BharatPe Adds Sparkles to Festivals: Launches “Digital Gold” in India

BharatPe, India’s largest merchant payment company, today announced the launch of digital gold on its platform. The launch of this new category of fintech product is in line with the company’s commitment to offer the entire gamut of financial products to SMEs. Through this latest offering, BharatPe’s merchants will be able to buy and sell 99.5% purity, 24-carat gold. The merchants can choose to buy in rupees or grams, at any time of the day and from anywhere, by using the BharatPe app. The company has partnered with Safegold, a digital platform that allows customers to buy, sell and receive vaulted gold, to facilitate this. SafeGold has appointed IDBI Trusteeship Services to protect the interest of merchants with regard to their gold purchases. BharatPe aims to sell 6 kg of gold leading up to Diwali. 

The launch of ‘BharatPe Gold’ has been timed to add to the celebrations in this festive season. A merchant can start investing in gold for as low as Re. 1. The merchant can choose to pay via BharatPe balance or UPI, as per his preference. BharatPe will be adding credit/ debit cards as payment options in the near future. The merchant will have a real-time view of gold price linked with global markets on the BharatPe app. Post the purchase, gold will be added to the merchant’s ‘BharatPe Gold’ section. The merchant can also avail the benefit of GST tax input credit when they buy gold on the BharatPe app. The gold purchased is kept safely at the 100% insured lockers with Safegold, at no extra cost.  

Also, a merchant can check his Gold balance by viewing the Gold Locker section on the app. He can also opt for delivery of physical gold powered by Safegold, by choosing the relevant option in the Gold Locker section of the BharatPe app. If a merchant wants to sell gold, he can do that in a few seconds on the BharatPe app. While selling gold, he has to option of choosing BharatPe registered account or his bank account for the credit.  

Speaking on the launch, Mr. Suhail Sameer, Group President, BharatPe, said, “Gold is not only a preferred investment option in India, but is also considered to be an auspicious possession in the Indian homes. With festive season in full vigor, BharatPe offers the convenience of buying/ selling gold to its merchants via our app. The focus on the digital gold market is in sync with our overall vision to build BharatPe as the one-stop financial services platform for SMEs. At BharatPe, we build products for the merchants. We had received a number of requests from merchants to launch gold on our platform. We decided to partner with Safegold as gold purity and security is of utmost importance to us and to our merchants. We are already seeing great response and have sold 200 grams of gold on the day of the launch. We will be adding new features to this and aim to build digital gold as one of the key verticals in the near future. We are targeting selling 30 kg of gold in FY21.”  

About BharatPe 

BharatPe was co-founded by Ashneer Grover and Shashvat Nakrani in 2018 with the vision to make financial inclusion a reality for Indian merchants. BharatPe launched India’s first UPI interoperable QR code, first ZERO MDR payment acceptance service, and first UPI payment backed merchant cash advance service. In 2020, post-Covid, BharatPe also launched India’s only ZERO MDR card acceptance terminals – BharatSwipe. Currently serving over 50 lakh merchants across 35 cities, the company has grown business 30x in 2019 and is a leader in UPI offline transactions, having processed 5 crore+ UPI transactions a month (annualized TPV of US$ 5+ Bn). The company has already facilitated disbursement of over Rs. 400 crores to its merchants since launch. BharatPe has raised US$ 142.5 million till date. The company’s list of marquee investors includes Beenext, Sequoia, SteadView Capital, Ribbit Capital, Coatue Management LLC, Insight Partners, and Amplo. 

HSIL To Invest ₹220 Crores in AGI Glaspac To Setup New Greenfield Speciality Glass Manufacturing Facility

* The facility will be in operations by the end of September, 2020

HSIL, India’s second-largest glass packaging producer, announced an investment of ₹220 crores in AGI Glaspac to manufacture ‘Specialty Glass.’ The Greenfield facility based out of Bhongir, Telangana will be operational by the end of September 2022. The facility will have a manufacturing capacity of 150 tonnes per day and will include one new furnace with five manufacturing lines spread across 15 acres. In a context of strong global demand for high-end specialty glass bottles, AGI Glaspac will also focus on exports to the USA, Australia, and a few European countries.

The high-quality specialty glass products will cater to industries such as pharmaceuticals including vials, perfumery, cosmetics, and high-end liquor. The state-of-the-art facility will be equipped with cutting-edge technology rooted in the principles of digital manufacturing, and will also create job opportunities in the region. AGI Glaspac already has two manufacturing plants in India, one in Sanathnagar and the other one in Bhongir, Telangana with an overall capacity of manufacturing 1600 tonnes container glass per day.

Mr. Sandip Somany, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, HSIL Limited said,” I am very excited that we are foraying into the production of specialty glass, as it further strengthens our footprint in the glass packaging segment. This segment is set to gain momentum from the increasing marketing strategies and advertisements implemented by high-end perfumery, liquor, and cosmetics companies besides, the rising trend of online shopping which would propel the growth across the country.”

AGI Glaspac is India’s second-largest and the most profitable glass packaging manufacturer. The company develops a comprehensive and highly appreciated range of standard designs catering to marquee clients in alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, fast-moving consumer goods, retail, pharmaceuticals, and edible oil industries.

In FY 2019-20, AGI Glaspac introduced Greendrop Glassware, a B2C brand to manufacture transparent, coloured, and printed glass for water, milk, juice bottles, and food storage jars in various sizes to meet varied customer requirements. The bottles under the brand are free from BPA, toxins, chemicals, and lead, making them the safest and most durable choice for consumers. 

About HSIL: The company was founded in 1960 as Hindusthan Twyfords Limited, in technical collaboration with Twyfords, United Kingdom to establish the first vitreous china sanitaryware manufacturing company in India. Today, the company houses the manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of Packaging Products; and manufacturing of Building Products. The company manufacture and market various packaging products, including glass containers and Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) bottles and products and security caps and closures. These products cater to various industries like alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, fast-moving consumer goods, retail, pharmaceuticals, and edible oil amongst others.

Huawei Introduces FreeBuds Studio Featuring Smart Dynamic Noise Cancellation and Hi-Fi Sound Quality

Huawei Consumer Business Group (BG) today announced the company’s first over-ear wireless headphones, HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio. The new headphones offer a Hi-Fi-level listening experience and up to 48kHz1 wide frequency high-resolution sound quality to truly restore the rich details of high-resolution music. The industry-leading intelligent dynamic active noise cancellation (ANC) provides three noise cancellation modes that can be switched according to varying environmental noise. With the dual connection, users can say goodbye to the complicated pairing process and enjoy the seamless connection provided by HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio.

Inspired by geometrics and simplicity, HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio offers a stylish look and comfortable fit. It is not only a headphone, but also a smart assistant that allows consumers to experience a better digital audio world. 

Rethink aesthetics with geometric shapes

HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio combines art with technology to deliver a beautifully designed and comfortable pair of headphones suitable for many different styles. Instead of using complicated shapes, the ear cups are designed with simple lines and circles, finished with a metallic matte texture for a premium look. A stainless steel cylindrical arm connects the headband and ear cups to provide a unique design.

Further improving the wearing experience, HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio provides larger ear cups that measure 65mm*42mm to create a spacious fit for more ear sizes. The protein leather ear pad not only feels soft and comfortable, but also enables great sound insulation effects. Its headband uses a streamlined design and can extend to 150 degrees to fit different head shapes and sizes.

Rethink the listening experience with high resolution sound quality

Thanks to professional acoustic components, HUAWEI FreeBuds Pro supports an ultra-wide frequency response of 4Hz - 48kHz, fine-tuned by audio experts to deliver great sounding music with rich details.

HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio features a customised diaphragm driver. A four-layer 40mm  polymer diaphragm enables a wider frequency response range and higher sensitivity, while Huawei's self-developed L2HC wireless audio codec technologies2 achieve an audio transmission rate of up to 960kbps3. This allows HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio to truly reproduce the original high-quality sounds of audio files in glorious detail.

Intelligent dynamic noise cancellation for a whole new ANC experience

HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio features the innovative "TAT" double-layer sound insulation structure and intelligent dynamic ANC that achieve noise cancellation effect of up to 40dB.4 With the built-in IMU environment sensor and microphone system, the headphones can accurately detect the user’s sound environment and offer three ANC modes that can adapt to the environment for better noise cancellation effects.

In addition, HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio supports awareness mode and voice mode5, allowing users to stay aware of their surroundings or have a clear conversations without removing their headphones. Moreover, the all-new six-mic call noise reduction system can pick up voice more directionally, effectively focusing on voices and cutting out background noise.

Seamless all-scenario connections to revamp the audio connection experience

Users are beginning to expect dual-device connections in the smart life era. HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio features four-channel, dual-mode and dual connection, which allows users to simultaneously connect with two devices without needing to disconnect and re-connect. It not only supports dual connection with Huawei all-scenario devices, but also with Android, iOS and Windows-based devices to enable seamless connection between devices.

HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio is the industry’s first dual antenna over-ear wireless headphone that offers 360° omnidirectional Bluetooth signal coverage for a more stable connection. Even in places with strong signal interference such as airports, the dual antenna design can intelligently identify and automatically switch to another antenna with a stronger signal, bringing better connection and stability for smooth phone calls. 

When the HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio is fully charged, it can play music with ANC for up to 20 hours, or 24 hours if the ANC is turned off. With just a 10-minute quick charge, the HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio can offer five hours of music playback with ANC on, or eight hours if the ANC is turned off. 6

The new HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio meets users’ increasingly demanding audio needs. Its Hi-Fi level of wireless audio quality performance, ground-breaking noise cancellation experience and interactive features enhance both work and entertainment, providing all-day wearing comfort.

HUAWEI FreeBuds Studio will be officially available for sale from November, priced at €299.

About Huawei Consumer BG

Huawei's products and services are available in more than 170 countries and are used by a third of the world's population. Fourteen R&D centres have been set up in countries around the world, including Germany, Sweden, Russia, India and China. Huawei Consumer BG is one of Huawei's three business units and covers smartphones, PC and tablets, wearables and cloud services, etc. Huawei's global network is built on over 30 years of expertise in the telecom industry and is dedicated to delivering the latest technological advances to consumers around the world.

For more information please visit: http://consumer.huawei.com

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MyGate Joins Hands with Niramai to Offer Free Online Breast Health Risk Assessment

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers noticed in women across the world, including India. According to the World Health Organisation, breast cancer impacts more than 2.1 million women every year. Though a treatable condition, it is mired with lack of awareness and timely detection, leading to the over 6,27,000 deaths worldwide last year.

In an effort to create awareness about the condition this World Breast Cancer Awareness Month, MyGate, the largest community management application, has tied up with Niramai Health Analytix, the most awarded Indian startup addressing critical healthcare problems through innovative AI-based solutions. As part of the association MyGate will be offering its customers an opportunity to get a free online breast health assessment. The partnership will also see MyGate hosting a webinar and live Q&A on breast cancer exclusively for its customers.

Talking about this collaboration, Abhishek Kumar, co-founder and COO, MyGate, said, “It is our constant endeavour at MyGate to bring our users access to solutions that increase their security and well-being, and this includes their health, too. Over the past few months, we have developed numerous features and inked a number of such partnerships to great reception.”

Niramai Health Analytix has developed a novel technology called Thermalytix™, an automated diagnostic tool, which combines thermal imaging with artificial intelligence which is being used to detect early-stage breast cancer in many hospitals today. The solution is non-touch, radiation-free, portable, accurate, privacy-aware, and can be used for women of all ages. NIRAMAI’s technology detects breast cancer at a much earlier stage than traditional methods or self-examination.

Speaking about the collaboration, Dr Geetha Manjunath, CEO & CTO, Niramai Health Analytix, said, “Our mission is to save lives using technology. We are happy to partner with MyGate to reach many smart women who can take care of their health given the right tools. We are confident that this partnership will enable us to address one of the biggest hurdles for breast cancer care that is facing our country ---  lack of awareness of breast health facts.”

This initiative will be available for all MyGate residents through the application till 30th of October 2020.

About MyGate

Founded in 2016, MyGate is the largest security and community management app in the country, simplifying urban living of over two million homes in 10,000+ housing societies. It was ranked #4 on YourStory’s list of India’s Most Disruptive Start-ups in December 2019 and one of India’s coolest start-ups by Business Today in 2019. MyGate was founded by Vijay Arisetty, an ex- IAF pilot (Shaurya Chakra awardee), Abhishek K, former VP at Goldman Sachs, and Shreyans Daga, former project head at Oracle and Digit. For more information, please see https://mygate.com/

About Niramai Health Analytix

NIRAMAI Health Analytix is a Bangalore-based deep-tech startup addressing critical healthcare problems through automated solutions. NIRAMAI offers a radiation free, non-invasive, non-touch, breast cancer screening solution. The solution is portable, accurate, privacy aware and can be used for women of all ages. NIRAMAI has won many awards and international recognitions. NIRAMAI was founded in the year 2016 by Dr. Geetha Manjunath and Nidhi Mathur. The company was the winner of Gold prize in the Intercountry contest called Hack Osaka 2019 among 2000 startups held in Japan. They were also the winner of Call4Ideas competition held in Italy and National Startup Awards 2020 in Healthcare category. NIRAMAI has been incubated by Google Launchpad, Tata Elexsi, Phillips, Nvidia and Axilor Ventures. NIRAMAI is the only Indian company listed on cbInsights Top 100 AI startups in the world.

Now Get a Chance to Win Gold with Every Purchase of Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings as Part of the Festive Offer

Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings and Systems, the 123-year-young leading manufacturer of innovative locking solutions, architectural fittings and kitchen systems, announced an engaging initiative, which gives consumers a chance to get amazing gold vouchers worth up to INR 50,000. People can simply buy any Godrej Locks’ range of products including locks, architectural fittings and kitchen systems with minimum purchase value of INR 2000 in one single GST invoice to be eligible to participate in this exciting offer.

As part of this consumer engagement initiative, Godrej Locks is giving people a chance to win gold vouchers from Kalyan Jewellers ranging between INR 5,000- 50,000. More than 1000 winners will be chosen through a lucky draw who will get these vouchers to buy gold and some wonderful shopping vouchers. People can participate in the lucky draw by giving a missed call on 7767001400. After which, an SMS will be sent to them with a participation link. One just needs to fill in their purchase details like invoice number, amount and submit these details. Winners will be announced every week through a lucky draw.  The offer can be availed by all customers purchasing the above products from authorized Godrej retailers. Through this initiative, Godrej Locks aims to gratify users across India during this festive season. The brand also wants to drive awareness about its latest and most-advanced offerings by the company.

Commenting on the initiative, Shyam Motwani, EVP and Business Head, Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings and Systems, said, “At Godrej Locks, our constant endeavour has been to delight customers through best‐in‐class solutions designed carefully to meet their fast-evolving needs. Festive occasions like Diwali leads to consumers opting for home improvement products and solutions. Through our festive initiative, we are ensuring they are safeguarded with the best of safety solutions and gratified simultaneously. This is also the first time we have undertaken such an initiative to add to people’s spirits and have a festive season unaffected by the pandemic.”

Godrej Locks has a variety of offerings, from the timeless Nav-Tal padlock, they have evolved to high-end holistic safety solutions that today safeguard millions of homes and offices. This includes rim locks, mortise locks and also digital locks. The company has a range of digital locks called Spacetek and Advantis which have superior fingerprint technology and also a RFID feature. The company also has a range of architectural and kitchen fitting products including door closers, floor springs, ergo boxes, corner solutions, etc. Hence, customers can choose from a variety of products and get good deals while doing up their homes this festive season. The festive offer will be run till end of November. In Uttar Pradesh, the offer will be valid in Lucknow along with the rest of the cities This offer is not valid in Tamil Nadu state.

About Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings and Systems

Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings and Systems is a 123-year-old leading manufacturer of innovative locking devices. Since its inception in 1897 by Ardeshir Godrej, the name ‘Godrej’ has become synonymous with trust, protection and integrity. From the first Anchor branded lock in 1897 to the first ever spring less lock in 1907, to the iconic 'Nav-Tal' in 1954, and to the postmodern biometric locks, Godrej has set every benchmark in the locks industry. Over the years, Godrej Locks & Architectural Fittings and Systems have changed in form, function and scope of application. But one thing still remains the same – the solid stamp of trust and reliability. Godrej Locks adhere to global quality norms and hold ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certifications.

With their locks reaching several countries around the world over a period of time, the brand has come a long way in delivering world-class smart locking solutions, therefore revolutionizing the very perception of a locking device from a mere functionality at an entry and exit point, to a proud pause at the doorstep, a moment to take in the significance of how far they have come. For more information, please log on to www.godrejlocks.com

Godrej Locks is a business unit of  Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd.

The Cohesive Companies Announces the Acquisition of Professional Construction Strategies Group Ltd

The Cohesive Companies, a digital integrator investment of the Acceleration Fund of Bentley Systems, Incorporated (Nasdaq: BSY), the infrastructure engineering software company, today announced its acquisition of Professional Construction Strategies Group Ltd, (PCSG). Founded in 2000 by Katherine Bew, chaired by Dr. Mark Bew MBE, and headquartered in Croydon, UK, PCSG has developed world-leading methodologies, talent, and experience in advisory services to built-environment owners for transformative benefits in going digital, advancing BIM and GIS through infrastructure digital twins. Now within The Cohesive Companies, the organization can dramatically grow its advisory scope (already at over 50 professionals), both in global scale and to reach all infrastructure sectors.  

Greg Bentley, Bentley Systems’ CEO, said, “Mark Bew’s visionary thinking about the potential of BIM advancement through digital twins has spearheaded the UK’s world leadership in digital ambitions for infrastructure, and has also inspired us at Bentley Systems. We recognize that owner-operators need advisory services to guide their transformations to digital workflows – and that all of us in their ecosystem benefit from expert consultancy services propagating best practices in digital twin adoption.  

“Accordingly, we’re determined to catalyze the market development of digital integrators through our Cohesive portfolio developments. As so many sector-leading infrastructure owners have strongly endorsed the PCSG team and their results, the opportunity for Cohesive to join forces with Mark and Katherine Bew to globalize their work is fortuitous.” 

Noah Eckhouse, The Cohesive Companies’ CEO, said, “We are pleased to welcome Mark and Katherine and the entire PCSG team into The Cohesive Companies. Our sole mission as an autonomous digital integrator consultancy is to support owner-operators and their supply chains in going digital, contributing to great outcomes for our clients independent of their investment choices among technology vendors. From iTwins to Maximo, from cloud to mobile, this leverages our uniquely cohesive digital twin expertise, beyond resourceful technology implementation, in change management, business process redesign, and – now expanded through PCSG’s leading advisory services – strategy consulting.” 

Dr. Mark Bew MBE, Chairman of PCSG, said, “Katherine and I are delighted to be joining The Cohesive Companies. Deepening what we can offer to existing clients, while at the same time broadening our scope through this comprehensively global organization, is a very exciting opportunity for us, our clients and our partners. 

“Our vision is one of infinitely smarter futures where a digitally engineered built environment supports the delivery of infinitely better social, environmental and financial outcomes. I particularly want to thank our world-class PCSG team and our farsighted clients for enabling and embracing this tremendous opportunity to accelerate the realization of this vision.” 

Icertis Launches Supplier Onboarding and Diversity Compliance Application

Icertis, the contract intelligence company that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible with contract lifecycle management (CLM), announced today a new application built on the Icertis Contract Intelligence (ICI) platform that provides hassle-free supplier onboarding and support for supplier diversity compliance. The Icertis Supplier Onboarding and Diversity Compliance application allows organizations to quickly evaluate suppliers and rapidly onboard them, while providing collaboration capabilities to ensure suppliers are compliant with organizational and customer policies, including supplier diversity initiatives and environmental sustainability programs.

Supplier onboarding has traditionally been cumbersome and time-consuming, and rapidly changing regulatory environments have added complexity to the compliance process. Fragmented onboarding practices can result in limited supplier information capture and poor visibility into whether suppliers meet a company’s diversity, sustainability, and regulatory obligations. Further complicating the onboarding process is a lack of collaboration capabilities and integration with existing systems, which can become a hurdle in adoption, usage, and compliance.

“Whether during business as usual or times of crisis, companies need not only agility to access badly needed supplies and services, but also a framework that mitigates risks,” said Nick Heinzmann, Research Analyst, Spend Matters. “A fully effective solution should link initial information collection with ongoing maintenance and compliance against the terms of an agreement. Because onboarding is ultimately just one step in a longer process of managing a supplier relationship, the most effective organizations will deploy a solution that addresses both the external risks brought by third parties and the range of potential events that could occur over the course of a relationship.”

To improve communication and accelerate time to value, the Icertis Supplier Onboarding and Diversity Compliance application provides a seamless way to collaborate with suppliers. A self-service onboarding process coupled with rule-based routing allows organizations to rapidly evaluate a large number of suppliers. Additionally, integration with third-party data sources like Dun & Bradstreet and supplier risk management software allows organizations to cross-reference supplier information, enabling informed qualification decisions. Other features include the ability to automatically add clauses related to Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) programs; define supplier policies, documentation and data requirements to ensure compliance; and integrate with major business applications like sourcing, ERP, P2P, and more.

“Being able to effectively manage the supply chain is vital to an organization’s long-term success, and the importance has only increased as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted assured supplier relationships, resulting in a rush to identify new suppliers and onboard them quickly,” said Neal Singh, COO, Icertis. “This application helps companies struggling to conform to multiple supplier management policies and protocols, such as required documentation, diverse supplier commitments, environmental sustainability plans, and contract evaluations. Because the ICI platform gets smarter with every transaction, companies can now leverage their contract intelligence to capitalize on new opportunities and rapidly respond to challenges today and long after the current crisis has passed.”

About Icertis

With unmatched technology and category-defining innovation, Icertis pushes the boundaries of what’s possible with contract lifecycle management (CLM). The AI-powered, analyst-validated Icertis Contract Intelligence (ICI) platform turns contracts from static documents into strategic advantage by structuring and connecting the critical contract information that defines how an organization runs. Today, the world’s most iconic brands and disruptive innovators trust Icertis to govern the rights and commitments in their 7.5 million+ contracts worth more than $1 trillion, in 40+ languages and 90+ countries.