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LTO Network and FIA Formula 2 Driver Ralph Boschung Lead Motorsports Into the Metaverse Using NFT2.0 Technology

Dutch blockchain LTO Network and Formula 2 driver Ralph Boschung of Campos Racing, have partnered to showcase LTO Network’s recently unveiled NFT2.0 technology.

Featured Image for LTO Network

Featured Image for LTO Network

AMSTERDAM, Nov. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Formula 2 team Campos Racing‘s Ralph Boschung and Amsterdam’s LTO Network announce a sponsorship and partnership that will use NFT2.0 technology to bring the driver and his car to the metaverse, the first deal of its kind in the motorsports world.

After a chance meeting in Monaco, LTO Network CEO Rick Schmitz and the driver hailing from Switzerland soon realized they share a vision that empowers up-and-coming motorsports athletes with the ability to connect with fans in new and interesting ways while opening up revenue streams that support athletes in the costly and highly competitive journey of a career in motorsports.

NFT2.0 is the name of LTO Network’s newest technology, which makes NFTs more exclusive and valuable by providing asset holders with true possession of their digital assets that are called “ownables”.

The partnership will allow LTO Network to make 3D NFTs of the driver and his car to be used in metaverse games and experiences.

“We are excited to support this promising young star. Together we will lead the race to the metaverse,” said Rick Schmitz, CEO of LTO Network.

“The team at LTO Network and I clicked immediately and I look forward to helping push the envelope for what athletes can achieve for their brand and careers,” said Ralph Boschung of Campos Racing.

About LTO Network

The LTO Network team is on a mission to create and maintain a fully decentralized and highly efficient blockchain infrastructure, directly applicable and aimed at creating value for organizations. LTO Network can be used by any company with a need for a production-ready blockchain that allows for digital verification of digital assets and enabling collaboration through the use of decentralized workflows.

About Ralph Boschung

Ralph Boschung is a Swiss racing driver currently competing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for Campos Racing – the main feeder series to the pinnacle of motorsport, Formula 1. He is a race winner in the GP3 Series and has previously competed in Formula 2 from 2017 to 2020, for Campos, MP Motorsport and Trident.

Stay up-to-date with LTO Network –

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Media Contact

LTO Network – Press & Media Relations
press@ltonetwork.com

Ralph Boschung – Press & Media Relations
contact@pole.uk.com

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Virtusa Signs Strategic Collaboration Agreement with AWS to Help Global Enterprises Get the Full Value of Cloud Investments

The collaboration will establish a dedicated Virtusa AWS Business Group with an added focus on strategic global accounts, ISV modernization and a solution enhanced Professional Services relationship

SOUTHBOROUGH, Mass., Nov. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —  Virtusa Corporation today announced that they are extending their Strategic Collaboration Agreement (SCA) with Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) to empower global organizations to unlock more value, efficiency and profitability via cloud-based services.

Virtusa has been a participant of the AWS Partner Network (APN) for more than ten years and today’s announcement builds upon that success. The AWS Partner Network (APN) is the global community of partners using AWS to build solutions and services for customers. AWS has millions of active customers and a dynamic community of over 100,000 partners from more than 150 countries.

Underlying this agreement will be the creation of a joint business group to help clients more quickly move their processes, applications, and data to the cloud. The Virtusa AWS Business Group (VABG) brings together dedicated professionals from each company with expertise in cloud solutions architecture, development and managed cloud operations coupled with industry consulting and domain expertise.

The two companies will focus on three additional growth initiatives under the SCA. These three initiatives will accelerate cloud adoption for global and multi-national enterprises, expedite ISV (High-Tech software companies) cloud modernization and growth and broaden Virtusa’s long-standing partnership with AWS’s ProServe organization with a focus on vertical solutions.

Accelerate cloud adoption: Global and multi-national enterprises typically have operations in multiple countries, complex buying requirements, and significant growth potential. Many of them are challenged by technology buying decisions which usually occur in a regional or federated operating model. Those factors make it challenging to balance global efficiencies and economies of scale while also leveraging the innovations happening across their organization.

Virtusa has been working with AWS to help businesses overcome these challenges and accelerate transformation efforts globally. The two companies are currently working across multiple global accounts in targeted industries. As part of this agreement, Virtusa and AWS will create a dedicated team focused on expanding named Global Fortune 500 accounts with an initial focus in the industries where Virtusa has deep expertise: Financial Services, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Media & Entertainment, and Telecommunications.

Virtusa and AWS will provide customers with several significant benefits:

  • A dedicated global account team
  • Access to an AWS Cloud Center of Excellence (CCoE)
  • Cloud foundation migration assets
  • Industry frameworks for Cloud Native application development

“We are seeing worldwide enterprises face a skills shortage at a time when they need to move faster than ever before to capture new and emerging opportunities for growth,” said Cam McNaught, Director, AWS Partner Core at AWS. “As a global organization with over 30,000 engineers, Virtusa has the scale, industry expertise, cutting edge engineering skills, and customer intimacy to accelerate the cloud journey of our customers. We are confident that this collaboration extension will help deliver significant differentiated value and strategic innovations for our mutual customers.”

Expedite ISV modernization and growth: As businesses embrace SaaS-based operating models, leading ISVs require extensive support and expert product builders to create next-generation platforms. Legacy systems are holding many ISVs back from capitalizing on new business initiatives – with many turning to application modernization to remove these obstacles. Virtusa and AWS provide comprehensive cloud modernization services and commercial incentives to help ISVs quickly remove these barriers to growth.

Virtusa specializes in AWS migrations and implementing custom modifications that ensure smooth integration with a customers’ existing infrastructure. As a result, ISVs can accelerate product innovation and rollouts while also improving overall operations. Under the agreement, the two companies will provide end-to-end Cloud modernization services to help ISVs create, adopt, accelerate, and optimize SaaS based solutions using AWS.

As part of this effort, both companies will provide a comprehensive set of consulting and technology services to support ISVs in migrating the client base to AWS public and hybrid cloud-based services. This program will operate globally and be initially targeted at ISVs within select industries, including Banking & Insurance, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Telecommunications, Media & Technology.

“Virtusa is our global technology partner who has helped us design, build and now manages technology operations for our IoT & Data Analytics platform, which operates across multiple AWS public cloud services,” said Eric Martinez, CEO of Modjoul, an ISV focused on worker safety automation. “Both Virtusa and AWS are deeply trusted partners who we rely heavily on to both run and scale our business.”

Enhanced ProServe agreement with a vertical solution focus: Virtusa and AWS are expanding their existing Professional Services to put an emphasis on driving greater business outcomes in specific industries and accounts from co-sell through delivery. The companies will provide vertical industry solutions created by Virtusa and running on AWS, including Virtusa’s Open Innovation Platforms for Banking and Financial Services, Healthcare and Life Sciences, and Telecom and Media industries.

As part of this agreement, Virtusa has committed to the establishment of a dedicated AWS focused co-sell and co-delivery function exclusively to support the end customers looking to partner with Virtusa and AWS ProServe. Virtusa brings deep industry expertise to AWS customers across primary industries.

“Virtusa and AWS are helping businesses by providing the skills, expertise, tools, and accelerators to build strategic cloud platforms as well as to more systematically close the skills gap and remove that as a barrier to growth,” said Santosh Thomas, CEO of Virtusa. “The work builds on the tremendous success over the past ten years and is designed to enable companies to innovate faster, operate more efficiently, establish new markets, and grow revenue.”

The journey to the cloud comes with many challenges. Legacy applications, getting consensus, and technical debt are only some of the roadblocks enterprises face with modernization. Virtusa helps enterprises overcome complex cloud adoption challenges, at any stage of their journey.

By migrating on-premises applications to AWS, enterprises are accelerating the speed of innovation and managing scale, agility and significantly lowering the cost of operations. Virtusa’s AWS Migration competency, award-winning migration framework, and unique AWS Migration Workbench, coupled with experience in large-scale migration programs, enables more than 30% productivity gains.

A foundation for growth

Today’s announcement builds upon a decade of successful collaboration between Virtusa and AWS. Together, the two companies have established a robust set of solutions and services to help companies realize the total value of the cloud.

Virtusa is a Premier Global Consulting partner with relevant competencies in Migration, DevOps, Data & Analytics, SaaS, Digital Workplace, Financial Services, Life Sciences and Healthcare. Over the past ten years, Virtusa has worked with AWS to build an award-winning platform for migrating application and data workloads to AWS services. Virtusa has taken these services and customized them to include the support for ISVs in migrating their platforms and reengineering them in the process.

To learn more about Virtusa’s AWS partnership and services visit: https://www.virtusa.com/partners/aws

To learn more about Virtusa’s Open Innovation Industry Platforms running on AWS cloud visit:
Banking & Financial Services: https://www.virtusa.com/solutions/open-banking
Healthcare & Life Sciences: https://www.virtusa.com/solutions/vlife
Telecommunications & Media: https://www.virtusa.com/solutions/icomms

About Virtusa
Virtusa Corporation is a global provider of digital business strategy, digital engineering, and information technology (IT) services and solutions that help clients change, disrupt, and unlock new value through innovation engineering. Virtusa serves Global 2000 companies in Banking, Financial Services, Insurance, Healthcare, Communications, Media, Entertainment, Travel, Manufacturing, and Technology industries.

Virtusa helps clients grow their business with innovative products and services that create operational efficiency using digital labor, future-proof operational and IT platforms, and rationalization and modernization of IT applications infrastructure. This is achieved through a unique approach blending deep contextual expertise, empowered agile teams, and measurably better engineering to create holistic solutions that drive business forward at unparalleled velocity enabled by a culture of cooperative disruption.

Virtusa is a registered trademark of Virtusa Corporation.  All other company and brand names may be trademarks or service marks of their respective holders.

Contact:
Matt Berry
Conversion Marketing
matt@conversionam.com
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Adagio Therapeutics Reports That None of the Mutations Present in SARS-CoV-2 Variant, Omicron, Are Associated with Escape from ADG20 Neutralization In Vitro

Additional in vitro studies to determine neutralization activity of ADG20 against Omicron are ongoing

ADG20 EUA submissions planned for prevention and treatment of COVID-19 in mid-2022

Inventory build continues in anticipation of EUA in second half of 2022, with 4 million doses available for distribution over the next two years

WALTHAM, Mass., Nov. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Adagio Therapeutics, Inc., (Nasdaq: ADGI) a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody-based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential, today provided information related to the potential of its lead SARS-CoV-2 antibody, ADG20, to address the Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant, and other known variants of concern. ADG20 is an investigational monoclonal antibody (mAb) product candidate designed to provide broad and potent neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2, including variants of concern, for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 with potential duration of protection for up to one year in a single injection.

“The continued global scale of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased levels of immune pressure on the virus, which is driving the emergence of variants containing mutations associated with escape from common classes of neutralizing antibodies induced by natural infection or vaccination. Unlike most antibodies currently available under EUA, ADG20 has been shown to target an epitope that is highly conserved among clade I sarbecoviruses and that is not readily targeted by the endogenous neutralizing antibody response,” said Laura Walker, Ph.D., co-founder and chief scientific officer of Adagio. “Due to the highly conserved and immunorecessive nature of the epitope recognized by ADG20, we expect that ADG20 will retain activity against Omicron, as we have observed in in vitro models with all other variants of concern identified previously. Further, none of the mutations present in the spike protein of the Omicron variant have been associated with escape from ADG20 neutralization.   ADG20 was engineered for potent and broadly neutralizing activity in anticipation of both the rapid antigenic evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and the emergence of future SARS-like viruses with pandemic potential.”

“ADG20 was uniquely designed to combine breadth, potency and duration of protection against SARS-CoV-2 for up to one year in a single injection. We did this anticipating that SARS-CoV-2 would continue to evolve and potentially render some early therapies and vaccines obsolete,” said Tillman Gerngross, Ph.D., co-founder and chief executive officer of Adagio. “Our global clinical trials are advancing with potential EUA submissions in mid-2022 for both prevention and treatment of COVID-19. We continue to engage with the FDA and other regulatory bodies and governmental agencies to discuss potential acceleration of development plans and the need for a portfolio of therapeutic solutions to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Given the significant potential health crisis resulting from the emergence of Omicron, Adagio is undertaking a number of activities to support ADG20’s utility in addressing this newly emerged variant of concern, including:

  • Conducting in vitro studies to evaluate the expected binding and neutralizing activity of ADG20 against Omicron. Initial data from these studies is anticipated by the end of the year; and
  • Recruiting patients in Adagio’s Phase 2/3 COVID-19 treatment trial, known as STAMP, across several clinical sites in South Africa (along with ongoing clinical trial efforts globally) in an effort to generate clinical data for ADG20 against infections due to the Omicron variant.

Based on the data being generated, Adagio plans to engage with health authorities and government agencies to accelerate development and supply of ADG20 to combat SARS-CoV-2 and its variants of concern.

ADG20 and Variants of Concern
The neutralizing antibody response induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination is dominated by three classes of receptor binding domain (RBD)-directed antibodies (Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3), which often share common escape mutations. The newly emerged Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant identified in South Africa contains mutations associated with resistance to a large proportion of these commonly elicited antibodies, which may be due to immune pressure on these antigenic sites. Data for most antibodies available under EUA or in late-stage clinical development show they target one of these three dominant antigenic regions within the RBD.

In vitro studies have shown that ADG20 binds to a highly conserved epitope within the RBD that is not targeted by any of the common classes of neutralizing antibodies induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination. Thus, unlike many other clinical-stage antibodies, which were isolated from COVID-19 patients and recognize epitopes that are also targeted by endogenous neutralizing antibodies, there is limited immune pressure on the ADG20 binding site. The ADG20 epitope has remained conserved in 99.99% of the nearly 4 million full length SARS-CoV-2 viral sequences deposited in the GISAID database as of October 15, 2021, and, as shown in in vitro studies, ADG20 retains activity against prior variants of concern including Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Gamma. For the Omicron variant, none of the mutations present in the spike protein are associated with escape from ADG20 neutralization. Based on published epitope mapping and structural studies, Adagio anticipates that ADG20 will retain neutralizing activity against the Omicron variant whereas other mAb products may lose substantial activity against this variant.

Previously disclosed in vitro data demonstrated retained neutralizing activity of ADG20 against a diverse panel of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants, including the recently emerged Lambda, Mu and Delta plus variants. Notably, findings from these in vitro studies showed that ADG20 demonstrated potent neutralizing activity against all SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern tested, including those with reduced susceptibility to mAb products currently available under EUA or in late-stage development.

About ADG20
ADG20, an investigational monoclonal antibody targeting the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses, is advancing through global clinical trials for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. ADG20 was designed and engineered to possess high potency and broad neutralization activity against SARS-CoV-2 and additional clade 1 sarbecoviruses by targeting a highly conserved epitope in the receptor binding domain. ADG20 was further engineered to provide an extended half-life for durable protection. ADG20 has demonstrated potent neutralizing activity against the original SARS-CoV-2 virus, SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Gamma, other SARS-CoV-2 variants to date, and additional SARS-like viruses in preclinical studies. ADG20 is administered in clinical trials by a single intramuscular injection. To date, ADG20 has been well-tolerated in a Phase 1 trial with no safety signals identified through a minimum of three months follow-up across all cohorts. ADG20 has not been approved for use in any country, and safety and efficacy have not yet been established.

About Adagio Therapeutics
Adagio (Nasdaq: ADGI) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody-based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential, including COVID-19 and influenza. The company’s portfolio of antibodies has been optimized using Adimab’s industry-leading antibody engineering capabilities and is designed to provide patients and clinicians with the potential for a powerful combination of potency, breadth, durable protection (via half-life extension), manufacturability and affordability. Adagio’s portfolio of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies includes multiple non-competing, broadly neutralizing antibodies with distinct binding epitopes, led by ADG20. Adagio has secured manufacturing capacity for the production of ADG20 with third-party contract manufacturers to support the completion of clinical trials and initial commercial launch, ensuring the potential for broad accessibility to people around the world. For more information, please visit www.adagiotx.com.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “projects,” and “future” or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning, among other things, the timing, progress and results of our preclinical studies and clinical trials of ADG20, including the timing of our planned EUA submissions, initiation, modification and completion of studies or trials and related preparatory work, the period during which the results of the trials will become available and our research and development programs; the expected neutralizing activity of ADG20 against the Omicron variant; our ability to obtain and maintain regulatory approvals for, our product candidates; our ability to identify patients, including in specific populations, with the diseases treated by our product candidates and to enroll these patients in our clinical trials; our expectations regarding the scope of any approved indication for ADG20; and the risk/benefit profile of our product candidates to patients; our manufacturing capabilities and strategy, including plans for doses available in the near future; and our ability to successfully commercialize our product candidates. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the results described in or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, clinical trials and financial position, unexpected safety or efficacy data observed during preclinical studies or clinical trials, clinical trial site activation or enrollment rates that are lower than expected, changes in expected or existing competition, changes in the regulatory environment, and the uncertainties and timing of the regulatory approval process. Other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements in this press release are described under the heading “Risk Factors” in Adagio’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2021 and in Adagio’s future reports to be filed with the SEC, including Adagio’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2021. Such risks may be amplified by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of this date, and Adagio undertakes no duty to update such information except as required under applicable law.

Contacts:
Media Contact:
Dan Budwick, 1AB
Dan@1abmedia.com

Investor Contact:
Monique Allaire, THRUST Strategic Communications
monique@thrustsc.com

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Jeito Capital co-leads $156 million oversubscribed Series B financing in Quell Therapeutics

Jeito Capital co-leads $156 million oversubscribed Series B financing in Quell Therapeutics

  • Quell Therapeutics is the world leader in developing engineered T-regulatory (Tregs) cell therapies for serious medical conditions driven by the immune system.
  • Jeito continues to build a strong portfolio of companies with groundbreaking therapies in areas of high unmet need.

Paris, France, 29 November 2021 – Jeito Capital (“Jeito”), a leading independent private equity firm dedicated to biotech and biopharma, today announces that it has co-led a $156 million oversubscribed Series B financing round in Quell Therapeutics (“Quell”), the world leader in the development of engineered T-regulatory (Treg) cell therapies for serious medical conditions driven by the immune system.

Jeito co-led the financing with Ridgeback Capital Investments and SV Health Investors and Fidelity Management & Research Company, with participation from founding investor Syncona and new investors including British Patient Capital through its Future Fund: Breakthrough program, Janus Henderson Investors, Monashee Investment Management, Point72 and funds managed by Tekla Capital Management LLC. Rachel Mears, Partner at Jeito Capital, will join Quell’s Board of Directors.

Quell is harnessing the full power of Tregs, known as the “master modulators” of immune homeostasis, to create novel cell therapies designed to suppress overactive immune responses, drive long-term tolerance in the local immune environment and promote tissue repair.

Proceeds from the financing will be used to fund the LIBERATE Phase 1/2 clinical trial of QEL-001, Quell’s first-in-class antigen-specific multi-modular CAR-Treg cell therapy candidate designed to prevent organ rejection in liver transplant patients by inducing durable immune tolerance and eliminating the need for lifelong immunosuppression. QEL-001 is on track to become the first multi-modular engineered CAR-Treg cell therapy in clinical development, with patient recruitment expected to begin before the end of the year. Funds will also be used to advance the company’s pipeline in core therapeutic areas of transplantation, neuroinflammatory diseases and autoimmune diseases, as well as accelerate the development of Quell’s autologous multi-modular engineered Treg platform and further develop an allogeneic CAR-Treg platform.

Quell’s versatile platform technology enables the company to design, engineer, and manufacture at scale Treg products with greater stability, persistence, and potency than earlier generations. Key elements of this technology include its proprietary Foxp3 Phenotype Lock technology, which enables Quell to “lock” Tregs in an immunosuppressive phenotype that enhances their safety, stability, and efficacy; chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) modules for tissue targeting; and additional modules to enhance disease-specific efficacy and safety.

The company, which is based in London, U.K., with an office in Boston, Mass., U.S., is led by Chief Executive Officer Iain McGill, a leading pharmaceutical executive with extensive relevant experience, having spent most of his 25 years in the industry in immunology, including the areas of solid organ and cell transplantation, at global pharmaceutical companies such as Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Roche, and Novartis. Quell recently strengthened its executive leadership team with key appointments, including Dominik Hartl as Chief Medical Officer and Tracey Lodie as Chief Scientific Officer.

Rafaèle Tordjman, Founder and CEO at Jeito, said: “Our investment in Quell is testament of our ambition to continue building a strong portfolio of companies with the potential of becoming market leaders. Following the recent closing of our first fund, Jeito I, at €534 million ($630 million), we are pleased to have co-led this financing round alongside many prestigious investors in the US and the UK. With its high-quality science, expert leadership team, strong syndicate of investors and significant capital, Quell is ideally positioned to accelerate its therapies through clinical development for the benefit of millions of patients.”

Rachel Mears, Partner at Jeito, said: “We have been impressed with Quell’s science, its team, ambitious strategy, and commitment to accelerating the delivery of truly innovative and life-changing therapies for patients across autoimmune and inflammatory diseases and in organ transplant rejection, for which there is a high unmet need. Quell has made significant progress since the company’s creation in 2019 and we are excited to be working closely with the team, providing continuous support and expertise, as they progress their first enhanced Treg cell therapy candidate into clinical development.”

Iain McGill, Chief Executive Officer of Quell Therapeutics, said: “We are proud to have the support of this high-quality syndicate of investors as we drive forward to our next stage of growth. With this financing, we have the full suite of capabilities – capital, cutting-edge science, and a world-class team – to advance our pipeline and platform to key milestones on our path to ultimately deliver potentially transformative therapies to patients suffering from diseases caused by immune dysregulation.”

About Jeito Capital
Jeito Capital is a global leading investment company with a patient benefit driven approach that finances and accelerates the development and growth of ground-breaking medical innovation. Jeito empowers and supports entrepreneurs through its expert, integrated, multi-talented team and through the investment of significant capital to ensure the growth of companies, building market leaders in their respective therapeutic areas with accelerated patients’ access in Europe & the United States. Jeito Capital has €534 million under management. Jeito Capital is based in Paris with a presence in Europe and the United States. For more information, please visit www.jeito.life, or follow on Twitter @Jeito_life or LinkedIn.

About Quell Therapeutics

Quell Therapeutics is the world leader in developing engineered T-regulatory (Treg) cell therapies that aim to harness, direct and optimize their immune suppressive properties to address serious medical conditions driven by the immune system.

The Company is leveraging its pioneering phenotype lock technology, unique multi-modular platform and integrated manufacturing capabilities to design and develop a pipeline of highly engineered Treg cell therapies with greater potential for stability, persistence and potency than earlier generations of Treg cell therapy approaches.

Quell’s lead candidate QEL-001 is being developed to induce operational tolerance following liver transplantation, with the potential to protect the post-transplant liver without the need for chronic immunosuppressive medications. Quell is also advancing additional programs in neuroinflammatory and autoimmune diseases. www.quell-tx.com.

For more information please contact:

Consilium Strategic Communications

Mary-Jane Elliott / Melissa Gardiner / Davide Salvi / Kris Lam

Jeito@consilium-comms.com

Tilder (French PR)

Marion Bougeard
m.bougeard@tilder.com

Hynd Boumehdi
h.boumehdi@tilder.com
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UAE’s GreenDome Investments Acquires Elite Co. in Multi-Million Dollar Middle East Logistics Deal

UAE’s GreenDome Investments Acquires Elite Co.

UAE’s GreenDome Investments Acquires Elite Co.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 28, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — GreenDome Investments announced today that it has closed on the acquisition of Elite Co. from Prama Holdings. Elite Co. is a leading fully integrated land freight and courier solutions providers in the Middle East. The transaction represents one of the region’s largest acquisitions in the logistics market and is the first of many acquisitions by GreenDome Investments, a logistics investment vehicle owned by regional industry leaders.

“The acquisition of Elite Co. represents our first transaction as we embark on a journey to build an integrated, customer-centric and technology-focused end-to-end global logistics services business. We intend to support the region’s fast-paced economies while expanding our offering beyond the Middle East,” said Saadi Abdul Rahim Hassan Al Rais, Chairman of GreenDome Investments and Managing Director of Rais Hassan Saadi Group.

Elite Co., founded in the 1990s, is a highly specialized overland freight and courier services business and has state-of-the-art operations and assets across Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, with its regional hub in Dubai. It has over 1000 staff, 600 trucks and 100,000 square feet of warehouse capacity.

“We are humbled by what we have built over the past twenty years and we could not have found a better-suited investor to take Elite Co. into its next phase of its growth. GDI’s ambition to build a regional end-to-end logistics champion with global reach is inspiring and we are pleased that Elite will be the foundation from which this vision is realized,” said Roney Malhotra, outgoing CEO of Elite Co. and Chairman of Prama Holdings.

GreenDome Investments, headquartered in Dubai, aims to build an integrated logistics services powerhouse to tap into the Middle East and the world’s growing logistics and e-commerce industry. The company is backed by regional industry leaders, including UAE-based Rais Hassan Saadi Group and the Sharaf Group, and Logipoint, a subsidiary of Saudi Industrial Services Company, SISCO, a listed company on the Saudi Arabia stock exchange.

“We see tremendous opportunity in the Middle East, as well as the broader global logistics industry, and we intend to leverage our decades of experience and expertise to build, through M&A, a globally integrated freight, courier, and contract logistics businesses,” said Mohammed Sharaf, former Group CEO of DP World and CEO of GreenDome Investments.

“We aim to offer unparalleled services to regional and global markets, while we support partners and customers to unlock and create value. In addition, the growing e-commerce sector, both regionally and globally, represents an important growth segment we intend to capitalize on,” added Sharaf.

“Elite Co. is well positioned to capitalize on the projected growth in the e-commerce sector as well as the broader express courier market, both in the Middle East and around the world. We will capture value from the industry’s growth by strengthening our network and offering, while also exploring global growth opportunities,” said Hisham Albahar, Incoming CEO of Elite Co.

“With the fourth industrial revolution upon us, we expect to see significant disruption and opportunity in the end-to-end logistics industry, and we intend to build on Elite Co.’s existing technology and expertise to improve efficiency, drive down costs and offer customer-centric solutions. Importantly, we will work closely with partners and customers to unlock value through sophisticated digital ecosystems to optimize supply chains,” added Albahar.

Press Contact: media@elite-co.com

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Image 1: UAE’s GreenDome Investments Acquires Elite Co.

Saadi Al Rais, GDI Chairman; Roney Malhotra, Chairman of Prama Holdings; Mohammed Sharaf, GDI CEO, Hisham Albahar, Incoming Elite CEO

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COVID: 73,653 of Selangor adolescents yet to be vaccinated – Exco

SHAH ALAM, Nov 29 — About 73,653 adolescents, aged 12 to 17, in Selangor have yet to receive COVID-19 vaccinations, out of the total adolescent population of 569,100, the State Legislative Assembly was told today.

State Public Health, Unity, Women and Family Development Committee chairman, Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud, said that 495,447 individuals from the group have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

She said this in reply to a question by Elizabeth Wong Keat Ping (PH-Bukit Lanjan) who wanted to know the number of people in Selangor, aged 12 and above, who have not been vaccinated.

Dr Siti Mariah said that vaccination administration for the group was still in process with all agencies, including the state education department, district education offices and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

“For those teenagers who face difficulties in going to vaccination centres, such as teens who do not attend school, Orang Asli teens, or those in rehabilitation centres or shelter homes, the vaccines will be administered via outreach programmes,” she explained.

Meanwhile, as for youths, aged 18 and above, Dr Siti Mariah said that an estimated total of 275,237 have yet to be vaccinated, while 4.27 million have received at least one dose, of the total group population of 4,551,800.

“A small proportion of those unvaccinated are those classified as people who cannot receive, or have contraindications to the COVID-19 vaccine, while the rest are those who reject the vaccine,” she said.

She added out of 22,314 civil servants, only 132, or 0.59 per cent, across 43 state departments and agencies remain unvaccinated, as of Nov 16.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

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Domestic violence cases continue to rise in Selangor

SHAH ALAM, Nov 29 — The number of domestic violence cases in Selangor shows an increase this year with 1,519 cases reported from January until October compared to 1,349 cases recorded last year.

State Public Health, Unity, and Women and Family Development Committee chairman, Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud said that 951 cases were recorded in 2018 and 1,159 in 2019.

“Following the increase in cases, the state government has taken some initiatives including creating the SELamat hotline for the public to complain on the domestic violence cases happening, particularly in Selangor.

“This has been operating since Nov 1 and until Nov 24, the SELamat line received 14 calls with seven of these involving psychological, physical and economic abuse,” she said to a question from Juwairiya Zulkifli (PH-Bukit Melawati) on the issue at the Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting, here, today.

“All the calls received were non-emergency ones as the reason to call the line was to obtain counselling to help them manage their emotions,” she added.

Dr Siti Mariah said the SELamat line gave the callers, the choice of obtaining face-to-face or online counselling or further intervention from non-governmental organisations and the Sahabat line’s qualified counsellors under the Counselling Centre, Office of the Selangor State Secretary.

The 24-hour SELamat phone line at 03-64195027 is under the supervision of Wanita Berdaya Selangor (WBS), which shares information on this line on its Facebook and Instagram, Pusat Wanita Berdaya (PWB) in Selangor’s 56 state constituencies and partner offices to spread awareness and advocacy on the issue of domestic violence.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency