G20 members have urged the World Bank to immediately prepare for the establishment of the Financial Intermediary Fund (FIF), Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati stated. FIF should be formed immediately in the framework of pandemic preparedness and response (PPR) in the future, the minister emphasized.
Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati met with World Bank Group President David Malpass at the G20’s second meeting of the FMCBG in Washington D.C on Wednesday (April 20, 2022). Minister Indrawati and President Malpass discussed structural reforms and other steps toward a sustainable post-pandemic recovery.
“The (G20) presidency concluded that the World Bank should start exploring the process for developing and establishing FIF,” Indrawati remarked at the second meeting of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Banks Governors (FMCBG) press conference here on Thursday.
G20 members view FIF as being the most effective choice for new financial mechanisms, especially in preparing for other potential pandemics in future. Indrawati believes this is because the establishment of FIF is viewed as being able to overcome the financing gap in the health sector as had occurred during the current COVID-19 pandemic.
“Most (G20) members agree on the need for a new financial mechanism dedicated to addressing the financing gap in PPR,” she stated, explaining that G20 members hope that the establishment of FIF would mitigate the health financing needs in line with the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) expectations.
Moreover, G20 members called on the World Bank to explore discussions on the governance and operational regulations of FIF by involving the WHO. “There is widespread support for WHO and the World Bank regarding the assessment of significant financing gaps that need to be addressed,” Indrawati remarked.
Earlier, on April 1, the Indonesian finance and health ministries resumed the third G20 Joint Finance and Health Task Force (JFHTF). At the meeting, JFHTF co-chair Wempi Saputra invited G20 member countries to draw up a financing action plan for pandemic preparedness and response (PPR).
“The third JFHTF meeting is an important step for all member countries in drafting the financing strategies for prevention, preparedness, and response to the pandemic or PPR,” Saputra stated.
Meanwhile, one of the main agendas of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency is global health architecture.
Written by Astrid H, Kenzu T, Editor: Suharto (c) ANTARA 2022
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
TechCreate Solutions Private Limited (“TechCreate”), a Singapore-based technology services group specialising in innovative digital payment and digitalisation solutions, and Diginius Pte. Ltd. (“Diginius”), a provider for IT security and infrastructure solutions, are pleased to announce a merger between both companies via a share swap transaction that will value the enlarged fintech enterprise, TechCreate Group, at USD$30 million, based on a valuation that was recently completed by one of the Big 4 accounting firms.
From left: Mr Lim Heng Hai, (Group CEO of TechCreate Group) and Mr Ronald Vong, (Managing Partner of TechCreate Group)
As a trusted leader in digital solutions, TechCreate has been at the forefront of technology innovation and since its establishment, it has developed its own proprietary Real-Time Payment Engine (RTE) that can further enhance the payment capabilities of financial and banking institutions. Leveraging its technological expertise, legal experience and extensive operational track record, TechCreate has successfully enabled end-to-end digital solutions (such as payment gateways, API gateways and blockchain solutions, among others) for several banking and financial institutions in Asia.
With Diginius’ strengths in intelligence and security for concrete cyber resilience, it has built a growing track record with a focus on delivering technology solutions related to cyber security, hyper-converged IT infrastructure and secure application services. Diginius also works with some of the industry’s indisputable experts in cyber security and secured infrastructure services, combined with market-leading technologies to provide a springboard for the next phase of digital transformation.
The current CEO of TechCreate, Mr Lim Heng Hai, will be appointed as the Group CEO of TechCreate Group, while the current CEO of Diginius, Mr Ronald Vong, will be designated as the Managing Partner of TechCreate Group.
Strategic Rationale – Powering the Future of Payments in Asia
According to a Mckinsey report issued on November 2020, Asia has outpaced all other regions in terms of payments-revenue growth over the past several years. The region is also the largest contributor to global payments revenue, generating over US$900 billion in 2019, nearly half the global total. The Asia’s payments industry is expected to return to mid-to-high single-digit growth rates and, by 2022 or 2023, generating more than US$1 trillion in annual revenue.
Notably, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated Asia’s payments megatrends and chief among these was the rapidly expanding number of connected and digitally active consumers, with booming e-commerce markets reinforcing the need for digital solutions. The competitive landscape was simultaneously heating up, with the entry of formidable new players–including telecommunications firms, fintechs, “big techs,” and other conglomerates–spurring incumbents to step up their own innovation efforts.
Meanwhile, regulators sought to standardise infrastructure while encouraging competition, fostering the introduction of real-time payments, digital know your customer (KYC), and various local payment schemes.
With a focus on powering the future of payments in Asia, TechCreate Group aims to provide cutting-edge innovation and technology capability to enhance value creation for its customers as follows:
– Expanded business scale with integrated solutions: Having the capabilities to provide more comprehensive and integrated technology solutions related to payment and digitalisation platforms to serve new and existing customers across Asia.
– Strong potential to create new customer value propositions: Ability to broaden its reach and serve diverse customer segments with differentiated requirements and objectives, thereby creating the opportunity and potential to develop proprietary insights and innovative solutions that are aligned with the new trends of payments and digitalisation in Asia.
Commenting on the merger, Mr Lim Heng Hai, Group CEO of TechCreate Group, said, “This is a transformational transaction for both companies, creating an enlarged company with end-to-end digital payment offerings in high-growth verticals as economies in Asia accelerate their digitisation roadmap.
With our combined capabilities, it amplifies our mission be a leading innovative, customer-centric and eco-friendly technology solution provider in Asia.”
Mr Ronald Vong, Managing Partner of TechCreate Group, added, “We are confident that the strengths of the combined company will enable meaningful growth to stakeholders, delivering new value and insights to better serve our markets and customers.
At the same time, it can accelerate our growth and more effectively capitalise on our pipeline and broader market opportunities within the banking and financial industries in Asia.”
GWP surpassed RMB20 billion for the first time, up 21.9% yoy
Achieved underwriting profit for the first time, profit attributable to owners of the parent surged by 110.3% yoy
Technology export revenue increased by 42% yoy, powering digitalization across global insurance industry
ZhongAn Online P & C Insurance Co. Ltd. (ZhongAn Online or ZhongAn or the Company, HKG: 6060) released its audited annual report for the year ended December 31, 2021 (the reporting period). The Company leveraged its strengths in insurance technology and rich resources connected through its ecosystems to further promote insurance inclusion. The Company provided insurance services for more than 500 million users with a caring hand, the number of customers receiving claim payment reached 129 million in 2021.
Adhering to the strategy of “sustainable growth with quality” and technology-driven cost reduction and efficiency improvement, the Company printed solid numbers in 2021. Gross written premium (GWP) reached RMB20.37 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 21.9%. Combined ratio improved to 99.6%, marked the first underwriting profitable fiscal year in its history. Net profit attributable to owners of the parent reached RMB1.16 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 110.3%, on the back of increased operational efficiency and robust growth of investment income.
Under the dual-engine growth strategy of “Insurance + Technology”, ZhongAn exported its insurance technology capability and advanced Insuretech know-how to insurers and brokers, to fuel the digitalization in the insurance industry worldwide. During the reporting period, ZhongAn’s technology export revenue reached RMB520 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 42%, and served 109 customers in the insurance industry.
Insurance segment – health ecosystem and digital lifestyle ecosystem remain top contributors with favorable channel mix shift
The health ecosystem recorded RMB7.69 billion in GWP, representing a year-on-year increase of 16%. The Company provided health protection to approximately 25.86 million insured customers in 2021, the number of paying users of individual health insurance reached 18 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 30%.
To achieve such performance, ZhongAn upheld to its philosophy of health inclusion. ZhongAn upgraded its flagship product, Personal Clinic Policy series, incorporating over 30 special rare disease drugs for the youth and launched exclusive medical protection plans for different customer groups such as chronic patients, women and the elderly. The latest version of Personal Clinic Policy also came with more value-added services including cancer screening, Internet hospital, traditional Chinese Medicine and so on.
The Company is committed to provide one-stop “insurance coverage + medical services” experience for users by expanding products and services from required medical scenarios such as in-patient and critical illness, to cover the daily needs of outpatient and emergency, critical illness follow-up treatment, chronic disease treatment, rehabilitation management, optional surgery and other scenarios.
The digital lifestyle ecosystem recorded GWP of RMB7.29 billion in 2021, representing a year-on-year increase of 16%. As new consumption scenarios evolved, ZhongAn actively explore and launch innovative products by leveraging its resources of over 300 strategic ecosystem partners and its cutting-edge technology to solve customers’ pain-points in their daily digital life.
Riding the wave of e-commerce 2.0, ZhongAn launched a new version of shipping return policy customized for livestreaming e-commerce platforms such as TikTok and Kuai, and the premium contributed by livestreaming e-commerce channels accounted for more than 20% of the overall shipping return policy in 2021.
Meanwhile, the innovative products featured by pet insurance and phone screen cracking insurance also saw strong growth in 2021. Relying on the layout of pet O2O ecosystem, the annualized premium of pet insurance has exceeded RMB100 million, representing a year-on-year increase of over 250% and its market share was among the top in mainland China. Powered by its optical character recognition, the Company’s phone screen cracking insurance grew by over 65% and remained the top-tier insurers for such product.
Among total GWP from digital lifestyle ecosystem, the premium income from innovative business represented by pet insurance, phone screen cracking insurance and Personal Accident Policy accounted for 19% in 2021, representing a year-on-year increase of 29%.
Moreover, in 2021 ZhongAn continued to build its brand and proprietary channels. In 2021, the premium from proprietary channels amounted to RMB3.6 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 66.4%. The Company was pleasant to see such favorable channel mix shift, with proprietary channel contributing over 18% of GWP in 2021. The per capita premium contribution of proprietary channels reached RMB506, representing a year-on-year increase of 20% thanks to robust renewal rate and cross-selling efforts in proprietary channels.
Technology segment – facilitating the digital transformation of the global insurance industry
As a leading insurance technology company, ZhongAn continued to explore cutting-edge technology fields such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, big data and life sciences technology, and utilized technology to reshape the entire insurance value chain. Last year, the Company’s R&D investment reached RMB1.13 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 24.5%, accounting for 5.5% of the total GWP. There were 1,836 engineers and technicians, accounting for 48% of all employees.
ZhongAn promoted refined operation with Insurtech, enhancing user experience constantly. The cloud-based distributed core system “Wujieshan” helped ZhongAn to issue 7.7 billion insurance policies in 2021, and the number of customers receiving claim payment for the year reached 129 million. Enabled by its technology, the online claim settlement rate exceeds 95%.
At the same time, ZhongAn also helped insurers worldwide with their digital transformation by exporting modular Insuretech products. In 2021, the technology export revenue reached RMB520 million , representing a year-on-year increase of 42%, with the proportion of recurring revenue reaching 48%. ZhongAn served 109 customers in the insurance industry last year, a year-on-year increase of 34 new accounts.
In terms of overseas development, ZhongAn Technology has further expanded its business territory to Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia to Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines and Europe, by working with insurance companies like AIA, Muang Thai Life, and PFI Mega Life.
ZA Bank, a pioneering advocate of virtual banking in Hong Kong with a one-stop digital financial service platform also made pleasant progress in 2021. Within two years, the number of customers exceeded 500,000, the deposit balance as of Dec 2021 reached HK$7 billion, and the loan balance quadrupled year-on-year to HK$2.5 billion.
In the future, ZhongAn will continue to focus on the needs of users, leverage technological strength to drive innovation, build and improve the ZhongAn brand in the eyes of users, constantly practice insurance inclusion and create long-term value.
About ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance Co Ltd (Stock Code:6060.HK) ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance Co., Ltd. is a leading online-only InsureTech company in China. Founded in October 2013, the Company adopts an ecosystem-oriented approach and focuses on customers’ lives on the Internet, meeting customers’ diversified protection needs and creating value for them through ecosystem partners and its proprietary platform. ZhongAn Online seamlessly integrates technology across its insurance business, and now exports its technology to help other companies accelerate their growth. On 28 September 2017, ZhongAn Online became the first Fintech company listed on the HKEx (Ticker: 6060) and since 2018, the Company started expanding its Fintech and InsureTech solutions to various international markets.
For further information, please contact: ZhongAn Online IR Team Email: ir@zhongan.com
NextPlay Technologies, Inc.(Nasdaq: NXTP), announced that NextBank International, the international banking unit of its fintech division, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Alphabit Consulting Pte. Ltd., to provide deposit accounts and payment cards for members of its ABCC cryptocurrency exchange.
The NextBank accounts will maintain ABCC users’ fiat (government issued) cash balances, permitting them to trade between fiat currency and cryptocurrency on ABCC exchange. Account holders will also be able to apply for payment cards that would allow them to make payments secured by their cryptocurrency balances.
Alphabit has built a broad global user base with ABCC. As a Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange operator, Alphabit has submitted a license application under the Payment Service Act 2019 to provide account issuance services and digital payment token services as it continues to operate under a license exemption.
“ABCC is an exceptionally well-managed and fast-growing crypto exchange, making them the perfect partner to launch payment cards with,” stated Todd Bonner, chairman of NextPlay Technologies and head of the company’s fintech division. “We expect the regulatory licenses will further support trader and investor confidence, and further accelerate the growth of the ABCC platform. This new partnership also advances our efforts to expand the capabilities of our fintech division through the offering of products and services that appeal to companies within the digital asset industry.”
According to ABCC president, Calvin Ng: “We have teamed with NextBank to provide these financial services due to their highly experienced and capable management, as well as their positioning in the international online banking marketplace. We see this as just the beginning of a long-term partnership, as we together deliver increasing value and convenience to our ABCC members.”
The new joint offering from ABCC and NextBank is expected to benefit from the rapidly growing global financial technology market, which is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 25% from 2022 to approximately US$324 billion by 2026, according to a Market Data Forecast.
About Alphabit and ABCC Based in Singapore, Alphabit Consulting Pte. Ltd. operates the ABCC cryptocurrency exchange. ABCC is a leading crypto exchange that is exploring the future development of cryptocurrency projects for global users. It is working to create a world where cryptocurrency co-exists with traditional financial markets through robust Know-Your-Customers (KYC) processes. By engaging with reputable vendors, it seeks to deliver RegTech solutions that create a safe platform for its ABCC members. To learn more, visit abcc.com.
About NextPlay Technologies NextPlay Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXTP) is a technology solutions company offering games, in-game advertising, crypto-banking, connected TV and travel booking services to consumers and corporations within a growing worldwide digital ecosystem. NextPlay’s engaging products and services utilize innovative AdTech, Artificial Intelligence and Fintech solutions to leverage the strengths and channels of its existing and acquired technologies. For more information about NextPlay Technologies, visit www.nextplaytechnologies.com and follow us on Twitter @NextPlayTech and LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of, and within the safe harbor provided by the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements give our current expectations, opinions, belief or forecasts of future events and performance. A statement identified by the use of forward-looking words including “will,” “may,” “expects,” “intends,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimate,” “should,” and certain of the other foregoing statements may be deemed forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual future activities and results to be materially different from those suggested or described in this news release. Factors that may cause such a difference include risks and uncertainties including, and not limited to, our need for additional capital which may not be available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all, which raises questions about our ability to continue as a going concern; the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had, and is expected to continue to have, a significant material adverse impact on the travel industry and our business, operating results and liquidity; current regulation governing digital currency activity is often unclear and is evolving; the future development and growth of digital currencies are subject to a variety of factors that are difficult to predict and evaluate, many of which are out of our control; the value of digital currency is volatile; amounts owed to us by third parties which may not be paid timely, if at all; certain amounts we owe under outstanding indebtedness which are secured by substantially all of our assets and penalties we may incur in connection therewith; the fact that we have significant indebtedness, which could adversely affect our business and financial condition; our revenues and results of operations being subject to the ability of our distributors and partners to integrate our alternative lodging rental (ALR) properties with their websites, and the timing of such integrations; uncertainty and illiquidity in credit and capital markets which may impair our ability to obtain credit and financing on acceptable terms and may adversely affect the financial strength of our business partners; the officers and directors of the Company have the ability to exercise significant influence over the Company; stockholders may be diluted significantly through our efforts to obtain financing, satisfy obligations and complete acquisitions through the issuance of additional shares of our common or preferred stock; if we are unable to adapt to changes in technology, our business could be harmed; our travel business depends substantially on property owners and managers renewing their listings; if we do not adequately protect our intellectual property, our ability to compete could be impaired; our long-term success depends, in part, on our ability to expand our property owner, manager and traveler bases outside of the United States and, as a result, our business is susceptible to risks associated with international operations; unfavorable changes in, or interpretations of, government regulations or taxation of the evolving ALR, Internet and e-commerce industries which could harm our operating results; risks associated with the operations of, the business of, and the regulation of, Longroot and NextBank International (formerly IFEB); the market in which we participate being highly competitive, and because of that we may be unable to compete successfully with our current or future competitors; our potential inability to adapt to changes in technology, which could harm our business; the volatility of our stock price; the fact that we may be subject to liability for the activities of our property owners and managers, which could harm our reputation and increase our operating costs; and that we have incurred significant losses to date and require additional capital which may not be available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. More information about the risks and uncertainties faced by NextPlay are detailed from time to time in NextPlay’s periodic reports filed with the SEC, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, under the headings “Risk Factors”. These reports are available at www.sec.gov. Other unknown or unpredictable factors also could have material adverse effects on the Company’s future results and/or could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made only as of the date hereof. The Company takes no obligation to update or correct its own forward-looking statements, except as required by law, or those prepared by third parties that are not paid for by the Company. If we update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.
SOURCE: NextPlay Technologies, Inc.
Company Contacts: NextPlay Technologies, Inc. Richard Marshall Director of Corporate Development Tel: (954) 888-9779 Email: richard.marshall@nextplaytechnologies.com
Alphabit Consulting Pte. Ltd Alan Li Chief Executive Officer Email: alan.li@abcc.global
Singapore mainboard listed Silverlake Axis Ltd. (SGX:5CP) (SAL or the Group), the ASEAN market leader in core banking software, today, announced an expansion to the partnership with Silkbank Limited (Silkbank), a leading commercial and Islamic bank in Pakistan. Through the latest agreement, Silkbank will upgrade its card management suite to use Silverlake Axis’s latest platform, Silverlake Symmetri OmniCard V6.
OmniCard is an internationally certified card management system that allows banks to run flexible and secure operations including issuing and acquiring of all types of credit, debit and prepaid cards, ATM management, 3D secure e-commerce transaction processing, management of fraud, disputes, and cardholder’s loyalty. This latest move further strengthens Silverlake Axis’s leadership position within Pakistan’s credit card market, where it currently commands over 80 percent market share. It also allows Pakistan’s and the region’s banks to tap into Silverlake’s award winning technologies to grow their card footprint, and in the process, better cater to their customers.
Gyorgy Ladics, CEO Silverlake Symmetri, commented: “We are immensely proud of the deep and long-standing partnership we have forged with Silkbank. Moreover, Pakistan continues to establish itself as a fast-growing market with huge potential for building its credit card market and we are very optimistic about its growth. To that extent, the trust Silkbank has placed in us is a true honor, and as we continue this exciting journey together, we are confident that this trust will see strong returns.”
Nabeel Malik, Executive Director – Strategy Implementation & Ops/Admin/IT/CSQ at Silkbank, commented: “Silverlake has been a trusted partner to Silkbank for 9 years. The in-depth experience, system understanding, and professionalism of Silverlake team has been invaluable to us. As we continue to transform and advance the banking landscape in Pakistan, their partnership and vast expertise will be a key factor in us growing with confidence.”
With over 30 years of experience and a breadth of expertise across industries, Silverlake Axis creates technologies to empower businesses in the digital economy, transforming industries like banking, insurance, retail, and logistics. Silverlake Symmetri OmniCard is a universal card and payment management system, designed to help both acquiring and issuing institutions to run efficient, secure and profitable operations. With Silverlake Symmetri OmniCard, banks can reduce time to market for new card products while at the same time offer excellent service to drive loyalty across the customer base. The solution also enables them to cross-sell and up-sell, while reducing fraud and risk, and ensuring regulatory compliance.
“With Silverlake Axis already issuing 80% of cards in the market, Silkbank’s partnership to deploy our credit card solutions only solidifies our leadership position in Pakistan. However, it’s only one step in our growth plan. We are seeing strong opportunities across the MENA, South and Southeast Asia regions with our Islamic and retail banking partners as well,” added Ladics.
About Silverlake Axis Silverlake Axis Ltd. (“SAL”) is a leading enterprise technology, software and services company focused on financial services and serves 40% of the top 20 largest banks in South East Asia. Founded in 1989, SAL has an impeccable track record of successful delivery of innovative and transformative solutions to its enterprise customers and their ecosystems. The Group has more than 380 enterprise customers in over 80 countries across Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa and the Americas.
Under Axis Systems Holdings Limited, SAL was listed on the SGX-SESDAQ on 12 March 2003. It was renamed Silverlake Axis Ltd in 2006 and the listing was transferred to the Mainboard of the Singapore Exchange on 22 June 2011. For more information about SAL, please visit www.silverlakeaxis.com.
Trintech Adra expands its partnership with Microsoft by announcing its newest integration into Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.
Trintech, a leading global provider of integrated Record to Report software solutions for the Office of Finance, expands its partnership with Microsoft by announcing its newest integration into Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. This expanded partnership makes Trintech’s Adra Suite the only financial close solution with a certified Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Connector and builds upon its already existing portfolio of Microsoft Connectors to support any Microsoft Dynamics customer regardless of version, past or present and on-premise or in the cloud.
With Microsoft playing a central operations role for thousands of companies, older versions of AX, Navision (NAV), Solomon, and Great Plains remain the daily lifeblood of these companies. Trintech integrates into every Dynamics version to enable current operations, while also providing for the future as organization’s migrate to newer Dynamics platforms.
“We are excited to announce our expanded partnership with Microsoft with the addition of our certified Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central connector,” said Darren Heffernan, President, Mid-Market at Trintech. “This additional integration builds upon our previous integration into Microsoft Dynamics 365 F&O and now positions our Adra Suite as the ‘go to’ financial close solution for Microsoft Dynamics customers. This partnership will provide customers with one seamless experience that will increase efficiency and accuracy while simultaneously reducing the cost and risk across their financial close process.”
Just a few of the many benefits finance & accounting departments will gain include:
Visibility across all tasks in the financial close process
Control and automation of reconciliations
Shortened close cycle through efficiency gains
Automated notifications of balance changes throughout the close
Reduction in write-offs
Currently deployed by over 1,800 clients across the globe, the Adra Suite provides cloud-based, financial close and reconciliation solutions for companies looking to quickly increase the efficiency, control and visibility for all key areas of the financial close process including: balance sheet reconciliations (Adra Balancer), transaction matching (Adra Matcher), financial task management and controls (Adra Task Manager), and reporting (Adra Analytics).
Learn more about Trintech’s integrations into Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.
About Trintech Trintech Inc., a pioneer of Financial Corporate Performance Management (FCPM) software, 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 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, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and the Nordics, as well as strategic partners in South Africa, Latin America and the Asia Pacific. To learn more about Trintech, visit www.trintech.com or connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.
Demonstrating organizational agility, leadership transformation and a high level of employee engagement, DBS and Hilti have been named as 2021 Best Employers in Hong Kong, according to Kincentric’s premium assessment that identifies organisations who demonstrate outstanding people practices and workplace excellence.
Employee Engagement, Organisational Agility, Engaging Leadership and Talent Focus were the key attributes assessed. Kincentric identifies Best Employers that are in the Top Quartile and research shows that excelling across these four areas leads to better business results.
According to Kincentric’s insights, the Hong Kong’s Best Employers are 24%* stronger on Employee Engagement, 26%* better on Organisational Agility, 19%* committed on Engaging Leadership and 27%* focussed on Talent. This clearly demonstrates a high level of decisive and agile people centric business decisions that these organisations have had to take through the pandemic.
Stephen Hickey, Regional Leader for APAC at Kincentric said, “We are in the midst of a talent evolution that’s shaping the future of work. Kincentric’s Hong Kong Best Employers have demonstrated excellence in the workplace, by creating differentiated employee experiences and agile, inclusive cultures leading to stronger, more sustainable business results.”
According to Kincentric employee research data, only 5 in 10 employees feel their organization is attracting or retaining the people they need to achieve business goals; 11 percentage point declines in favourable perceptions of senior leaders demonstrating care and concern for employees; and only 55% of employees seeing strong career development opportunities for high performers.
Globally there is increased talent mobility, greater difficulty for organisations to attract and retain the talent they need, challenges in giving people the work / life balance they desire, and many leaders struggling to paint a clear vision for the future of their company that is inspiring, engaging and motivating. Given the present challenges around talent retention, employees who do not see good career opportunities and organization’s response to their well-being are four times more likely to leave.
The Kincentric Best Employers 2021 marks 21 years of the Best Employers program. The brand has evolved since starting as Hewitt Best Employers, becoming Aon Hewitt Best Employers to Aon Best Employers and since 2019 to Kincentric Best Employers.
* Indicates % higher than their peers
About Kincentric
Kincentric, a Spencer Stuart company, helps organisations unlock the power of people and teams to ignite change and drive better business results. With decades of experience and specialist expertise in areas such as culture, employee engagement, leadership assessment and development, HR and talent advisory, and diversity, equity and inclusion, we use data-driven insights to architect solutions that add value, enhance agility and increase organizational effectiveness. For more information, visit kincentric.com.
Igloo signs key partnership with Pine Labs to offer affordable Phone Screen Protection and Mobile 360 protection to its platform users
Newly-appointed industry veteran, Amitabh Singh, to lead growth in Malaysia
Igloo to expand team in Malaysia, making key hires across Business Development, Operations, Customer Service & Sales Management
Regional insurtech firm Igloo today announced a new partnership with digital payments service provider, Pine Labs, marking the extension of its regional footprint in Malaysia. Pine Labs is currently used by over 246,000 merchants in 3700 cities and towns across India and Malaysia. The partnership comes on the heels of its appointment of Amitabh Singh as Country Manager, Malaysia.
Through the partnership, Pine Labs will offer shoppers hassle-free and easy mobile phone protection solutions under the IglooCare Program. Mobile Phone 360 and Phone Screen Protection are currently available on Pine Labs’ platform. The protection covers both repair and replacement of the gadget by up to 100% of the gadget retail price, offered through Igloo’s dedicated nationwide IglooCare repair and service network in Malaysia.
Meanwhile, as part of Igloo’s plan to extend its presence in Malaysia, the company appointedAmitabh Singh, as Country Manager for Igloo, Malaysia. He will be responsible for Igloo’s overall country operations across business development, partnerships, marketing and operations. With nearly two decades of experience in financial services, he has held several leadership roles across Southeast Asia.
In addition, Igloo is expanding its team in Malaysia and making key hires across Business Development, Operations, Customer service & Sales management.
According to Amitabh, the partnership marks a significant milestone in Igloo’s expansion in Malaysia. “We are happy to partner with Pine Labs to offer our best-in-class IglooCare phone protection solutions. Igloo aims to work with more local partners to provide protection platform solutions that are easy to purchase, affordable, and directly impact consumers’ daily lives. These lifestyle-focused solutions allow consumers to experience minimal disruption and financial loss to their daily lives – across multiple categories including Electronics & Durables, Health Benefits products, Lifestyle coverage and SME solutions – all of which are enabled through our technology platform,” he added.
“Pine Labs has been at the forefront of technology in the payments solutions space across India and Southeast Asia. In Malaysia we are expanding our footprint rapidly by entering into strategic alliances with leading banks and retail brands. We are very happy to be partnering with technology platform like Igloo to enable us to expand protection offerings to our merchants. At Pine Labs, we are always striving to get the best products and services for our merchant partners and we find Igloo provides us the best platform in terms of options and roll out flexibility,” said Chayan Hazra, Head of Payment Business – APAC for Pine Labs.
This year, Igloo has established over 30 key partnerships in diverse industries to make protection products more accessible across the region. In July, the insurtech company partnered with regional leading food delivery platformfoodpanda Singapore to launch protection solutions for gig economy workers. In September, Igloo successfully launched partnerships with leading e-Wallet platforms in the PhilippinesGCash andDANA in Indonesia to provide online shopping protection (PH) and phone screen protection (ID) respectively. Last month, Igloo partnered its first Digital Health brand, HD, to provide health-related micro-insurance products via the HDmall healthcare marketplace platform in Thailand. The company also boasts several award wins this year, namely “Most Innovative InsurTech Company”, “2021 Inclusive Fintech 50” and “Insurtech Initiative of the Year – Singapore”.
About Igloo Igloo, previously known as “Axinan”, is the first full-stack insurtech firm to emerge from Singapore. It has offices in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam, and tech centres are located in China. With a mission of making insurance accessible for all, the firm leverages big data, real-time risk assessment, and end-to-end automated claims management to create B2B2C insurance solutions for platform companies and insurance companies. Igloo’s insurance solutions enable companies to eliminate their exposure to operational risk, create new revenue streams, and optimize and enhance existing products and services. In April 2020, Igloo successfully closed its Series A+ funding round worth US$8.2 million, bringing its total funding to US$16 million from global investors.
Igloo is led by a core team that comprises top talent from the technology and insurance industries hailing from global corporations including Facebook, Grab, Flipkart, Garena, Manulife, Shopee, Yahoo! and Zalora. For more information, please visit https://www.iglooinsure.com
About Pine Labs A leading merchant commerce platform, Pine Labs serves prominent large, mid-sized and small merchants across India and Southeast Asia. The company’s unique cloud-based platform enables it to offer a wide range of payment acceptance and merchant commerce solutions including enterprise automation systems such as inventory management and customer relationship management. Its stored value platform includes issuing, processing, and distributing digital gift cards for corporate customers around the world. In April 2021, Pine Labs acquired Fave, a consumer fintech platform that provides a smart payment app to the smart generation of consumers looking to pay and save. Fave is currently operational in 35 cities across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia and is also available in India. Incorporated in Singapore, Pine Labs’ key investors include Sequoia India, Actis Capital, Temasek, PayPal and Mastercard. To know more, please visit www.pinelabs.my
DBS and Olam International Limited have been named as Regional Best Employers in 2021 for the Asia Pacific region, according to Kincentric’s premium assessment that identifies organisations who demonstrate outstanding people practices and workplace excellence.
DHL Express (Middle East), The Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company and Intact Financial Corporation (North America) and Marriott Vacations Worldwide (Europe) are among the other regional Kincentric Best Employers, after getting recognized in multiple markets.
Among the Regional Best Employers in APAC, DBS has been recognised as a Best Employer across China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, UK and USA. Olam International Limited has been identified as a Best Employer across Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and China.
Kincentric Best Employers assessment looks at organisational excellence across critical people factors – employee engagement, organisational agility, engaging leadership and talent focus – leveraging the most objective measure possible – employee opinion. It identifies firms that demonstrate excellence in the workplace, by creating differentiated employee experiences and agile, inclusive cultures leading to stronger, more sustainable business results.
Stephen Hickey, Regional Leader for APAC at Kincentric said, “We are in the midst of a talent evolution that’s shaping the future of work. Kincentric’s Regional Best Employers have worked towards achieving greater Employee Engagement, Organisational Agility, Talent Focus and Engaging Leadership. Research shows that they are differentiating through people practices, retaining key talent and leadership transformation.”
According to Kincentric employee research data, only 5 in 10 employees feel their organization is attracting or retaining the people they need to achieve business goals; 11 percentage point declines in favourable perceptions of senior leaders demonstrating care and concern for employees; and only 55% of employees seeing strong career development opportunities for high performers.
Globally there is increased talent mobility, greater difficulty for organisations to attract and retain the talent they need, challenges in giving people the work / life balance they desire, and many leaders struggling to paint a clear vision for the future of their company that is inspiring, engaging and motivating. Given the present challenges around talent retention, employees who do not see good career opportunities and organization’s response to their well-being are four times more likely to leave.
The Kincentric Best Employers 2021 marks 21 years of the Best Employers program. The brand has evolved since starting as Hewitt Best Employers, becoming Aon Hewitt Best Employers to Aon Best Employers and since 2019 to Kincentric Best Employers.
