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The agreements were signed at the Vietnam-Thailand Business Forum and the Vietnam-Singapore Technology Connectivity Forum, held as part of Party General Secretary and State President To Lam’s official visits to the Kingdom of Thailand, the Republic of Singapore, and the Republic of the Philippines from May 28 to June 1, 2026.

In Thailand, Vinpearl announced the expansion of its strategic partnerships with Agoda and AirAsia MOVE to strengthen the international presence of its integrated tourism, hospitality, and entertainment ecosystem.

Through Agoda, one of the world’s largest online travel platforms, Vinpearl aims to optimize business performance across its tourism, hospitality, and entertainment portfolio while expanding its reach in key markets including Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, Australia, and long-haul international traveler segments. The partnership also marks a new milestone for VinWonders, with its integrated leisure and hospitality products now being offered directly through Agoda’s global platform.

The partnership with AirAsia MOVE is designed to broaden international access to Vinpearl and VinWonders hospitality, leisure, and entertainment offerings in Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, and Da Nang-Hoi An through one of the region’s leading digital travel platforms. Via AirAsia MOVE, travelers can conveniently book flights, accommodations, and attractions within a single itinerary, making it easier to choose integrated Vinpearl and VinWonders experiences when visiting Vietnam.

With access to a network of more than 700 airlines and over one million hotels worldwide, AirAsia MOVE is expected to further strengthen the visibility of the Vinpearl and VinWonders ecosystem among international travelers, while also enhancing Vietnam’s appeal as a destination for visitors from ASEAN and other key global markets.

In Singapore, Vinpearl also signed partnership agreements with BeMyGuest and GlobalTix, two of the Asia-Pacific region’s leading technology and distribution platforms for travel experiences.

Supported by extensive partner networks and some of the region’s most diverse travel product portfolios, these collaborations are expected to strengthen the presence of the VinWonders brand across Southeast Asia, China, and India, while expanding international access to unique experience offerings in Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, and Da Nang.

Through these agreements, the partners will leverage their respective strengths in technology, distribution, and customer ecosystems to progressively expand the international footprint of Vinpearl and VinWonders while enhancing the global appeal of Vietnamese tourism.

Ms. Ngo Thi Huong, Chief Executive Officer, Vinpearl, said: “These partnerships not only expand Vinpearl’s network of strategic partners but also create a strong foundation for the Vinpearl and VinWonders ecosystem to connect more deeply with global traveler segments through some of the region’s leading travel, aviation, and distribution platforms. This represents an important step in our strategy to strengthen international competitiveness and position Vinpearl destinations among the top choices for travelers across Asia.”

Mr. Krishna Rathi, Associate Vice President, Supply, Agoda, said: “With its extensive scale of operations, diverse portfolio, and ability to develop integrated destinations, Vinpearl is one of the most outstanding partners in Vietnam’s tourism industry today. We believe this partnership will help the Vinpearl and VinWonders ecosystem engage more deeply with rapidly growing international traveler segments across Asia and global markets.”

Ms. Nadia Omer, Chief Executive Officer, AirAsia MOVE, said: “We highly value the opportunity to partner with Vinpearl in unlocking strategic collaboration potential within one of Southeast Asia’s most dynamic and fast-growing tourism markets. As an OTA platform with a comprehensive travel ecosystem and extensive regional connectivity, AirAsia MOVE is committed to further enhancing travel connectivity and intra-regional tourism flows. Vietnam is emerging as one of the region’s brightest tourism destinations, and we believe the combination of Vinpearl’s leading hospitality and entertainment ecosystem with AirAsia MOVE’s distribution and connectivity capabilities will create significant growth opportunities for the tourism sector in the years ahead.”

The partnerships with Agoda, AirAsia MOVE, BeMyGuest, and GlobalTix mark another milestone in Vinpearl’s strategy to internationalize its tourism, hospitality, and entertainment ecosystem while expanding the presence of Vinpearl and VinWonders accommodation, leisure, and experience offerings across global travel platforms.

Hashtag: #Vinpearl

https://vinpearl.com/en

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Agoda

Agoda is a global online travel platform offering more than six million accommodation options, including hotels, resorts, apartments, and vacation villas, as well as flight bookings, travel activities, and related travel services. Headquartered in Singapore, Agoda is part of Booking Holdings (Nasdaq: BKNG). The platform operates in 39 languages, provides 24/7 customer support, and employs more than 7,500 people worldwide.

About AirAsia MOVE
AirAsia MOVE (MOVE) is the digital travel platform of Capital A Group and has been recognized by the World Travel Tech Awards as Asia’s Best Travel Booking App for three consecutive years since 2023. Focused on building a comprehensive travel ecosystem, MOVE delivers affordable, seamless, and personalized travel experiences across Southeast Asia and international markets.

The platform currently connects travelers to more than 700 airlines and over one million hotels worldwide while offering a wide range of services including attraction tickets, airport transfers, travel insurance, and integrated travel products. AirAsia MOVE also enhances user experience through its loyalty program and AskBo, an AI-powered travel chatbot.

About BeMyGuest
BeMyGuest is a Singapore-based travel technology company founded in 2012, specializing in booking and distribution solutions for attractions, tours, and travel experiences across the Asia-Pacific region. Its ecosystem includes the Distribution Network and Xplore Booking System, which support sales management, multi-channel distribution, and digital operations for thousands of partners in the experience tourism industry. BeMyGuest is connected to numerous online travel platforms and international distribution partners while providing multilingual solutions and flexible pricing models for integrated systems.

About GlobalTix
GlobalTix is a global technology and distribution platform for attractions, tours, and travel experiences, headquartered in Singapore with operations across multiple Asia-Pacific markets. Founded in 2013, GlobalTix enables attractions and experience operators to connect with travel agencies, online travel platforms, and international distribution partners through a unified platform. Its partners include major brands such as Mount Faber Leisure Group, Taman Safari Indonesia, Mandai Wildlife Group, National Gallery Singapore, and Singapore Airlines.

About Vinpearl

Vinpearl is Vietnam’s leading hospitality, tourism, and entertainment brand, currently operating 60 properties across 20 provinces and cities nationwide. Its ecosystem includes a network of five-star hotels and resorts with more than 17,500 rooms; 15 VinWonders theme parks featuring attractions for visitors of all ages; six world-class golf courses; and three VinPalace convention and performing arts centers. The portfolio also includes two semi-wildlife conservation and care parks, an equestrian academy, and million-dollar live-action performance shows in destinations such as Nha Trang and Phu Quoc, attracting millions of visitors each year.

The unit sits under the president’s office and is evaluating AI start-ups globally, with long-serving executive Zhang Endong leading the effort. The move places investment activity closer to Sea’s top management at a time when the company is trying to convert its scale across Shopee, Garena and Monee into a stronger position in the next phase of consumer internet competition.

The new team is part of a wider internal reorganisation aimed at accelerating AI adoption across Sea’s businesses. Zhang is also involved in projects examining how the technology can be deployed inside the group, from product recommendations and seller tools to game development and financial services. A company spokesperson declined to comment on the investment unit.

The initiative follows a series of signals from chief executive Forrest Li that AI has become central to Sea’s long-term strategy. Li told investors last year that a trillion-dollar market capitalisation could be possible if the company doubled down on artificial intelligence and made the right calls. That ambition is now being tested against tougher operating conditions, heavier competition and investor scrutiny over margins.

Sea’s pivot comes as its core businesses remain sizeable but increasingly contested. Shopee continues to dominate e-commerce across South-east Asia, where price-led competition, live commerce, faster delivery expectations and merchant services have raised both growth potential and operating costs. Rivals including TikTok Shop, Lazada, Amazon and Rakuten are intensifying their own use of AI to personalise shopping, automate seller support and streamline logistics.

Artificial intelligence is already being built into Shopee’s customer and merchant systems. Its applications include recommendation engines, search improvements, advertising tools and seller assistance functions. The strategic logic is straightforward: more effective targeting can increase conversion, better seller tools can deepen merchant loyalty, and automated service functions can reduce costs across markets with different languages, payment habits and logistics infrastructure.

Sea has also expanded its partnership with Google to develop AI-powered tools across e-commerce and gaming. The companies are exploring an agentic shopping prototype for Shopee, designed to move beyond basic search and recommendation functions towards digital assistants capable of helping consumers complete tasks across the shopping journey. Garena is expected to use AI to improve game development productivity, an area where faster content cycles and lower development costs can carry significant commercial value.

Financial performance has given Sea room to invest, though not without pressure. First-quarter revenue rose 46.6 per cent year on year to US$7.1 billion, while gross profit increased 40.7 per cent to US$3.1 billion. Net income reached US$438.2 million, up 6.7 per cent, and adjusted EBITDA rose 9.3 per cent to US$1 billion. The figures showed continued momentum, but also reflected the cost of defending market share and expanding services.

Shopee delivered gross merchandise value of US$37.3 billion in the quarter, up 30.2 per cent from a year earlier, while gross orders climbed 29.3 per cent to 4 billion. Revenue from the e-commerce arm rose 45.1 per cent to US$5.1 billion, though adjusted EBITDA fell to US$223.2 million from US$264.4 million a year earlier, underlining the margin trade-off behind its expansion strategy.

Monee, Sea’s digital financial services unit, has become another pillar of growth. Revenue rose 57.8 per cent to US$1.2 billion, while consumer and small-business loans outstanding reached US$9.9 billion. Non-performing loans more than 90 days past due remained at 1.1 per cent, a key metric as the company expands credit services across emerging markets where risk controls are critical.

Garena, once Sea’s dominant profit engine, also showed stronger momentum. Bookings rose 20.1 per cent to US$931.4 million, while quarterly active users stood at 666.5 million. The unit remains anchored by Free Fire, but Sea’s AI push suggests management sees broader potential in development tools, content generation, player engagement and operational efficiency.

Sea’s AI Centre of Excellence in Singapore adds another layer to the strategy. The centre is intended to strengthen local AI capabilities, support enterprise adoption and develop talent in areas such as engineering, research and product development. Its launch aligns the company with Singapore’s broader ambition to become a regional AI hub and gives Sea a clearer institutional base for experimentation.

The investment team could give Sea access to external innovation at a time when start-ups are moving faster than large platforms in areas such as autonomous commerce, generative game design, fraud detection, credit scoring and AI-enabled logistics. The challenge will be distinguishing durable business models from inflated valuations in a crowded funding environment.

Investors will be watching whether Sea’s AI spending produces measurable gains in revenue growth, user engagement and margin improvement. The company has already shown that it can rebuild profitability after years of expansion-led losses. Its next test is whether AI can become more than an efficiency tool and help create the next major growth curve for one of South-east Asia’s most valuable technology groups.

15-year-old Filipino Crimson Arradaza achieves a historic 5.33 second One-Handed solve at the Inaugural Philippine National Speed Cubing Open

TAGAYTAY CITY, PHILIPPINES – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 May 2026 – Southeast Asia has made its mark on the global speed cubing stage.

In a moment that electrified the international speed cubing community, Filipino prodigy Crimson Arradaza shattered the 3x3x3 One-Handed World Record with a blistering 5.33-second solve at the inaugural Philippine National Speed Cubing Open, organised by the Asian Mind Sports Association (AMSA) and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC).

Held from 27–28 May at the Tagaytay City Combat Arena, the tournament was the first major nationally-backed speed cubing event under the Philippine Olympic movement — and immediately, it made history.

Arradaza’s stunning performance broke the previous 5.66-second record set by Switzerland’s Dhruva Sai Meruva in 2024. More significantly, it pushed the boundaries of what many believed possible in one-handed solving, placing the Philippines in the spotlight of global mind sports. It is an extraordinary achievement for the rising speed cubing powerhouse.

“I have been speed cubing for the past four years and this is the best birthday gift for myself,” said Arradaza, who turned 15 the day before.

The teenager from Baguio City travelled eight hours to compete in Tagaytay, accompanied by his parents — a powerful reminder of the sacrifices and support behind every young champion.

“This is not just a Philippine achievement. This is an Asian achievement,” said AMSA Director-General Jim Yu. “The future of mind sports belongs to the younger generation, and today the Philippines showed the world what Southeast Asian talent is capable of.”

POC President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino and Tagaytay City Mayor Ross Tolentino were also present to witness the historic achievement.

“Sports is not only about physical strength. It is also about mental sharpness, discipline, and focus,” said POC President Tolentino. “Filipinos are naturally talented in mind sports, and this world record proves we can compete with the very best globally.”

Beyond competition, the two-day event featured referee training programmes, operational workshops, and development dialogues aimed at strengthening the speed cubing ecosystem.

AMSA reaffirmed its commitment to developing mind sports across Asia through partnerships with National Olympic Committees, federations, and local organisers.

The organisation plans to continue growing regional competitions, talent pathways, livestream infrastructure, referee systems, youth engagement programmes, and international exchanges to elevate mind sports to unprecedented mainstream recognition across Asia.
Hashtag: #AMSA

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

A draft framework under consideration would expand the role of monitoring agencies, usually SEBI-registered credit rating firms, and give them a stronger channel to flag diversion, delays or non-cooperation in the deployment of funds raised through equity issues. The proposals cover initial public offerings, rights issues, preferential allotments and qualified institutional placements, widening the regulatory lens beyond conventional IPO scrutiny.

Central to the plan is a proposal to lower the threshold for mandatory monitoring of issue proceeds from ₹100 crore to ₹50 crore. That change would bring a larger number of mid-sized fundraisings under independent review, particularly at a time when companies are using public markets not only for expansion but also for debt repayment, acquisitions, working capital and general corporate purposes.

The proposed framework would also require monitoring agencies to report directly to stock exchanges, rather than depend mainly on issuers for the onward dissemination of their findings. This would mark a significant shift in the balance of responsibility, as exchanges would receive a clearer view of whether the stated objects of an issue match actual fund utilisation.

Companies that fail to cooperate with monitoring agencies could face penalties, including fines of ₹50,000 for each violation. The measure is intended to address a weakness in the current structure, where monitoring agencies review deployment but have limited power when issuers delay information, provide incomplete data or fail to explain deviations from stated plans.

SEBI’s initiative comes after a period of heavy fundraising through equity markets, followed by a more cautious phase shaped by global risk aversion, pressure on domestic stocks and foreign portfolio outflows. Large companies and new-age firms have kept IPO plans alive, but several issuers have deferred listings as valuations became harder to defend. The regulator’s draft reflects a view that investor confidence depends not only on disclosure before fundraising but also on verifiable use of proceeds after capital is raised.

Under existing rules, companies raising equity funds must disclose the objects of the issue in offer documents and provide periodic updates on utilisation. Monitoring agencies submit reports on whether the proceeds are being used as promised. These reports are placed before audit committees and submitted to stock exchanges, but the enforcement burden largely remains with the issuer and the regulator.

The proposed changes would make monitoring more active and less dependent on company-led disclosure. Rating firms would be expected to examine bank statements, payment trails, board approvals and project progress more closely. They may also need to identify whether funds have been parked for long periods, shifted to purposes not approved by investors, or routed through related-party arrangements.

For investors, the changes could improve visibility over post-issue conduct, especially in cases where companies raise money for broad purposes and later alter business plans. Fund diversion has long been a concern in equity markets because public shareholders bear the risk when proceeds are used for objectives that differ materially from those advertised during the fundraising process.

For issuers, the proposals may raise compliance costs and increase documentation burdens. Smaller companies crossing the proposed ₹50 crore threshold would have to engage monitoring agencies and respond to periodic queries. Market participants expect some pushback from companies that argue existing audit committee and exchange disclosure requirements already provide sufficient oversight.

The regulatory argument is that tougher monitoring could reduce the gap between promise and performance. When a company raises money to build capacity, buy assets or reduce debt, the market prices the issue partly on those declared plans. If funds are later diverted or left idle without adequate explanation, minority shareholders have limited ability to intervene.

Credit rating agencies would gain a more prominent governance role under the proposed structure. Their task would move beyond checking utilisation statements to becoming a stronger early-warning mechanism for exchanges and investors. That may also bring questions over capacity, liability and conflict management, since the same agencies operate across ratings, surveillance and advisory-linked functions.

SEBI has been refining capital-raising rules across public issues, preferential allotments, rights issues and qualified institutional placements as it seeks to balance ease of fundraising with protection for minority investors. The latest proposal fits into a broader regulatory push to make market access faster while demanding greater transparency after money is raised.