Cross-industry Collaboration to Support Northern Metropolis Growth
Total Investment Approximately HK$16.8 Billion

HONG KONG SAR– Media OutReach Newswire – 24 August 2026 – HSK New Development Limited, a joint venture formed by China Overseas Land & Investment Limited (Stock Code: 0688), China Merchants Land Limited (Stock Code: 0978), China Resources Land (Overseas) Limited, CTG Investment Management Corporation Limited, JD.com Inc., and Sino Land Company Limited (Stock Code: 0083), has been awarded the development project for the first pilot area within the Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area (the ‘HSK Pilot Area’) in the Northern Metropolis. In full support of the National 15th Five-Year Plan and under the coordination of the HKSAR Government, the joint venture will leverage the strengths of cross-boundary collaboration across diverse industries to invest in, develop and operate a large-scale smart logistics project. The project will also incorporate residential and community commercial facilities, with innovative technologies driving industrial upgrading, contributing to the high-quality development of the Northern Metropolis and reinforcing the commitment to supporting Hong Kong’s long-term development.

Mr Daryl Ng, Chairman of Sino Land Company Limited, said, ‘The National 15th Five-Year Plan states the accelerated development of the Northern Metropolis as a key priority of Hong Kong’s future growth engine. We are truly honoured to have been awarded the HSK Pilot Area project alongside our distinguished corporate partners. We have full confidence in Hong Kong and believe that the cross-sector collaboration can help bring together diverse expertise to contribute to the region’s innovation and technology development. In the HKSAR Government’s first Five-Year Plan, the Chief Executive also highlighted the pivotal role of the Northern Metropolis in enriching the housing ladder and creating more opportunities and space for home ownership. We are committed to bringing high-value industries and a quality living community to the Northern Metropolis, providing more housing and employment opportunities while enhancing connectivity between Hong Kong and cities across the Greater Bay Area.’

Hashtag: #SinoLand #NorthernMetropolis #HungShuiKiu

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Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Singapore-headquartered GFTN convene more than 6,000 participants from 74 countries in Tashkent to accelerate investment, financial innovation and regional connectivity

TASHKENT, UZBEKISTAN – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 August 2026 – Uzbekistan today put its financial reform agenda before a global audience, bringing together policymakers, regulators, investors and founders to advance its ambition to become a gateway for capital, technology and financial connectivity across Central Asia.

The Silk Road Finance & Technology Forum 2026, convened by the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Singapore-headquartered Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), and co-hosted by Ant International, brings together more than 6,000 participants from 74 countries, almost 200 speakers and more than 25 investors representing US$4 billion in assets under management.

Held at CAEx on 24–25 August, the Forum moves to the Islamic Civilisation Centre on 26 August for The Azimuth, a dedicated programme on Islamic finance and entrepreneurship.

Uzbekistan’s Reform Push Opens the Door to Global Investment
Opening the Forum, H.E. Jamshid Kuchkarov, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan, set out the next phase of the country’s economic transformation: converting a decade of reform into deeper markets, greater private-sector participation and long-term investment.

“Over the past 10 years, as a result of structural reforms, our economy has demonstrated strong and steady growth. During this period, the size of our economy has tripled. Going forward, we will work to achieve investment-grade credit ratings, complete accession to the World Trade Organization, further reduce the state’s presence in the economy, and continue market-oriented reform. This effort will strengthen the role of the private sector, deepen Uzbekistan’s integration into the global economy and create greater opportunities for domestic and international investors,” said H.E. Jamshid Kuchkarov.

Uzbekistan enters the Forum with strong economic and regulatory momentum. GDP grew 8.5% in the first half of 2026, foreign investment reached US$8.3 billion in the first quarter, and Moody’s upgraded the sovereign rating to Ba2 in June. Presidential Decree PQ-359 and the National FinTech Strategy are advancing open banking, digital payments and financial innovation, with a target of US$1 billion in fintech investment by 2030. Digital-payment adoption rose from 39% in 2021 to 71% in 2025.

In his opening address, The Silk Road Initiative: Turning a Socio-Economic Heritage into Central Asia’s Financial Innovation Corridor, H.E. Timur Ishmetov, Governor, Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan, framed the country’s fintech strategy through five building blocks drawn from the region’s intellectual and commercial heritage: Al-Jabr, restoring what is missing; Al-Muqabala, balancing the elements of a sustainable financial ecosystem; Zarkaynar, creating a marketplace where innovation meets opportunity; Saroy, building shared financial infrastructure; and Madrassa, developing talent.

With 57% of payments now cashless, SMEs accounting for more than half the economy and a target of 5,000 young people trained in financial technology by 2030, the Central Bank is translating these principles into its regulatory sandbox, open-banking APIs, payments infrastructure and innovation framework.

“Scale alone is not sufficient. The objective must be to translate technological adoption and transaction growth into sustainable economic value, competition and broader financial development, while maintaining financial stability, resilience and public trust,” Governor Ishmetov said.

Sopnendu Mohanty, Group CEO, Global Finance & Technology Network added:.

“Uzbekistan has the ingredients to become Central Asia’s digital finance gateway: strong political commitment, bold regulatory reform, growing digital adoption and a clear ambition to attract international investment. The next step is to turn those foundations into investment, partnerships and financial corridors that connect Central Asia to the world. That is what the Silk Road Finance & Technology Forum is designed to accelerate.”

That opportunity comes as fintech moves firmly into the global financial mainstream. In 2025, global fintech revenues reached US$504 billion, growing 22% and more than four times faster than incumbent financial institutions, while 74% of the largest public fintechs were profitable, according to the 2026 Global Fintech Report by BCG and FT Partners.

For Central Asia, the opportunity is to capture more of that growth by combining financial innovation, inclusion and regional connectivity with the regulatory and institutional foundations required to attract long-term capital.

From Domestic Reform to a Financial Silk Road

The Forum is examining how Uzbekistan’s domestic transformation can support a more connected Central Asian financial system, with priorities spanning investable markets, interoperable payments, digital identity, open APIs, tokenisation, digital money, cross-border settlement and long-term institutional capital.

Central Asia’s relatively young financial infrastructure creates an opportunity to build interoperable systems without inheriting all the constraints of legacy architecture. The next step is moving from domestic digitalisation to cross-border connectivity, with faster settlement, lower remittance costs and infrastructure capable of connecting national financial systems.

The wider ambition is to recast the historic Silk Road for the digital economy, extending its role from the movement of goods to the movement of money, capital and data between Central Asia and markets across the Middle East, China, South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Greater connectivity, however, will require more than technology. Predictable regulation, deeper markets, institutional capital, cybersecurity and trusted governance will determine whether new payment rails, AI, tokenisation and digital assets can scale safely across borders.

New Islamic Banking Law Opens Uzbekistan to US$6 Trillion Market

Uzbekistan’s new Islamic banking law, effective from June 2026, creates the country’s first legal framework for Shariah-compliant banking and opens a potential channel to a global Islamic finance market approaching US$6 trillion in assets.

The Forum culminates on 26 August with The Azimuth at the Islamic Civilisation Centre, focused on the standards, Shariah governance, liquidity, digital infrastructure and cross-border capital required to scale the sector. The opportunity extends beyond domestic Islamic banking to positioning Uzbekistan as a bridge between Central Asia and Islamic finance markets across the Gulf, Türkiye, South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Governor Ishmetov issued a direct invitation to international investors and innovators: “Uzbekistan is open to investment, technology, expertise and long-term partnership. Build here. Test new solutions here. Invest here. Develop talent here. With the right partnerships, Central Asia can become a more connected, competitive and internationally integrated financial region.”

Hashtag: #GFTN

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About the Silk Road Finance & Technology Forum

The inaugural Silk Road Finance and Technology Forum takes place in Tashkent from 24 to 26 August 2026, co-hosted by the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Global Finance and Technology Network (GFTN). The Forum connects policymakers, regulators, investors and founders to shape Central Asia’s next financial corridor across five strategic themes: digital payments and infrastructure, Islamic finance and new corridors, AI and emerging technology, tokenisation and digital assets, and cross-border finance and regulation.
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/119613917
Website: silkroadfinancetechnologyforum.com

About the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN)

The Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN) is a Singapore-headquartered not-for-profit organisation established in 2024. With offices in Tokyo, Berlin, and India, GFTN’s mission is to bridge policy, capital, and technology to build financial systems that are resilient, efficient, and inclusive. GFTN Services hosts global forums across five continents, bringing together innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers from over 130 countries. It offers policy advice to governments to promote financial technology innovation, inclusion, and capacity building. GFTN Capital will be a venture capital firm investing in growth-stage FinTechs globally. For more information, please visit www.gftn.co.

BEIJING, CHINA– Media OutReach Newswire – 24 August 2026 – The 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games opened yesterday at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the “Ice Ribbon.” As another real-world validation of 5G Capital in robotics and embodied AI, China Unicom Beijing and Huawei have built an integrated digital foundation powered by a 5G-A GigaUplink network, supporting intelligent event operations, robot competition, and spectator experiences. The deployment also lays a connectivity foundation for humanoid robots to move beyond the arena and into everyday life. Across Beijing, 5G Capital’s region-wide GigaUplink network is providing ubiquitous, secure, and reliable connectivity for a growing range of cultural tourism, embodied AI, and Mobile AI applications and events.

This year’s Games feature major upgrades in both scale and competition design. A total of 1,301 competitions across 51 events will see 2,056 humanoid robots from 666 teams worldwide take part. The number of events has nearly doubled from 26 in the inaugural Games to 51 this year, with new high-intensity head-to-head events such as table tennis and kickboxing. Scenario-based competitions have also expanded into real-world settings including industrial production, hotels, homes, and logistics, while dance events place greater emphasis on synchronized movement across multiple robots. More autonomous competition formats and significantly higher task complexity are placing stringent demands on networks for high-capacity uplink, millisecond-level responsiveness, and high reliability, supporting real-time robot telemetry, precise control signaling, and multi-robot coordination.

To meet these requirements, China Unicom Beijing and Huawei deployed a dedicated 100 MHz network, complemented by a 300 MHz LampSite ultra-wideband indoor network, to support real-time robot telemetry and precise signaling exchange. A dedicated 5QI 7 slice combined with carrier isolation keeps end-to-end latency for humanoid robots within 30 milliseconds, supporting millisecond-level decision-making and response while helping ensure the precision of multi-robot coordination, obstacle avoidance, and fine-motion control.

By further integrating the dedicated network with BeiDou RTK (Real-Time Kinematic) positioning, the solution delivers decimeter- to sub-decimeter-level positioning accuracy, supporting autonomous navigation, agile obstacle avoidance, and precision racing in complex environments. On-site tests recorded a peak uplink speed of 1 Gbps, with average latency below 30 milliseconds.

While safeguarding mission-critical connectivity for the robots, China Unicom has also made the network experience of on-site spectators a priority. To address the high-density, heavy-traffic demands of large crowds, network resources and service assurance policies are dynamically adjusted according to different phases and areas of the event, including admission, waiting, competition, and departure. Core services such as instant messaging, ticket inquiries, QR-code admission, and mobile payments are prioritized for stable access, while the network also accommodates data-intensive services such as photo uploads, short-video sharing, and live streaming. This allows spectators to stay connected, interact seamlessly, and share highlights in real time even during peak traffic periods.

On the operations side, China Unicom has also developed China’s first embodied AI robot management platform designed for event scenarios. Through a unique network ID assigned to each robot, event staff can monitor its location within the venue, competition status, and operational metrics in real time, creating a closed-loop operations and management system.

Yang Lifan, Deputy General Manager of China Unicom Beijing, said: “This network deployment is not only a real-world test of China Unicom’s network capabilities; it will also help us accumulate valuable network assurance experience for the large-scale deployment of embodied AI. China Unicom will continue to build on the experience gained through the 5G Capital initiative and turn technological innovation into tangible and replicable network capabilities for the Mobile AI era. In doing so, we aim to support industrial innovation and help bring Chinese solutions to the world with China Unicom’s expertise.”

David Li, President of Huawei’s Wireless TDD Product Line, said: “The 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games have provided a compelling real-world validation of the 5G-A 100 MHz GigaUplink network based on 3.5 GHz 2CC + 2.1 GHz SUL for embodied AI scenarios. Looking ahead, Huawei will continue to work with China Unicom Beijing to strengthen uplink capabilities and advance spectrum coordination, building multidimensional network capabilities with tiered and differentiated service assurance for multimodal device-to-cloud transmission. This will enable real-time interaction and precise control across a wide range of embodied AI scenarios.

“Networks are about more than speed. Low latency, high reliability, and ubiquitous coverage are equally important. Building on these capabilities, we will further advance the 5G Capital initiative, continue to expand the boundaries of network performance, and lay a solid foundation for the Mobile AI era, working with industry partners to enable an intelligent future.”

Hashtag: #Huawei #WorldHumanoidRobotGames

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