Author: Business News Asia

Leading developer in VisMin Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI) further expands its growing leisure and hospitality portfolio as it introduces the 21-hectare MagsPeak Mountain Resort and Villas in Balamban, Cebu. The 21-hectare mountain estate in Magsaysay Peak in Balamban, Cebu, with an elevation of 800 meters is a joint venture between CLI and MagsPeak Nature Park Inc. composed of Cebuano businessmen and fellow Caminoans, Bob Gothong, Segundino Selma Jr., Richard Ray King, and Douglas Gacasan. It is designed to create a holistic mountain experience for Cebu with an outdoor, religious and hospitality component, built with sustainability at its core. MagsPeak will…

Metro Pacific Investments Corporation’s (MPIC) mWell unveiled a roster of groundbreaking firsts in digital healthcare as the Philippines’ first fully integrated health app at the forefront of innovation anchored on good health and well-being. In an event dubbed as PH1 hosted by no less than beauty queen, TV personality and youth advocate Catriona Gray, mWell celebrated the many firsts in a little over a year of its pilot launch and announced other pioneering efforts that help redefine not only telemedicine but the entire healthcare landscape. PH1 witnessed the full display of mWell app features that showcase its holistic approach to…

Twenty museums and heritage sites in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Talisay will be opening their doors on October 21, 2022, from 6pm to 12 midnight for the highly anticipated Gabii sa Kabilin (GSK)”. Aside from access to 20 museums and heritage sites, participants can enjoy special activities and presentations in the participating sites, unlimited bus rides, and one complimentary tartanilla ride all in one night for just one ticket. Those who wish to participate in Gabii sa Kabilin can purchase tickets at any of the participating museums and heritage sites for only P200 each. Senior citizens and students…

NUSTAR Resort, a premier 5-star integrated resort in Cebu, has announced the appointment of Paolo Campillo as its General Manager. Building decades of professional experience across different continents, Campillo has held numerous positions in distinguished properties. He makes a remarkable distinction as he leads the opening of Fili, the Philippines’ first 5-star authentic Filipino hospitality brand, bringing his deep exposure in diverse hospitality cultures and efficient management skills in all aspects of hotel operations. Campillo brings close to 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, where he worked for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Shangri- La Hotels & Resorts, and…

CB Insights named the all-in-one money platform Maya to its fifth-annual Fintech 250 ranking, which showcases the 250 most promising private fintech companies of 2022. Maya, through its parent company Voyager Innovations, joins an elite international roster that includes digital banks Revolut and N26, PayPal-backed payment processor Stripe, merchant platform Pine Labs, and crypto platform Binance. The citation is in recognition of Maya’s strong record of execution as the only platform with a top-rated all-in-one money app, leading merchant payments processor business, most extensive MSME on-ground network, and the fastest growing digital bank in the Philippines. It is powered by Maya…

Cebu is in for a treat this coming October 15 and 16 when The Holistic Coalition of the Willing (HoliCOW PH) and MaGNA CMGN Solutions Inc. will host the acclaimed designer trio TATSULOK and the coalition’s first popup since lockdown. The TATSULOK sa Cebu: A Lifestyle Popup will showcase the designs of Balay Ni Atong by Al Valenciano, Filip+Inna by Lenora Luisa Cabili and Natalia Lagdameo. Tatsulok brings to Cebu their work with communities in Mindanao, Kalinga and Ilocos in light homeware, and accessories for everyday chic Filipiniana. Visitors of the popup will have the opportunity to acquire the beautiful…

Metro Pacific Investments Corporation’s (MPIC) mWell, the Philippines’ first fully integrated health app with a robust telemedicine service introduces mWellMD, an Electronic Medical Record (EMR) and clinic management system designed by doctors, for doctors. Following the success of National mWellness Day, the biggest nationwide online medical mission, mWell trailblazes anew with the launch of mWellMD. The cutting-edge platform provides doctors with features and services necessary for them to manage their practice for patients online as well as those in their clinics. This includes tools for managing patient records, consults, billings, and professional fees. mWellMD helps doctors by making their practice…

Here is a quick video on how to engage / disengage the Panoramic View Monitor (PVM) or 360 Camera of the Toyota Fortuner 2021 and up. Not all of the latest models of Toyota Fortuner are equipped with the PVM so better ask your agent about this feature. The video below features the PVM pre-installed in the Toyota Fortuner 2021 V variant. The PVM automatically engages whenever you are in reverse mode. However, if you want to use the PVM during driving forward, you need to press the PVM button (found on the left side just above the gas tank…

Driven by its mission to make e-commerce for everyone, Shopee partners with local government units (LGUs) in Cebu to help micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the region for its second iteration of the Shopee University Roadshow and Shopee Kumustahan. These two events educated MSMEs on how to take their businesses online, and kickstart their venture into e-commerce. Through its partnership with the cities of Mandaue, Cebu, Talisay, and Lapu-Lapu, Shopee aims to reach more Filipinos across the Philippines, and make the online selling and shopping experience easier, more convenient, and more seamless for everyone. As part of its…

In a world of rising interest rates, CIMB Bank Berhad, Singapore Branch (CIMB) announced its highest and most attractive rate – at up to 2%* p.a. for its CIMB StarSaver savings account today. There is no cap to the deposit amount for customers to enjoy this rate and customers can apply for a CIMB StarSaver account via the website at cimbbank.sg/savings “The CIMB StarSaver is an account that gives you high returns. There are no multiple conditions to fulfil to earn up to 2% p.a. interest rate. There is no need to do salary-crediting with us, have a minimum spend…

Hong Kong is likely to cut the number of days international travellers need to spend in mandatory hotel quarantine when officials make announcements as soon as August 8, according to a Bloomberg report. Discussions, however, are still ongoing and no definite decision has been made yet regarding the hotel quarantine days, the report added. Hong Kong currently requires international travellers to spend a week isolated in a hotel after testing negative for Covid within 48 hours of departure and on arrival. The report said more people are being diagnosed with the disease on the third day in hotel quarantine than…

To provide Cebuanos a glimpse of what Mandaue City businesses have to offer, the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) is set to hold the Mandaue Expo 2022 that will be held from August 5-7, 2022 at the Mandaue City. Girlie Garces, Mandaue Expo event chairperson, explained that the event is part of the Mandaue Business Month 2022, an annual activity of the MCCI. The expo will feature at least 40 exhibitors who will showcase various products such as processed meat, baked goods, beverage, furniture, furnishings and many others. The exhibitors engaged in food business include A.D Gothong Mfg.…

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has appealed for peace as the country gears toward the national election next year, warning he might deploy the military if there is threat to peace and order especially in Mindanao. “Nobody wants trouble, nobody wants cheating. But minsan — hindi kayo — but pass this on, this message to everybody outside here na sabi ko nakikiusap na ako, I am pleading, almost praying that people will really stick to the rule of law and avoid violence kasi ‘pag hindi, unahan ko na kayo,” President Duterte said during the inauguration of the new Sultan Kudarat Provincial…

T-Lab, an edtech company providing Chinese language learning targeting mainly the United States and Southeast Asia, announced earlier today that it has secured US$ 1.6 million of seed funding. The funding round is led by East Ventures with participation from K3 Ventures, Blue Elephant Capital, and Plug & Play. The fresh capital will be used to strengthen T-Lab’s research and development (R&D) division and enhance the curriculum for providing high-quality Chinese educational resources. T-Lab conceived their idea when the founders realized that there is a serious Chinese language resource and market dislocation overseas. As of 2018, the number of Chinese…

With a 107% increase in D&I leadership roles within businesses since last year and a huge spike in D&I roles globally*, there has never been a greater need for impactful, accessible approaches to help teams achieve their diversity goals and strategies. With this shift in mind, HR Tech solution Diversely launched its D&I platform earlier this year and has now closed its Pre-Seed round at US$550k, welcoming key UK and US investors on board. Headed up by Helen McGuire and Hayley Bakker – both two-time entrepreneurs with over 25 years’ combined expertise in the field – Diversely answers the clarion…

Ayala Corporation (PSE: AC), one of the largest conglomerates in the Philippines, has mandated BPI Capital Corporation, Citigroup Global Markets Singapore Pte. Ltd., Credit Suisse (Singapore) Limited, J.P. Morgan (S.E.A.) Limited, Mizuho Securities (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. and UBS AG Singapore Branch as Joint Lead Managers and Joint Bookrunners, to arrange a series of fixed income investor calls on 15 September 2021 and the offer of a Regulation S USD-denominated senior fixed-for-life (non-deferrable) perpetual notes (the “Notes”) subject to market conditions. The Notes will be issued by AYC Finance Limited (the “Issuer” or “AYC”), a wholly owned subsidiary whose ordinary shares…

Singapore Mainboard and Philippine Stock Exchange dual listed Del Monte Pacific Limited (“DMPL” or the “Group”; Bloomberg: DELM SP, DELM PM) reported today its first quarter FY2022 results ending July. DMPL achieved another strong quarter of profitability with an EBITDA of US$75.0 million, a 77% increase from US$42.4 million. Net profit reached US$18.3 million, reversing the US$3.2 million loss in the prior year’s same quarter. The Group significantly improved its margins by 600 basis points to 28.9% from better sales of higher-margin branded products in the USA and lower costs. The Group generated sales of US$462.1 million, up 12% versus…

HyperVerge, one of the world’s largest identity verification firms based in Silicon Valley, has expanded its global operations to the Philippines, a country that it views as the new growth center in the Southeast Asian region. HyperVerge empowers enterprises with artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that enable them to improve and automate their processes, provide better customer experience, and digitally adapt at a quicker pace. According to the latest State of Finance App Marketing report of AppsFlyer, overall demand for financial technology (fintech) apps in the Philippines soared by 68 percent in the past year. Read Full Story Here > Silicon Valley AI…

WeClean Philippines, a fully integrated laundry service provider headquartered in Metro Manila, announced raising $150,000 from a large family office in South America. The company also raised $120,000 from DayOne Capital Ventures, a Philippine-based early-stage venture capital firm headed by Keenan Ugarte. In addition to equity, DayOne  also provided debt financing to support WeClean’s expansion. “The funds raised will be deployed towards increasing our branch footprint in Metro Manila. We currently own and operate 10 laundromats and we’ll be acquiring 8-9 laundromats in our deal pipeline,” WeClean Philippines chief operating officer Ignacio Phelan Barroso. With the fresh funds, WeClean is growing…

Global Payments Inc, a worldwide provider of payment technology and software services, today announced their support to Soft Space Mobile Tap, a new smartphone-based payment acceptance solution for merchants in Taiwan. Developed by Soft Space, the world’s leading SoftPOS player, the solution provides merchants and consumers in Taiwan with a digital, contactless payment option that addresses health concerns and evolving consumer preferences. According to the Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute in Taiwan, mobile payments have increased 42% in Taiwan since the pandemic began while cash payments have fallen 33.4%. “We strive to provide cutting edge digital payment options to Taiwan’s…