PubMatic Introduces Unified Self-service Advertising Platform For Commerce Media

KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 (Bernama) -- PubMatic, an independent technology company delivering digital advertising’s supply chain of the future, has launched Convert, a unified self-service advertising platform for commerce media.

Built on PubMatic's global cloud infrastructure, Convert is tailored for commerce media networks and their advertisers, enabling both onsite and offsite monetisation, including sponsored listing ads and connected TV (CTV).

According to PubMatic in a statement, Convert helps commerce media networks leverage their valuable first-party data for audience extension at scale across the open internet.

“Data access, monetisation, and control are critical for commerce media networks and their advertisers, and PubMatic has a strong history of leadership and innovation in these areas.

“By making substantial investments in developing customised technology with Convert, we are confident in our ability to continue to drive increased value for our customers,” said PubMatic Vice President of Addressability and Commerce Media, Peter Barry.

Leading industry brands, retailers, and advertisers such as IPG Mediabrands, Coles 360, dentsu, Lyft Media, MiQ and Wallapop have joined PubMatic as partners in the development and announcement of its commerce media platform.

The new offering is built for both traditional retailers as well as a wide variety of transaction-based businesses such as transportation or food delivery providers, travel companies, or any scaled Internet company that processes transactions.

Empowering commerce media networks with a single, self-service platform that streamlines the complex and fragmented commerce media marketplace, Convert brings together essential monetisation and optimisation capabilities across sponsored listings, CTV, video and display ad formats.

An unbiased, privacy-centric full-stack solution, Convert ensures transparency in fee and pricing structures along with automation and scalability for commerce media networks and advertisers.

The new platform complements PubMatic’s existing commerce media capabilities offered via Connect, the omnichannel addressability solution launched in 2022 that enables data access and control on the sell-side, closer to the consumer.

-- BERNAMA

WISTAR-LED TEAM AWARDED MORE THAN $12 MILLION GRANT FROM THE NCI TO INVESTIGATE LINK BETWEEN EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS AND CARCINOMAS

PHILADELPHIA, PA, July 27 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- It’s been known since the 1960s that Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) causes a variety of cancers, but research has overwhelmingly focused on its connection to lymphomas. Now, a multidisciplinary team of scientists led by The Wistar Institute has been awarded a more than $12 million National Cancer Institute (NCI) Program Project Grant (P01), a highly competitive five-year grant that includes a crosssection of researchers from various disciplines and institutions throughout the country. The multidisciplinary team led by Wistar scientists is exploring the role of Epstein-Barr Virus in epithelial cancers. Epithethelial cells form functional structures in organ tissue throughout the human body; they are often the site for solid organ cancers, including the most common cancers, which are known as carcinomas.

The new research will focus on basic questions about how EBV infection of normal epithelial cells transforms them into cancer-cells. Scientists also intend to build on this research to identify better and more selective therapeutic targets.
 
“We are investigating unexplored aspects of EBV and malignancies, potentially uncovering unique characteristics or pathways that can be targeted for therapeutic intervention,” said Italo Tempera, Ph.D., associate professor of the Gene Expression & Regulation Program of the Ellen and Ronald Caplan Cancer Center at The Wistar Institute. “This fresh perspective could lead to groundbreaking discoveries and innovative treatment strategies for EBV and epithelial malignancies.”

The project brings together scientists from The Wistar Institute and Harvard University, including experts in epigenetics, metabolomics and drug discovery. It’s the first time researchers from this variety of disciplines have combined their efforts to focus entirely on the EBV-epithelial cancer link.

“We’ve put together a new strategy, a new way of attacking the problem,” said Paul Lieberman, Ph.D., Hilary Koprowski, M.D., Endowed Professor and director of the Center for Chemical Biology and Translational Medicine at Wistar. “By working together across different modalities, there’s an opportunity for each of us to learn from the synergy and expertise of the other investigators.”

EBV is one of the most common human viruses, infecting an estimated 95% of people by the time they reach adulthood. Symptoms are usually mild, and most people recover within a few weeks. However, the virus can remain latent in the human body for years or even decades, and it causes some people to develop cancer later in life. 

While research has historically focused on lymphomas, EBV-linked epithelial cancers are both more common and more deadly. Epithelial cancers represent 75% of the 200,000 EBV-related cancer cases diagnosed each year, and these cancers also have higher mortality rates and treatment failures. 

“This grant put together a team that is now focused on this type of cancer that has been neglected, even though it’s the most common form of EBV cancers,” Lieberman said. The grant will fund three main research projects. The first will look at how EBV establishes a long-term infection within epithelial cells. The second will study how it causes genetic and metabolic changes to trigger cancer growth. Finally, researchers will use these findings to investigate new therapeutic strategies. 

The research builds on past work by Lieberman’s lab, which has focused on developing small molecule inhibitors targeting EBV. He said the new project would focus on studying drugs that are already in development, and looking for ways to make them more targeted or use them in combination with other therapies. 

Tempera said the group’s integrated approach sets it apart.“Our project will study both metabolic and epigenetic vulnerabilities simultaneously,” he said. “Combining these two aspects can provide a comprehensive understanding of the role of EBV infection in cancer and its underlying mechanisms, leading to unique insights and therapeutic opportunities.” 

Co-authors: Ben Gewurz of Harvard; Joseph Salvino, Samantha Soldan, Andrew Kossenkov, Louise Showe, and Qin Liu of Wistar.

Darien Sutton
The Wistar Institute
215-870-2048
dsutton@wistar.org

SOURCE : The Wistar Institute

LYNK DEMONSTRATES FIRST-EVER TWO-WAY STANDARD PHONE VOICE CALLS BY SATELLITE

Publishes video proof of technology for voice calls through Lynk’s sat2phone service


FALLS CHURCH, Va., July 26 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Lynk Global, Inc., the world’s leading sat2phone telecoms provider, today released the first-ever video of a series of two-way voice calls between standard-mobile-phones connected via satellite. The video shows multiple voice calls using standard mobile phones connected via Lynk’s existing satellite-cell-towers in orbit.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230725726683/en/

Charles Miller, CEO and co-founder of Lynk, stated, “Carl Sagan once remarked ‘Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.’ The video we release today underscores Lynk’s commitment to a higher standard.” Miller continued, “When Lynk completed the first-ever connection from a satellite to a standard phone on Earth in March 2020, we shared video to demonstrate our results to the world. Today we are doing the same for two-way voice calls.”

“Today’s news goes to the heart of our mission to connect everyone, everywhere,” noted Tyghe Speidel, CTO and co-founder at Lynk. “With initial service now underway in Palau for SMS messaging, and with other countries to follow this year, the Lynk team is thrilled to demonstrate voice call capabilities. While we continue to prioritize SMS texting service for our MNO partners in the near term, these initial voice call results highlight advancements in our technology and move us a step closer to delivering on our mission,” he continued.

To watch the video of Lynk’s successful two-way voice call, click here.

About Lynk

Lynk is the world’s only patented, proven, and commercially-licensed satellite-direct-to-standard-mobile-phone system. Our service has been demonstrated, and is currently being deployed, in more than 20 countries with >30 MNO commercial service contracts covering >50 countries. Lynk's network, currently providing cell broadcast (emergency) alerts, and two-way SMS messaging, is compatible with every existing mobile phone on the planet. In the future, Lynk will launch voice and mobile broadband services. By partnering with Lynk via a simple roaming agreement, a mobile network operator opens the door to new revenue in untapped markets, gives subscribers peace of mind with ubiquitous connectivity, and provides a pathway to economic prosperity for billions of the world’s citizens. For more information, visit www.lynk.world or follow @lynktheworld.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230725726683/en/

Contact

Tony DeTora
tdetora@lynk.world

Source : Lynk Global, Inc.

Shanghai is Asia’s Leading Smart City in 2023 - Juniper Research

KUALA LUMPUR, July 20 (Bernama) -- Shanghai is Asia's leading smart city in 2023 due to its comprehensive data systems, according to a new study from Juniper Research, the foremost experts in the sustainability & Internet of Things (IoT) market.

The research analysed Shanghai as leading due to its strong data platform, comprehensive deployment of 5G, and use of innovative technologies, including digital twins, reflecting a well-considered and progressive smart city design, which can be seen as an example for other cities to emulate.

According to a statement, other smart cities ranked by Juniper Research are Seoul, Shenzhen, Sydney and Beijing.

Asian smart city spend is growing by 120 per cent with hardware and software spend on smart city deployments is forecast to reach US$42 billion by 2028, from US$19 billion in 2023. (US$1=RM4.55)

Spend is growing much faster in the rest of Asia Pacific, at 303 per cent over the next five years, compared to the Indian Subcontinent at 231 per cent and Far East & China at 76 per cent, over the same period.

Meanwhile, growth in Far East & China is slowing, with smart city projects being more mature in countries like China, Japan and South Korea.

However, emerging markets such as Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam will boast much stronger growth, as smart city initiatives get underway, and cities build the comprehensive data systems needed for success.

Juniper Research’s ranking of 50 world cities is based on an evaluation of many different smart city aspects, covering transportation and infrastructure, energy and lighting, city management and technology, and urban connectivity.

-- BERNAMA

NX GLOBAL ENGINEERING TAKES PART IN CLEANUP ACTIVITY IN SINGAPORE

AsiaNet 100234

TOKYO, July 20, 2023 /Kyodo JBN-AsiaNet/ --

NX Global Engineering Pte. Ltd., a group company of NIPPON EXPRESS HOLDINGS, INC., took part in a cleanup activity at Sembawang Park in Singapore on Thursday, June 22.
 
Logo: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/img/202307137116-O1-Njx56nC6
 
Group photo of cleanup activity participants:
https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103866/202307137116/_prw_PI2fl_0S51WR4z.jpg
 
 
Photo taken during the cleanup activity:
https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103866/202307137116/_prw_PI3fl_17E05ts8.jpg
 
 
The participants were all volunteers seeking to reduce pollutants and contaminants in order to protect the park, the ocean and wildlife. During this recent effort, they cleaned up an area of approximately seven hectares around the park and beach and collected a total of 21 bags of trash, including non-biodegradable empty boxes, plastic bottles, plastic bags, and cigarette butts.
 
The Nippon Express Group will remain aware of its social and public missions as a logistics company and will actively communicate with local communities and engage in community-based social contribution activities to help bring about sustainable societies.
 
Nippon Express website: https://www.nipponexpress.com/
 
Nippon Express Group's official LinkedIn account:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/nippon-express-group/
 
 
Source: NIPPON EXPRESS HOLDINGS, INC.

Phishing, Remote Work Raise Asian Cybersecurity Concerns

 

Companies in Singapore and Malaysia grow more alert to threats, seek end-to-end protection as attack surfaces expand across supply chains, ISG Provider Lens™ report says

SINGAPORE & KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, July 20 (BUSINESS WIRE) --

The cybersecurity landscape in Singapore and Malaysia is quickly evolving as growing risk awareness changes the way enterprises make security decisions and purchases, according to a new research report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2023 ISG Provider Lens™ Cybersecurity — Solutions and Services report for Singapore and Malaysia finds that increasing cloud migration and remote work following the COVID-19 pandemic have expanded possible avenues for attack, while the regulations mandating security protection in both countries grow tighter. These trends have heightened the importance of cybersecurity strategy at many organizations, leading even top management to become better informed and more involved in decision-making.

“Cybersecurity is a growing challenge for organizations in Singapore and Malaysia as the number of sophisticated attacks increases and the attack surface expands to include the supply chain ecosystem,” said Joyce Harkness, director, ISG Cybersecurity, for ANZ and Asia Pacific. “Companies are racing to achieve higher visibility and continuous monitoring.”

Phishing has become by far the most common vector for attacks in Singapore and Malaysia, partly due to the rise in digital customer engagement since the pandemic, ISG says. Attackers often impersonate banks, health authorities, telecommunications providers and delivery companies through email, voice, SMS and even replica websites. Because these attacks exploit human behavior to gain access to sensitive data, they can be very hard to defend against.

Traditional enterprise security approaches based on protecting a defined perimeter are evolving toward strategies that take into account all possible points of entry across a company’s supply chain, the report says. To defend against a wider range of threats, more companies in the region are adopting zero-trust frameworks, security service edge (SSE) and more sophisticated identity and access management (IAM). Demand for integrated solutions, including extended detection and response (XDR), is increasing as more employees in the region work remotely from insecure networks.

As they increase their investments in cybersecurity, many organizations in Singapore and Malaysia want help orchestrating and consolidating their spending, ISG says. This may include rationalizing technologies, outsourcing non-core functions and bringing spending in line with their risk profiles.

Asian enterprises increasingly seek cloud-based, end-to-end security solutions with less complex purchase options and pricing based on operational expenditures, ISG says. In response, providers are packaging expanding sets of offerings as platforms.

“The market is consolidating around platforms,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Many of the most successful vendors now are those that seek to be the primary solutions provider.”

The report also explores other cybersecurity trends in Singapore and Malaysia, including widespread security staff shortages in enterprises and the growing adoption of managed security services.

The 2023 ISG Provider Lens™ Cybersecurity — Solutions and Services report for Singapore and Malaysia evaluates the capabilities of 82 providers across six quadrants: Identity and Access Management (IAM), Extended Detection and Response (XDR), Security Service Edge (SSE), Technical Security Services, Strategic Security Services and Managed Security Services – SOC.

The report names IBM as a Leader in four quadrants and Accenture, Deloitte and Verizon Business as Leaders in three quadrants each. It names Ensign, EY, Fujitsu, LGMS, Microsoft, NCS, TM One and Wipro as Leaders in two quadrants each. Bitdefender, Broadcom, Cato Networks, Celcom Axiata, Cisco, CrowdStrike, CyberArk, DXC Technology, Forcepoint, KPMG, Netskope, NTT DATA, Okta, Oracle, Palo Alto Networks, Ping Identity, PwC, Rapid7, SailPoint, Singtel, Tech Mahindra, Versa Networks, VMware and Zscaler are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

In addition, Kyndryl is named as a Rising Star — a company with a “promising portfolio” and “high future potential” by ISG’s definition — in two quadrants. BeyondTrust, HCLTech, HPE (Aruba) and SentinelOne are named as Rising Stars in one quadrant each.

The 2023 ISG Provider Lens™ Cybersecurity — Solutions and Services report for Singapore and Malaysia is available to subscribers or for one-time purchase on this webpage.

About ISG Provider Lens™ Research

The ISG Provider Lens™ Quadrant research series is the only service provider evaluation of its kind to combine empirical, data-driven research and market analysis with the real-world experience and observations of ISG's global advisory team. Enterprises will find a wealth of detailed data and market analysis to help guide their selection of appropriate sourcing partners, while ISG advisors use the reports to validate their own market knowledge and make recommendations to ISG's enterprise clients. The research currently covers providers offering their services globally, across Europe, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, the U.K., France, Benelux, Germany, Switzerland, the Nordics, Australia and Singapore/Malaysia, with additional markets to be added in the future. For more information about ISG Provider Lens research, please visit this webpage.

A companion research series, the ISG Provider Lens Archetype reports, offer a first-of-its-kind evaluation of providers from the perspective of specific buyer types.

About ISG

ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 900 clients, including more than 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs more than 1,600 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230712492598/en/

Contact

Press:
Will Thoretz, ISG
+1 203 517 3119
will.thoretz@isg-one.com

Julianna Sheridan, Matter Communications for ISG
+1 978-518-4520
isg@matternow.com

Source : Information Services Group, Inc.

TRACE HANGZHOU'S VITALITY BEYOND THE ASIAN GAMES VENUES

HANGZHOU, China, July 18, 2023 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--

Recently, the cauldron of the 19th Asian Games will be lit in the Chinese eastern city Hangzhou where the globally famous West Lake is located. Forty major sports competitions will be staged, injecting passion and vitality into Hangzhou through thrilling performances. Hangzhou has always been a city of vitality, an endowment from its rich history, fascinating culture and developed economy, as well as its creative transformation and innovative expression of these features. A pioneering area since ancient times Hangzhou was officially established during the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC) when China was unified the first time, but the region had a glorious history dated much earlier. As early as 4300 to 5300 years ago, sophisticated rice farming was bred in Hangzhou, fine jade craft was developed, and Liangzhu culture, a representative culture in the late Neolithic Age, came into being. The archaeological ruins of Liangzhu ancient city has been rated as a world cultural heritage, and has become one of the largest and highest-level areas to demonstrate the long history of Chinese civilization that spans over 5,000 years. This historical background, which runs through about 5,000 years, has continued its presence to this day. The design of the games' mascot "Congcong", medal "Shan Shui" and torch was inspired by the ritual vessel jade Cong in Liangzhu culture. The fire collection ceremony of the Asian Games was held in archaeological ruins of Liangzhu ancient city, and the external structure design of the fire collection device originated from the jade ring of Liangzhu. The splendid history has been reflected in a unique and creative design in Hangzhou. The cultural taste for a better life During the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279 A.D.), Hangzhou reached the peak in the development history of ancient cities, cultivating a highly prosperous culture. The urban, social and cultural legacies of the Song Dynasty impressed Marco Polo, a western explorer who visited Hangzhou in the later Yuan Dynasty and called Hangzhou "the City of Heaven, the most beautiful and magnificent in the world". The gorgeous, delicate and ingenious Song Dynasty culture is still vividly visible in Hangzhou thousands of years later. Nowadays, more and more locals and tourists in Hangzhou enjoy experiencing the time-honored charming culture by visiting the Xiling Seal Art Society, tasting fragrant local tea, strolling the West Lake in the traditional attire of Song Dynasty, taking pictures at the red walls of the Deshou Palace ruins museum of the Southern Song Dynasty, and visiting the Hangzhou branch of the China National Archives of Publications and Culture, which was built after the style of famous Song Dynasty paintings. In 2022, Hangzhou raked in a total tourism revenue of 129.8 billion yuan. Over the past decade, Hangzhou's cultural industry has maintained rapid development. In 2022, the added value of Hangzhou's cultural industry totaled 242 billion yuan, 2.5 percentage points higher than its GDP growth rate. It accounted for 12.9 percent of GDP, becoming an important pillar of economic development, according to the People's Government of Hangzhou Municipality.  http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=46603

Cradlepoint Unveils 5G SASE Strategy For Cellular, Hybrid Wan Security

KUALA LUMPUR, July 13 (Bernama) -- Cradlepoint has announced its phased rollout strategy for the industry’s first 5G-optimised Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution designed for the enterprise and purpose-built for Wireless Wide Area Network (WAN) deployments.

“Current SASE solutions are not optimised for 5G. Cradlepoint’s strategy is to provide lean IT organisations with a security solution that is aligned with the realities of a changing business and network profile,” said Cradlepoint Chief Marketing Officer, Todd Krautkremer in a statement.

With unique cellular capabilities and the simplicity of Cradlepoint’s cloud-based management platform, NetCloud Manager, Cradlepoint 5G SASE features zero trust, cellular intelligence along with cloud and SIM-based security to address the challenges and threats faced by today’s extended enterprise.

As an industry leader in Wireless WANs and with the recent acquisition of Ericom, Cradlepoint is uniquely positioned to deliver a comprehensive 5G-optimised SASE solution, enabling organisations to seamlessly match the security challenges of extended networks.

Cradlepoint 5G SASE will be delivered in phases over the next 12 months including Cradlepoint Cellular Intelligence; SIM-based Security; Connect-and-Go Zero Trust Security; and Cloud-Delivered Security.

Currently available, cellular telemetries such as signal strength and data plan usage, can be leveraged for SD-WAN traffic steering. As 5G StandAlone (SA) networks become mainstream, Cradlepoint’s network slicing capabilities will work with carriers’ services to offer prioritisation and slice-based isolation.

Cradlepoint also offers SIM management and GPS tracking to secure the physical devices and to detect rogue movement. Its future vision is to work with carriers for tighter SIM-based security using SIMs as the basis for authentication, regardless of the connecting hardware.

Creating WANs in just a few clicks, 5G SASE replaces complex Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Zero trust shrinks the lateral attack surface, devices connected to a Cradlepoint router are immediately dark to the outside world and other sites.

Headquartered in Boise, Idaho, Cradlepoint has international offices in Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, India and Latin America.

-- BERNAMA

ALPINE INVESTORS FINALIZES OVERSUBSCRIBED NINTH FUND AT HARD CAP OF $4.5 BILLION IN CAPITAL COMMITMENTS

New fund for Alpine doubles the size of predecessor fund in 2021


SAN FRANCISCO, July 13 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Alpine Investors (“Alpine”), a Certified B Corp people-driven private equity firm committed to building enduring software and services companies, announced today the completion of fundraising for Alpine Investors IX (“Fund IX”), reaching the fund’s hard cap of $4.5 billion in limited partner capital commitments.

Fundraising for Fund IX launched with a target of $3.75 billion and was oversubscribed. Fund IX is double the size of Alpine’s previous fund, Alpine Investors VIII, which was similarly oversubscribed and closed at its hard cap of $2.25 billion of limited partner commitments in August 2021.

Fund IX received limited partner commitments from a diversified investor base of returning and new investors from the U.S., Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Alpine plans to invest the capital for Fund IX in control buyouts of software and services businesses with total enterprise values of up to $1 billion and focus on add-on acquisitions for high-performing platform investments.

“We are thrilled with this outcome, particularly in a very challenging fundraising environment,” said Graham Weaver, Founder and CEO of Alpine Investors. “We started Alpine 22 years ago with the thesis that the secret to building companies was hiring and training world-class leaders. It is incredibly satisfying to think that treating people well and giving them opportunities to be their best selves at work has been the formula for our investing success. We’re extremely grateful to have a wonderful group of like-minded investors and partners who have supported us along the way, and we are excited to continue this amazing journey together with them.”

Alpine has been active in recent years across its software and services specialties through buyouts as well as the launch of several prominent platforms. Notable investments from the last year include:

• The successful expansion of ASG, Alpine’s software business that buys vertical SaaS companies and builds them into market leaders, with more than 50 acquisitions since inception;
• The announcement of AlpineX’s professional education vertical, Axcel Learning, and its water services vertical, Axia Water;
• The formation of predictis, a data-enabled software platform launched in conjunction with the acquisition of AirDNA;
• The establishment of the Trilon Group, an engineering services platform, with 15 acquisitions including Alta Planning + Design, Inc., a globally-renowned active mobility and sustainability consulting firm;
• The acquisition of FEV Tutor, a K-12 market leading research and evidence-based online tutoring platform;
• The acquisition of Medusind, a leading provider of revenue cycle management services to the healthcare industry; and
• The formation of Ascend, a platform that partners with entrepreneurial CPAs, through its acquisition of Opsahl Dawson.

“We are grateful for the continued partnership from so many long-standing investors in Alpine, and we are excited by the significant presence of new partners across the globe that chose to participate in Fund IX,” said April Smith, Head of Investor Relations and Fundraising, Alpine Investors. “The makeup of Fund IX is the most global of any of our funds to date, demonstrating our expanding reach, and the robust market interest we generated underscores the increasing awareness of our value proposition for investors.”

Founded in 2001, Alpine Investors has over $15 billion in assets under management with more than 20,000 employees within its portfolio companies.¹ The firm is known for its PeopleFirst operating philosophy and its executive talent programs, which recruit and develop MBA graduates into CEOs and other executive-level roles. Originating with its CEO-in-Training and CEO-in-Residence programs, Alpine employs over 110 CEOs and executive-level roles within its portfolio companies through these talent programs.

Evercore Inc. served as placement agent for the fund and Kirkland & Ellis served as legal counsel to Alpine.

About Alpine Investors

Alpine Investors is a people-driven private equity firm committed to building enduring companies by working with, learning from, and developing exceptional people. Alpine specializes in investments in the software and services industries. Alpine’s PeopleFirst strategy includes a talent program that allows Alpine to bring leadership to situations where additional or new management is needed post-transaction. Alpine has over $15 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2023 and has three offices in San Francisco, New York, and Salt Lake City.¹ For more information, visit www.alpineinvestors.com and https://alpineinvestors.com/terms-conditions/ for full disclaimers including, but not limited to, third-party reviews and Alpine Operations Group.

¹ Pro forma for additional Fund IX commitments raised as of June 30, 2023 and fair market value as of March 31, 2023.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230712330497/en/

Contact

Media
Audrey Harris
Head of Marketing
aharris@alpineinvestors.com

Sarah Braunstein
sbraunstein@sloanepr.com

Source : Alpine Investors

AMBIQ PROPELS REMOTE HEALTHCARE MONITORING SECTOR GROWTH WITH NEW ULTRA-LOW POWER PROCESSORS

The Apollo4 Lite and Apollo4 Blue Lite System-on-Chips (SoCs) Help Enhance Devices' Functionalities and Battery Life to Accelerate the Adoption of Remote Monitoring



News Highlights:

• The new Apollo4 Lite and Blue Lite SoCs offer feature-rich capability, optimized memory, powerful graphics performance, and secureSPOT^® for robust security in a lightweight solution
• Ideal for digital health applications, such as digital stethoscopes, patient monitoring, and continuous glucose and blood pressure monitoring
• The Apollo4 Blue Lite offers secure Bluetooth^® Low Energy connectivity for communication to handheld devices, host equipment, and the Cloud

AUSTIN, Texas, July 11 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ambiq^®, a technology leader in ultra-low power semiconductor products and solutions, introduces the Apollo4 Lite and Apollo4 Blue Lite SoC to its expanding portfolio of SoCs for IoT endpoint devices, especially the remote monitoring products of the healthcare sector. This announcement follows Ambiq’s release of its Heart Kit™, an optimized open-source AI model utilizing multi-head neural networks (MH-NNs) to enable a variety of real-time heart-monitoring applications.

The Apollo4 Lite and Blue Lite product line is the latest generation system processor solutions built upon Ambiq’s proprietary Subthreshold Power-Optimized Technology (SPOT^®) platform, enabling new features while reducing devices’ overall system power consumption to extend their battery life. Both SoCs are embedded with an ultra-low power Cortex-M4 core that can operate at up to 192 MHz with turboSPOT, an audio subsystem, GPU, and ample MRAM and SRAM. They are also conveniently pin-compatible with Ambiq’s Apollo4 Plus and Blue Plus¹, providing developers with optimum flexibility for innovation.

“Today’s patients are more empowered to monitor and advocate for their own health, and healthcare providers require more data analytics to prescribe holistic treatment,” said David Priscak, VP of Technical Solutions at Ambiq. “With bold graphics and long battery life, state-of-the-art health tracking is now more affordable and accessible thanks to these new additions to our Apollo4 SoC family.”

“The global remote patient market in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $53.6 billion in 2022 and is poised to reach $175.2 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 26.7% from 2022 to 2027,” said Ms. Anu Dhiman – Lead Healthcare Analyst – MarketsandMarkets Research Pvt. Ltd. “The predominant factors influencing the growth of the market include the benefits of remote patient monitoring to reduce the burden on medical resources, the monitoring benefits of telehealth and remote patient monitoring services, advancements in telecommunications, as increasing geriatric population, and the growing need to expand healthcare access.”

The Apollo4 Lite and the Apollo4 Blue Lite are designed for extended battery life, advanced security, and powerful graphics in small form factors, which are critical for the continued adoption of these devices. Both are now in mass production, targeting digital health products, smartwatches, fitness bands, animal trackers, voice-activated remotes, industrial maintenance, and smart home IoT devices. For more product information, visit www.ambiq.com/apollo4-lite and www.ambiq.com/apollo4-blue-lite.

¹ – Apollo4 Lite is pin-compatible with Apollo4 Plus (AMAP42KP-KBR); Apollo4 Blue Lite is pin-compatible with Apollo4 Blue Plus (AMA4B2KP-KXR.)

About Ambiq

Ambiq’s mission is to develop the lowest-power semiconductor solutions to enable intelligent devices everywhere by developing the lowest-power semiconductor solutions to drive a more energy-efficient, sustainable, and data-driven world. Ambiq has helped leading manufacturers worldwide develop products that last weeks on a single charge (rather than days) while delivering a maximum feature set in compact industrial designs. Ambiq’s goal is to take Artificial Intelligence (AI) where it has never gone before in mobile and portable devices, using Ambiq’s advanced ultra-low power system on chip (SoC) solutions. Ambiq has shipped more than 200 million units as of March 2023. For more information, visit www.ambiq.com.

Contact

Charlene Wan
VP of Branding, Marketing, and Investor Relations
cwan@ambiq.com
+1.512.879.2850

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/620a2f10-acfe-4d54-b9c3-0983c58c06f6

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fd179ebf-2f60-4195-8fca-b88c7b7a852c 


SOURCE : Ambiq Micro

Stablecoins-powered Payment Transactions Value Exceeds US$187 BLN By 2028 - Juniper Research

KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 (Bernama) -- The value of payment transactions powered by stablecoins will exceed US$187 billion globally by 2028, up from US$53 billion in 2023, according to a new study from Juniper Research. (US$1=RM4.66)

The study found that stablecoins are making rapid progress in the cross-border market in particular, with them representing a key way to bypass slow, expensive and difficult-to-track existing cross‑border payment rails.

According to Juniper Research in a statement, stablecoins are cryptocurrencies that have their value pegged to a fiat currency or commodity, removing the volatility inherent to a typical cryptocurrency.

By 2028, the value of cross-border stablecoin payments will represent almost 73 per cent of total stablecoin payments transaction values globally, showing the dominance of cross-border use cases.

Stablecoins can be highly effective, as they remove stages in the cross-border process, increase speed of transactions and settlements, as well as greatly improve traceability.

However, the research identified the main obstacle for further growth as being acceptance, with stablecoin roll-outs needing new networks to be built and scaled.

Another challenge to stablecoin growth is the role of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), digital coins issued by a central bank, which are pegged to the country’s fiat currency.

While CBDCs are at an early stage of development, they too have strong potential for cross-border. The advantage CBDCs have is their central bank backing, meaning roll-outs should be at a faster pace.

Given the size of the cross-border space, and the very nascent stage of CBDC development, stablecoins have strong prospects for growth alongside CBDCs.

-- BERNAMA

GTJAI BROUGHT ESG CONSIDERATIONS INTO ITS CREDIT RISK POLICY

HONG KONG, July 6 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited (“Guotai Junan International”, the “Group” or “GTJAI”, stock code: 1788.HK) announced that the Group has incorporated ESG risk factors into its Newest Credit Risk Policy to control and manage the ESG risks at the business operation level more efficiently.

The GTJAI’s Newest Credit Risk Policy covers all its subsidiaries and affiliates in all types of businesses including, but not limited to, lending, underwriting of debt securities, derivatives trading, and other financing activities such as investment banking and wealth management business. The policy reflects ESG criteria formally in the client onboarding, due diligence and credit risk management process with reference to global ESG frameworks. Require ESG Due Diligence. As specifically required in the policy, all business teams are responsible for the Know-Your-Client (KYC) process by reviewing clients’ financial reports, ESG report, performing background check on shareholders, reviewing internal policies and controls. Specify Industry-related Risk. All business teams are required to conduct enhanced due diligence on higher ESG risk customers. If there is significant ESG risk on certain customer or industry, the Company should consider avoiding provide finance accordingly. Specifically, companies’ 85% revenue from Tar sand, Shale Oil & Gas, Arctic Oil & Gas, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), and Ultra-Deep-Water (UDW) Oil & Gas will be considered as high risk. Identify Other ESG Red Flags. All business teams are required to include ESG rating downgrade in assessing potential clients’ profiles and documentation. About GTJAI Guotai Junan International (“GTJAI”, Stock Code: 1788.HK) is the market leader and first mover for internationalization of Chinese Securities Company as well as the first Chinese securities broker listed on the Main Board of The Hong Kong Stock Exchange through initial public offering. It has also been included in FTSE4Good Index by London Stock Exchange of the United Kingdom. Based in Hong Kong, GTJAI provides comprehensive, diversified and high-quality integrated financial services. Core business includes brokerage, corporate finance, asset management, loans and financing, financial products, which cover three dimensions including individual finance (wealth management), institutional finance (institutional investor services and corporate finance service) and investment management. GTJAI has been assigned “Baa2” and “BBB+” long term issuer rating from Moody and Standard & Poor respectively. The controlling shareholder, Guotai Junan Securities Company Limited (Stock Code: 601211.SH; 2611.HK), is the comprehensive financial provider with a long-term, sustainable and overall leading position in the Chinese securities industry. For more information about GTJAI, please visit http://www.gtjai.com View source version on businesswire.com:  https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230705168364/en/ Contact For Media and Investor Enquiry: ir@gtjas.com.hk For Customer Service: (Tel: 4008 095 521 / (852) 2509 7524) Source : Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited

GLOBE GROUP WOOS GLOBAL INVESTORS WITH CUTTING-EDGE DIGITAL SOLUTIONS AT CAIXIN ASIA NEW VISION FORUM

^{President and CEO Ernest Cu represented the Globe Group at the Caixin Global Asia New Vision Forum (ANVF), capturing global investors' interest by unveiling its groundbreaking digital solutions now reshaping the country’s digital economy. (Photo: Business Wire)}



MANILA, Philippines, July 4 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Globe Group distinguished itself as the only Philippine telecom representative at the prestigious Caixin Global Asia New Vision Forum (ANVF) held June 12 to 13 in Singapore, capturing global investors' interest by unveiling its groundbreaking digital solutions now reshaping the country’s digital economy.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230703598203/en/

 

Globe Group President and CEO Ernest Cu represented the company at the ANVF 2023, the first international business leadership conference spotlighting Asia in the post-Covid landscape, with a focus on global, green, tech, and home visions. Gathering over 300 business and thought leaders, policymakers, and industry practitioners, the event amplified nuanced Asian perspectives within the broader business community.

During the panel discussion on Investing in Asia Pacific, Cu highlighted the nation’s consumer-driven economy, young population, and how the Globe Group's transition into a digital platform is helping drive national development.

Showcasing an array of portfolio companies, the Globe Group, the Philippines’ leading digital solutions platform, presented compelling evidence of the robustness of its transformative digital services which lower long-established entry barriers, especially in finance, healthcare, and education.

Its fintech platform GCash is the #1 Finance SuperApp with a highly engaged user base that surpasses competition in terms of daily and monthly active users. GCash is also one of the very few profitable fintechs in the world that now serves as an indispensable companion for Filipinos in their day-to-day needs. GCash has democratized access to financial services offering options to open a savings account, investing in UITFs, getting insurance, and even acquiring loans.

Meanwhile, Globe’s growing telehealth platform KonsultaMD has been providing much-needed quality medical care across a suite of services. It recently launched a SuperApp that features doctor consultations, a 24/7 online pharmacy with same-day delivery, at-home lab testing, diagnostics, wellness services, physical therapy, nursing care for newborns and elderly patients, and a concierge service for premium subscribers. It currently has a network of over 1,000 medical professionals with more than 40 specializations including mental health.

Cu also pitched the Philippines as a viable investment destination, saying: “We’ve got a very young population growing at about 3% per year and projected to be about 150 million people by 2050. The Philippines is pretty much a consumer-driven and consumption-driven economy. We don’t have much of the other industries yet, but we’ve got a tremendous base of consumers fed a lot by the overseas foreign workers.”

The country is also seeing steady economic growth. At the same time, the number of people using digital technology is set to rise by 36 million by 2030, making up over 70% of the population, according to a World Economic Forum report. While it's still developing, the Philippines’ startup scene is growing rapidly, with at least 700 active startups compared to only 100 in 2015, according to the Asian Development Bank.

Cu addressed the importance of local knowledge and partnerships when investing in ASEAN countries. He reiterated how the Globe Group, part of the Ayala conglomerate, has utilized its extensive understanding of the Philippines to provide unique and large-scale solutions.

"We wield what we call an ‘unfair advantage’. We understand our culture, our people, and their needs much better than any company that comes into the Philippines. We happen to live in a country where there’s a multitude of opportunities to help the population. So, we started to look at large problems that exist and there’s plenty— from financial inclusion to access to healthcare, access to education, and pollution. Those areas are what we wanted to tackle. We started with financial inclusion,” he said.

Looking into the future, Cu highlighted the Globe Group's strategy to be the hub of technology startups through its venture builder, 917Ventures, and venture capital arm, Kickstart Ventures. Kickstart currently has 61 investments in eight countries out of three funds.

Other key decision-makers from the Globe Group joined Cu at the event, further demonstrating the company's commitment and synergy. GCash made its presence felt led by its President and CEO Martha Sazon and CFO Tek Olaño, while KonsultaMD was represented by its CEO Cholo Tagaysay.

Given the country's large population, supportive government policies, and low entry barriers, investors have an exciting market to explore with the Globe Group as a guide.

To learn more about Globe, visit www.globe.com.ph.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230703598203/en/

Contact

For more information, please contact:
Golin for Globe Group
Email Address: GlobeGroup@Golin.com

Source : Globe Group

YOMAEX UPGRADES SECURITY SYSTEM TO PROTECT USER ASSETS

KUALA LUMPUR, July 3 (Bernama) -- YOMAEX recently upgraded its security protection system to provide users with a more reliable trading environment as YOMAEX Exchange, the global leading digital currency exchange, has always placed "user asset security" at the forefront.

In the context of the rapid development of the digital currency market, YOMAEX is facing more and more security challenges. The company has taken a series of important measures, in order to better protect the security of user assets.

According to a statement, in terms of transaction security, YOMAEX independently developed a high-performance matching trading engine.

After a comprehensive upgrade, the engine has the ability to process millions of orders per second, and the average transaction delay is less than 50 milliseconds, in which this technological innovation has greatly improved transaction efficiency and effectively reduced the risk of transaction lag and system downtime.

YOMAEX has also introduced an industry-leading risk control system with multiple functions such as real-time monitoring, risk warning and risk control, which can accurately monitor and warn against abnormal behaviours during the transaction process, and take timely measures to ensure the safe trading for users.

In addition, YOMAEX has strengthened asset security protection. The exchange has implemented multiple defence mechanisms against malicious and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, effectively avoiding hacker intrusions and network risks, and providing strong protection for users' digital assets.

In terms of information security, YOMAEX has introduced multiple verification mechanism, and users can choose a suitable verification method to improve the security of their accounts.

To ensure the security of users' personal information and transaction data, YOMAEX adopts multiple encryption technologies to effectively prevent users' personal information and transaction data from being stolen or tampered.

The continuous upgrade of YOMAEX in terms of user asset security demonstrates its high attention and keen insight into market risks. It is committed to create a safe, transparent and reliable trading environment for users via continuous innovation and technological upgrading.

-- BERNAMA

NX EUROPE, LUFTHANSA CARGO COMPLETE SAF AGREEMENT

KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 (Bernama) -- A group company of Nippon Express Holdings Inc, Nippon Express Europe GmbH (NX Europe) and Lufthansa Cargo AG (Lufthansa Cargo) contractually agreed on June 20, to advocate the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) when transporting airfreight shipments.

NX Europe Managing Director, Shinichi Kakiyama said this agreement to advocate using SAF represents a step in the right direction on the way to a greener future.

“Together with Lufthansa Cargo, we are honoured to embark on this journey to meet our sustainability goals and fulfil our ongoing commitment to combat climate change,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Lufthansa Cargo Chief Executive Officer, Ashwin Bhat said: “The more Sustainable Aviation Fuel is used in the transportation of goods by air freight, the more likely we are to succeed in moving away from fossil fuels, making the entire air freight industry more sustainable.”

The environmentally friendly aviation fuel will enable the Nippon Express Group to achieve emission savings of approximately 3,150 tonnes within one year.

Furthermore, the agreement reached with Lufthansa Cargo includes contributing to high-quality and certified climate protection projects for the so-called well-to-tank emissions that arise during the production and supply of SAF.

The Nippon Express Group has set the goal of a 50 per cent reduction in SCOPE 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 compared to 2013 as a response to climate change, and of contributing to the realisation of a carbon-neutral society by 2050.

Nippon Express Co Ltd aims to reduce emissions by 350,000 tonnes by 2023, equivalent to a 30 per cent reduction from 2013 levels. In May 2023, Nippon Express Holdings Inc submitted a Letter of Commitment to be certified as a Science Based Targets (SBT) company, and the entire group is working together to achieve a carbon neutral society by 2050.

-- BERNAMA