAD ("CEKD" or the "Group"), a die-cutting solutions provider as well as manufacturer of die-cutting moulds and trader of related consumables, tools and accessories enroute to a listing on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad (Bursa Securities), is pleased to announce the launch of the Group's prospectus for the initial public offering (IPO).

The Group aims to raise RM24.28 million from its upcoming listing. The IPO involves the public issue of 50.59 million new shares at the issue price of RM0.48 sen per share, to be made available for application in the following manner:

Public issue:
– 9.73 million new shares will be available for application to the Malaysian public;
– 9.73 million new shares will be allocated for application by eligible directors, employees and persons who have contributed to the success of the Group;
– 6.81 million new shares by way of private placement to selected investors; and
– 24.32 million shares by way of private placement to Bumiputera investors approved by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI).

The Utilisation of Proceeds table as below:
https://www.acnnewswire.com/topimg/Low_CEKD202109062.jpg

Managing Director of CEKD, Yap Kai Ning, said: "The forthcoming listing of CEKD Berhad marks a significant milestone in our history. This IPO will not only strengthen our presence in the industry as a leading die-cutting solutions provider and manufacturer but also raise our profile to help us in our expansion plans. We are committed to sustaining our reputation and creating value for our shareholders."

"The proceeds from the IPO will go towards acquiring laser-cutting machines and automatic steel rule processors to support business expansion and increase our production efficiency. Our production capability will be enhanced with the upgrading of our computer software and servers and this will support business growth. Besides the purchase of machinery and equipment, we are also going to acquire a factory for Hotstar located in Kepong, Kuala Lumpur."

As at 6 August 2021, the Group has a large and diverse customer base of 1,309 customers while the Group achieved an average gross profit margin of 48.3% from FYE 2018 to FYE 2020.

Managing Director of Corporate Finance, M&A Securities Sdn Bhd (M&A Securities), Datuk Bill Tan said: "As of today, we have received positive response from investors for CEKD's IPO and we are pleased to play a significant role in its goal to become a public listed company. This milestone today is the result of the hard work and dedication of the CEKD team. They are experienced and committed with operational expertise and in-depth knowledge of the manufacturing of die-cutting moulds and trading of related consumables, tools and accessories. The IPO will strengthen CEKD's foothold in the industry."

CEKD's Adviser, Sponsor, Sole Underwriter and Placement Agent in relation to the IPO is M&A Securities. Pursuant to the underwriting agreement, M&A Securities will be underwriting for shares available for application by the Malaysian public.

Please contact the below for more information:
Hakim Juraimi
Tel: +60 12-318 5410
Email: h.juraimi@swanconsultancy.biz

Copyright 2021 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Baanx Acquires Stake in Major US Fintech Bank

LONDON, Sep 6, 2021 – (ACN Newswire) – Baanx, the fast-growing B2B2C "Better than a Banking Platform" specialising in fintech services & lending, becomes the third-largest shareholder in the United States regulated Maxwell State Bank in a multi-million-dollar deal to enhance cybersecurity and banking access to communities throughout America.

Maxwell State Bank is a fintech bank and VISA Principal Member established circa 1943 in Iowa. With total assets of $29,655,000 and deposits of $25,058,000 Maxwell has been FDIC certified since 1943 for insured deposits. Maxwell was acquired by serial fintech entrepreneur Ronald Ingram, founder of multi-billion dollar fintech programs and companies. He has ambitious plans to make this bank the most secure and future-proof bank in America by expanding their services. He plans to achieve this by working with fintech leaders in cybersecurity, cryptography, tokenization and private/public key infrastructure companies.

Baanx has rapidly become a market leader in secure transaction payment systems, secured lending and banking services with a focus on fast growing verticals. Offering VISA & Mastercard programs through their platform, combined with secured lending services from as little as 0% APR, they are expanding quickly through their B2B2C business model. Baanx partners with leading corporate communities, white-labelling as a leading brand, whilst completely managing the delivery and support of the service to each community they engage with.

Garth Howat, CEO of Baanx said, "We are very excited to have taken a stake in Maxwell and working with Ronald Ingram, who has a strong track record of delivering high performing secure fintech services, having been responsible for $100s of billions of fintech transactions in recent years."

Ronald Ingram, Chairman of Maxwell said, "We are very pleased to welcome Baanx as an investor in Maxwell State Bank. Maxwell Bank has been profitable and well managed for decades, Maxwell, as of 2021, is the most connected bank in North America with direct fiber and low earth laser satellite connectivity. We expect Baanx will expand upon Maxwell's commitment to futurize banking. Baanx is a money center fintech, in the historical banking center of the world, London, with specializations across cryptography, lending, cybersecurity and public/private key infrastructure. We look forward to strategic partnership opportunities such as state-of-the-art cyber security, access to digital safe-keeping of assets and general privacy that we expect to evolve out of this strategic investment."

About Baanx

Baanx "Better than a Banking Platform", offers banking services to fintechs, including secured lending against digital assets and payment authorisation integration into VISA, Mastercard & other transaction payment systems. Baanx headquarters are in London (UK) with subsidiaries in Delaware (United States), Portugal and Lithuania. Baanx manages digital assets using military grade cryptography for maximum privacy and security with digital asset insurance through their partners up to $100M. Baanx is managed by a seasoned team with over a hundred years of combined experience in banking, financial technology, cryptography, finance and digital marketing.

About Maxwell

Maxwell State Bank has been serving Americans for nearly 75 years. January 2021 it was acquired by Ronald Ingram, a serial entrepreneur in fintech, who created a roadmap to ensure the future of this well-established profitable bank for the next generations in the community, region and beyond.

Copyright 2021 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Sixth Belt and Road Summit draws to successful close

HONG KONG, Sep 3, 2021 – (ACN Newswire) – The sixth Belt and Road Summit, jointly organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), drew to a successful close yesterday (2 September). In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's summit was changed to an online event. The virtual platform helped to overcome geographical boundaries, with more than 17,000 viewers from about 80 countries and regions attending the summit.

Under the theme "Driving Growth through Fostering Regional and International Trade", the sixth Belt and Road Summit brought together more than 17,000 participants from about 80 countries and regions.

Paul Chan, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), spoke at a session titled "Belt and Road and RCEP: Enhancing Regional Business Connectivity".

Teresa Cheng, Secretary for Justice of the HKSAR, highlighted the "incredible opportunities" afforded to Hong Kong's legal sector by the 14th Five-Year Plan and Greater Bay Area Outline Development Plan.

Under the theme "Driving Growth through Fostering Regional and International Trade", the two-day summit featured more than 80 government and business leaders from countries and regions along the Belt and Road, along with investors from Mainland China, the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, the Middle East and Africa as well as project owners and professional investment advisers. They all came together to discuss the latest developments driven by the Belt and Road Initiative.

Investment projects drive geographical connections

Holding the conference virtually presented no barrier to meaningful exchanges among participants. In addition to various breakout discussion sessions, the 2021 summit featured one-to-one business matching meetings and project pitching sessions that proved popular among both project owners and participants. The summit received over 260 investment projects from 42 countries and regions along the Belt and Road and beyond, including the Greater Bay Area, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Italy, Egypt, UAE, Djibouti and others, focusing on four major areas – (1) energy, natural resources and public utilities; (2) innovation and technology; (3) urban development; and (4) transport and logistics infrastructure.

Belt and Road and RCEP foster global growth

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has become a key milestone in regional cooperation, developing significant synergies with the Belt and Road Initiative. In a plenary session titled "Belt and Road and RCEP: Enhancing Regional Business Connectivity", Paul Chan, Financial Secretary of the HKSAR, remarked that Hong Kong's strategic location makes the city a gateway for trade, investment and business between Mainland China and other RCEP economies, particularly countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). "Hong Kong's trade in goods with the 15 RCEP economies last year totalled US$772 billion, accounting for about 73% of our total merchandise trade. In 2019, our trade in services with the RCEP was worth US$103 billion, accounting for nearly 60% of our services trade. China's 14th Five-Year plan supports Hong Kong's status as an international financial, transport and trade centre, and it encourages our continuing cooperation and exchanges with countries and regions around the world," Mr Chan said.

Huang Zhaohui, CEO and Chairman of the Management Committee, China International Capital Corporation (CICC), stated that the RCEP covered about one-third of the world's total population and accounted for one-third of global GDP, making it the world's largest free trade agreement. He believes the RCEP will bring great benefits to regional trade and investment. "The RCEP will deepen trade and economic connections between leading countries in the region through tariff reductions. We expect that China-Japan trade tariffs will be significantly reduced while China and Korea will further promote trade facilitation in key areas. This in turn will effectively increase the volume of trade between member countries and enhance regional economic vitality and competitiveness. At CICC we have decided to increase our overseas deployment, especially in Belt and Road countries. We are looking forward to long-term investment, leveraging our financial capabilities to assist the economic and capital market development of these countries."

Edward Yau, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the HKSAR, added that Hong Kong has been striving to expand its economic and trade network worldwide through regional cooperation. "While we are seeing some backpedalling in certain areas of the global economy, there are sufficient incentives and also momentum to move towards to more regional cooperation. Hong Kong stands ready, as always, to be the platform and also the conduit for freer trade, not just in our part of the region, but also in the wider sense of the global economy."

Opportunities abound in Greater Bay Area

The 14th Five-Year Plan highlighted how the development of the Greater Bay Area will lead to boundless opportunities. This year's summit included the new GBA Track thematic series that featured plenary and panel discussion sessions, thematic breakout sessions and a virtual exhibition, covering a wide range of topics, including capital raising, green finance, digital technology applications and start-ups. Sun Yu, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive, Bank of China (Hong Kong) noted, "Infrastructure construction is the key to success of the Belt and Road Initiative, as infrastructure construction has a strong correlation with GDP growth. The tremendous demand for infrastructure investments along the Belt and Road has presented new business opportunities for commercial banks. Hong Kong commercial banks can take up the role as the project financing advisor and solutions provider. Through collaboration with policy banks, insurance companies, law firms and business consultants, they can build a financial services ecosystem, and make good use of market-oriented mechanism to provide systematic, diversified and innovative solutions, as well as financing support for suitable infrastructure projects."

Teresa Cheng, Secretary for Justice of the HKSAR, delivered a welcome speech in a session titled "Fostering Trade and Resolving Disputes in the Post-COVID Era – Hong Kong's Legal and Dispute Resolution Services". She mentioned the business opportunities and unique advantages of Hong Kong under "one country, two systems", explaining that the 14th Five-Year Plan and Greater Bay Area Outline Development Plan explicitly support Hong Kong as the centre for international legal and dispute resolution services in the Asia-Pacific region. "These two national policies have afforded incredible opportunities to the legal sector and therefore the businesses that utilise our legal and dispute resolution services," she said.

China International Capital Corporation Ltd serves as the Strategic Partner of the sixth Belt and Road Summit; Bank of China (Hong Kong) Ltd as the Regional Banking Partner; China Merchants Group as the Sapphire Sponsor; China Taiping Insurance Group as the Affiliated Insurance Partner; and China Mobile International Limited as the Platinum Sponsor.

Websites
– Belt and Road Summit website: https://www.beltandroadsummit.hk/en
– HKTDC Belt and Road Portal: http://beltandroad.hktdc.com
– Photo download: https://bit.ly/3tgRVdG

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:
HKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department
Sunny Ng, Tel: +852 2584 4357, Email: sunny.sl.ng@hktdc.org
Clayton Lauw, Tel: +852 2584 4472, Email: clayton.y.lauw@hktdc.org
Christine Kam, Tel: +852 2584 4514, Email: christine.kam@hktdc.org

Copyright 2021 ACN Newswire. All rights reserved. http://www.acnnewswire.com

Shougang Century Announces 2021 Interim Results

HONG KONG, Sep 2, 2021 – (ACN Newswire) – Shougang Concord Century Holdings Limited ("Shougang Century", together with its subsidiaries, "the Group"; stock code: 0103.HK) is pleased to announce its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2021 ("the Reporting Period").

During the Reporting Period, the Group recorded a revenue from continuing operations of approximately HK$1,283,336,000 (2020: HK$862,997,000), representing an increase of approximately 48.7% as compared with the last corresponding period, primarily attributable to the material increase in sales volume of steel cords. Gross profit from continuing operations increased by 48.5% over the same period last year to HK$226,886,000 (2020: HK$152,758,000). The Group's net profit during the Reporting Period also increased by 45.7% from same period last year to HK$52,256,000 (2020: HK$35,863,000). Net asset value of the Group was HK$1,719,423,000 at 30 June 2021, increased by 4.5% as compared to HK$1,645,571,000 at 31 December 2020. The increase in net asset value was mainly due to the net profit during the first half of 2021. Net asset value per Share was HK$0.91 at 30 June 2021, also increased by HK$0.04 as compared to HK$0.87 at 31 December 2020. During the Reporting Period, the Group also generated positive cash inflow from operations and maintained a sustained healthy financial position.

Mr. SU Fanrong, Chairman and Managing Director of Shougang Century said, "In the first half of 2021, with the pandemic outbreak generally being controlled in China, industries are gradually recovering. The PRC's gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2021 has increased by 7.9% as compared with the corresponding period last year, achieving an overall stable development. In addition, tyres witnessed a rigid demand amidst the general trend of recovery and growth in industries including transportation, significantly fueling sales of steel cords. Our results therefore showed a remarkable improvement during the Reporting Period."

The steel cord segment sold 105,947 tonnes of steel cords during the Reporting Period, increased by 27.0% as compared to the same period last year (2020: 83,405 tonnes). In respect of the sales of sawing wire products, attributable to the Group's persistent effort in exploring new customers as well as the improvement of the photovoltaic, sapphire, and magnetic material markets, sales volume increased substantially by 76.2% to 252 tonnes (2020: 143 tonnes). There was also a 3.4% increase over the corresponding period last year in sales volume of the Group's other steel wires to 4,560 tonnes (2020: 4,410 tonnes).

Located in Zhejiang Province and Shandong Province, the Group's two large production bases produce more than 200,000 tonnes of steel cords in total every year. To cope with the increasing demand for tyres in China and abroad, which fuels a robust market demand for steel cords, the Group expanded its production capacity through further optimizing its plant construction. In 2019, the Group kicked off an expansion plan in its Tengzhou factory and invested in new brass wire production facilities to add an additional 100,000 tonnes of steel cord production capacity. As the construction progress is satisfactory, the Group is building towards its goal to become an enterprise commanding an annual manufacturing capacity in excess of 300,000 tonnes of high-quality steel cords.

Mr. SU concluded, "Looking forward to the second half of 2021, the threat posed by the new virus variants and Sino-American relations remains uncertain. However, leveraging our exploration and experience in the steel cord industry over the years, we are confident in seizing the opportunities brought by the 14th Five Year Plan and are well poised to meet the increasing market demand for steel cords for domestic radial tyres. We will continue to make a dedicated exploration in other businesses in order to create greater synergy, whilst adopting a multi-pronged approach to improve our core competitiveness, in hope of achieve higher returns for our shareholders and investors."

About Shougang Concord Century Holdings Limited
The Group is primarily engaged in manufacturing of steel cords for radial tyres, sawing wires and hose wires. The Group possesses two large production bases in Zhejiang Province and Shandong Province, together producing more than 200,000 tonnes of steel cords in total annually. Having been delivering products of a consistently premium quality over the years, the Group supplies products to over 20 countries worldwide and has won wide recognition from international tyres manufacturers. Listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong since April 1992, the Group has a strong shareholder base with substantial shareholders including Shougang Group Co., Ltd. (a state-owned enterprise under the direct supervision of the Beijing State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission), a Fortune 500 company, and its controlled corporations, Bekaert Group and Li Ka Shing Foundation Limited. Through its longstanding dedication to purveying premium quality steel cords and wire products, the Group aims to become one of the top three independent manufacturers of steel cord industry in China.

For more information, please visit: http://www.shougangcentury.com.hk

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