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MYPINPAD EXPANDS INTERNATIONALLY THROUGHOUT APAC AND MENA

MYPINPAD, an enabler of multi-factor authentication for touchscreen devices such as smartphones and tablets, has recently channelled efforts to bring its simple, proprietary and customer friendly authentication solution to Asia Pacific and MENA.
Following the appointment of seasoned industry executives to lead global activity, MYPINPAD has aligned plans for international growth with key trends in regional markets. MYPINPAD’s proprietary technology is perfectly suited to markets where mobile has superseded other online devices, and where security problems are rife.
Smartphone adoption is growing exponentially on a global scale, and China, India, Indonesia and Japan alone are predicted to represent over 40% of the global smartphone user base by the end of the decade.[1] Growth in the mobile as a personal banking and e-commerce channel continues unabated and has been even faster in key markets within Asia and MENA.
The global mobile payment transaction market is expected to reach US $768bn in 2016; and Africa and Asia Pacific are predicted to remain at the forefront of global demand for years to come.[2] Still, authentication technology has lagged behind mobile adoption. Although Asia leads the way in proportionate mobile e-commerce, with nearly all purchases occurring on smartphones,[3] the main authentication method available has been the 30-year old One-Time Password (OTP) system.
MYPINPAD has long term plans for investment in the APAC and MENA regions with permanent operations now in Indonesia and Hong Kong, two key vantage points for growth. Recent leadership appointments include, Dheeraj Ahluwalia as Head of Global Partnerships and Morten Hofstad as Head of Asia Pacific.
Dheeraj Ahluwalia, Head of Global Partnerships for MYPINPAD says: “MYPINPAD’s international expansion was ignited due to an opportunity to solve a number of issues facing m/e-commerce and online banking in the APAC and MENA regions. The legacy of one-time passwords has been a particular driver as has the dropout rate of folks trying to register their cards securely into an e-wallet or a mobile banking application. With MYPINPAD’s simple, easy to use platform, customers can use their tried and trusted cardholder PIN to on-board their cards, activate their application or authenticate a transaction on their smartphone whilst delivering the security of a 3DS transaction.”
Morten Hofstad, Head of Asia Pacific for MYPINPAD adds: “What differentiates the Asian market from Europe, for example, is the low penetration of banked population and an even lower penetration of mobile banking applications. This is cause for concern but also an opportunity, as the under-banked population are often deprived of access to certain key services. Our Asia Pacific expansion will enable consumers to use something they know alongside other factors such as something they are and something they have, to provide strong authentication with a simple, familiar and easy to use PIN, as the primary authentication or as a step-up in combination with another form of authentication such as biometrics.”
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Bitcoin, ether hit fresh highs

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Bitcoin hit a fresh high in Asian trading on Saturday, extending a two-month rally that saw its market capitalisation cross $1 trillion a day earlier.
The world’s most popular cryptocurrency rose to an record $56,620, taking its weekly gain to 18%. It has surged more than 92% this year.
Bitcoin’s gains have been fuelled by evidence it is gaining acceptance among mainstream investors and companies, such as Tesla Inc, Mastercard Inc and BNY Mellon.
Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and daily volume, hit a record $2,040.62, for a weekly gain of about 12%.
Ether is the digital currency or token that facilitates transactions on the ethereum blockchain. In the crypto world, the terms ether and ethereum have become interchangeable.
Ether futures contracts launched on derivatives exchange CME earlier this month.
(Reporting by Vidya Ranganathan; Editing by William Mallard)
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World Bank pushing for standard vaccine contracts, more disclosure from makers

By Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The World Bank is working to standardize COVID-19 vaccine contracts that countries are signing with drug makers, and is pushing manufacturers to be more open about where doses are headed, as it races to get more vaccines to poor countries, the bank’s president said on Friday.
World Bank President David Malpass told Reuters he expected the bank’s board to have approved $1.6 billion in vaccine funding for 12 countries, including the Philippines, Bangladesh, Tunisia and Ethiopia, by the end of March, with 30 more to follow shortly thereafter.
The bank is working with local governments to identify and fill gaps in distribution capacity, after they purchase vaccines under a $12 billion World Bank program, and also to standardize the contracts they are signing with manufacturers, he said.
The bank’s International Finance Corp, its private financing arm, has $4 billion to invest in expanding existing production plants or building new ones, including in developed countries, but needs more data on where current production is headed, he said.
“We are eager to be investing in new capacity, but it’s hard to do because you don’t know how much of the existing capacity is already committed to the various off-takers,” Malpass said in an interview with Reuters. New or expanded plants could be used to produce other types of vaccinations in the future, he said.
The bank’s funds could be used to expand plants in advanced economies, if the production was earmarked for developing nations, he said.
Malpass welcomed Friday’s pledge by the Group of Seven rich countries to intensify cooperation on the pandemic, saying it could help jump-start deliveries of vaccines to poorer countries, which are lagging far behind rich countries in getting shots in arms.
Data compiled by Our World In Data, a scientific online publication, showed Israel was leading the world in COVID-19 vaccinations, with nearly 82 of 100 people vaccinated, while India and Bangladesh reported less than one person per 100, Many African countries have not started at all.
Malpass said he was heartened by news about new vaccines coming down the road, and about Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE seeking permission to store their vaccine at higher temperatures, which would ease another obstacle to deliveries in lower-income countries.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Heather Timmons and Leslie Adler)
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Google to evaluate executive performance on diversity, inclusion

By Paresh Dave
(Reuters) – Alphabet Inc’s Google will evaluate the performance of its vice presidents and above on team diversity and inclusion starting this year, the company said on Friday in one of several responses to concerns about its treatment of a Black scientist.
Timnit Gebru, co-leader of Google’s ethical artificial intelligence research team, said in December that Google abruptly fired her after she criticized its diversity efforts and threatened to resign.
Alphabet and Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai ordered a review of the situation. While Google declined to share specific findings, the company announced on Friday it will engage human resources specialists during sensitive employee departures.
Pichai in June said that by 2025, Google aims to have 30% more of its leaders come from underrepresented groups, with a focus on Black, Latinx and Native American leaders in the United States and female technical leaders globally. About 96% of Google’s U.S. leaders at the time were white or Asian, and 73% globally were men.
As a result of the investigation, the company also expanded a commitment announced in June to devote more resources to retaining and promoting existing employees, including by expanding a team addressing disputes among workers and their managers.
The diversity component of executive performance reviews was not previously announced, and the company did not immediately share details about what would be measured and how pay would be affected.
Alphabet for years had rejected proposals from shareholders and employees to set diversity goals and tie executive pay to them.
Irene Knapp, a former Google employee who advocated for one such proposal at a 2018 shareholder meeting, said on Friday, “I am pleased that they met our demand from 2018, which was a bare minimum that should have been easy to do immediately.”
Evaluating managers on diversity goals is becoming more commonplace. McDonald’s Corp on Thursday tied executive bonuses to diversity.
(Reporting by Paresh Dave; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)