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HKPC Launches “The Cradle – Going Global Service Centre” Partners with Three National Innovation Centres Achieves Three Early Going Global Success Cases
Empowering Enterprises in Global Expansion and Reinforcing Hong Kong’s Position as an International Innovation and Technology Hub
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 11 April 2025 – The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) officially launched “The Cradle – Going Global Service Centre” (The Cradle) today, supported by the Zhongguancun Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Youth Innovation Centre, the National Innovation Centre par Excellence (NICE), and the Greater Bay Area National Centre of Technology Innovation. The Cradle will assist enterprises in expanding into international markets. The launch coincided with the “Enterprises Going Global Conference”, which gathered over 500 leaders from government, industry, academia, research and investment sectors to explore internationalisation strategies and global market opportunities.
Located at the HKPC Building, The Cradle offers one-stop professional support for Hong Kong and mainland tech innovation enterprises, including international standards alignment, product localisation and internationalisation support, intellectual property management and protection, and overseas regulatory compliance. It is designed to empower more Hong Kong and Mainland enterprises succeed in the global market.
This year’s Government Work Report from the “Two Sessions” emphasised Hong Kong should “deepen international exchanges and cooperation”. With the distinctive advantages of “One Country, Two Systems“, enjoying strong support of the Motherland and being closely connected to the world, Hong Kong serves as an ideal launchpad for both Hong Kong and Mainland enterprises to pilot new products and business models before entering international markets. Leveraging HKPC’s technical expertise and international networks, The Cradle will enable enterprises to navigate global standards and enhance their international competitiveness.
To mark its launch, The Cradle is showcasing three early Going Global success cases from UISEE Technology (Beijing) Ltd, Beijing Tashan Technology Co., Ltd, and Beijing Yunji Technology Co., Ltd. Drawing on HKPC’s extensive experience in standards testing, applied R&D, scenario-based deployment, and smart manufacturing, The Cradle will also leverage Hong Kong’s strengths in intellectual property protection, supply chain management, trade finance, and ESG to support enterprise upgrades in smart manufacturing, green transformation, and digitalisation. HKPC will join hands with its partners to explore new global opportunities for enterprises and forge a comprehensive support network for going global.
The “Enterprises Going Global Conference” and the inauguration ceremony of “The Cradle” were officiated by Professor SUN Dong, JP, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government, and Hon Sunny TAN, Chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council.
In his opening remarks, Professor SUN Dong, JP, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the HKSAR Government, stated: “The country has been vigorously advancing technology development in recent years, with a growing number of tech enterprises emerging and seeking new breakthroughs and business opportunities. As global competition intensifies, going global has become a key development strategy for enterprises. With our unique position as an international financial and trading hub, Hong Kong is accelerating the development into an international I&T centre and is well-placed to serve as a launch pad for enterprises. The establishment of The Cradle – Going Global Service Centre will enhance cross-regional collaboration, accelerate the integration of technology and industry, and support more enterprises in expanding globally through Hong Kong. This further reinforces Hong Kong’s status as an international I&T hub.”
Hon Sunny TAN, Chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council, stated in his welcome remark, “HKPC has long been committed to driving new industrialisation and supporting enterprise transformation and upgrading. In alignment with the national innovation-driven development strategy, we are collaborating with three major innovation hubs — in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area — which together serve tens of thousands of enterprises. Over the past decade, HKPC has completed over 1,400 smart projects in the Greater Bay Area, and launched the ‘9+3+1 Development Plan’ to establish service bases and R&D centres, empowering SMEs to expand globally with high quality. As economies in the Global South continue to rise, we look forward to working across sectors through ‘The Cradle’ to forge a strong and sustainable outbound ecosystem for both Hong Kong and Mainland enterprises.”
Mr Zhang Kai, Executive Deputy General Manager of the Zhongguancun Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Youth Innovation Centre highlighted the significance of The Cradle’s establishment as a major milestone. He said that this initiative will provide Beijing’s technology enterprises with comprehensive internationalization support to accelerate the global deployment of cutting-edge innovations. He added that his team anticipate strengthening its collaboration with HKPC to enhance cross-border partnerships, develop high-potential projects, and empower Beijing-based companies to succeed internationally.
Professor LIU Qing, Director of National Innovation Center par Excellence (NICE) said, “National Innovation Centre par Excellence（NICE）has always been committed to building an open and integrated innovation ecosystem to facilitate the globalization of enterprises, manifested by nurturing numerous joint innovation centres, internationally competitive R&D platforms, and project companies. Looking forward, we will continue to deepen our cooperation with HKPC, taking full benefits of Hong Kong’s regional advantages offered through Cradle, to help the Yangtze Delta enterprises overcoming the bottlenecks of global expansion. We will further leverage the industrial and innovation advantages of the Yangtze Delta, and work together with HKPC to create a new paradigm of ‘Yangtze Delta Cultivation + Hong Kong Services + Global Market’, so as to promote more enterprises to go global.”
Mr Wang Debao, Deputy Director of the Greater Bay Area National Centre of Technology Innovation stated that The Cradle leverages the international platform advantages of HKPC to provide the whole chain support for enterprises from technical verification to overseas implementation, serving as a critical bridge for their global expansion. The Greater Bay Area National Center of Technology Innovation will actively deepen collaboration with major innovation hubs, assisting mainland enterprises in overcoming technical barriers and challenges in international markets, and accelerating the high-quality development and global application of new quality productivity achievements.
Enterprises Going Global Conference Explores Global Innovation Opportunities
The Enterprises Going Global Conference featured in-depth discussions with leading industry speakers on global market trends, technology innovation, and policy-capital synergy. Key topics included global expansion strategies, overcoming internationalisation challenges, and leveraging professional services, technology collaboration, and regulatory frameworks to support sustainable global growth.
Hashtag: #HKPC
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The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC)
The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) is a multi-disciplinary organisation established by statute in 1967, to promote productivity excellence through relentless drive of world-class advanced technologies and innovative service offerings to support Hong Kong enterprises. As a nationwide leader in innovative, market-driven research and development (R&D) internationally, specialising in leading technologies and all-rounded manufacturing services, HKPC promotes new industrialisation in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area and facilitates the development of new productive forces, leveraging innovation and technology (I&T), as well as bolstering Hong Kong to be an international innovation and technology centre and a smart city. The Council offers comprehensive innovative solutions for Hong Kong industries and enterprises, enabling them to achieve resources and productivity utilisation, effectiveness and cost reduction, and enhance competitiveness in both local and overseas marketplace. The Council partners and collaborates with local industries and enterprises and world-class R&D institutes to develop applied technology solutions for value creation. It also benefits a variety of sectors through product innovation, technology transfer, and commercialisation, bringing enormous business opportunities ahead. HKPC’s world-class R&D achievements have been widely recognised over the years, winning an array of local and overseas accolades.
In addition, HKPC offers SMEs and startups immediate and timely assistance in coping with the ever-changing business environment and strengthens talent nurturing and Hong Kong’s competitiveness with FutureSkills training for enterprises and academia to enhance digital capabilities and STEM competencies.
For more information, please visit: www.hkpc.org
Graduate salary data provides useful guidance, but it should not be read in isolation. Starting salary is one indicator of return on investment. It should be considered alongside employment rates, full-time permanent employment, industry pathways, career support, programme fit and long-term skills relevance.
For students considering Singapore Institute of Management Global Education (SIM GE), SIM’s Graduate Outcome & Employability page provides a reference point for understanding graduate outcomes. The page explains how SIM graduates have performed in the Private Education Institution Graduate Employment Survey (PEI GES), where they have worked, and how SIM supports students in building career readiness.
Why the PEI Graduate Employment Survey matters
For students considering private education pathways, the PEI Graduate Employment Survey (GES) is an important reference because it provides employment and salary outcomes for graduates from registered private education institutions.
The 2024/2025 PEI GES focused on economically active fresh graduates who graduated between May 2024 and April 2025 from full-time Bachelor’s level External Degree Programmes. The survey covered about 6,150 full-time graduates across 26 private education institutions, with a response rate of 61.6 per cent, and was conducted from October 2025 to January 2026.
Among 2,600 economically active PEI fresh graduate respondents in the labour force, 78.9 per cent secured employment within six months of graduation. The median gross monthly salary for PEI fresh graduates in full-time permanent employment remained stable at S$3,500.
This makes the PEI GES useful for students and parents who want to compare graduate outcomes within the private education sector. It also allows SIM’s graduate outcome data to be read against a broader PEI sector benchmark.
What SIM graduate outcome data shows
SIM’s Graduate Outcome & Employability page reports that SIM fresh graduate respondents recorded 81.0 per cent secured employment, 77.9 per cent currently employed, 47.0 per cent in full-time permanent employment and a median gross monthly salary of S$3,565. The page attributes these figures to Skills & Workforce Development Agency 2024/2025 PEI GES.
| Indicator | SIM | Avg of All PEI (include SIM) |
| Secured employment | 81.0% | 78.9% |
| Full-time permanent employment | 47.0% | 46.9% |
| Median gross monthly salary | S$3,565 | S$3,500 |
This comparison places SIM’s graduate outcomes at the top spectrum of the PEI sector. It also shows why employability should be assessed through more than one indicator. Secured employment, full-time permanent employment and median gross monthly salary each provide a different view of graduate outcomes.
Secured employment indicates whether graduates entered work, accepted job offers or were taking steps to start a business venture. Full-time permanent employment provides a view of stable employment. Median gross monthly salary shows the middle salary point among full-time permanently employed graduates.
Where SIM graduates have worked
SIM graduates have entered a range of sectors, including aviation, aerospace and engineering, airline and tourism, banking and financial services, information and communications technology, cybersecurity, insurance, consumer services, public sector and government, consulting and professional services, healthcare, logistics, transportation, retail and manufacturing.
These employer destinations are relevant because students are not only selecting a degree. They are also considering possible pathways into industries, job functions and future career options. A business-related pathway may support roles in banking, consulting, retail, logistics or entrepreneurship. A technology-related pathway may lead to opportunities in information and communications technology, cybersecurity, data, digital services or business technology roles.
How students should compare salary, employability and ROI
A practical approach to comparing degree options is to consider four areas: relevance, return, readiness and resilience.
| Factor | What to consider |
| Relevance | Does the degree connect to industries that are hiring? |
| Return | What do employment and salary outcomes show? |
| Readiness | What career support, internship guidance and employer exposure are available? |
| Resilience | Can the skills support future career changes? |
This approach helps students avoid selecting a degree based only on the highest salary benchmark. While starting salary is an important consideration, long-term value also depends on whether the student can build relevant skills, gain experience and adapt to changes in the labour market.
How SIM supports employability
SIM supports students through career preparation and employer engagement, including résumé writing, interview preparation, job search guidance, career fairs, employer talks, recruitment events, internship search guidance and workshops that build communication, teamwork, problem-solving and professional confidence.
Such support is relevant to return on investment because employability is influenced not only by the qualification awarded, but also by how prepared students are to enter the workforce. Career readiness, employer exposure and workplace skills can support the transition from study to employment.
Conclusion
Graduate starting salary is an important consideration for students and parents assessing higher education options in Singapore. However, it should not be the only measure used to evaluate a degree pathway.
A more balanced assessment considers employment rates, full-time permanent employment, median gross monthly salary, industry pathways, career support and long-term skills relevance. This provides a broader view of how a higher education pathway may support employability and future career development.
When read together with the PEI Graduate Employment Survey, national salary benchmarks and SIM’s Graduate Outcome & Employability page, graduate outcome data can help students and parents make more informed decisions about salary expectations, employability and return on investment.
References
- SIM’s Graduate Outcome & Employability page – https://www.sim.edu.sg/degrees-diplomas/parent-resource-hub/graduate-outcome-employability
- SWDA PEI Graduate Employment Survey 2024/2025 – https://www.swda.gov.sg/home/skills-career-resources/private-education-resources/graduate-employment-survey/2024-2025
- Employment Outcome for PEI Graduates – https://www.swda.gov.sg/home/newsroom/employment-outcomes-for-private-education-institution-graduates-remain-stable-in-2024-2025
- SIM Career Service – https://www.sim.edu.sg/degrees-diplomas/life-at-sim/career-services
Hashtag: #SIMGlobalEducation #SIMGE #GlobalEducation #InternationalDegree #CareerReady #FutureSkills
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About SIM Global Education
SIM Global Education (SIM GE) is a leading private education institution in Singapore and the region. We offer more than 140 academic programmes ranging from diplomas and graduate diploma programmes to bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes with some of the world’s most reputable universities from Australia, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom, and the United States. SIM GE’s cohort is made up of 17,000 full- and part-time students and adult learners, of which approximately 41% are international students hailing from over 50 countries.
SIM GE’s holistic learning approach and culturally diverse learning environment aim to equip students with knowledge, industry skills and employability competencies, as well as a global perspective to succeed as future leaders in a fast-changing, technologically driven world.
For more information on SIM Global Education, visit www.sim.edu.sg
Media OutReach
SBI Global Asset Management and DigiFT Launch JX, Bringing a Japanese Asset Manager’s Equity Strategy On-Chain for the First Time
The launch comes as investor attention returns to Japanese equities, supported by the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s continued push for listed companies to improve capital efficiency and demonstrate greater awareness of share-price performance. It also reflects a broader evolution in tokenization: the value of tokenized RWAs distributed on public blockchains grew from USD 5.9 billion to USD 21.9 billion globally in 2025, moving the category beyond cash-like instruments and into actively managed public-market strategies. DigiFT was an early mover in this shift, launching a tokenized U.S. equity income fund developed with BNY in January 2026. This shift is now extending directly into Japan’s own institutional market, where SBI Group has been among the country’s most active builders of on-chain financial infrastructure.
DigiFT holds Capital Markets Services and Recognised Market Operator licences from MAS, as well as Type 1 and Type 4 licences from the Hong Kong SFC – a dual regulatory standing that has made it a tokenization and distribution partner for global and regional asset managers, including UBS Asset Management, Invesco, BNY and Franklin Templeton. DigiFT’s roster now extends into Japan, through SBI GAM’s participation, adding a Japanese listed-equity strategy to that lineup for the first time. DigiFT is launching the JX Token on Solana, further expanding the availability of regulated RWAs on-chain, with ecosystem participants including Solana Company, Huma Finance and Plume.
SBI Holdings brings its own substantial on-chain track record to the collaboration. The group reported consolidated revenue of JPY 1.90 trillion for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2026, with its Crypto-asset Business segment generating JPY 89.6 billion in revenue over the same period. SBI Holdings has taken direct stakes across the region’s tokenization infrastructure, including leading a $50 million investment in Startale Group to build a blockchain purpose-built for tokenized securities, and holding a majority stake in Osaka Digital Exchange, operator of a secondary market for security tokens in Japan.
JX is structured around the underlying strategy managed by SBI AM. This authorized, manager-referenced model is critical as regulators are increasingly distinguishing tokenized securities developed with issuer or manager alignment from products that provide only indirect economic exposure. In a joint staff statement issued 28 January 2026, the U.S. SEC staff drew a formal line between issuer-sponsored tokenized securities, which can represent true ownership, and third-party products that typically offer only synthetic exposure or custodial entitlements – signalling an intent to encourage the former while curbing the spread of the latter.
Henry Zhang, Founder and Group CEO, DigiFT: “Our mission at DigiFT has always been to bring real, institutional-grade assets on-chain through infrastructure that investors and asset managers can actually trust. JX extends that mission to Japan for the first time, opening regulated, on-chain access to Japanese equities. We’re proud to build this with SBI Group, one of Japan’s most forward-looking financial institutions, and excited about what this partnership signals for the future of tokenization across the region.”
Hashtag: #DigiFT
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Smilegate LORDNINE Launches Pre-Registration for New Growth-Accelerated Server ‘Helena’ in Celebration of 1st Anniversary… 32,000 USDt Reward Event Underway
- Pre-registration for new server Helena opens July 14… Official launch on July 29
- Sweeping new server growth-support systems, including 50% additional EXP via Mastery Buff
- Rich rewards including a 32,000 USDt reward event, limited edition skins, and 1,111 summon tickets
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – EQS Newswire – 15 July 2026 – Smilegate announced on Tuesday, July 14 that pre-registration has begun for ‘Helena’, a new growth-accelerated server for the MMORPG 《LORDNINE: Infinite Class》 (developed by NX3 Games), in celebration of the game’s 1st anniversary.
Pre-registration for the new Helena server is available through the official LORDNINE page (https://l9asia.onstove.com/en), with the official launch scheduled for July 29 at 7:00 PM.
Helena is a growth-accelerated server designed to allow players to level up characters faster than on existing servers. Key features include a Mastery Buff that provides an additional 50% EXP gain and more than 40,000 ‘Fragments of Ancient Relics’ to support character progression, helping players settle in smoothly during the early stages.
To celebrate the launch of the Helena server, Smilegate has prepared a variety of events, including a 32,000 USDt reward event. Helena server users can participate in in-game attendance and mission events to obtain three Hero-grade avatars and three artifacts, as well as up to 1,111 summon tickets.
A pre-registration event will also be held. Users who sign up for pre-registration will receive a limited edition skin, and among users who refer 20 friends through the pre-registration page, a drawing will be held with winners receiving an iPhone 17 Pro.
In addition, a skin design contest will be held to celebrate the 1st anniversary. Participants can freely submit skin designs they would like to see released in LORDNINE. In-game rewards worth up to 80 million KRW are up for grabs, and notably, the grand prize-winning design will actually be released in-game.
For more information about the game, please visit the official page (https://l9asia.onstove.com/en).
| Contact Point | Office | Mobile Phone | ||||
| Sangjik Oh, Team Leader | 031-630-3142 | 010-5236-0571 | sj****@*******te.com | |||
| Hyeran In, Deputy General Manager | 031-630-3143 | 010-3291-6710 | hr****@*******te.com | |||
| Jiwon Hong, Deputy General Manager | 031-630-3144 | 010-4135-0298 | jw****@*******te.com | |||
| Taehyun Park, Assistant Manager | 031-630-3179 | 010-6805-1177 | th****@*******te.com |
Hashtag: #Smilegate
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
