Author: Asia PEVC

Scivita Medical Raises Nearly RMB0.4 Billion in Series A Funding Round and Strives to Build A World-leading Platform for Innovative Products in Endoscope and Related Fields

Scivita Medical Technology Co., Ltd. (“civita Medical) today announced that it has raised nearly RMB0.4 Billion in Series A funding round, which has become one of the highest financing projects in the field of endoscope in China in recent years. The investment was jointly led by GL Ventures and Lilly Asia Ventures, with contribution from Matrix Partners China, Medtronic, Chengwei Capital and Shanghai Innochip Investment.

The successful completion of the Series A funding round reflects the recognition of Scivita Medical in the field of endoscope and the expectation of its future development from the capital market and industrial strategic partners. Scivita Medical will strive to build the world’s leading platform for innovative products in endoscope and related fields.

Founded by Dr. ZHANG Yi and Dr. CHEN Dong, Scivita Medical is headquartered in Suzhou Industrial Park with R&D centers in Suzhou, China, and Tokyo, Japan, focusing on the image processing R&D and technology innovation of endoscope. Scivita Medical is a high-tech enterprise engaged in the field of optical diagnosis and treatment, multidimensional images development, high-performance materials research and precision manufacturing with minimally invasive medical treatment. Scivita Medical’s product covers both flexible endoscopy and rigid endoscopy, and has unique advantages in the research and commercialization of all cutting-edge technologies in the field of medical endoscopes. It has ultra-high-definition visualization technology (such as 4K UHD visualization), 3D visualization technology, special light visualization technology (such as fluorescence visualization), ultra-fine endoscopic visualization technology, single-use technology, etc.

According to Frost & Sullivan, it is estimated that by 2024, the overall scale of the global endoscope devices market will grow to USD26.98 billion, and the Chinese endoscope market size will reach RMB42.3 billion, becoming one of the fastest growing medical device sub-industries in the world. With the popularization of minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment technology worldwide, the endoscope industry has also entered a stage of rapid development.

The endoscope industry has higher technical barriers, involving multi-disciplinary and multi-fields, which integrates medicine, optics, materials, precision machinery, electronic engineering, software development and other disciplines, and has more technical content as compared to traditional mechanical manufacturing. At present, the endoscope equipment market presents an oligopolistic situation, with international brands occupying a large market share by relying on first-mover advantages and mature technological advantages. Scivita Medical has successfully achieved breakthroughs in key areas such as optical imaging and image processing of endoscopes, breaking down the technological monopoly of international brand products.

Scivita Medical accurately grasps the clinical needs, and combines innovative technologies in multi-disciplinary fields to develop excellent Chinese products that are recognized by clinical experts worldwide.World’s first 2D to 3D ” 3D Visualization System” developed by Scivita Medical obtained NMPA certification and CE certification in July 2018, and became the first domestic 3D Visualization System approved by the U.S. FDA launched in the United States in September 2019. The “4K UHD Camera System” independently developed by Scivita Medical obtained NMPA certification in June 2019. It was launched in China as the first domestic 4K UHD camera system and obtained CE certification in July 2019. In August 2020, the “4K UHD Camera System” became the first Chinese 4K product that was certified by the U.S. FDA.

In addition, Scivita Medical has various single-use endoscopy devices with international competitiveness, many of which have entered the clinical, registration, or sales stages in China, the United States, Europe and other countries and regions, respectively. Given that endoscope industry has entered into the era of consumables, Scivita Medical will compete with international brands in the global market with its disruptive single-use technology and leading technological advantages.

Dr. ZHANG Yi, Co-founder of Scivita Medical, said: “The company’s founding management team expresses sincere gratitude to the industry’s top investment institutions and industry strategic partners for their recognition and support. In the next few years, endoscope products will fully realize the iteration from ‘HD’ to ‘Ultra HD’, and from ‘reuse’ to ‘single-use’. Relying on the world’s leading technology and strong sustainable R&D strength, and with the support from investment institutions and the continuous attention from our peers, Scivita Medical will form a platform with a comprehensive layout of innovative products in endoscope and related fields. It is committed to using domestic high-quality innovative products to replace and compete with international brand products, and striving to build a world-leading endoscope R&D brand that are rooted in China. The original intention of Scivita Medical is to solve the clinical pain points, making diagnosis and treatment safer and more effective, and help every patient and their family. Scivita Medical will make unremitting efforts for it. “

Michael Nuoqing YI, Co-Chief Investment Officer of Hillhouse and Head of Biomedicine and Medical Devices of GL ventures, said: “With the advancement of hierarchical diagnosis and treatment, the development of minimally invasive surgery and the aging population, the clinical demand for endoscope is rising rapidly and there is a huge room for domestic substitute. Scivita Medical takes a leading position at home and abroad. Its products are independently developed, which covers electronic and optical endoscopes. It has ultra-high-definition visualization technology, 3D visualization technology, special light visualization technology, ultra-fine endoscopic visualization technology and single-use technology. Hillhouse would like to have a long-term companionship with outstanding entrepreneurs like Dr. ZHANG Yi and Dr. CHEN Dong, who are innovative and with excellent management experience. Hillhouse also aims to help Scivita Medical continue to make efforts on R&D and innovation, so as to using domestic high-quality innovative products to replace international brand products, and actively participate in international competition and to benefit more patients.”

Dr. CHEN Fei, Managing partner of Lilly Asia Ventures, said: “The technical barrier of endoscope industry is very high. We are very optimistic about the strong technical experience and innovative R&D capabilities of Scivita Medical team in terms of rigid and flexible endoscopes. The 4K UHD Camera System independently developed by Scivita Medical was the first one approved by China National Medical Products Administration and FDA, and it is highly recognized by clinical experts. Leverage on its distinctive product solutions and forward-looking industrial layout, we believe Scivita Medical can become the leader in technological innovation in the field of endoscopy in China and even in the world.

Dr. Eric YU, Partner of Matrix Partners China, said: “Endoscope has a high technical barrier, and the domestic market has long been monopolized by foreign giants. Scivita Medical has strong technical strength in the next generation of 3D, ultra HD and single-use endoscopes, which have all reached or surpassed foreign giants. We look forward to the company’s further performance and clinical promotion of the products, which will bring clinical benefits to Chinese doctors and patients.

Dr. SHI Yonghui, Managing Director of the Corporate Development and Venture Capital Department (Greater China) of Medtronic, said: “It is Medtronic’s global mission to relieve pain, restore health, and extend life for patients around the world. Medtronic China has always been committed to supporting the application of innovative medical technology in the local market. Since the establishment of the Venture Capital Fund and Innovation Accelerator after 2016, it has invested in and incubated more than 10 medical technology companies. By strategically investing in Scivita Medical, we hope that both parties could carry out multi-level strategic cooperation in the field of endoscope, and finally bring prime medical solutions to thousands of Chinese patients.”

YAN Di, Vice president of Chengwei Capital, said: “The current localization rate in the endoscopy industry is less than 10%, and the demand for domestic substitution is strong. We are very pleased to see that Scivita Medical’s endoscope products can break through the monopoly of foreign technology and solve the current handicap that local products cannot enter the high-end market. It fills the gap in the high-end endoscope market. It is a domestic brand with rigid and flexible endoscopy technology. We believe that Scivita Medical will become a leader in the field of endoscope and help further development of clinical medicine.”

WANG Zhi, Partner of Shanghai Innochip Investment Management Co., Ltd., said: “We are very optimistic about the trend of ultra HD and single-use evolution of medical endoscope systems under the background of the miniaturization of CMOS image sensor chips. This trend is expected to break the monopoly situation occupied by European, American and Japanese companies, and provides Chinese companies with international vision and innovative technology capabilities, represented by Scivita Medical, with opportunities to surpass competitors within the same filed. I believe that Chinese companies will make innovative and high-quality endoscopes, which will benefit to more patients.”

Tim Da Jeweler Announces His Remarkable Custom Hats Laced With Hand Set Diamonds

Trailblazer custom Jewelry designer Tim Da Jeweler is elevating his creativity and design skills with the release of his breathtaking custom hat composed of 1,300 handset diamonds of the highest quality, paired with sparkling gold. Best known for his innovative and extraordinary approaches to creating custom jewelry, Tim is not going to disappoint as he boldly uses a generous number of diamonds in his most recent work.

“I’ve been putting my logo on hats and other accessories, and I thought what better way to brand myself than to make a diamond-encrusted hat,” he shares. “It just brings so much life and interest to the hat. I was determined to make this my next masterpiece,” he explains.

As can be expected of Tim, he takes pride in creating artistic designs with great quality without compromising the client’s budget. When it comes to pleasing his clients and meeting their expectations, he is known to go above and beyond the standard. He has been in the industry long enough to understand that nothing beats prioritizing building a lasting professional relationship with customers, getting to know them, understanding their taste, and getting to know their personal style. It is also for this reason that he can easily come up with designs that will blow their minds. At the end of the day, every piece of custom jewelry should be able to capture the essence of each client.

Tim’s eye for details is second to none. Choosing the right type of diamond, picking the right size, and choosing the ones with the right amount of shine earned him the label Shine Time, a perfect representation of his personal brand when it comes to custom jewelry. He never settles for second best but instead makes sure that his clients get their money’s worth all the time. He carefully inspects every completed project after production before it is turned over to the customer. As a result, clients become more and more confident that they are in good hands.

Prior to becoming a jewelry designer, Tim spent a considerable amount of time in the insurance industry. It was in that season in his life that he passionately searched for his real calling. On the side, he would create simple pieces of jewelry that he would sell online. Little did he know that his creations would become a sensation hit among e-commerce clients. Realizing that a door was opening for him, he grabbed the opportunity to establish his business and decided to leave the insurance industry for good.

His trendy and sophisticated design ideas are transformed into breathtaking pendants, chains, earrings, watches, rings, and grillz. Just recently, Tim upgraded his client’s custom jewelry experience as he transitioned from a virtual jeweler to one that has a physical store that clients can visit. Visiting the store is by appointment only and is limited to a small number of customers, as Tim wants to spend as much time as he can with every one of them.

Working hard to position himself as one of the most trusted jewelry designers in the industry today is something that Tim is fully focused on. As he continues to grow his brand, expand his business, and cater to more clients, he is expected to dominate the industry and make an impact unlike anyone in the past.

Learn more about Tim Da Jeweler by visiting his website. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter for updates on his latest projects.

Social Links:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/timdajeweler/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/timdajeweler

Media Contact:
Timothy Long Jr: Tim Da Jeweler
E: Sales@timdajeweler.com
Web: https://www.timdajeweler.com/

SOURCE: Tim Da Jeweler

Pertama Digital expresses interest to apply for BNM’s digital banking license, currently in talks to form dedicated consortium

Pertama Digital Berhad (PERTAMA), a Bursa Malaysia Main Market listed investment holding company in the government technology and fintech spaces, today announced its digital banking aspirations and revealed that it is currently in advanced joint venture talks to pursue the license from Bank Negara Malaysia. The application deadline is 30 June 2021.

Saify Akhtar, Director of Strategy, said: “We are motivated by and aligned with the financial inclusion emphasis in the licensing framework for digital banks published by BNM in December 2020. Pertama Digital is leading a consortium of innovators and veterans, bringing to market a homegrown solution, purpose built for those Malaysians that need us most. We have been hard at work coordinating capital, talent, technology and a captive market and are proud to announce that we have a uniquely sustainable banking model that exceeds the requirements laid out in the framework. We look forward to delivering ethical financial products to underserved Malaysians and contributing to our post-pandemic recovery as a nation.”

Pertama Digital is the holding company of DAPAT Vista (M) Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian company that specialises in digitalisation of government services. It provides solutions in mobile and web apps; mobile payment and messaging; business empowerment APIs, and other customised digital services. Dapat also operates the government SMS gateway called mySMS and owns the MyPay and eJamin apps.

“Our vantage point gives us an edge because we have a wealth of information and lessons which have resulted in a successful and repeatable system that gets digitally and financially underserved Malaysians transacting online. Our team derives the most satisfaction from seeing our solutions adopted by people who have never made an online bank transfer before, for example. This is why we have collectively decided to pledge our resources into serving this market from here on,” explained Saify.

Having started the digital court bail solution, eJamin, in early 2020, Pertama Digital now has valuable knowhow in the space of including underserved communities both digitally and financially.

“eJamin was designed after detailed consultations with the Office of the Chief Registrar of the Federal Court, court personnel across the country, banks and members of the Rakyat who have paid bail. Thanks to an innovation culture at the courts and rapidly increasing adoption of digital services across Malaysia, eJamin was implemented across all criminal courts in Malaysia 6 months ahead of schedule by mid-2020,” said Amanda Sabri, CEO of Dapat.

Pertama Digital recently announced the increase of daily transfer limits between banks to RM500,000 from the usual RM30,000, which was approved by Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) to meet the demands of the legal system, which continues to operate robustly during the pandemic. PayNet is the national payments network and shared central infrastructure for Malaysia’s financial markets, with BNM as the single largest shareholder.

“On 1 April 2021, Dapat commenced a proof-of-concept for the conversion of coins into usable funds in any Malaysian bank account,” Amanda continues.

She revealed that this POC, operated with support from Subang Parade, will lay the foundation for a new era of how the Rakyat handles cash in the near future and findings are being shared with BNM, who are keen to see efforts to recirculate coins in the economy. Early data shows strong participation from typically financially underserved demographics, like food delivery riders, who still collect high amounts of coins on a daily basis in 2021.

According to BNM, there are some RM3.5 billion worth of coins already minted and it is estimated that as much as 30% of coins issued every year end up being unused and kept idle at home.

“Pertama Digital has scheduled joint announcements with the digital banking consortium and collaborative partners, which will follow shortly,” concluded Saify.

Issued by: Sense Consultancy on behalf of Pertama Digital Berhad

For further media enquiries please contact:
Anthony Lee
Tel: +6012 338 3705
Email: anthony@leesense.com

Jaz Ng
Tel: +6012 202 0096
Email: jaz@leesense.com

UN youth envoy to open volunteer conference supporting Habitat for Humanity’s COVID-19 response

The United Nations Secretary-General’s Envoy for Youth, Jayathma Wickramanayake, will deliver the opening remarks during the “Youth from Home for Homes” virtual conference, the peak of the 2021 Habitat for Humanity Young Leaders Build campaign. Over a hundred youth from the Asia-Pacific region have registered for the event, which also marks a decade of youth volunteerism for the cause of safe, affordable housing.

“Young people are the backbone of society, and our only hope in creating a better world and a better future for all. But youth cannot do it alone. It is pivotal that young people be included as full-fledged partners in all decision and policy-making that affects their lives and futures, including SDG 11, target 1 on access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services,” said Wickramanayake.

Joining the UN youth envoy for the conference on April 24 are young leaders who will present highlights from their community-based projects in support of Habitat’s work during the pandemic. These include raising funds to build core houses in Sri Lanka and advocating for affordable housing among local government officials in the Philippines.

“Many in our community lost their jobs and livelihoods but we want to support our community and keep it healthy during the pandemic,” said Kim Claire Darugo, a Filipino volunteer. A member of Pasig 1 Community Youth Group, which is active in a neighborhood that Habitat helped build, she and her fellow volunteers are raising funds for hygiene kits to be donated to families in vulnerable situations in the Philippines.

Almost seventy volunteers from ten countries have started to implement multi-month projects under the Young Leaders Build campaign. The volunteers comprise of university students, young professionals and youth with vocations.

“We see young people negatively impacted by Covid-19 especially in the areas of education, opportunities and social contacts. In these unprecedented times of economic and social distress, I am inspired by the resilience of these 70 young leaders who have responded to the challenge to support Habitat’s vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live,” said Luis Noda, Vice-President for Asia-Pacific, Habitat for Humanity International.

Other volunteer-led projects include providing cash and in-kind assistance for families in need to repair or build safe, healthy homes and the construction of community facilities such as handwash stations, solar lighting and urban gardens. Volunteers also plan to train other youth and their families on ways to protect their household from the coronavirus, promote mental health, and facilitate learning from home.

Since 2012, more than 17 million Habitat Young Leaders Build supporters have raised almost US$9 million to help more than 33,000 families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. While the 2021 campaign peaks in April, the momentum will continue as youth groups and volunteers will continue their projects until 2022.

About Habitat for Humanity Young Leaders Build

Habitat for Humanity Young Leaders Build brings together youth from across the Asia Pacific region to support people and families in need of decent housing. Every young person volunteering, fundraising, raising awareness and adding their voices in support of affordable housing can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. The movement encourages youth to take the lead and motivate their peers to create societal changes by building homes and communities, on a Habitat build site and/or online through their social networks.

About Habitat for Humanity

Driven by the vision that everyone needs a decent place to live, Habitat for Humanity began in 1976 as a grassroots effort. The Christian housing organization has since grown to become a leading global nonprofit working in more than 70 countries. In the Asia-Pacific region since 1983, Habitat for Humanity has supported millions of people to build or improve a place they can call home. Through financial support, volunteering or adding a voice to support affordable housing, everyone can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. Through shelter, we empower. To learn more, donate or volunteer, visit habitat.org/ap.

For further information, please contact Ms. Angeli Alba-Pascual, AAlba@habitat.org, +63 920 956 3376, or Ms. Rona Azucena, RAzucena@habitat.org, +63 916 545 8310.

Register for the virtual conference on Aug 24, 11:30 a.m. SGT at https://bit.ly/YouthfromHome.

Moonstake Hosts Joint Interview with CEO of Trusted Ranking Platform Staking Rewards, Mirkos Schmiedl

To celebrate our first anniversary this April, Moonstake held a joint Q&A with Staking Rewards, the first and most trusted resource hub for staking and yield-bearing assets data.

This interview provides many valuable insights into the current state as well as the future outlook of the Proof-of-Stake market and information about Moonstake, a top-ranking staking provider on Staking Rewards.

Here, the Senior Advisor of Moonstake, Shogo Ishida, serves as the moderator. Answering the questions are Mirko Schmiedl, the CEO and Founder of Staking Rewards, and Lawrence Lin, the CEO of Moonstake. Here’s the full transcript of the interview.

Shogo: What should I watch out for in 2021 to stay on top of one of the hottest trends in staking?

Mirko: 2021 will be a year with a lot of noise. Thus even more important to pick the right news sources and content to stay on top of trends. Already seeing a lot of projects without any substance popping up everywhere. I would try to listen to people with proven track-record only. And refer to news sources that are trusted and work professionally. At Stakingrewards.com we thrive to provide a pre-vetted and independent overview of the entire staking market.

Shogo: What can we expect to see in the Proof-of-Stake market in 2021 and how to stay on top of all the hottest trends in staking?

Mirko: One of the biggest trends in 2021 is definitely staking derivatives. With the launch of Ethereum 2,0 in December last year, we have seen many solutions being developed which offer liquid staking products that can be traded on the secondary market. This trend is emerging into the multichain nature which is another big trend for 2021. There are more and more bridges and it is now possible to move wrapped staked assets across chains. Lido Finance, Stafi Protocol, and Anchor Protocol are great examples.

Shogo: What are the biggest adoption barriers for Proof-of-Stake and Staking right now and how should we solve them?

Mirko: One of the biggest barriers is still the ease of use. There are not many solutions that provide a simple user interface for multiple crypto assets. Especially across chains there needs to be more easy tooling to hold, store, and stake many assets in one interface. Another adoption barrier is the unclarity for tax treatment. I see many people hold off staking as they are afraid of the legal treatment. From the Protocol Research perspective I think we have mainly achieved consensus, that Proof-of-Stake is the go-to group of algorithms which will dominate the market besides Bitcoin. We made it! Governance is a topic that still needs a lot of attention. We are still in the very early days for that. It will be a big challenge, once networks become more decentralized. As of now this is still a long path until we will face the real challenges. Most projects are still highly centralized and the decision making process is achieved fast.

Shogo: Ethereum, the world’s #2 biggest blockchain, which originally a Proof-of-Work blockchain, has begun its development to switch to Proof-of-Stake network at the end of last year. How do you think this will impact the future of the staking market going forward?

Mirko: The launch of Ethereum 2.0 was a massive milestone for the overall blockchain space. It marked the beginning of a whole new era. Ethereum sets trends and drives innovation. Their unique approach which fosters grass roots participation and decentralization makes the network more resilient and I hope other protocols will be inspired and can learn from them. Ethereum in my view combined the Proof-of-Stake design of Early Stage projects like Peercoin, NXT, Reddcoin, etc with the later stage projects like Tezos, Cosmos, EOS. Ethereum took the best of both worlds and is also strong in layer 2 tooling, like development of sacred shared validator keys, staking derivatives etc.

Shogo: What makes a staking network unique amongst others on the market?

Mirko: A good staking network needs to have long-term aligned incentives, great security module, active governance participation, ease-to-use, accessible for everyone, low minimums, shorter lock-ups times, good tooling, great wallets, rich set of high-profile validators, rich set of grass roots validators, community engagement, good API/data access, great block explorer, simple economic design that is easy to understand, solving liquidity issues, also having raised less money is mainly a good thing for projects. That’s just to name a few points I consider extremely important for a project to stand out. You can see that all of the top-ranking staking projects are being adopted and supported by the high-profile staking providers such as Moonstake. On Staking Rewards you can find interesting patterns between the quality assets and providers.

Shogo: Recently, Moonstake has formed alliances with various blockchain projects like Centrality, Polkadot, Orbs. How does Moonstake decide on which Proof-of-Stake coin to support?

Lawrence: If you look at Moonstake’s lineup of supported assets, you can probably see the strategy behind our decision. That is, we focus on the demand of the market for that coin, how popular it is, and how large its staking volume is. And of course, we’re always open for deeper collaboration opportunities, so we also look at how the project’s vision and roadmap goals can align with our own to widen our scope of collaboration.

Shogo: Stakingrewards.com provides rankings for staking providers, DeFi platforms, exchanges, and wallets. What are some key things that the top platforms in each category have in common?

Mirko: Good and successful staking providers are amongst the best research boutiques in the industry. They choose wisely which networks to validate, thus the networks they choose are likely to have good long-term incentives in place. This makes these coins highly demanded by the community and therefore worth supporting, which I believe, like what Lawrence just said, is a strategy Moonstake is currently adopting.

DeFi platforms have to be innovative or fill a no-brainer market gap (e.g. Pancakeswap as “Uniswap on BSC”) in order to succeed. The successful platforms are driving innovation and development, while having great incentives for the community. Giving away more than 50% of tokens to the community via farming in order to bootstrap the network is more of a necessity these days.

Successful exchanges are easy-to-use, and list good projects. Again it’s important for exchanges to have a strong research arm and be close to innovation. Staking features and campaigns are becoming more and more a differentiating factor.

Shogo: Moonstake became one of the top 10 staking providers within 1 year. What was the strategy to accomplish this as a staking wallet solution for users and businesses?
Lawrence: Indeed, 2020 was an incredible first year for Moonstake. We achieved over $900 Million in staked assets and earned the trust of investors and businesses worldwide with our staking wallet as well as staking-as-a-service solutions. In just one year, we’ve become one of the top 10 biggest staking providers in the world. This is thanks to our strategy of only collaborating with the most esteemed institutions, projects, and custodians on the market while also taking active part in promoting global awareness of blockchain and staking in various educational initiatives, bringing the world of cryptocurrency and decentralized technologies to a wider audience of consumers and businesses. And with the recent launch of Muse.Finance, the Moonstake ecosystem will continue to grow from 2021 onwards, especially in the frontier of DeFi, and help accelerate the connection from staking to DeFi.

Moonstake has been proudly featured in the top 10 rankings of global staking providers on Staking Rewards since February this year. We were thrilled to have a joint interview with them and hope for potential collaboration opportunities in the future.

About Moonstake
Moonstake was recently established to develop a staking pool protocol to satisfy increasing demands in regional and global blockchain markets. Moonstake develops a staking pool protocol and provides business services through partners and companies.

Moonstake aims to be the largest staking pool network in Asia by providing an active environment for crypto asset holders. Establishing a clear partnership roadmap with Moonstake represents another significant milestone for continuing to strengthen ties with leading platforms across Asia’s burgeoning Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ecosystem. Partnership has been announced with Emurgo, Ontology and NEO to boost staking adoption, Binarystar, Japan’s biggest blockchain hub, OIO Holdings Limited (SGX: OIO), a Singapore-listed company. Industry’s reputed advisors, such as Lisk and Lawrence Lim of RAMP DEFI support Moonstake’s innovative journey.

With a full-scale operation launched in August 2020, we expanded our business and as of now, our total staking assets exceeded over USD 900 Million. https://www.moonstake.io/

About Staking Rewards
Staking Rewards is a platform of open-concourse, that provides data and guidance to minimize the risk when investing in the countless opportunities to earn passive income with cryptocurrencies. The team is curating knowledge and data to build a healthy staking and defi ecosystem. Staking Rewards is committed to lowering the access barrier to staking opportunities by presenting, comparing and benchmarking all the (Staking) Providers, who are dedicated to providing infrastructure, security, expertise and sometimes even custody or insurance for the staking assets. https://www.stakingrewards.com/

Central Global Berhad’s Proposed Private Placement Approved by Bursa Securities

Proposed private placement of up to 18 million new shares may be issued in several tranches with price-fixing dates to determine issue prices

Central Global Berhad’s (CGB) proposed private placement of up to 18 million new ordinary shares has been approved by Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad (Bursa Securities).

CGB executive chairman Dato’ Faisal Zelman

CGB is a manufacturer of specialised industrial tapes and label stocks that pioneered industrial hi-temp masking tapes manufacturing and is a one-stop solution provider for crepe paper masking. The Group’s other business is construction, where it recently won a subcontract valued at RM100.54 million to upgrade water supply infrastructure in Lahad Datu, Sabah.

A letter from Bursa Securities dated 22 April 2021 was received by TA Securities Holdings Berhad (“TA Securities”), the advisor and placement agent for CGB, informing of the approval for the listing and quotation of up to 18 million new ordinary shares to be issued pursuant to the proposed private placement.

The proposed private placement is subject to CGB and TA Securities fully complying with the relevant provisions under the Main Market Listing Requirements of the proposed private placement; that CGB and TA Securities inform Bursa Securities upon completion of the proposed private placement; that CGB furnishes Bursa Securities with a written confirmation of the Group’s compliance with the terms and conditions of Bursa Securities’ approval once the proposed private placement is completed; and, in the event the proposed private placement is not completed before the next annual general meeting (“AGM”), that CGB furnishes a certified true copy of the resolution passed by shareholders for a general mandate under Sections 75 and 76 of the Companies Act, 2016 at the Group’s forthcoming AGM.

CGB executive chairman Dato’ Faisal Zelman said, “We are glad for the approval as we have plans in the pipeline to expand our manufacturing and construction businesses. We need new machinery that is more efficient and cost-effective for our manufacturing operations and we will use part of the proceeds to fund a construction project in Pulau Pinang.”

“As we have plans beyond the immediate ones for both the manufacturing and construction businesses, we are also allocating a portion of the proceeds for future growth as well as having a portion for working capital purposes.”

For more information, please contact:
Hakim Juraimi
Tel: +60 12-318 5410
Email: h.juraimi@swanconsultancy.biz

Top African Cyber Security leaders are gathering virtually to address the region’s evolving cyber threats

World Cyber Security Summit will virtually connect the most influential voices in Africa’s cyber security space this May. Notable speakers include the likes of Daniel Adaramola – CISO, Unity Bank PLC; Themba Mnguni – Deputy Director, IT Audit, Department of Rural Development and Land Reform; Muyowa Mutemwa, Senior Cybersecurity Consultant, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); Faheem Ali – Expert Financial Inclusion, FinTech and Digital Transformations – Chief Risk Officer, Musoni & more.

Thursday, 22 April 2021: Taking place on 24 May 2021, the virtual event will focus on topics such as envisioning cyber security as a tool for a safer Africa; Digital Hijacks: Ransomware Threats Are on the Rise, Real-time threat analysis, visualization and incident response; Cyber Security framework for OT, ICS & IoT environments and much more.

Why Africa?

African governments face a rapidly evolving variety of digital challenges, ranging from espionage to critical infrastructure disruption, organised crime, and combating innovation. And, so far, most African governments’ responses have lagged behind the rapid evolution of the cyber threats that their countries face.

Lack of understanding of cyber-related matters, lack of effective supervision and issues like oversight have increased the potential for cyber violence in Africa.

Given that African countries are among the most vulnerable to cyberattacks, it is in their best interests to participate more actively in international fora that are currently forming norms for state behaviour in cyberspace.

World Cyber Security Summit – Africa will feature keynotes from thought-leaders and industry experts, private networking sessions, private video meetings and more.

“At the World Cyber Security Summit, we have hand-picked thought leaders and experts from a variety of fields to address the foremost pressing cyber security challenges confronting African governments and businesses. The event will also include technology vendors specialising in cyberspace to assist organisations in identifying threat areas and appropriate strategies to address them,” says Mithun Shetty, CEO of Trescon.

The summit will feature a ground-breaking collaboration of experts such as Humphrey Odhiambo – Head of Partnerships & Content, CIO East Africa; Hisham Mohamed Aly – Egypt CISO, Risk Division, Emirates NBD; Fene Oskawe, Director, Group IT – GRC & Strategy, IHS Towers; Confidence Staveley, Founder and Executive/Director, CyberSafe Foundation, Top 50 Women in Cyber Security Africa 2020; to name a few.

The summit will be hosted on the virtual events platform Vmeets to help participants network and conduct business in an interactive and immersive virtual environment. Participants can also engage with speakers in Q&A sessions and network with solution providers in virtual exhibition booths, private consultation rooms and private networking rooms.

About World Cyber Security Summit

World Cyber Security Summit is a thought-leadership driven, business-focused initiative that provides a platform for CISOs who are looking to explore new-age threats and the technologies/strategies to mitigate them.

To register visit – World Cyber Security Summit – Africa.

For further details, please contact:
Karthik A
Marketing Lead
marketing@tresconglobal.com

Egypt to embrace the untapped potential of AI: Major stakeholders of the industry will join virtually to discuss the Egyptian economy with AI as a backdrop

To push more digital business opportunities in Egypt’s AI industry, the country is primed to host the Egypt edition of Trescon’s flagship series – World AI Show on 31 May 2021 virtually. International AI & ML experts, top IT decision-makers will explore the potential of AI in the Egyptian economy.

AI represents a golden opportunity for Egypt. With all of the evolutions and benefits of AI, Egypt started its forward-looking steps towards AI with the target that AI composes 7.7% of its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2030.

“Egyptian government currently attaches high priority to AI. Egypt moving up 55 places in one year reflects the government’s huge efforts, the most prominent of which are adopting more modern technologies to provide Digital Egypt services,” states Amr Talaat, Minister of Information and Communication Technology (Egypt).

The conference will explore Egypt’s AI market by essentially focusing on leveraging Digital

Transformation, driving business efficiency through embedding AI strategies, overcoming organizational challenges in the wake of Covid-19, driving the growth of the startup ecosystem in Egypt; and much more.

“We generally talk about emerging technologies and how they impact society. But we have never seen a technology move as fast as AI and its impact on society and technology. In today’s world, the playing field is poised to become a lot more competitive. Businesses that don’t deploy AI and data to help them innovate will be at a huge disadvantage,” said Mithun Shetty, CEO of Trescon.

The show will be hosted on the virtual events platform Vmeets to help participants network and conduct business in an interactive and immersive virtual environment. Participants can also engage with speakers in Q&A sessions and network with solution providers in virtual exhibition booths, private consultation rooms, and private networking rooms.

The event will feature a keynote on Egypt’s National AI strategy by Dr Golestan Radwan – ICT Minister Advisor for AI, MCIT Egypt, followed by engaging keynote and panel discussions from influential AI leaders from Facebook, Samsung, Renault, among others.

– Hubert Etienne – AI Ethics research, Facebook AI, Oxford & ENS France
– Patrick Bangert – VP of AI, Samsung
– Virginie Martins – Ethical AI & SDG Expert, Member of European Union Alliance
– Broecke Stijn – AI Expert/Senior Economist – Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, France
– Laila Abdullah Al Hadhrami – Digital Transformation & Change Management Expert – Ministry of Technology & Communications MTC, Oman, Director – Oman Smart City Platform
– Seham El Behissy – GM Digital & Connected Cars, Renault
– Hisham Mohamed Aly – CISO – Risk Division, Emirates NBD
– Yasser Abdeltawab Ahmed – Head of Digital Banking, Arab Investment Bank

World AI Show – Egypt is officially sponsored by Lead Sponsors – Microsoft, DELL Technologies and Intel; AI Video Surveillance Partner – Axis Communications

To attend the show for free, register here: https://tresconglobal.com/conferences/ai/egypt/free-pass-registration

About World AI Show

World AI Show is a thought-leadership-driven, business-focused, global series of events that takes place in strategic locations across the world. It connects top AI experts, enterprises, government representatives, data scientists, technology leaders, startups, investors, researchers, academicians, and global AI innovators – to discuss the impact of AI on commercial applications and the revolutionary ways it can transform businesses and government functions.

For further details about the announcement, please contact:
Aishwarya G Bhandary
Corporate Communications Executive
marketing@tresconglobal.com

American Ultimate Disc League and Lsports Data Enter Into $3M Data Distribution and Co-Development Strategic Partnership

Stephen Crystal, Founder of SCCG Management, announced today a joint development effort between its client partner, LSports Data, and the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL).

“We are very proud to have been able to introduce these two innovative companies to each other and even more proud to be leading the sales and distribution of the data solutions that they will be co-developing. We believe that professional ultimate and the AUDL will take off as US and international bettors discover this widely played action sport,” said Crystal.

The American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), the world’s largest professional Ultimate disc league, UltiX Technology, its majority owned technology development company, and LSports Data, a global leader in the delivery of real time sports data solutions proudly announce today they have entered into a strategic data distribution and co-development agreement.

The five-year agreement, signed today by Steve Hall, CEO and Commissioner of the AUDL and Dotan Lazar, CEO of LSports Data results in LSports being designated as the “Official Data Partner of the AUDL” and grants exclusive rights to the distribution of AUDL Official Data and enhanced betting solutions to on-line and in-person betting partners on a global basis.

The agreement will also result in a joint development effort between LSports and UltiX to develop and deliver the world’s first predictive betting algorithms and AI designed specifically for the sport of Ultimate, set to be delivered for the start of the 2022 AUDL season. UltiX has built proprietary statistics collection and publishing applications and along with LSports will invest substantial engineering and product development resources to create interesting and entertaining data sets and betting solutions for the betting industry.

“A key part of our growth strategy has been based on combining our data, technology, media and gaming assets to attract new fans to our exciting, action packed sport,” commented Steve Hall, AUDL CEO and Commissioner. “We could not have found a better data partner to help us achieve this goal than we have with LSports. They are agile, focused, and innovative and share our vision for the huge entertainment value of our sport around the world.”

Dotan Lazar, CEO of LSports said, “LSports is known internationally for its real-time data solutions, including pre-match and in-play odds, bet stimulations services and more. We had been looking to partner with a fresh new sports property as we enter the North American market. With twenty-two teams, 139 live events and full control over its data and video streaming assets, the AUDL provided us with the perfect launching pad. Our partnership with SCCG Management will help us meet the demand for more exciting and high scoring team sports from betting partners in the US and around the world.”

The total value of the data rights being acquired and the engineering, product development, sales and support investments being made by the AUDL, LSports, UltiX and SCCG is $3 million USD over the five-year term of the agreement.

About AUDL and Professional Ultimate
The American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) was founded in 2012 to introduce and showcase our talented athletes and precision play to a global audience. Ultimate is a fast, flowing and highly athletic low-contact sport that is played by advancing a disc down a field to score by passing into the end zone. Players cannot run with the disc and play continues until one team scores. With pinpoint passing and the unique flight of the disc, each game generates many exciting catches and defensive plays that frequently appear on EPSN’s Sports Center Top 10, Fox Sports, Bleacher Report and other leading sports shows.

The league has 22 teams playing in the US and Canada. Each team competes in a 12-game regular season schedule, with top teams entering a playoff round and divisional winners advancing to a final four style Championship Weekend. Our audience enjoys our exciting, affordable, family friendly events, devour our highlights and video features on social media and watch our full-length games on TV or streamed online.

In 2021, the AUDL Game of the Week will appear on Fox Sports each Wednesday evening and the Championship game in Washington, DC will be featured on FS1. The Game of the Week and all regular season games will be streamed live on AUDL.tv and will be available live through streaming and broadcast partners in Europe, the Indian subcontinent, parts of Latin America and Oceana.

Website: https://theaudl.com
About LSports
LSports is a world-leading provider of real-time sports data, working with sports betting industry key clients since 2012. Dedicated to supplying highly effective control tools and data analysis, its mission is to consistently present game-changing solutions for the sports betting industry.

Powered by a unique proprietary API technology, state-of-the-art sportsbook trading management services, innovative betting stimulating services, and 24/7 comprehensive and accurate sports data feeds, LSports is the one-stop-shop for your sportsbook data.

Website: https://www.lsports.eu
About SCCG Management
SCCG Management is a consultancy that specializes in sports betting, iGaming, sports marketing, affiliate marketing, technology, intellectual property protection, product commercialization, esports, capital formation, M&A, joint ventures, casino management, and governmental and legal affairs for the casino and iGaming industry.

Website: https://sccgmanagement.com
Source; Plato Data Intelligence. https://zephyrnet.com/ (bit.ly/32zQ86Q)

Interview with Our Strategic Partner TZ Ventures for Tezos on Moonstake’s First Anniversary

This April, Moonstake celebrates our first anniversary and in this article, we’re interviewing one of our strategic partners, TZ Ventures from South Korea, with whom we’ve been working since September 2020 to accelerate industry adoption of staking within Tezos’ ecosystem.

Representing TZ Ventures is Jaywon Lee, Director of TZ Ventures, who is also the author of a best-selling IT book in Korea titled, “Path to becoming a blockchain company”.

TZ Ventures incubates early stage blockchain startups based on Tezos. They provide support to projects building on Tezos and venturing into equity financing. They mainly incubate projects on Tezos and aim to build real business use cases of blockchain technology. They run a regular program that assists startups with technical support, mentoring, marketing, partnerships, fund-raising and more. Tezos (XTZ) is one of the 11 market-demanded PoS coins currently supported by Moonstake alongside Cosmos, IRIS, Ontology, Harmony, Cardano, Qtum, Polkadot, Quras, Centrality and most recently, Orbs.

Here is the full transcript of the interview.
1. Moonstake is celebrating its 1-year anniversary. In 1 year, Moonstake has reached $900 million in total staked assets and rank #8 among global staking service providers. As a partner, what do you think about Moonstake and its achievements as a staking provider?
Congratulations. This is amazing progress! I think the key to your success is your continual commitment to being reliable/trustworthy and pursuing the highest technology.

2. What is your project about and what is its current focus?
Tezos is an advanced blockchain protocol that can avoid buggy codes. For more info, please refer to: https://tezos.com/. TZ Ventures incubates projects that build on Tezos. We assist projects with technical support, mentorships and funding introductions. TZ Ventures is especially interested in assisting DeFi, NFT and entertainment/gaming projects this year. For more info: www.tz.ventures.

3. Why did you decide to partner with Moonstake?
We are always in search of reliable and tech-savvy stakers (in Tezos terms, bakers). Moonstake satisfies both criteria. Last and this year, in particular, we witnessed a dynamic growth of DeFi and how it breathed life back to crypto. Moonstake was at the forefront of dealing with this change and was adept in making DeFi and staking exist in harmony.

4. Which areas of collaboration are you working on?
We collaborate in all fields: Staking, DeFi, R&D, meet-ups, marketing, and etc. We are always open to giving and receiving advice and technical support. We serve as “mutual mentors” for our respective organizations since no one is an expert in all blockchain fields.

5. How do you see the synergy between your project and Moonstake in the future?
Moonstake is a great partner that is sensitive to change. In this dynamic crypto environment, synergies are sure to arise when we can better prepare for the future together.

Moonstake is honored to partner with leading projects and institutions like TZ Ventures at the forefront of driving global adoption of blockchain technology. We’re working non-stop to expand our service offering for both staking and from now on, DeFi, as well as strengthen our partnership network to continue to deliver great value to both users and businesses worldwide. We would like to thank all of our partners for joining us on our quest to accelerate global adoption of staking and look forward to closer collaboration with TZ Ventures in the future to further promote adoption of XTZ staking.

About Moonstake
Moonstake was recently established to develop a staking pool protocol to satisfy increasing demands in regional and global blockchain markets. Moonstake develops a staking pool protocol and provides business services through partners and companies.

Moonstake aims to be the largest staking pool network in Asia by providing an active environment for crypto asset holders. Establishing a clear partnership roadmap with Moonstake represents another significant milestone for continuing to strengthen ties with leading platforms across Asia’s burgeoning Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ecosystem. Partnership has been announced with Emurgo, Ontology and NEO to boost staking adoption, Binarystar, Japan’s biggest blockchain hub, OIO Holdings Limited (SGX: OIO), a Singapore-listed company. Industry’s reputed advisors, such as Lisk and Lawrence Lim of RAMP DEFI support Moonstake’s innovative journey.

With a full-scale operation launched in August 2020, we expanded our business and as of now, our total staking assets exceeded over USD 900 Million. https://www.moonstake.io/

About TZ Ventures
TZ Ventures incubates early stage blockchain startups on Tezos. They provide support to projects building on Tezos and venturing into equity financing in Southeast Asia. They mainly incubate projects on Tezos and aim to build real business use cases of blockchain technology. They run a regular program that assists startups with technical support, mentoring, marketing, partnerships, fund-raising and more. https://www.tz.ventures/