Wednesday 31 July 2019

GROUNDBREAKING HYPERLOOP POD HITS THE ROAD ACROSS AMERICA

National Roadshow Will Stop in Columbus, Arlington, Kansas City, and Other Cities Over the Next Few Months
 
LOS ANGELES, July 31 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Virgin Hyperloop One (VHO), today launched a first-of-its kind U.S. roadshow to bring its XP-1 hyperloop pod to communities across the United States and start a dialogue about the power of this new form of mass transportation.
 
“When government and investor delegations come to our test site, seeing the technology makes it real for them. Not everyone can come to the Nevada desert, so we’re bringing our technology to the people – the American people who will be riding this new form of transportation within a decade,” said Jay Walder, CEO of Virgin Hyperloop One.
 
On May 11, 2017, XP-1 completed the world’s first full-system hyperloop test – what VHO calls its “Kitty Hawk” moment. This was the first time any company had integrated all of the components of a hyperloop including a highly efficient motor, power electronics, magnetic levitation, vacuum pumping systems, and an aerodynamic vehicle as a single unified system. During testing, XP-1 set the full-scale hyperloop speed record of 240 miles per hour on just 550 yards of track.
 
The national roadshow kicks off as states and cities across the world are competing to be the first to implement hyperloop technology, realizing the significant socio-economic benefits of early adoption. Nine states are exploring the technology and the federal government has created the Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council to advance safety and regulatory certification.
 
The roadshow will give local communities the chance to see first-hand the historic test pod and learn more about their states’ progress in bringing hyperloop to fruition in a matter of years. Below are the scheduled stops along the national roadshow route:
 
COLUMBUS, OHIO: August 4, 2019
 
The first stop will be in Columbus, Ohio on Sunday, August 4th. VHO has partnered with The Center of Science and Industry (COSI) and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) to host a STEM outreach day – featuring the XP-1 vehicle and hyperloop-related, hands-on activities for all ages. The event is free and open to the public from 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM at COSI (333 West Broad St. Columbus, OH 43215).
 
As part of the Rapid Speed Transportation Initiative, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission is conducting a feasibility study of hyperloop technology along a Chicago-Columbus-Pittsburgh corridor, followed by components of an environmental impact statement along the same route. 

“We’re thrilled to welcome Virgin Hyperloop One CEO Jay Walder and his team to Columbus. Since being named a winner of the Hyperloop One Global Challenge in 2017, we’ve been proud to work with VHO in advancing our ‘Midwest Connect’ corridor,” said William Murdock, executive director of the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. “Showcasing VHO and the XP-1 pod in Columbus as the first stop on the U.S. roadshow offers the opportunity for our businesses, community leaders, and residents to see the impact this emerging technology could have on the future success of Central Ohio – and the entire Midwest.”
 
ARLINGTON, TEXAS: August 8 -10, 2019
 
From Columbus, VHO will head to Arlington, Texas, where they’ve partnered with the Dallas Cowboys and the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) to unveil XP-1 at AT&T Stadium, the 4th largest in the NFL. The vehicle will be viewable during the scheduled stadium tours at AT&T Stadium (1 AT&T Way, Arlington, TX 76011). Make sure to get your tickets here.
 
The Dallas-Fort Worth region has focused its program on students of all ages interested in careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The stadium will be open on August 9th from 2:30 to 4:00 PM for an invitation-only event featuring students from area school districts and other campuses for demonstrations of technologies related to the hyperloop project.
 
The Dallas-Fort Worth Regional Transportation Council announced their intent to evaluate hyperloop technology in Texas. The agency has begun a hyperloop feasibility study of a Fort Worth to Laredo route and an environmental impact study along a Dallas to Fort Worth corridor, which would include an Arlington station with access to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.
 
“Our region is going to gain 3 million new residents within 25 years. In order to handle this mass influx of people, we need to explore projects that will modernize our transportation infrastructure,” said Michael Morris, P.E., Director of Transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments. “We are exploring hyperloop as a potential project that would connect millions of Texans faster, safer, and more efficiently.”
 
KANSAS CITY,  KANSAS: September 14, 2019
 
After a short hiatus, XP-1 will be back on the road. Thanks to the KC Tech Council and Am Law 100 firm Polsinelli, XP-1 will be speeding into the Kansas Speedway during the famed American Royal World Series of Barbecue – the world’s largest barbecue and Kansas City’s biggest party! On September 14th, better known as “Smokin’ Saturday,” XP-1 will be on display alongside other family-friendly programming like live music, BBQ demos, food trucks, a classic car show, and the Cowtown Family Fun Fest. The vehicle will be viewable from starting at 11:00 AM at the Kansas Speedway (400 Speedway Blvd, Kansas City, KS 66111). Tickets can be found here.
 
Following completion of the first hyperloop feasibility study in the U.S., House Speaker Elijah Haahr announced the formation of the Blue Ribbon Panel headed by Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe, which will explore next steps and funding mechanisms for the Missouri Hyperloop project. The panel will report back with recommendations by September 2019.
 
“On behalf of Greg Kratofil, Jr. of Polsinelli and the KC Tech Council, we are thrilled to welcome the Virgin Hyperloop One XP-1 hyperloop vehicle to our great city of Kansas City,” said Ryan Weber, President of the KC Tech Council. “There has been so much excitement and interest in this technology, and we know the Kansas City tech community and general public will be receptive to the demonstration and learning more details. We encourage the community’s attendance at the American Royal World Series of Barbecue to view this cutting-edge vehicle in person, as we are confident it will play a key role in the future of our transportation.”
 
Beyond these cities, XP-1 also will be stopping throughout the heartland - at diners, hotels, museums, parks, state houses, and stadiums - to share the progress and promise of hyperloop technology.
 
This 4,000 mile route across the United States will today take 70 hours driving. With hyperloop, it would take about six.
 
About Virgin Hyperloop One
Virgin Hyperloop One is the leading hyperloop company launching the first new mode of mass transportation in over 100 years. The company successfully operated a full-scale hyperloop vehicle using electric propulsion and electromagnetic levitation under near-vacuum conditions, realizing a fundamentally new form of transportation that is faster, safer, cheaper, and more sustainable than existing modes. The company is now working with governments, partners, and investors around the world to make hyperloop a reality in years, not decades. They currently have projects underway in Missouri, Texas, Colorado, North Carolina, the Midwest, India, KSA, and the UAE. Learn more about Virgin Hyperloop One’s technology, vision, and ongoing projects here.
 
Media Assets
To download high-resolution route maps and visuals of VHO technology, please click here.
 
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f65ae916-191c-47a1-9bae-174a5171d944
 
Media Contact
Nicole Kolinsky
BerlinRosen
hyperloop@berlinrosen.com
+1-646-263-1527
 
Source: Virgin Hyperloop One
 
--BERNAMA

E-COMMERCE-CENTRIC BLOCKCHAIN ABEY ANNOUNCES STARTLING ADOPTION



Infographic showing growth of e-commerce-centric fast blockchain aBey in first year of release. (Photo: Business Wire)


VADUZ, Lichtenstein, July 31 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- July 30, 2019-The aBey Foundation today announced adoption rates of the world’s first e-commerce-centric fast blockchain, on the one-year anniversary of its public release. Dr. Ciprian Pungila, chief scientist and co-creator of aBey said, “Since public launch of aBey on July 30, 2018, we have amassed more than 100,000 active users within the first twelve months of that date. aBey’s growth rate exceeds Bitcoin’s early growth by a factor of more than eight times.”

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190729005775/en/

Major early adopter, aPay Systems, based in Malta, a high-volume online payments processor, chose the aBey blockchain as the technical underpinning of the company’s service. Philipp Saurborn, CEO said, “As a payments processor with inter-chain operability and up to 100K transactions per second, our B2B and B2C users demand speedy transaction completions. Before we migrated to aBey’s blockchain, transactions written to popular blockchains would require hours, even days to complete. Now, with aBey, we can complete every single transaction in milliseconds. There is no other blockchain on earth which can deliver such speed and flexibility, which is demanded by business and consumers.”

Mr. Saurborn said, “One of the future’s great revenue models for any company relying on the provision of quality data is to reward audiences for providing data willingly, and for interaction on their platform. The aBey blockchain allows retailers to reward buyers for providing data, for sharing, for completing surveys, for using offers, for referrals, voting, comparing, reviewing, liking, promoting, testing, using — the possibilities are endless with aBey. They aBey blockchain empowers retailers to attract, retain and motivate their customers while building trust relationships, all of which are key for conversion and retention.”

aBey’s key features include speed, supporting up to 100K transactions per second (verified in SpringerNature and Academia.edu), refundable transactions (a world’s first), intrinsic lending, including on-the-spot lending with instant compliance checks using Vault Lending Gateways (a world’s first), support for affiliate marketing referrals and payment of commissions using Trusted Payments Gateways (a world’s first), payment processing on chain and a simple crypto wallet. Optional account names that can replace long cryptic numbers are intrinsic to aBey and are not a paid service as with other blockchains, greatly enhancing users’ discovery of other permissionless users in their networks. A richly-featured WordPress plugin, aBeyWPP, will be released in early 2020, bringing click-to-buy and transaction status functionality to more than 75 million websites.

Mr. Saurborn said, “Integrating aBey’s permissionless blockchain and distributed ledger technology into our permissioned aPay blockchain service means peace of mind for us, our clients and regulators.”

“aBey was designed and built to be the world’s fastest and most flexible open-source blockchain,” Pungila said. “We’re seeing spectacular adoption, and we can’t wait to see what other applications will be built on aBey.”

The non-profit aBey Foundation, based in Lichtenstein, provides governance for the free open-sourced aBey blockchain. http://abey.org

Please download the aBey media backgrounder kit in English http://bit.ly/abey3 or Chinese http://bit.ly/abey5 and visit http://abey.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190729005775/en/

Contact

Simon Cousins, +1 347 850-3360

Source : aBey Foundation

--BERNAMA

AN EXCLUSIVE PBS INDUSTRIAL TALK ON 'LIVING THE MAYBANK BRAND' WITH ADJUNCT PROFESSOR NORA A MANAF

A group photo with some of Putra Business School (PBS) postgraduate students attended the industrial talk 'Living the Maybank Brand'


SERDANG, July 31 (Bernama) -- Putra Business School (PBS) organized its industrial talk with Adjunct Professor Nora A Manaf, Group Chief Human Capital Officer, Maybank on ‘Living the Maybank Brand’. The talk was held on 27thJuly 2019 at Putra Business School Auditorium. The event had successfully attracted more than 70 postgraduate students. Also present were the President & CEO of PBS, Prof. Dr. Zulkornain Yusop and PBS faculty member, Prof. Dr. Abu Bakar Sade. The speaker graciously shared her expansive experience on building its Maybank brand and her concern for millennials in keeping abreast with the demand of IR 4.0. She has also emphasized that every employer needs to have employees who are digital literate and be a problem solver to spearhead the current development.
 
She notably made it clear from her ideas in building a humanized workplace through various initiatives whereby she implemented the up to one-year maternity leave for female staff. This was to enhance the employees working engagement, commitment and performance.
 
Bringing an industry player is an excellent exposure to have greater understanding on the real-life practices in industry. “The talk allows me to understand the challenges that the most organizations are facing today, this is truly a beneficial knowledge for both my studies and work” said Elizabete Kalnozola, an MBA student. The talk ended with a token of appreciation presented to Puan Nora and a group photo session.
 
ABOUT PUTRA BUSINESS SCHOOL
 
Putra Business School (PBS) was formerly known as the Graduate School of Management (GSM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). It is a leading business school in Malaysia and the first post-graduate business school accredited by AACSB - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Only fewer than 5% of business schools worldwide have these accreditation. PBS is also accredited by ABEST21 (The Alliance on Business Education and Scholarship for Tomorrow, a 21st Century Organisation). All programmes offered by PBS are accredited by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and approved by the Ministry of Higher Education.
 
The academic programmes offered by PBS include MBA (General Management), MBA (Corporate Governance) in collaboration with Malaysian Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (MAICSA), MBA (Marketing) in collaboration with Institute of Marketing Malaysia, MBA (Human Potential Management) in collaboration with Malaysian Institute of Human Resource Management, MBA (Finance), MBA (International Business), specialised Master of Science (MSc) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
 
The value added into students’ qualifications is also enhanced by the recent collaboration with a professional body, the Chartered Management Institute (CMI). The CMI is an accredited professional institution for management, based in United Kingdom. This will create impact to graduates with added professional associateship. PBS has also formalized collaboration with Finance Accreditation Agency (FAA). This FAA is supported by the Central Bank of Malaysia and as such the quality of professional learning in the financial services industry will be well-monitored.
 
The programmes offered by PBS are designed to nurture its students to become leaders with human governance values and principles. PBS also engages in research, consultancy and business development activities. For more information, please visit our website at http://www.putrabusinessschool.edu.my.
 
Source: Putra Business School (PBS) 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name: Siti Badarny Hassan
Director of Marketing and Communications
Email: badarny@putrabs.edu.my

--BERNAMA

Keller Williams expands to Malaysia, with David Ong as regional operating principal

KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 (Bernama) -- Keller Williams (KW), the world's largest real estate technology franchise by agent count has expanded to Malaysia, with David Ong as regional operating principal.
Currently, KW has 52 market centres and 1,586 agents across Asia.
According to a statement, Ong serves as president and founder of Reapfield Group, which will transition into a KW franchise. The rebrand of Reapfield into KW Malaysia is expected to complete in Q4 2019.
Founded in 1984, Reapfield currently offers a broad range of real estate marketing, advisory, management and transactional services to clients across Malaysia. The firm has 11 offices in the country.
“The vision of the KW Malaysia team is massive. With more than 800 agents already, they understand the interdependent model deeply, and see the enormous opportunity of growing it throughout Asia,” said Keller Williams Worldwide (KWW) president, William E. Soteroff.
As of June 30, KWW has 206 market centres (outside of the United States and Canada) across 38 regions. It has 8,075 agents collectively operating outside the US and Canada, up 20.9 per cent since the end of Q2 2018.
KWW is currently exploring further expansion opportunities across Africa, Central and South America, Central and Eastern Europe, and throughout Asia. For more information, contact https://kw.com.
-- BERNAMA

LeddarTech settles patent infringement case with Phantom Intelligence

KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 (Bernama) -- LeddarTech has announced its patent infringement case against Phantom Intelligence was settled favourably at the Federal Court of Canada.
“We have always been confident that we would be successful in the defence of our intellectual property, and we will continue to be vigilant in protecting it,” said LeddarTech chief technology officer, Pierre Olivier.
LeddarTech values the important contributions of its engineers and scientists to its intellectual property (72 patents: 52 granted and 20 pending) and intends to continue monitoring for possible infringement of its proprietary LiDAR sensing technology.
In December 2015, LeddarTech challenged Phantom Intelligence over the illegal use of its patented LiDAR sensing technology.
The patent is a core driver of LeddarTech’s long-established intellectual property and is practised in all of its LiDAR sensing products deployed in advanced driver-assistance systems and autonomous driving applications in the auto and mobility sectors.
LeddarTech is an industry leader providing the most versatile and scalable auto and mobility LiDAR platform. For more information, contact https://leddartech.com.

-- BERNAMA

Monday 29 July 2019

ONLINE MUSLIM MENTAL HEALTH COMPANY THERAPYLINE THAT AIMS TO NORMALIZE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN THE MUSLIM WORLD LAUNCHES IN THE UK, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND THIS WEEK.

LONDON, July 29 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TherapyLine, the online mobile mental health company for Muslims, launches in three new markets today, UK, Australia and New Zealand, as part of a larger plan to provide professional Counseling to as many Muslims across the world as possible. Originally launched in Canada, TherapyLine provides unlimited counseling from professionally licensed Muslim counselors via direct messaging through the Therapyline.org website for about $179 usd per month.

“Currently about 2.3 million Muslims live in the United Kingdom, over 600,000 live in Australia and about 50,000 thousand live in New Zealand so that is about 3 million more Muslims we can now reach that might not have tried to seek mental health before,” says Faisal Khan, Founder and CEO of TherapyLine. TherapyLine is looking at the UK as an entrance way to provide Therapy to Muslims in Europe as well as part of their longer term plan to go worldwide.

The topic of Mental health, which is usually not discussed between Muslims or publicly at Islamic institutions, is something TherapyLine aims to change and normalize in addition to the access to professional mental health services in the Muslim world. “Most Muslims tend to keep mental distress to themselves or occasionally confide in an Imam,” Says Co-founder and Director of Outreach, Asim Ibrahim. “We need them to know that they have a place they can go now to get anonymous help that is accessible and affordable,” says Ibrahim.

Faisalkhan@therapyline.org
734 407 9626
www.therapyline.org

Source: Therapyline Technologies Inc.

--BERNAMA

Madison Realty Capital records US$1.3 billion in financing, note purchases

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Madison Realty Capital (MRC), a New York City-based real estate private equity firm has closed over US$1.3 billion in financing and note purchases year-to-date in 2019. (US$1 = RM4.12)
The nationwide transactions, between US$21.4 million and US$314 million, touched all major asset classes and included deals across New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, California and Massachusetts, according to a statement.
“Our national expansion is well underway as our lending programmes continue to attract premier sponsors in major markets across the United States.,” said MRC co-founder and managing principal, Josh Zegen.
“We are very pleased with a very robust first half of 2019 and we believe our rare combination of expertise, speed and certainty of execution will contribute to even greater success in the second half of this year.”
Among the 2019 highlights include US$314 million construction loan on the Raffles Boston Back Bay Hotel & Residences; US$225 million construction loan on The Residences at Mandarin Oriental, Boca Raton; and, US$138 million financing package for a mixed-use development at 300 West 122nd Street in the West Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan.
MRC’s debt investment platform focuses on originating senior-secured loans, mezzanine loans and preferred equity investments in the middle-market as well as performing note purchases and acquiring non-performing loans.
-- BERNAMA

Friday 26 July 2019

A CELEBRATION OF "ENTREPRENEURSHIP EMPOWERMENT"



Caption: From left to right
1. Mr. Kishva Ambigapathy, Chairperson Commonwealth Youth Council & Board of Advisor SEBA 2019
2. Dato' David Gurupatham, DGK Advocates & Solicitors & Board of Advisor SEBA 2019
3. Ms. Olivia Mercado, COO MURFEST
4. Ms. Dawn Lai, CEO RAMCI
5. Mr. Isaac Mohan Raj, General Manager Palace of Golden Horses
6. Mr. Nitesh Malani PPN, Founder & Chairman of Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia
7. Ms. Lyndia Wong, SEBA 2019 Organising Chairperson
8. Ms. Shobana Siva Segara, Founder MURFEST
9. Ms. Irene Lau, Director of Marketing GHHS Wellness
10. Mr. Zharif Affandi, Malaysian Youth Icon & International Motivator & Board of Advisor SEBA 2019
11. Mr. Tom Wong, CEO Cheng & Co & Board of Advisor SEBA 2019
12. Mr. Sunil Hasmukharay, President of MAPTaC



● Award ceremony to be held on 8th of November 2019 at Grand Ballroom, The Palace of the Golden Horses.
● New award categories recognising the health, wellness and beauty sector to be introduced

KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 (Bernama) -- The SME & Entrepreneurship Business Award 2019 | SEBA 2019 is back again for the fourth consecutive year and will take place on 8th of November 2019 at the Grand Ballroom, Palace of the Golden Horses. Calls for nominations are currently open via www.seba.asia

This year, under the auspices of Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia both the SEBA 2019 & MURFEST 2019 will be held consecutively at Palace of the Golden Horses.

SEBA is an annual initiative set up by Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia and is supported by the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development (MED) Malaysia to recognise Malaysia's most outstanding entrepreneurs and enterprises while uncovering growing talents and upcoming companies that are transforming the industries they operate.  Some of the past award recipients includes Tony Fernandes (Air Asia), Patrick Grove (Catcha Group), Anthony Tan (Grab), Bernard Chandran and Leslie Gomez of Olive Tree Group many others.

"It is critical for SMEs to connect and collaborate on a synergistic platform for mutual benefit. Not just an award, SEBA 2019 is a catalyst for entrepreneurs to grow together with their team members and to meet other like-minded entrepreneurs through our year-long programmes that are in place to educate, train and mentor entrepreneurs,” says Nitesh Malani.

SEBA 2019 will also see a special focus in the wellness industry as part of the on-going collaboration with MURFEST. The wellness industry which is reported to be worth over RM13 trillion globally, is also one of the fastest-growing sectors in Malaysia with a spending of RM 20.5 billion per annum.  SEBA 2019 will introduce several new categories to recognise entrepreneurs in the health, beauty & wellness industry.

Several Memorandum-of-Understanding (MOUs) were signed at the launch yesterday with key strategic stakeholders.

The MoUs signed were between:

● Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia & RAM Credit Information Sdn Bhd (RAMCI);
● Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia & Cheng & Co Sdn Bhd;
● Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia  & Malaysian Association of Professional Trainers & Coaches (MAPTaC)
● Xhale Asia (M) Sdn Bhd & GHHS Wellness Sdn Bhd

This year’s SEBA will also feature a new vibrant advisory board that will be providing strategic counsel to the SEBA 2019 award committee. Board members include Nitesh Malani (Chairman of Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia), YBhg. Datuk Wan Suraya Mohd Radzi (Secretary General of the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development, Malaysia), Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew (Founder & Executive Chairman Country Heights Holding Bhd), Lyndia Wong (Organising Chairperson of SEBA 2019), Zhariff Afandi (Malaysian Youth Icon & International Motivator), Kishva Ambigapathy (Chairperson of Commonwealth Youth Council), Dato’ Lee Chung Han (Chairman of Guardian Group), Tom Wong (CEO of Cheng & Co.) and Dato’ David Gurupatham (Lawyer &  Advisor to Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia)

More information and latest updates on both the events can be found here:

MURFEST:
Official Site: www.murfest.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MURFEST/

SEBA:
Official Site : www.seba.asia
Facebook : https://web.facebook.com/sebasmeawards/ 

About Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia (MyPreneurship)
 
Yayasan Usahawan Malaysia (MyPreneurship) is a non-government organisation that strives on the frontier of gathering, creating and developing sustainable companies with strong entrepreneurship traits. The organisation builds credibility on serving as a platform that supports the development of companies across all businesses. It offers programmes that are tailored with their best interest in mind to ensure that they can achieve their goals while sustaining core values.

Source: XHale Asia (M) Sdn Bhd
 
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name: Mr. Yen Loong
Tel: +60197780822
Email: Ylchau13@gmail.com

Name: Lyly Sharin
Tel: +6012492 0079
Email: support@seba.asia

--BERNAMA

Thursday 25 July 2019

OKEX DONATES $4.5 MILLION TO FOSTER PERPETUAL SWAP MARKET

VALLETTA, Malta, July 25 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OKEx, a world-leading cryptocurrency exchange, has donated $4.5 million-worth of Bitcoin to its perpetual swap market insurance fund to foster customers’ confidence in trading cryptocurrencies.
 
Last year, OKEx introduced perpetual swap trading along with the new risk management system which their customers widely benefited from. Since the adoption of the new risk management system, the exchange has recorded zero clawback for the futures and perpetual swap markets, even under extreme volatility. The donation to the perpetual swap insurance fund will now provide an extra layer of protection to the customers, further ensuring that all customers’ interests are safeguarded.
 
“We strive for developing a healthy trading environment. No clawback has occurred on OKEx perpetual swap since its launch. We introduced a new risk management system to strike a better balance between avoiding early liquidation and maximizing traders’ benefits,” said Andy Cheung, Head of Operations of OKEx. “We believe the $4.5 million donation can give extra confidence for customers trading on our platform. Developing a robust crypto marketplace where everyone can trade freely in a fair manner is something that has always been our mission."
 
OKEx’s world-leading crypto marketplace serves millions of users globally, offering hedging and arbitrage instruments, such as futures and perpetual swaps, to help traders optimize their trading strategies. With a comprehensive security system, no major security issues, hacks, and asset losses have ever taken place on OKEx.
 
“Customer satisfaction is the core of our service. The key to delivering the best user experience to our customers is security,” added Andy Cheung. “Our founding members and executives are all tech and internet experts, allowing us to lead in product and technology development. As believers in Bitcoin and blockchain, we are dedicated to bringing more positive changes to the existing financial system, bridging the traditional and crypto markets with our technologies.”
 
Please stay tuned to OKEx’s Press Room and Twitter for latest updates.
 
About OKEx

OKEx is a world-leading digital asset exchange headquartered in Malta, offering comprehensive digital asset trading services including fiat-to-token trading, spot trading, futures trading, and perpetual swap trading to traders globally with blockchain technology. Currently, the exchange offers over 400 token and futures trading pairs enabling users to optimize their strategies.
 
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/44976272-2390-48f8-974a-3bd991292751
 
media@okex.com
 
Source: OKEx
 
--BERNAMA

Wednesday 24 July 2019

THERAPYLINE, THE CULTURALLY SENSITIVE ONLINE THERAPY SERVICE FOR MUSLIMS LAUNCHES IN THE UNITED STATES TODAY

DETROIT, July 24 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TherapyLine enters the United States market today to help bring online professional Therapy to the more than 3.4 million Muslims that currently live in the country. TherapyLine is an online platform which launched in Canada a few months back that provides unlimited anonymous direct messaging therapy from professionally licensed Muslim counselors. Users can go to the site, sign up, choose a therapist then pay a monthly fee of $179 per month to receive therapy for depression, anxiety, addiction, marriage counseling etc from a Muslim Counselor all month long by text via the TherapyLine website www.therapyline.org.
 
The United States is the first market TherapyLine enters outside of Canada and is a market that TherapyLine plans on expanding in quickly, “This is a very important market for us and although a majority of Muslims live in large metropolitan areas there are a good number of those that live in remote places where there are very little Muslims with little to no chance to be able to see a Muslim counselor,” says Founder and former fortune 500 financial analyst Faisal Khan.
 
Depression has been on the rise in the Muslim world over the past 10 years only to be exasperated by the 2016 elections in the US and rising xenophobia world wide. In 2016, 60% of Muslims reported some sort of discrimination based on religion which was more than every other religious group in the United States and data from Basit and Hamid shows that 43% of Muslims suffer from adjustment disorder which has lead many Muslims to seek some sort of mental support. Hotlines manned by Muslim volunteers throughout North America receive thousands of calls per year but many times are overwhelmed providing Mental Health for Muslims and Islamic Counseling which shows just how many Muslims are looking for help.
 
Although there are many who need help, there is also a reluctancy for Muslims to actually go and seek mental help due to the stigma attached to seeing a counselor. “Muslim Mental Health is something that is rarely addressed in the Muslim world and even considered taboo but is very important. Connecting with a Licensed Therapist who can relate to the unique circumstances, religious and cultural beliefs that only a Muslim can understand is a very important aspect of this service, that coupled with anonymity and you open up Therapy to many Muslims who would not have sought it before,” says Khan.
 
The first State TherapyLine will enter is Michigan than there are plans to expand to New York, Illinois and Minnesota.
 
Faisalkhan@therapyline.org
734 407 9626
www.therapyline.org
 
Source: Therapyline Technologies Inc.
 
--BERNAMA

AMINVESTMENT WON TOP HONOURS AT THE ASSET TRIPLE A ISLAMIC FINANCE AWARDS 2019

KUALA LUMPUR, July 24 (Bernama) -- AmInvestment Bank Berhad (“AmInvestment Bank”) receives further recognition from The Asset as they won six awards at The Asset Triple A Islamic Finance Awards 2019. The awards were presented at the Four Seasons Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, 4 July 2019. 
 
The full list of awards won by AmInvestment Bank is as follows:

1. Best Islamic Loan Adviser 

2. Best Structured Finance Sukuk 
MBSB Bank Berhad’s RM2.295 billion structured covered Sukuk facility
Our roles: Joint Solicitation Agent, Joint Principal Adviser, Joint Lead Arranger and Joint Lead Manager
 
3. Best Government-Guaranteed Sukuk 
Pengurusan Air SPV Bhd’s RM2.1 million Government-Guaranteed Sukuk issuance
Our role: Joint Lead Manager
  
4. Best Corporate Hybrid Sukuk
Yinson TMC Sdn Bhd’s RM950 million perpetual sukuk issuance
Our roles: Joint Principal Adviser, Joint Lead Arranger, Joint Lead Manager and Joint Shariah Adviser.
 
5. Best Local Currency Sukuk  
Cagamas Berhad’s RM1.5 billion Sukuk issuance
Our role: Joint Lead Manager
 
6. Best Islamic Project Finance Deal
DanaInfra Nasional Berhad’s RM2.5 billion Government-Guaranteed Sukuk issuance
Our role: Joint Lead Manager
 
Commenting on the awards, Seohan Soo, Chief Executive Officer, AmInvestment Bank said,”We thank our clients for their continued trust in AmInvestment Bank and we share these awards with them. These awards will spur us on to continue delivering customised and innovative investment banking solutions for our clients.”
 
“We’re delighted to be recognised once again by The Asset with six accolades that celebrate our position as a leading investment organization and underline our investment expertise. These achievements demonstrate our continuous commitment to provide the best investment solutions to our corporate, sovereign and institutional clients,” said Dato’ Sulaiman Mohd Tahir, Group Chief Executive Officer, AmBank Group.
 
About AmBank Group
 
AMMB Holdings Berhad is the holding company of AmBank Group and has been listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia since 1988. It is the sixth-largest banking group by assets in Malaysia, with a market capitalisation of around RM13.7 billion and assets of RM158.8 billion as at 31 March 2019.
 
AmBank Group is one of Malaysia’s premier financial solutions groups with over 43 years of experience in supporting Malaysians in their economic development. AmBank Group offers a wide range of both conventional and Islamic financial solutions and services, including wholesale banking, retail banking, investment banking, underwriting of general insurance, life assurance and takaful, stock and share broking, futures broking, investment advisory and management services in assets, real estate investment trust and unit trusts.
 
The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) is the biggest shareholder in the AmBank Group with a 23.8% holding and provides support with Board, risk and financial governance, product offerings and new business developments. In the general insurance business, the Group has partnered with Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG). In the life assurance and family takaful businesses, the Group has a partnership with MetLife International Holdings Inc (MetLife). The Group benefits in terms of expertise transfer from IAG and MetLife.
 
For more information, please visit www.ambankgroup.com
 
Source: AmBank Group

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name: Syed Anuar Syed Ali
Executive Vice President
Group Corporate Communications and Marketing
AmBank Group
Tel: 03-2036 1703
Email: sasa@ambankgroup.com 


--BERNAMA