Retail News CRM

Author: Mei Ling Tan

  • Indian beauty startup Nykaa to raise US$500 million through IPO

    Indian beauty startup Nykaa to raise US$500 million through IPO

    Indian e-commerce beauty company Nykaa plans to raise US$500 million through its initial public offering (IPO), a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters, becoming the latest homegrown startup to pursue a listing on the domestic bourses.

    Private equity firm TPG-backed Nykaa, based in Mumbai, sells cosmetics, grooming products, and clothes. Nykaa said its IPO will consist of a fresh issue of shares of up to 5.25 billion rupees (S$95.49 million) and an offer for sale of up to 43.1 million shares, according to a copy of its draft red herring prospectus dated Monday.

    The source said the 5.25 billion rupees will come from fresh shares issued to investors, while the rest will come from existing shareholders.

    Nykaa’s filing comes after food-delivery firm Zomato’s stellar debut last month. Launched in 2012, Nykaa grew popular by selling cosmetics and grooming products on its website and apps, before expanding into fashion, pet care, and household supplies.

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  • UOB Rides Economic Recovery

    UOB Rides Economic Recovery

    The bank posted a record quarterly wholesale banking income of $848 million, and a record AUM in wealth management in the first half of 2021.

    UOB posted second-quarter earnings of S$1 billion ($740 million), unchanged from the first quarter, which brought first-half earnings of S$2 billion, according to financial statements released on Wednesday.

    Net profit was 29 percent higher in the first half of the year compared to 2020, driven by strong business momentum and lower credit allowance, and 48 percent higher than the second half of 2020, supported by the group’s strong customer franchise and lower credit allowance, UOB said.

    Core Business Growth

    The bank noted healthy contributions across its core businesses, with income growing 5 percent to S$4.9 billion, fee income growing 28 percent to S$1.2 billion, and loans growing 6 percent to S$299 billion.

    Cross-border income, which contributed to 29 percent of wholesale banking income, grew by 5 percent, while a recovery in market sentiment saw assets under management growing by 7 percent to S$137 billion, UOB said.

    Total expenses remained stable at S$2.15 billion and cost-to-income ratio for the year improved from 45.6 percent to 43.8 percent. The bank also reduced its allowances to S$383 million, from S$682 million a year ago, noting that asset quality remains within expectations, with strong reserve coverage from the proactive general allowance taken in last year. Total credit costs on loans eased to 24 basis points.

    In a media briefing on Wednesday morning, UOB deputy chairman and CEO Wee Ee Cheong said the bank is positive about its outlook and expects profits to continue to rebound, backed by strong single-digit growth in loans and double-digit growth in non-interest income. It also expects growth in Asean markets to improve as vaccination rates increase, which will further boost its performance.

    The past quarter, the bank launched products like digital wealth manger SimpleInvest, which Wee said has received an «overwhelmingly positive response.» It is also working on distributed ledger and asset tokenization initiatives like digital bond issuance on Marketnode, and collaborating on central bank digital currencies.

    The bank also expressed an interest in potentially acquiring Citi’s retail assets in the Asia Pacific region, to strengthen its regional franchise.

    With the lifting of MAS restrictions, UOB is resuming its dividend payout ratio of 50 percent, which translates to 60 cents per ordinary share.

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  • OCBC Profits Surge from Reduced Allowance

    OCBC Profits Surge from Reduced Allowance

    OCBC’s net profit for the second quarter surged due to an economic recovery that enabled substantially reduced allowances.

    OCBC’s posted a net profit of S$1.16 billion ($860 million) in the second quarter, according to its latest results, marking a 59 percent surge from S$730 million in the same period last year.

    The bank’s quarterly performance was in line with the S$1.14 billion consensus forecast from a Bloomberg survey of five analysts.

    OCBC registered S$2.66 billion of net profit in the first half, up 86 percent year-on-year.

    Like many other peers in the banking industry, OCBC has benefitted from an economic recovery that has enabled a reduction of reserves linked to bad assets.

    It posted S$393 million in total allowances compared to S$1.41 billion last year.

    The reduction was driven in no small part by lower allowances for impaired assets (from S$793 million to S$283 million) driven last year largely by exposures to «a number of corporate customers in the oil trading and offshore support vessels sectors».

    In addition to reduced allowances, the bank also benefitted from strong wealth management income which grew 25 percent in the first half to S$2.14 billion which represents 39 perfect of OCBC Group’s total income.

    OCBC’s private banking arm, Bank of Singapore, saw assets under management grow 11 percent to S$169 billion, driven by continued net new money inflows and positive market valuations.

    OCBC also declared a dividend of 25 Singapore cents per share compared to 15.9 Singapore cents a year ago.

    At a ratio of 42 percent, this marks the first dividend payout since the Monetary Authority of Singapore lifted its cap on locally incorporated banks and financial firms in the city-state, originally set at 50 percent of 2019’s dividends per share.

    While the long-term trajectory of global economic recovery is positive, we remain watchful on the current operating environment in view of the recent virus resurgence and heightened safety measures in our key markets,» said OCBC group chief executive Helen Wong. We stay firmly committed to supporting our customers during this difficult period.

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  • E-Vehicles Exempted From Registration Certificate Fees

    E-Vehicles Exempted From Registration Certificate Fees

    The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Tuesday said it has issued a notification to exempt battery-operated vehicles from the payment of fees for issue or renewal of registration certificate.

    In a statement, the ministry said it has also exempted battery-operated vehicles from the payment of fees for the assignment of new registration marks.

    This has been notified to encourage e-mobility, it added.

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  • China’s Electric Vehicle Makers Report Strong July Sales

    China’s Electric Vehicle Makers Report Strong July Sales

    Electric vehicle sales at China’s Li Auto and Xpeng Inc more than tripled in July from a year ago, while they doubled at Nio Inc, helped by robust demand for new energy automobiles in the world’s biggest auto market.

    The rise in July deliveries comes at a time when electric car makers have been expanding manufacturing capacity in China, encouraged by the country’s policy of promoting greener vehicles.

    U.S.-listed shares of Xpeng surged as much as 8.9% to a near two-week high of $44.12, Li Auto rose as much as 6.1% to a one-month high of $35.44, while Nio gained as much as 4.7% at $46.78.

    Nio, Li Auto and Xpeng compete with U.S. electric car maker Tesla, which dominates the EV market in China.

    Nio, the maker of the ES8 and ES6 electric sport-utility vehicles, said it delivered a total of 7,931 vehicles in July, up 124.5% from a year earlier. Deliveries had more than quadrupled in July 2020.

    Xpeng, which makes the P7 sedan and G3 sport-utility vehicles, said its July deliveries jumped 228% to 8,040 vehicles.

    Li Auto, the producer of Li ONE SUVs, said it delivered 8,589 Li ONEs last month, an increase of about 251%.

    The strong sales numbers for the EV makers come as a global recovery in auto sales is being threatened by chip shortage that has forced automakers around the world to adjust assembly lines, cut productions and shutter factories.

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  • ZTE receives 2021 Global Server Product Innovation Award by Frost & Sullivan

    ZTE receives 2021 Global Server Product Innovation Award by Frost & Sullivan

    ZTE Corporation has been presented with 2021 Global Server Product Innovation Award by Frost & Sullivan, based on the investigation and analysis of 2021 global server product market, as well as the research and evaluation on mainstream server competitors within the industry.

    This award is to honor ZTE Corporation’s continuous innovation and progress in the global server product market, its technology leadership position in the industry, and its contribution to the overall development of the server industry.The reform of IT infrastructure is the engine of the digital transformation of enterprises. Regarding the rapid increase in data traffic in the era of the digital economy, enterprises’ IT infrastructure requires stronger computing power to deal with the massive data. Meanwhile, due to differences in products and services and different application scenarios, each type of industry has also formed diversified and customized needs.

    Under this background, the opportunities and challenges coexist for the server vendors. In terms of computing power, simply expanding data centers might help in dealing with data, but it also makes the data centers’ structure more complicated and harder to conduct operations and maintenance. Regarding this difficulty, companies and organizations require not only powerful data processing capabilities, but they also want more intelligent operations and maintenance, and simpler deployment methods of IT equipment.

    In terms of differentiated demands, servers, the infrastructure platform for enterprises’ IT systems, are required to respond to a large number of service requests and process services. In addition, companies and organizations in related industries have also proposed more differentiated requirements on performance, reliability, adaptability, and flexibility of servers.

    For instance, the financial enterprises rely on servers, storage and cloud operating systems to build a stable and reliable financial cloud platform; the telecom enterprises need to effectively assist customers in the reform of “network moving with the cloud” and “cloud and network integration”. The power enterprises require to ensure the power market safety and under control, and provide a stable and smooth operation environment for the national grid information system, etc. Products or services that can better meet the differentiated needs of various industries will stand out under the change.

    In the new era of servers becoming high performance, high reliability and diverse computing power, coupled with companies in related industries put forward higher requirements on the server performance, reliability, adaptability and flexibility. ZTE keeps up with the trends, constantly innovating technology and launching new products to meet new requirements:

    In the aspect of data processing, The G4X server newly introduced by ZTE uses 2 Intel Xeon third-generation extensible processors (Ice Lake) with a single processor up to 40 cores. Its performance is at the top level of the industry, providing an efficient engine for enterprises in the process of digital transformation.

    In the aspect of meeting the needs of multiple industries, ZTE G4X server boasts four to eight built-in heterogeneous and intelligent computing acceleration engines, which can satisfy the requirements of various scenarios of artificial intelligence, image processing and industrial control, etc.

    In the aspect of server reliability, ZTE G4X server can effectively meet the server reliability requirements of government, finance, railway, power grid and other enterprises. For instance, all ZTE servers are designed and produced based on telecom equipment standards. The reliability of the products is also verified by telecom product requirements, and can be efficiently adapted to the business environment of enterprises.

    In the aspect of environmental adaptation, ZTE adopts stringent standards for verification from R&D and design to producing and manufacturing. For example, to verify and improve ZTE G4X server’s reliability under high-stress environmental conditions, the server is tested at high and low temperatures ranging from 0 to 50 degrees. Moreover, to improve the protection capability of ZTE’s products in complex environments, ZTE uses a higher level of 6-8kV test standards. Furthermore, to identify extreme working conditions of products and continuously improve the product design, ZTE also conducts a HALT (High Accelerated Life Test) test.

    In the aspect of flexibility, ZTE G4X server realizes a flexible combination of “1 product, 2 chassis and 7 models” through modular design, effectively reducing O&M costs and deployment time for enterprise customers. It even refreshes world records of SPEC CPU performance tests, setting new world records in floating-point calculation and integer calculation performance tests.

    Overall, ZTE G4X server features ultimate performance, flexible expansion, high reliability and efficient O&M, providing new momentum for the digital transformation of various industries.

    Frost & Sullivan Best Practices awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as product revenue, technological innovation, customer service and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

    Frost & Sullivan’s analysts and consultants continuously research a wide range of markets across multiple sectors and geographies. As part of this ongoing research, it identifies companies that have successfully introduced new and innovative products into their markets, with emphasis on product innovation and customer value. This involves extensive primary and secondary research across the entire value chain of specific products. Against the backdrop of this research, Frost & Sullivan is pleased to recognize ZTE Corporation for 2021 Global Server Product Innovation Award.

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  • Delivery startup raises $12 mln from Alibaba-backed fund

    Delivery startup raises $12 mln from Alibaba-backed fund

    Delivery startup Loship has raised $12 million from a consortium co-led by an Alibaba-backed investment fund. The lead investors are BAce Capital, which counts Ant Financial of Jack Ma as its largest limited partner, and Hong Kong investment firm Sun Hung Kai & Co.

    Loship plans to use the money to increase its presence in five main areas, including Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Da Nang. It hopes to sign up 10 percent of the country’s population in the next two years and to have a presence in 10 localities.

    Loship CEO Nguyen Hoang Trung said that the company eyes top spot in the one-hour delivery segment. One-hour delivery is not as popular yet in Vietnam as in the U.S., Europe or China, he said. Loship’s aim is to deliver everything quickly to customers, including vegetables, meat and cosmetics, he said.

    Its challenges include delivery quality the fact that new competitors are set to enter the market including e-commerce platforms that could develop their own delivery units, he said.

    “All strategies can be easily copied and the only way to deal with this is for us to go faster than our competitors.”

    Loship was established in 2017 by transforming Lozi, a food recommendation platform.

    It has over 70,000 drivers and 200,000 seller-partners, and nearly two million customers, it said.

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  • Cebu Pacific flight cancellations from August 6 to 20

    Cebu Pacific flight cancellations from August 6 to 20

    Budget carrier Cebu Pacific on Saturday released the schedule of its flight cancellations from August 6 to 20, amid the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila.

    Flight cancellations have been made after the government allowed only essential travel during the two-week strict lockdown period in the National Capital Region.

    Cebu Pacific earlier released the schedule of its canceled flights from July 31 to August 5, during the general community quarantine “with heightened restrictions” in NCR.

    The following Cebu Pacific and Cebgo flights are cancelled:

    “Affected passengers have been informed via contact details provided in the booking. They may select their preferred option through the Manage Booking portal on the Cebu Pacific website until 30 days from date of departure,” Cebu Pacific said.

    Likewise, the airline said affected passengers may opt to do the following:

    • Rebook for travel within 60 days no additional cost, following CEB’s permanent removal of change fees. Fare difference waived.
    • Store the amount in a virtual CEB wallet valid for two years and use this to either book a new flight or pay for add-ons (e.g. baggage allowance, seat selection, etc.)
    • Refund: the process may take up to two months from the date of request.

    “CEB will continue to operate other domestic and international flights as scheduled,” it said.

    “This is a developing situation. Some flight changes may take place in the coming days,” it said.

    “Before going to the airport, passengers are advised to check?the travel requirements, safety protocols,?and frequently asked questions (FAQs)?on the CEB website,” it added.

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  • HSBC Names Head of Qatar Private Banking

    HSBC Names Head of Qatar Private Banking

    The bank has named a long-standing stalwart to enhance HSBC’s client proposition in Qatar.

    HSBC has named Ibrahim Al Abed as its head of private banking in Qatar, according to an announcement on Wednesday.

    Based in Qatar, Al Abed reports to Sobhi Tabbara, global market head, Middle East and North Africa, Private Banking, and Abdul Hakeem Mostafawi, CEO of HSBC Qatar.

    Al Abed joined the HSBC’s Qatar office in 1999 and has worked across Digital Business Services and Global Operations before moving to Wealth & Personal Banking, after which he joined Markets & Securities Services in 2004 to become the head of corporate sales.

    In the announcement, Tabbara said Qatar is a «very important market for Private Banking in MENAT.»

    HSBC’s history spans 67 years in the Gulf nation, where it offers a full suite of banking products and services, including wealth management and personal banking, commercial banking, global banking and markets, and security services.

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  • Why is baccarat one of the popular casino games?

    Why is baccarat one of the popular casino games?

    Online casinos do loads of things to attract new customers, such as offering them the chance to experience thousands of games. Some betting platforms create their own titles, whereas others prefer to use the games created by other companies. That’s one of the reasons why you can find similar casino games across multiple platforms.

    Most online bettors like slots, roulette, and blackjack because these are the most popular types of casino titles. In fact, the majority of online betting operators provide their users with different variations of those things. Although it is not as popular as them, baccarat is also one of the titles that are becoming the preferred option for many people. So, if you are one of them and want to have a fantastic betting experience, here are a few things to keep in mind.

    Baccarat is one of the few games that you can play alongside real dealers

    As you probably know, most online casinos have unique live sections that will let you play against other people in real-time. What’s even more impressive is that you will be accompanied by a real croupier, who will assist you while playing. That’s why once people try these 9 baccarat games for free by Silentbet, they decide to visit their preferred online casino and check whether some of them are available.

    Users interested in live casino games know that you can rarely find that many options. Most of the time, the online betting operators offer different versions of blackjack, roulette, as well as game shows. Fortunately, many casinos realized baccarat’s potential, which is why you can find plenty of live variations.

    This is one of the games that can be played in a demo mode, at least in some places

    The demo mode is among the most popular types of casino features globally because it lets people play some titles for free. Sadly, it might not be available all the time, which is why some users prefer to go to Silentbet, where they can play 9 baccarat games for free. After doing that, they can decide which variation is worth it and try their luck for real money.

    Inexperienced users probably think that every game can be played in a demo mode, but this isn’t the case. Usually, online casinos only allow this feature to be used on slots and some of the regular table games. That said, the recent boom of online casinos forced some brands to offer a demo more for most of their titles in an attempt to accumulate as many new users as possible.

    You can find different baccarat tables inside most land-based casinos

    The last reason why baccarat has so many fans among online bettors is because of the land-based casinos. Although most people who play in an online casino don’t have any previous experience, others have visited countless “real” casinos over the years. Needless to say, every land-based betting venue offers all sorts of games, one of which is different versions of baccarat.

     

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  • Kraft launches vegan Mac & Cheese

    Kraft launches vegan Mac & Cheese

    After researching plant-based alternatives for its Philadelphia cream cheese, international food conglomerate Kraft has released a vegan version of its classic Mac & Cheese box. Gluten-free and vegan-certified, the new product is available via Woolworths supermarket in Australia – though it is currently sold out.

    Excitement grew on social media as it flooded with images and posts about a vegan version of Kraft’s iconic Mac & Cheese boxes, but little information has been forthcoming regarding the launch. Now known as Kraft Heinz, the multinational has been slow to move in the plant-based market, but did launch vegan mayo and salad dressing options last year

    The new Mac & Cheese Vegan is perfect for quick dinners and is free from artificial colours and flavours. Made with rice flour pasta and a dairy-free sauce, the cooking instructions also suggest using a plant-based milk in place of cow’s milk.

    Kraft has yet to release information about whether the product will be made available in other markets.

  • Thai AirAsia suspends flights, cuts pay packets

    Thai AirAsia suspends flights, cuts pay packets

    Thai AirAsia (TAA) has suspended all flights this month and deferred paying its staff either wholly or partially until September.

    The airline, regarded as one of the most robust domestic carriers, has faced a financial crunch from consistently low passenger volumes since the Covid-19 pandemic began early last year. All domestic airlines including this one also suffer from a lack of cash flow.

    The airline stopped flying after the restrictions were launched last month. It says all flights will stay grounded for now after efforts to secure loans were in vain.

    Another factor in the decision to keep flights grounded is that the latest lockdown order includes travel restrictions. The wider aviation business in the country is also facing depleted liquidity and cash flow.

    TAA announced a deferment of the whole or part of the salaries of its employees as part of an effort to ease cost pressures.

    The July salaries for executives will be paid in September. Active employees at operational levels will be paid 50% of their July salaries this month and the rest in September. Inactive employees will receive 25% of their salaries in September as well.

    The TAA said it will temporarily cease operations this month and hopes the situation will turn around next month. Once the airline has secured a loan, operations will resume.

    Also, Thai Lion Air, another budget carrier, said it is looking to offer financial assistance to its staff after it suspended flights on July 21.

    Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) called on governments to take action to address the high cost of Covid-19 tests in many jurisdictions.

    It also urged flexibility in permitting the use of cost-effective antigen tests as an alternative to more expensive PCR tests.

    According to IATA’s most recent traveller survey, 86% of respondents are willing to get tested. But 70% also believe that the cost of testing is a barrier to travel, while 78% believe governments should bear the cost of mandatory testing.

    “The IATA supports Covid-19 testing as a pathway to reopen borders to international travel,” said IATA Director-General Willie Walsh.

    In addition to being reliable, testing needs to be easily accessible, affordable, and appropriate to the risk level. Too many governments, however, are falling short on some or all of these, he said.

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  • Deutsche Bank Stalwart Decamps for State Street

    Deutsche Bank Stalwart Decamps for State Street

    State Street hires a Deutsche Bank executive as head of product management in the Asia Pacific region, according to a statement.

    Jeslyn Tan joins the firm after 22 years at Deutsche Bank. She will be responsible for developing and driving an end-to-end product strategy for the Asia Pacific region.

    Based in Singapore, Tan reports globally to Brenda Lyons, global head of asset servicing product, and regionally to Mostapha Tahiri, chief executive officer for Asia Pacific.

    Tan brings 26 years of deep experience in product management in Asia Pacific, and was most recently Deutsche Bank’s global head of product management, and has held numerous senior roles at the German lender during her tenure.

    We are well-positioned to better serve our clients by responding accurately and offering the right products and services to clients in the rapidly changing environment in the region, Tahiri said in the statement.

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  • StanChart Nabs HSBC Private Banker

    StanChart Nabs HSBC Private Banker

    Standard Chartered Private Bank has expanded its Southeast Asia unit with the addition of a relationship manager from rival HSBC.

    Nipud Sud joins Standard Chartered Private Bank as an executive director and relationship manager, according to a note, effective August 2.

    Based in Singapore, Sud reports to senior client partner Suresh Nair who joined the bank in January this year and reports to private banking team lead of Singapore and Malaysia Adeline Chow.

    Sud has 18 years of banking experience, including ten in private banking with Citi, J.P. Morgan and, most recently, HSBC covering ASEAN and Hong Kong clients.

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  • StanChart Profits Rise from Improved Loan Impairments

    StanChart Profits Rise from Improved Loan Impairments

    Pre-tax profit at Standard Chartered rose in the first half and beat analyst estimates, resulting in the resumption of interim dividend payments.

    Standard Chartered registered $2.68 billion in pre-tax profit, according to its latest first-half results, marking a 37 percent increase compared to $1.95 billion in the same period last year.

    The bank’s $2.55 billion in statutory pre-tax profit beat its compailed average analyst estimate of $2.23 billion.

    Despite lower income (5 percent decrease) and higher operating expenses, Standard Chartered still saw profits rise due to improved loan impairments fuelled by the economic recovery.

    The bank posted a net release of $47 million in credit impairments – including a net release of $67 million in the second quarter – marking a $1.61 billion decrease year-on-year.

    The Asia-focused British lender also announced the resumption of interim dividend payments of $94 million – or 3 cents per share – alongside a $250 million share buyback.

    I am encouraged by our positive performance in the first half of 2021 despite an uneven recovery from Covid-19,» said Standard Chartered group chief executive Bill Winters.

    We are more confident in achieving our return on tangible equity targets and we are pleased to announce today an additional share buy-back program together with the resumption of our interim dividend payment.

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