Japan’s ITOCHU Corporation has taken a strategic stake in Abu Dhabi-based Sirius Aviation Capital Holdings, strengthening the emirate’s position as a base for aircraft investment at a time when airlines are extending the use of mid-life jets to offset delivery delays and capacity constraints. The transaction brings one of Japan’s largest trading and investment groups into the shareholder base of Sirius, an aviation investment manager headquartered in […]
Alibaba Group Holding has asked a US federal court to remove it from a Pentagon blacklist that identifies the e-commerce and cloud computing group as a company supporting China’s military, escalating a legal fight over Washington’s widening use of national security powers against large Chinese technology businesses. The case, filed in San Jose, California, challenges the Department of Defense’s decision to place Alibaba on its Section 1260H […]
In Singapore today, employability is no longer defined by academic achievement alone. Employers are looking for graduates who can apply knowledge in real workplace settings, work across cultures, adapt to new technologies and continue learning as industries evolve. This is especially relevant as Singapore’s labour market continues to move towards growth areas such as digitalisation, technology, sustainability, healthcare, business transformation and professional services.
Against this backdrop, Singapore Institute of Management Global Education, or SIM GE, continues to strengthen its role as a private education institution that prepares learners for the demands of today’s workplace and the opportunities of tomorrow’s economy.
Employability begins with industry relevance
For prospective students, one of the biggest considerations when choosing a higher education pathway is whether their studies will remain relevant by the time they graduate. This is particularly important in a job market where roles are changing quickly and where employers increasingly value both technical capability and transferable workplace skills.
SIM GE addresses this by offering a broad range of academic programmes through partnerships with reputable universities from Australia, Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States. These programmes span disciplines such as business, computing, social sciences, aviation, nursing and other applied fields, giving students access to international curricula while studying in Singapore.
This global education model is particularly relevant for Singapore’s open economy. Graduates entering the workforce are expected to understand local business realities while being able to operate in regional and international contexts. By learning from local and international faculty, and studying alongside peers from diverse backgrounds, SIM students are exposed to global perspectives that can support their workplace readiness.
Career support that connects learning to work
Employability also depends on how students translate classroom learning into career action. At SIM GE, career preparation is supported through Career Connect, which provides career workshops, career guidance, résumé reviews, mock interviews, profiling support, internship and job opportunities, as well as career events such as company visits, networking sessions, career talks and fairs.
This structured support is important because many students do not only need a qualification, they also need guidance in understanding industries, articulating their strengths, preparing for interviews and building professional networks. These practical areas can influence how confidently graduates enter the job market.
Through CareerSense, SIM students can also access an integrated online platform to browse and apply for internships, jobs and career events. This helps students take a more proactive approach to career planning while creating a clearer bridge between academic life and employment opportunities.
Real world exposure through internships and traineeships
One of the strongest contributors to graduate employability is exposure to work before graduation. Internships allow students to understand workplace expectations, test their skills in real business scenarios and build confidence before entering full time employment. SIM GE supports this through internships with a range of employers, from SMEs to multinational corporations. Its Work Integrated Learning for Life initiatives and internship related awards further encourage students to gain practical experience and develop holistically across cognitive, interpersonal and applied skills.
For fresh graduates, SIM’s Graduate Traineeship Programme provides structured traineeship opportunities across industries, typically lasting three to six months. The programme is designed to help graduates gain hands on experience, build workplace confidence and develop industry relevant capabilities as they transition into full time employment. This emphasis on work exposure responds directly to a key concern among prospective students, which is whether they will be ready for employment after graduation. By combining academic learning with career guidance, internships and traineeships, SIM GE helps students build not only credentials but also workplace familiarity.
The value of practical exposure is reflected in the experience of Keisha Shevila, a SIM-University of Wollongong Computer Science graduate who secured a Software Engineer role before completing her degree. In sharing her journey, she credited Career Connect with helping her better understand the job search process and preparing her “more confidently for entering the workforce”.
Building future ready graduates through skills and adaptability
The future of work is increasingly shaped by AI, automation, sustainability and cross functional collaboration. In this environment, students need more than role specific knowledge. They need adaptability, communication skills, critical thinking, creativity, cultural awareness and the confidence to keep learning.
SIM GE’s broader student experience supports this development. Beyond academic programmes, students can participate in more than 70 student clubs and co-curricular activities that build leadership, communication and teamwork skills. The EDGE Award, developed in partnership with employers, recognises students’ cumulative achievements across their learning journey and encourages a more holistic approach to personal and professional growth.
SIM GE’s diverse learning environment also plays an important role. With students from more than 50 nationalities, the campus experience provides opportunities for cultural exchange, collaboration and global awareness. These are qualities that are increasingly valuable in multinational and regional workplaces.
Aligning with Singapore’s skills first economy
Singapore’s workforce strategy continues to place strong emphasis on skills, lifelong learning and adaptability. National reports and government agencies have highlighted rising demand in areas linked to the digital, green and care economies, as well as the importance of AI literacy and transferable skills. This makes higher education choices more consequential. Prospective students are not simply choosing a programme. They are choosing a platform for long term career resilience.
SIM GE’s approach aligns with this direction by combining academic pathways, global university partnerships, employability support, industry exposure and continuous skills development. Its graduate outcomes also reflect this emphasis, with SIM reporting a secured employment rate of 81 per cent based on the Private Education Institution Graduate Employment Survey 2024/2025.
Preparing graduates for Singapore today and tomorrow
Employability in Singapore today is shaped by industry relevance, practical exposure and future ready skills. SIM GE’s proposition sits at the intersection of these priorities. For students, this means access to internationally recognised academic pathways, career services, internships, traineeships, employer engagement, student development opportunities and a diverse campus environment. For employers, it means a pool of graduates who have been encouraged to build both knowledge and workplace ready capabilities.
As prospective students consider their higher learning options, the question is no longer only what they can study. It is also how that education will prepare them for the future of work. For SIM GE graduates, the answer lies in an education experience designed not only to support academic achievement but also to develop employable, adaptable and globally minded individuals ready to contribute to Singapore’s evolving economy.
References
Hashtag: #SIMGlobalEducation #SIMGE #GlobalEducation #InternationalDegree #CareerReady #FutureSkills
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
SIM Global Education (SIM GE) is a leading private education institution in Singapore and the region. We offer more than 140 academic programmes ranging from diplomas and graduate diploma programmes to bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes with some of the world’s most reputable universities from Australia, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom, and the United States. SIM GE’s cohort is made up of 17,000 full- and part-time students and adult learners, of which approximately 41% are international students hailing from over 50 countries.
SIM GE’s holistic learning approach and culturally diverse learning environment aim to equip students with knowledge, industry skills and employability competencies, as well as a global perspective to succeed as future leaders in a fast-changing, technologically driven world.
For more information on SIM Global Education, visit 
www.sim.edu.sg
postmarketOS has released version 26.06, a six-monthly update that strengthens one of the most active Linux-based alternatives for mobile devices and extends its testing reach to 254 devices, including phones, tablets, Chromebooks and single-board computers. The release, named Alpen Avocado, shipped on 21 June and is built on Alpine Linux 3.24. It brings GNOME 50, KDE Plasma Mobile 6.6.5, Phosh 0.55.0, systemd 261, Plymouth boot animation support, […]
Uber Technologies’ directors and senior management have been sued by shareholders who allege the company failed to respond adequately to warnings about sexual abuse by drivers, opening a new governance front in the ride-hailing group’s long-running safety litigation. The derivative lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, accuses the board and executives of breaching their duties by allowing compliance lapses to persist despite internal and external […]
Dubai WoodShow 2026 opened with deals worth more than AED150 million, strengthening the exhibition’s role as a regional marketplace for timber, woodworking machinery, furniture inputs and advanced manufacturing technology. The three-day trade event, running from 22 to 24 June at Dubai World Trade Centre, has drawn more than 400 exhibitors from over 45 countries, with more than 600 international brands and five country pavilions. The opening-day transactions […]
Upscale AI has secured $190 million in fresh financing, lifting its valuation to $2 billion as investors intensify their hunt for companies solving the networking bottlenecks inside artificial intelligence data centres. The Santa Clara, California-based company said the Series A-1 extension brings its total funding to $500 million, less than a year after it emerged with a seed round of more than $100 million. The latest round […]
The launch ceremony was held in Almaty with the attendance of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Le, Appointed Ambassador of Viet Nam to Kazakhstan; Mr. Berikbol Shatabayevich Mandibayev, Head of the Department of Entrepreneurship and Investment of Almaty; along with representatives of the Government of Kazakhstan, the Embassy of Vietnam in Kazakhstan, and strategic partners, businesses and organizations across the transportation, energy, technology, finance, infrastructure and service sectors.
In its initial phase, Green SM will operate in Almaty with a fleet of VinFast VF 6 Eco vehicles, an all-electric SUV designed to meet the needs of everyday urban travel. Combining quiet operation, a comfortable cabin, and modern safety features, the VinFast VF 6 Eco is expected to provide residents and visitors in Almaty with a more convenient, reliable, and enjoyable mobility experience.
Alongside its electric vehicle fleet, Green SM continues to invest in the development of its Green Drivers through comprehensive training programs covering operations, safety, and customer service. This forms part of the company’s ongoing efforts to maintain consistent service standards and deliver safe and dependable transportation experiences for users in Kazakhstan.
To celebrate the launch, Green SM is offering a promotion of 26%, up to KZT 2,626 for customers booking rides through the Green SM application. Users in Kazakhstan can now access Green SM services via the Green SM app, available on both the App Store and Google Play.
In parallel with the service launch, Green SM has established partnerships with five strategic partners across the transportation, tourism, technology, and service sectors through the Green Alliance Frontier initiative. The initiative serves as a platform connecting organizations that share a commitment to sustainable development and creating positive impacts for local communities across multiple markets.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Tuan, Global Chief Executive Officer of GSM, said: “Kazakhstan is a market with strong potential, dynamic growth, and rising expectations for modern services. We come to Kazakhstan with respect for the market, a long-term commitment to investment, and a desire to work alongside local partners in developing high-quality mobility solutions that meet the everyday needs of the community. At Green SM, we believe sustainable growth must be built on trust and meaningful value for society. That is the foundation we hope to build together with our customers, partners, and the people of Kazakhstan in the years ahead.”
Kazakhstan is experiencing the rapid development of modern urban centers alongside rising expectations for quality of life and better services. Green SM’s presence in Kazakhstan reflects the company’s long-term vision of bringing all-electric mobility solutions closer to users in more regions around the world. Green SM enters Kazakhstan with the aspiration of contributing to better mobility experiences for local communities: quieter journeys along busy city streets, more comfortable travel in everyday life, and greater reliability through service standards that are consistently maintained across every trip.
Founded in Vietnam in 2023, Green SM currently operates a green mobility ecosystem across Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, and Kazakhstan. With an all-electric fleet, a technology-driven platform, and consistently applied operational standards, Green SM is steadily expanding its green mobility ecosystem across international markets, with the goal of providing modern, safe, and sustainable transportation solutions for communities around the world.
Hashtag: #GreenSM
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
The SoftBank-backed company has been evaluating a US listing that could raise as much as $500 million and value the business at more than $3 billion, though the size, timing and venue of the offering remain subject to market conditions. A confidential filing would allow Carro to begin regulatory engagement without immediately disclosing detailed financial information to the public.
The move would test investor appetite for a profitable, asset-heavy digital commerce platform at a time when equity markets have become more selective about technology listings. Carro’s case is likely to be watched closely because it combines online vehicle transactions, financing, insurance, after-sales services and data-driven pricing across multiple Asia-Pacific markets.
Founded in 2015 by Aaron Tan, Aditya Lesmana and Kelvin Chng, Carro has grown from an online used-car platform into a broader automotive ecosystem. Its operations cover Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong, with Australia also identified as an expansion market. The company uses artificial intelligence and proprietary data tools to inspect, price, finance and sell vehicles, a model designed to reduce friction in a fragmented second-hand car market.
Carro’s financial profile has strengthened ahead of the possible listing. The company posted FY2025 revenue of S$1.2 billion, gross profit of S$149 million and EBITDA of S$43 million, while total assets stood at S$1.3 billion. The results marked its fifth consecutive year of positive EBITDA, offering a contrast with earlier generations of venture-backed marketplaces that pursued scale while absorbing heavy operating losses.
The prospective IPO would come after a series of private funding rounds that brought in heavyweight investors. SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led a US$360 million Series C round in 2021, helping Carro reach unicorn status. Other backers include Temasek, GIC, EDBI, B Capital, Woori Venture Partners and Cool Japan Fund, which led a US$60 million strategic investment last year to support demand for Japanese vehicles across Asia-Pacific.
Carro’s listing plans also reflect a changing market for used cars in Southeast Asia. Rising new-vehicle prices, tighter household budgets, longer replacement cycles and growing acceptance of online purchases have supported demand for certified pre-owned vehicles. Digital platforms are trying to capture this shift by offering inspection guarantees, financing, insurance and warranty products that traditional dealers often provide unevenly.
The company’s expansion into financing is a central part of its investment story. Its fintech arm, Genie Financial Services, has built a loan book while keeping non-performing loans below 0.5 per cent in previously disclosed figures. That lending capability gives Carro an additional revenue stream, but it also exposes the company to credit risk, interest-rate movements and regulatory oversight across several markets.
A US IPO would place Carro in front of investors familiar with listed online auto retailers such as Carvana, whose turnaround has helped restore interest in the sector. Stronger US used-car platform earnings have improved sentiment, but investors remain cautious about businesses that carry inventory, require working capital and depend on financing conditions. Carro would need to show that its marketplace margins, ancillary services and regional scale can offset those pressures.
The offering would also be significant for Southeast Asia’s start-up ecosystem. A successful listing could become one of the largest US debuts by a company from the region since Sea’s 2017 flotation and may encourage other late-stage technology firms to revisit overseas listing plans. Traveloka, Carsome and Xendit have all been viewed as potential public-market candidates, though each faces different timing, valuation and profitability considerations.
For SoftBank, Carro’s progress would add to efforts to demonstrate exits from its later-stage technology portfolio after several years of volatile valuations. Public-market investors have become more disciplined in assessing growth companies, favouring businesses that can show durable margins, strong cash generation and clearer paths to profitability.
Carro’s final decision is not guaranteed. Market volatility, valuation expectations, disclosure requirements and investor demand could alter the timetable or push the company towards another private financing round before any listing. A confidential filing would mark an important step, but the formal IPO process would still depend on roadshow feedback, regulatory review and broader equity-market conditions.
Brussels is preparing to intensify its child-safety case against Meta Platforms, widening pressure on Facebook and Instagram over allegations that their design and recommendation systems keep children engaged in potentially harmful ways. The European Commission’s investigation is focused on whether Meta has done enough under the Digital Services Act to assess and reduce risks to minors, including so-called rabbit-hole effects, addictive design features and weak age controls. […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Oman is weighing a ban on social media access for children under 16 as its telecoms regulator seeks public feedback on draft rules designed to tighten online safety, curb harmful exposure and define the duties of digital platforms. The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has opened a consultation on the proposed framework, inviting parents, experts, educators, technology companies and the wider public to submit views […]
Abu Dhabi sovereign investor Mubadala is reviewing a potential commitment to a private equity project fund seeking to acquire control of MNC Solution, a listed South Korean defence components maker, in a deal that would deepen Gulf exposure to Seoul’s expanding weapons supply chain. The proposed investment would be made through a fund being assembled by Korea Investment & Securities Co. Partners Private Equity Division, which was […]
A short Reddit comment can push AI research agents towards fake products, fraudulent services and invented businesses, exposing a fresh weakness in systems that increasingly mediate consumer choices online. Cornell Tech researchers Tingwei Zhang, Harold Triedman and Vitaly Shmatikov found that a crafted snippet of about 13 words, planted in user-generated content, could manipulate deep-research systems that gather web material, synthesise it and present confident, citation-backed answers. […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi-listed Burjeel Holdings has launched a $1.5 billion senior unsecured sukuk programme on the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market, giving the healthcare group a new funding platform as it pushes into specialised care, research, digital transformation and AI-enabled medical services. The programme, established through Burjeel Sukuk Limited, marks one of the group’s most significant capital-market steps since its Abu Dhabi Securities […]
Apple devices powered by A12 and A13 chips face a new hardware-level security risk after researchers disclosed an unpatchable BootROM exploit that can break the early boot chain on several older iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch models. The exploit, named usbliter8, targets SecureROM, the immutable code that runs before the operating system loads. Because that code is burned into the chip during manufacturing, the underlying weakness cannot […]
The initiative formalises capabilities the Group has been building internally, combining data-led demand identification, integrated distribution, and execution across more than 17,000 O+O stores in Asia and Europe.
Over the past two years, AS Watson has introduced more than 4,800 new brands and brand extensions across its network, underscoring the scale of its brand development activity.
From Incubation to Execution
AS Watson brand lab departs from traditional incubator models by embedding brand development directly within AS Watson’s retail ecosystem.
Rather than incubating brands ahead of their market entry, the platform operates inside the market, using real-time customer data, shopping behaviour and category dynamics to inform development decisions.
Dr Malina Ngai, Group CEO of AS Watson, said the model reflects the company’s structural advantage. “We don’t wait for brands to find the market – we build them where demand already exists, and scale them through our ecosystem.”
A Systemised Growth Model
At the core of AS Watson brand lab is an integrated operating model linking insight, creation, distribution, demand activation and scaling.
The platform leverages AS Watson’s over 180 million loyalty members and O+O capabilities to accelerate brand selection and commercial execution.
A Structured Pathway to Scale
Brands within AS Watson brand lab are supported through a structured growth pathway, progressing from early-stage validation to regional scaling and category leadership.
At each stage, brands receive differentiated support across insight, distribution, marketing activation and investment, ensuring resources are focused where the greatest growth potential exists.
This staged approach enables AS Watson to systematically build, scale and prioritise brands, improving success rates while maintaining disciplined capital allocation.
Focus on High-Growth Segments
AS Watson brand lab will prioritise product segments including Asian beauty trends (K-beauty, J-beauty, C-beauty), ingredient-led skincare, health and wellness products and elevated personal care – areas where consumer demand continues to evolve rapidly.
The Group expects the platform to strengthen its ability to build proprietary and exclusive brands while improving speed-to-market and capital efficiency.
Proven Brand Scaling in Action
Early outcomes demonstrate how AS Watson brand lab translates insight into accelerated growth – not only by shaping brand development, but by scaling brands rapidly across markets through its integrated O+O ecosystem.
Across multiple categories and geographies, the platform has enabled brands to move from targeted market entry to multi-market expansion with speed and discipline:
COSRX (K-Beauty)– By combining COSRX’s innovation-led skincare expertise with
AS Watson’s extensive retail footprint and deep consumer insights, the partnership has accelerated international expansion and broadened consumer reach. This illustrates how the platform converts strong brand propositions into sustained category growth across markets.
&honey (J-Beauty) – Leveraging its distinctive product positioning alongside
AS Watson’s regional scale, &honey rapidly expanded beyond its home market, rolling out across multiple Asian markets within a short timeframe. This demonstrates the platform’s ability to systematically scale proven domestic leaders into regional brands.
e.l.f. Cosmetics (US) – Through partnership with AS Watson, e.l.f. has extended its community-led, value-driven model across Europe, translating strong brand engagement into measurable market penetration. The example highlights how consumer-centric brands can be amplified through local market execution at scale.
essence (Germany) – The expansion of essence across multiple markets, including exclusive partnerships, reflects how purpose-driven brands can achieve consistency and reach when supported by integrated distribution and retail insight. This underscores the platform’s ability to build sustained brand relevance and loyalty across diverse markets.
Across these examples, brands have scaled through a consistent model – combining data-led selection, integrated distribution, and coordinated market execution – demonstrating how AS Watson brand lab functions as a repeatable engine for brand growth, from market entry through to regional scale.
Scaling a Repeatable Engine
AS Watson brand lab positions AS Watson to leverage its retail footprint not only as a distribution channel, but as an engine for brand creation and scaling.
The initiative signals a shift from opportunistic brand sourcing towards a structured, repeatable growth model, reinforcing AS Watson’s ability to scale brands with speed, discipline and consistency while driving long-term portfolio value.
AS Watson continues to engage with selected brand partners and emerging brands aligned with its focus areas, with further information available through its official
AS Watson brand lab platform (https://www.aswatson.com/asw-brand-lab)
Hashtag: #ASWatson
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Established in 1841, AS Watson Group is one of the world’s longest-standing and most recognised retail companies with roots in Asia. Today, the company operates over 17,000 stores across 12 retail brands in 31 markets, employing 130,000 people globally. This makes AS Watson Group the largest international health and beauty retailer in the world.
In the fiscal year 2025, AS Watson Group reported revenue of over US$26 billion. The company’s technology-enabled O+O (Offline plus Online) platforms serve over 6 billion shoppers annually, seamlessly integrating physical and digital retail experiences.
AS Watson Group supported over 180 charitable and non-profit organisations every year, dedicating over 40,000 hours of volunteer work to serve over 370,000 people in need in our operating markets.
AS Watson Group is also a member of the world-renowned multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, which has four core businesses – ports and related services, retail, infrastructure and telecommunications in over 50 countries.
Please visit www.aswatson.com/our-company/o-and-o-strategy/ for more information.
Building a Global Payment Network
Amid a diverse and competitive global payments landscape, UnionPay continues to strengthen its global payment network by advancing three strategic pillars: merchant acceptance, local card issuance, and cross-border QR interoperability.
UnionPay’s acceptance network now spans 183 countries and regions, covering over 100 million merchants outside China’s mainland. UnionPay mobile payment services are available in more than 100 markets, while cards have been rolled out across 84 countries and regions outside the Chinese mainland. As of May 2026, transaction volumes generated by international cards and wallets in China rose by 54% and 62% respectively year-on-year. A real-time transaction dashboard at the exhibition area continuously updated cumulative transaction volumes, highlighting the sustained growth of UnionPay’s global business.
Cross-border QR payment interoperability is a centerpiece of UnionPay’s international section. The company has accelerated partnerships with local payment networks across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Central Asia, Latin America, and Africa to enable QR payment connectivity. On June 11, 2026, the China-Indonesia cross-border QR linkage officially went live, witnessed by central bank governors of both countries. The milestone increased the total number of overseas merchants accepting UnionPay QR codes to more than 46 million.
To showcase services catered to inbound visitors, UnionPay has set up a dedicated booth for Nihao China, demonstrating the one-stop service app jointly developed with China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. With over 200,000 registered users, the Nihao China app integrates a wide range of travel-related services, including QR payment, public transit, voice translation, and tax refunds. The user interface has been fully localized to suit international users.
UnionPay has been working with global partners to build a cross-border payment ecosystem featuring unified standards, orderly development, and shared success. Five international partners have joined UnionPay at this year’s exhibition, namely, ASPI from Indonesia, ZeroPay from South Korea, Dialog Finance from Sri Lanka, Halyk Bank from Kazakhstan, and Banco do Brasil.
Expanding the Ecosystem and Advancing Fintech Innovation
As digital transformation accelerates, UnionPay remains committed to strengthening independent and secure fintech capabilities. The company has been investing in computing infrastructure, artificial intelligence, privacy protection, and smart payments. By fostering collaborative innovation among members, universities, technology companies, and government agencies, UnionPay expands the ecosystem and supports the development of new productive forces in the financial industry.
The AI exhibition area highlights the progress of UnionPay’s National AI Application Pilot Base in the financial sector, the only one of its kind in China. UnionPay has established a “1+1+N” large language model architecture consisting of an L0 foundation model, an L1 financial payments model, and multiple L2 models specific to different use cases. The architecture is supported by a computing resource pool with over 1,000 GPUs and a high-quality 2TB open financial dataset. Leveraging a comprehensive payment data infrastructure covering merchants, industry stakeholders, users, and use cases, UnionPay delivers robust data support for model training, consumer insights, and intelligent decision-making. More than 120 AI applications have been deployed across four key verticals: inclusive finance, consumption growth, risk management and compliance, and operational efficiency. To address critical data security challenges in the financial sector, UnionPay has pioneered privacy protection technologies for large language model and introduced an innovative edge-cloud synergy approach, enabling secure AI services without exposing sensitive data. The innovation facilitates broader AI adoption while safeguarding partner data.
UnionPay’s open AI platform brings together the innovative capabilities of ecosystem partners, including banks, payment institutions and technology companies. By providing payment, data, and AI-powered services, the platform empowers industry participants and fosters collaborative innovation. The exhibition area for smart payments features UnionPay’s APOP (Agentic Payment Open Protocol), an open framework for agent-based payments. Built on user consent and robust risk controls, APOP explores new models for intelligent agents to access payment capabilities. To date, UnionPay has partnered with 19 industry players to deploy applications including travel assistants, overseas hotel reservations, in-vehicle payments, and utility payments.
Fudan University, Huawei, Baidu AI Cloud, HYGON, and KUPAS.AI have joined UnionPay as technology partners at the exhibition, demonstrating collaborative achievements in computing power, large language models, and cybersecurity. Together, they have showcased UnionPay’s open innovation ecosystem and its commitment to driving the evolution of the payments industry through technological progress.
Delivering Payment Services that Better Serve Consumers, Businesses, and the Real Economy
Using Shanghai as a case study, live dashboards at the booth present data insights, including foot traffic heat maps of key commercial districts and consumer profiles of domestic and international visitors. Data showed that tourists from outside Shanghai account for 55% of total spending in the Nanjing East Road commercial area, making them a key driver of consumption. Distinct spending patterns were also observed among inbound travelers: visitors from the US favor local street food, South Korean tourists prefer popular lifestyle destinations, and Thai travelers show strong interest in shopping. These insights provide valuable support for commercial district operations and cultural tourism promotion.
At this year’s China International Financial Exhibition, UnionPay showcases its extensive global network, solid business foundation, and leading technological capabilities through a wide array of immersive exhibits. Moving forward, UnionPay will continue to grow its global payment network, develop self-reliant digital and intelligent infrastructure, and deliver value to consumers.Hashtag: #UnionPay
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Botim Money has launched IBAN-enabled wallets in the UAE, allowing eligible users to receive salaries, direct deposits and domestic bank transfers directly inside the Botim app. The service gives qualifying customers a Virtual IBAN in their own name, extending regulated account access to segments of the population that have often relied on cash wages, exchange houses or limited-purpose wallets. The rollout has been […]
Investcorp has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Smart Managed Solutions, a London-based mechanical and electrical facilities management specialist, in a deal that deepens the Bahrain-based alternative investment firm’s exposure to resilient business services in the UK. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Smart’s co-founders, Lee Bainbridge and Alex Wilkin, will retain a meaningful minority holding, keeping the founders aligned with the company […]
MUMBAI, INDIA – NewsVoir – 22 June 2026 – Wibmo, a PayU company and leading provider of payment security solutions, unveiled Wibmo Agentic Risk Intelligence Assistant (ARIA), an AI-powered platform designed to transform financial crime operations, at its flagship industry event ‘Securing Digital Payments: Innovation, Intelligence & Trust’ held at Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai.
ARIA is designed to support risk teams at banks and PSPs, combining AI-driven analysis with human decision-making and accountability. This is highly relevant now, as digital payment fraud challenges becoming increasingly complex. With the sustained growth in the payments ecosystem, financial institutions are focused on improving operational risk efficiency while maintaining strong governance and oversight.
Early modelling shows ARIA achieving over 70% reduction in investigation time through agents acting in real-time, enabling teams to process significantly more cases per FTE per day. ARIA targets delivering recommendation accuracy close to 90%, designed to improve quality metrics across risk operations teams.
ARIA represents a fundamental shift in how financial institutions approach risk operations by introducing specialized AI agents that support data aggregation, analysis, and draft recommendations, while preserving human decision-making authority and governance controls at every critical juncture.
ARIA combines capabilities across investigation, decision support, and operational actioning. The platform gathers signals from transactions, risk models, customer and merchant history, linked transactions, and historical fraud patterns to automate data aggregation that typically consumes significant analyst bandwidth. Using frontier AI models, ARIA generates evidence-referenced verdicts, identifies emerging patterns through multi-signal reasoning, and provides transparent, auditable recommendations. The platform also enables SOP-driven resolutions, customer and merchant communications, reduction of false alerts, and proactive defence mechanisms against emerging anomalies.
Shailesh Paul, CEO, Wibmo, said,“As fraud becomes more sophisticated and regulatory expectations continue to evolve, risk operations teams must manage growing complexity with limited resources. ARIA is designed to help institutions scale intelligently by combining the speed and analytical capabilities of AI with the judgment, oversight, and accountability of human expertise. While AI agents assist with data analysis and recommendations, every critical decision continues to remain firmly under human control.”
Unlike fully autonomous AI systems, Wibmo’s Agentic Risk Intelligence Assistant is built with a governance-first architecture designed for enterprise financial institutions. Every recommendation continues to flow through existing approval mechanisms without autonomous production actions, while all analyses are supported by transparent reasoning chains and comprehensive audit trails. The platform brings together specialized agents across fraud, AML, KYC, and disputes within a unified framework, alongside replayable audits and complete operational provenance for every agent action.
The launch event brought together more than 50 senior leaders from banks, fintechs, payment networks, and technology organizations to discuss evolving challenges in digital payment security and the future of AI-led fraud prevention. Speakers from PayU, NPCI Bharat Billpay, Visa, Mastercard, Flipkart, CSB Bank, Jio Payment Solutions, and Network International participated in discussions around acquiring fraud risk management, authentication technologies, and risk-based decisioning.
Hashtag: #Wibmo
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Wibmo, a PayU company, operates across entities in India, the US, and Indonesia. As a global full-stack PayTech company and an industry leader in payment security and digital payments in emerging markets, Wibmo stands out for its innovation and impact.
In addition to being India’s largest authentication service provider in one of the leading digital payment markets globally, Wibmo offers comprehensive fraud and risk management solutions, digital financial services, prepaid solutions, and a broad range of merchant-acquiring services. Learn more at: https://wibmo.com/
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi-backed artificial intelligence investor MGX has explored a potential acquisition of Singapore-based data centre operator DayOne, a move that would deepen the emirate’s push into global digital infrastructure as demand for computing capacity accelerates across Asia, Europe and the United States. The discussions remain preliminary and may not lead to a transaction. DayOne has also been preparing for a possible public listing […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 22 June 2026 – Hong Kong employees are moving faster than their organizations when it comes to using AI, creating a growing gap between AI adoption and how work is actually designed, according to Microsoft’s 2026 Work Trend Index. The research warns of a “Transformation Paradox”: while AI use is accelerating across the workforce—with more Frontier Professionals using agents for multi-step workflows and building multi-agent systems, leadership alignment, culture, and operating models are not evolving at the same pace, limiting impact and increasing pressure on employees.
The 2026 Work Trend Index draws on analysis of trillions of anonymized Microsoft 365 productivity signals, combined with survey insights from AI users and perspectives from experts in AI, work, and organizational psychology. The conclusion is consistent: the constraint is no longer what people can do, but how work is structured around them.
From Using AI to Being Frontier Professionals Who Refuse to Outsource Thinking
The Work Trend Index identifies the rise of Frontier Firms—organizations that deliberately rebuild their operating models around human‑agent collaboration, rather than layering AI onto existing ways of working.
Realizing this shift requires transformation at both the individual and organizational level. The research outlines four modes of human-AI collaboration to help employees take the first step toward becoming Frontier Professionals, before progressing to designing agentic workflows:
These patterns matter because Frontier Firms do not aim to maximize AI use everywhere. Instead, they intentionally match the right level of human involvement to the outcome, enabling speed without sacrificing quality or accountability.
Leadership and Culture Are the Real Multipliers
The research makes clear that technology alone is not the differentiator, but by how organizations lead, operate, and evolve. Organizational factors, including culture, manager support, and talent practices, account for more than twice the AI impact of individual mindset and behavior. In Hong Kong, Frontier Professionals are significantly more likely to say their managers set clear quality standards for AI work[iii], create space for experimentation[iv], and encourage more ambitious redesign of work[v].
“This is the Transformation Paradox facing Hong Kong today,” said Leo Liu, General Manager of Microsoft Hong Kong and Macau. “AI adoption is moving fast on the ground, but many organizations are still trying to fit it into old operating models. To unlock real value, leaders must move beyond pilots and productivity gains, and intentionally redesign how work gets done—how teams collaborate, how managers lead, and how success is measured.”
Microsoft is also announcing the launch of Copilot Cowork, designed to support this shift toward workflow redesign. Built on Microsoft’s multi-model approach, this agentic system enables long-running tasks across multiple tools, with usage-based pricing, cost management, and governance capabilities to balance quality, performance, and cost, and helps organizations run complex workflows more efficiently at scale.
Microsoft brings this perspective as Customer Zero, applying the same principles internally to redesign workflows, build human‑agent teams, and embed continuous learning into everyday work. Using Copilot Studio and Microsoft Foundry, Microsoft transformed its “Ask Microsoft” web agent from a standalone chatbot into a multi‑agent system that routes conversations more effectively and supports more dynamic, context‑aware interactions. This shift improves how customer intent is understood and addressed, while steering queries to the right resources or teams and allowing sales to focus on higher‑value, high‑intent engagement.
The solution delivered measurable business impact across customer engagement and operational efficiency, achieving up to 61% lower response latency and 70% fewer human escalations. Users who engaged with the agent were 10 times more likely to sign up for services and drove a 16% increase in product trial initiations.
“Inside Microsoft, we’ve learned that AI transformation is not a tooling exercise. It’s an operating model shift,” said Lorraine Bardeen, Corporate Vice President, MCAPS AI Transformation, Microsoft. “When leaders clarify how humans and agents work together, set standards for quality and judgment, and create room to experiment, organizations move faster and learn faster. That’s what separates Frontier Firms from everyone else.”
“We are entering a new era of work, where the traditional value formula is being rewritten,” said Nancy Wang, Head of LinkedIn Greater China. “We call it the ‘new math of work’—a concept introduced in LinkedIn’s new book, Open to Work. The people and organizations that emerge strongest will be those who use the time freed up by AI to build work around what’s actually harder to automate—the specific, contextual, human judgment that no tool can fully replicate, because no tool has lived what you’ve lived or knows what you know.”
The message of the 2026 Work Trend Index is clear: access to AI will soon be table stakes. How work is designed around it will define the next generation of competitive advantage for Hong Kong organizations. For more insights, read the 2026 Work Trend Index Report.
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The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) creates platforms and tools powered by AI to deliver innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of our customers. The technology company is committed to making AI available broadly and doing so responsibly, with a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
The shares changed hands through block deals on the National Stock Exchange, with the transaction executed at ₹1,730 a share. The deal involved about 44.9 lakh shares, with private equity investor ChrysCapital, through its affiliate Sepia Investments, and Anchor Partners selling part of their holdings. ADIA bought 39,130 shares, while other buyers included Aberdeen Group, Factory Mutual Insurance Company, HDFC Mutual Fund, Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund, Ashoka WhiteOak and other funds.
Corona Remedies’ shares rose nearly 3 per cent after the transaction, trading around ₹1,840 on the NSE, as the market read the entry of large domestic and overseas institutions as a vote of confidence in the company’s branded formulations business. The block deal valued the stake at a premium to the company’s public issue price band of ₹1,008-₹1,062 a share in December 2025, underlining the strong post-listing performance of the stock.
Sepia Investments sold 43.28 lakh shares, equal to about 7.07 per cent of Corona Remedies’ equity, for around ₹748.9 crore. Anchor Partners offloaded 1.61 lakh shares, or 0.26 per cent, for about ₹28 crore. Sepia’s stake fell to 12.69 per cent from 19.76 per cent after the sale, while the wider ownership base brought more institutional depth to the company’s shareholder register.
The transaction is also a partial exit for early financial investors who backed Corona Remedies before its public listing. For buyers, the attraction lies in a domestic formulations franchise with established brands across women’s healthcare, cardio-diabeto, pain management, urology and other therapeutic categories. The company has positioned itself in segments with higher repeat prescription potential and relatively stronger pricing resilience than low-margin commodity generics.
Corona Remedies reported revenue growth of about 17 per cent in the financial year ended March 2026, while profit after tax rose about 33 per cent. Its full-year revenue crossed ₹1,400 crore, supported by growth in chronic and sub-chronic therapies, brand-led marketing and wider distribution. The company’s earlier public offer was entirely an offer for sale, meaning the proceeds went to existing shareholders rather than to the company.
The drugmaker was ranked among the top 30 pharmaceutical companies in the domestic pharmaceutical market by sales before its listing. Women’s healthcare is one of its strongest verticals, followed by cardio-diabeto, pain management and urology. Its brand portfolio includes products targeted at specialist doctors, a strategy that has helped it command higher prescription visibility in selected therapies.
The stake purchase comes at a time when pharmaceutical companies with strong domestic franchises are drawing investor interest. Companies focused on branded formulations have benefited from rising healthcare consumption, deeper insurance penetration, higher diagnosis rates for chronic conditions and stronger prescription volumes in urban and semi-urban markets. The domestic pharmaceutical market has also been less exposed to some of the pricing and regulatory volatility faced by export-heavy generic drugmakers.
ADIA’s participation fits a broader pattern of Gulf sovereign capital seeking exposure to healthcare, pharmaceuticals, financial services, infrastructure and consumer platforms across growth markets. The Abu Dhabi fund has built a diversified global portfolio and has been active in private equity, listed equities, real estate and alternatives. Its entry into Corona Remedies, though modest in percentage terms, adds to institutional interest in healthcare businesses with predictable cash flows and long-term demand visibility.
For Corona Remedies, the deal improves public float quality and may support market liquidity. Greater institutional ownership can also bring closer scrutiny of margins, product concentration, compliance, capital allocation and future acquisition strategy. The company’s next phase will be measured against its ability to maintain growth while protecting profitability in a market where promotional expenses, field-force productivity and doctor engagement remain critical.
The transaction also highlights how block deals have become an important route for private equity funds to monetise stakes after listings. Rather than waiting for gradual market sales, large shareholders can exit or pare exposure through negotiated exchange transactions that allow institutional buyers to acquire sizeable positions in a single trading window. Such deals can reduce overhang when executed cleanly, though they also put focus on valuation sustainability after the initial market response.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Riyadh’s Institute of Public Administration has completed a Future-Proofed Leadership track with Harvard Business Impact, bringing senior officials from government and semi-government bodies into a programme designed to sharpen decision-making, institutional transformation and readiness for rapid policy and economic change. The track, concluded on 17 June through the IPA Business Center, forms part of a wider push to strengthen leadership capacity across public […]
