The last freshwater Irrawaddy dolphin living on a section of the Mekong River bordering northeastern Cambodia and Laos has died, reportedly as a result of becoming entangled in a fishing net.
Oracle Red Bull Racing Trades Up to the Next Level as Bybit Joins the Charge
- Cutting-edge cryptocurrency exchange Bybit joins the charge as Principal Team Partner.
- Multi-year agreement installs Bybit as the Team’s top tier ally behind Title Partner Oracle.
- This deal marks the largest per annum deal of crypto’s foray into sports to date.
- Collaboration includes fan engagement programmes through digital assets and positive change agenda.
MILTON KEYNES, UK – Media OutReach – 16 February 2022 – Oracle Red Bull Racing is delighted to announce a partnership with leading cryptocurrency exchange Bybit, bringing the power of the digital economy to the Team, in a multi-year agreement that will see Bybit take on the role of Principal Team Partner.
Established in March 2018, the cryptocurrency exchange has grown exponentially and now boasts more than six million registered users worldwide. As part of the new agreement, Bybit will also join the charge as Oracle Red Bull Racing’s exclusive Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner.
The collaboration will also expand Oracle Red Bull Racing’s mission to grow fan engagement, with Bybit taking on the role of Fan Token Issuance Partner and Tech Incubator Partner. This will see the cryptocurrency exchange not only support the Team with the distribution of its growing digital asset collections but also see Bybit and Oracle Red Bull Racing engage with promoting STEM careers and introducing coding to new audiences. Bybit’s core ethos is to support the Next Level of innovation, talent, and technology development – which aligns with Oracle Red Bull Racing’s own ambitions as the Team develops and expands their Red Bull Technology Campus in Milton Keynes.
The partnership fee will be paid in a combination of cash and BIT, BitDAO’s native governance token. BitDAO is one of the world’s largest decentralized autonomous organizations (DAO) supporting builders of the decentralized economy, allowing BIT token holders to vote on proposals to foster technologies that present entirely new ways for people to work, engage, and transact together.
Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal and CEO Christian Horner said: “I’m delighted to welcome Bybit to the team. It’s fitting too that as we enter a new generation of competition of F1 in 2022, with an advanced and potentially game-changing new philosophy of cars taking to the track, that Bybit also exists at the cutting edge of technology. They share the Team’s passion to exist at the forefront of technological innovation, to set the competitive pace and to disrupt the status quo. Allied to that is Bybit’s commitment to enlivening the fan experience in F1 through digital innovation. This is also a key mission for the Team and Bybit’s assistance will help us build a deeper more immersive and unique connection with the team for fans around the world.”
Ben Zhou, co-founder and CEO of Bybit said: “Oracle Red Bull Racing’s relentless passion and dauntless resilience inspires us. The team has changed the game in the same way that digital assets have changed the global financial system. As a young exchange we connect with Oracle Red Bull Racing at the core of our values — age doesn’t matter, hierarchy is of no significance, and legacy is not what is passed to you but what you make. Bull or bear, everyone has the opportunity to take financial freedom in their own hands at the dawn of the digital economy. Bybit has found our kindred spirit and the perfect harmony of speed, safety and reliability is everything our users are looking for on our platform. A moment on the track is made possible by tireless work to perfect the chassis, the engine, the craftsmanship, and by the racing drivers’ relentless pursuit for precision and focus in an adrenaline-fuelled game.”
About Bybit
Bybit is a cryptocurrency exchange established in March 2018 to offer a professional platform where crypto traders can find an ultra-fast matching engine, excellent customer service and multilingual community support. The company provides innovative online spot and derivatives trading services, mining and staking products, as well as API support, to retail and institutional clients around the world, and strives to be the most reliable exchange for the emerging digital asset class. Apart from Oracle Red Bull Racing, Bybit also sponsors esports teams like NAVI, Alliance, Astralis and Virtus.pro; German soccer club Borussia Dortmund and Japanese soccer club Avispa Fukuoka.
For more information please visit: https://www.bybit.com/
For updates, please follow Bybit’s social media platforms on
https://discord.com/invite/bybit
https://www.facebook.com/Bybit
https://www.instagram.com/bybit_official/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bybitexchange/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Bybit/
https://www.tiktok.com/@bybit_official
https://twitter.com/Bybit_Official
https://www.youtube.com/c/Bybit
#Bybit
Thai Baht Reaches Five-Month High
The Thai baht hit a five-month high on Monday with optimism over the nation’s tourism sector boosting inflows.
Online tutoring innovator AmazingTalker secures $15.5m Series A funding
Funding will power international expansion and service development for the platform as it advances on its mission to simplify tutor and student discovery.
TAIPEI, TAIWAN – Media OutReach – 16 February 2022 – AmazingTalker, a Taiwan-based global platform designed to help students find private tutors of languages and other subjects including mathematics, has received $15.5 million in Series A funding. The round was led by CDIB Capital, with participation from JAFCO Asia and from 500 Global.
AmazingTalker announced $15.5 million in Series A funding. AmazingTalker founders (from left), co-founder and COO A-May and co-founder and CEO Abner Chao
Over the past five years, AmazingTalker has attained an annual revenue growth rate of nearly 500 percent, with 60 percent of revenue coming from overseas. To date, it has around 8,000 registered tutors and 1.1 million registered users, and has clocked 5.5 million online course reservations.
Launched in 2017, AmazingTalker aims to make it easy for anyone to learn through technology. It uses algorithms to match students and tutors precisely and efficiently within a few seconds. It provides an interactive learning environment that supports independence for both teachers and learners. Students can communicate their needs directly with prospective tutors without a binding contract or long-term payment obligation.
From a tutor’s perspective, the platform widens the pool of prospective customers, and the core value is to enable them to maximise their earning potential by setting their fees independently. It also generates insights through data analysis of user behaviour to help tutors continuously improve the quality of their teaching services.
AmazingTalker plans to use the latest investment to grow its business in Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, Europe and North America. It currently serves more than a million people across 190 countries in Europe, the Americas and Asia. It will also channel funds into recruiting global talent and growing the number of international users.
“It is our goal to become the world’s largest online tutor matching platform,” said Abner Chao, Co-founder and CEO of AmazingTalker. “The injection of $15.5 million in Series A funding will help reinforce our product development efforts. We are expanding our offering to cover subjects beyond language and are recruiting experienced service providers in new fields. We look forward to helping more tutors maximise their earning potential and continuing to improve the online learning experience for all our users.”
Up to now, AmazingTalker has received more than 15 million fundings from investors, including CDIB Capital, JAFCO Asia, 500 Global and SparkLabs Taipei.
The global appetite for learning continues to grow. According to UNESCO, 470 million people will seek higher education over the next 15 years, a figure that far outstretches university capacity and that underscores the need for alternative learning sources. By 2026, the total global e-learning market is set to nearly double its 2019 level to close to $400 billion according to Statista.
About AmazingTalker
A global online tutoring platform which enables people to change their lives through knowledge sharing. AmazingTalker has spanned three continents in Europe, the U.S., and Asia and has more than one million users, aiming to help tutors monetize without limits while empowering users to find the best way of learning.
#AmazingTalker
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Senoko Energy Drives Sustainability Efforts With its First Virtual Cycling Event
Senoko Energy partners with Garmin Singapore and T-RECs.ai to host its inaugural virtual cycling event, Cycle for Change. Along with promoting a sustainable lifestyle of cycling amongst Singaporeans, the energy provider hopes to support renewable energy sources and reduce the city’s carbon footprint through offsetting carbon emissions and partnering with 14 eco-merchants to encourage more people to be conscious of their purchase decisions.
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 16 February 2022 – Looking to save the environment while burning off some calories? Senoko Energy’s virtual cycling event, Cycle for Change 2022, will take place from 10 March to 22 April and will help you and your family and friends get your heart rate up, have some fun and reduce your carbon footprint!
Cycle for Change is an extension of Senoko Energy’s #TakeCharge initiative, which is the energy provider’s ongoing commitment to reduce carbon emissions, support renewable energy sources, and encourage sustainable lifestyles across households and corporates.
“As a company, we want to support and reward the efforts of households and corporations taking charge of everyday choices as part of Senoko Energy’s journey towards slowing down the impact of climate change for future generations,” said Mr Graeme York, CEO of Senoko Energy.
Promoting a Sustainable Cycling Lifestyle in Singapore
Singapore is pushing towards transforming the city state into a greener and more sustainable city by 2030. The city plans on tripling cycling paths from 460km to 1,320km – encouraging citizens to consider cycling as a mode of travel and to participate in green commutes. The COVID-19 pandemic also has seen many purchasing bicycles and cycling more regularly. Senoko Energy’s event gives Singaporeans further incentive to make changes to their lifestyle and habits to help conserve energy.
Acknowledging that the road to zero carbon emissions is not easy, Mr Graeme York said this event helps demonstrate how the conscious decisions of households and corporates making lifestyle and business changes can lead us on a path to significant emissions reduction.
Mr Edwin Shen, Community Manager of Garmin Singapore expresses in agreement, “Change can start small with our daily habits. As we return to offices after nearly two years of working from home, Garmin Singapore hopes that people will keep the positive lifestyle changes they have made since the start of the pandemic. Cycling fits so nicely into our day-to-day commute and we believe that Cycle for Change will help more people see that every pedal can go a long way.”
Eliminating Carbon Emissions with Cycle for Change
Cycle for Change aims to clock a total cycling distance of 1 million km. The completed distance will be converted into Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to support Singapore’s solar generation assets, eliminating 187,000kg of carbon emissions. In addition, Senoko Energy and T-RECs.ai will pledge to offset an additional three times more carbon emissions through the purchase of local RECs.
Mr Kang Jen Wee, CEO and Founder of T-RECs.ai said: “T-RECs.ai is a licensed verifier for a globally recognised RECs registry that safeguards against fraud. T-RECs.ai verifies the authenticity of RECs generation, which contributes towards the development of renewable energy sources. We are pleased to be supporting Cycle for Change in partnership with Senoko Energy, to raise awareness of using RECs to mitigate carbon emissions.”
Support local eco-merchants and take part in challenges to win prizes
Senoko Energy further sweetens the deal for participants by partnering with eco-merchants to offer up to 20% discounts and weekly free beverages along the routes. By also participating in the 14 challenges organised by Senoko Energy, riders can stand the chance to win attractive prizes. One such challenge, the “Workweek Biker” involves participants cycling to work or school every weekday.
Some rewards include a year’s supply of green energy worth $1,200 from Senoko Energy, Garmin smartwatches, as well as personalised RECs to celebrate winners’ rides, and challenge badges. To participate one simply has to register online, connect and activate their Strava account. Start pedalling your way to climate protection!
About Senoko Energy Pte Ltd
Senoko Energy has provided energy to generations of Singaporeans since 1977. As a pioneer in power generation and energy solutions, we’ve played an instrumental role in powering the nation through its developing years. Since then, we have evolved to offer a balanced portfolio of natural gas, advanced energy solutions, tank leasing, terminal services and electricity supply and sustainable energy solutions. Senoko Energy Pte Ltd is owned by a consortium comprising Marubeni Corporation, ENGIE S.A., The Kansai Electric Power Co. Inc., Kyushu Electric Power Co. Inc. and Japan Bank for International Cooperation.
#SenokoEnergy
Laos-China Railway Opens Ticket Office at Vientiane Center
The Laos-China Railway Company is to open a ticket sales office at the Vientiane Center shopping complex in Vientiane Capital.
NTUC LearningHub Partners TikTok to Empower 1,500 Micro-Business Owners and Freelancers By 2024
The partnership comes on the back of discussions to support micro-businesses and freelancers in Singapore to grow their brands on platforms like TikTok
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 16 February 2022 – NTUC LearningHub (NTUC LHUB), Singapore’s leading Continuing Education and Training provider, and TikTok, the leading destination for short-form mobile video, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today to officially launch their partnership to help 1,500 micro-businesses and freelancers in Singapore to connect with audiences through engaging social media content creation and trends via a platform like TikTok to drive business over the next three years.
From left to right: Anthony Chew, Director of Infocomm Technology, NTUC LearningHub, Jeremy Ong, Chief Executive Officer, NTUC LearningHub, and David Jay Gomez, Head of Brand Partnerships for SEA, TikTok.
The outreach of the programmes, which will be driven by NTUC LHUB, will focus on the growing pool of Self-Employed Persons (SEPs), including freelancers and small business owners in Singapore. Against the backdrop of the positive economic outlook, SEPs would stand to benefit by creating engaging social media content that successfully creates awareness and demand for their services and offerings.
The MOU, which was signed by Anthony Chew, Director of Infocomm Technology (ICT) at NTUC LHUB and David Jay Gomez, Head of Brand Partnerships, SEA, at TikTok, signifies the mutual commitment of both TikTok and NTUC LHUB to deliver quality training and resources in social media marketing and content creation.
As more small businesses turn to digital platforms to reach new audiences, many are leveraging new age platforms such as TikTok which has exceeded 240 million users in Southeast Asia alone. From increasing brand awareness to extending their business reach, TikTok has played a key role in helping local micro-businesses such as Vintagewknd, a sustainable fashion store, and Dear Modern, run by a Singaporean architect, to connect directly with their customers and grow their presence online.
To boost outreach efforts, NTUC LHUB will leverage its strong network within the Labour Movement and its associations such as the Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit (U FSE), Singapore National Co-Operative Federation (SNCF) and Young NTUC.
In addition, as part of the initiative, NTUC LHUB will work closely with TikTok to develop a suite of courses that empower content creators to grow their brand presence on social media platforms. As a start, NTUC LHUB will begin running the TikTok-endorsed ‘Design Thinking for Social Media’ course in March 2022, which has already received strong interest from content creators. The two-day course leverages design thinking concepts for social media content creation. Furthermore, the collaboration will translate into training courses that are applicable to all workers in due course.
Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents can enjoy 50% off the course fees, and are eligible for the utilisation of SkillsFuture credit and Post-Secondary Education Account (PSEA). Interested individuals can register for the ‘Design Thinking for Social Media’ course at www.ntuclearninghub.com.
Commenting on the partnership, ICT Director at NTUC LHUB, Anthony Chew says, “We are thrilled to be partnering TikTok to empower Self-Employed Persons (SEPs) to navigate and keep pace with the rapidly changing social media landscape in order to create new business and employment opportunities. As TikTok grows in popularity in Singapore, many businesses, especially micro-businesses and freelancers have benefitted from the exposure that the platform brings because of the virality of some of their engaging and on-trend content. Working closely with TikTok, NTUC LearningHub will be on the pulse of new trends and developments straight from the source, hence ensuring that our training in social media and digital marketing remains highly relevant, timely and spot-on for our learners. In addition, NTUC LearningHub is also uniquely placed within the Labour Movement ecosystem to support the outreach efforts to self-employed persons.”
TikTok’s Head of Brand Partnerships for SEA, David Jay Gomez, says, “At TikTok, we are witnessing an increase in small businesses across Southeast Asia leveraging our platform to drive tangible impact and we are deeply committed to using our platform to educate and equip our community with the relevant skills and training as they navigate the ever-evolving business landscape. In Singapore, we have seen businesses on TikTok enjoy success as they fully embrace the creativity and authenticity of our platform to engage new audiences. Through our partnership with NTUC LearningHub, we look forward to empowering more micro-businesses and freelancers to drive their business and Singapore’s digital economy forward.”
Jean See, Director of NTUC Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit (U FSE) said, “U FSE and our associations are focused on enhancing work prospects for our members in freelancing and self-employment. The fast-changing landscape demands that our members continually scan and make sense of their clients’ evolving needs. Hence, the course focus on design thinking and social media content creation is relevant to freelancers and micro-businesses keen to become more adapt and savvier in customer needs-discovery and product and service development. With continual learning support as a cornerstone of NTUC’s membership proposition, we are excited that U FSE and NTUC LearningHub will be jointly rolling out a ‘Community of Practice’ series to bridge classroom training with expert insights to empower members to stand out from the competition.”
“As an ecommerce store, our relationship with our customers is entirely virtual and we are always looking for effective ways to reach out and capture a wider audience. With TikTok’s growing presence globally and in Singapore, we decided to give it a try and it has now evolved into a primary platform for our marketing efforts. With a vibrant and diverse community that celebrates creative expression, it has been encouraging to see the strong traction on our livestreams and creative style challenges among our target audience”, says Vintagewknd’s co-founder, Eileen Tan.
About NTUC LearningHub
NTUC LearningHub is the leading Continuing Education and Training provider in Singapore which aims to transform the lifelong employability of working people. Since our corporatisation in 2004, we have been working with employers and individual learners to provide learning solutions in areas such as Cloud, Infocomm Technology, Healthcare, Employability & Literacy, Business Excellence, Workplace Safety & Health, Security, Human Resources and Foreign Worker Training.
To date, NTUC LearningHub has helped over 25,000 organisations and achieved over 2.6 million training places across more than 500 courses with a pool of over 900 certified trainers. As a Total Learning Solutions provider to organisations, we also forge partnerships and offer a wide range of relevant end-to-end training solutions and work constantly to improve our training quality and delivery. In 2020, we had accelerated our foray into online learning with our Virtual Live Classes and, through working with best-in-class partners such as IBM, DuPont Sustainable Solutions and GO1, asynchronous online courses.
For more information, visit www.ntuclearninghub.com
About TikTok
TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. Our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok has global offices including Los Angeles, Mountain View, New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Singapore, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo. www.tiktok.com.
New to TikTok? Join our community by simply downloading the app for free via the Apple App Store,
Google Play, or
Amazon.
#NTUCLearningHub #TikTok
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Authorities Destroy 153 Hectares of Opium Poppy Plantations in Luang Prabang
Authorities in Luang Prabang Province have destroyed over 153 hectares of opium poppy plantations.