While overall market sentiment in the first half of the year was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic concerns, Hong Kong proved more resilient than most bourses globally, with new economy listings seen as a key driver, according to KPMG analysis. Closely trailing NASDAQ, the Shanghai Stock Exchange meanwhile came second in terms of funds raised, backed by sizeable listings and the STAR market’s continuing popularity. KPMG’s latest analysis finds that proceeds from global IPOs in the first half of 2020 decreased by 8 percent to USD 68.8 billion compared with the same period last year, mostly due to…
Author: Iselle Chua
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South Korea’s Lotte Group has handed over VND3.66 billion ($159,000) through the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee to the Central Pediatric Hospital and 108 Military Hospital, with the desire to accompany the country on the road to economic and social recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. The money was donated by five subsidiaries of Lotte Group, including Lotte Vietnam Shopping JSC (Lotte Mart and Lotte Department Store), Lotte Global Logistics, Lotte Rental (Vietnam) Ltd., and Lotte Hotel Ltd. “Sustainable development and corporate social responsibility are Lotte Group’s operational objectives in Vietnam. The subsidiaries in the group are committed to long-term co-operation and…
HONG KONG – AIA Company Limited has received approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission to convert its Shanghai Branch into a wholly-owned subsidiary of AIA Co. This new subsidiary will be incorporated in Shanghai and is the first wholly foreign-owned life insurance company approved for incorporation in Mainland China. The insurance company will now begin the application process for separate regulatory approvals to establish branches of the newly incorporated subsidiary in additional territories in Mainland China. Lee Yuan Siong, AIA Group Chief Executive and President, said AIA is the first foreign company to receive approval to set…
ResApp Health Ltd, an ASX-listed digital health company, has signed a deal with global health products manufacturer RB to develop a smartphone app for consumers. In a disclosure, ResApp said the app will utilise the company’s cough-based algorithms to identify different respiratory conditions and provide recommended next steps. Also Read: Respiri Inks Deal with Pharmacy Guild of Australia ResApp and RB have agreed to exclusively work together to build and test a prototype app for consumers to self-assess, or assess with the assistance of a pharmacist, their respiratory symptoms. The cmpany’s machine learning algorithms use sound to diagnose and measure the…
KUALA LUMPUR – Principal Asset Management Berhad Group announced that it is bringing the global Giving Chain initiative, a community-based Covid-19 relief efforts, to the ASEAN region. The Giving Chain Initiatives directly assists those experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic by providing meals, family activity kits, and direct payments. In Malaysia, during the holy month of Ramadan, Principal stood together with PERTIWI Soup Kitchen, a non-profit organisation preparing 10,000 meals to ease the struggle of Malaysians living in urban poverty and local businesses especially the small and medium-sized enterprises facing adverse economic challenges. Principal contributed RM50,000 in cash donation…
ZHOUSHAN, China – Chinese energy and chemical firm China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) announced that it has set China’s new record of highest integral hoisting weight by a single equipment, after successfully installing the world’s first and largest slurry-bed residue hdyrogenation reactor of 3,000 tonnage in 15 hours in Zhoushan. Designed by Sinopec Engineering, the largest single-unit hydrogenation reactor in the world weighs 3,025 tons, which is the equivalent of 17 blue whales, the biggest animal on earth, and has a height of 72 meters (236.2 feet) that corresponds to a 26-story building. The reactor’s outside diameter is 6.156…
MANILA – Philippine-listed PLDT Inc announced that the Asia Direct Cable (ADC) Consortium, of which it is a member, is building a high-performance submarine cable connecting the Philippines, China (Hong Kong SAR and Guangdong Province), Japan, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The consortium has selected NEC Corporation to construct the 9,400-kilometer long ADC cable, which is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2022. The ADC cable system will strengthen the resiliency of PLDT’s international network by providing additional capacity for internet and digital services via a new route through the East and Southeast regions. Its high capacity allows…
Philippines-based digital financial services provider Ayannah, and India-based payments company Electronic Cash and Payment Solutions (ECAPS) has announced a merger that will create Ayannah Global, a Pan-Asian financial technology group that will provide affordable and accessible digital financial services to the growing middle class in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The group has chosen to situate its headquarters in Singapore, given its status as a leading financial centre in the region, robust FinTech infrastructure and strategic location among the fast-growing markets in Southeast Asia and South Asia. Singapore’s connectivity will support the Group in its expansion plans as it continues…
Chelsfield Asia, a unit of London-headquartered real estate investor Chelsfield, has made the final close of its first Pan-Asia value-add fund at US$362.5 million, according to an announcement. The fund – Chelsfield Asia Fund 1 – also secured a co-investment commitment of US$150 million and to date raised US$366 million of co-investment commitments. Investors in the fund include a sovereign wealth fund, a US-based pension fund, a global investment group from the Middle East, a corporate investor from Asia, a Hong Kong-based family office, and a global fund of funds. The fund will target real estate assets with substantial value-add…
RedDoorz, Southeast Asia’s largest and fastest growing hotel management and booking platform, announced it will reach 1 million occupied room nights by December 2019, a result of the business doubling in size every six months. As of July 2019, RedDoorz is growing five times year-on-year with operations across more than 52 cities in four countries in Southeast Asia. Most recently, it has reached 500,000 occupied room nights, an industry-first in Southeast Asia travel category. This latest achievement cements RedDoorz’s position as leader in Southeast Asia’s highly competitive affordable travel space, surpassing global competitors. The milestone was announced by the RedDoorz…
Business process outsourcing (BPO) firm TaskUs is offering all female workers 120 days of paid leave starting 2016, joining the ranks of other technology firms, such as Facebook, to offer such benefit to women employees. “Starting in 2016, we are offering all female teammates 120 days of paid leave. This policy happens to be exactly the same thing that Facebook announced it would offer new parents last week (we thought of it first!),” said TaskUs co-founder and CEO Bryce Maddock in a statement posted on its website. Maddock said the company arrived at the decision to provide 120-day paid maternity…