Author: Business News Asia

Global venture capital firm Antler today announced the appointment of Frank Kang as Associate Partner for Malaysia. This senior-level appointment further strengthens Antler’s commitment to investing in early-stage startups and backing exceptional founders in the region. Frank will also be taking the role of Country Head to spearhead the company’s investment strategy and operations in Malaysia. Leveraging his extensive entrepreneurial experience across various industries, Frank will play a pivotal part in empowering Malaysian founders to think globally and scale their businesses beyond borders. At present, Antler is one of the most active early-stage investors globally and has invested in over…

The Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) promotes a collaborative environment among members through the holding of the Business Connect on August 7, 2023, at the Oakridge Horizon, Oakridge Business Park in Mandaue City. Ms. Marvey Alcantara, Uratex director for Vismin and co-chair of Business Connect, explains that the chamber would like to connect members so they could get their requirement for services and products from within the chamber. “Networking is one of the activities requested by members. MCCI members come from diverse industries,” Ms. Alcantara said. She added that there are advantages to having a collaborative environment, supportive…

Cementing its network supremacy, Globe has retained its acclaim as the Most Reliable Mobile Network in the Philippines five times in a row by Ookla®, the global leader in internet testing and analysis. This achievement is based on analysis by Ookla® of Speedtest Intelligence® data, which showed that Globe won in reliability based on Q2 2022, Q3 2022, Q4 2022, Q1 2023, and Q1-Q2 2023. Its latest win covering Q1-Q2 2023 showed that Globe had the highest Consistency Score™ of 83.64% and was the most available all-technology mobile network at 92.63%. Reliability is earned by the mobile operator who achieves…

Subic Bay Freeport — Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan conveyed his confidence that the tourism industry’s full recovery here in the country’s premier Freeport zone remains high. This statement came as President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. lifted the state of public health emergency in the country thru Presidential Proclamation No. 297 effective July 21, 2023. “This encouraging development provides us with an optimistic outlook of the travel and tourism industry in the country,” Tan said. Tan was guest speaker at the Tourism Congress of the Philippines (TCP) 2023 Luzon Cluster Regional Consultative Forum, where…

Cebu City, Philippines – ABAC Philippines is hosting the third leg of this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Business Advisory Council (ABAC) meetings, an event aimed at addressing significant economic challenges and developing strategies for sustainable growth and collaboration. The meeting, set to attract over 200 delegates and guests, will take place at the NUSTAR Convention Center in Cebu from July 27 to 30, 2023. His Excellency President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos is expected to attend one of the meetings, sharing his administration’s vision and strategies for fostering economic growth and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. “We are grateful for this…

Addressing emerging challenges to businesses is one of the major highlights of the upcoming Mandaue Business Month (MBM) 2023, the annual series of events organized by the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI). During the launching of MBM 2023 held at City Sports Club, MBM 2023 chair Mark Anthony Ynoc said the various events are aimed to equip businesses to cope with present challenges. “With the adoption of technology across all industries, the new reality changes as we struggle to reinvent businesses. It is quite important to embrace the future and explore insights in the new era with one…

Philippine-listed real estate company Megaworld is set to open the Grand Westside Hotel in its 31-hectare Westside City township in Parañaque City by the end of the year. The 19-story, two-tower hotel, with 1,500 rooms, will be the largest hotel development in the Philippines. The Grand Westside Hotel will provide an array of room types and sizes to accommodate all guests. The rooms range from Queen Suites to Twin Suites, including specially-designed suites for specially-abled guests. Cleofe Albiso, Managing Director at Megaworld Hotels & Resorts, stated that the hotel’s strategic location, a short drive away from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport…

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan assured the public that smuggling will be thwarted during his term. The statement came after Tan and Bureau of Customs (BOC) District Collector Atty. Carmelita Talusan conducted an inspection of counterfeit goods worth P240-million in a warehouse in Subic Bay Freeport on Tuesday. According to Tan, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has mandated him to look into the smuggling of goods inside the Freeport, citing that the apprehension of the shipment of counterfeit goods is thru the collaboration between his agency and the BOC Port of Subic. “The cooperation between…

SKYPLAY has received a $10 million commitment from global investment group, LDA Capital Limited, to accelerate the growth of its gaming platform by publishing more games and acquiring new users. SKYPLAY plans to continue to leverage its enthusiastic blockchain community of over 300,000 monthly active users to help bring excitement to its gaming portfolio as SKYPLAY expands its virtual playground. SKYPLAY offers a user-friendly platform where users can utilize the SKP coins they have acquired for various purposes within the ecosystem provided by the platform. The platform provides seamless integration between the onboarded content and SKP, allowing users to experience…

Subic Bay Freeport – The Philippine Coastal Storage and Pipeline Corporation (PCSPC) is eyeing to expand their fuel storage capacity to 6.3 million barrels inside this premier Freeport. During the groundbreaking ceremony at the Subic Bay Freeport on Tuesday, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan disclosed that the company is set to construct two new 180,000-barrel-capacity fuel storage tanks this year and the next. Tan was the guest of honor at the groundbreaking ceremony led by PCSPC Chief Executive Officer Richard Tiansay at the Maritan Tank Farm here. Senior Deputy Administrator for Business and Investment…

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Japan’s second-largest lender, has ventured into the US consumer banking market with the launch of a new digital banking service, Reuters reported. The bank aims to leverage growth opportunities in the US through its subsidiary, Manufacturers Bank, a California state-chartered bank wholly owned by the group. The digital service, starting with a team of 270, provides personal loans initially, with more offerings, including a savings product, planned for the coming months. The digital banking operation seeks to generate a net profit in the hundreds of millions of dollars within a decade, according to Daisuke Tanaka, an…

Jack Ma’s fortune continues to shrink as Ant Group, the payments company he co-founded, reveals a much lower valuation amid a planned share repurchase, according to a Bloomberg report. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates Ma’s 9.9% stake to be worth $4.1 billion less than a year ago. Now worth around $30 billion, Ma’s wealth is less than half of his peak fortune before Ant Group’s IPO was derailed in 2020. The company, which has significantly revised its business model due to regulatory pressures, now has a valuation of approximately $78.5 billion, a sharp decrease from the anticipated $315 billion post-IPO.…

SoLeLands, an immersive game-based learning platform to support kids’ self-discovery, today announced that the company had raised funding led by East Ventures, with the participation of SMDV. The funding will be allocated for capacity building and product development in preparation for the soft launching in the Q4 of 2023. “We extend our gratitude to East Ventures and SMDV for their strong belief and trust in SoLeLands. We believe that the funding and support will enable us to provide the best platform to empower parents and educators in nurturing children’s self-discovery, and learning the required life skills and competencies. We are…

Southeast Asian insurtech startup, PasarPolis, has appointed industry titan, Peter Van Zyl, as its new President. The former Director and CEO of Allianz Indonesia, Van Zyl is set to harness his extensive expertise and leadership to further the firm’s mission of democratizing insurance. The significant appointment comes as PasarPolis transitions to a full-stack insurtech company, having recently partnered with Tap Insure. This collaboration has empowered PasarPolis to underwrite and distribute its insurance products, a strategic evolution that Van Zyl’s appointment is set to bolster. “PasarPolis welcomes Peter Van Zyl to our team,” announced Cleosent Randing, CEO of PasarPolis. “His leadership…

Co-Created, a venture studio that partners with corporate clients to rapidly build and launch new products and businesses, announced today its next phase of strategic expansion with the opening its first office in New Zealand, which will serve the broader APAC region. The APAC office will be led by venture builders Kostia Shinderman and Alex Veiga, who have extensive experience as founders, corporate executives, investors and advisors. They will partner with corporate clients throughout APAC to identify and explore new opportunities to build and launch innovative solutions. WIth this latest expansion, Co-Created will now have a presence on five continents…

Century Pacific Food, Inc. (PSE:CNPF), one of the leading food and beverage manufacturing companies in the Philippines, ranked among the top consumer staples companies in Asia ex-China in the recently concluded Institutional Investor 2023 Asia Executive Team Survey. Among Asian consumer staples companies, CNPF’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Teodoro Po, was recognized as among the top three Best CEOs by combined respondents from both buy-side and sell-side firms, while the Company’s ESG program also garnered top awards overall. CNPF’s Board of Directors was likewise voted as among the top in the sector by buy-side analysts, a new award category…

DoubleDragon Corporation’s hotel subsidiary receives its license to sell for Hotel 101-Libis Bridgetowne Project. The company to date has fully secured all the necessary building permits and has commenced construction site activities for Hotel101-Libis Bridgetowne in Quezon City, Metro Manila slated for completion in 2026. The 702 rooms Hotel101-Libis Bridgetowne is set to be the largest hotel in Quezon City with its pioneering standardized signature 21sqm HappyRooms. The hotel facilities will include a gym and an outdoor infinity pool, all-day dining, business center and function rooms. Hotel101-Libis Bridgetowne sits on a 2,547 square meter prime titled commercial lot which forms…

Singapore-based AI marketer, Needle, has announced the completion of an oversubscribed pre-seed funding round, raising $1.2 million. Led by Iterative, the round saw participation from Ethos Fund, Goldbell Financial Services, and prominent angel investors like J.J. Chai, Founder of Rainforest. The funds are earmarked for team expansion, including the recruitment of data scientists, AI trainers, and engineers. Needle, founded by experienced e-commerce veterans, offers a first-of-its-kind, end-to-end AI marketing solution. “Starting a business has never been easier, yet growing one has never been harder,” said Kiyan Foroughi, CEO and Co-Founder of Needle. The platform aims to help burgeoning e-commerce brands…

Sun Life Financial Inc. (SLF) successfully completed a public offering in Canada, raising $500 million via its Series 2023-1 Subordinated Unsecured 5.50% Fixed/Floating Debentures due 2035. The company intends to use an amount equivalent to the net proceeds from this offering to finance or refinance, fully or partly, new and existing green or social assets that align with the eligibility criteria defined in Sun Life’s Sustainability Bond Framework. The Debentures, not registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, were sold under a pricing supplement dated June 27, 2023. The offering adhered to the company’s short form base shelf…

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan confers matters with the Technical Working Group (TWG) for Transportation to address concerns regarding the need for public transport providers within the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. “Our nightlife here needs reviving since most of the restos and bars close early because of the lack of available transportation after 9 pm. Yes we do have taxis, but for a simple employee of a restaurant or bar, taking the cab everyday would certainly hurt his or her income,” Chairman Tan said. The official shared that the agency is eyeing the purchase of electric buses and…