Global Pension Systems Ill-Prepared to Deal with Demographic Changes
Life expectancy has declined in many countries due to COVID-19 pandemic, but pensions systems across the world has remained ill-prepared to deal with demographic changes as the ageing of societies continues to accelerate, according to a new report from Allianz.
Annual Investment Meeting Highlights Digital Transformation, Financial Inclusion and Sustainable Finance in the Arab World
Abu Dhabi, UAE, May 2023: The 12th edition of The Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) hosted interactive and insightful discussions on digital transformation, financial inclusion and sustainable finance in the Arab world at the “Future Finance Forum,” which took place at the Sustainability Room of the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Centre. The opening ceremony featured welcome […]
Annual Investment Meeting witnesses the launch of UNCTAD World Investment Forum 2023
James Zhan, Executive Director, UNCTAD World Investment Forum, announced the launch of ‘UNCTAD World Investment Forum 2023’ at the 12th edition of the Annual Investment Meeting at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Centre. Taking place under the theme ‘Investing in sustainable development’, the forum, which will be held in October will bring together government leaders, global CEOs and other investment stakeholders.
Humanity International Investments: DRC and UAE to Collaborate on Economic Cooperation, Investment, and Infrastructure as discussed at Annual Investment Meeting
The 12th edition of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) announced today that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the United Arab Emirates will collaborate on various projects focused on economic cooperation, investment, and infrastructure in addition to promoting humanitarian assistance efforts.
Fintech startups in The UAE
The United Arab Emirates has become a hub for fintech startups due to a tech-savvy population and supportive government policies. With the ADGM open banking framework and regulation for crypto assets activities, UAE regulators are keeping up with technological advancements while ensuring data privacy and protection. The challenges for foreign fintech companies looking to operate in the UAE include data processing restrictions and obtaining a local license, but with the right partnerships, these hurdles can be overcome to tap into the immense potential of emerging markets.
Overall, the UAE remains a globally competitive country in fintech, with regulators committed to staying ahead of the curve.
Baltic Wind Connector Project To be Developed Between Germany and Estonia
50Hertz, the German electricity transmission system operator (TSO), and its counterparts from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on Tuesday have agreed to jointly develop a hybrid submarine cable project “Baltic WindConnector” in the Baltic Sea between Estonia and Germany.
OCBC Bank Launches New Net-Zero Aligned Loan for Corporates
To encourage the corporate sector to reach net zero targets well in time, the Singapore-based Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) has launched a new net-zero-aligned loan for corporates.
Mobile Sector Adds $5.2 Trillion to Global Economy
Mobile technologies and services generated 5% of global GDP, a contribution that amounted to $5.2 trillion of economic value added. The greatest benefits came from productivity effects, which reached $3.5 trillion, followed by mobile operators, which generated $650 billion.
Food Delivery Service CoLab Joins List of Firms in Ceasing Operations in Australia
CoLab, the Australian food delivery service, has announced winding up its operations last week. CoLab, is the seventh food delivery brand that have closed their operations in Australia in the last one year.
CoLab is a direct-to-customer retailer website and has entered voluntary administration last Thursday after failing to gain a fresh round of funding. failing to gain financing to continue its operations. It was launched as part of a collaboration between ChefPrep and Co-lab Pantry.
In a LinkedIn post, CoLab’s co-founder and CEO Josh Abulafia said that the company’s staff had been made redundant. “It’s been a tough day for CoLab and unfortunately we have had to let the team go,” he posted.
“As a quick background we (were) in the process of closing out a new round of financing that fell through. We then had significant interest for the company to be acquired and decided to put the company into VA to help, but due to unforeseen events our timelines became truncated,” Abulafia added.
One of the major reasons for the closure of these brands is said to be challenging economic conditions resulting in a rise in the cost of living where consumers have less money to spend.
Other Firms
Earlier, Sydney-based MilkRun, which was in the headlines for promising to deliver groceries within 10 minutes a customer placed order. The firm raised more than $5759 million from some of the biggest names in Australian venture capital, including Atlassian billionare Mike Cannon-Brookes.
In an internal email to the employees on Tuesday last, MilkRuns co-founder and chief executive Dany Milham said: “I am writing to let you know that we have made the difficult decision to wind down the business, and as a result, MilkRun will cease trading this Friday.”
According to Australian media reports, despite banking an impressive $75 million funding round led by a US venture capital firm in 2022, Milham blamed worsening economic conditions for the shock collapse.
Dany Milham had already found success with fast-delivering mattress company Koala. Less than a year ago he was confidently predicting MilkRun would be bigger than Coles or Woolworths within ten years.
The other five delivery service firms, which shut down in the Australian market, included three local startups promising 10-minute deliveries – ‘Send’ in May 2022, ‘Voly’ and British-owned ‘Deliveroo,’ both of which ceased operations in November 2022.
DashMart, which was launched in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane by food courier platform DoorDash in January 2023 claiming it would succeed where its rivals had failed, closed its operations last month.
While Melbourne food delivery platform Providoor became the sixth delivery firm to enter liquidation last month, Germany’s Foodora collapsed in August 2018.
299 IPOs Raise $21.5 Billion in Global Markets in Q1-2023
The global markets witnessed as many as 299 Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) raising $21.5 billion in Q1-2023 owing to interest rate rises, a lukewarm stock market, entrenched inflation, and unexpected global banking industry turbulence.
