Monday, November 11, 2024

Monsha’at: Biban 2024 accelerates transformation of Saudi entrepreneurship with over SAR 10.6 billion worth of agreements

 

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Monsha’at, has taken another important step towards reshaping the Saudi entrepreneurship landscape, following the announcement of 16 agreements worth more than SAR 10.6 billion on the fourth day of Biban24.

Extending its ongoing efforts to empower Saudi entrepreneurs and bolster the Kingdom’s SME infrastructure, Monsha’at also officially announced a wide selection of agreements to allocate substantial financial portfolios to financing Saudi Arabia’s rapidly growing community of entrepreneurs. This includes a portfolio worth SAR 3.1 billion, in collaboration with Tayseer Finance; as well as a portfolio valued at SAR 2 billion with Lendo Company. Monsha’at also announced a SAR 1 billion portfolio with Tarmeez Capital. These agreements are fully geared towards providing SMEs with steppingstones to success and facilitating more seamless and ready access to vital tools and resources.

The National Commercial Bank (NCB) also announced the launch of 15 new branches specialized in supporting SMEs. Additionally, Arab Bank launched the “anb digital”, a platform created to enable SMEs to submit financing applications, receive preliminary approvals, and sign contracts electronically.

The fourth day of Biban24 — the Kingdom’s flagship SME forum — also placed an emphasis on upskilling and capacity building, with a range of seminars and workshops being hosted. Covering a diversity of subjects and areas of interest, these workshops and seminars were held to empower participants, attendees and entrepreneurs from the region and beyond with access to all-important insights, resources and connections.

Organized by Monsha’at, the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the event is being hosted at the Riyadh Front Exhibition & Conference Center. Held under the theme of Global Destination for Opportunities, the gathering is focused on driving the growth and development of the Saudi entrepreneurial ecosystem for local and international entrepreneurs.

In line with this goal — and the objectives of Vision 2030 — the forum will immerse visitors and attendees in an enabling atmosphere conducive to innovation, with participants being invited to explore 9 key areas, or “Doors”. These include the “Enablement”, “Fast-growing Enterprises”, “Funding and Investment”, “Startup”, “Innovation”, “E-commerce”, “Start”, “Franchise”, and “Market” Doors.

These Doors are specialized areas where businesses and entrepreneurs will be given the opportunity to explore how to reach the next level and fulfil their business potential.

https://bibanglobal.sa/

Contact:
Tarek Chahine
tchahine@webershandwick.com


Copyright © 2024 GlobeNewswire, Inc.

Monsha’at: 23 agreements worth over SAR 580 million signed on Day 3 of Biban 2024

 

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On the third day of the Biban24, organized by the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority (Monsha'at) under the theme "A Global Destination for Opportunities," over 23 agreements were signed, along with several project launches valued at more than 580 million SAR. Taking place at the Riyadh Front Exhibition & Conference Center, Biban 2024 aims to drive the growth and development of the Saudi entrepreneurial ecosystem, fostering collaboration among local and international entrepreneurs.

Emphasizing its commitment to advancing entrepreneurship in the Saudi tourism sector, The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) has announced the signing of several landmark agreements with a range of financial institutions — including Arab National Bank, Raedah Finance, Tawkeel Finance, Murabaha Marena, Al Jabr Finance, Taseer Arabia, and Manafea Finance — at Biban24.

In line with Vision 2030, these agreements are fully geared towards strengthening small and medium-sized enterprises in the tourism sector and supporting projects that contribute to the development of local tourism.

Reaffirming its commitment to powering the future of the Kingdom’s SME sector, Monsha’at also signed a strategic agreement with Microsoft Saudi Arabia to equip entrepreneurs with the tools to realize their potential by providing greater access to vital technical and technological guidance, as well as cloud services through the Founder Hub platform.

At the event, Microsoft Saudi Arabia also announced an Entrepreneurship Competition to support the entrepreneurial sector and encourage the growth of SMEs.

Day 3 of Biban 2024 also saw Monsha’at partner with Oracle to enhance incubator and accelerator programs in the Kingdom and beyond. The partnership will leverage Monsha’at and Oracle’s resources to offer cloud services, data analytics tools, and AI solutions to support startups and SMEs.

This included the announcement of Monsha’at’s partnership with Zoom to offer discounted and comprehensive virtual meeting solutions. Google also officially announced a strategic agreement with Monsha’at to launch the Digital Marketing Enablement Initiative.

The final rounds of the Entrepreneurship World Cup also picked up pace, with over 100 finalists taking part in the finals of the annual startup pitch competition.

https://bibanglobal.sa/  

Contact:
Tarek Chahine
tchahine@webershandwick.com

Investor Support for “Say on Pay” Climbs to 91.5% Amid Record High CEO Compensation, Finds Diligent


 NEW YORK 

Investor support for “say on pay” has surged for a second consecutive year despite record-high CEO compensation levels, reflecting stronger alignment on executive pay practices in the U.S. and U.K.

(BUSINESS WIRE) -- Investor backing for “say on pay” proposals rose to 91.5% at S&P 500 and Russell 3000 companies during the 2024 proxy season, according to the new Diligent Market Intelligence: Investor Stewardship 2024 report from Diligent. This comes as CEO compensation reached record levels, with the median granted pay for S&P 500 CEOs hitting $15.9 million in 2023—an 8.9% increase from the prior year—and $6.6 million for Russell 3000 CEOs, up 8.8%.


“The record levels of support we have observed reflect the work that has gone into disclosure and investor engagement,” said Josh Black, editor-in-chief of Diligent Market Intelligence. “We also saw stock markets in the U.S. increase to deliver major gains in 2023 when compared to the negative returns that were recorded in 2022.”


Support for management resolutions for “say on pay” at U.K.-listed companies has also increased, with the advisory votes securing a record 94.7% backing in the first nine months of this year, and CEO pay levels also reaching new heights as the region moves to narrow the pay gap with other major markets. CEO median granted pay increased by almost 6% at the FTSE 100 to 5 million pounds, while realized pay climbed by 4% to reach a median of 3.9 million pounds.


Three themes emerge from the report’s key findings that both boards and investors should have on their radar:


Engagement and transparency are key in securing investor backing for pay plans.


As pay plans are reviewed to reflect inflation, reward performance and retain talent, active and meaningful engagement as well as improved levels of disclosure will deliver increased levels of investor backing.


There is now a greater focus on sustainable business practices and longtermism when investors engage with remuneration committees on increasing the total magnitude of pay, or replicating pay structures to more hybrid models.


Institutional investors increasingly use targeted votes against board committees to push for stronger governance.


Support was lowest for nominating and governance committee chairs, averaging 92% at S&P 500 companies and 95.6% at FTSE 100 companies.


Investors focused on these committees to drive diversity, board independence, and responsiveness to shareholder votes.


Chairs of audit and compensation committees face less opposition, due to separate ballot items at annual meetings.


As environmental and social (E&S) shareholder proposals rise in the U.S. amid declining investor support, more companies are turning to the SEC’s no-action process with growing success.


A record 183 companies sought no-action relief this proxy season, up from 116 in 2023, often citing procedural defects or claims of micromanagement.


The SEC granted 51% of these requests, compared to 47% last season and 29% in 2022, granting more relief to issuers.


While support for E&S proposals declined, governance proposals have hit record investor support, averaging 77% in the Russell 3000 and 65% in the S&P 500.


To download the full report, click here.


About the report


The report features data from Diligent Market Intelligence’s Voting, Compensation and Governance modules. Further data is available on request with bespoke analysis requiring a window of up to 48 hours. For more information, email dmi.press@diligent.com


About Diligent Market Intelligence


Diligent Market Intelligence (DMI) is a market-leading provider of shareholder activism, investor voting, and corporate governance data. Through its web application and data feeds, clients can access the most complete solution for listed company intelligence on the market, with broader and deeper insights than ever before.


About Diligent

Diligent is the leading GRC SaaS company, empowering more than 1 million users and 700,000 board members and leaders to make better decisions, faster. The Diligent One Platform helps organizations connect their entire GRC practice — including governance, risk, compliance, audit and ESG — to bring clarity to complex risk, stay ahead of regulatory changes and deliver impactful insights, in one consolidated view. Learn more at diligent.com.


Follow Diligent on LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and Facebook.


 


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Contacts

Media

Julia Stoyanov

Communications Director, Diligent

+1 (604) 669-4225

Jhanbury@diligent.com

Uptime Launches Enhanced M&O Stamp of Approval to Accelerate Improvements in Data Center Operational Resiliency


 NEW YORK 

Seven New Scope Areas and Proprietary Staff Assessment Tool Help Clients Strengthen Operational Excellence, Minimize Human Error, and Improve Workforce Skills

(BUSINESS WIRE) -- Uptime Institute today announced its newly enhanced, market-leading, and globally adopted Management & Operations (M&O) Stamp of Approval. The extensive enhancements will improve clients’ ability to meet the compounding demands on their data centers, to better manage the complexities of data center infrastructure more efficiently and effectively, and to reduce operational risk by allowing them to more precisely identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in critical facilities. Participants in the new Uptime M&O program are provided with a comprehensive operations risk profile and actionable steps that drive organizational standardization throughout a site or entire data center portfolio and emphasize continuous improvement to better address the ever-evolving risks in all data center operations.


The M&O Stamp of Approval program scope includes a holistic assessment of staffing and organization practices, maintenance, and operations activities together with specific, “fit-for-purpose” management and planning protocols for use across a data center portfolio or within a single facility. The M&O program provides a roadmap to align specific organizational strategies to help clients achieve critical business objectives for their digital infrastructure, such as risk reduction, reduced downtime, and improved operational efficiency.


In today’s market, data center operations programs and procedures must demonstrate flexibility and adaptability to address a proliferation of challenges. These include supply chain issues and staffing challenges, new industry and governmental regulations, and an increasing focus on comprehensive cyber and physical security. Even more demanding is the need for data center operations to evolve to meet the still nebulous yet rapidly scaling demands required to incorporate and support new technologies such as AI, liquid cooling adoption, and the increasing power density of racks impacting the way data centers can and should be operated. Operations teams must be prepared to anticipate and respond to accelerating change, and the new M&O Stamp of Approval provides the comprehensive framework to address the ever-expanding number of challenges and risks to critical facilities.


“In this more complex and challenging environment, efficient and effective data center operations are more critical than ever,” said Christopher Brown, Chief Technical Officer, Uptime Institute. “To achieve sustainable operational resiliency, an end-to-end approach that is both nuanced and complete is required to identify potential vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and data center operational risks. The new M&O Stamp of Approval addresses both recent and evolving developments across digital infrastructure portfolios with varying deployments, whether Enterprise, HPC, Cloud, or Colocation.”


The new Uptime M&O program includes evaluation on two fundamental fronts, data center operations performance and data center staffing. In each area, proven Uptime protocols are deployed to identify risks on and across multiple levels, and in a variety of clear pathways to remediate the identified risk.


The M&O Stamp of Approval evaluates data center operations with a focus on continuous improvement across 7 key segments of operations: Personnel Management; Maintenance; Facility Management & Optimization; Health, Safety & Security; Emergency Preparedness and Response; Planning, Coordination; and overall Quality Management.


Human capital management is essential to improved operational resilience. Having the right people with the right skills is crucial to every part of the data center lifecycle, from planning to design and from construction to operations to ensure reliability and availability. The 2024 Uptime Resiliency Survey shows that 66-80% of outages are still caused by human error, with a leading factor being individuals failing to follow procedures. Ongoing assessment of the specific human factor risks in a given location and across a portfolio operation continues to be the most potent lever that organizations can use to identify and address knowledge or confidence gaps that can lead to misapplied knowledge, lapses, and failures in a data center workplace.


In the expanded M&O program, operations staff will benefit from access to Uptime’s proprietary Competency & Confidence Assessment Modeling (CCAM®). CCAM results will identify training and growth opportunities for each member of staff, whether at the time of recruitment, onboarding, or on an ongoing basis. Managers can now quickly identify risks associated with specific individuals and mitigate these by providing a customized roadmap for precision training. M&O with CCAM® provides a complete, standardized, globally recognized assessment that enables data center operations teams to perform at their best. It ensures that hidden inefficiencies, gaps in skills or understanding and the associated risks do not impact the organization.


Data centers are an ever-increasingly complex and dynamic system of active components with an absolute dependency on qualified and well-trained staff to keep them all running. While operations tasks are too often considered as just a bundle of various tactical efforts, and teams as just a collection of individuals, assuring the overall effectiveness in improving operational resilience is the single most strategic investment that can be made to protect a digital-enabled business. Failure to recognize and address the human element as an ongoing priority can derail an organization’s entire digital business service delivery strategy.


Using the principles found in the globally recognized Tier Standard of Operational Sustainability, Uptime Institute has already assessed over 1,000 data center operations programs worldwide, helping organizations independently validate the effectiveness of their critical facilities management and the operational practices of their existing data centers. The new M&O program ensures organizations can remain competitive today and reliably prepare to meet the growing challenges faced by all data centers and digital infrastructure globally.


Learn More:


Register for “The Importance of Prioritizing Operational Resiliency and Highly Evolved Data Center Infrastructure” webinar discussing how to support reliable, secure, and effective data center operations, November 14th at 9:00 AM PST (9:00 AM PST, 12:00 PM EST, and 5:00 PM GMT).


About Uptime Institute


Uptime Institute is the Global Digital Infrastructure Authority. With over 3,500 awards issued in over 118 countries around the globe, and over 1,100 currently active projects in 80+ countries, Uptime has helped tens of thousands of companies optimize critical IT assets while managing costs, resources, and efficiency.


For over 30 years, the company has established industry-leading benchmarks for data center performance, resilience, sustainability, and efficiency, which provide customers assurance that their digital infrastructure can perform across a wide array of operating conditions at a level consistent with their individual business needs. Uptime’s Tier Standard is the IT industry’s most trusted and adopted global standard for the design, construction, and operation of data centers. Offerings include the organization’s Tier Standard and Certifications, Management & Operations reviews and assessments including SCIRA-FSI financial sector risk assessment, the Sustainability Assessment, and a broad range of additional risk management, performance, availability, and related offerings. Uptime Education training programs have been successfully completed by over 90,000 data center professionals, such as the much-vaunted ATD (Accredited Tier Designer) and AOS (Accredited Operations Specialist). More recently, the Uptime Education curriculum has been expanded by the acquisition of CNet Training, Ltd. in 2023.


Uptime Institute is headquartered in New York, NY, with main offices in London, Sao Paulo, Dubai, Riyadh, Singapore, and Taipei, Madrid and full-time Uptime professionals based in over 34 countries around the world. For more information, please visit uptimeinstitute.com.


 


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Contacts

Brenda South

206-706-4647

bsouth@uptimeinstitute.com

Sunday, November 10, 2024

SEKISUI CHEMICAL: Filing of Lawsuit Seeking Injunction and Damages for Patent Infringement in Relation to PVB Interlayer in Germany and Korea


 TOKYO - 

(BUSINESS WIRE)--The High Performance Plastics Company (President: Ikusuke Shimizu) of SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (President and Representative Director: Keita Kato; hereinafter “SEKISUI CHEMICAL”) has filed lawsuits for infringement of its European patent 2 017 237 (“EP ’237”), European patent 3 208 247 (“EP ’247”), European patent 3 357 888 (“EP ’888”) and European patent 3 392 222 (“EP ’222”) against Kuraray Europe GmbH (hereinafter “Kuraray Europe”), a subsidiary of Kuraray Co., Ltd., as the defendant before the District Courts Munich I (docket No. 7 O 12401/24, docket No. 7 O 12476/24 and docket No. 7 O 12477/24) and Mannheim (docket No. 2 O 92/24) in Germany.


The lawsuits based on EP ’237 and EP ’247 relating to sound control properties of a PVB Interlayer and based on EP ’888 relating to shrinkage properties of a PVB Interlayer owned by SEKISUI CHEMICAL and asserted before the District Court Munich I, seek, inter alia, injunctions against the manufacture and offering for sale etc. of “‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic” and “‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic Shadeband” sound insulation wedge products manufactured and offered for sale by Kuraray Europe in Germany, as well as, inter alia, declaratory judgments on liability for damages.


The lawsuit based on EP ’222 relating to glossiness for a PVB Interlayer, owned by SEKISUI CHEMICAL and asserted before the District Court Mannheim, seeks, inter alia, an injunction against the manufacture and offering for sale etc. of “‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic” and “‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic Shadeband” sound insulation wedge products manufactured and offered for sale by Kuraray Europe in Germany, as well as, inter alia, a declaratory judgement on liability for damages.


SEKISUI CHEMICAL has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Kuraray Korea Ltd. (hereinafter “Kuraray Korea”), a subsidiary of Kuraray Co., Ltd., as the defendant in the Seoul Central District Court of Korea.


Based on the Korean patent for PVB Interlayer owned by SEKISUI CHEMICAL, the lawsuit seeks an injunction against the manufacture and sale, etc. in Korea of ‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic and ‘Trosifol’ The Wedge Acoustic Shadeband, sound insulation wedge products manufactured and sold by Kuraray Korea, and damages.


SEKISUI CHEMICAL regards its intellectual property rights as an important management resource. It will take strict action in cases where it determines that SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group’s intellectual property rights have been infringed.


About SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group


Headquartered in Japan, SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (TSE: 4204) and its subsidiaries make up the SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group. 26,000 employees in over 156 companies throughout 20 countries and regions aim to contribute to improving the lives of the people of the world and the earth’s environment. Thanks to a history of innovation, dedication and a pioneering spirit, SEKISUI CHEMICAL now holds leading positions in its three diverse business divisions as well as top global market share in interlayer film, foam products, conductive particles and more.


Disclaimer


This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements due to changes in global economic, business, competitive market and regulatory factors.


 


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Contacts

 

SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD.

Corporate Communication Department

Email: kouhou@sekisui.com

Saturday, November 9, 2024

ITEN to Launch the Industrial-Scale Production of Its All-Solid-State Battery Powency Product Family

 DARDILLY, France - Friday, 08. November 2024 AETOSWire 


(BUSINESS WIRE) -- Electronica 2024 Trade Fair--ITEN, a pioneer in the development and production of solid-state batteries for electronics markets, today announced the production launch of its new Powency family of rechargeable Li-ion batteries. The new family consists of high-power density batteries, including for now the PWY0150S battery, available in pre-production, and the PWY0250S battery, available as engineering samples. Those first Powency batteries respectively have a capacity of 150µAh and 250µAh. The Powency product family, which is manufactured at the ITEN facility in France, is a testament to the demonstration of ITEN's technological and industrial leadership in the field of solid-state batteries.


ITEN will participate in the Electronica trade show in Munich from November 12 to 15, 2024 (Hall B4 - Stand E05) to showcase both PWY0150S and PWY0250S.


Powency PWY0150S and PWY0250S, solid-state energy storage in an unmatched form factor

The Powency PWS0150S and PWS0250S batteries are designed to deliver energy peaks to connected devices or to power electronic systems during a power outage. Both products feature a high-power density in an ultra-compact design, measuring 25mm³ and weighing 73 milligrams; they can supply the current levels required by connected devices operating with LAN wireless protocols. The Powency PWS0150S and PWS0250S are available as SMD devices, enabling an easy integration with automated production lines. Powency PWS0150S and PWS0250S are based on ITENS' all-solid-state battery technologies, contain no heavy metals, toxic chemicals or organic solvents, and can be recycled as passive electronic components.


Powency PWY0150S and PWY0250S, designed to address the energy efficiency challenges for the IoT and maintenance-free wireless sensors

Powering low-power, small-form-factor devices is a major obstacle in the emergence and broad implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT). The Powency products will enable IoT device makers to build high-performance Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), 802.15.4, or NFC systems in an unrivaled form factor. They facilitate the widespread use of maintenance-free devices that harvest energy from external sources such as indoor or outdoor ambient light, ambient radio waves, and / or kinetic motion. PWY0150S is currently being manufactured in pre-series for numerous early-stage customers and serves as the ideal energy reservoir in autonomous sensors that are powered by Energy Harvesting.


Powency PWY0150S and PWY0250S, "Sustainability by design, process, and function"

The Powency product family, like all ITEN-developed products, is designed and manufactured to minimize its environmental impact and adhere to the company’s motto "sustainability by design, by process and by function." ITEN batteries are composed of ceramic, and are free of organic materials and critical metals like cobalt. They are rechargeable and completely recyclable.


Vincent Cobée, CEO of ITEN, said: "Our presence at the Electronica Trade Show, this essential event in the electronics industry, is very important for ITEN, at a key moment in the company’s growth. The commercial introduction and mass production of the Powency product family have indeed marked a significant milestone in the company's evolution. We were able to develop solutions that the market expected, in terms of both product and integration into our clients' various industrial processes, to provide a sustainable, high-performance, and genuinely integrated response. The trajectory will be further accelerated in the upcoming months by the introduction of a new battery that is even more potent, as well as the offering of two distinct solutions.”


More information available on www.iten.com


 


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Contacts

Press: Corinne Cosma (press@iten.com)

The International Film Criticism Conference is launched in Riyadh

 

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 08 November 2024:

The Saudi Film Commission announced the commencement of the second edition of the International Film Criticism Conference in Riyadh, running from November 6 to 10, 2024. The conference is distinguished by a vast presence of international filmmakers, critics, and cinephiles.

 

The second edition of the Film Criticism Conference is held under the theme "Sound in Cinema", to explore the various impacts of sound on the film experience and its influence on the film industry. The discussions will cover different elements such as film scores, sound effects, and nature sounds. The conference will also include workshops, film screenings, and interactive exhibits.

 

The opening ceremony started with an introductory video about the conference, its objectives, and past achievements, followed by a speech by the CEO of the Saudi Film Commission, Mr. Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Qahtani, expressing the idea behind this year’s theme stating that: " The Saudi Film Commission is dedicated to establishing, developing, and sustaining a strong and vibrant film industry, in line with Saudi Vision 2030.” Al-Qahtani also stated that “The Film Commission focuses on empowering criticism as an intellectual and artistic tool that illuminates the path of cinema and opens new prospects for it. He adds, "From this perspective, this conference has been created as a platform to bring together critics and cinematic innovators, providing them the opportunity to exchange ideas and experiences, ultimately leading to the formation of a deeper Arabic cinematic awareness that elevates our film sector to international levels, while staying true our authentic culture and identity.".

 

The ceremony also included a speech by prominent Saudi director, Mr. Abdullah Al-Mohaisen, who stated: "Film criticism relies on sentient, honest, and purposeful criticism. It is the dynamic driver of development and creativity for the director. Cinema is and will always be a message before being anything else." Al-Mohaisen’s speech was followed by a screening of the film “Assassination of a City”, a pioneering Saudi documentary that won several international awards. A follow-up discussion was held between the director and moderated by film critics Ahmad Shawqi and Ahmad Alayyad.

The International Film Criticism Conference is organized by the Saudi Film Commission. Prior to this conference, two other film criticism events were held this year, Hail on September 27 and Al-Ahsa on October 25.

*Source: AETOSWire

Contact:

Nasry Abou Zaki

nasry@jcn.marketing