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Decades After the Bombing, Laos Still Struggles: Now With Less Help

Decades After the Bombing, Laos Still Struggles: Now With Less Help
Houaphanh authorities, together with a team of UXO experts, working to detonate a 500-pound bomb (photo credit: Kit Ork)

On 3 May, a 500-pound bomb was detonated in Soplao village, Huameuang district, Houaphanh Province. 

XTransfer Officially Licensed as EMI by Dutch Central Bank

Builds EU Service Network with the Netherlands as the Hub


AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS – Media OutReach Newswire – 8 May 2025 XTransfer, the world‘s leading and China’s No.1 B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform, is pleased to announce that it has officially been granted an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license by De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), the central bank of the Netherlands. This significant milestone demonstrates international recognition of XTransfer’s excellence in compliance, security, and service capabilities, and will further accelerate the company’s localised development in Europe and its global strategic expansion.

XTransfer Officially Licensed as EMI by De Nederlandsche Bank

As an independent and authoritative central bank and supervisory authority, DNB is regarded as trustworthy and credible by both the general public and the financial sector. Additionally, it is a core member of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). Obtaining this license is a significant endorsement of XTransfer’s compliance capabilities and validates the company’s credibility, transparency, and security in global markets.

With this new license, XTransfer will officially launch localised services in the Netherlands, providing a comprehensive payment solution for local trading SMEs. The services will include local accounts, cross-border settlements, and foreign exchange, etc.

As China’s second-largest trading partner in the European Union, the Netherlands, home to the Port of Rotterdam, Europe’s leading international trade and logistics hub, plays a vital role in global trade. XTransfer’s services will offer Dutch SMEs faster, more efficient, and cost-effective cross-border payment services, enabling them to expand their international presence. Additionally, it will strengthen the financial connection between China and the Netherlands, further promoting bilateral trade relations.

Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer, said, “Receiving this license from DNB is a significant milestone in our global strategy, following our earlier authorisation as an Authorised Payment Institution by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). With the Netherlands as our operational base, we plan to expand our services across all 30 countries in the European Economic Area (EEA). Our goal is to provide secure, efficient, and cost-effective cross-border payment solutions to more SMEs. Additionally, we will seek further opportunities in emerging markets by leveraging the Netherlands’ financial connectivity with regions like Africa and the Middle East.”

Since its founding in 2017, XTransfer has established a regulatory presence in major financial centres, including the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Singapore, Canada, Australia, and Hong Kong SAR, serving over 600,000 trade enterprises globally. The acquisition of the EMI license in the Netherlands represents another significant milestone in its international journey. Moving forward, XTransfer plans to continue expanding its global licensing footprint.

Hashtag: #XTransfer #Netherlands #Centralbank #PaymentLicense #CrossBorderPayment





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

About XTransfer

XTransfer, the world-leading and China’s No.1 B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform, is dedicated to providing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with secure, compliant, fast, convenient and low-cost foreign trade payment and fund collection solutions, significantly reducing the cost of global expansion and enhancing global competitiveness.

Founded in 2017, the company is headquartered in Shanghai and has branches in Hong Kong SAR, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, the UAE, and Nigeria. XTransfer has obtained local payment licences in Mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, Singapore, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the United States, Canada, and Australia. With more than 600,000 enterprise clients, XTransfer has become the industry No.1 in China.

By cooperating with well-known multinational banks and financial institutions, XTransfer has built a unified global multi-currency clearing network and a data-based, automated, internet-based and intelligent anti-money laundering risk control infrastructure centred on SMEs. XTransfer uses technology as a bridge to link large financial institutions and SMEs around the world, allowing SMEs to enjoy the same level of cross-border financial services as large multinational corporations.

XTransfer completed its Series D financing in September 2021 and achieved unicorn status. The Company possesses a diverse composition of international investors, including D1 Capital Partners LP, Telstra Ventures, China Merchants Venture, eWTP Capital, Yunqi Capital, Gaorong Capital, 01VC, MindWorks and Lavender Hill Capital Partners.

For more information, please visit:

Ford Foundation Promotes Margaret Mliwa to Regional Director for East Africa

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Ford Foundation today announced the appointment of Margaret Mliwa as the next regional director of its East Africa office. Based in Nairobi, the Ford Foundation’s East Africa office is a nonpolitical organization committed to advancing social justice, equity, and the public good across Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda and to support open civic space, civil society, and public dialogue with the governments across the region.

“We are thrilled to recognize and celebrate Margaret Mliwa’s leadership as the regional director for the Ford Foundation’s East Africa office,” said Martín Abregu, vice president for international programs at the Ford Foundation. “Margaret’s range of skills—from adept storytelling, mentorship, and relationship-building across the sector—will only strengthen our work in East Africa.”

Mliwa joined the foundation in 2017 and has held roles as a program officer, senior program officer, and acting regional director. During her tenure, Mliwa developed a diverse grants portfolio that encompassed community organizing, national advocacy, independent media, and leadership strengthening within civil society and public service, with an emphasis on defending basic freedoms and civil society voices in East Africa.

“It is an honor to lead the Ford Foundation’s East Africa regional office and continue our legacy of impact in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda,” said Margaret Mliwa, East Africa regional director for the Ford Foundation. “Since 1963, our work has been exemplified by collaboration with East Africa’s changemakers and institutions. I look forward to advancing this history in partnership with the grantees and partners we serve and the values of dignity, justice, and equity that we hold dear.”

Mliwa has more than 20 years of public sector experience, working with government, civil society, and philanthropy to advocate for and implement policies that champion community-driven programs. Her work has emphasized youth voice, rights-based approaches, and strengthening leadership and capacity development among youth-led networks and organizations.

Prior to joining Ford, Mliwa was country director of Restless Development Tanzania, a global youth-led development agency. Before that, she served as head of the Youth Social Mobilization Unit of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of the government of Kenya and as lead consultant in the development of the National Youth Service framework for the Sierra Leonean government. Mliwa is a recipient of a Commonwealth Scholarship and holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Kenyatta University and master of applied philosophy and ethics in progress from Strathmore University.

The Ford Foundation’s Nairobi office opened in 1963, against the backdrop of independence in East Africa. During this early period, Ford supported the capacity of institutions to train the civil servants and technical experts who have become leaders across society. Since then, Ford has supported initiatives including the development of Kenya’s microfinance sector; growth in critical areas such as research academia, agriculture, health, and business; and investment in influential human rights organizations across the region. The foundation has also championed the arts, culture, and media as critical pathways to national progress.

The Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is an independent organization working to address inequality and build a future grounded in justice. For more than 85 years, it has supported visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. Today, with an endowment of $16 billion, the foundation has headquarters in New York and 10 regional offices across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

Qifu Technology’s Paper Accepted by IJCAI 2025, Using MLLM to Pave New Path in Fintech

SHANGHAI, May 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — China’s leading fintech company Qifu Technology ( NASDAQ: QFIN; HKEX: 3660) and Beijing Jiaotong University have jointly achieved a significant milestone as their paper, Leveraging MLLM Embeddings and Attribute Smoothing for Compositional Zero-Shot Learning, has been accepted by the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence(IJCAI)2025, a premier international conference in artificial intelligence.

With an acceptance rate of merely 19.3% — selecting 1,042 out of 5,404 submissions — IJCAI is recognized as one of the most prestigious AI conferences globally and is listed as a Class-A event by the China Computer Federation (CCF).

The research focuses on Compositional Zero-Shot Learning, aiming to identify novel combinations of attributes and objects using existing knowledge. Overcoming traditional challenges such as background interference, limited semantic capture in word embeddings, and overconfidence in known combinations, the team introduced an innovative framework named TRIDENT. By integrating Multimodal Large Language Model (MLLM) embeddings and attribute smoothing, TRIDENT utilizes modules like Feature Adaptive Aggregation (FAA) to mitigate background noise, learns conditional masks for detailed feature extraction, and leverages MLLM’s hidden states to enhance semantic representation. This approach has demonstrated state-of-the-art performance across multiple datasets, offering new solutions for fields including image recognition and content understanding.

In fintech area, TRIDENT shows great potential. In intelligent risk control, it analyzes multimodal data—such as transaction behaviors and user profiles—to detect emerging fraud patterns faster than traditional models, improving assessment accuracy and reducing losses. In customer service, the framework enables more precise understanding of complex user inquiries, providing personalized and efficient support.

This achievement underscores Qifu Technology’s commitment to AI innovation. By increasing R&D investment and deepening collaborations with academic institutions, the company aims to drive further advancements in AI applications, contributing to industry growth and social progress.

HERO ESPORTS Asian Champions League (ACL) Grand Finals 2025 Set to Electrify Shanghai This May

Tickets Now on Sale with Partner Lineup Revealed

SHANGHAI, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The HERO ESPORTS Asian Champions League (ACL) Grand Finals 2025 (ACL Grand Finals 2025) will take center stage in Shanghai from May 16–18, 2025, transforming the city into Asia’s esports epicenter. The action will unfold across three premier venues: the SPD Bank Oriental Sports CenterJing’an Sports Center, and National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC). Tickets officially launched last week with the full slate of official partners now unveiled, marking the countdown to Asia’s premier esports spectacle.

Nine Elite Titles, $2M+ Prize Pool, and Pathways to Global Glory

The ACL Grand Finals 2025 will showcase nine esports titles, including Counter-Strike 2 (CS2), DOTA 2, Honor of Kings, Street Fighter 6, League of Legends Legend Cup, Teamfight Tactics, VALORANT Champions Tour, Delta Force, and CrossFire. With a staggering $2 million (RMB 15 million) prize pool, the event also offers direct qualification slots for the 2025 Esports World Cup (EWC), empowering Asian teams to compete on the world stage.

Powering the Future of Esports: ACL & DreamHack Partners

The events boast unparalleled support from industry leaders:

  • Hero Esports ACL:
    • Chief Partners: HERO ESPORTS × 5EPlay
    • Strategic Partners: Esports World Cup, Jin Jiang International, Shanghai JUSS Sports Management Co., Ltd.
    • Special Partners: Savage Impact, Eastroc Vitamin Energy Drink, HONOR, TGIF, OBSBOT
    • Special Partners for ACL Grand Finals 2025: POPEYES, Tongcheng Travel
    • Special Partners for ACL × Honor of Kings: CLEAR
    • Broadcasting Partners (China): Kuaishou, Douyin, Huya, Douyu, bilibili, Weibo, and Hupu
    • Broadcasting Partners (Global): Twitch, TikTok, YouTube, CHZZK, and SOOP
  • DreamHack cooperates with many well-known brands at home and abroad, including strategic partners: Jin Jiang International Holdings, 8BitDo, and ZOWIE; Industry Partners: HONOR, Savage Impact, and Morphling; Special Partners: Alipay.

Fans can now purchase tickets via official platforms Damai, Maoyan , Alipay, and Hopegoo, catering to diverse viewing preferences.

Event Schedule Highlights

SPD Bank Oriental Sports Center

  • May 16, 14:10ACL Grand Finals × CS2 – Third-Place Match, Exhibition Match, Opening Ceremony, Grand Finals
  • May 17, 14:00ACL Grand Finals × Huya LoL Legend Cup – Opening Performance, Finals (G1-G3), Intermission Show, Finals (G4-G9)
  • May 18, 16:30ACL Grand Finals× Honor of Kings – Opening Ceremony & Grand Finals

Jing’an Sports Center

  • May 16, 12:00ACL Grand Finals × CrossFire – Quarterfinals
  • May 17, 12:00ACL Grand Finals × CrossFire – Semifinals & Grand Finals
  • May 18, 13:00ACL Grand Finals × VALORANT Champions Tour – Surprise Guest Exhibition & Grand Finals

National Exhibition and Convention Center (Halls 1.2-2.2)

  • May 16–18ACL Grand Finals × DOTA 2, Street Fighter 6, Delta Force, and TFT tournaments, plus DreamHack Festival (see notes).

Note: DreamHack Esports Stage access requires a dedicated ticket (includes full-day pass + early entry). General tickets grant venue entry excluding DreamHack areas.

ACL Grand Finals Night @ INS Park

From May 16–18, Shanghai’s trendsetting INS Park will also host the ACL Grand Finals Night, blending esports, entertainment, and nightlife.

A New Era for Asian Esports

The ACL aspires to set Asia’s competitive benchmark, fueling the global esports ecosystem through elite tournaments, cross-industry innovation, and fan immersion. This landmark event will not only accelerate China’s esports growth but also cement Shanghai’s status as the “Global Esports Capital”, amplifying its cultural influence worldwide.

Global Broadcast: Live on ACL’s official Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok channels.
Official Websiteesportsacl.com/home
Media Inquiriesaclpr@heroesports.com

ENNOVI Integrates Advanced Functionality with Innovative Busbar Sealing Technology in EV and Hybrid Drivetrains

ENNOVI-SealTech: Patent-pending busbar sealing prevents coolant leaks, offering manufacturing efficiency and design flexibility over traditional methods.

SINGAPORE, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — ENNOVI, a mobility electrification solutions partner, introduces a new technology for sealing busbars, which prevents coolant leakage in hybrid and electric vehicle (xEV) drivetrain applications. ENNOVI-SealTech can be used with either busbars or other interconnects to accommodate applications such as motors, inverters or oil pump interfaces.

ENNOVI-SealTech: Patent-pending busbar sealing prevents coolant leaks, offering manufacturing efficiency and design flexibility over traditional methods.
ENNOVI-SealTech: Patent-pending busbar sealing prevents coolant leaks, offering manufacturing efficiency and design flexibility over traditional methods.

“Managing busbar interfaces in EVs where coolant is present on one side and a dry, electrically robust connection is required on the other side, presents several challenges,” explains Dominik Pawlik, Product Portfolio Director for Power Interconnects at ENNOVI. “Conventional sealing methods, such as potting or using rubber O-rings or gaskets, incur the high cost and time for secondary processes and/or issues with leakage over the lifetime of the assembly – ENNOVI-SealTech overcomes all these limitations.”

ENNOVI-SealTech offers two sealing methods: double-walled shrink tubes or adhesive tape for challenging applications. Both eliminate post-processing, enhancing manufacturing efficiency and design flexibility without sacrificing sealing performance.

ENNOVI-SealTech technology is subjected to rigorous testing to ensure it meets the specific requirements of each design. Every configuration is validated through a comprehensive testing process, including thermal aging at 150°C for 1,000 hours, and thermal shock cycling from -40°C to +150°C for 600 cycles (15 minutes per cycle), in accordance with the EN 60068-2 standard. A leak test is also performed to verify sealing integrity.

The use of shrink tubing or tape allows ENNOVI-SealTech to adapt to virtually any busbar shape and design specification. Moreover, the technology is compatible with a wide range of metals and plastics, including copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), PA66, PBT, PC, and others.

For more information about ENNOVI-SealTech, please visit here.

About ENNOVI:

At ENNOVI, we design and manufacture products and solutions for electrical battery platform developments, power components, and signal interconnect design solutions. Using our decades of experience in electro-mechanical engineering and high-precision manufacturing, we work with EV OEMs and suppliers to bring their ideas to life. As a Mobility Electrification Solutions Partner, we accelerate the process for our EV customers by offering complete end-to-end manufacturing capabilities from R&D, design, and tooling to production. Learn more at www.ennovi.com.

Agency Contact:

Selvan Wilhelm
Selvan.Wilhelm@ennovi.com  

Erin McMahon
erin.mcmahon@publitek.com 

 

ERS electronic Opens Demonstration Center in Zhubei to Meet Growing Demand for Panel-Level Packaging in Taiwan

ZHUBEI, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — ERS electronic, the industry leader of thermal management solutions for semiconductor manufacturing, is excited to announce the opening of its latest demonstration center in Zhubei, Taiwan. This new facility will offer chipmakers and OSATs in Taiwan direct access to ERS’s PhotoThermal debonding machine for wafers and panels, LUM600S1, a strategic move to meet the growing demand for panel-level packaging (PLP) technologies in the region.

Source: Panel Level Packaging 2025 report, Yole Group
Source: Panel Level Packaging 2025 report, Yole Group

Panel-level packaging is rapidly gaining traction in the semiconductor industry due to its cost advantages and process scalability. Dr. Yik Yee Tan, Technology & Market Principal Analyst at Yole Group, predicts that the market will grow from $160 million in 2024 to over $600 million by 2030, driven by cost-efficient solutions in advanced packaging. By 2030, high-density fan-out technology, propelled by Generative AI, is expected to dominate the market, capturing more than 50% of the market share(1). In Chiplet and Heterogeneous Integration demand for larger form factor is driving the growth of PLP in the coming years to meet higher density requirement. For large package size of ~5.5x reticle size limit, PLP can boost carrier area efficiency by more than 80%, compared to just 45% with Wafer Level Packaging (WLP).

In addition to wafer solutions, ERS was among the first to bring PLP equipment to the market, introducing a panel-level debonder in 2018. Today, ERS offers a wide portfolio of semi- and fully-automatic systems, including PhotoThermal debonding machines enabling temporary bonding and debonding (TBDB) processes essential for handling ultra-thin substrates, which is critical for HPC and AI applications, like CoWoS and HBM.

 “With LUM600S1, we are providing a high-yield solution tailored for high-volume manufacturing of complex AI chips. Our Taiwanese customers can now experience firsthand how PhotoThermal Debonding enhances efficiency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness,” says Sébastien Perino, Managing Director of ERS Taiwan.

For more information about the Zhubei demonstration center and LUM600S1’s availability for testing and demonstration, please visit ERS’s website to get in contact with regional sales representatives.

About ERS:

ERS electronic GmbH, based in the Munich suburb of Germering, has been providing innovative thermal management solutions to the semiconductor industry for more than 50 years. The company has gained an outstanding reputation, notably with its fast and accurate air cooling-based thermal chuck systems for wafer probing. In 2008, ERS extended its expertise to the Advanced Packaging market. Today, their fully automatic and manual debonding and warpage adjust systems can be found on the production floors of most semiconductor manufacturers and OSATs worldwide.

(1) Sources: Panel Level Packaging 2025 reportAdvanced Packaging Market Monitor, Yole Group

 

 

 

ERS electronic Opens Demonstration Center in Zhubei to Meet Growing Demand for Panel-Level Packaging in Taiwan

ZHUBEI, Taiwan, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — ERS electronic, the industry leader of thermal management solutions for semiconductor manufacturing, is excited to announce the opening of its latest demonstration center in Zhubei, Taiwan. This new facility will offer chipmakers and OSATs in Taiwan direct access to ERS’s PhotoThermal debonding machine for wafers and panels, LUM600S1, a strategic move to meet the growing demand for panel-level packaging (PLP) technologies in the region.

Source: Panel Level Packaging 2025 report, Yole Group
Source: Panel Level Packaging 2025 report, Yole Group

Panel-level packaging is rapidly gaining traction in the semiconductor industry due to its cost advantages and process scalability. Dr. Yik Yee Tan, Technology & Market Principal Analyst at Yole Group, predicts that the market will grow from $160 million in 2024 to over $600 million by 2030, driven by cost-efficient solutions in advanced packaging. By 2030, high-density fan-out technology, propelled by Generative AI, is expected to dominate the market, capturing more than 50% of the market share(1). In Chiplet and Heterogeneous Integration demand for larger form factor is driving the growth of PLP in the coming years to meet higher density requirement. For large package size of ~5.5x reticle size limit, PLP can boost carrier area efficiency by more than 80%, compared to just 45% with Wafer Level Packaging (WLP).

In addition to wafer solutions, ERS was among the first to bring PLP equipment to the market, introducing a panel-level debonder in 2018. Today, ERS offers a wide portfolio of semi- and fully-automatic systems, including PhotoThermal debonding machines enabling temporary bonding and debonding (TBDB) processes essential for handling ultra-thin substrates, which is critical for HPC and AI applications, like CoWoS and HBM.

 “With LUM600S1, we are providing a high-yield solution tailored for high-volume manufacturing of complex AI chips. Our Taiwanese customers can now experience firsthand how PhotoThermal Debonding enhances efficiency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness,” says Sébastien Perino, Managing Director of ERS Taiwan.

For more information about the Zhubei demonstration center and LUM600S1’s availability for testing and demonstration, please visit ERS’s website to get in contact with regional sales representatives.

About ERS:

ERS electronic GmbH, based in the Munich suburb of Germering, has been providing innovative thermal management solutions to the semiconductor industry for more than 50 years. The company has gained an outstanding reputation, notably with its fast and accurate air cooling-based thermal chuck systems for wafer probing. In 2008, ERS extended its expertise to the Advanced Packaging market. Today, their fully automatic and manual debonding and warpage adjust systems can be found on the production floors of most semiconductor manufacturers and OSATs worldwide.

(1) Sources: Panel Level Packaging 2025 reportAdvanced Packaging Market Monitor, Yole Group

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