Month: December 2021

SEOUL, South Korea, Dec. 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — The ‘2021 Korean Food Video Contest for Foreigners’ was held for a month from November 19 to December 18 by the the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korean Food Promotion Institute. A total of 989 participants from about 70 different countries participated in the contest. Their participation brought in a high video submission that totals to 1,088.

In contrast, more winners were selected for the ‘2021 Korean Food Video Contest for Foreigners’ and the contest period was increased to one month accordingly. The prize money also doubled to USD 134,000 to fit its status for its second time running.

The promotional video featuring senior actor Kim Young-ok, the Korean motherly figure who appeared in numerous drama shows including Squid Game, and popular TikTok influencer Chambo, recorded a total of 200,000 views.

In addition, the contest was also promoted via online foreigner communities such as ‘KOREANERS’ and cultural centers of each country to increase the participation rate of the contest.

The 2021 contest was largely divided into two categories: ‘Cooking video that makes use of kimchi and Korean sauces (Cookbang)’ and ‘Video showing participants enjoying Korean Food (Mukbang)’

Under cookbang, which recorded about 70% of the video submissions, mainly featured Korean food such as kimchi stew and soybean paste stew or a fusion menu which uses Kimchi in the foreign food. Under mukbang, videos of diverse themes featuring Korean food like pork belly and kimchi stew that can be easily eaten overseas were submitted.

The results of the contest was announced on December 28 via the contest homepage. After the first evaluation of video views and the second internal and external evaluations, a total of 48 mukbangs and 48 cookbangs were shortlisted. Cookbang and Mukbang were divided into influencer with more than 500 followers and non influencer categories. A total of USD 81,000 was prize money was given for cookbang. A total of USD53,000 was prize money was given for mukbang.

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SUZHOU, China, Dec. 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — OP Retail, one China retail solution provider which has empowered over 2,000 brands with its cutting-edge sensors and analytics, is now extending its business globally after the round B financing. According to OP Retail, it has already entered 30 countries and will mainly aim at markets in South Africa, UAE, Singapore, the United States and, the United Kingdom in near future.

Jayson Zhou, the founder of OP Retail, believes that the company has now reached a turning point. ” People used to intent more on digitalizing the entire scene. But now the concept is changing, that is, they are more concerned about using digitalization as tools and improving their daily store operations. I have confidence that with our rich experience, we can provide the same premium quality service globally with several tweaks.”

With the success of cooperating with 60% top 100 pharmacy chain stores at the beginning. OP Retail started developing its solutions for other industries, including famous clothing brands: Skechers, Adidas, Nike, Frank And Oak, Ochirly, ANTA, Bosideng. FMCG brands: Miniso, M&G shop, KKV. Catering brands: Shake Shack, KFC. Home furnishing brands: IKEA, TOTO. Auto services: Tesla. Electronics brands: Dell, VIVO, HUAWEI. EXPOs: EXPO 2020 in Dubai. etc.

In 2020, OP Retail completed the round B financing of 80 million RMB, which was led by DT Capital, followed by OFG Fund and SND Group. The financing was mainly used for product and service upgrading. Previously, OP Retail received a 15-million RMB round A investment from GSR Ventures for product optimization and deeper industry coverage.

Regarding the investment logic, Lu Hongyu, a partner of DT Capital, said: “We continue to be bullish on retail technology companies that help digital upgrades in all scenarios. OP Retail uses big data and cloud computing to empower the traditional offline retail service industry, greatly improving the operating efficiency and user experience in physical stores. We believe OP Retail will boost the retail industry growth with its constantly evolving digital service.”

About OP Retail

OP Retail is one of the Chinese leading retail technology providers, bringing comprehensive solutions for retailers from in-depth customer flow analysis such as people counting, heatmap to operation standardization like store inspection and smart OA. Established in 2016, it has helped more than 2,000 well-known brands and 300,000 stores globally. Learn more by visiting www.opretail.com.

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• On December 29, Seegene to deliver Allplex™ SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay that can preemptively detect the Omicron variant at the primary screening stage
• Earlier this month, the company has hired a private plane to deliver 2.8 million COVID-19 diagnostic tests to European countries including Italy, Spain, Belgium, Czechia, and Lithuania

SEOUL, South Korea, Dec. 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Seegene Inc. (KQ 096530), South Korea’s leading molecular diagnostics company, today announced it will deliver COVID-19 testing reagents by a private plane to Israel that is experiencing acute shortages related to the resurgence of new cases due to the Omicron variant. A total of 1.7 million Allplex™ SARS-CoV-2 Master Assays and associated consumables will be sent on December 29.

Seegene’s Allplex™ SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay can determine whether a person is infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and if he/she has contracted the Omicron variant. It targets four genes (E, RdRP, N, and S), along with five mutations: HV69/70 deletion, Y144 deletion, E484K, N501Y, P681H. Among these, HV69/70, N501Y, and P681H signal the presence of Omicron, based on the variants circulating right now. According to clinical research in a South African lab, the test results using Allplex™ SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay matched 100% with the results drawn out from additional sequencing, confirming that the test can accurately detect Omicron.

This is the second emergency shipment to Israel; the first was in April 2020. This time, the plane was hired Seegene’s Israeli partner, HY Laboratories, as they look to support the country’s current demand.

On December 19, the company also hired a private plane to deliver 2.8 million COVID-19 tests to European countries including Italy, Spain, Belgium, Czechia, and Lithuania as the number of new infections has surged due to the emergence of Omicron.

“Demand for tests has soared dramatically following the emergence and rapid spread of the Omicron variant,” said Dr. Jong-Yoon Chun, Seegene Founder and CEO. “Although the expense and effort of the charter planes may seem extreme, we believe it’s both a priority and our responsibility to support the global fight against the pandemic. We hope we can be of help to all of these countries.”

Seegene Inc.
Jessica Park
P: +82-2-2240-0
E: jypark2@seegene.com

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Development bank established by BRICS further expands membership

SHANGHAI, Dec. 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — The New Development Bank (NDB) – established by BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in 2015 – has admitted Egypt as a new member.

NDB’s Board of Governors authorized the Bank to conduct formal negotiations with prospective members in late 2020. After a round of successful negotiations, NDB started expanding its membership in September 2021 with the admission of Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Uruguay. Egypt is the fourth new member admitted into NDB, further expanding the Bank’s global outreach.

“We are delighted to welcome Egypt into NDB’s family. Egypt is one of the world’s fastest growing countries, a major economy in the African continent and the Middle East region as well as a key player in development finance institutions. We look forward to supporting its investment needs in infrastructure and sustainable development”, said Mr. Marcos Troyjo, President of NDB.

“Egypt is a firm believer and supporter of multilateralism. The NDB has established itself as one of the premier Multilateral Development Banks for Emerging Markets and Developing countries. Egypt fully embraces the decision to join the NDB family and looks forward to building a strong partnership and engagement with the Bank over the coming years. Egypt is reaping the fruits of its consistent efforts to enhance its economy’s resilience and to diversify its funding sources. NDB’s strong financing capabilities and relevant expertise would help Egypt meet its financing needs and enhance its efforts to upgrade its infrastructure base while also meeting its ambitious SDG goals.” said Dr. Mohamed Maait, Minister of Finance of Egypt.

Egypt will have in NDB a new platform to foster cooperation in infrastructure and sustainable development with BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries. Membership to NDB becomes effective once the admitted country completes its domestic processes and deposits the instrument of accession.

Since its establishment six years ago, NDB has approved about 80 projects in all of its member countries, totaling a portfolio of US$ 30 billion. Projects in areas such as transport, water and sanitation, clean energy, digital infrastructure, social infrastructure and urban development are within the scope of the Bank.

NDB’s membership expansion is in line with the Bank’s strategy to become the premier development institution for emerging economies and developing countries.

Background information

NDB was established by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, complementing the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development. NDB has an authorized capital of US$ 100 billion, which is open for subscription by members of the United Nations.