News In Brief

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Welcome to our ‘News In Brief’ column in which we digest all the news releases for you in no more than five paragraphs. Below are snippets of all the media releases that we received from July 18 to 24. Please check back throughout the week for more updates.

ETH To Drop To $675

Sydney, July 19: Ethereum (ETH) is set to have an incredibly volatile run over the next six months, according to Finder.com’s latest Ethereum Price Predictions report.
Finder’s panel of fintech and cryptocurrency specialists think Ethereum will go as high as US$2,673 and as low as $675 in 2022 before ending the year at $1,711.
The panel’s longer-term outlook is much brighter, however, with a predicted price of $5,739 by the end of 2025 and $14,412 at the end of 2030. 
However, with the recent crypto market plunge and the Merge still on the horizon, the panel is divided on whether now is a good time to buy Ethereum or not. 
Forty-three per cent say now is a good time to buy, 41 per cent hold and 16 per cent sold. 
Digital Capital Management managing director Ben Ritchie – has an end-of-year price prediction on par with the panel average and thinks ETH will be worth $10,000 by 2025 and $15k by 2030 and believes that now is a good time to buy ETH.

Increase In Winds, Surf And Rain Expected This Week

Sydney, July 19: The Bureau of Meteorology (the Bureau) is monitoring the development of an East Coast Low off the south-east Queensland coast, which is expected to bring an increase in winds, surf and rain to southern Queensland from Wednesday and northern New South Wales from Friday.
The strength of the wind and waves will be highly dependent on the strength and position of the low relative to the coast and will be closely monitored during the next few days.
At this stage, although some unseasonal rain is expected from Thursday in southern Queensland and from Friday in northern New South Wales, the heaviest falls are expected to be located offshore. 
Soils remain wet for much of south-east Queensland and eastern New South Wales, and while the rain is not expected to cause widespread riverine flooding, some localised creek and river level rises are possible. The requirement for a Flood Watch will be reviewed each day.
This system is expected to bring large seas along with the risk of damaging winds around exposed coastal fringes of south-eastern Queensland.

Kenanga Named Malaysia’s Best Securities House  

Kuala Lumpur, July 21: Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad the country’s leading independent investment bank has been named Best Securities House Malaysia 2022 at the Asiamoney 2022 Best Securities Houses Awards.
The prestigious award recognises the exceptional record performance of Kenanga Investment Bank in 2021 and is a nod toward the strength of the Group’s diverse revenue stream and fast-growing client base.
“It is an honour to receive this accolade. As a home-grown brand with almost 50 years of history in the country, we have grown from strength to strength, from a humble stockbroking house to the full-fledge investment bank that we are today,” Datuk Chay Wai Leong, Group Managing Director of Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad said.
“At the core of our continued progress, is the resilience, innovation and dedication of our teams, as well as the trust and support from over half a million Malaysian investors and traders who are our clients.”
The Asiamoney 2022 Best Securities Houses Awards examined domestic securities houses of 12 markets in Asia, and winners were determined through information from daily coverage of the region, proprietary polls and awards data, league tables as well as interviews, and third-party sources.

Airbnb Launches Penang Untuk Semua

Kuala Lumpur, July 20: Airbnb has outlined its vision for fair and sensible short-term rental accommodation (STRA) laws in Penang, with the launch of its Penang Untuk Semua initiative.
The global hospitality company had strongly welcomed the state government’s decision to regulate STRA earlier in May, calling it a move in the right direction. 
Airbnb’s call for fair and sensible rules comes at the back of new Airbnb data that reveals a significant surge in appetite for Malaysian travel on the platform.
Domestic guest searches for Malaysia stay on Airbnb grew more than 150 per cent year-over-year in Q1 2022, while international guest searches grew more than 140 per cent year-over-year in the same period.
Across both domestic and international guests, the most popular destinations nationwide were Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Johor Bahru, Georgetown and Malacca.

Ucrest Partners With Malaysian Genomics 

Petaling Jaya, July 20: UCrest Berhad and Malaysian Genomics Resources Centre Berhad, announced that they have signed a collaborative agreement to integrate genomic testing services into the digital health platform, iMedic, elevating healthcare services to the next level.
Under this agreement, a virtual genome service centre will be developed on iMedic platform enabling the genomic testing services of MGRC to be made available to the hospitals and clinics (B2B), widening its market access not just in Malaysia, but globally. 
Additionally, the genomic testing services will also be made available to patients directly (B2C). 
Patients’ genomic data from their test results will be integrated into Electronic Medical Records (EMR) making it accessible to doctors and patients in the process of consultation and management, resulting in improved accuracy in diagnosis and treatment.
UCrest is the leading technology provider of digital health platforms with offices in Malaysia, Singapore, China and Taiwan providing access to thousands of doctors, including many from the leading hospitals in the United States and China, to provide online consultation and management of patients anywhere in the globe. 
Malaysian Genomics is a leading genomics and biopharmaceutical company in ASEAN for genome sequencing, bioinformatics analysis, genetic screening, and various types of immunotherapy including CAR T-Cell therapy for the treatment of certain cancers.

Bloated Tech Has Aussies Burnout

Sydney, July 20: Freshworks Inc. (NASDAQ: FRSH), a software company empowering the people who power business, today released the findings of a global report, which found global IT professionals spend nearly a full work day each week (an average of seven hours and 19 minutes) dealing with bloatware – unwanted, overly complicated SaaS add-ons and features that hinder productivity and causes frustration at work. The cost of trying to use unhelpful technology amounts to more than $84B (AUD $122B) annually in wasted time in the U.S. alone, or $10M (AUD $14.5B) every hour of every day, reinforcing that complex system continue to be a major financial strain – not to mention the negative implications they can have on workplace morale and productivity.
Freshworks’ new report “State of Workplace Technology: Bloatware – the difference between love and hate for workplace tech” explores more than 2,000 global IT professionals’ interactions with workplace technology.
The report found that 89 per cent of the global IT professionals surveyed waste time each week due to pervasive bloated technology, distracting them from their core responsibilities and undermining the bottom line.

Perfect Corp Unveils Innovative AI Personality 

New York, July 21: Perfect Corp., the leading artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR) beauty and fashion tech solutions provider, today introduced its AI Personality Finder, groundbreaking addition to its comprehensive suite of AI and AR SaaS solutions.
This first-of-its-kind solution features precision AI, powered by Perfect Corp’s patented AgileFace technology, to deliver a more personalized product matching experience to consumers.
The solution pairs state-of-the-art AI-powered facial features mapping with psychological big data in order to identify key personality traits, and provide consumers with personalized product recommendations across beauty, fashion, and fragrance. 
Perfect Corp’s new AI Personality Finder is anchored in The Big Five Personality Traits, a gold standard in psychology, which comprises extroversion, conscientiousness, openness, agreeableness, and neuroticism.
The advanced AI engine categorizes facial features and detects up to 65 types of unique facial attributes. The AI-powered solution then identifies key personality traits based on this analysis and offers personalized product recommendations best fit the customer’s unique personality.

HWU Malaysia Holds Business Leaders Roundtable 

Putrajaya, July 22: With roots in Scotland, Heriot-Watt University (“HWU”) has an international presence with global campuses in Dubai and in Malaysia.
Earlier this year, the University’s Malaysia campus, Heriot-Watt University Malaysia (“HWUM”)  kicked off its year-long 10th-anniversary celebrations in the country. 
To further celebrate a decade of creating a positive impact, HWUM hosted the Business  Leaders Roundtable 2022 (“roundtable”) at Sabayon at EQ Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday (20  July 2022). The Business Leaders Roundtable 2022 was introduced by HWUM’s leaders to honour its top industry partners who have contributed to the University’s impact in Malaysia,  including its graduate employability prospects.
A total of 30 industry partners from various key economic sectors were invited to the roundtable and 15 were recognised for their contributions to HWUM. Among them were  Malayan Banking Group (“Maybank”), Top Glove Corporation Bhd (“Top Glove”), Public Bank  Berhad (“Public Bank”), Hong Leong Bank, Hong Leong Islamic Bank, Great Eastern, Ernst &  Young, Shopee Malaysia, Allianz, FWD Takaful Berhad (“FWD Takaful”),  PricewaterhouseCoopers Malaysia (“PwC”), and many others.
These leading industry players have partnered with HWUM to develop purpose-driven leaders and prepared them for the future of work over the years. Students at HWUM have benefited from scholarships, industry placement programmes, career fairs, industry-in-the-classroom,  visits, research and development, and more with their support. 

Coway Earns ‘AA’ MSCI ESG Rating

Kuala Lumpur, July 22: Coway Co., Ltd., “The Best Life Solution Company,” earned “AA” in the 2022 MSCI ESG Ratings.
MSCI evaluates ESG ratings on a scale from AAA (leader) to CCC (laggard) based on its analysis of the company’s environmental, social, and governance initiatives. MSCI’s ESG Ratings serve as a global index for ESG investments along with FTSE4Good and DJSI.
Coway acquired the second-highest MSCI ESG rating, “AA,” affirming the company’s leading position in navigating ESG issues in the household durables industry. The excellent evaluation was mainly due to strong corporate governance and electronic waste management.
Coway has made multiple initiatives to show its commitment to the environment, society, and governance.
In 2006, the company declared the goal of becoming net zero by 2050 and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent by 2030.

Mall Managers Need To Innovate

Jakarta, July 23: The level of public visits to malls or shopping centres in Jakarta, Indonesia is gradually recovering along with the loosening of restrictions on community activities after the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, currently, the managers of shopping centres are still facing challenges to stimulate public interest in returning to malls and shopping centres.
“The pandemic has made some people switch to shopping online at the marketplace.
Based on the records of the Indonesian Shopping Center Management Association (APPBI), it is estimated that 20 per cent of Indonesians currently choose to continue shopping online, even though more and more malls have opened at 100 per cent capacity,” APPBI Chairman, Alphonzus Widjadja said.
“As many as 20 per cent of the people who will not return, do think malls and shopping centres are just places to buy goods,” Alphonzus said.
In fact, he added, the mall is actually not just a place to shop and also has other functions, namely places to find entertainment, recreation, and so on.
“For this reason, it is the task of mall and shopping centre managers today to innovate to improve the experience and journey of visitors.”

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