Road To Success of UOB Bank, A Singapore Bank With Global Presence

Founded by Datuk Wee Kheng Chiang, UOB was incorporated on 6 August 1935 as the United Chinese Bank; the change of name was effected in 1965. The Bank catered mainly to the Fujian community in its early years but over the past decades, UOB has grown in strength and stature. Through a series of acquisitions, it is now a leading bank in Asia. Besides Far Eastern Bank in Singapore, UOB’s major banking subsidiaries in the region are United Overseas Bank (Malaysia), United Overseas Bank (Thailand), PT Bank UOB Indonesia and United Overseas Bank (China). Today, the UOB Group has a network of more than 500 offices in 19 countries and territories in Asia Pacific, Western Europe and North America.

United Overseas Bank Limited (commonly known as UOB; simplified Chinese: 大华银行有限公司; traditional Chinese: 大華銀行有限公司; pinyin: Dàhuá Yínháng Yǒuxìan Gōngsī;) is a Singaporean multinational banking organisation headquartered in Singapore, with branches mostly found in most Southeast Asian countries. Founded in 1935 as United Chinese Bank (UCB) by Sarawak businessman Wee Kheng Chiang, the bank was set up together with a group of Chinese-born businessmen. The bank is the third largest bank in Southeast Asia by total assets.

UOB provides commercial and corporate banking services, personal financial services, private banking and asset management services, as well as corporate finance, venture capital, investment, and Insurance services. It has 68 branches in Singapore and a network of more than 500 offices in 19 countries and territories in Asia Pacific, Western Europe and North America.

History

On 6 August 1935, businessman Wee Kheng Chiang, together with six other friends, established the bank after raising S$1 million. The bank was named United Chinese Bank (UCB) to emphasise its links to the Chinese population in Singapore. In October 1935, UCB opened for business in the three-story Bonham Building. In 1965, the bank was renamed to United Overseas Bank and opened its first overseas branch in Hong Kong.

In 1970, UOB was listed on the Joint Stock Exchange of Singapore and Malaysia, at that time the stock exchange have an office in both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. After it was publicly listed, the bank went through a series of targeted acquisitions. The bank first acquired the controlling stake of Chung Khiaw Bank in 1971, which expanded its domestic presence and also gave the bank offices in Malaysia and Hong Kong. A new logo for both United Overseas Bank and Chung Khiaw Bank was launched in January 1972.

In 1973, UOB then acquired Lee Wah Bank, which provided services in Malaysia and Singapore. In that same year, the bank built a new 30-storey office tower in place of the Bonham Building, which was named the UOB Building (now known as UOB Plaza 2).[10] The company continued with acquisitions, with Far Eastern Bank in 1984, Westmont Bank (now known as UOB Philippines) and Radanasin Bank (now known as United Overseas Bank (Thai) Public Company Limited) in 1999. The bank then merged with the Overseas Union Bank Limited (OUB) in a deal estimated to be worth S$10 billion in 2001.


In 2002, UOB started expanding into the Chinese market by opening a new full-service branch office in Shanghai and upgrading of its Beijing office to a full-service branch. UOB has branches and offices located across Asia Pacific, North America and Western Europe, with most of their operations located mainly in Southeast Asian countries such as Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.



Go Mobile banking

United Overseas Bank launched its free mobile UOB Mobile application. Mobile Cash, a key feature of this application, allows all UOB customers to send cash to any registered recipient who can withdraw the money from more than 600 UOB ATMs in Singapore. Initially only available on the Apple Appstore, the application soon became available to users of Android and Blackberry smartphones.[31]

Digital banking

UOB announced that it will launch TMRW (the first mobile-only bank) with Thailand the first country to get this service. More ASEAN countries will get this service in the coming months, in a push to cater to millennials who mainly use mobile phones for banking. UOB aims to attract three to five million users for this service in the next five years.[32]

The Success Story of Ninja Van In Logistic Business

In just five years, the 32-year-old entrepreneur has built up a multimillion-dollar international express delivery business responsible for delivering a million parcels a day on behalf of some of Southeast Asia’s biggest retailers. But it wasn’t always an easy ride for the Ninja Van CEO. In fact, it took three abandoned corporate careers and one failed fashion line for Lai and his co-founders, Boxian Tan and Shaun Chong, kick-start their entrepreneurial vision.

“It’s been a long journey,” Lai recently told CNBC Make It.

Starting up
It all started back in 2015. Lai had recently quit his job as a Barclays trader to capitalize on Singapore’s booming e-commerce market and launch a men’s online fashion line with friends Tan and Chong.

“Every time we had an online customer we went ’wow, that’s really easy to get a customer, no shop, nothing required,” said Lai.

But as the young founders soon found out, making sales was just the beginning.

Foolishly I said: ‘Why don’t we open a logistics company to solve this problem.’
Chang Wen Lai
CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, NINJA VAN
“The pain only hit after that when we had to deliver the parcel,” said Lai, who relied on local couriers to get his orders out. “I think the entire logistics industry was not set up for e-commerce at that point in time.”

So, he decided to do something about it.

“I thought ‘how hard can it be?’ Just get a load of trucks, make sure you deliver on your promises and get it done. So foolishly I said: ‘Why don’t we open a logistics company to solve this problem: It should be easy, in a year we should be done and let’s find something else to do,’” Lai recalled.

Hitting the road
Weeks later, the trio were up and running, pooling their savings to buy a second-hand van and leaving behind stable jobs in finance and engineering to create a technology-driven delivery service.

Initially, they ran the company, named Ninja Van, in tandem with their fashion line, figuring it was “highly synergistic” to have one business generating volume for another.

Ninja Van's co-founders deliver their early orders with a second-hand van.
Ninja Van’s co-founders deliver their early orders with a second-hand van.Ninja Van
But after a year of juggling both, something had to give: The friends shut down their clothing business to focus on Ninja Van full time.

“We realized that the fashion business wasn’t necessarily our forte,” joked Lai. “We decided let’s focus on a business which we felt could scale a lot better — and not just in Singapore, but across the region.”

A growing opportunity
Though he didn’t know it then, Lai was onto something.

Back in 2014, Southeast Asia was home to one of the world’s fast-growing e-commerce markets, thanks to rising internet penetration and an expanding middle class. Yet, when it came to delivering orders, the region was lagging behind.

I would say I knew more about the micro aspects than the macro trend when I started it.
Chang Wen Lai
CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, NINJA VAN
According to the World Bank, Southeast Asian nations, with the exception of Singapore, consistently rank poorly for logistics infrastructure due to the region’s fragmented geographic landscape and poor government planning.

“I would say I knew more about the micro aspects than the macro trend when I started it,” noted Lai.

“It was: ‘I’m an e-commerce seller, I know the pain points, I know how to solve it,” he continued. “We thought a bit less about ’this is a big macro trend, e-commerce is going to grow in ways we never imagined.”

Fast expansion
The founders soon found they weren’t the only ones looking for a modernized delivery solution.

Months after launching the service in Singapore , Ninja Van expanded to Malaysia and Indonesia in 2015. By 2016, the business was live in Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand.

The company now claims to have 100% coverage in each of those markets, and plans to go live in Brunei later this year.

Ninja Van's co-founders Boxian Tan, Chang Wen Lai and Shaun Chong.
Ninja Van’s co-founders Boxian Tan, Chang Wen Lai and Shaun Chong.Ninja Van
Lai said he believes that has everything to do with Ninja Van’s technology-led model, which has enabled the business to scale quickly and empower its drivers, known as Ninjas, to efficiently sort and deliver orders — even in the most remote locations.

Indeed, in 2014, Ninja Van became the first logistics company in Singapore to provide real-time tracking updates. It later harnessed algorithms to optimize route deliveries and save on fuel.

“The less people have to think, the more scalable a business gets, the more consistent a business gets,” said Lai.

Dealing with competition
Those innovations will be crucial if the company is to grow its customer base as competition heats up.

Ninja Van is one of a host of logistics firms, including GoGoVan, Lalamove and Logivan, to launch over Asia in the last few years — and they show no signs of abating.

In fact, Southeast Asia’s third-party logistics market is expected to grow at an annual rate of more than 5% over the next five years to be worth $55.7 billion by 2025.

I think continuing to focus on growing their revenue at a sustainable rate will put them in the right position to take advantage of any opportunity.
Kuo-Yi Lim
MANAGING PARTNER, MONK’S HILL VENTURES
But the CEO said he’s confident he can set his business apart. That includes by directly employing his fleet of 20,000 drivers, who, unlike the freelancers used by competitors, Lai said have a vested interest in ensuring the business is built to last.

“The reality in our business is it is not as though one day we have a million parcels and the next we have 10. There’s a baseload requirement,” said Lai.

“The baseload requirement is best served by people who know they are being taken care of, by people who are experienced in their job, by people who are tech-enabled.”

Sustainable growth
As the three entrepreneurs continue to expand the company, reaching profitability will now be a key goal. Lai said the company is profitable in some countries; in some others it is “close.”

Kuo-Yi Lim of Monk’s Hill Ventures, one of Ninja Van’s early investors, told CNBC Make It that’s a target he set for the founders early on.

Lim, who took a stake in 2014, said he told the founders then to focus on two things: Growing revenues and doing so sustainably.

“I think continuing to focus on growing their revenue at a sustainable rate will put them in the right position to take advantage of any opportunity from a financial perspective,” he said, highlighting possible future initial public offerings or strategic partnerships.

Ninja Van staff assembled at the express delivery company's Singapore warehouse.
Ninja Van staff assembled at the express delivery company’s Singapore warehouse.Ninja Van
Already the company has struck up a deal with ride-hailing giant Grab, which enables users to access the delivery service via the Grab app.

In 2018, the business also received a record-breaking $87 million series C funding round from investors including European delivery group DPD. That took the company’s total funding raised to $300 million, which some say could put it on course to become one of Southeast Asia’s next $1 billion unicorns.

But Lai said he wants to ensure that journey remains slow and steady.

“We are not growing at all costs, we are growing in a responsible manner,” he said. “To me it’s very clear: Focus on the people, focus on our customers, and build services around them. Do all that, you will get profitable.”  (Source ; CNBC)

Hyundai Oilbank has developed a new system that can detect oil leaks from underground pipes

Hyundai Oilbank said Thursday it has developed a new system that can detect oil leaks from underground pipes at gas stations to help prevent environment pollution. According to the South Korean refiner, Hyundai Oil Leakage Monitoring Expert System, or Holmes, can detect and locate oil leaks from old pipes buried underneath gas stations, preventing possible soil contamination that can cost millions of dollars for restoration.

“Leaks from oil tanks can be easily checked by gauges, but leaks from pipes require professional help as they are buried underground. By attaching Holmes to oil pipes connected to dispensers, staff can easily monitor for anomalies,” a company official said.

Hyundai Oilbank has filed a patent application for Holmes.

The refiner is reviewing the deployment of Holmes to 306 SK Networks gas stations it acquired on June 1.

http://www.koreaherald.com/

EDGC will acquire its subsidiary to improve finance and management efficiency

Korean genomics company EDGC will acquire EDGC HealthCare, its subsidiary famous for the COVID-19 detection kit, DiaPlexQ, to improve finance and management efficiency. The merger is expected to be completed on Aug. 6, an EDGC official said Wednesday.

"The merger is expected to bring about more investment into EDGC's genetic technology for predicting, detecting and treating diseases," the official told The Korea Times. "It is also expected to increase the company value and shareholders' interests."

A prognosis method, which uses gene sequencing to detect cancerous cell-bound circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) hidden in circulating free DNA (cfDNA) in blood, is among EDGC's best-known technologies.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, EDGC HealthCare has exported its coronavirus detection kits and rapid antibody test kits, which can deliver results in just two minutes, to more than 50 countries, including the United States and Germany. The company's revenue and operating profits this year are estimated to be about 120 billion won (#97.2 million) and 25 billion won, respectively, a major leap from 41.4 billion won and 1.3 billion won in 2018.

"Thanks to EDGC's global network, EDGC HealthCare could export its coronavirus test kits to the United States and Europe," EDGC HealthCare CEO Lee Myung-hee said in a statement.

"We expect the merger to strengthen business support for test kit sales overseas."

Arkema France Acquired By SK Global Chemical

SK Global Chemical, a chemical affiliate of the nation's energy giant SK Innovation, completed the acquisition of Arkema France SA, a functional polyolefins business, Wednesday. Last October, the Korean company announced plans to acquire the French chemical company for 335 million euros ($375 million) in a bid to boost its packaging business to enhance its presence in the global high value-added packaging market.

Under the deal, SK Global Chemical has obtained the business rights of Arkema's three out of four production facilities, technology and marketing talents.

The company expects to strengthen the technology and expand its packaging industry and their competitiveness.

Functional polyolefins are chemical components widely utilized in diverse industries including the development of electric and non-electric vehicles.

Through the acquisition, SK Global Chemical will obtain technologies to self-produce functional polyolefins, where before the company heavily relied on imports.


The acquisition comes after the company purchased the ethylene acrylic acid (EAA) and polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) businesses from U.S.-based Dow Chemical in 2017 to expand into North America and build a solid ground for growth in the packaging industry.

The deal will enable SK Global Chemical to secure production and sales networks, technology and marketing talent in Europe as well as a large European client base.

"As we have finished the acquisition of functional polyolefins business not only are we able to speed up implementation of our 'green growth strategy', but also strengthen our competitiveness in the global market," Na Kyung-soo, CEO of SK Global Chemical, said.

SK Telecom Develop QRNG Chipset for Mobile Phones

SK Telecom said it has developed what it claims is the industry's first miniaturized quantum random number generator (QRNG) chipset for mobile phones and that the technology will soon be widely integrated in diverse industries including AI and autonomous vehicles.

The chipset is the industry's smallest QRNG (2.5 x 2.5mm). It helps accelerate data transmission and strengthens privacy by generating unpredictable and pattern-less pure random numbers that are applied in identification and certification procedures, SK said.

The chipset uses a light-emitting diode (LED) to create photons that are captured by the CMOS image sensors. The photons are then transformed to produce random numbers, making it impossible for a third party to infiltrate the system.
Since 2016, SKT, with its partners BTREE and Switzerland-based ID Quantique (IDQ), have been developing the QRNG chipset for mobile phones.

After SKT acquired IDQ in 2018, the development process gained further momentum, allowing the company to take the title as world's first producer of this state-of-the art technology
A miniaturized  mobile chipset 2.5mm x 2.5mm. / Courtesy of SKT
The quantum cryptography solution is widely recognized for its implementation in Samsung Electronics' latest mid-tier smartphone the Galaxy A Quantum, which was released on May 22.

According to SKT, the Galaxy A Quantum is the first smartphone with a QRNG chipset, which drastically strengthens mobile communication security by generating random numbers based on quantum crypto technology.

In 2018, SKT and BTREE also collaborated in developing QRNG chipsets that were embedded in internet of things (loT) products and driverless vehicles. They were 5mm x 5mm. The technology was the foundation in successfully commercializing and miniaturizing the mobile QRNG chipset (2.5 x 2.5mm).

The QRNG chipset began in the form of a USB in 2016, but has evolved over the years, going through over a million test runs just for the mobile unit.

The IDQ provided the quantum random number sequence technology while BTREE was in charge of the semiconductor aspect.

BTREE, which was established in 2014, specializes in image sensors and semi-conductor chipsets and has been supplying products to leading semi-conductor manufacturers.

Currently, the company is brainstorming ways to slim down the mobile QRNG chipset to better satisfy global smartphone manufacturers.

"The width and the length of the chip are fine, but we are trying to slim down the thickness, which currently stands at 0.8mm. But we want to get it down to 0.7mm and later further down to 0.6mm as that is what the smartphone manufacturers are requesting," Tom Kim, vice president of BTREE, told reporters at the company in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.

SKT, in cooperation with its partner companies, plans to continue expanding quantum security-based services and create new business opportunities in various areas such as 5G networks, IoT, autonomous driving and cloud computing. It also plans to supply its mobile ORNG chipsets to other global smartphone manufacturers.

"We are supplying our product to global smartphone, loT, and driverless vehicles companies," Uhm Sang-yun, country manager at IDQ, said. "We will need time to evaluate the stability of the product, but we have satisfied Samsung's standards, so we believe it could satisfy other companies as well."

This Company Is Largest Seafood Exporter From Indonesia

This Company Is Largest Seafood Exporter From Indonesia

Top 10 Leading Shrimp Exporter From Indonesia

Top 10 Leading Shrimp Exporter From Indonesia

Top 10 Leading Coal Exporters From Indonesia

Here is top 10 Leading Coal Exporter From Indonesia

This Indonesian Company Named Among Largest Poultry Companies of Asia

Here are the top 6:

New Hope Liuhe

New Hope Liuhe is clearly the largest broiler company in Asia, according to 2017 figures, having slaughtered 1.3 billion broilers annually. It ranks fourth globally in terms of broiler production, trailing only JBS, Tyson Foods and BRF. The company, headquartered in Beijing, has 14 processing plants and 200 feed mills. New Hope Liuhe is also involved in duck production.

Wen’s Food Group

Wen’s Food Group slaughtered 807 million chickens in 2017, making it Asia’s second-largest poultry company. It ranks fifth worldwide among broiler companies. Based in Yunfu City, China, Wen’s is a leading producer of poultry and pigs in China, having consolidated 170 companies to encompass 53,000 family farms across China. It sells in more than 20 provinces and municipalities. It is also involved in duck production.

CP Group

CP Group, also known as Charoen Pokphand Group, is Thailand’s largest poultry company and ranks third among Asian broiler companies, having slaughtered 685.5 million chickens in 2017. Worldwide, it is the sixth largest broiler company. It also ranks first globally among feed producers. It’s poultry operations include broilers, ducks and table eggs.

Suguna Foods

Based in Coimbatore, India, Suguna Foods is Asia’s fourth-largest broiler companies and the world’s 15th largest broiler company. It slaughtered 400 million chickens in 2017. It has 60 hatcheries, one slaughter plant and one processing plant. Its automated feed mill is the largest in India.

Doyoo Group

Doyoo Group, of Zhengzhou City, China, is in a fifth-sixth tie among Asian poultry companies and also ties with Sunner Development Co. for third place among those from China. It slaughtered 380 million broilers in 2017.

Sunner Development Co.

Based in Guangze, China, Sunner Development Co. ties with Soyoo Group as the fifth-sixth largest poultry company, slaughtering 380 million broilers in 2017. It has two processing plants, three hatcheries and three feed mills.

This Company named Sri Lanka’s Top Exporter

Sri Lanka-based Brandix Group, a manufacturer and exporter of end-to-end apparel solutions, has again emerged as the ‘top exporter’ of the country for the fifth consecutive year. The company has been honoured with the ‘Exporter of the Year’ Award at Presidential Export Awards held recently. Maithripala Sirisena, President of Sri Lanka presented the award to the apparel manufacturer.

Presidential Export Awards, organised by Sri Lanka’s Export Development Board (EDB), is an initiative to encourage the exporters for their significant contribution to Sri Lanka’s overall exports.

Brandix, with an annual turnover of US $ 750 million, is one of the key contributors to the country’s total apparel exports. The company bagged all of the top awards in the export category.

The apparel supplier won the Highest Employment Provider Award in the Export Industry as well. It currently employs over 48,000 employees at its around 42 manufacturing facilities in Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh.

At the event, Brandix was also presented with Excellence in Sustainable Development, Highest Net Foreign Exchange Earner in the Export Industry and Highest Foreign Exchange Earner in the Apparel Sector awards.

The Brandix Group now has 30 awards to its name.

Ashroff Omar, CEO, Brandix commented, “Our commitment to the idea of being a provider of inspired solutions to global apparel brands drives everything we do. Our approach of consistently adding value to our offering help us in keeping Sri Lanka’s apparel industry competitive in the global arena.”

Essar Group akuisisi tambang batu bara di Kaltim

Essar Group, perusahaan multinasional berbasis baja, energi, tenaga listrik, komunikasi, logistik, konstruksi dan mineral, asal India, mengakuisisi perusahaan tambang batu bara Aries di Kutai, Kalimantan Timur.

Direktur Essar Group Anshuman Ruia mengatakan pihaknya telah menandatangani perjanjian definitif atas pembelian perusahaan tambang batu bara tersebut. Dia berharap seluruh proses transaksi bisa dituntaskan pada April ini.

Kesepakatan itu, ujarnya, memberikan kesempatan bagi Essar Power (anak usaha Essar Group India) untuk memiliki kesediaan sumber daya mineral hingga 100 juta ton batu bara dengan perkiraan cadangan sebesar 64 juta ton.

“Transaksi ini adalah bagian dari strategi Essar Power untuk terus mencapai integrasi antarperusahaan Essar dan mengamankan kebutuhan bahan baku operasi,” terang Ruia dalam keterangan pers yang diterima wartawan perindustrian, hari ini. Namun, dia tak menjelaskan secara rinci soal nilai akuisisi tersebut.

Advisor PT Essar Indonesia Nugraha Soekmawidjaja mengatakan tambang batu bara Aries saat ini memiliki bitumen batu bara berkualitas tinggi dengan kandungan GCV (gross calorific value) 6.000 kalori serta tingkat abu dan kelembaban rendah yang cocok untuk bahan bakar pembangkit listrik.

“Produksi dari tambang Indonesia ini diharapkan dapat segera dimulai dan berjalan penuh dalam setahun ke depan. Luas lahan berkisar 5.000 hektar dengan potensi produksi hingga 70.000 ton per bulan. Nilai akuisisi tambang itu pun kami belum dapat informasi mendetail,” katanya ketika dikonfirmasi hari ini.

Menurut dia, pasokan batu bara tersebut akan digunakan untuk Essar Power India, produsen tenaga listrik. “Namun, kami juga membuka kerja sama dengan PT PLN [Persero] terkait dengan pasokan batu bara,” jelasnya. Dia mengakui akuisisi perusahaan tambang batu bara oleh Essar Group di Indonesia baru dilakukan pertama kali.

Essar Power saat ini mengoperasikan empat unit pembangkit listrik berkapasitas total 1.220 MW di tiga lokasi yakni 2 unit di Hazira, satu unit di Vadinar, India, dan pembangkit berbasis coke oven gas di Algoma, Kanada. Kapasitas Essar Power akan terus ditingkatkan hingga jadi 6.100 MW pada 2012 melalui 6 proyek konstruksi.

Berdasarkan catatan Essar Indonesia, Essar Group beroperasi di lebih dari 20 negara di seluruh dunia dengan total tenaga kerja lebih dari 60.000 orang. Pendapatan usaha grup pada tahun lalu mencapai US$15 miliar.