September 29, 2022

Triller Inc. Secures $310 Million Equity Funding from Global Emerging Markets (GEM) in connection with Upcoming Public Listing

Company Expects to be Publicly Trading in Early Q4 Under Symbol “ILLR”

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Triller Inc.(“Triller”) and GEM Global Yield LLC SCS (“GGY”) today announced a binding $310 million investment from GEM, the Luxembourg based private alternative investment group, in the form of a share subscription facility. Under the agreement, GEM will provide Triller with up to $310 million in equity capital for a 36-month term following a public listing of Triller’s common stock.

Triller will not be obligated to draw the full $310 million but can do so in part or in whole at its discretion. Triller will control both the timing and amount of all drawdowns and will issue stock to GEM on each drawn down from the facility. Triller will also issue warrants to GEM, further aligning the interests of the companies.

Triller filed its private S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month and is submitting what it anticipates being the final S-1 concurrently with the closing of this facility. The expectation is that trading will commence in early Q4 2022.

“Triller has been growing tremendously,” said Mahi de Silva, CEO and Chairman of Triller. “At our inception in 2019, we were a zero-revenue company; now we are on track to break $100 million in revenue this year. The Triller app has been downloaded more than 350 million times, and the company works with dozens of the world’s largest brands and thousands of top artists, disrupting the entire creator community.”

Triller has 10 business lines, eight of which are at break-even or profitable, and effectuates 750 million interactions per quarter, each of which is a potential monetizable transaction for the company in the future.

With the capital infusion from GEM, Triller will be able to make additional acquisitions to strengthen its toolbox for the creator community and reach breakeven or profitability in the short-term. Assuming it draws upon the full $310 million equity facility, Triller will have raised more than $600 million dollars and, upon its IPO, will be virtually debt free.

“Triller is breaking all the rules of the closed garden systems. It is challenging the way the old establishment takes advantage of creators and users by keeping 99 percent of the money within the system for itself,” said De Silva. “The reason the industry is so set on MAU, DAU and the like is that is how much time someone spends within one company’s particular closed garden and means that the social networks ‘own’ the user, revenue, brand and information.

“Triller breaks that system wide open. As an open garden, our goal is to put the power back in the hands of the creators and users, allowing creators and brands to connect directly. We provide tools to maximize those connections and how well each can be monetized. In addition, looking at the number of interactions we facilitate helps us to forecast future revenue since each one of those is a potential transaction fee for us.”

About Triller Inc.

Triller is the AI-powered open garden technology platform for creators. Pairing music culture with sports, fashion, entertainment, and influencers through a 360-degree view of content and technology, Triller encourages its influencers to post the content created on the app across different social media platforms and uses proprietary AI technology to push and track their content virally to affiliated and non-affiliated sites and networks, enabling them to reach millions of additional users. Triller additionally owns VERZUZ, the live-stream music platform; combat sports brands Triller Fight Club, Triad Combat and BKFC; Amplify.ai, a leading customer engagement platform; FITE.tv, a premier global PPV, AVOD, and SVOD streaming service; Thuzio, a leader in B2B premium influencer events and experiences; Fangage, a platform for creators to engage fans and monetize content and Julius, a platform for brands and agencies to harness creators for social engagement and social commerce.

About GEM
Global Emerging Markets (“GEM”) is a $3.4 billion, Luxembourg based private alternative investment group with offices in Paris, New York and The Bahamas. GEM manages a diverse set of investment vehicles focused on emerging markets and has completed over 530 transactions in over 70 countries. Each investment vehicle has a different degree of operational control, risk-adjusted return, and liquidity profile. The family of funds and investment vehicles provide GEM and its partners with exposure to: Small-Mid Cap Management Buyouts, Private Investments in Public Equities and select venture investments. For more information: http://www.gemny.com

Tony Freinberg
President, Edendale Strategies
tony@edendalestrategies.com
(310) 614-1435

September 29, 2022

Vinamilk recognized as “The 6th Most Valuable Dairy Brand” globally in 2022 by Brand Finance

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, Sept. 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Vinamilk, Vietnam’s leading dairy manufacturer has reached a new milestone by being ranked 6th position in the Top 10 Most Valuable Dairy Brands by Brand Finance.

The US$2.8 billion valuation this year sees an impressive 18% increase as compared to 2021, reaffirms Vinamilk’s leading position. Specifically, in the dairy segment, the brand was ranked the Most Potential Dairy Brand and continues to appear in the Top 5 Strongest Dairy Brands, coming in 2^nd place – a remarkable result for Vinamilk as the only Southeast Asia representative in the Top 10 ranking for both brand value and strength. Vinamilk also leaves its footprint in major Food rankings such as Top 30 Most Valuable Food Brands and Top 10 Strongest Food Brands.

Furthermore, according to the nationwide report, Brand Finance also recognized Vinamilk as the Most Valuable Food Brand in Vietnam.

“The significant role of the brand is well aware by Vinamilk throughout the development of the company, especially in F&B and the dairy industry in particular. Throughout our 46-year journey, Vinamilk has continuously built the company’s brand value in accordance to our core pillars – product quality, service and our reputation amongst consumers”, said Mrs. Bui Thi Huong, Vinamilk Chief Director of Admin, HR & PR.

Vinamilk’s recent activities in Australia Fine Food trade fair

She also believes Vietnamese businesses will focus and put all their effort in achieving higher rankings on global rankings, affirming the position and value of Vietnamese national brands.

Every year, Brand Finance puts 5,000 of the world’s biggest brands in 29 industries throughout 39 countries under its test. With an integrated measurement method, considering various brand factors such as impact, health and reputation, investment and others combined with financial and survey data, the annual Food and Drink report published by Brand Finance provides brand health assessments in a transparent, fair and objective manner.

The changes when compared to Brand Finance’s 2021 report suggest that brands that invest in intrinsic strength, as well as focus on core values and long-term vision, are more likely to overcome uncertainty in turbulent times, and are developing further through innovation and continuity to meet growing consumer needs.

Vinamilk’s investments have also been positively recognized by other local and international organizations. The Brand Footprint 2022 report published by Worldpanel, Kantar signified Vinamilk’s decade-long achievements in maintaining leading positions in the Top 10 Most Chosen Dairy Brands in Vietnam.

In addition, Vinamilk was also honored for the 10th consecutive time in Forbes Vietnam’s 50 Best Listed Companies and has been recognized as one of “Vietnam Value” brands by VIETRADE since 2010.

Present in 57 countries and territories with a total accumulated export turnover of US$2.75 billion, Vinamilk continues to research and develop new products to increase its penetration to key export markets.

Since the beginning of 2022, the company has actively participated in a number of international trade activities and food fairs in China, Dubai, Japan, South Korea, and Australia to introduce Vinamilk’s range of products, as well as seeking opportunities for its international expansion.

About Vinamilk

Founded in 1976, Vinamilk is the leading dairy company in Vietnam which is listed among the Top 40 largest nutrition companies in the world by revenue and Top 10 of the world’s most valuable dairy brands. Vinamilk currently manages 17 factories, 15 dairy farms in Vietnam and overseas.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1910811/1.jpg
Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1910812/Vinamilk_Brand_Value_Graph__1.jpg
Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1910813/KDQT__c_1.jpg

September 29, 2022September 30, 2022

DR Congo: 34, including 16 children, killed when freight truck driven by drunk driver overturned up a hill

Thirty-four people, including 16 children, died when a freight truck driven by a drunk driver overturned on a hill in the Democratic Republic of Congo, an official said.

The truck, loaded with a minibus, goods and 93 passengers, was unable to climb a hill and turned over around 6.30pm on Monday evening, killing 33 people instantly. One person later died in hospital., said Celestine Lundanda Panga, administrator of the Lubudi territory in Lualaba province.

The total death toll was “nine men, nine women and 16 minors – 10 girls and six boys”, while 37 others were injured. 22 more escaped unhurt, including the driver.

Panga said the driver was drunk. “He had bottles of heavy alcohol in his cabin. I ordered his arrest,” he added, attributing the accident to “driving under the influence of alcohol” and poor road conditions.

The truck departed from Mbuji-Mayi in the central province of Kasai-Oriental and was heading towards Kolwezi, the capital of Lualaba.

According to Déodat Kapenda, Lualaba’s provincial minister, the government treated the injured and also promised to “take severe measures against truck and train drivers, who are the cause of repeated fatal accidents in the province”.

Road accidents are frequent in the Democratic Republic of Congo, often caused by ignoring traffic rules, with old vehicles not subjected to technical inspections.

The vast majority of roads in the country are just dirt tracks and drivers are often poorly trained or drunk.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

September 29, 2022September 30, 2022

Report: Million Livelihoods in DRC Threatened by Planned Oil and Gas Exploration

The environmental group Greenpeace Africa has released a report saying planned oil and gas exploration in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo could expose more than 1 million people to pollution and disease.

The planned selling of 30 eastern land blocks that extend into a famous gorilla reserve would also threaten wildlife and food security, while fueling conflict, poverty and corruption, according to the report.

Residents in the area accuse the government of keeping them in the dark and expressed fear of losing their livelihoods when companies start drilling for fossil fuels.

Representatives for Greenpeace Africa and partner organizations visited about 30 villages in July to gauge the community’s awareness of the planned exploration and how they intend to protect their land and livelihoods.

Mbong Akiy Fokwa Tsafack, head of communication at Greenpeace Africa, said many communities are not aware of the government’s plan to auction their land.

“The thought of the government thinking of auctioning their lands for oil was really a shock for them. They were unaware, so they didn’t know this was underway, which is quite shocking given how much the government has said it plans to really put people ahead of everything else,” Tsafack said.

No one asked residents what they thought of the oil and gas drilling project, said Bantu Lukambo, who works with Innovation for the Development and Protection of the Environment, an NGO monitoring the welfare of communities around Virunga National Park.

The government is supposed to have public input before undertaking such exploration, he said, but failed to do so. Even parliament members were not included in the decision-making process, he added.

DRC President Felix Tshisekedi defended his government’s plan while speaking at the United Nations General Assembly last week, saying oil discovery would bring economic development to his people.

Hydrocarbons Minister Didier Budimbu Ntubuanga, speaking at the Africa Oil Week conference in Senegal early this month, said the DRC has received two offers for the oil blocks and said any exploration will follow environmental guidelines.

Lukambo is doubtful that will be the case.

He fears all the fish will die if the exploration begins, and fishermen and their families will be in trouble. In addition, he added, 14 of the oil blocks are in Virunga National Park, and the others are in farming areas. If exploration starts on the land, he said, farmers won’t farm their land.

The oil exploration blocks overlap parts of Congo’s most pristine ecosystems and Virunga Park, which is home to over 1,000 species of animals and birds.

Tsafack said Congo’s leaders need to reconsider their decision to allow oil exploration in the park and nearby areas.

“This is a moment when we need to see leadership coming through, in terms of the zeal to uproot corruption, to strengthen good governance and to put the people of the DRC at [the] heart of any kind of development agenda,” Tsafack said. “And putting the people of DRC at the heart of any development agenda means really looking into the communities and finding out what it is that will uplift their lives.”

The 20-page report from Greenpeace urges the government to halt the projects and encourage alternative investments in renewable energy sources.

Source: Voice of America

September 29, 2022September 30, 2022

Africa is Rolling Out a New Plan for Pandemic Preparedness and Health Emergencies

In late August, health ministers from across Africa held a meeting in Togo in which they adopted a common strategy to confront health emergencies.

The so called “Regional Strategy for Health Security and Emergencies” commits African countries to concrete steps to strengthen disease surveillance, response and preparedness.

There are over 100 health emergencies in Africa each year — including outbreaks of infectious and deadly diseases like Yellow Fever, meningitis, and ebola. And it is sometimes the case that diseases endemic only in parts of Africa, like MonkeyPox, can spread globally precisely because of limited local capacity to contain an outbreak. This new strategy seeks to change that dynamic.

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Abdou Salam Gaye, WHO Regional Emergency Director for Africa to discuss this new African health security plan and Africa’s role in global pandemic preparedness and response.

We kick off by discussing what COVID revealed about African health systems’ ability to respond to a massive emergency. Dr. Salam then explains some key elements of this new regional strategy on health emergencies and how the successsful implementation of this plan will have a global impact.

Source: UN Dispatch