Day: October 10, 2022

Brave Talk is a global college training program designed in partnership with mental health experts to give students the tools to support those around them experiencing anxiety or depression

NEW YORK, Oct. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — More than half of first-year college students (54%) frequently felt anxious since starting college – and 60% don’t turn to professionals for help*. They turn to their friends. To encourage conversation and ensure support is accessible to all, Maybelline New York has partnered with The Jed Foundation (JED), to create Brave Talk, a free expert-developed training designed to give students the skills to support their peers who may be struggling and help connect them to care.

“At Maybelline we believe that mental health is health, but we know that when people are struggling, they turn to those they trust first. We created a program that would put 1:1 support for mental health into everyone’s hands. With Brave Talk, we believe more people will feel heard, supported, and aware of the resources available to them.” said Trisha Ayyagari, Global Brand President, Maybelline New York Worldwide. “We passionately believe no one should have to struggle alone.”

Brave Talk builds on the #1 beauty brand’s Brave Together program launched in 2020, dedicated to helping destigmatize anxiety and depression worldwide and making 1:1 support accessible to all, in partnership with mental health nonprofits around the world. Brave Together is committed to reaching 1 million people with 1:1 support and donating $10 million to mental health causes by 2025.

WHAT IS BRAVE TALK?

Created in partnership with JED’s clinical experts, Brave Talk is a free 90-minute scenario-based training designed to be delivered by college staff that will educate students on how-to spot the signs of someone who is struggling, how-to support them and how-to connect them with appropriate help. Brave Talk’s goal is to build a culture where students can feel heard and cared for.

“JED knows that creating a culture of caring around young adults is protective for their mental health. Brave Talk will open up much-needed conversations about mental health on college campuses while encouraging students to not only look after their own emotional well-being, but also look out for one another,” said JED CEO John MacPhee. “Making these types of resources available to college students is more important than ever, and we are proud to continue our partnership with Maybelline, and thankful for their commitment to breaking down barriers in mental health care access.”

Brave Talk is created with a memorable frame and includes “Brave Steps” to allow anyone to remember how start the conversation with a friend.

Maybelline will kick off the Brave Talk pilot this month at New York University, followed by the S Jay Levy Fellowship for Future Leaders at The City College of New York and Queens College as well as internally with Maybelline NY and L’Oreal Group employees. In 2023, the training will be available for free to all colleges nationally (in the US) and globally.

If your college would like to learn more about Brave Talk, contact workshops@jedfoundation.org.

Maybelline New York is the number one cosmetic brand in the world, available in over 120 countries. By combining technologically advanced formulas with on-trend expertise and New York City edge, Maybelline New York’s mission is to offer innovative, accessible, and effortless cosmetics for all. In 2020, Maybelline introduced Brave Together, a long-term program to support anxiety and depression and help everyone, everywhere to bravely take on their world. Brave Together provides critical one-on-one support, an online education hub, a variety of programming to help destigmatize the conversation around mental health and has committed to donate $10 million over the next five years to global and local organizations. For more information log on to www.maybelline.com or www.maybelline.com/bravetogether.com.

JED is a nonprofit that protects emotional health and prevents suicide for our nation’s teens and young adults. We’re partnering with high schools and colleges to strengthen their mental health, substance misuse, and suicide prevention programs and systems. We’re equipping teens and young adults with the skills and knowledge to help themselves and each other. We’re encouraging community awareness, understanding, and action for young adult mental health.

*Source: Healthy Minds Study Fall 2020 Data Report

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ABU DHABI, UAE, Oct. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — OneConnect Financial Technology Co., Ltd (“OneConnect” or the “Company”, Stock Code: 6638.HK), a leading Technology-as-a-Service (“TaaS”) provider, today unveiled OneConnect Smart Technology (ME) Limited in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the leading international financial centre of the capital of the UAE.

Earlier, OneConnect announced that it will help develop the ADGM SME Financing Platform, an integrated digital finance marketplace that will transform the financing services landscape for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the UAE. The intelligent marketplace aims to advance financial inclusion, enhance transparency, alleviate cost of finance operations for SMEs and improve the overall customer experience for SMEs and their funding partners.

The ADGM SME Financing Platform will be an open and inclusive digital finance platform that improves SMEs’ access to financing. As a marketplace connecting various key stakeholders such as SMEs, multi-lenders and data sources from government agencies, and supported by a robust loan origination process which enables seamless transfer of data, the platform will enable better, faster and more risk-appropriate financing decisions to be made. The entire loan application process is made agile and simplified through the use of digital tools such as e-contracts and e-signatures.

Ms Tan Bin Ru, CEO (Southeast Asia) of OneConnect Financial Technology, officiated the opening ceremony and said: “OneConnect Smart Technology further expands our footprint in the Middle East. We are excited to bring our expertise in developing digital financial solutions for SMEs within the UAE and eventually to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).”

Dhaher bin Dhaher Al Muhairi, CEO of ADGM Registration Authority said, “SMEs are a key contributor to economic growth and are deserving of an open and transparent marketplace for financial products,”

He added, “With the new platform, SMEs will find more convenient, affordable and effective financing solutions that will further improve the competitiveness and diversification of the UAE economy and transform the financing landscape in the MENA region.”

In 2021, OneConnect had worked with ADGM to launch the Digital Lab, UAE’s first Open API platform that allows financial institutions and FinTech innovators to collaborate and build the next generation of digital financial services.

“With two successful cooperation initiatives with AGDM and the newly-opened OneConnect Smart Technology office in Abu Dhabi, we are confident of contributing to the digital transformation of the finance sector within the MENA region,” said Annie Ong, Chief Revenue Officer of OneConnect Financial Technology.

Despite challenges caused by the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, OneConnect has been successful in securing new partnerships building a strong relationship with ADGM. Through a comprehensive suite of technologies, a unique “Finance+Technology” business model and a customer-oriented approach, OneConnect will continue to explore future opportunities within the MENA region following the adoption of a cutting-edge platform by the leading financial centre and common law jurisdiction within the region.

During the event, OneConnect introduced the End to End Digital Banking Solutions Suite, OneCosmo, the result of the joint product offerings of a partnership between OneConnect and Pismo, a cloud-native core processing platform from Brazil, to the business counterparts in the UAE.

As of August 31, the technological solutions on OneCosmo platform has been utilised by more than 50 million new accounts, registering more than 2 billion transactions with a total transaction value exceeding US$109 billion.

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NICOSIA, Cyprus, Oct. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Global FX and CFD broker M4Markets has announced today that it has acquired a CySEC license and will now be offering services and products to European traders.

Following a very successful journey outside Europe during the past two years, M4Markets has established itself as one of the most reliable brokers in the industry and has collected a number of awards and accolades that bear witness to the broker’s achievements. The broker’s growing client-base and trading volumes are a testament to its success and the direction towards offering services to European clients is strategic as M4Markets is endeavoring to establish itself as one of the key players in the industry.

More specifically, M4Markets and the group behind M4Markets, the Oryx Group, have purchased ICC Intercertus Capital Ltd, a legal company regulated by CySEC. ICC Intercertus Capital Ltd will now be operating under the legal name of Harindale Ltd and will be operating as M4Markets Europe.

Speaking about the new license acquisition, M4Markets Group CEO, Mr. Panikos Teklos, commented that “M4Markets has grown significantly over the past two years and strategically it was the logical next step for us to penetrate the European market as a lot of the European traders are experienced and as passionate about trading as we are. We are committed to maintaining the same level of client service that has helped set M4Markets apart and we will continue to improve our offering to meet the needs of our traders.”

Also commenting on the CySEC license, M4Markets Group CMO Mrs. Marilena Iakovou noted that “When we started M4Markets we faced a lot of challenges, it was in the midst of the pandemic, the industry was saturated from competition and against all odds, we’ve managed to position ourselves as one of the most trusted brokers in the industry. The background of the founders of M4Markets is in investment banking and professional advisory services and we have tried to maintain that level of quality and commitment throughout our services to European traders.”

About M4Markets

M4Markets is a Forex and CFD trading services provider offering first-class trading products with ultra-competitive pricing and execution. M4Markets is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA Seychelles).

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Sharjahverse is the world’s first government-backed metaverse city available to the public.

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Multiverse Labs has partnered with the Sharjah Commerce & Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) to launch Sharjahverse, a new generation of metaverse tourism for the Emirate of Sharjah. Using the Multiverse Labs platform, Sharjahverse is a significant milestone as it is the first true metaverse of city scale with economic and social utility.

https://youtu.be/CZ8Y-9-U7iY

(Actual in-engine images of Sharjahverse; these are not photographs)

Sharjahverse, encompassing all of Sharjah at 2,590 square kilometres (1,000 square miles), not only brings the emirate to a global audience and boosts the tourism economy, but also creates metaverse jobs for local employees at Sharjah’s iconic sights. It is a photorealistic, physics-accurate metaverse that unlocks commerce, innovation and imagination at scale and promotes the emirate as a destination of excellence. Sharjah is widely known as the cultural and historical heart of the UAE.

His Excellency Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) said: “Transforming the mass market tourism industry towards next-generation, sustainable practices requires a new way of thinking. Virtual tourism in Sharjahverse will provide unprecedented access to almost any location, personalized guest experiences and enhanced entertainment. Multiverse’s groundbreaking and AI-driven approach will help push the limits of imagination and promote Sharjah as a destination of excellence.”

Serge Lemonde, Global Head, NVIDIA Inception said: “NVIDIA Inception is designed to bolster cutting-edge startups, like Multiverse Labs, who are applying AI in new and innovative ways that ultimately benefit society.”

Cliff Szu, CEO, Multiverse Labs said: “Sharjahverse is both the world’s first government backed metaverse city viewable by the public, and the world’s most realistic metaverse. We’re beyond excited to be collaborating with the visionaries at SCTDA: His Excellency Chairman Khalid Jasim Al Midfa and His Excellency Director Sheikh Salim Mohammed Al Qassimi, and the exceptional marketing department at SCTDA.”

Multiverse’s platform is so realistic, it is being utilized around the world for more than just recreation, including simulations, services, and A.I. optimization. It includes our avatars generated from photographs of actual people, player-owned creations, and social interactions missing in digital twin platforms. That’s why we call Multiverse the first true metaverse; it’s far more than just land or a game. We look forward to unveiling the use cases we have been developing with partners in the coming months.

It’s enabled by our advanced generative A.I. and incredible team. We recently joined the NVIDIA Inception program and we used NVIDIA RTX technology for our projects. The creation of something on the scale of Sharjahverse just a year ago would have been impossible.”

Multiverse Labs will also enable new opportunities for a changing planet as the nation-scale metaverse for simulation can reduce energy consumption and increase facility optimization. Initially applied to the commerce and tourism industry today, it will advance into broader areas including public services, foreign direct investment, real estate, industrial factory zones, and the energy industry.

Members of the public at GITEX 2022 can experience Sharjahverse first-hand and create their own realistic avatar on the first and second floors of the epic Digital Sharjah stand.

About Multiverse:

Multiverse Labs builds metaverses with economic and social utility for governments and organisations. It utilizes advanced A.I. in a synergistic ecosystem to build, simulate, and create a new way to experience the internet. It was recently selected as one of the top six 2022 Emerging Giants by KPMG and HSBC, and as a top 1% participant in the K-Startup Grand Challenge 2022, an overseas startup acceleration program organized by NIPA (National IT Industry Promotion Agency) in South Korea.

About Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA):

Established in 1996, the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) is the main government agency in Sharjah tasked with promoting and regulating all activities related to the emirate’s tourism sector. The Authority is inspired by the Sharjah Tourism Vision 2021, which was launched by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, to increase tourism flow to the emirate by 10 million tourists by 2021. The Authority is focused on adopting ambitious strategic plans to develop the tourism sector and to participate actively in local, regional and international exhibitions, in order to consolidate Sharjah’s leadership as an ideal environment for attracting business and contributing to inducing foreign direct investment into the country.

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