HUNAN MUSEUM INTEGRATES CULTURE, TECHNOLOGY FOR A MULTISENSORY EXPERIENCE

KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 (Bernama) -- The Hunan Museum, together with the Digital Library of China and the team of Wang Yuejin, professor at CAMLab, Harvard University, recently launched "The Art of Life - Mawangdui Han Dynasty Culture Immersive Digital Exhibition".

According to a statement, the exhibition is in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the archaeological excavation of the Han Tombs at Mawangdui, which remains open to the public until Feb 16, 2025, with plans for a worldwide tour.

Intended to explore ways to advance the deep integration of culture and technology, the exhibition mobilises academic resources worldwide and employs cutting-edge multimedia technology to present the cultural heritage of the Han Tombs in digitalised form through a theatrical multimedia experience, offering a glance into the essence of early Chinese civilisation and artistic achievements.

The exhibition delivers a holistic display of the art, imagination, and world view as reflected by the culture of Han Tombs and seeks to create a new paradigm for digital presentation of cultural heritage with global influence.

Structured around three modules, namely "Time and Space", "Yin and Yang", and "Life", it embarks the visitors on a "journey through space and time", by revealing the dynamic process of "cosmic operations - the sublimation of life"; displaying the chamber structure, numerous artefacts, cultural ideas and humanistic thoughts of the Han Tombs; as well as unfolding the grand imagination and artistic expression of the universe and life by ancient Chinese.

The exhibition also delivers a multisensory experience to the visitors. In the "Yin and Yang" section, the four life spaces contained in the four-outer-layer coffins of Tomb One allow visitors to marvel at the ancient Chinese people's endless exploration of the mystery of life and their profound imagination for spiritual sublimation.

In the "Life" section, the T-shaped silk paintings relive their "glorious moments", via the immersive LED ball screen, interactive dynamic graphic design, and digital restoration of cultural relics, among other technologies, visitors feel as if they were attending the "from earth to heaven" ceremony depicted in the silk paintings.

While allowing the visitors to experience the transformation and ascension of life, the section also offers a glimpse into the thoughts and emotions of the Chinese ancients 2,000 years ago.

-- BERNAMA

FREEDOMPAY AND TOAST SURVEY REVEALS TOP PRIORITIES FOR ENTERPRISE HOSPITALITY LEADERS: DATA SECURITY, INTEGRATION, AND GROWTH ENABLEMENT

Integration and Customer Support Emerge as Crucial Factors in Merchant Preferences for Payment Solutions

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 26 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A recent survey conducted by FreedomPay, a global leader in Next Level Commerce™ solutions, in collaboration with Toast, a leading cloud-based restaurant management software company, has unveiled crucial insights into the top priorities for enterprise hospitality leaders. The findings emphasize the importance of data security, system integration, and growth enablement in shaping merchant preferences and trust in payment solutions and point-of-sale (POS) providers.

Key Insights from the Survey:

• 53% of merchants face challenges in deciding where to allocate their technology budgets, highlighting the demand for integrated solutions that offer comprehensive value and support informed decision-making.
• The biggest factors that contribute to trust in a payment solution/point of sale (POS) provider are the quality of customer support (49%), user-friendliness (46%), reliability (44%), and integration capabilities (44%).
• Almost all merchants believe data security (100%) and data privacy (98%) are highly important when selecting a payment solution, while most believe growth enablement (82%) and speed (81%) are highly important.
• Organizations are already implementing a high level of integration between their payment/POS systems and other software systems. Most merchants say they have either fully integrated (15%) or have a very high level (70%) of integration between these systems. Almost all merchants (98%) place strong value on an integrated payment solution

“The survey with Toast highlights that integration, understanding customer behavior, and ensuring security are paramount for merchants,” said Nate Ware, SVP Sales & Digital Development at FreedomPay. “This also shows that most merchants are striving for a fully integrated ecosystem to drive growth and enhance operational efficiency. At FreedomPay, we are committed to providing the integration and security that merchants need to thrive and succeed.”

Understanding customer behavior, including shopping and purchasing patterns, is key to enhancing the customer experience and driving sales. Additionally, merchants are prioritizing security and minimal system downtime to safeguard operations and ensure business continuity. The availability of responsive and reliable customer support significantly contributes to fostering a sense of security and trust among merchants.

“The survey really underscores merchants’ need for seamless integration and a thorough understanding of customer behavior to fully enhance operational efficiency,” remarked Kelly Esten, GM of Enterprise at Toast. “For merchants, prioritizing robust data security and reliable customer support is crucial for fostering trust with customers.”

These insights highlight that seamless integration, robust data security, and reliable customer support are essential for merchants aiming to enhance operational efficiency, foster trust with customers, and drive sustained business growth in today's competitive landscape. These factors form the cornerstone of strategic decision-making for enterprise hospitality leaders as they align their technology investments with long-term success and customer satisfaction.

To learn more, download the full report: The Security Tightrope: Balancing Innovation and Risk Management for Enterprise Brands
 

About FreedomPay:

FreedomPay’s Next Level Commerce™ platform transforms existing payment systems and processes from legacy to leading edge and enables merchants to unleash the power of pay. As the premier choice for many of the largest companies across the globe in retail, hospitality, lodging, gaming, sports and entertainment, foodservice, education, healthcare and financial services, FreedomPay’s technology has been purposely built to deliver rock solid performance in the highly complex environment of global commerce.

The company maintains a world-class security environment and was one of the first payment solution providers in North America to be validated by the PCI Security Standards Council. FreedomPay’s robust solutions across payments, security, identity, and data analytics are available in-store, online and on-mobile and are supported by rapid API adoption. The award winning FreedomPay Commerce Platform operates on a single, unified technology stack across multiple continents allowing enterprises to deliver an innovative Next Level experience on a global scale. www.freedompay.com
 

About Toast:

Toast [NYSE: TOST] is a cloud-based, all-in-one digital technology platform purpose-built for the entire restaurant community. Toast provides a comprehensive platform of software as a service (SaaS) products and financial technology solutions that give restaurants everything they need to run their business across point of sale, payments, operations, digital ordering and delivery, marketing and loyalty, and team management. We serve as the restaurant operating system, connecting front of house and back of house operations across service models including dine-in, takeout, delivery, catering, and retail. Toast helps restaurants streamline operations, increase revenue, and deliver amazing guest experiences. For more information, visit www.toasttab.com. 

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RECTITUDE HOLDINGS LTD ANNOUNCES CLOSING OF $8 MILLION INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING

SINGAPORE, June 25 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rectitude Holdings Ltd (the “Company” or “Rectitude”), a Singapore-based provider of safety equipment and related industrial products, today announced the closing of its initial public offering (the “Offering”) of 2,000,000 ordinary shares at a public offering price of $4.00 per ordinary share, for total gross proceeds of $8,000,000, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and other related expenses.

The Company has granted A.G.P./Alliance Global Partners (“A.G.P.” or “Representative”), the underwriter, an option, exercisable within 45 days from the closing date of the Offering, to purchase up to an additional 300,000 ordinary shares at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts to cover over-allotments, if any. Shares of the Company’s common stock began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “RECT” on June 21, 2024.

The Offering was conducted on a firm commitment basis. The Company intends to use the proceeds from the Offering for marketing and promotional campaigns, product development, digital transformation and system upgrades, along with working capital and general corporate purposes.

A.G.P./Alliance Global Partners acted as the sole book-running manager for the Offering. Ortoli Rosenstadt LLP acted as U.S. counsel to the Company, and The Crone Law Group P.C. acted as U.S. counsel to A.G.P. in connection with this Offering.

A registration statement on Form F-1 (File No. 333-276517) was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and was declared effective by the SEC on June 20, 2024. A final prospectus relating to the Offering dated June 21, 2024 has been filed with the SEC and is available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Electronic copies of the final prospectus relating to this Offering, when available, may be obtained from A.G.P./Alliance Global Partners, 590 Madison Avenue, 28th Floor, New York, NY 10022, Telephone: (212) 624-2060; Email: prospectus@allianceg.com.

Before you invest, you should read the prospectus and other documents the Company has filed or will file with the SEC for more information about the Company and the Offering. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Rectitude Holdings Ltd

Founded in 1997 in Singapore, Rectitude is principally involved in the provision of safety equipment, encompassing essential items such as personal protective clothing, gloves, safety footwear, personal fall arrest systems, portable fire extinguishers and traffic products. The Company also offers auxiliary products such as industrial hardware tools and electrical hardware required for construction sites. Rectitude’s products and solutions are marketed to a wide array of distributor networks and end markets, both in Singapore and increasingly throughout the Southeast Asian region, including Brunei, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

For more information, please visit the Company’s website: https://ir.rectitude.com.sg

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this announcement are forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the Company's proposed Offering. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on the Company’s current expectations and projections about future events that the Company believes may affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs, including the expectation that the Offering will be successfully completed. Investors can identify these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “approximates,” “believes,” “hopes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “projects,” “intends,” “plans,” “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “may” or other similar expressions. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances, or changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results and encourages investors to review other factors that may affect its future results in the Company's registration statement and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=48859

OPEN HEALTH-FUSION PARTNERSHIP PROVIDES AI-POWERED HEALTHCARE COMMUNICATIONS

KUALA LUMPUR, June 24 (Bernama) -- OPEN Health announced a partnership with fusion, an innovative artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) solutions provider that will work exclusively with OPEN Health.

In a statement, OPEN Health said this alliance will see fusion's market-leading AI capabilities deployed across its extensive global client base, which includes 49 of the top 50 pharmaceutical companies.

“We immediately recognised the need to expand our capabilities and started a dialogue with fusion about an exclusive partnership to provide pioneering solutions that integrate OPEN Health’s capabilities with fusion’s cutting-edge expertise in AI and ML.

“fusion’s expertise in this area is unparalleled, and we are excited about the possibilities this partnership brings for our clients,” said OPEN Health Chief Executive Officer of Scientific Communications, Margot Hannah.

Meanwhile, fusion Founder, Mary McGregor said: “Our longstanding relationship with OPEN Health leadership facilitated early conversations, enabling us to quickly market-test joint solutions, which led to a swift and unanimous decision to formalise this collaboration.”

By integrating with fusion’s advanced technology, OPEN Health underscores its commitment to leading the AI agenda with socially beneficial innovations to drive innovation and efficiency for clients.

A pre-eminent global provider of scientific communications, Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) and market access, patient engagement, and consulting, OPEN Health delivers innovative solutions that have a positive impact on commercial and patient outcomes.

-- BERNAMA

PANGEA BAGS TOYOTA PRESTIGIOUS QUALITY AWARD

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 -- Pangea, a pioneering force in the automotive leather industry, has received the prestigious Certificate of Achievement in Quality Performance for 2023 from Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), in recognition of its commitment to excellence and its role as a trusted partner.

This esteemed award recognises Pangea's outstanding quality performance in supplying leather for several Toyota and Lexus models produced in Japan, including the Lexus RX, Lexus ES, Ace, Camry, and Rav4.

"This recognition is a testament to our passion and dedication to our customers. It is a well-deserved achievement for our entire team," said its Director, Global Customer Quality, Ron Main in a statement.

The award highlights Pangea's significant improvements in quality, displaying a remarkable 50 per cent improvement from 2022.

This accomplishment underscores the company's unwavering commitment to excellence and its dedication to meeting the highest standards for its customers and organisation.

Although there were challenges in the way of this honour, the customer was grateful for the Pangea team's unwavering support.

Of note, Pangea held monthly leather working meetings with Toyota and their seat suppliers to review parts with a primary goal to educate and calibrate to programme requirements.

These well-developed customer relationships and the substantial improvement in quality for 2023 have re-established Pangea as a steadfast supplier to TMC.

-- BERNAMA

Positive Outlook For APAC Despite Global Economic Challenges - Preqin Analysts

KUALA LUMPUR, June 24 (Bernama) -- Preqin, the global leader empowering the alternatives community with essential data and insight, has published its Alternatives in APAC 2024 report, covering regional analysis and country-specific insights for Greater China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Australia.

The report shows that while the short-term outlook for the Asia Pacific (APAC) region may appear cautious, driven by sluggish fundraising and geopolitical challenges, Preqin analysts maintain a positive outlook for the region over the long-term.

Preqin Vice President, Head of APAC and Valuations, Research Insights, Angela Lai said the APAC region has not been spared from the global macroeconomic headwinds that plagued the global market in 2023.

“But while the region’s fundraising may have reached a decade low and most country-specific funds struggled to raise capital, demand for Asia-regional funds grew amid investors’ stronger preference for diversification and reduced risk appetite,” she said in a statement.

The report also highlights a clear trend where investors increasingly favour experienced fund managers, over first-time fund managers with the gap between the average capital raised by the two groups reached its widest since 2015, at a staggering US$78 million, in 2023. In fact, experienced managers raised almost US$180 million on average, the highest since 2015, while fundraising by first-time managers was over US$100 million.

While most single country-specific funds struggled with fundraising, the total capital raised for Japan in 2023 was US$11.8 billion, exceeding 2022 by 13.4 per cent, mainly driven by some larger-than-usual private equity fund closures. (US$1=RM4.71)

Meanwhile, for India, Preqin analysts hold a positive long-term outlook for this market. Private capital grew remarkably, doubling in the last five years to outpace other Asian countries, and private debt in India has the largest single-country assets under management (AUM) in APAC.

The view is that long-term investors will continue to be attracted by the fundamental growth potential of emerging markets like India and Southeast Asia, where early-stage venture capital opportunities are in abundance, and the developed markets of Japan and South Korea with their attractive real estate markets.

Additional key findings include global environmental, social and governance (ESG) fundraising fell by 38 per cent from 2022 to 2023, and APAC was hit hardest, declining by 77 per cent, with aggregate capital raised dropping from US$13.5 billion to US$3.1billion.

The report finds that the North Asian office market is becoming a focal point for deals, whereby, in 2023, office transactions accounted for 39 per cent of total deal value and 53 per cent of the total number of deals in APAC.

-- BERNAMA

NIKKISO CE&IG GROUP TO SUPPLY ABOUT 24 LIQUID-BASED HYDROGEN STATIONS IN SOUTH KOREA

KUALA LUMPUR, June 20 (Bernama) -- Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group (CE&IG), part of Nikkiso Co Ltd’s Industrial division, announced it has been awarded contracts to build and maintain approximately two dozen liquid-based hydrogen (LH2) fuelling stations in South Korea, following its most recent award by SK Plug Hyverse.

“SK Plug Hyverse is a tremendous partner for Nikkiso in South Korea because together we bring exceptional capabilities and people to support South Korea’s progressive approach to establishing a competitive hydrogen economy.

“Nikkiso admires South Korea’s productive and pragmatic approach to scaling up the hydrogen economy, and we look forward to further opportunities supporting its efforts,” said its Chief Executive Officer, Peter Wagner in a statement.

As more buses and heavy-duty trucks look to lower carbon emissions while keeping long-distance driving capabilities, many fleet operators, transit authorities, and agencies are looking to liquid hydrogen as a solution for quick-fills and long-distance routes.

Nikkiso’s experience developing and manufacturing cryogenic pumps for more than 70 years and alternative fuels fuelling stations for 26 years is attracting companies like SK Plug Hyverse that want capable partners to help grow South Korea’s hydrogen infrastructure and economy.

Several liquid hydrogen stations in South Korea have already been commissioned, successfully fuelling buses back-to-back, and ramping up to capacity, while the remaining stations in the country will be brought online over the next 12 months.

As a cryogenic equipment, technologies and applications provider for clean energy and industrial gas market segments, Nikkiso CE&IG Group employs more than 1,600 people in 22 countries and is headed by Cryogenic Industries Inc in Southern California, United States, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nikkiso Co Ltd.

-- BERNAMA