Media OutReach
Top 25 Best Places to Work in Europe for 2024 revealed
Leading the rankings this year is MSD, a global leader in the pharmaceutical industry, followed by PPD Global and Novo Nordisk, both of which have consistently prioritized employee well-being and development. These organizations have been recognized for creating workplaces where people are motivated to contribute to the company’s mission and goals.
In the rankings, other standout companies include Rebeldot, which leads the way in innovation and agility within the technology sector, and United Media Services, known for its people-centric approach to leadership and workplace culture. Takeda, Pluxee, and Dipharma also feature in the top spots for their forward-thinking employee policies and strong organizational values.
As part of its comprehensive evaluation, the Best Places to Work certification program assessed companies based on various criteria, including leadership effectiveness, employee engagement, workplace flexibility, and the promotion of diversity and inclusion. Companies on this list have excelled in creating environments that are not only productive but also nurturing, where employees feel supported, valued, and empowered to thrive.
The companies included in the Top 25 Best Places to Work in Europe for 2024 are as follows:
- MSD
- PPD Global
- Novo Nordisk
- Rebeldot
- United Media Services
- Takeda
- Pluxee
- Dipharma
- RetuRo
- Basware
- Computacenter
- Exness
- Servier
- Upp
- Wisecom
- Mladvisory
- Forvis Mazars CEE
- Olea Medical
- Bossard
- Mēness Aptieka
- Konecta
- Frime
- Fortenova Grupa
- Ruthmann
- BlueLink
These companies represent the very best in creating an inspiring work environment that drives success and well-being for their employees. Through innovative approaches, these organizations not only prioritize the development of their teams but also contribute positively to the broader corporate culture across Europe.
Hashtag: #BestPlacesToWork
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Best Places to Work
Best Places to Work is an internationally recognized certification program that identifies leading companies based on a thorough evaluation of their workplace culture and employee engagement practices. This ranking reflects the collective commitment of these employers to creating environments where employees feel valued, heard, and motivated to achieve great things.
For more information on how organizations are shaping the future of work and driving positive employee experiences, visit www.bestplacestoworkfor.org.
Media OutReach
O-Level Computing Graduates to Receive Credit Exemption at NYP’s School of Information Technology
A first for the polytechnic, this exemption allows learners to free up and reallocate curriculum time. They can choose to use the freed-up periods to attain additional industry professional certifications.
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 9 January 2025 – Commencing April 2025, learners who pass O-level Computing and enrol into NYP’s School of IT can apply for an exemption from the Programming Competency Unit (CmU), or the poly’s equivalent of a “module”.
The credit exemption will see learners saving 60 curriculum hours over the semester – which they can spend to develop adjacent tech skills in their interest areas.
This follows a recent curriculum review that showed that both the O-level Computing subject and the Programming CmU – a foundational learning unit all first-year IT students undertake – had similar learning outcomes that overlapped.
The data also showed that over the past cohorts at NYP, more than 9 in 10 students who passed their O-level computing subject scored at least a B for their Programming CmU.
Ms Tan Soon Keow, Director of NYP’s School of Information Technology, said: “We are committed to developing every student’s potential and giving them room to grow their capabilities while pursuing their diploma studies.”
“In finding avenues to recognise prior learning and give credit exemptions to learners who are already well-versed with foundational knowledge, we hope to open new opportunities for them to pursue advanced learning in their preferred domains, while keeping to the polytechnic curriculum rigour,” she added.
Learners given the credit exemptions are encouraged to use the freed-up 60 hours to pursue professional certifications, participate in competitions or work on projects mentored by industry veterans. This flexibility allows learners to focus on areas of interest and accelerate their growth in specialised fields.
Year One Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics student, Ker Hong Xuan, graduated with an A1 for his O-Level Computing subject in 2023. After enrolling at NYP in 2024, he obtained a Distinction[1] in the Programming CmU. He shared that he would have opted for an exemption had the programme been launched in the year he enrolled: “I love the idea of freed up curriculum time – I can join in the hackathons the School organises, and I could have gotten my Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification even earlier! I think it’s really laudable that the school is allowing us to explore different IT areas with the freed-up hours,” he added.
Earlier in 2023, NYP’s School of IT also announced that all SIT students who enrol from AY2023 would graduate with at least one professional certification. These industry-recognised certificates include Amazon Web Services Certified Cloud Practitioner, Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate, and Certified Entry-Level Python Practitioner. Collectively, both initiatives reinforce NYP’s dedication to creating a learning environment that empowers students, recognising their competencies while and ensuring they are equipped with the most in-demand skills to excel in the dynamic tech industry.
Hashtag: #NanyangPolytechnic #InformationTechnology
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Nanyang Polytechnic
Established as an institution of higher learning in 1992, Nanyang Polytechnic’s (NYP) academic schools offer quality education and training through 37 full-time diploma courses and common entry programmes. NYP also has a full suite of Continuing Education and Training (CET) options for lifelong learning, ranging from specialist and advanced diplomas to SkillsFuture-supported modules and courses. NYP’s Asian Culinary Institute Singapore and the Singapore Institute of Retail Studies are CET institutes set up in partnership with SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) to champion and transform Singapore’s F&B and retail sectors, respectively. A third NYP CET institute – the National Centre of Excellence for Workplace Learning – also set up in collaboration with SSG, will spearhead the development of progressive workplace learning strategies and programmes for companies here.
For more information, please visit www.nyp.edu.sg.
Newly Launched “Trading and Hedging” Solutions to Empower Businesses with FX Trading, Hedging Strategies and Products
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 9 January 2025 – SUNRATE, the global payment and treasury management platform, kickstarts the new year by introducing new treasury solutions – “trading and hedging” for businesses worldwide. These solutions are launched through Sunrate Markets Pte. Ltd., which holds a Capital Markets Services (CMS) licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
Mr. Joshua Bao, co-founder of SUNRATE, said, “Being awarded the CMS license by MAS was an important milestone, but it was even more critical for us to go-to-market (GTM) with products and services that deliver significant value to our customers. With our vast experience in global payments and foreign exchange (FX) and the numerous product iterations based on customer feedback, we are confident that our customers will be able to leverage unparalleled global presence, accessing all their trading and hedging needs in one place.”
In addition to the CMS license, SUNRATE is one of the few companies in Singapore that also holds a MAS license as a Major Payment Institution (MPI) for Account Issuance Service, Domestic Money Transfer Service, Cross-border Money Transfer Service, Merchant Acquisition Service, and E-money Issuance Service. Its dual-license status attests to its strong compliance and governance framework, credentials, and competencies, as well as know-how, while enhancing its capabilities in the area of global B2B payments and treasury management.
Mr. Yumi Zhang, Head of Global Markets at SUNRATE, said, “With geopolitical risks set to affect the world economy and global businesses more than ever, it is imperative that we work even closer with our customers to apply various strategies to hedge and protect against any market volatility, especially in emerging markets. In addition to the fast, secure, and cost-effective global B2B payment products and services that we offer, businesses, particularly those engaged in B2B trade, will appreciate the insights and stability that we can bring to them with our new offerings.”
Hashtag: #SUNRATE
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About SUNRATE
SUNRATE is a global payment and treasury management platform for businesses worldwide. Since its inception in 2016, SUNRATE has been recognised as a leading solution provider and has enabled companies to operate and scale both locally and globally in 190+ countries and regions with its cutting-edge proprietary platform, extensive global network, and robust APIs.
With its global business headquarters in Singapore and offices in Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, and Shanghai, SUNRATE partners with the top global financial institutions, such as Citibank, Standard Chartered, Barclays, J.P. Morgan and is the principal member of both Mastercard and Visa. To learn more about SUNRATE, visit https://www.sunrate.com/
Offer extended to 17 January 2025. Offer Price remains firm at RM11.00 Per Share
The encouraging level of acceptances by the First Closing Date, despite the intervening holiday period, moves the Consortium decisively towards satisfying the 90% acceptance condition and thus the threshold required to de-list MAHB pursuant to the Offer.
For shareholders who have yet to submit their acceptances, the Consortium wishes to highlight that the offer period has been extended from 8 January 2025 to 17 January 2025. Save for the extension, all other terms including the offer price of RM11.00 and the 90% acceptance condition remain unchanged.
RM11.00 offer price higher than any price MAHB has traded
GDA remains firm that its offer price of RM11.00 per share is highly compelling and attractive to shareholders (see Chart #11). RM11.00 is higher than any price MAHB has ever traded at and represents a 49.5% premium YTD2 and implies a Price-to-Earnings ratio of 37.7x3.
All 14 licensed equity research analysts that currently cover MAHB4 have target prices that are either lower than or equal to RM11.00, and most also explicitly recommend that shareholders accept the offer.
MAHB needs to address shortcomings to compete regionally
The Consortium reiterates its view that MAHB’s shortcomings in maintaining its core assets and systems, and prolonged history of underperformance both operationally and financially, will only be properly addressed if it is not constrained by a public market listing and is able to take a fresh approach.
A case in point is the Aerotrain at KLIA Terminal 1 which has suffered multiple service failures over the last 10 years and continues to be challenged by ongoing and unresolved issues. As it nears the second anniversary of total service suspension, the re-opening date remains uncertain.
The Consortium believes one of the root causes of MAHB’s issues is its continuous underinvestment in critical operational infrastructure and in projects to drive growth and expansion.
Over the last 5 years, MAHB spent RM1.3bn in capex compared to RM18.9bn by Singapore’s Changi, RM8.1bn by Indonesia’s Angkasa Pura and RM6.8bn by Airports of Thailand (“AOT”)5 (see Chart #2).
This prolonged underinvestment by MAHB has resulted in an ageing asset base and led to a number of high-profile operational failures. Meanwhile, the passenger experience has deteriorated markedly, as noted by Skytrax whose ranking of KLIA has plummeted from 2nd best airport in the world in 2001 to 71st in 2024. MAHB’s airports are in urgent need of significant remediation and expansion capex.
Unsurprisingly, MAHB has been losing ground in the ASEAN aviation market. Over the last 10 years, KLIA has lost passengers while key regional peers have grown significantly6 (see Chart #3). This has resulted in MAHB’s market share declining from 20% to 16%7 (see Chart #4). Throughout this time, KLIA’s regional peers, including Changi Airport in Singapore and Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, continue to make significant investments to increase their capacity and further distance themselves from KLIA.
Operational challenges have contributed to MAHB’s financial underperformance
Over a 10-year period8, MAHB has consistently underperformed listed APAC peers across a number of key financial metrics (see Charts #5 – #7):
Moreover, MAHB’s dividend has remained stagnant over the last 10 years and MAHB distributed only RM0.11 per share in 2024. This implies a 1.0% dividend yield9, which is four times lower than the KLCI Bursa Malaysia Index10 and three times lower than the DJ Airports index11 (see Chart #8). The RM11 per share offer price compares to RM0.82 of dividends MAHB has paid over the past 10 years (see Chart #9).
Consortium committed to turnaround MAHB
As highlighted in the offer document dated 6 December 2024, the Consortium intends to upgrade and modernise MAHB’s operations, enhance passenger service, improve airline connectivity and stimulate traffic growth. The Consortium believes that such objectives will be best achieved by MAHB as a private entity, taking a long-term approach to decision-making and capital investment, and benefitting from GIP’s airport expertise.
With its combined resources, control of the board and without the constraints of a public market listing, the Consortium together with management will be able to expedite necessary capital investments and provide the requisite technical expertise to realise MAHB’s full potential.
This offer presents a compelling opportunity for MAHB shareholders to achieve immediate and attractive returns and GDA therefore encourages all shareholders who have not yet accepted the offer to do so before the revised closing time and date of 5:00 p.m. (Malaysian time) on 17 January 2025.
Hashtag: #GatewayDevelopmentAlliance
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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