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Helpline Services for Youth Launches at Laos-China Railway Stations

The Lao Youth Union (LYU), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Laos-China Railway (LCR) launched counseling helpline materials at all railway stations and substations in Laos on Friday.

Asean Leader: No Progress in Ending Myanmar’s Deadly Civil Strife

Asean Leader: No Progress in Ending Myanmar’s Deadly Civil Strife
The chair reserved for Myanmar's leader is left unoccupied during the retreat session at the 42nd ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia, Thursday, May 11, 2023. (Mast Irham/Pool Photo via AP)

LABUAN BAJO, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian President Joko Widodo somberly acknowledged to fellow Southeast Asian leaders Thursday that no progress has been made to end the civil strife gripping Myanmar and renewed a call for an end to the violence, including a recent airstrike a rights group called an “apparent war crime.”

Lao Police Vow to Promote More Women to Leadership Positions

Lao Police Vow to Promote More Women to Leadership Positions
A high-ranked officer congratulates a female officer for her success (photo: Laopost)

Police forces in Laos have set a goal to promote more women to senior positions by 2025.

Fosun Participates in the 3rd BEYOND Expo to Deepen Biotechnology Innovation and Global Development

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 12 May 2023 – On 10 May, themed on “Technology Redefined”, the 3rd BEYOND International Science and Technology Innovation Expo – also known as BEYOND Expo 2023 kicked off at the Venetian Macau Convention and Exhibition Center. This year is the third consecutive year that Fosun has participated in the Expo with the latest innovative achievements of Fosun Pharma and ecosystem enterprises in the Health segment, fully showcasing the latest R&D achievements under the strategy of “innovation-driven” and “global operation”.

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The Healthcare Summit, one of the three major sub-brands of the Expo, has attracted great attention. Fosun and Fosun Pharma, together with well-known domestic and foreign pharmaceutical companies, discussed pharmaceutical innovation, industry trends and solutions to global health challenges. Li Haifeng, Fosun Global Partner and Chairman of Fosun Foundation, was invited to the Expo as a guest at the Healthcare Summit Forum and in-depth exchanged with visiting guests and partners.

Li Haifeng said, “As an innovation-driven global consumer group rooted in China, Fosun is committed to creating a global happiness ecosystem fulfilling the needs of one billion families in Health, Happiness and Wealth. Ecosystem enterprises in the Health segment, represented by Fosun Pharma, firmly implement the strategy of innovation and internationalization, accelerate innovation and transformation, and have achieved considerable development in the global clinical development and commercialization of innovative drugs.”

In 2022, Fosun Pharma continued to increase R&D investment and achieved many breakthroughs; its revenue amounted to RMB43.952 billion, with a year-on-year growth of 12.66%. In particular, the core pharmaceutical manufacturing segment made outstanding contributions; the revenue of innovative drugs and biosimilar drugs (mainly products launched after 2019) exceeded RMB10 billion in 2022, marking a solid step in innovation and transformation.

Chinese innovation and global development in the field of biopharmaceuticals

In recent years, the R&D and launch of innovative drugs have ushered in a period of rapid development, and the proportion of innovative drugs has continued to increase. China encourages clinical value-oriented innovation and promotes the differentiation and globalization of R&D of local pharmaceutical companies.

In 2005, artesunate, an innovative drug self-developed and manufactured by Fosun Pharma in China, was pre-qualified by the World Health Organization (WHO-PQ), representing a breakthrough for Chinese self-developed innovative drug to go global. As the first Chinese pharmaceutical brand well recognized in Africa, Artesun® (artesunate for injection) has been used to treat over 56 million severe malaria patients worldwide and has provided more prevention and treatment options for children with malaria.

As of December 2022, Fosun Pharma had 30 antimalarial drugs prequalified by the WHO, ranking first in the world. It is also currently one of the world’s largest antimalarial drug developers and manufacturers. Fosun Pharma has become a core supplier of antimalarial drugs to the Global Fund, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), WHO, and national drug procurement centers in Africa.

Li Haifeng said, “Fosun will further accelerate the R&D and transformation of innovative technologies and products, while shouldering the social responsibility of a global enterprise, actively expanding cooperation opportunities with global leading enterprises, and jointly contributing to major global medical issues and public health.”

International forward-looking layout in the field of biopharmaceuticals to serve Chinese patients

With regards to serving Chinese patients with cutting-edge technologies in the global pharmaceutical industry, Li Haifeng said that, “Fosun Kite, a key enterprise specializing in cell therapy in Fosun’s Health segment, has introduced the world’s cutting-edge CAR-T technology to China, bringing hope of a cure to advanced lymphoma patients with only 5-6 months of survival. This is also the original intention and mission of Fosun Kite when it started to deploy CAR-T six years ago.”

In early 2017, Fosun Pharma and Kite Pharma of the United States decided to establish a joint venture, Fosun Kite, focusing on the R&D and industrialization of CAR-T cell therapy in the Chinese mainland. Four years later, Fosun Kite successfully launched Yikaida in the Chinese mainland in June 2021, which became the first cell therapy approved for launch in China. Since then, China’s cancer treatment development has entered a new era.

In the past two years, Yikaida has been used to cure more than 400 patients, and nearly 60% of the patients achieved complete remission, with an objective remission rate of more than 80%. “After these patients were treated with Yikaida, they returned to their families and society normally. We are very excited and delighted by the recovery of each patient.” Li Haifeng also expressed the hope to introduce Yikaida to Macau to benefit more patients.

Deeply cultivating Macau and joining hands with the Greater Bay Area to usher in the spring of the health industry

As the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA) continues to improve in the national development strategy, Fosun has allocated more resources to support the development of the GBA. Under the guidance of the two national strategies of “Healthy China 2030” and “Digital China”, after years of intensive industrial development, Fosun Health has owned and operated many general hospitals with brand and medical capability advantages in the Greater Bay Area, such as Foshan Fosun Chancheng Hospital, Shenzhen Hengsheng Hospital, Zhuhai Chancheng Hospital, and Guangzhou Xinshi Hospital. While deepening the layout, it has continuously promoted the online and offline integration of medical institutions and enhanced the regional medical and healthcare service model.

In addition, with the support of the Macau SAR government, Comirnaty (BNT162b2) and Comirnaty bivalent mRNA vaccines jointly developed by Fosun Pharma and BioNTech, a German biotechnology company have been approved as regularly imported vaccines in Macau SAR, covering both public and private markets. Fosun Health is also one of the first platforms in the Chinese mainland to provide one-stop vaccination service of the Comirnaty mRNA vaccines. Through the Fosun Health APP or mini program, Fosun Health provides services such as vaccine consultation, vaccine appointment, vaccination, and online consultation.

Li Haifeng said, “Macau is an important part of the development of the GBA. Fosun has always been very optimistic about the development potential of Macau. As an important hub and platform for the exchange and development between the Chinese mainland and Portuguese-speaking countries, Macau plays a pivotal role in economic, cultural, commercial and other sectors. Fosun has already established industrial presence in Portugal and Portuguese-speaking countries. In the future, Fosun will continue to deepen the development of various industries and conduct more businesses in Macau.”

The 3rd BEYOND Expo is open to the public from 10 May to 12 May. Fosun Pharma, together with member enterprises in the pharmaceutical and healthcare services sectors, and Fosun Lead, an in-depth incubation platform, have set up a booth with a number of interactive activities in the Life Sciences Exhibition Area (Booth No. B28) at the Expo. During the Expo, shuttle services have been arranged to pick up and drop off visitors to receive Comirnaty vaccine at the Macau University of Science and Technology Hospital (University Hospital) COVID-19 vaccination center.
Hashtag: #Fosun

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

USDToch Unveils On-Chain Lending Ecosystem for DeFi 2.0

NEW YORK, US – Media OutReach – 12 May 2023 – USDToch provides a lending solution for DeFi 2.0. Building on the existing enhanced capital utilization enabled by over-collateralized lending, it further enhances the investment returns on the staking side. It also plans to introduce traditional assets into the DeFi lending system in the form of RWA soon.

Lending is one of the oldest economic activities in human society. Ancient loans took the form of pawnshops where loans were granted against collateral deemed valuable. Early forms of credit arose when resource owners lent production materials to laborers with an expectation of repayment in goods. If the borrower failed to repay, their family could be enslaved.

Today, credit is essential to businesses and the entire economy as it allows economic units to raise operational capital without diluting equity. This leverage effect leads to increased investment, capital expenditure, and consumption, and eventually rapid economic growth.

In TradFi, credit is typically divided into secured and unsecured credit. A mortgage is a secured loan since the loan is secured by property. Credit cards are an unsecured loan, or can be thought of as collateralized by the creditworthiness of the borrower. Credit creation results in balance sheet expansion.

In DeFi, most existing lending protocols are based on over-collateralization. They are similar to pawnshop lending, and do not involve credit creation. Over-collateralized loans offer many trading and hedging strategies for the financial sector. However, their use cases are limited in other businesses because only asset owners can borrow, and the poor cannot increase their leverage. Even for asset owners, there are more efficient ways to leverage than participating in DeFi lending. For example, a person with $10 million in crypto assets may be able to borrow $20 million from a CeFi institution that undergoes KYC and credit checks (although with the collapse of FTX, the world’s top three CeFi lending platforms are all struggling). Essentially, the “core DeFi principle” of permissionless blocks the growth of the DeFi lending market.

The logic of DeFi lending

DeFi over-collateralized lending is essentially a way to increase capital utilization. For example, if user holds an ETH (worth $2000), he/she is bullish on its subsequent market and don’t want to sell it, and want to gain from the potential market, then DeFi over-collateralized lending is a good option, the user can stake this ETH to a lending protocol and get 1400 USDT (based on the staking ratio of 0.7) for other investments for further profit. At some point in the future (supposing without triggering liquidation), user can redeem it. Of course, many lending protocols also support staking stablecoins, lending crypto assets such as ETH at the staking rate.

Over-collateralization prevents borrowers from defaulting while the excess also provides insurance space for the platform to resist market fluctuations. In the current DeFi lending system, howevers, investors do not hold the initiative.

For example, when user stakes ETH to a lending protocol, it usually does not generate considerable profits (although many lending protocols provide small incentives). Alternatively, the lending protocol may use these user-pledged assets for other “farming” activities, and the profits are usually not distributed to the pledger.

Leverage

Smart players usually prefer to use lending platforms to engage in circular lending with leverage to gain higher profits.

Suppose the user currently holds an ETH worth $2000 and stake it to borrow 1400 USDT based on a 0.7 loan-to-value ratio. The investor then uses the 1400 USDT to purchase 0.7 ETH from another DEX and continues to borrow on the same platform.

At this point, the investor will have a total of 1.7 ETH (two ETHs staked on the platform), and the debt owed to the platform is 2380 USDT. When ETH rises from $2000 to $4000, the investor will have a total of $6800 worth of ETH.

Then, the investor can redeem the second staked 0.7 ETH and trade it into USDT (get 2800 USDT), and take out 1400 USDT to redeem the first staked 1 ETH. The investor will then have a total of 1 ETH + 1400 USDT, and the extra USDT is the profit earned through revolving lending.

This means that the investor only uses $2000 of capital to leverage $3400, and when the investor engages in multiple lending transactions, their cumulative staked assets and debt increase simultaneously, as shown below:

Users see that when an investor borrows and repays for the third time, their cumulative staking assets increase from 1 ETH to 2.19 ETH while its debt increases from 1400 USDT to 3,066 USDT accordingly. Following this trend, the investor can continuously increase their leverage through repeated cycles.

Therefore, the main factor determining the profitability of this investor at this point is the price of ETH (since their debt is calculated based on the value of USDT and remains constant). The higher the value of ETH, the higher their profit will be.

Liquidation

Of course, there is a risk of liquidation in borrowing and lending itself. When the health of the borrowing user falls below a certain threshold, it will trigger a liquidation

Health = Collateral Value / Loaned Asset Value

Assuming the platform’s health threshold is 1.2

When 1 ETH = 2000u, health = 2000/1400 = 1.42

When 1 ETH = 1900u, health = 1900/1400 = 1.357

When 1 ETH = 1680u, health = 1680/1400 = 1.2, triggering liquidation.

That is, the platform will forcibly sell the ETH staked by the investor to pay off their debt to avoid losses when liquidation occurs. Therefore, when the ETH price is 1680 USD, the platform will be liquidated. The investor will only hold 1400 USDT borrowed from the platform, which is equivalent to the price of ETH at 1680 USDT. However, due to liquidation, they only receive 1400 USDT and lose 280 USDT.

When users borrow and lend repeatedly and trigger liquidation, their losses will accumulate. Many investment institutions leverage up wildly in the bull market, but are liquidated in the market downturn and go bankrupt, which has a huge impact on the crypto industry.

The loan protocol cannot provide investors with a better or more substantial way of earning profits other than leverage. Its limited application scenario makes it difficult to bring incremental benefits to the cryptocurrency industry from external markets.

USDToch: a new lending form for DeFi 2.0

USDToch is a leading investment ecosystem in the industry. As an AI strategy investment platform based on Web3 assets, USDToch offers a variety of assets and lending products such as cryptocurrencies and US stocks. The platform uses verified liquidity strategies executed by an AI system to achieve stable and low-risk returns, and ensure the safety of investors’ assets.

USDToch product makes big improvements on DeFi 1.0. Lending is one of its main forms of investment available to investors by allowing them to achieve collateralized loans through a non-permissioned approach.

Users can stake and borrow digital assets, and the platform will issue loans USDT or other digital currencies based on the assets users stake. The platform also offers a number of loan products, including short-term loans and long-term loans, so that users can choose different lending products according to their needs. This allows users to obtain funds quickly while ensuring the safety of their assets and improving the utilization of their funds at the same time. The difference, however, is that when users stake assets to USDToch, they can receive a substantial staking interest from USDToch.

In terms of business logic, USDToch has built a stable business revenue model. By generating a large fund pool through lending and partnering with top market makers worldwide, USDToch will use the funds in the pool to participate in the liquidity market of Web3 assets.

This efficient value circulation of funds is a unique feature of the platform. The platform brings together leading quant funds and institutional investors worldwide who possess advanced investment strategies and technologies (including AI) to effectively control risks and increase returns. Users can also enjoy quality asset allocation and investment management services through these strategies.

USDToch, through a decentralized approach, helps more long-tail investors regain competitiveness in the financial market competition by aggregating user assets, gaining access to a large number of income opportunities by technological means, institutional partners, etc., and distributing these income to users through smart contracts (far higher than the current returns in the DeFi market).

Therefore, USDToch’s advantage in lending products is that it can generate stable and super high returns without taking the high risks featured revolving and leveraging loans.

USDToch’s investment targets are not limited to crypto assets. Currently, USDToch is also tokenizing traditional investment targets such as stocks, bonds, and commodities based on blockchain technology in the form of RWA (Real-World Assets). This makes it more widely available to users in a decentralized way and compensates for the development bottleneck of the DeFi sector’s overall investment returns. This means that in the near future, USDToch may enable users to lend traditional assets on the chain, driving the cryptocurrency industry towards a new direction of value discovery.

As the hotspot of the crypto world continues to evolve, the form of DeFi products is also undergoing iterations. USDToch is innovatively and extensively laying out the lending sector, promoting deep changes in DeFi 2.0, and driving the DeFi world from 1.0 to 2.0.

Hashtag: #USDTOCH

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

DFS unveils House of Jewels at Shoppes at Four Seasons, Macau

Curated concept store featuring seven exclusive jewelry brands with DFS in Macau

MACAU – Media OutReach – 12 May 2023 – DFS Group (DFS), the world’s leading luxury travel retailer, unveiled a new narrative for its discerning luxury lovers at T Galleria by DFS, Macau, Shoppes at Four Seasons with the launch of their first ever House of Jewels. This marks the debut of an all-new concept store which invites customers to discover a world of timeless luxury with a curated selection of some of the most esteemed European jewelers in Macau.

(L to R) Maggie Wong, Director Watches and Jewelry; James Guntrip, VP Store Operations Macau; Charles-Henry Chenard, SVP Watches and Jewelry; Johan Pretorius, MD Macau; Renee Chisolm, VP Store Operations Macau; Long Lai GM Macau

Spanning over 2,500 square feet, the impeccably designed House of Jewels is the first multi-brand jewelry concept to be introduced by the luxury retailer. The agile, semi-open and modular space that features soft, blush tones and elegant, sleek lines invites a new generation of jewelry lovers to explore a curation that brings a taste of France, Italy and the United Kingdom to DFS’ refined rolodex of jewelry brands. Nine new jewelry brands, seven of which are exclusive to DFS in Macau: Damiani, Dinh Van, Fred, Garrard, Ginette NY, Persée Paris, RedLine, Stephen Webster and Vanrycke, alongside the Experience Bar and a VIP room that caters to the tastes of the modern-day globetrotter, can be found at the heart of Shoppes at Four Seasons, Macau.

With a glass of chilled champagne in hand, guests were swept into a whirlwind of contemporary design and European flair as they explored the salon-like House of Jewels that debuted in Macau on May 5. A slew of activations enticed guests to place a finishing touch on their purchases in addition to customized gift wrapping.

Johan Pretorius, Managing Director Macau, DFS Group said: “The unveiling of the House of Jewels marks the beginning of a new era – where we honor the desires of our discerning clients by providing a memorable experience that is highly curated and immersive and showcases exclusive offerings. This, married with our personalized customer service approach, showcases our readiness as a luxury retailer to welcome a new wave of modern globetrotters to be delighted at our stores.”

Charles-Henry Chenard, Senior Vice President Watches and Jewelry, DFS Group said: “Through decades of history cultivated alongside some of the world’s most coveted luxury watches and jewelry brands, DFS has long been lauded for its unparalleled line-up and authority in both categories. We have evolved alongside our seasoned shoppers – as well as their next generation of taste makers – and have answered their needs by developing concepts such as House of Jewels which features a curated selection of fine jewelry, from precious color stones and diamond engagement rings to collectible pieces. We look forward to welcoming clients to this exclusive new selection and bespoke experience.”

Hashtag: #DFS #luxury #HouseofJewels

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

About DFS Group

DFS Group is the world’s leading luxury travel retailer. Established in Hong Kong in 1960, DFS Group continues to be a pioneer in global luxury travel retail, offering its customers a carefully curated selection of exceptional products from over 750 of the most desired brands. Its network consists of 56 duty free stores located in 14 major global airports and 24 downtown Galleria locations on four continents, as well as affiliate and resort locations. The Group is privately held and majority owned by the world’s largest luxury conglomerate, Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), alongside DFS co-founder and shareholder Robert Miller. DFS Group employs more than 5,000 people focused on creating inspiring omnichannel retail experiences for its customers and is headquartered in Hong Kong with offices in Australia, Cambodia, China, France, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, United States of America and Vietnam.

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Bybit Revs Up Its Sponsorship Game: Backing Safehouse Racegraph in Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Media OutReach – 11 May 2023 – Bybit, the world’s third most visited crypto exchange, is proud to announce its official sponsorship of the Safehouse Racegraph Lamborghini team for Super Trofeo in Asia. This partnership is a thrilling new step for Bybit, as it continues to accelerate toward the future of finance.

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With this sponsorship, Bybit will be supporting Safehouse Racegraph’s quest for victory at the Super Trofeo series, which consists of six races across five countries in Asia and Australia. The deal will see Bybit’s striking logo prominently displayed on the team’s car as they compete on iconic circuits such as Sepang and Fuji.

Bybit is no stranger to sports sponsorship, inking one of the biggest sports sponsorship deals of all time when it became the Principle Team Partner of Oracle Red Bull Racing in February 2022. The deal with Safehouse Racegraph will further extend the crypto exchange’s reach in Asia and Australia as the crypto revolution gears up globally.

Safehouse Racegraph has recently made an exciting addition to its driver lineup for the upcoming season. Singapore-based Finnish driver Mikko Nassi, known for his illustrious career in karting, has turned his sights toward GT competition and will be bringing his immense talents to Safehouse Racegraph. Joining him on the team will be 27-year-old Singaporean Ni Weiliang, who has honed his racing skills through a successful career in Asian single seaters.

“We are excited to be part of this amazing journey with the Safehouse Racegraph Lamborghini team and their pursuit of excellence on the racetrack,” said Ben Zhou, CEO of Bybit. “Through this partnership, we hope to showcase our shared values: next-level performance, reliability, and opportunities. We look forward to seeing our logo on track and cheering on our drivers!”

More From Bybit

Hashtag: #Bybit #NextLevelPartnerships #TheCryptoArk

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

About Bybit

Bybit is a cryptocurrency exchange established in 2018 that offers a professional platform where crypto traders can find an ultra-fast matching engine, excellent customer service and multilingual community support. Bybit is a proud partner of Formula One’s reigning Constructors’ and Drivers’ champions, the Oracle Red Bull Racing team, esports teams NAVI, Astralis, Alliance, Made in Brazil (MIBR), and Oracle Red Bull Racing Esports, and association football (soccer) team Borussia Dortmund.

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Singapore’s PM Urges ASEAN for Joint Power Grid in Region

Singapore’s PM Urges ASEAN for Joint Power Grid
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong speaking during an ASEAN summit. ( Photo : PMO Singapore )

Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke at the 42nd ASEAN Summit in Indonesia on 10 May, urging the bloc’s members to keep working toward establishing a joint power grid following the success of the Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore power integration project (LTMS-PIP).