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Press Release: Finding the formula for future leaders – Science and technology university launches unique master’s program

SINGAPORE, May 26 – The digital world is facing a crisis that has at the same time opened new windows of opportunity. To tackle the shortage of potential leaders joining the digital sector, the Schaffhausen Institute of Technology (SIT) has crafted a new course: Masters of Science (MSc) in Computer Science and Software Engineering – to better prepare graduates for leadership roles, specifically within the IT and science disciplines. Launching in September 2020, the newly developed program is available for students with bachelor’s in computer science or software engineering who have ambitions to be a part of the next generation of technical leaders.

A new master’s in Computer Science and Software Engineering course from the Schaffhausen Institute of Technology (SIT) will be officially announced on May 26th, 2020 at a virtual conference. This is the first master’s program to be launched by SIT — a newly formed university based in the technology hotspot of Schaffhausen, Switzerland. SIT was founded by entrepreneurs and global thought leaders, and is focused on bridging the gap between education and industry.

Chaired by Acronis CEO, Dr Serguei Beloussov, SIT and its syllabus have been specifically developed to tackle current challenges in the IT, physics, and business industries, including the shortage of future leaders joining the software sector.

“The SIT program will prepare graduates to manage software engineering projects within their own businesses, research organizations, or corporations. We blend science and practical needs to bring knowledge to anyone. Combining computer science, quantum technologies, and new materials will give graduates a strong foundation to develop innovative solutions. Scientists and business leaders from the SIT’s Board of Directors will help connect students with leading technology experts and build up relations with successful technology companies,” says Dr Serguei Beloussov, Founder of SIT.

With studies suggesting that a vast majority of computer science courses do not adequately prepare graduates for CTO or CSO-type leadership positions, the SIT MSc in Computer Science and Software Engineering course has been strategically developed with leadership in mind and connected to world-class research expertise.

SIT’s master’s program meets the traditional Bologna European system standards for higher education. Based on a two-year curriculum of full-time study (or a fast-track three-semester curriculum), the course follows the traditional academia year and is therefore ideal for students currently graduating with a bachelor’s in science or engineering. The course will also uniquely offer students more freedom to learn directly at the SIT campus, or through an agile flip-blended eLearning teaching style designed to meet the different needs of on-site and remote students.

The thesis required to complete the master’s degree can be written based on the student’s experience in their own start-up business, with access to the SIT techpark and investors, or at one of SIT’s business network partners, as well as in the SIT leading research laboratories. This level of engagement with businesses is extremely rare in highly technical master’s degrees from other prestigious specialist universities.

More details on the new master’s in Computer Science and Software Engineering course will be announced at the SIT Virtual Nano Conference, which will feature world-class speakers sharing their expertise in the fields of IT, science, and business. These include Nobel Prize Winner and Chairman of the Advisory Board in SIT Prof. Sir Kostya Novoselov, Acronis Executive Officer and the founder of SIT Dr Serguei Beloussov, Professor of Software Engineering at the SIT Prof. Mauro Pezzè, Professor of quantum physics at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford Prof. Artur Ekert, and Former Chief Polygraph Examiner and Interrogator Dr Barry L. McManus. Keynote sessions as well as panel discussions will be held on topics including quantum computing and cyber security.

About SIT: With its pioneering curriculum, the Schaffhausen Institute of Technology (SIT) offers a new model of education. Focusing on the most important areas of technology, SIT will drive research, development and innovation in a next generation learning and research environment. Using state-of-the-art facilities, SIT’s students, researchers and business allies will address large-scale world problems by developing a technology curriculum based on global issues.

Some of the world’s greatest minds have already bought into SIT. The initiators of SIT are a team of entrepreneurs, education specialists, and scientists brought together by initial investment by Acronis AG, a cyber protection company, located in Schaffhausen and Singapore.

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Lenovo’s flagship X1 Carbon Gen 8 Arrives in Singapore

Lenovo (stock quote 992.HK) (ADR: LNVGY) announced the pre-order availability of its flagship business laptop, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen on Lenovo® Official Singapore Site.

Source: Lenovo Singapore

Pricing for the much-anticipated ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 8 starts at SG$3,449, with further upgrades available in processing, memory, storage, and display. Citibank customers can purchase the flagship device on a SG$288 x 12 months installment plan (Note this is not an interest-free promotion). Pre-ordering the new ThinkPad X1 Carbon on the official store will offer customers access to discounts of up to 75% on selected accessories including the X1 Noise Cancellation Headphones, and the best-selling 3-Year Premier Support

“For many years, our X1 Carbon series has represented the apex of Lenovo’s innovation and design thinking. We’ve designed it with our customers in mind, imbuing it with best-in-class security, durability, and productivity features to meet the high demands of modern professionals. The 8th Gen of the X1 Carbon is no different. It’s another proud milestone for our iconic machine and we’re very excited to offer our Singapore customers early access to purchase the flagship device on our E-commerce platform,” said Reno Chow, eCommerce Head, Lenovo Singapore and Malaysia.

Here are the full specifications of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 8:

ProcessorUp to 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7 with up to 6 cores
Operating SystemWindows 10 Pro
Display14″ 4K (3840 x 2160) IPS with Dolby Vision™ HDR400, 500 nits, 10 bit14″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS PrivacyGuard, 500 nits14″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS, low power, 400 nits14″ WQHD (2560 x 1440) IPS, 300 nits14″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS Touch, 300 nits
MemoryUp to 16GB LPDDR3
BatteryUp to 18 hours* 51Wh, includes Rapid Charge *Based on MobileMark 2014, an industry standard PC performance benchmark. Actual results will vary depending on your system’s usage and settings, including power management and screen brightness.
StorageUp to 2TB PCIe SSD
GraphicsIntegrated Intel® UHD Graphics 620
SecurityFast Identity Online (FIDO) authentication capabilitiesMatch-on-chip fingerprint readerdTPM 2.0 chipThinkShutter camera coverOptional: ThinkPad PrivacyGuardOptional: ThinkPad PrivacyAlert*Kensington lock slot *PrivacyAlert requires the IR camera.
AudioDolby Atmos® Speaker System4 x 360-degree far-field microphones
CameraHD 720p with ThinkShutter privacy coverOptional: Hybrid Infrared (IR) & HD with ThinkShutter
Dimensions (W x D x H)323mm x 218mm x 14.9mm / 12.71″ x 8.54″ x 0.59″
WeightStarting at 1.09kg / 2.40lb
ColorBlackBlack with Carbon-Fiber Weave on top cover* *Available only on the 4k HDR400 display.
ConnectivityWiFi 802.11 AXBluetooth® 5.0Optional WWAN: Integrated Global Mobile Broadband 4G LTE-AOptional NFC
Ports2 x USB-C Thunderbolt™ 32 x USB 3.1 (Gen 1)HDMI 1.4Network extension for Ethernet/side mechanical dockingHeadphone / mic comboMicroSD card reader
KeyboardSpill resistantBacklit with white LED lightingNew FN row F9-F11
AC AdapterUp to 65W (supports Rapid Charge)
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Press Release – New Microsoft 365 Personal and Family Subscriptions now available in Singapore

Source: Microsoft Singapore

[Asia Pacific, Singapore, 22 April 2020] – Microsoft 365 is now available in Singapore. It is a refresh of Office 365, which provides users with new artificial intelligence (AI), rich content and templates, and cloud-powered experiences. 

These experiences are being rolled out regionally and will reach over 38 million Office 365 subscribers globally in the next few months.

“We want to continue to empower everyone to remain connected with those who matter inside and outside of the workplace. The Microsoft 365 Family and Personal subscriptions will provide users with innovative experiences that enable them to co-author, video chat, organize, and come together with friends and their families anytime and anywhere,” said Rami El Bayadi, Regional Director, Microsoft Office Asia. 

Users can look forward to two new Microsoft 365 experiences. Firstly, a new Microsoft Family Safety app designed to keep families safe across the digital and physical worlds. Microsoft will also launch Microsoft Teams later this year for users to stay connected with their family and friends. There will also be new features in Microsoft Teams that make it easier to connect, organize and collaborate with family and friends.

The new Microsoft Edge browser also takes a step forward with new features to protect users on the web with Password Monitor, and to simplify research with Collections.

Other new features available with Microsoft 365 are listed below.

  • AI-Powered Microsoft Editor: To help people put their best foot forward at home and at work, Microsoft Editor – an AI-powered service available in more than 20 languages – is now accessible across Word and Outlook.com, and as a standalone browser extension for Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome. Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscribers have access to advanced grammar and style refinements such as rewrite suggestions and additional style critiques to allow greater clarity and conciseness.
  • Presenter Coach Features in PowerPoint: An AI-powered Presenter that helps correct monotone pitch and refine speeches. This will be available as a free preview, and then eventually only to Microsoft 365 subscribers. 
  • PowerPoint Designer: This feature effectively boosts creativity, such as transforming text into a beautiful timeline, or even auto-generated slide layouts. Microsoft is also providing Microsoft 365 subscribers with exclusive access to over 8,000 beautiful images and 175 looping videos from Getty Images, plus 300 new fonts, 2,800 new icons to create highimpact and visually appealing documents. 
  • New Data Types and Smart Templates in Excel: This presentsa different and less timeconsuming way to interact with data, providing deeper meaning for over 100 topics. Microsoft 365 subscribers have exclusive access to the over 100 new data types powered by Wolfram Alpha. 
  • Organizing Time Across Work and Life with Outlook: New features in Outlook on the web help users manage all commitments, across work and life, in one place. With these new features, they can link their personal calendar to their work calendar to show their real availability, while still maintaining their privacy.
  • Deepen Connections with Family and Friends with Skype and Microsoft Teams:  Skype has seen an increase in usage with 40 million people using it daily, up 70% month over month and, we are seeing a 220% increase in Skype to Skype calling minutes month over month. To help people get connected even faster, Microsoft recently introduced a new feature in Skype called Meet Now, that allows users to easily connect over video (for free) with up to 50 people in just a few clicks.
  • Protecting Families in the Physical and Digital Worlds with Microsoft Family Safety: Coming soon is the Microsoft Family Safety app, a new mobile experience on iOS and Android for Microsoft 365 subscribers. The application empowers families in a variety of ways with both free and premium offerings, including managing screen time across Windows PCs, Android and Xbox. 

The new Office features have been rolled out to all existing Office 365 customers and Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscriptions are now available worldwide. These include premium desktop Office apps, 1 TB of OneDrive cloud storage per person, 60 Skype minutes for calling mobile phones and landlines, advanced security features to protect users from malware and phishing attacks, ongoing technical support, plus all the new features and benefits announced today. Microsoft 365 Personal costs $10.80 SGD a month. For the best value, a family of up to six people can use Microsoft 365 Family for $14.80 SGD a month. 

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Headphone Review – Adidas RPT-01 On-ear Headphone, A Perfect Fitness Companion

“I will never run with my headphones. It looks silly” This is what I used to perceive of people running with their headphones but my perception changes when I got hold of the new Adidas RPT-01. The RPT-01 is such a beauty.

Knitted fabrics-covered Adidas headphone is a class of its own.

In terms of physical appearance, I really like the knitted fabrics covering the overhead rim of the headphones. The perfect blend of black and grey appeals to me. Maybe I am Asian, the headphone seems to compliment well with my black hairs.

Speaking about designs, the overall ergonomic is well thought of. The slide-able feature caters for different head sizes and the clear indication of the sides of the earphones. Although these are standard across all headphones, one special addition to the Adidas RPT-01 is the rubber headband that prevents the headphones from slipping while you are out exercising. I am sure many people had bad experience of keep adjusting the headphones while exercising. The simple solution by putting a headband keep the device in place is brilliant! More so, the rubber headband is removeable for washing.

Removable parts that you could wash. Easy to maintain

Comfort

Often, headphone is not as comfortable especially after prolong wearing and it is certainly not so while you are running in humid Singapore condition. I am surprised that RPT-01 is in fact quite comfortable. The knitted earcups cushioned well on the ears and I don’t feel warm near my ears even though I am perspiring like mad after a 5km run. Same as the rubber headband, both earcups could be removed for washing.

Good music quality

All’s good. How about sound? The Adidas RPT-01 is one of the first 2 headphones developed under the partnership with Zound, the company behind audio brands such as Marshall speakers and Urbanears headphones. That sets the mark high and it does deliver reasonable bass while listening to high tempo music though I would like the bass to be more punchy. In terms of clarity, it scores acceptably well.   

This headphone is a pure wireless listening companion. There is no 3.5mm audio option for us to compare the sound quality between wired and wireless settings.

Nonetheless, the claimed 40 hours battery life is impressive. I have brought it along for several runs and I have never done a single charge during the testing phase.

Verdict

This product is specifically designed for sports enthusiast. Priced at $299, you get an Adidas branded headphone that promises you comfort and style. On top of that, you get a good-looking headphone that will help you to attract eyeballs in the gym.

Having said so, I think that there should be more features that targeted for fitness training. The current smartphone app serves pretty much as an equalizer which I think it is very underserved. Afterall, Adidas is a sports brand. I think the app could provide more useful data on the activities that could help users to improve their performance.

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Singapore-based Digital Wealth Manager – Syfe launches REIT+ portfolio to Retail Investors

Syfe’s latest portfolio combines SGX-listed REITs and Singapore Government Bonds to create a risk-managed solution

SINGAPORE – 3 February 2020 – Digital wealth manager, Syfe, today launched the REIT+ portfolio, a first-of-its-kind initiative that allows anyone in Singapore to start risk-managed investing in Singapore real estate with no minimum investment.

Unlike buying a property or REITs as a private investor, Syfe’s REIT+ product offers an easy, risk-managed and low-cost way for investors to access Singapore’s thriving REIT market with a fee as low as 0.4% per annum of your invested capital.

REIT+ consists of 15 high-quality SGX-listed REITs (S-REITs) that span retail, industrial, office, and hospitality amongst other sectors. To protect REIT+ portfolios, Syfe’s Automated Risk-Managed Investing (ARI) will manage risk by balancing portfolios of S-REITs with Singapore government bonds.

Through backtesting, a process that tests algorithms by running them through historical data, the REIT+ portfolio on average has yielded a return of 9.0% over the last five years. The portfolio also pays a dividend, which in 2019, was 4.6%, and can be automatically reinvested or paid-out at regular intervals offering investors a great source of passive income.

In recent years, REITs have proven to be a great investment option because it allows Singaporeans an easy way to become real estate owners, without dealing with the day-to-day worries of being a landlord. By investing in an REIT, you’re investing in properties managed by that REIT and you’re eligible to earn dividends on the rental income earned by those properties.

Dhruv Arora, Founder and CEO of Syfe said: “The launch of the REIT+ offering represents another strong step forward in our journey to making quality investment solutions accessible to all. In addition to our flagship Automated Risk-Managed Investing (ARI) global portfolio, we now offer investors an easy way to enter Singapore’s exciting and rewarding REIT landscape.”

“At Syfe, we’re constantly pushing the boundaries of financial innovation, and we’ll continue to do so to meet the investment needs of investors in Singapore,” added Mr. Arora.

REIT+ is Syfe’s latest addition to the platform, following the launch of a Financial Advisor team, which allows customers to secure consultation sessions with wealth management specialists, providing high quality financial advice.


About Syfe

Syfe is a digital wealth manager offering professionally managed portfolios to everyone, which have previously only been accessible to institutional investors or high-net-worth individuals, driving innovation and democratising investment. Syfe’s proprietary algorithm, developed in-house with state of the art technology and proven investment models, build personalised portfolios for each customer and continuously monitors and adjusts each portfolio to maximise returns and manage risk.

Source: Media Outreach

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Why YouTrip Mastercard is a hype?

In the hope of maintaining Singapore as the regional financial hub, the government has been encouraging Singapore banks to adopt technology in improving business operations. Ever since Singapore Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong highlighted that banks should adopt blockchain technology in bank settlements in 2015, fintech  start-ups from all around the world flew into Singapore. In 2018, YouTrip, an e-wallet start-up, left its home ground – Hong Kong – one of the world’s largest financial hubs to launch their venture in Singapore.

YouTrip positioned itself as a multicurrency e-wallet for travellers. It has developed technical infrastructure for multicurrency exchanges with a network of FX providers. The uniqueness of its technology is to offer FX exchanges to individual at a competitive rate that banks cannot provide. However, that itself is not going to give YouTrip an edge against the traditional money changers as their rates are almost the same. Furthermore, storing money digitally in the e-wallet is useless if travellers can’t use that to make payment in stores.

As such, YouTrip partners Mastercard (stock quote:MA) . Intuitively, this makes the YouTrip card more “useable” as users could make their payment if the respective merchants accept Mastercard. The strategy works. Months after their launch, number of users has surpassed 50,000. That caught investors’ attention. In May 2019, YouTrip raised USD 25.5M in Pre-Series A funding which is quite impressive for a Singapore-based company that is barely a year old.

YouTrip is a Bank Disruptor?  

The recent capital injection is useful in helping YouTrip to improve their technology infrastructure which is the backbone for all financial institutions. In fact, this is the challenge that YouTrip must overcome. Normal people deposit money digitally in their saving accounts with the belief that the bank’s technology could safeguard their savings. Let’s extend the idea further. When we top up money in YouTrip e-wallet, can we expect from them the same security level that bank is offering? If you have read my earlier blog post, YouTrip is trying to assure the public that they have the same level of technology that bank has in terms of risk management and anti-money laundering capability. However, building up the infrastructure equates to building faith among users which takes time. By and large, YouTrip, as a company, is still too young for the public to put their trust (saving) with them.

To succeed in the fintech space, a fintech start-up has to offer the same level of services (or even better) that the bank is offering. As a matter of fact, that’s the value that fintech start-up is offering to the market. YouTrip has identified that digitalizing the existing business model of money changer is the way to enter the market which undeniably, they have succeeded and even convince major payment solution company like Mastercard and locally, Ezlink to participate in their growth stories.

They have great partners and now, it is for them to shape the market behaviour.  

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Friends have been asking me about @youtripsg MasterCard. My reply is always the same it is a good for travel. You get better exchange rate and for some major currencies, you could even buy and keep them in the E-wallet and that’s good for traveller who like to plan their trip ahead to capture the best possible rates. Travellers should give this a try. Now you could even get an additional $10 if you sign up and do your first top up via my referral link http://bit.do/youtrip-weewu P.s. it is also a #ezlink card if that matters to you. #instatravel #travelphotography #travelgram #instalifestyle #mastercard #youtrip #instafinance #discountcodes #discount #referralcode #reward #instareward #singapore #fintech #startup #ewallet

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E-wallet business – More Than Just a Debit Card

E-wallet, as the name suggested, should work like a WALLET. It should be able to keep fiat currencies, credit cards and reward cards etc.  YouTrip positioned themselves as a wallet for travellers only provides the entry to the market but personally, I don’t think it is going to be sustainable. Singaporeans love travels but their time are mostly spent in Singapore. Although YouTrip card holders could use their cards to pay for public transports, there are other players rolling up similar services that gives better discounts. In short, the YouTrip card has not much use in Singapore given so many other options available.

There must be strong enough reasons for users to continue keeping YouTrip card in their wallet

Where are the merchants?

Banks refuses to lower rates as it hurts profitability. Offering low fees is a good penetration strategy but that is not going to be the barrier for new entrants. YouTrip needs to bring in more partners into their ecosystem. For a start, they should just be focusing on bringing more values to travellers. For instance, a reward system in the form of discount for travel insurance or hotel booking for heavy YouTrip users (frequent travellers) that will encourage card usage.

Basically, virtual money is only useful in 2 ways – One, I can use that to buy into services or products at greater discount. Two, I can grow it so that I could use that in the future. In principle, any fintech company that can achieve both can basically be called a bank. ANT Financial is one classic example. However, most fintech start-ups are only able to deliver services or products at greater discount than credit cards companies (which is exactly what YouTrip is trying to do!). However, keeping up with this in a longer term costs money and it may not be sustainable. YouTrip has to “engineer” a new form users’ reliance to your services to keep themselves afloat in the competitive fintech business. In my opinion, better forex rate?Nah!

Grab, a South-East Asian fintech and transport services company, has established a strong network of merchants in the region. Grab Pay, e-wallet services by Grab, can be used to pay for any goods in their marketplace and delivered to users’ doorsteps. Outside Singapore, you could even use Grab to pay off your transportation in other South East Asia countries. Grab is also following footsteps of ANT Financial. They are hiring consultant and it is rumoured that they are preparing to be a virtual bank in the event that Singapore is issuing virtual bank license like what Hong Kong did

Getting merchants into ecosystem is crucial in developing use cases and I am sure there are a lot more to be explored. Grab’s way of linking transportation and merchant seems to be working in South East Asia market. YouTrip is not Grab. They have to offer use cases that are different from what their counterparts are offering. They could study what their closest competitor, Singtel Dash is doing. For a start, why not just tap on existing e-commerce players? That might be faster for YouTrip.

In short, YouTrip has a good start but it is still a hype that I am doubtful it could sustain as a travel card. As of now, I am keeping my YouTrip card in my drawer.

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Singapore-based Multi-Currency E-Wallet Platform Raised USD 25.5M In Pre-Series A

  • YouTrip is Singapore’s first multi-currency mobile wallet with a prepaid Mastercard® that offers zero transaction fees across 150+ currencies at wholesale exchange rates
  • US$25.5m raised from major Asian family offices and venture capital firm Insignia Ventures Partners, the largest pre-Series A fintech funding round in Southeast Asia
  • Over 200,000 downloads and 1 million transactions processed 10 months since launch
  • Funding will drive development of YouTrip’s technical payment infrastructure, launch of new product features and its regional expansion plans in Southeast Asia 

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 16 May 2019 – YouTrip, Singapore’s first multi-currency mobile wallet with a prepaid Mastercard ®, has successfully raised US$25.5m in a pre-Series A fundraised. Participating investors include major Asian family offices and venture capital firm Insignia Ventures Partners, founded by ex-Sequoia Partner Yinglan Tan. This marks the largest pre-Series A funding round for a fintech startup operating in Southeast Asia.

YouTrip co-founders, Arthur Mak and Caecilia Chu

Launched in August 2018, YouTrip is a multi-currency mobile wallet s pecially designed with travellers in mind, allow ing users to pay in over 150 currencies with no hidden fees and at wholesale exchange rates . The mobile app also allows for the exchange and storage of 10 selected currencies in advance through the in-app exchange feature. The YouTrip mobile application works with a linked pre-paid Mastercard ® — issued by EZ-Link — and can be used to make payments at more than 30 million Mastercard accepting merchants worldwide.

Fuelled by growing purchasing power and more affordable travel options , Southeast Asia’s population of over 650 million people represents one of the largest and fastest growing outbound travellers market globally – it is expected to total US$80 billion in outbound travel expenditure by 2020, up from US$67 billion in 2018 or a 10% CAGR. Singapore is the biggest contributor to this region, with Singaporeans being one of the most frequent travellers and biggest travel spenders globally.

Caecilia Chu, co- f ounder and CEO of YouTrip said, “As a frequent traveller, I was surprised with how much banks mark up on overseas transactions – this was among the many reasons why I started YouTrip with Arthur Mak, who is also Chairman of YouTrip . As the regional travel industry continues to post robust growth, YouTrip recognises the pain points of travellers and equally, the immense opportunity to better serve their financial needs. We are dedicated to creating the best mobile financial services for travellers by simplifying overseas spending and creating a fuss-free travel experience.”

Pachara Lawjindakul, Principal at Insignia Ventures Partners added, “The fintech space in Southeast Asia is developing at a relentless pace to meet evolving consumer expectations and the travel industry represents an immense untapped market at the intersection of this growth. YouTrip is led by an experienced team of founders and executive team who are perfectly positioned to capitalise on this opportunity. The success of the initial launch in Singapore provides a great foundation to develop a strong roadmap for growing the multi-currency and cross-border payments ecosystem in Southeast Asia.”

Bank-issued credit and debit cards typically carry an overseas transaction fee that can be as high as 3.5%. O verseas purchases made with credit cards also usually entail a Dynamic Currency Conversion markup, sometimes going as high as 5% or more. YouTrip does not charge any overseas transaction fees nor markup on foreign exchange conversion .  

With the injection of funds, YouTrip is looking to invest heavily in technology innovation to further develop its technical payment infrastructure and roll out new product features. Having established a foothold in Singapore, it has also set its sights on further expansion in Southeast Asia and developing localised solutions for the region’s growing class of travellers.

Since its launch in August 2018, the YouTrip mobile application has achieved over 20 0,000 downloads, processed over 1 million transactions, and has grown its team to 70 people in Singapore and Hong Kong. Users may sign up for a YouTrip account by downloading its app from the App Store or Google Play. No minimum account balance is required and registration is free. Any credit or debit card c an be used to top up the e-wallet, which has a maximum stored value of S$3,000. All registered users receive a physical prepaid Mastercard, free of charge.

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New Appointment of Managing Director for Epson Singapore and country manager for Epson Thailand and Epson Philippines

SINGAPORE, May 2019 – Mr. Ando Munenori has been appointed as the new Managing Director of Epson Singapore overseeing Southeast Asia region, and concurrently country manager for Epson Thailand and Epson Philippines. He is also concurrently holding the role of Executive Officer at Seiko Epson Corporation (herein referred to as SEC) Epson’s global headquarters in Japan.


Mr. Ando Munenori. Source: Epson Singapore

He is taking over from Mr. Tanaka Toshimitsu, who will be returning to a senior role in Sales Planning & Marcom Department in SEC.

Mr. Ando was Head of SEC’s Sales & Marketing Division, where he was responsible for developing the sales infrastructure and strategy for all of Epson’s products globally.

He has held multiple leadership positions in Asia and internationally, and brings a depth of understanding of the region and decades of management experience to his role. He took on the leadership role as President of Epson China from 2014 to 2017, where he led with Epson’s “technology plus localisation” strategy, growing the business and increasing the company’s share in key markets including printers, projectors and robotics.

From 2003 to 2008, Mr. Ando was assigned to the Southeast Asia regional headquarters in Singapore, where he was in charge of market development for Epson’s printers and other information-related products.

Mr. Ando has also led the POS printer business in Europe from 1994 to 1998, where during which he successfully grew the POS printer business through the introduction of new technologies to bring the company to the No. 1 position.

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Samsung Introduces 3 New Wearables & New Samsung Pay Loyalty Programme at Galaxy Studio, Singapore

Singapore – 8 September 2017 – Samsung Electronics Singapore today debuted a series of exciting new announcements at the preview of Galaxy Studio at The Plaza, VivoCity. Three new devices to its industry-leading wearables line – the Gear Sport, the Gear Fit2 Pro and the Gear IconX were introduced at the preview. In addition, Samsung also announced Samsung Rewards, a new loyalty programme for Samsung Pay, its flagship mobile payment service.

 

 

Enhanced Gear Wearables to Keep Consumers Moving

Designed to help consumers get the most out of their day and help them live a healthy and wellbalanced lifestyle, these latest innovations in Samsung’s Gear portfolio have a wide range of features that provide users with the optimal experience on a range of activities – from robust fitness tracking to nutrition and sleep monitoring1, as well as motivational coaching as a lifestyle companion. The new line-up of wearables is equipped with new smart capabilities and easy-to-use features, and is also supported by partnerships with leading names in tech and fitness.

The Gear Sport is a sleek and versatile fitness-focused smartwatch that is water resistant; the Gear Fit2 Pro smartwatch is an enhanced GPS sports band integrated with smart features; and the Gear IconX is the second generation of Samsung’s groundbreaking cord-free earbuds. New capabilities have also been introduced for the Gear Sport and Gear Fit2 Pro, demonstrating Samsung’s continued expansion in the fitness wearable category.

 

  • Industry-Leading Water Resistance and Swim Tracking: An ideal companion for any swim – from laps to playing in the pool – the Gear Sport and Gear Fit2 Pro are both 5 ATM2 certified for water resistance. With Speedo’s latest swimming training app, Speedo On, both devices also allow users to easily track key swim metrics including lap count, lap time, setting swim times and distance targets, and more.  

 

  • Top-of-the-line Heart Rate Monitoring: With improved accuracy, both devices offer advanced real-time heart rate monitoring, where users can continuously monitor their heart activity – when enjoying a stress-free nap, or an invigorating cycling class.

 

  • Premium Partnerships: The Gear Sport and Gear Fit2 Pro comes complemented with Under Armour and Spotify partnerships. Users can access Under Armour’s fitness apps, including Under Armour RecordTM, MyFitness Pal®, MapMyRun® and Endomondo™, where they can be provided with a holistic overview of their health and fitness, through the apps’ activity, nutrition, sleep and fitness tracking functions. With Spotify’s Offline mode, users can also listen to their favourite music offline or even without their smartphone, and enjoy their favourite tunes regardless of where they are.  

 

  • Auto Activity Detection: Both devices are both built-in with automatic activity detection that are tuned with and able to recognise users’ activities, including walking, running, cycling and even dancing and playing basketball.

 

  • Personalized Motivation: Gear Sport and Gear Fit2 Pro users can customise their own wellness plan with tailored goals and alerts on both devices.

 

  • Payments On the Go: The Gear Sport also features Samsung Pay, making payments accessible on users’ wrists, where they will be able to make payments on the go, even while on a run!

Local Pricing and Availability 

The Gear Sport, Gear Fit2 Pro and Gear IconX will be available from Q4 2017.

 

 

Samsung Rewards for Samsung Pay

Samsung today also announced the launch of Samsung Rewards for Samsung Pay, the secure and easy-to-use mobile payment service that can be used to make purchases almost anywhere10 in Singapore. The first to launch in the Southeast Asia region, the launch of the new loyalty programme for the company’s flagship mobile payment service in the country follows its initial roll-out in U.S. and South Korea, in November 2016 and March 2017 respectively. In appreciation of the positive uptake of the mobile payment service by consumers, Samsung Rewards aims to provide Samsung Pay users with a more rewarding payment experience when making their purchases.

 

Samsung Rewards is a tiered loyalty programme specially curated for Samsung Pay users, where consumers can earn points from their transactions, which can then be redeemed for additional rewards in the form of gift vouchers from participating merchants or used to participate in the in-app games such as Spin-the-Wheel or Flip-a-Card for additional instant wins. Consisting of three loyalty tiers – Gold, Silver and Bronze – users can level up across the tiers after meeting a target number of transactions. With each level up achieved in the Samsung Rewards programme, users can get to earn more points per transaction, reaping additional rewards in return.

Samsung Rewards will be available on Samsung Pay from 15 September 2017, which is accepted at the vast majority of merchants in Singapore. Consumers may also try out the mobile payment service at the Samsung Pay Café, which will be exclusively showcased at Galaxy Studio from 9 September to 29 October 2017, 11am to 9pm daily.

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Fifteen Prominent Singaporean Entrepreneurs Recognised at Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards 2017, (APEA)

Singapore, 18th August 2017: The Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award 2017 honoured fifteen prominent entrepreneurs and business leaders from Singapore in a grand gala dinner at Sands Expo & Convention Center, Singapore.

The Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards, better known as APEA, is a regional recognition program organized by Enterprise Asia, the region’s foremost association and think-tank for entrepreneurship. The Awards are presented to a handful of entrepreneurs across Asia Pacific each year, with award ceremonies held in thirteen countries every year.

The Awards is often compared to the Olympics for the stringent entry criteria and highly competitive judging parameters. The nomination is by-invitation only with each nominee subjected to a rigorous judging process, including financial verification by an appointed audit firm and mandatory physical site audit and interview, culminating in a confidential balloting process by Enterprise Asia’s committee. This year, the award received close to eighty nominees from Singapore and fifteen winners across ten industry categories were selected.

RECIPIENT LIST OF ASIA PACIFIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARDS 2017 SINGAPORE

 

Special Category – Lifetime Achievement Award

 

Mr Kwek Leng Beng, Executive Chairman of Hong Leong Group

 

 

Entrepreneur of The Year

 

for Electrical & Electronics Industry

 

Mr Albert Phuay, Founder & Chairman of Excelpoint Technology Ltd

 

 

for Trading & Wholesaling Industry

 

Mr Cheam Hing Lee, CEO of Rhodium Resources Pte Ltd

 

 

APEA Winners 2017 Singapore

 

Mr Scott D Smith, CEO of Beyonics International Pte Ltd

Dr Terence O’Çonnor, Group CEO of Courts Asia Ltd

Mr Ronald Goh Wee Huat, Managing Director of Electronics & Engineering Pte Ltd

Ms Danielle Warner, Founder & CEO of Expat Insurance Pte Ltd

Mr Ori Leshem, CEO of Genesis Retail Pte Ltd

Mr Adam Simkins, Director of Getz Bros. & CO. (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Mr David Kim, Managing Director SEA -ANZ of Tmax Singapore Pte Ltd

Ms Chin Wei Jia, Group CEO of Health Management International Ltd

Mr Low Cheong Kee, Managing Director & Founder of Home-Fix D.I.Y Pte Ltd

Mr Suneet Goenka, Founder &  Group Managing Director of Red Apple Travel (S) Pvt. Ltd

Mr Tan Poo Seng, Founder & Managing Director of TopZone E&C Pte. Ltd

Ms Doris Wee Hui Cheen, Director of Wendell Trading Company