IMMERSE IN A MAGICAL EXPERIENCE AT KYOTO AQUARIUM THIS LUNAR NEW YEAR

The jellyfish area increasingly popular as a photo spot. (Photo: Business Wire)

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 24 (Bernama) -- The Kyoto Aquarium, located in Umekoji Park, Kyoto City, is hosting the Jellyfish Luminaries event in the Jellyfish Wonders area from January to March 2025.

Running until March 21, this annual event, now in its fifth year, showcases around 60 jellyfish lamps representing 20 different jellyfish species, according to the Kyoto Aquarium in a statement.

A highlight of the event is the Mirror Tunnel, where visitors can admire mesmerising scenery reflected on the mirror walls.

These lamps were crafted by glass artisans from Niigata Prefecture, with designs mimicking the appearance of real jellyfish, under the guidance of the aquarium’s breeding staff.

Jellyfish, known for their photogenic beauty, are symbolic of good fortune, making this event a perfect way to celebrate the Lunar New Year and wish for good luck in the year ahead.

-- BERNAMA

WEF25: SAUDI MINISTERS DISCUSS ECONOMIC RESILIENCE, REGIONAL GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, addressed a panel session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos on ‘Diplomacy amid Disorder’, where he spoke about an opportunity for the region “to turn a page” (Photo: AETOSWire)

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23 (Bernama) -- Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Economy and Planning, Faisal F. Alibrahim has highlighted the Kingdom’s long-term approach to growth at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos, Switzerland.

During a panel session on ‘The Future of Growth’, Minister Faisal said in a statement: “Saudi Vision 2030 is an example of bold leadership that has led us to plan with confidence, deliver with optimism, but also manage with prudence.”

Meanwhile, in another panel session titled ‘Diplomacy amid Disorder’, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah highlighted the Middle East’s potential to shape a prosperous future following the recent Gaza ceasefire.

Despite the region’s risk factors, he emphasised the region’s resilience and optimism, particularly with the progress seen in countries like Syria, Lebanon, and Gaza.

Prince Faisal expressed hope for a new chapter in the region, noting the stability of the Kingdom and other GCC countries despite challenges.

On the other hand, the Minister of Tourism, Ahmed A. Al-Khateeb, in a session titled ‘Travel and Tourism’s Role in Building Trust’, shared the success of the tourism sector, revealing that the Kingdom saw nearly 30 million international visitors in 2024, up from 10 million in 2019, stating: “Travel and tourism is contributing to building a diversified and more resilient economy.”

The WEF released a briefing paper with expert input from Minister Ahmed on ‘The Future of Travel and Tourism: Embracing Sustainable and Inclusive Growth’, exploring trends in the sector and the importance of cross-sector collaboration.

The Ministry of Tourism also released an Investor White Paper highlighting initiatives transforming the Kingdom's tourism sector under Vision 2030.

In addition, Salesforce has announced plans to open a regional headquarters in Riyadh, pledging to provide upskilling opportunities to 30,000 Saudi citizens by 2030, while also announcing a partnership agreement with IBM to open an artificial intelligence Innovation Center in the Kingdom.

-- BERNAMA

SMART MODULAR ADD-IN CARDS ACHIEVE COMPLIANCE TESTING

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22 (Bernama) -- SMART Modular Technologies Inc (SMART), a Penguin Solutions Inc brand, announced its 4-DIMM and 8-DIMM Compute Express Link (CXL) memory Add-in Cards (AICs) have successfully passed CXL 2.0 compliance testing.

These products are now officially listed on the CXL Consortium's Integrators' List, marking a significant milestone in the company's commitment to delivering high-quality, interoperable memory solutions.

SMART Modular Technologies vice president of advanced product development, Andy Mills in a statement said achieving CXL compliance is a testament to the company team's hard work and dedication to innovation.

“Our 4-DIMM and 8-DIMM CXL memory Add-in Cards are designed to meet the evolving needs of our customers, and this recognition further validates our commitment to providing cutting-edge solutions with enhanced performance and reliability,” he said.

The inclusion of SMART Modular Technologies' products on the CXL Integrator's List underscores the company's dedication to adhering to industry standards and ensuring compatibility across a wide range of computing environments.

Developed by the CXL Consortium, the CXL Compliance Program provides members with opportunities to test the functionality and interoperability of their products as defined in the CXL specification.

This achievement not only highlights SMART Modular Technologies' technical expertise but also reinforces its role as a leader in advancing integrated memory technology.

As the demand for high-speed data processing continues to grow, SMART Modular Technologies remains at the forefront of delivering advanced memory solutions that help drive efficiency and performance in modern computing systems.

-- BERNAMA

BITGET PARTNERS WITH KAIA FOUNDATION TO FOSTER MINI-DAPP ECOSYSTEM ON LINE MESSENGER

VICTORIA, Seychelles, Jan 22 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bitget, the leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company, is excited to announce a strategic partnership with the Kaia DLT Foundation to accelerate the growth of the Kaia blockchain-powered Mini-Dapp ecosystem launched on LINE Messenger today. This collaboration will focus on identifying high-potential Mini-Dapps, offering comprehensive support in incubation, advisory, listing, and go-to-market strategies to drive their success.

Kaia blockchain, renowned for its innovative architecture and emphasis on simplicity, has positioned itself as a pioneer in Asia’s Web3 space. Its unique ability to seamlessly integrate with Web2 platforms like LINE Messenger has drawn significant attention. In 2024, Kaia achieved a milestone of over 2 million unique active wallets and 13 million total transactions, with more than 9,000 active contracts already deployed on its chain. This impressive growth reflects Kaia’s strong technical foundation and the scalability required to support a thriving decentralized ecosystem.

Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget, expressed her enthusiasm for this partnership: “In 2024, our extensive collaboration with the TON ecosystem brought unprecedented new user flows into the Web3 industry, demonstrating the immense potential of bridging Web2 and Web3. We firmly believe that driving user adoption from Web2 will remain a pivotal focus in 2025. By partnering with Kaia Foundation, we aim to uncover and empower outstanding Mini-Dapps on LINE Messenger, driving innovation and adoption in this rapidly evolving space.”

Dr. Sam Seo, Chairman of the Kaia DLT Foundation, stated, “Bitget has consistently proven itself as a leader in empowering Web3 projects with its unparalleled expertise in global market reach. This collaboration with Bitget marks an exciting chapter for the Kaia ecosystem as we work together to identify and amplify the next generation of Mini Dapps. With Bitget's support, we’re confident that the Kaia blockchain will become a cornerstone of Web3 innovation.”

On the same day, the Kaia Foundation officially introduced the Dapp Portal, which initially had 30 Mini Dapps selected. All the Dapps are built on the Kaia blockchain and accessible directly from LINE Messenger, a trendy chatting app with over 200 million monthly active users globally. This initiative will empower Kaia to bring decentralized services to mainstream audiences.

About Bitget

Established in 2018, Bitget is the world's leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 45 million users in 150+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions, while offering real-time access to Bitcoin price, Ethereum price, and other cryptocurrency prices. Formerly known as BitKeep, Bitget Wallet is a world-class multi-chain crypto wallet that offers an array of comprehensive Web3 solutions and features including wallet functionality, token swap, NFT Marketplace, DApp browser, and more.

Bitget is at the forefront of driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships, such as its role as the Official Crypto Partner of the World's Top Football League, LALIGA, in EASTERN, SEA and LATAM market, as well as a global partner of Turkish National athletes Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (Wrestling world champion), Samet Gümüş (Boxing gold medalist) and İlkin Aydın (Volleyball national team), to inspire the global community to embrace the future of cryptocurrency.

For more information, visit: Website | Twitter | Telegram | LinkedIn | Discord | Bitget Wallet

For media inquiries, please contact: media@bitget.com

About Kaia

Kaia is a high performance public blockchain that brings Web3 to the fingertips of hundreds of millions across Asia. Formed through the merger of the Klaytn and Finschia blockchains that were initially developed by Kakao and LINE respectively, Kaia is Asia’s largest Web3 ecosystem integrated with the Kakaotalk and LINE messengers that have a combined user base of over 250 million - all of whom can experience Web3 with the ease and speed of Web2 within their favourite messenger superapp to connect, create, collaborate, and contribute to the ecosystem. Learn more at www.kaia.io.

About Kaia DLT Foundation

The Kaia DLT Foundation, based in Abu Dhabi, was established in 2024 to expand the ecosystem of Kaia, a global Layer 1 blockchain platform. We drive the adoption and development of new technologies to ensure that Kaia fulfills its role as an accessible, transparent, and sustainable blockchain platform for developers and users alike, and facilitate decision-making to ensure that the ecosystem continues to expand optimally in the rapidly changing blockchain landscape.

Risk Warning: Digital asset prices are subject to fluctuation and may experience significant volatility. Investors are advised to only allocate funds they can afford to lose. The value of any investment may be impacted, and there is a possibility that financial objectives may not be met, nor the principal investment recovered. Independent financial advice should always be sought, and personal financial experience and standing carefully considered. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Bitget accepts no liability for any potential losses incurred. Nothing contained herein should be construed as financial advice. For further information, please refer to our Terms of Use.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9d11cb0f-5394-4904-b1f7-b3564454fe22 


SOURCE : Bitget Limited

^{DISCLAIMER: BERNAMA MREM are not accountable for any causes of website defacement, misuse, or illegal activities connected to cryptocurrency, blockchain, tokenisation, or bitcoin. This material should not be considered as guidance or an opinion, as it does not constitute financial or investment advice. Use this information at your own risk; we are not liable for any losses or damages caused by the republication of this article.}

​RHINO.AI ANNOUNCES $50M SERIES A TO TRANSFORM ENTERPRISE MODERNIZATION

AsiaNet 0200667

WASHINGTON, D.C, Jan.22, 2025 /AgilityPR-AsiaNet/--

Koch Venture Capital Group, Koch Disruptive Technologies, Leads Funding Round

Rhino.ai, a leading AI-powered enterprise platform, announced $50 million in Series A funding led by Koch Disruptive Technologies. The investment will fuel Rhino.ai’s mission to help organizations transform outdated systems into agile, scalable solutions.

By combining agentic AI with human expertise, Rhino.ai's intelligent platform analyzes complex legacy systems and automatically generates modernized applications in any desired technology stack. While traditional modernization tools focus on code conversion, Rhino.ai orchestrates the entire transformation journey - from deep system analysis to collaborative requirements, refinement and automated development - reducing modernization timelines from years to months.

Breaking new ground beyond conventional AI copilots, Rhino.ai is the first end-to-end platform that enables business teams, developers, and system integrators to collaborate seamlessly through an AI-powered modernization lifecycle. Rhino.ai’s state-of-the-art agent-graph architecture leverages a blend of industry-leading large language models (LLMs) alongside Rhino.ai’s own advanced, proprietary LLMs to deliver enterprise-grade transformations with unprecedented speed and accuracy."

"Transforming enterprise systems requires more than automating isolated tasks. Our platform manages the end-to-end process, from discovery to deployment, enabling organizations to seamlessly transition to modern architectures without the constraints of proprietary systems,” said Adam Branch, CEO of Rhino.ai.

The global market for legacy system transformation is projected to reach $583 billion by 2027, underscoring the urgency for organizations to replace cumbersome systems with flexible, future-ready infrastructures. Rhino.ai is leading this shift, automating the discovery, transformation, and deployment of entire application portfolios through its innovative platform.

Rhino.ai’s platform transforms applications across diverse architectures, including low-code/no-code environments, microservices, and systems on platforms like AWS, GCP, Azure, or open-source frameworks. Its Universal Application Notation (UAN) framework decouples business-critical applications from vendor-specific constraints, enabling organizations to modernize without proprietary limitations.

"Rhino.ai's innovative approach to legacy system modernization aligns perfectly with the urgent need for digital transformation across industries," said Byron Knight, President of Koch Disruptive Technologies.

Koch Disruptive Technologies, Koch’s venture capital group, is leading the $50 million Series A funding round. This new funding will support Rhino.ai’s growth by expanding its engineering team, enhancing product offerings, and scaling operations to meet the surging demand for modernization solutions. Backed by Koch, Rhino.ai is well-positioned to redefine how enterprises and government agencies transform their technology landscapes. The investment will fuel Rhino.ai’s mission to help organizations transform outdated systems into agile, scalable solutions.

"This partnership with Rhino.ai represents a continuing shift towards AI in our digital transformation efforts," said Matt Hoag, Koch CTO. "By addressing our technical debt more efficiently using AI agents, we have the opportunity to not just save time and money – but also free up our talented developers to focus on innovation."

About Rhino.ai
Rhino.ai revolutionizes the way organizations upgrade legacy systems. By automating software development and simplifying complex modernization processes, Rhino.ai enables faster, more cost-effective digital transformation with unmatched operational agility. For more information, visit www.rhino.ai

About Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT)
Koch Disruptive Technologies is a venture capital firm partnering with principled entrepreneurs who are building high-growth companies that have the potential to transform industries. KDT has a flexible mandate to make investments at any stage of a company's life cycle, from seed to late-stage growth. KDT is a Koch company, one of the largest privately held companies in the world, with annual revenues that have exceeded $125 billion and operations in more than 50 countries. KDT helps its partners unlock their full potential by bringing them Koch’s capabilities and network, structuring unique capital solutions, and embracing a long-term mutual benefit mindset. For more information, visit www.kochdisruptivetechnologies.com

Media contacts:
Zara Thornwood
Chief Innovation Officer
rpress@rhino.ai

Source: Rhino.ai

--BERNAMA

UNI-FUELS RAISES US$8.4 MLN IN SUCCESSFUL IPO CLOSING

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 16 (Bernama) -- Uni-Fuels Holdings Limited (Uni-Fuels) has successfully closed its underwritten initial public offering (IPO) of 2,100,000 Class A Ordinary Shares at a public offering price of US$4.00 per share, raising total gross proceeds of US$8.4 million before underwriting discounts and commissions. (US$1 = RM4.49)

All of the Class A Ordinary Shares are being offered by Uni-Fuels, according to a statement.

The IPO, which closed on Jan 15, began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market on Jan 14, under the ticker symbol “UFG”.

In addition, the company has granted the underwriters an option to purchase up to 315,000 additional shares within 45 days of the effective date of its registration statement in relation to the IPO.

The company plans to use the proceeds from the IPO for several strategic purposes, including expanding its reselling activities to capture a larger market share, strengthening its workforce, and expanding its market presence in new geographical locations.

Additionally, the funds will also be utilised for general corporate purposes and as cash reserves.

The IPO was conducted on a firm commitment basis with R. F. Lafferty & Co Inc, serving as the sole book-running manager.

Founded in 2021, Singapore-headquartered Uni-Fuels is a global provider of marine fuel solutions and has evolved from modest beginnings into a dynamic, forward-thinking company.

-- BERNAMA

EasyTransfer Secures Spot In KPMG’s 2024 China Fintech 50 For Third Year Running

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 14 (Bernama) -- EasyTransfer, a Singapore-based global education fintech firm, has been listed in KPMG’s 2024 China Fintech 50 report for the third consecutive year, affirming its status as a leading fintech company.

The company, which operates in over 170 countries, is particularly influential in China, serving more than 380,000 Chinese international students by facilitating seamless payments to top universities and educational institutions worldwide, according to a statement.

“It is a great honour for EasyTransfer to be included in KPMG’s China Fintech 50 list for a third year, in recognition of the company’s achievements in the global education-focused fintech sector,” said EasyTransfer Founder and President, Tony Gao.

Gao highlighted the company’s significant 2024 milestones, including partnerships with the University of Manchester, Oxford University Press, Newcastle University,  the University of Nottingham, Pearson PTE, China CITIC Bank, as well as several payment service providers in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. He also expressed optimism for continued growth in 2025.

EasyTransfer simplifies school fee payments for over half a million international students, offering transparent real-time exchange rates locked in for 12-hour periods to counter volatile currency fluctuations and eliminating processing fees for recipient universities.

The platform addresses challenges such as forex volatility and remittance limits, enabling more students to pursue education abroad affordably and efficiently.

This year’s winners were announced on Jan 10, at the 2024 KPMG China Financial Technology Enterprise Double 50 List Release and Award Ceremony in Shanghai, organised by KPMG China in collaboration with the Financial Technology Branch of the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics Alumni Association.

Companies were nominated in five broad fintech categories, comprising financial services in science and technology, eco-friendliness, inclusivity, pensions, and digital products. A panel of financial experts assessed applicants based on criteria such as science and data; innovation and change; popularisation of financial services; recognition in capital markets; and industry development prospects.

-- BERNAMA