Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) has secured four awards at the 23rd International Business Awards 2026, including one gold and three silver distinctions, recognising its performance in judicial administration, institutional governance and public service innovation. The department received the Gold Stevie Award in the Large Legal Organisations category, alongside Silver Stevie Awards for Innovation in Public Administration and Governance, Operational Excellence, and Large […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai More than 250 senior maritime executives are expected in Dubai on 12 November for the inaugural Seatrade Maritime UAE Summit, where shipping disruption, supply chain resilience and changes in global trade will dominate discussions. Seatrade Maritime is organising the gathering with DP World as host partner at Madinat Jumeirah. The programme will include the unveiling of the 2026 Leading Maritime Cities report prepared […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The United Arab Emirates and Canada have signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement to lower trade barriers and encourage bilateral investment. The agreement was signed in Ottawa on 27 October by UAE Minister of Foreign Trade Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi and Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu. Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and […]
DoorDash has agreed to acquire Instacart for approximately $17 billion, combining the largest US restaurant delivery platform with a leading online grocery marketplace in one of the sector’s biggest transactions. The companies announced the cash-and-share agreement on Thursday, valuing Instacart, formally Maplebear Inc, at $65 a share. That represents a 26% premium to its closing share price on 22 October, before speculation about a possible sale emerged. […]
Russia’s central bank has registered the country’s first self-regulatory organisation for operators issuing digital financial assets, establishing a formal industry oversight structure as authorities expand supervision of cryptocurrency and digital rights markets. The Bank of Russia confirmed that the National Association of Securities Market Participants, known as NAUFOR, had been entered into its unified register of financial market self-regulatory organisations. The registration, announced on 8 October, applies […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2026 – From October 19 to 20, an economic and trade delegation from Hainan Province paid a visit to Hong Kong. The delegation signed memoranda of cooperation respectively withThe Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong(CMA)and the Federation of Hong Kong Industries(FHKI) to advance pragmatic cross-border collaboration between Hainan and Hong Kong in trade and investment, manufacturing industrial chains and professional services.
Signing ceremony for the cooperation memoranda
During its stay in Hong Kong, the delegation visited the CCPIT Representative Office in Hong Kong. It held discussions with CMA and co-hosted the Hainan Free Trade Port (Hong Kong) Economic and Trade Cooperation Exchange Meeting with FHKI. The event showcased the policies, key industrial layout and investment opportunities of the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), and arranged one-on-one business matchmaking between Hainan and Hong Kong enterprises.
Wang Yuyuan, Vice President of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Hainan Sub-council (CCPIT Hainan) and China Chamber of International Commerce Hainan Chamber of Commerce, noted that since the official launch of island-wide special customs operations at the Hainan FTP on December 18, 2025, 174,000 new enterprises have been registered, representing a year-on-year surge of 95.9 percent. Newly established foreign-invested enterprises rose by 35.8 percent year on year. In the first half of this year, inbound and outbound tourist arrivals exceeded 70 million, up 28 percent year on year, with the number of visa-free entry countries expanding to 88. From January to August, the province’s total goods import and export volume hit 250 billion yuan, growing by 61.5 percent year on year. Hainan is rapidly emerging as a critical gateway connecting China with the rest of the world and a prime channel for two-way investment.
According to CCPIT Hainan, Hong Kong ranks as a major source of foreign investment for Hainan. In the first half of this year, Hainan registered 1,303 new foreign-invested enterprises, an increase of 38.62 percent year on year, with Hong Kong-funded enterprises accounting for the lion’s share. Hainan has issued offshore RMB local government bonds in Hong Kong for four consecutive years, with a cumulative issuance volume reaching 18 billion yuan.
CMA is one of Hong Kong’s most representative non-profit industrial and commercial bodies, with around 3,000 member enterprises. It has long provided members with business services including exhibitions, brand promotion, testing and certification. FHKI, one of Hong Kong’s four major chambers of commerce, has approximately 2,000 corporate members. It focuses on boosting the sustained development of Hong Kong industry and manufacturing through policy advocacy, business matchmaking, certification services and youth talent cultivation.
The two memoranda explicitly stipulate that the two sides will establish a regular liaison mechanism, build a long-term cooperation platform covering information sharing, business matchmaking, exhibition collaboration and professional services, and provide solid support for pragmatic business cooperation between Hainan and Hong Kong enterprises.
Source: China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Hainan Provincial Committee (CCPIT Hainan)
Hashtag: #CPITHainan
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
The innovation breakthroughs for pioneering new communications networks include RetinaMIMO, new materials, and OSCAR solution among other root technologies. By tackling coverage, energy consumption, and capacity challenges, the breakthroughs drive ubiquitous experience, simplified and green networks, and superior spectral efficiency. The breakthroughs have unlocked a wealth of new capabilities, including the world’s first commercial U6 GHz device VitaAAU, GigaGreen Plus series, and UBBPi series.
Huawei promotes A2A-T standards and drives commercial open-source OpenAN through extensive partnerships to build an open telecom agent ecosystem.
SHANGHAI, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2026 – At Huawei Decoding China 2026, Fang Xiang, Corporate Vice President and President of Wireless Network Solution of Huawei, unveiled a series of innovation breakthroughs to pioneer new communications networks. The innovation breakthroughs mark major leaps in root technologies focused on ubiquitous experience, simplified and green networks, and superior spectral efficiency. With the breakthroughs, Huawei has launched the world’s first commercial U6 GHz device VitaAAU, GigaGreen Plus series, and UBBPi series. Additionally featuring the new progress in open ecosystem for telecom agents, the breakthroughs will lay a solid foundation for new communications networks.
Xiang Fang, Corporate Vice President and President of Wireless Network Solution of Huawei, unveiling innovation breakthroughs for new communications networks
With booming intelligent devices and services, new devices, traffic, and applications are taking shape in the mobile industry. The new devices are expanding network connectivity from people to things and agents, increasing the number of connections by 100 times. Device-cloud synergy for intelligent services calls for stronger uplink capabilities to support training and inference, shifting network focus from downlink dominance to both uplink and downlink. With new applications, come a diversity of new interaction modes, calling for higher standards in experience and driving networks to support ubiquitous steady ultra-low latency with a high reliability.
As the world steps into an intelligent era, the value of connectivity is not only about quantity—it’s more about quality. This has been inspiring Huawei to convert cutting-edge breakthroughs into the commercial practices of new communications networks by focusing on root technologies for ubiquitous experience, simplified and green networks, and superior spectral efficiency.
Pioneering ubiquitous experience
RetinaMIMO is a new pioneering technology designed to solve the challenge of concurrent ultra-high bandwidth and ubiquitous coverage. It features the industry’s first Retina scanning system that allows RF link topologies to be reconstructed to eliminate coverage collapse in the vertical direction. It also adopts a reconstructed antenna array architecture to address the diminishing marginal gains as array elements (AEs) increase.
Based on RetinaMIMO, Huawei has launched the world’s first commercial U6 GHz device VitaAAU. Compared with similar products with 1024 AEs, VitaAAU widens coverage by about 30%, enabling U6 GHz to match C-band in both horizontal and vertical directions. This enables operators to deliver U6 GHz coverage for new communications networks on their C-band sites, minimizing overall TCO. To date, VitaAAU has seen commercial adoption in the UAE and other markets, with peak downlink speeds exceeding 10 Gbps, making ubiquitous premium experience a reality.
Pioneering simplified, green networks
Huawei’s pioneering EP power amplifier (PA) architecture capitalizes on new materials and technologies to solve the problem of energy efficiency decline on higher frequency bands, maximizing energy conversion efficiency. The industry’s first-ever multimode dielectric filters allow antennas to have small dimensions and low power consumption on multi-channel networks with high frequency bands. Powered by new materials, technologies, and architectures, VitaAAU antenna is reduced to 1.5 m in diameter while supporting “0 Bit 0 Watt 0 Loss”, delivering superior energy saving efficiency. These innovations enable Huawei’s GigaGreen Plus series products to achieve significant reductions in dimensions, weight, and power consumption, better positioned to power simplified and green networks.
Pioneering superior spectral efficiency
Multi-band, multi-cell, and multi-user interference is a major restrictive factor of capacity. The time scaling of the Tau (τ) law is introduced to base stations for the first time to realize optimal dynamic resource scheduling across all domains based on the OSCAR solution. With low-latency bus and high-speed interconnect technology, a high-speed architecture is built to enable the real-time exchange of massive data. Thanks to software and hardware synergy, new UBBPi series products improve average user experience by 1.3 times while reducing power consumption by approximately 40%, further improving spectral and energy efficiency.
Pioneering open-source autonomous networks
Autonomous networks have emerged as an inevitable choice to deal with the growing AI services and increasing network complexity. RANSpirit is another industry first from Huawei, implementing single-domain network autonomy based on the telecom foundation model and digital twins. To date, RANSpirit is serving more than 1.2 million cells across 25 networks around the world, providing assistance to more than 2,000 engineers.
Extensive agent collaboration relies on an open, win-win ecosystem. This galvanizes Huawei to join industry partners to develop ecosystem standards, communities, and industry alliances. In terms of standards, Huawei adapts to the TM Forum, building a cross-agent foundation on the A2A-T standard and framework agreed upon by the industry. In terms of communities, Huawei jointly promotes neutral open-source communities and donates open-source agent components to the Linux Foundation, driving global collaboration and innovation. With regard to industry alliances, Huawei has taken the initiative to pool ecosystem strengths to accelerate business implementation based on the GSMA industry platform.
Fang concluded with the reiteration of Huawei’s unswerving pursuit of dual-drive innovation to promote new breakthroughs in mobile networks and work with partners from around the world to deepen the OpenAN ecosystem, advancing new communications networks through technological innovation and open collaboration.
FAQs
Q1: Why is it challenging to balance ultra-high bandwidth and ubiquitous coverage?
Ultra-high bandwidth depends on higher frequency bands. As we know, a higher frequency leads to a greater propagation loss of electromagnetic waves and a weaker ability for them to penetrate obstacles, because high-frequency signals attenuate fast and have short coverage distances, while ubiquitous coverage requires signals to travel a long distance in complex environments. Inherently, the two priorities pull in sharply opposite directions.
Hashtag: #Huawei
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
The London Metal Exchange is exploring plans to convert metal inventories held in Hong Kong warehouses into digital assets that businesses could use to secure financing, as the city develops its commodities trading infrastructure. The exchange confirmed that its proposal remains at an exploratory stage and focuses on off-warrant metal, a category of warehouse inventory not covered by the standard title documents used in its established trading […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has issued dedicated guidance governing cryptocurrency mining operations, becoming the first international financial centre in the region to establish comprehensive commercial licensing and governance expectations for the sector. The guidance, published by ADGM’s Registration Authority, establishes crypto mining as a licensable commercial activity rather than a regulated financial service. It applies to businesses conducting mining operations within or […]
Dubai’s residential resale transactions rose 18.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2026 from the preceding three months, while off-plan sales declined for a fourth consecutive quarter, according to property consultancy ValuStrat. The emirate recorded 9,491 transactions involving completed homes between July and September, worth approximately Dh25 billion ($6.8 billion). The quarterly increase was the first since late 2025, although resale volumes remained 23.8 per cent […]
Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has issued dedicated guidance requiring commercial cryptocurrency mining businesses operating within or from its jurisdiction to follow a defined licensing and governance framework overseen by its Registration Authority. The international financial centre said the guidance, published on Wednesday, was the first comprehensive document of its kind issued by a regional international financial centre. It identifies crypto mining as a licensable commercial activity […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai’s financial regulator has imposed a $585,825 (Dh2.15 million) penalty on Moody’s Investors Service Middle East Limited after finding failures in its protection of confidential information, including disclosures to recipients outside the company. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) announced the action on Wednesday, saying the credit rating agency had breached rules requiring adequate systems and controls to protect sensitive data and prevent […]
Singapore-founded company marks 17 years of growth as it builds a new category around everyday hydration and wellness
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2026 – Singapore-founded water brand AOXhas been named ‘Top Collagen Renewing Water 2026′ by Healthcare Business Review APAC, marking a new milestone for a brand that has spent more than 17 years developing a differentiated approach to drinking water.
The recognition comes as AOX seeks to build the Collagen Renewing Water category – moving the conversation beyond the appliances that dispense water towards the properties of the water people drink daily.
Unlike conventional water dispensers, which tend to compete on temperature settings, design or convenience, AOX’s central proposition is its proprietary approach to filtration and mineral formulation. Its systems combine filtration with a formulation that includes calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and silica to deliver what the company describes as Collagen Renewing Water.
This latest recognition reflects AOX’s water-first approach, built around its proprietary mineral formulation, including the specific sourcing of minerals and the process used to create its final water profile. It adds to a long track record of business, brand and design awards accumulated over more than 17 years.
“A water dispenser can have all the features in the world, but ultimately, what matters most is the water you drink from it every day,” said John Tan, Chief Executive Officer of AOX. “That belief has shaped AOX for more than 17 years and is why we continue investing in Collagen Renewing Water, our proprietary formulation and the research behind it. This recognition encourages us to keep building that category and challenging consumers to look beyond the machine.”
The award also signals AOX’s next chapter under John Tan’s leadership. After working across finance, operations and marketing at AOX before becoming CEO, he is leading its next phase of research, product innovation and market growth, with a goal to reach new audiences and respond to changing consumer expectations around water quality and everyday wellness.
AOX has commissioned laboratory and preclinical research into the properties of its water, including collagen-related fibroblast activity, cell migration, antioxidant activity, and metabolic markers in preclinical models. The company will continue to invest in research while communicating its findings responsibly and within appropriate scientific boundaries.
Founder Jeffrey Tan said the recognition was a reminder of the original idea that shaped the business. “When we started AOX, we wanted people to think more carefully about the water they drink every day,” he said. “Over the years, the technology, products and people’s expectations have evolved, but that belief has remained the same. It is encouraging to see AOX recognised as we continue to build on that foundation.”
AOX’s product range includes direct-piped water systems for homes and organisations, spanning hot and cold, ambient and compact formats. The company’s focus remains on growing its Collagen Renewing Water category while continuing to develop products around the needs of modern households and workplaces.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About AOX
Founded in Singapore in 2009, AOX is a homegrown water brand focused on the quality of the water itself. At the heart of AOX is Collagen Renewing Water, produced through its proprietary filtration and mineral formulation and delivered consistently across its range of water dispensers.
Over more than 17 years, AOX has grown to serve more than 10,000 households and organisations, while developing water systems that combine water quality, practical design and long-term after-sales support.
AOX has also commissioned laboratory studies using human cells and preclinical research into the properties of its water, including collagen-related activity, antioxidant activity, weight gain and liver-lipid accumulation. In 2026, AOX was recognised by Healthcare Business Review APAC as the Top Collagen Renewing Water Dispensers in APAC 2026.
Founders are pressing ahead with US expansion despite immigration uncertainty, according to new research from Beyond Border. Its Founder Mobility Pulse survey found that 82% have not changed their plans to expand to the US, while an analysis of 1,140 immigration inquiries from Asia offers insights into the region’s role in US market entry.
SINGAPORE & HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2026 – Despite continued uncertainty surrounding US immigration policies, founders remain committed to expanding into the American market, according to new research from US immigration platform Beyond Border.
Beyond Border’s Founder Mobility Pulse survey, conducted in August 2026 among 307 respondents worldwide, found that 82% had not changed their US expansion plans despite immigration uncertainty. A further 11% reported either accelerating their timelines or exploring alternative visa pathways.
The findings form part of Beyond Border’s October 2026 market commentary, which also draws on proprietary analysis of 1,140 US immigration enquiries from Asia-based individuals between August 2025 and September 2026, alongside US government immigration statistics and regional talent mobility data.
The research suggests that while immigration uncertainty is influencing how founders approach US market entry, access to the American market remains an important commercial priority.
“For founders, the question is no longer simply whether to expand into the US, but how to establish the right presence there. We’re seeing businesses pursue access to American customers while keeping key functions in their home markets. Immigration planning needs to be part of that strategy from the outset, rather than something founders address only when they’re ready to relocate,” said Fred Ng, Cofounder & CEO of Beyond Border.
Four Findings on US Expansion and Immigration Trends
Beyond Border’s research highlights four developments shaping US expansion and international talent mobility:
1. Access to US customers remains the biggest expansion driver: Some 85% of survey respondents identified access to US customers as their primary motivation for expansion, compared with 8% citing fundraising and investors. Meanwhile, 60% plan to expand into the US within the next 12 months.
2. Founders are taking a more distributed approach to US expansion: Nearly two-thirds (64%) expect to establish a US presence through the founder alone or alongside a small team. At the same time, 72% intend to retain engineering and product functions in Asia, suggesting that US market entry does not necessarily require relocating entire operations.
3. Immigration uncertainty is not deterring founders’ US expansion plans: Beyond Border’s analysis of 1,140 immigration enquiries from Asia-based individuals found that approximately 45% (510) concerned the O-1 visa. Meanwhile, US government data shows diverging approval trends across immigration pathways. Between FY2022 and FY2024, approved L-1 petitions declined by 31%, while O-1/O-2 approvals increased slightly by 1%. Over a separate period, FY2023 to FY2025, EB-1A approvals increased by 20%, while EB-2 NIW approvals declined by 39%. These figures reflect changes in approval volumes rather than approval rates.
4. Changing talent mobility patterns could create opportunities for Asian economies: Estimates from Xpheno indicate that the number of US-based technology professionals returning to India increased from approximately 7,200 in 2023 to 15,100 in 2025. While these movements cannot be attributed solely to immigration policies, they point to broader shifts in international technology talent mobility.
As founders navigate an evolving immigration environment, Beyond Border’s research highlights the importance of aligning immigration decisions with commercial priorities, market entry strategies and long-term business plans.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Beyond Border
Built by founders for founders and highly skilled professionals, Beyond Border is a trusted, Singapore-founded, tech-enabled U.S. immigration platform. Launched in 2024, the company helps clients pursue U.S. visas and employment-based green cards, with a focus on O-1 visas and EB-1A and EB-2 NIW green-card pathways. Beyond Border supports clients from eligibility assessment through petition preparation, connecting them with vetted specialist immigration attorneys. Beyond Border has supported thousands of founders including from companies backed by Y Combinator, Techstars, Antler and 500 Global, as well as cross-border technology companies including SuperOps and Biorce. Beyond Border has nine offices in the United States, United Kingdom, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Nigeria. For more information, visit www.beyondborderglobal.com
The state government removed Kochi City Police Commissioner S. Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar on Wednesday following allegations of serious police lapses in investigating a fatal road accident involving the teenage son of an additional district judge. Inspector General of Police R. Nishanthini, who headed the South Zone, has be…
Swedish technology startup Strawberry has released version 1.0 of its artificial intelligence browser, moving beyond beta testing with a product designed to help employees automate work without writing code. The Stockholm company announced the launch on 26 October, positioning its browser as an alternative to established American AI platforms, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini. Its software places AI assistants directly alongside websites and business […]
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – Media OutReach Newswire – 28 October 2026 – On October 27, ahead of the BAIC FOTON Africa Partners Conference, BAIC FOTON inaugurated its Africa Regional Training Center in South Africa and held its first training session. CEO Lu Zhenghua, BAIC FOTON International President Wu Zongtian, other leaders and local partners attended.
As global commercial vehicle competition intensifies, international growth requires strong products and manufacturing as well as professional full-lifecycle service. BAIC FOTON’s growing African lineup creates diverse sales, maintenance and technical-support needs, making local talent development essential. Since early 2026, the company has delivered nearly 100 specialized training sessions in key markets, including heavy-duty truck engine disassembly in Argentina, all-electric bus fault diagnosis in Türkiye, and one-day intensive training for five rotating groups in Uruguay. The programs turn headquarters’ technical standards into practical frontline diagnostic and repair skills.
Lu Zhenghua said the center will support Africa’s regional operating system and deeper localization by connecting technical standards, service experience and local team capabilities, while improving coordination among product supply, after-sales support and talent development. Wang Zhuozhong, VP of BAIC FOTON INTERNATIONAL, introduced the center’s background and development plan. Local partners discussed service cooperation, support for service providers and future opportunities.
Centered in South Africa and serving the wider continent, the center will share technical standards and service experience and help dealers improve spare-parts stocking, maintenance processes and response efficiency, advancing standardized, professional services.
The 900-square-meter facility allocates 450 square meters each to theoretical and practical training. A 140-square-meter classroom seats 80, and a 35-square-meter classroom seats 24. Offices and rest areas support five practical zones: complete vehicles, engines, transmissions, electrical and electronic systems, and new-energy vehicles. The facility supports training across BAIC FOTON’s product range and job roles.
After touring the center, Lu Zhenghua and his delegation met local dealers and customers to discuss regional business. African dealers welcomed its contribution to local talent and service capability, and looked forward to deeper technical and business cooperation.
Building on local manufacturing in South Africa, BAIC FOTON is integrating manufacturing, spare-parts supply, after-sales support and professional training. It will continue working with African partners to deepen internationalization and localization and promote high-quality growth across the continent.
Hashtag: #BAICFOTON
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
The state government removed Kochi City Police Commissioner S. Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar on Wednesday following allegations of serious police lapses in investigating a fatal road accident involving the teenage son of an additional district judge. Inspector General of Police R. Nishanthini, who headed the South Zone, has be…
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 28 October 2026 – XTransfer, the world’s leading B2B cross-border trade payment platform, will participate in Hong Kong FinTech Week and Singapore FinTech Festival for the third consecutive year, joining as a Silver Sponsor and Gold Sponsor, respectively. At both events, the company will showcase its latest innovations in cross-border collections and payments, AI-powered compliance and risk control, and inclusive financial services for SMEs.
XTransfer Returns to Hong Kong FinTech Week and Singapore FinTech Festival for Third Consecutive Year
Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer, will join the management team at showcases and closed-door sessions in both cities, sharing views on AI risk control and operations, local-currency settlement in emerging markets and practical inclusive finance for SMEs. During the events, XTransfer will hold signing ceremonies for strategic cooperation with several international financial institutions, further extending its global clearing network.
A central focus will be XTransfer’s financial institution partnership model, which enables banks and payment institutions to participate as both co-builders and users. Partners can contribute local collection, payout and FX capabilities, while accessing services such as Pay-to-China, Local-Currency Collection and Local-Currency Payout through the XTransfer API.
Another focus will be XTransfer’s end-to-end local-currency settlement. In emerging markets, restricted access to foreign exchange can delay the settlement of legitimate trade payments. To address this, XTransfer has built an end-to-end B2B trade settlement network comparable to Visa and Mastercard, directly connecting paying and receiving banks. Paired with its pioneering local collection account service, it enables end-to-end local-currency settlement, a 24/7, fast, low-cost, and compliant option that lets buyers and sellers worldwide pay and receive trade funds in their respective local currencies. The service now covers nearly 60 countries and regions across Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, Europe, and North America, etc.
Today, XTransfer serves more than one million SMEs globally, with over US$60 billion in total payment volume in 2025, and is trusted by more than 170 global financial partners. Through its participation in Hong Kong and Singapore, XTransfer aims to deepen collaboration across the financial ecosystem and make cross-border payments more secure, efficient and accessible for trade businesses worldwide. Hashtag: #XTransfer #SFF #HKFW #HongKong #Singapore #Crossborder #Payment #SMEs #ASEAN
Robinhood Markets will introduce Ripple’s dollar-backed RLUSD stablecoin to its retail trading app later this year, expanding an institutional partnership despite its involvement in a competing digital dollar, USDG. The companies announced on Tuesday that RLUSD was already available on Robinhood Chain and Bitstamp, the cryptocurrency exchange owned by Robinhood. They also outlined plans to use the token for institutional settlement through the XRP Ledger, alongside arrangements […]
By Ashok Nilakantan Ayers NEW YORK: India’s digital media industry has taken an unusually significant step in challenging Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. Twenty-one major news publishers, including media organisations owned by Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, have approached the Supreme Court, arguing that India’s digital privacy legislation could undermine investigative journalism, compromise confidential sources […]
Munich-based Proxima Fusion has signed two agreements with Japanese technology companies to develop essential components for its planned fusion reactors, extending its manufacturing partnerships as it prepares to build a demonstration machine in Germany.
The memorandums of understanding, signed in Tokyo on Wednesday during German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to Japan, cover superconducting materials and equipment for heating and fuelling plasma. Proxima will collaborate with Fujikura on high-temperature superconducting tape and with Kyoto Fusioneering on specialised reactor systems.
The agreements are preliminary arrangements rather than binding purchase orders or commitments to construct manufacturing facilities. Financial terms and delivery schedules have not been disclosed, leaving the scale of any eventual procurement dependent on further negotiations and technical work.
Under the Fujikura agreement, the companies will examine the feasibility of establishing a factory in the German state of Lower Saxony to manufacture high-temperature superconducting tape, known as HTS tape. The material is used to make powerful magnets that confine extremely hot plasma inside fusion machines.
Proxima estimates that its Alpha demonstration stellarator will require approximately 20,000 kilometres of tape. Each subsequent Stellaris commercial power plant would need around 40,000 kilometres, making dependable manufacturing capacity central to its development plans.
The collaboration follows Proxima’s September memorandum of understanding with Lower Saxony concerning a large-scale European production facility. The proposed project’s first two phases envisage investment of approximately €140 million through 2029, with public and private financing expected to contribute equally. The state has identified €21 million as its intended contribution.
The latest Fujikura arrangement concerns feasibility work and does not establish that the proposed factory has secured final financing, regulatory approvals or a construction timetable. Fujikura already manufactures superconducting tape and supplies other fusion developers, giving it industrial experience in a material whose production requires demanding quality controls.
Fujikura announced in September a separate long-term agreement to supply more than 10,000 kilometres of superconducting tape to US-based Commonwealth Fusion Systems for its planned ARC power plants. That contract also involves expansion of the Japanese manufacturer’s production capacity.
Proxima’s second agreement brings Kyoto Fusioneering into work on gyrotrons, devices that generate high-power microwaves to heat plasma, and fuel-cycle technology used to manage the hydrogen isotopes required for fusion reactions. Both systems are essential to operating a reactor beyond the magnetic confinement stage.
Kyoto Fusioneering is also expected to contribute technology to Germany’s national Fusion Hubs programme, which was launched with an initial €125 million in research funding. The collaboration connects a Japanese supplier specialising in fusion engineering with Proxima’s reactor development and Germany’s broader industrial research effort.
The company has experience developing plasma-heating equipment and integrated fuel-handling technologies. Its engineering activities include work on gyrotrons and experimental systems designed to test processes needed for future fusion plants. The agreement with Proxima does not itself constitute a confirmed equipment delivery.
Proxima develops stellarators, a type of fusion device that uses carefully shaped magnetic fields to hold plasma in place. Its approach differs from the tokamak configuration pursued by several other fusion developers, although both depend on advanced magnets and systems capable of sustaining demanding operating conditions.
The company’s Alpha demonstrator is intended to operate in the early 2030s and test whether its stellarator design can achieve net energy gain from fusion. Its Stellaris concept is intended as a subsequent electricity-producing plant at Gundremmingen, the site of a former nuclear power station in Bavaria.
Proxima raised €411 million in July to support its development programme. The company emerged from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in 2023 and has assembled partnerships with engineering and manufacturing businesses as it moves towards constructing its first major machine.
Neither the Alpha timetable nor the commercial ambitions establish that fusion electricity production has been demonstrated at an economically viable scale. Substantial engineering, testing and regulatory work remains before a commercial plant can supply electricity to the grid.
The company’s manufacturing strategy also reflects the substantial quantities of specialised materials required for stellarator construction. Superconducting tape must meet stringent performance specifications, including its ability to carry large electrical currents while exposed to strong magnetic fields and extremely low temperatures.
Fujikura and Kyoto Fusioneering were already listed among participants in Proxima’s Alpha Alliance, an industrial network bringing together companies with expertise in materials, components and reactor engineering. The new memorandums identify more specific areas for cooperation within that wider group.
Intel, Oracle, IBM and quantum computing company IonQ have objected to plans to trade blockchain-based versions of their shares through a venture backed by cryptocurrency exchange OKX and Intercontinental Exchange, raising the number of opposing companies to 26. The four names appeared in an updated public notice dated 26 October from OKXICE, the proposed trading venue jointly owned by Intercontinental Exchange, which operates the New York Stock […]
Brazilian companies sharply increased trading in dollar-backed stablecoins during Sunday’s presidential election, seeking protection against currency volatility as the country’s conventional financial markets remained closed. Corporate accounts accounted for 78% of trading volume on cryptocurrency exchange Mercado Bitcoin on 25 October, when President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated challenger Flávio Bolsonaro. Turnover in Tether’s dollar-pegged USDT token jumped nearly 800% compared with the preceding Sunday, while […]