PLANO, Texas, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Aduna, the global aggregator of standardized network APIs, today announced a partnership with Spark, New Zealand’s leading digital services provider, to accelerate the adoption of advanced network APIs across the country. With Spark joining Aduna’s growing global ecosystem, New Zealand becomes part of a worldwide federation of operators bringing network intelligence to developers and enterprises through a unified platform.

The partnership will initially focus on SIM Swap detection and Number Verification APIs, providing enterprises with real-time tools to verify customer identities and safeguard digital transactions. These APIs are particularly critical for industries such as banking, financial services, e-commerce, and digital platforms, where fraud prevention and seamless onboarding are essential to trust and growth.

For developers, collaboration unlocks the ability to build new services that integrate network intelligence directly into applications to reduce friction in customer authentication, improving security for online transactions, and creating richer, more responsive user experiences. By accessing these APIs through Aduna, developers in New Zealand gain the same consistent standards already used across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa, enabling them to scale solutions across markets.

“Partnering with Spark extends Aduna’s global footprint to New Zealand, opening new opportunities for enterprises and developers,” says Anthony Bartolo, CEO, Aduna. “By delivering standardized APIs, we enable businesses to strengthen digital trust and give developers the tools to build secure, user-friendly services that drive real value.”

“At Spark, we see this partnership with Aduna as an important step in unlocking new ways to monetize our network investments,” said Renee Mateparae, Network and Operations Director at Spark. “It allows us to capture the full value of our network capabilities while giving our business customers access to sophisticated connectivity solutions that solve challenges. Fraud prevention will be one of the first areas we tackle, with SIM Swap detection and Number Verification APIs providing the tools businesses need to safeguard their customers.”

About Spark

Spark is New Zealand’s largest telecommunications and digital services company, committed to helping all of New Zealand win big in a digital world. Through its mobile, broadband, cloud, and digital solutions, Spark connects people, businesses, and communities to the technology and services they need to thrive. With a focus on innovation, security, and customer experience, Spark is enabling New Zealand’s digital future and supporting growth across industries.

About Aduna

Aduna is a landmark venture between some of the world’s leading telecom operators and Ericsson, dedicated to enabling developers worldwide to accelerate innovation by leveraging networks to their full potential via common network Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Its venture partners include AT&T, Bharti Airtel, Deutsche Telekom, e&, KDDI, Orange, Reliance Jio, Singtel, Telefonica, Telstra, T-Mobile, Verizon, and Vodafone. By combining network APIs from multiple operators globally under a unified platform based on the CAMARA open-source project, driven by the GSMA and the Linux Foundation, Aduna provides a standardized platform to foster collaboration, enhance user experiences, and drive industry growth.

To find out more about network APIs and Aduna, visit www.adunaglobal.com.

TOKYO, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — During Asia’s premier Web3 technology conference, WebX 2025 (Aug 25–26) in Tokyo, an Exclusive Financial Leadership Summit that may reshape Asia’s digital financial landscape was held at the 33rd floor of the Prince Hotel. The forum, titled “Powering Asia’s Financial Transformation with Bitcoin and RWA,” was co-hosted by global blockchain leader Blockstream, digital asset security solutions expert Safeheron, and Asia-based on-chain wealth management infrastructure builder EchoX. The event gathered nearly 100 senior decision-makers from the banking, asset management, securities, and regtech sectors across Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong to discuss the next paradigm shift in Asia’s on-chain asset management.

Unique Collaboration to Build Multi-Layered Infrastructure

At the summit, the three companies officially announced a collaboration to jointly develop a multi-layered blockchain-based financial infrastructure on Bitcoin Layer 2, Liquid Network:

• Blockstream provides the Liquid Network as the foundational platform for stablecoin issuance and real-world asset (RWA) tokenization.
• Safeheron offers MPC-based self-custody and asset governance solutions.
• EchoX leads product design and regional integration, enabling compliant on-chain financial services tailored for Asia.

This partnership aims to create a compliant, secure, and deployable on-chain asset framework, accelerating the migration of traditional financial capital into blockchain ecosystems.

Policy and Industry Endorsement

Ju-Chun Ko, a Taiwanese legislator known for his technology leadership, delivered the opening remarks in person. He emphasized: “On-chain finance is not an extension of risk, but an opportunity for institutional innovation.” He also called for Asia to establish “innovation that can be regulated, infrastructure that can be verified, and systems that can be interoperable.”

Keynotes and Cross-Sector Dialogues

• Neil Lee, CEO of EchoX, shared insights on how on-chain wealth management bridges TradFi and DeFi, offering regulatory-aligned solutions tailored to Asia’s market needs.
• Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream, delivered a keynote on “The Bitcoin Operating System”, outlining the strategic role of the Liquid Network as institutional-grade infrastructure.

Following the keynotes, two executive-level panel discussions addressed the institutionalization of Bitcoin Layer 2 and RWA, as well as the challenges of trust and compliance in digital finance transformation.

Forum Conclusion: Asia Is Redefining the Coordinates of On-Chain Finance

The consensus was clear: Asia is no longer merely a participant but is becoming a primary architect of global on-chain finance. The forum highlighted four core themes expected to shape financial reform over the next decade:

1. Bitcoin Layer 2: Liquid as a Service (LaaS)
   Regional sidechains can share the security and TVL advantages of the Liquid Network while co-developing regulatory and best-practice standards.
2. RWA (Real-World Asset Tokenization)
   Serving as a bridge between traditional finance and blockchain, RWA enhances capital efficiency and cross-border accessibility.
3. Self-Custody & RegTech Evolution
   Empowering financial institutions to securely manage and utilize digital assets within a compliant framework, advancing institutional adoption.
4. Asia’s Financial Transformation and Regulatory Innovation
    Leveraging innovation and policy adaptation to shape the direction of financial reform for the coming decade.

At WebX 2025 in Tokyo, this Exclusive Financial Leadership Summit was recognized as a defining coordinate on Asia’s financial map. The future of asset allocation is being redefined here, and the financial landscape of the next decade will be written from this point forward.

PLANO, Texas, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Aduna, the global aggregator of standardized network APIs, today announced a partnership with Spark, New Zealand’s leading digital services provider, to accelerate the adoption of advanced network APIs across the country. With Spark joining Aduna’s growing global ecosystem, New Zealand becomes part of a worldwide federation of operators bringing network intelligence to developers and enterprises through a unified platform.

The partnership will initially focus on SIM Swap detection and Number Verification APIs, providing enterprises with real-time tools to verify customer identities and safeguard digital transactions. These APIs are particularly critical for industries such as banking, financial services, e-commerce, and digital platforms, where fraud prevention and seamless onboarding are essential to trust and growth.

For developers, collaboration unlocks the ability to build new services that integrate network intelligence directly into applications to reduce friction in customer authentication, improving security for online transactions, and creating richer, more responsive user experiences. By accessing these APIs through Aduna, developers in New Zealand gain the same consistent standards already used across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa, enabling them to scale solutions across markets.

“Partnering with Spark extends Aduna’s global footprint to New Zealand, opening new opportunities for enterprises and developers,” says Anthony Bartolo, CEO, Aduna. “By delivering standardized APIs, we enable businesses to strengthen digital trust and give developers the tools to build secure, user-friendly services that drive real value.”

“At Spark, we see this partnership with Aduna as an important step in unlocking new ways to monetize our network investments,” said Renee Mateparae, Network and Operations Director at Spark. “It allows us to capture the full value of our network capabilities while giving our business customers access to sophisticated connectivity solutions that solve challenges. Fraud prevention will be one of the first areas we tackle, with SIM Swap detection and Number Verification APIs providing the tools businesses need to safeguard their customers.”

About Spark

Spark is New Zealand’s largest telecommunications and digital services company, committed to helping all of New Zealand win big in a digital world. Through its mobile, broadband, cloud, and digital solutions, Spark connects people, businesses, and communities to the technology and services they need to thrive. With a focus on innovation, security, and customer experience, Spark is enabling New Zealand’s digital future and supporting growth across industries.

About Aduna

Aduna is a landmark venture between some of the world’s leading telecom operators and Ericsson, dedicated to enabling developers worldwide to accelerate innovation by leveraging networks to their full potential via common network Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Its venture partners include AT&T, Bharti Airtel, Deutsche Telekom, e&, KDDI, Orange, Reliance Jio, Singtel, Telefonica, Telstra, T-Mobile, Verizon, and Vodafone. By combining network APIs from multiple operators globally under a unified platform based on the CAMARA open-source project, driven by the GSMA and the Linux Foundation, Aduna provides a standardized platform to foster collaboration, enhance user experiences, and drive industry growth.

To find out more about network APIs and Aduna, visit www.adunaglobal.com.

Logo: https://laotiantimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/aduna_logo-7.jpg

SHANGHAI, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Recently, SUS ENVIRONMENT’s showcase, Key Technologies and Applications for Low-Carbon and Efficient Waste to Energy, successfully won the First Prize in the Green Industry field of the BRICS Industrial Innovation Contest 2025. This project gained high recognition from the judges thanks to its internationally leading technologies, extensive domestic and overseas application experiences, and broad market prospects. Notably, this award is not only the single First Prize in the Green Industry field but also the very first international award which SUS ENVIRONMENT has received in the field of science and technology.

This award signifies a new level of technological strength and brand influence for Chinese environmental protection enterprises in the global solid waste management sector. It is reported that the award-winning projects will also be included in the BRICS Industrial Innovation Cooperation Project Database and receive support from investment and financing institutions such as one-on-one planning services.

SUS ENVIRONMENT’s award-winning project, Key Technologies and Applications for Low-Carbon and Efficient Waste to Energy, encompasses independently developed clean incineration, efficient energy utilization, flue gas pollutant control, and low-carbon technologies. Multiple academicians and experts have certified that these technologies have reached an internationally leading level. Meanwhile, the project’s technologies have been validated for applicability in multiple countries, including BRICS countries such as Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Uzbekistan.

In the future, SUS ENVIRONMENT will continue to leverage its independent core technologies make sustained efforts amid the wave of BRICS cooperation and global environmental protection initiatives, provide scientific solid waste management solutions for more countries, and enable low-carbon and clean energy as a solid driving force for promoting global green transition.

About SUS

SUS ENVIRONMENT is the global leading comprehensive environment provider.* As of June 2025, SUS ENVIRONMENT has established 11 management centers worldwide, providing environmental and energy services to over 100 million people. It has invested in and constructed 90 waste-to-energy projects (low-carbon Eco-industrial parks), with a daily processing capacity nearly 120,000 tons of municipal solid waste and annual green power generation of approximately 18,000 GWh. Its equipment and technology are applied in 300 waste-to-energy plants across the world, with a daily capacity over 300,000 tons of municipal solid waste.*

*Data sourced from the Environmental Sanitation Net Of China and public data, covering total design scale, with data as of June 30, 2025.

CHANGZHOU, China, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On September 13, the International New Energy Exhibition 2025 opened in Changzhou under the theme “New Energy, New Power, New Changzhou.” At the opening ceremony, 33 significant agreements were finalized on-site, representing a combined investment of more than 33.7 billion yuan.

“During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Changzhou aims to maintain its leading edge in manufacturing, accelerate progress in applied technologies, and adopt a forward-looking approach to emerging industries, with the goal of building a renewable energy hub that represents Jiangsu’s commitment to sustainable growth while strengthening its global competitiveness,” stated Wang Jianfeng, Secretary of the Changzhou Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), at the ceremony.

In recent years, Changzhou has taken the lead in creating a comprehensive renewable energy industry chain that spans five segments: generation, storage, transmission, utilization, and grid. The results have been striking. Last year, the city’s renewable energy sector surpassed 850 billion yuan in output, and this year it is on track to break the 1 trillion yuan mark.

This year’s expo also drew attention for its “dual-IP” approach. On the evening of the opening ceremony, the 11th round of the Jiangsu City Football League — Changzhou vs. Suqian — was held at the Changzhou Olympic Sports Center, drawing more than 40,000 fans. Although Changzhou fell short with a 2–1 loss, the atmosphere inside and outside the stadium energized the city well beyond the final score.

“As September marks a season of achievement, the renewable energy industry and the Jiangsu City Football League are joining forces in a ‘dual-IP partnership,’ opening a new chapter of industrial growth and community engagement in Changzhou,” noted Zhou Wei, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Changzhou Municipal Committee and Mayor of Changzhou. He invited entrepreneurs, scientists, investors, and innovators from around the world to become Changzhou’s partners and contributors to Changzhou’s vision for the future.

 New Surveys Find Elevated Customer Experience

Among Founders and SMEs on Their Digitalisation Journey

HONG KONG and SINGAPORE, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Osome, a digital business solutions provider, recently commissioned surveys in Singapore and Hong Kong, which indicate that founders and SMEs using their services report higher satisfaction and advocacy compared to those using traditional accounting firms. This aligns with the trend of digitalisation, as Singapore saw 94.6% of SMEs adopting at least one digital solution, and Hong Kong drove over 1,300 smartification projects across 50 industries in the Greater Bay Area.

“In today’s digital landscape, innovation and customer-centric solutions are critical to success. Founders want intelligent digital tools and human expertise to guide their business journeys,” said Helena Flores, Chief Operations Officer of Osome.

“Our customers have expressed satisfaction and a willingness to recommend us, and noticed improvements in our digital tools to support their business transformation journeys. All these reflect the trust and confidence in our relationships as we move forward together.”

“Running a startup means every minute matters. Osome has given us back valuable time and, more importantly, the peace of mind to focus on high-impact initiatives that drive Zugo’s growth. I couldn’t recommend it enough,” said Yeo Eng Heng, CEO and Co-Founder of Zugo.

Osome commissioned surveys of over 1,800 respondents in Singapore and Hong Kong, which were conducted by independent research agency ADNA Research using rigorous methodology.

Insights from the surveys include:

• Favourable experience in the digital model. Respectively, 76% and 81% of Osome users in Singapore and Hong Kong reported satisfaction with their overall experience, compared to clients of traditional firms surveyed. Users highlighted ease of use, responsive support, and affordability as key advantages, alongside speedy onboarding, clear communication, and the convenience of Osome’s mobile platform.
• Customer loyalty, measured through net promoter score (NPS), also favoured Osome. In Singapore, Osome scored 12 points higher than traditional firms and 10 points above the category average. In Hong Kong, Osome scored 16 points above traditional competitors and 14 points above the average.
• Perceptions among users have improved over the past year, with over 40% of Osome users in Singapore and Hong Kong stating that the platform now better meets their business needs.
• Finally, many respondents expressed a desire for more proactive advisory services and enhanced integration with existing business tools.

“We will be looking to provide more digital services to help founders reduce burdensome administrative tasks through partnerships,” added Helena.

More details about the findings are available on Osome’s blog at osome.com/sg/blog/osome-customer-satisfaction-survey/

About Osome

Osome empowers entrepreneurs by reducing administrative burdens with AI-enabled digital solutions and expert guidance in incorporation, secretarial support, accounting, payroll, and tax compliance. It has helped over 30,000 companies process over 1 million transactions worth over US$5.6 billion. Learn more about Osome at www.osome.com/

BANGKOK, Sept. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Certified by the WEF, Midea has achieved another global first: Midea Thailand Factory becomes the home appliance industry’s first Lighthouse Factory beyond its home market. This recognition reinforces Midea’s leadership in the global intelligent and digital transformation of manufacturing.

Strategically located in Chonburi within Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor, Midea Thailand RAC factory spans 208,000 sqm, with a total investment approx. USD 168 million. As the largest residential air conditioner production hub in Thailand and Southeast Asia, it plays a central role in shaping the region’s smart manufacturing landscape. In 2026, Midea Thailand RAC Factory’s annual output is expected to reach 6 million units.

Midea Thailand Lighthouse Factory stands as a milestone to its commitment to innovation and sustainability. As Southeast Asia’s 1st fully 5G-connected factory, it has set a new benchmark for smart manufacturing and ESG development. The use of a 5G+AI intelligent production system has significantly boosted efficiency and quality, earning it the prestigious “Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough in Asia” award from AMO. By leveraging AI-powered visual inspection, manufacturers can achieve real-time defect detection and enhance the safety of high-risk tasks. Through low-carbon practices, Midea’ve made sustainability a measurable reality, which led to a 40.2% drop in energy consumption, a 20% reduction in waste generated, and a 23.5% decrease in water usage.

Midea adheres to its commitment of “Innovation for People, Development for Local,” steadily deepening its investment and sustainable growth across the ASEAN region. This commitment is reflected in continuous efforts to nurture local talent, enhance training, and engage with communities, ensuring long-term shared value. At the same time, Midea’s Thailand factory has significantly advanced its production efficiency and reliability, supported by a cross-border digital supply chain that drives measurable results—on-time delivery has risen by 17.1% and the end-to-end order cycle has been shortened by 42.6%. These achievements are further demonstrated through the consistent delivery of high-quality products. Midea is positively planning on the new air conditioner series to be launched in the ASEAN region next year to serve an ever-broader base of local consumers.

In 2024, Midea reinforced its position as a key player in the global home appliance market. Out of the 260 million air conditioners sold worldwide, Midea’s sales reached an impressive 71.83 million units. This accounts for a 27.5% market share, meaning that one in every four air conditioners sold globally was Midea. With 3 years as the world’s No. 1 residential inverter AC brand, Midea has built a strong user base across ASEAN.

Ms. Narissara Kwazui, Head of Human Resources, added, “Being certified as a Lighthouse Factory reflects our leadership in global smart home appliances while staying committed to advancing intelligent manufacturing, local community development, and eco-friendly innovation. We will continue to collaborate with partners across Thailand and ASEAN to drive sustainable growth.”

The Lighthouse Factory designation demonstrates Midea’s manufacturing excellence and commitment to local development. Midea will continue contributing to smart manufacturing and ESG development, collaborating with partners across ASEAN for shared success and a greener future.

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