Category: Economy

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: IMPORT OF CRITICAL MINERALS FOR EVs
Source: Government of India

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 3:23PM by PIB Delhi

The country is greatly dependent on other Asian countries for raw materials, mineral processing, battery and other basic requirements for production and promotion of e-vehicles in the country, since the basic raw material for production of electric vehicles is lithium and other critical materials. At present, investments in manufacturing and overall value addition for Advanced Chemistry Cells (ACCs) are negligible in India and almost entire domestic demand of ACCs is still being met through imports. In order to reduce dependency of imported ACC battery for electric vehicles, the Government on 12^th May, 2021 approved a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for manufacturing of Advance Chemistry Cell (ACC) in the country. The total outlay of the scheme is Rs.18,100 Crore for a period of 5 years. The scheme envisages to establish a competitive ACC battery manufacturing set up in the country (50 GWh).

As per the information received from Ministry of Mines, the Union Cabinet has approved the launch of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) on 29^th January, 2025, for a period of seven years from 2024-25 to 2030-31, with a proposed expenditure of Rs.16,300 crore and an expected investment of Rs.18,000 crore by Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and other stakeholders. The NCMM aims to secure a long-term sustainable supply of critical minerals and strengthen India’s critical mineral value chains encompassing all stages from mineral exploration and mining to beneficiation, processing, and recovery from end-of-life products.

In order to boost domestic production and reduce India’s dependence on imported lithium, cobalt and other key materials required for EV batteries, the Government of India has taken significant steps, which are as under:

The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 (MMDR) has been amended through the MMDR Amendment Act, 2023 w.e.f. 17.08.2023. The Amendment Act, 2023 provides for:
1. A list of 24 critical and strategic minerals in Part D of Schedule-I.
2. Omission of six minerals from the list of 12 atomic minerals in Part B of Schedule-I namely Lithium, Titanium, Beryl and beryllium bearing minerals, Niobium, Tantalum and Zirconium bearing minerals and their inclusion in the list of aforesaid 24 critical and strategic minerals.
3. Section 11D of the Act, which empowers Central Government to exclusively auction mining lease and composite license for critical & strategic minerals specified in Part D of the Schedule-I.
4. Exploration license for 29 minerals included in Schedule-VII of the Act.
In addition, Ministry of Mines has been empowered to auction blocks for grant of Exploration License through an order dated 21^st October, 2024 under Section 20A of MMDR Act 1957. Central Government has successfully auctioned 24 blocks of critical and strategic minerals in 04 tranches in 2024.

The exploration of critical minerals has been significantly increased. Over the past three years, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) has undertaken 368 exploration projects focused on critical and strategic minerals. In the FY 2024-25, 195 projects are being executed, and 227 projects have been approved for the upcoming financial year.

100% FDI is allowed under “Automatic” route for mining and exploration of metal and non-metal ores. A foreign company may incorporate an Indian subsidiary company or invest in an existing Indian Company to become eligible for grant of mining and exploration rights.

To support the critical minerals sector, Government has eliminated customs duties on 25 minerals and reduced Basic Customs Duties (BCD) on 2 minerals in the Union Budget for 2024-25.

In the Union Budget 2025-26, the Government proposed to fully exempt cobalt powder and waste, the scrap of lithium-ion battery, Lead, Zinc and 12 more critical minerals to secure their availability for manufacturing in India and promote more jobs for India’s youth.

Ministry of Mines is engaged in various multilateral and bilateral platforms for strengthening the critical minerals value chain, focussing on multiple objectives, including the processing and recycling of critical minerals such as Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) and the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET), the UK-India Technology Security Initiative (TSI) and others.

The Ministry of Mines has taken a significant step to acquire overseas mineral assets through the establishment of a joint venture company, KhanijBidesh India Ltd. (KABIL). Its overarching mission is to identify and acquire overseas mineral assets that hold critical and strategic significance, specifically targeting minerals like Lithium, Cobalt and others. KABIL has signed an Exploration and Development Agreement with CAMYEN, a state-owned enterprise of Catamarca province of Argentina, for Exploration and mining of Five Lithium Brine Block in Argentina with an area of around 15,703 Ha.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries, Shri Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

****

TPJ/NJ

(Release ID: 2112232) Visitor Counter : 68

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –
March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CE meets Dongguan official

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Chief Executive John Lee today met Secretary of the CPC Dongguan Municipal Committee Wei Hao to discuss deepening Hong Kong’s co-operation with Dongguan and promoting the Greater Bay Area’s high-quality development.

Welcoming Mr Wei and his delegation, Mr Lee stressed that Hong Kong and Dongguan enjoy close geographical and cultural ties, and have long maintained close co-operation in areas such as economics, trade, and shipping.

He outlined that Hong Kong will give full play to its advantages as a bridge between the Mainland and the world, and its dual roles in helping Mainland firms to go global while attracting foreign investment, in order to assist Dongguan enterprises as they seek to expand internationally.

The Chief Executive also mentioned the successful collaboration between the two cities in operating the Hong Kong International Airport Dongguan Logistics Park, in Dongguan, under the “sea-air intermodal cargo-transshipment” mode.

Combining Hong Kong’s strengths in aviation and logistics with Dongguan’s land and manpower resources, the project aims to create a model of successful co-operation within the bay area. Mr Lee emphasised that it will enhance logistics connectivity within the bay area and boost the international competitiveness of the area’s manufacturing and import-export industries.

The Chief Executive expressed confidence that Hong Kong and Dongguan will leverage their complementary advantages and pursue greater co-operation, thereby contributing to world-class development in the bay area.

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Cooperative Societies and Cooperative Banks

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 3:18PM by PIB Delhi

As per National Cooperative Database (NCD), the total number of cooperative societies, state-wise, as of 01-03-2025, is attached as Annexure-1. The state-wise number of State cooperative Banks, District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCB) and Urban Cooperative Banks (UCB) is attached as Annexure-2.

The details of funds allocated by the Government for Computerization of Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Societies during last three years are at Annexure 3 and details of financial assistance disbursed by National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) for the development of cooperatives societies including cooperative banks during the last three years are given at Annexure 4.

All the cooperative banks under the supervision of NABARD have been digitized and are functional on Core Banking Solution (CBS) platform.

Cooperative banks are inherently cooperative societies which are registered under the Cooperative Societies Act of the State concerned or under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002 (amended in 2023). When cooperative societies carry on the business of banking, they come under the regulatory purview of RBI and they are licensed under the provisions of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (as applicable to cooperative societies).

S.No	State	Number of Societies
1	ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS	2231
2	ANDHRA PRADESH	17884
3	ARUNACHAL PRADESH	1302
4	ASSAM	11325
5	BIHAR	26324
6	CHANDIGARH	476
7	CHHATTISGARH	10980
8	DELHI	5944
9	GOA	5499
10	GUJARAT	83748
11	HARYANA	33300
12	HIMACHAL PRADESH	5439
13	JAMMU AND KASHMIR	10124
14	JHARKHAND	11683
15	KARNATAKA	45292
16	KERALA	18209
17	LADAKH	273
18	LAKSHADWEEP	43
19	MADHYA PRADESH	53740
20	MAHARASHTRA	222864
21	MANIPUR	11458
22	MEGHALAYA	3152
23	MIZORAM	1320
24	NAGALAND	8017
25	ODISHA	7598
26	PUDUCHERRY	461
27	PUNJAB	19237
28	RAJASTHAN	41095
29	SIKKIM	3797
30	TAMIL NADU	22793
31	TELANGANA	60517
32	THE DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI AND DAMAN AND DIU	566
33	TRIPURA	3213
34	UTTAR PRADESH	44933
35	UTTARAKHAND	5572
36	WEST BENGAL	31779
	Total	832188

Source: NCD portal as of 01-03-2025

S.No	State	State Cooperative Banks	District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCB )	Urban Cooperative Banks (UCB)
1	ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS	1	0
2	ANDHRA PRADESH	1	13	39
3	ARUNACHAL PRADESH	1	0
4	ASSAM	1	0	7
5	BIHAR	1	23	2
6	CHANDIGARH	1	0	2
7	CHHATTISGARH	1	6	12
8	DELHI	1	0	17
9	GOA	1	0	5
10	GUJARAT	1	18	212
11	HARYANA	1	19	7
12	HIMACHAL PRADESH	1	2	5
13	JAMMU AND KASHMIR	1	3	4
14	JHARKHAND	1	1	2
15	KARNATAKA	1	20	279
16	KERALA	1	0	39
17	LADAKH	0	0
18	LAKSHADWEEP	0	0
19	MADHYA PRADESH	1	38	38
20	MAHARASHTRA	1	31	448
21	MANIPUR	1	0
22	MEGHALAYA	1	0	3
23	MIZORAM	1	0
24	NAGALAND	1	0
25	ODISHA	1	17	10
26	PUDUCHERRY	1	0	1
27	PUNJAB	1	20	9
28	RAJASTHAN	1	29	38
29	SIKKIM	1	0	1
30	TAMIL NADU	1	24	101
31	TELANGANA	1	9	70
32	THE DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI AND DAMAN AND DIU	1	0
33	TRIPURA	1	0
34	UTTAR PRADESH	1	50	55
35	UTTARAKHAND	1	10	6
36	WEST BENGAL	1	5	42
Total		32	338	1454

Source: NCD portal as of 01-03-2025

(Amount in Rs. Crore)

States/UTs	BE allocated for FY 2022-23	BE allocated for FY 2023-24	BE allocated for FY 2024-25
Maharashtra	87.95	134.58	27.81
Rajasthan	23.78	78.06	52.42
Gujarat	0	106.7	44.37
Uttar Pradesh	11.28	43.87	50.88
Karnataka	40.25	61.58	21.17
Madhya Pradesh	33.23	50.85	0
Tamil Nadu	33.2	49.84	24.95
Bihar	32.95	50.41	29.32
West Bengal	30.54	46.73	40.49
Punjab	25.52	39.05	13.32
Andhra Pradesh	14.93	22.84	18.12
Chhattisgarh	14.86	22.75	20.41
Himachal Pradesh	9.56	14.64	6.18
Jharkhand	10.99	16.83	15.1
Haryana	4.85	8.33	3
Uttarakhand	0	0	7.03
Assam	6.41	9.81	6.6
J&K	5.25	8.03	3.71
Tripura	2.95	4.5	3.03
Manipur	2.55	3.9	3.86
Nagaland	0.36	0.56	3.2
Meghalaya	1.23	1.13	1.97
Sikkim	1.18	1.8	0.79
Goa	0.32	0.5	0.44
ANI	0	1.33	0.84
Puducherry	0.44	0.67	0.29
Mizoram	0.27	0.43	0.44
Arunachal Pradesh	0.15	0.24	0.09
Ladakh	0	0.31	0.04
DNH&DD	0	0	0.12

Funds disbursed by NCDC for cooperative societies and banks (Annexure 4)

(Amount in Rs. Crore)

S.No.	Name of the State	FY 2022-23	FY 2023-24	FY 2024-25*
1	A & N	0	1.69	0.56
2	Andhra Pradesh	9734.7	13,280.13	14732.69
3	Arunachal Pradesh	0.38	–	0.16
4	Assam	17.48	0.89	1.86
5	Bihar	4053.75	815.83	6.31
6	Chandigarh	0.03	–	0.00
7	Chhattisgarh	8502.24	18,991.35	28081.03
8	Daman & Diu	0	0.11	0.03
9	Goa	0	–	0.03
10	Gujarat	370.8	586.99	297.89
11	Haryana	6655.24	9,887.36	12380.50
12	Himachal Pradesh	12.91	1.85	4.12
13	J&K	0.58	0.71	0.80
14	Jharkhand	4.63	2.54	28.34
15	Karnataka	112.54	261.35	432.13
16	Kerala	704.74	275.89	736.78
17	Lakshadweep			0.06
18	Madhya Pradesh	284.4	322.86	290.07
19	Maharashtra	751.16	2,101.42	3278.36
20	Manipur	30.38	6.60	0.39
21	Meghalaya	0.14	0.22	0.12
22	Mizoram	4.23	3.24	1.16
23	Nagaland	1.2	0.67	0.52
24	Odisha	1.61	3.24	3.47
25	Punjab	0.42	1,650.44	2000.22
26	Puducherry	0.06	–	0.11
27	Rajasthan	4.91	66.09	67.33
28	Sikkim	0.14	0.22	0.05
29	Tamil Nadu	30.49	4.28	19.29
30	Telangana	9304.97	12,174.11	20982.36
31	Tripura	12.35	1.55	1.27
32	Uttar Pradesh	350.24	13.04	207.58
33	Uttarakhand	10.5	149.13	4.56
34	West Bengal	63.36	4.96	2.94
35	Delhi + Others**	10.82	9.71	1016.55
	Total	41,031.40	60,618.47	84579.64

*Data for FY 2024-25 is as on 28.01.2025**Others includes cooperative federations registered under the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act 2002

This was stated by the Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

****

RK/VV/ASH/RR/PR/PS

(Release ID: 2112226) Visitor Counter : 21

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Sahkar se Samriddhi

Source: Government of India (2)

Ministry of Cooperation

Sahkar se Samriddhi

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 3:15PM by PIB Delhi

To achieve the prosperity in the country through the mantra of “Sahakar Se Samriddhi” given by the Prime Minister, a pilot project to promote ‘Cooperation among Cooperatives’ was launched by Union Minister of Home and Cooperation on 21st May,2023 in Banaskantha and Panchmahal District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) of Gujarat to promote all financial transactions of Primary Dairy Cooperative Societies (PDCSs) with Rural Cooperative Banks and to strengthen and make the cooperative sector Aatma Nirbhar. Activities taken up under the pilot project are as under:

Dairy cooperative societies were made Bank Mitras of DCCBs: To ensure ease of doing business of PDCSs through digital financial transactions and to promote financial inclusion, micro-ATMs were given to these Bank Mitra PDCS with support from NABARD’s Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF) to provide doorstep financial services.
Rupay KCC through DCCBs: To expand the business and reach of DCCBs and to provide necessary liquidity/credit to the members of dairy cooperative societies, RuPay Kisan Credit Cards (KCCs) were issued by DCCBs to the members of PDCS and other societies for providing timely credit at comparatively lower interest rates and enabling other financial transactions.
Awareness about the campaign was created through Financial Literacy Camps (FLCs) which was also supported through FIF.

On the basis of learnings during the pilot project, the campaign was expanded and launched in all districts of Gujarat from 15th January 2024. Achievements during the campaign in the state of Gujarat are provided below:-

Over 2,23,994 new RuPay KCCs were issued by DCCBs.
6446 micro-ATMs were distributed to new Bank Mitra PDCS
6529 Bank Mitras were enrolled
More than 23 lakh deposit accounts opened
Total amount deposited was Rs. 8329 crore

A Standard Operating Procedure for the nation-wide implementation of the Campaign on ‘Cooperation among Cooperatives’ was launched on 19.09.2024.

Ministry of Cooperation with active participation of various States/ UTs has taken various initiatives to revitalize and strengthen the cooperative sector across the country ensuring uniform development of Cooperative Societies across all the States, which are enclosed at Annexure. These initiatives also include the measures taken to strengthen cooperative societies in those States where the cooperative movement is not in good position at present.

To enhance international market access for cooperative based products, Ministry of Cooperation has set up National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL). NCEL will focus on exporting the surpluses available in the Indian cooperative sector by accessing wider markets beyond the geographical contours of the country, thereby, increasing the demand of Indian Cooperative products/services across the globe and fetch best possible prices for such products/services. It will promote exports through various activities including procurement, storage, processing, marketing, branding, labelling, packaging, certification, research and development, etc, and trading of all types of goods and services produced by cooperative societies. 8,863 cooperatives have become member of NCEL.

*****

ANNEXURE

Progress on major initiatives taken by Ministry of Cooperation

Ministry of Cooperation, since its inception on 6^th July, 2021, has undertaken several initiatives to realize the vision of “Sahakar-se-Samriddhi” and to strengthen & deepen the cooperative movement from Primary to Apex level Cooperatives in the country. List of initiatives taken and progress made so far are as follows:

A. Making Primary Cooperatives economically vibrant and transparent

Model Bye-Laws for PACS making them multipurpose, multidimensional and transparent entities: Government, in consultation with all the stakeholders, including States/ UTs, National Level Federations, State Cooperative Banks (StCBs), District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs), etc., has prepared and circulated Model Bye-laws for PACS to all the States/ UTs, which enable PACS to undertake more than 25 business activities, improve governance, transparency and accountability in their operations. Provisions have also been made to make the membership of PACS more inclusive and broad-based, giving adequate representation to women and Scheduled Castes/Schedules Tribes. So far, 32 States/ UTs have adopted Model Bye-laws or their existing bye-laws are in line with Model Bye-laws.
1. Strengthening of PACS through Computerization: In order to strengthen PACS, project for Computerization of functional PACS with a total financial outlay of ₹2,516 Crore has been approved by the Government of India, which entails bringing all functional PACS in the Country onto a common ERP based national software, linking them with NABARD through StCBs and DCCBs. A total of 67,930 PACS from 30 States/ UTs have been sanctioned under the project. A total of 50,455 PACS have been onboarded on ERP Software and hardware has been procured by 30 States/UTs.
1. Establishing New Multipurpose PACS/ Dairy/ Fishery Cooperatives in covering all the Panchayats: The Government of India has approved the plan to establish new multipurpose PACS/dairy/fisheries cooperatives, aiming to cover all panchayats and villages in the country over the next five years. This initiative is supported by NABARD, NDDB, NFDB and State/UT Governments. For effective implementation of the initiative, ‘Margadarshika’ has been launched on 19.9.2024, indicating the targets and timelines for stakeholders. As per National Cooperative Database, a total of 12,957 new PACS, Dairy and Fishery Cooperative Societies have been registered as on 27.1.2025 across the country since the approval of the plan on 15.2.2023.

1. World’s Largest Decentralized Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative sector: Government has approved a plan to create warehouses, custom hiring centers, primary processing units and other agri-infrastructure for grain storage at PACS level, through convergence of various GOI schemes, including AIF, AMI, SMAM, PMFME, etc. This will reduce wastage of food grains and transportation costs, enable farmers to realize better prices for their produce and meet various agricultural needs at the PACS level itself. Under the pilot project, construction of godowns in 11 PACS of 11 States has been completed.
2. PACS as Common Service Centers (CSCs) for better access to e-services: An MoU has been signed between Ministry of Cooperation, MeitY, NABARD and CSC e-Governance Services India Limited for providing more than 300 e-services such as banking, insurance, Aadhar enrolment/ updation, health services, PAN card and IRCTC/ Bus/ Air ticket, etc. through PACS. So far, 42,080 PACS have started providing CSC services to rural citizens.

1. Formation of new Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) by PACS: Government has allowed 1100 additional FPOs to be formed by PACS with the support of NCDC, in those blocks where FPOs have not yet been formed or the blocks are not covered by any other implementing agency. Against this allocation of 1100 blocks, 958 FPOs have been registered/ on-boarded as on 27.01.2025. Apart from this, 730 FPOs have already been formed by NCDC in cooperative sector. As on date, a total of 1,688 FPOs have been registered / on-boarded by NCDC in cooperative sector. This will be helpful in providing farmers with necessary market linkages and get fair and remunerative process for their produce.

1. PACS given priority for Retail Petrol/ Diesel outlets: Government has allowed PACS to be included in the Combined Category 2 (CC2) for allotment of retail petrol/ diesel outlets. As per information received from Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), 286 PACS from 25 States/UTs have applied online for retail petrol/ diesel outlets.

1. PACS given permission to convert bulk consumer petrol pumps into retail outlets: The existing bulk consumer licensee PACS have been given a one-time option by Oil Marketing Companies to convert into retail outlets. As per information shared by OMCs, 116 wholesale consumer pump licensee PACS from 5 States have given consent for conversion into Retail Outlets, out of which 56 PACS have been commissioned by the OMCs.

1. PACS eligible for LPG Distributorship for diversifying its activities: Government has now allowed PACS to apply for LPG Distributorships. This will give PACS an option to increase their economic activities and diversify their income stream. As of now, 2 PACS from the state of Jharkhand have applied for LPG distributorship under CC Category.

1. PACS as PM Bharatiya Jan Aushadhi Kendra for improving access to generic medicines at rural level: PACS have been allowed to operate Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya JanaushadhiKendras (PMBJKs), which will provide additional income source to them and ease the access to quality generic medicines for rural citizens. So far, 4,523 PACS/ cooperative societies have applied online for PMBJKs, out of which 2,744 PACS have been given initial approval by Pharmaceutical & Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) and 785 PACS have received drug license from State Drug Controllers and 716 PACS have got store codes from PMBI which are ready to function as PM Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendras.

1. PACS as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendras (PMKSK): PACS have been enabled to operate PMKSK for ensuring easy accessibility of fertilizer & related services to farmers in the country. As per the information shared by Department of Fertilizers (GOI) and States/ UTs, a total of 36,193 PACS are functioning as PMKSK.

1. PACS to carry out O&M of rural piped water supply schemes (PWS): PACS have been made eligible to carry out the Operations & Maintenance (O&M) of PWS in rural areas. As per information received from States/ UTs, 934 PACS have been identified/ selected by 13 States/ UTs to provide O&M services at Panchayat/ Village level.

1. Convergence of PM-KUSUM at PACS level: Farmers associated with PACS can adopt solar agricultural water pumps and install photovoltaic modules in their farms.
2. Micro-ATMs to Bank Mitra Cooperative Societies for providing doorstep financial services: Dairy and Fisheries cooperative societies can be made Bank Mitras of DCCBs and StCBs. To ensure their ease of doing business, transparency and financial inclusion, Micro-ATMs are also being given to these Bank Mitra Co-operative Societies with support from NABARD to provide ‘Door-step Financial Services’. To facilitate effective implementation of the initiative, an SOP has been launched on 19^th September 2024. So far, 8,322 Micro-ATMs have been distributed to Bank Mitra cooperative societies in Gujarat.

1. Rupay Kisan Credit Card to Members of Milk Cooperatives: In order to expand the reach of DCCBs/ StCBs and to provide necessary liquidity to the members of Dairy Cooperative societies, Rupay Kisan Credit Cards (KCCs) are being distributed to the members of cooperatives for providing credit at comparatively lower interest rates and to enable them to carry out other financial transactions. To facilitate effective implementation of the initiative, an SOP has been launched on 19^th September 2024. So far, 7,43,810 Rupay KCC have been distributed in the State of Gujarat.

16. Formation of Fish Farmer Producer Organization (FFPO): In order to provide market linkage and processing facilities to fishermen, NCDC has registered 70 FFPOs in the initial phase. In addition, Department of Fisheries, Government of India has allocated the work of converting 1000 existing fisheries cooperative societies into FFPOs to National Cooperative Development Corporation. National Cooperative Development Corporation has identified 997 Primary Fisheries Cooperatives Societies to strengthen as FFPOs, with an approved outlay of Rs. 280.65 crore.

1. White Revolution 2.0: The Ministry of Cooperation has launched an initiative to usher Cooperative-led “White Revolution 2.0” aimed at expanding cooperative coverage, employment generation and women’s empowerment with an objective “To increase the milk procurement of dairy cooperatives by 50% from the present level over next five years by providing market access to dairy farmers in uncovered areas and increasing the share of dairy cooperatives in organised sector.” The SOP for White Revolution 2.0 was launched on 19.11.2024 by Hon’ble Home & Cooperation Minister in presence of Hon’ble Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. On 25.12.2024 Hon’ble Home & Cooperation Minister in the presence of Hon’ble Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying inaugurated 6,600 newly set up Dairy Cooperative Societies. So far, 8,294 DCSs have been registered in 27 States/UTs.
2. Atmanirbharta Abhiyan: Ministry of Cooperation has launched the initiative to incentivize production of pulses (tur, masur and urad) to reduce dependency on imports, and production of maize to be used for production of ethanol for meeting the goal of Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) through National Cooperative Consumer Federation (NCCF) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED). Both have developed their own web portal i.e. e-samyukti and e-samridhi respectively for registration of farmers through cooperatives. Both have assured pre-registered farmers of tur, urad, masur and maize to procure 100% of their produce at Minimum Support Price (MSP). However, if market prices exceed the MSP, farmers are free to sell their produce in the open market. A total of 12,64,212 farmers have already registered on the e-samyukti portal of NCCF. Similarly, 6,75,178 farmers have registered themselves on the e-samridhi portal of NAFED.

B. Strengthening the Urban and Rural Cooperative Banks

Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) have been allowed to open new branches to expand their business: UCBs can now open new branches up to 10% (maximum 5 branches) of the existing number of branches in the previous financial year without prior approval of RBI.

UCBs have been allowed by RBI to offer doorstep services to their customers: Door step banking facility can now be provided by UCBs. Account holders of these banks can now avail various banking facilities at home such as cash withdrawal, cash deposit, KYC, demand draft and life certificate for pensioners, etc.

Cooperative banks have been allowed to make one-time settlement of outstanding loans, like Commercial Banks: Co-operative banks, through board-approved policies, can now provide the process for settlement with borrowers, along with technical write-off.

Time limit increased to achieve Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets given to UCBs: RBI has extended the timeline for UCBs to achieve Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets by two years i.e., up to March 31, 2026.

A Nodal Officer designated in RBI for regular interaction with UCBs: In order to meet the long pending demand of the cooperative sector for closer coordination and focused interaction, RBI has notified a nodal officer.

24. Individual housing loan limit more than doubled by RBI for Rural and Urban Cooperative Banks:

1. Housing loan limit of Urban Cooperative Banks has now been doubled from Rs. 30 lakhs to Rs.60 lakhs.
2. Housing loan limit of Rural Cooperative Banks has been increased to two and a half times to Rs.75 lakhs.

25. Rural Cooperative Banks will now be able to lend to commercial real estate/ residential housing sector, thereby diversifying their business: This will not only help Rural Cooperative Banks to diversify their business, but will benefit Housing cooperative societies also.

License fee reduced for Cooperative Banks: License fee for onboarding Cooperative Banks to ‘Aadhaar Enabled Payment System’ (AePS) has been reduced by linking it to the number of transactions. Cooperative financial institutions will also be able to get the facility free of cost for the first three months of the pre-production phase. With this, farmers will now be able to get the facility of banking at their home with through biometrics.

Non-scheduled UCBs, StCBs and DCCBs notified as Member Lending Institutions (MLIs) in CGTMSE Scheme to increase the share of cooperatives in lending: Cooperative banks will now be able to take advantage of risk coverage up to 85 percent on the loans given. Also, cooperative sector enterprises will also be able to get collateral free loans from cooperative banks now.

Notification of Scheduling norms for including Urban Cooperative Banks: UCBs that meet the ‘Financially Sound and Well Managed’ (FSWM) criteria and have maintained the minimum deposits required for classification as Tier 3 for the last two years are now eligible to be included in Schedule II of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 and get ‘Scheduled’ status.

Monetary ceiling doubled by RBI for Gold Loan: RBI has doubled monetary ceiling from Rs. 2 lakhs to Rs.4 lakhs, for those UCBs that meet the PSL targets.

Umbrella Organization for Urban Cooperative Banks: RBI has accorded approval to the National Federation of Urban Co-operative Banks and Credit Societies Ltd. (NAFCUB) for the formation of an Umbrella Organization (UO) for the UCB sector, which will provide necessary IT infrastructure and operational support to around 1,500 UCBs.

C. Relief to Cooperative Societies in the Income Tax Act

Surcharge reduced from 12% to 7% for co-operative societies having income between Rs. 1 to 10 Cr.: This will reduce the burden of Income Tax on Cooperative Societies and more capital will be available with them to work for the benefit of their members.

MAT reduced for cooperatives from 18.5% to 15%: With this provision, now there is parity between Cooperative Societies and Companies in this regard.

Relief in cash transactions under section 269ST of the Income Tax Act: In order to remove difficulties in cash transactions by cooperatives under Section 269ST of IT Act, Government has issued a clarification that cash transaction of less than Rs. 2 lakhs done by a cooperative society with its distributor in a day will be considered separately, and will not be charged with income tax penalty.
Tax cut for new manufacturing Cooperative societies: Government has decided that a flat lower tax rate of 15% will be charged, compared to an earlier rate of up to 30% plus surcharge, for new cooperatives commencing manufacturing activities by March 31, 2024. This will encourage the formation of new cooperative societies in the manufacturing sector.

Increase in limit of Cash Deposits and Cash Loans by PACS and PCARDBs: Government has enhanced the limit for Cash Deposits and Cash Loans by PACS and Primary Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development Banks (PCARDBs) from Rs. 20,000 to Rs.2 lakh per member. This provision will facilitate their activities, increase their business and benefit members of their societies.

Increase in the limit of Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) in Cash Withdrawal: Government has increased the cash withdrawal limit of cooperative societies without deduction of tax at source from Rs.1 crore to Rs.3 crore per year. This provision will save Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) for cooperative societies, which will enhance their liquidity.

D. Revival of Cooperative Sugar Mills

Relief from Income Tax to Sugar Cooperative Mills: Government has issued a clarification that cooperative sugar mills would not be subjected to additional income tax for paying higher sugarcane prices to farmers up to Fair and Remunerative or State Advised Price, from April, 2016 onwards.

Resolution of decades old pending issues related to Income Tax of Sugar Cooperative Mills: Government has made a provision in its Union Budget 2023-24, wherein Sugar cooperatives have been allowed to claim as expenditure their payments to sugarcane farmers for the period prior to assessment year 2016–17, giving them a relief of more than Rs.46,000 crore.

Rs.10,000 crore loan scheme launched for strengthening of Sugar Cooperative Mills: Government has launched a scheme through NCDC for setting up ethanol plants or cogeneration plants or for working capital or for all three purposes. So far, the Ministry has released Rs. 875 crore to NCDC (Rs. 500 crore in FY 2022-23 and Rs. 375 crore in FY 2024-25) under the scheme and as of now, NCDC has sanctioned 80 loans amounting to Rs.9,169.76 crore to 44 CSMs.

Preference to Cooperative Sugar Mills in purchase of ethanol: Cooperative Sugar Mills have now been put at par with private companies for ethanol procurement by Government of India under the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP).

Strengthening of Cooperative Sugar Mills by converting their molasses-based ethanol plants into multi feed ethanol plants: Ministry of Cooperation has taken initiative in consultation with National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories Ltd. (NFCSFL) for conversion of existing molasses-based ethanol plants of CSMs into multi feed ethanol plants. The Cooperative Sugar Mills (CSMs) also produce ethanol from molasses and sugar syrup by installing ethanol production plants. However, the availability of raw material i.e., molasses and sugar syrup for production of ethanol is limited by many factors viz, Government Policy on diversion of sugarcane syrup, B heavy molasses for production of ethanol and duration of sugar cane crushing season and availability of sugarcane depending on rainfall, etc. On account of these limiting factors, the CSMs having ethanol plants are not able to operate them at full capacity round the year. The Government of India has prioritized maize for production of ethanol, therefore, it is prudent for CSMs to convert their existing ethanol production units into multi feed ethanol production units so that they are able to produce ethanol by using maize as raw material.

Reduction in GST on molasses from 28% to 5%: Government has decided to reduce the GST on molasses from 28% to 5% which will enable cooperative sugar mills to earn more profits for their members by selling molasses to distilleries with higher margins.

E. Three new National Level Multi-State Societies

43. New National Multi-State Cooperative Seed Society for certified seeds: Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative seed society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) as an umbrella organization for quality seed cultivation, production and distribution under a single brand. During the Rabi 2024-25 season, 57 Varieties of 12 Crops were sown/ planted in 5,596 hectares. Similarly, during the Kharif 2024 season, 23 varieties of 8 Crops have been planted on 176.59 hectare of land. So far, 17,425 PACS/ Cooperative Societies have become members of BBSSL.

New National Multi-State Cooperative Organic Society for organic farming: Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative organic society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) as an umbrella organization to produce, distribute and market certified and authentic organic products. So far, 5,184 PACS/ cooperative societies have become members of NCOL. NCOL has launched 13 products i.e., Whole Wheat Flour, Moong Dhuli, Moong Whole, Moog Chilka Dal, Moog Split, Arhar/ Toor Dal, Urad Whole, Urad Dal, Masoor Whole, Masoor Malka, Brown Chana, Rajma Chitra, Chana Dal under ‘Bharat Organics Brand’.

New National Multi-State Cooperative Export Society for promoting exports: Government has established a new apex multi-state cooperative export society under the MSCS Act, 2002, namely National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL) as an umbrella organization to give thrust to exports from cooperative sector. So far, 7,933 PACS/ cooperative societies have become members of NCEL. Till date, NCEL has achieved a total export quantity of commodities (rice, sugar, onion, wheat, maize and Jeera) of 12,52,083 Metric tonnes with an exported value of Rs. 5,099.24 crore.

F. Capacity Building in Cooperatives

Promotion of training and awareness through National Council for Cooperative Training (NCCT): By increasing its reach, NCCT has conducted 2,872 training programs and provided training to 2,35,060 participants till December 2024.

G. Use of Information Technology for ‘Ease of Doing Business’

Computerization of the Central Registrar’s Office: Central Registrar’s office has been computerized to create a digital ecosystem for Multi-State Cooperative Societies, which will assist in processing applications and service requests in a time bound manner.

Scheme for computerization of office of RCSs in States/ Union Territories: To increase ‘ease of doing business’ for cooperative societies and create a digital ecosystem for transparent paperless regulation in all the States/ UTs, a Centrally Sponsored Project for Computerization of RCS Offices has been approved by the Government. Grants are provided for the purchase of hardware, development of software, etc. to the States/ UTs. So far, proposals received from 35 States/ UTs have been sanctioned by GOI.

Computerization of Agriculture and Rural Development Banks (ARDBs): To strengthen the long-term cooperative credit structure, the project of computerization of 1,851 units of Agriculture and Rural Development Banks (ARDBs) spread across 13 States/ Union Territories has been approved by the Government. NABARD is the implementing agency for the project. So far, proposals from 10 States/UTs have been received and sanctioned. Further, GOI share amounting to Rs 5.08 crore has been released to 9 States/UTs in FY 2023-24 and FY 2024-25 for procurement of hardware, digitization and setting up of support system.

H. Other Initiatives

New National Cooperative Database for authentic and updated data repository: A database of cooperatives in the country has been prepared with the support of State Governments to facilitate stakeholders in policy making and implementation of programmes/ schemes related to cooperatives across the country. So far, data of more than

8.2 lakh cooperatives across 30 sectors, with approximately 30 crore members, has been captured in the database.

Cooperative Ranking Framework: The Government launched the Cooperative Ranking Framework on 24^th January 2025 to rank cooperatives State-wise and sector-wise. The ranking framework enables State RCS to assess Cooperative Societies’ performance based on key parameters, including audit compliance, operational activities, financial performance, infrastructure, and basic identity information. The RCS of the States/ UTs, through login on NCD portal, can generate ranks of Cooperative Societies, initially of 7 major sectors namely PACS, Dairy, Fishery, Urban Cooperative Banks, Housing, Credit and Thrift, and Khadi and Gram Udyog. This ranking system aims to enhance transparency, reliability and competitiveness among cooperative societies, ultimately fostering their growth. Furthermore, top-performing cooperative societies in each sector will be recognized and honoured by the Ministry of Cooperation and respective State/ UT authorities, aligning with the objectives of the International Year of Cooperatives.

International Year of Cooperatives – 2025 in India: The United Nations has declared 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC 2025) to highlight the role of cooperatives in economic growth, social inclusion, and sustainability. The Ministry of Cooperation has developed an action plan in collaboration with National Cooperative Federations, State Governments, Central Ministries and other stakeholders emphasizing transparency, policy reforms, and rural economic transformation through PACS. Activities include training, board meetings, cooperative flag hoisting, exhibitions, and business expansion workshops at District, State, and National levels. To ensure effective execution, committees at national, state, and district levels have been formed. The National Execution Committee (NEC) and National Cooperative Committee (NCC) will oversee coordination and financial mobilization. State Apex Committees (SAC), along with State and District Cooperative Development Committees (SCDC & DCDC), will organize and manage State/ District/ Village level programs.

Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023: Amendment has been brought in the MSCS Act, 2002 to strengthen governance, enhance transparency, increase accountability, reform electoral process and incorporate provisions of 97^th Constitutional Amendment in the Multi State Cooperative Societies.

Cooperative Ombudsman: Following the amendment in the Multi–State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act, 2002, Cooperative Ombudsman has been appointed under Section 85A of the said Act vide gazette notification dated 05.03.2024. The Ombudsman office is fully functional and deals with complaints or appeals, from members of the MSCS regarding their deposits, equitable benefits of the Multi–State Co-operative Society’s functioning or any other issue affecting the individual rights of the concerned member.

Cooperative Election Authority (CEA): Following the amendment in the Multi–State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act, 2002, the Cooperative Election Authority has been set up to strengthen governance and accountability, with a mandate to conduct free and fair election in all MSCSs. Elections in more than 80 MSCS have been conducted successfully up to December, 2024.
Inclusion of Cooperatives as ‘buyers’ on GeM portal: The Government has permitted cooperatives to register as ‘buyer’ on GeM, enabling them to procure goods and services from over 67 lakh vendors to facilitate economical purchases and greater transparency. So far, 574 cooperative societies have been onboarded on GeM as buyers.
Expansion of National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) to increase its range and depth: NCDC has launched new schemes in various sectors such as ‘Swayamshakti Sahkar’ for SHGs; ‘Deerghavadhi Krishak Sahkar’ for long term agricultural credit and ‘Dairy Sahkar’ for dairy. During the current FY 2024-25, so far, total financial assistance of Rs. 84,673.70 crores has been disbursed by NCDC.
Financial assistance by NCDC for Deep Sea Trawlers: NCDC is providing financial assistance for projects related to deep sea trawlers in coordination with the Department of Fisheries, Government of India. NCDC has already sanctioned financial assistance of Rs.

25.95 crore for purchase of total 44 deep sea trawlers for the Fisheries Cooperative Societies of Maharashtra and Gujarat State.

National Cooperation Policy (NCP): The formulation of New National Cooperation Policy (NCP) has been envisaged to fulfil the mandate of the Ministry of Cooperation – “Sahakar se Samriddhi.” A National level committee was constituted on 2.9.2022 under Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu with experts of the cooperative sector, representatives from National/ State/ District/ Primary level cooperative societies, Secretaries (Cooperation) and RCSs from States/ UTs and officers from Central Ministries/ Departments to formulate the New Cooperation Policy to provide a framework to unlock the true potential of the Cooperative sector. The Committee conducted four regional workshops throughout the country to elicit suggestions from stakeholders. The received suggestions have been incorporated into the draft policy appropriately. The draft policy has been prepared and is under finalization.
Refund to Investors of Sahara Group of Societies: A portal has been launched for making payments to the genuine depositors of the cooperative societies of Sahara Group in a transparent manner. Disbursements have already started after proper identification and submission of proof of their deposits and claims. So far, Rs. 2,025.75 crores have been disbursed to 11.61 lakh applicants.

This was stated by the Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

****

RK/VV/ASH/RR/PR/PS

(Release ID: 2112225)

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Prime Minister’s Young Authors Mentorship Scheme (YUVA) Scheme
Source: Government of India (2)

Prime Minister’s Young Authors Mentorship Scheme (YUVA) Scheme

Empowering Young Writers for a Global Stage

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 3:03PM by PIB Delhi

Introduction

The Ministry of Education (MoE) and the National Book Trust (NBT) of India launched the third edition of the Prime Minister’s Young Authors Mentorship Scheme, known as YUVA 3.0, on March 11, 2025. The initiative aims to nurture young writers under 30 years of age, providing them with mentorship and exposure to hone their creative writing skills. YUVA 3.0 builds upon the success of its predecessors, YUVA 1.0 and YUVA 2.0, continuing the government’s commitment to fostering literary talent and promoting reading, writing, and book culture in India. The scheme aligns with the vision of Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat, encouraging the documentation and dissemination of India’s rich cultural heritage and knowledge.

YUVA 3.0: Features and Objectives

Theme and Focus

The Themes of PM-YUVA 3.0 are: Contribution of Indian Diaspora in Nation Building; Indian Knowledge System; and Makers of Modern India (1950-2025). The scheme will help to develop a stream of writers who can write on various facets of India encompassing the past, present and future. Besides, the scheme will also provide a window to the aspiring youth to articulate themselves and present a comprehensive outlook of contribution of Indians across fields in ancient and present times.

Selection Process
- The scheme invites applications from aspiring writers through MyGov India’s online portal.
- A competitive process shortlists 50 young authors based on a well-defined evaluation criterion.
- The National Book Trust (NBT) will constitute the selection committee.
- Applicants are required to submit a book proposal of 10,000 words, which is then reviewed by a panel.
- The shortlisted candidates undergo a multi-stage selection process before the final selection.
Mentorship and Support
- Selected authors receive a mentorship program spanning six months.
- The authors undergo workshops, interactions with mentors, and exposure to India’s literary ecosystem.
- They receive financial assistance of ₹50,000 per month for six months.
- Their works are published and promoted by the NBT in multiple languages.
- Under the mentorship, a National Camp will be held for the PM-YUVA 3.0 Authors during the New Delhi World Book Fair 2026.
- Selected authors get the opportunity to present their work at literary festivals and international forums.
Background of the YUVA Scheme

National Education Policy 2020 has emphasized on the empowerment of the young minds and creating a learning eco-system that can make the young readers/learners ready for leadership roles in the future world. India is considered to be a ‘young country’ because 66% of its total population are young and can be tapped for capacity and nation building. In this context, a national scheme for mentoring generations of young authors has proven to be a significant stepping stone for laying the foundation of the future leaders of the creative world. This scheme has been conceptualised on the premise that the 21^st century India needs to groom a generation of young authors to create ambassadors of Indian literature and world view. In view of the fact that our country is ranked third in the arena of book publishing and we have a treasure trove of indigenous literature, India must project it at the global stage. The first mentorship scheme was launched on 31st May 2021, then subsequently in October 2022 and now in March 2025.

YUVA 2.0: Expansion and Achievements

Launched in October 2022, YUVA 2.0 built upon the foundation of YUVA 1.0 with a renewed focus on ‘Democracy’ as the core theme. The scheme aimed to foster young writers’ engagement with India’s democratic values, traditions, and governance structures.

Theme and Vision

The Theme of PM-YUVA 2.0 was Democracy (Institutions, Events, People, and Constitutional Values). The scheme helped in developing a stream of writers who can write on various facets of Democracy in India encompassing the past, present and future. Besides, the scheme also provided a window to the aspiring youth to articulate themselves and present a comprehensive outlook of Indian democratic values at domestic as well as international platforms.

Selection and Implementation
- The competition received an overwhelming response, with a diverse pool of participants from across the country.
- 75 authors were selected through a competitive process. They were also required to submit a book proposal of 10,000 words.
- The mentorship program included interaction with constitutional experts, historians, and renowned authors.
- Special training sessions were held to enhance research skills, language proficiency, and storytelling techniques.
Outcomes and Impact
- The Union Minister for Education launched 41 new books under the PM YUVA 2.0 scheme at the New Delhi World Book Fair 2025 in February.
- Several books were published in multiple Indian languages, making them accessible to a broad readership.
- Young authors gained national and international recognition, participating in events like the World Book Fair and literary forums.
- Many participants had their books included in academic and government libraries for research and reference.
- Some authors had the opportunity to meet and interact with policymakers and scholars, further enriching their perspectives.
YUVA 1.0: Inception and Legacy

The inaugural edition, YUVA 1.0, was launched in May 2021 as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations to commemorate 75 years of India’s independence. The scheme aimed to empower young authors and provide them a platform to express their perspectives on India’s history and contemporary narratives.

Theme and Inspiration

The theme was National Movement of India with focus on Unsung Heroes; Little known facts about the Freedom Struggle; Role of various places in National Movement; Entries bringing out new perspectives related to political, cultural, economic, or science related aspects of national movement etc. as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav. This scheme helped to develop a stream of writers who can write on a spectrum of subjects to promote Indian heritage, culture and knowledge system.

Selection and Implementation
- The contestants were asked to submit a manuscript of 5000 words.
- 75 young authors were selected, representing diverse linguistic and regional backgrounds.
- The selection was made by a committee constituted by National Book Trust (NBT).
- Mentorship included training in writing, editing, and publishing processes.
- Special sessions were conducted by eminent historians, journalists, and literary figures.
- A consolidated scholarship of Rs.50,000 per month for a period of six months per author will be paid under the Mentorship Scheme.
Outcomes and Impact
- The results were announced on 25.12.2021.
- The books produced under YUVA 1.0 were translated into multiple Indian languages, enhancing their reach.
- The initiative contributed to India’s literary heritage, encouraging young voices to document historical narratives.
- Several young authors gained recognition, contributing to mainstream literature and academic discussions.
- The scheme established a strong foundation for young writers, many of whom went on to publish additional books independently.
- 10% royalty is being paid by NBT on publication and sale of the books.
Conclusion

The YUVA scheme, in its three editions, has played a crucial role in nurturing young literary talent in India. As the program continues to evolve, it reinforces India’s commitment to promoting creative expression, multilingual literary heritage, and a culture of reading and writing among the youth. The impact of the scheme is evident in the success stories of young authors whose voices have been amplified at both national and international levels. With continued support and innovation, the YUVA scheme will remain a cornerstone of India’s literary and cultural renaissance.

References

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2110966

https://innovateindia.mygov.in/yuva-2025/

https://innovateindia.mygov.in/yuva/

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1722644

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2101008

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1811451

https://www.nbtindia.gov.in/writereaddata/attachmentNews/tuesday-june-1-202111-31-05-amyuva-scheme-for-mentorship-of-young-authors.pdf

Click here to see PDF.

*****

Santosh Kumar | Sarla Meena | Rishita Aggarwal

(Release ID: 2112207) Visitor Counter : 11

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –
March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Transparency and Accountability under PMAY-G

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:55PM by PIB Delhi

The identification of beneficiaries under Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana Gramin (PMAY-G) is based on the housing deprivation parameters and exclusion criteria prescribed under Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC)-2011 and due verification by the respective Gram Sabhas and completion of an Appellate Process. These parameters/criteria were applied on SECC 2011 database & Awass+2018 to identify eligibility of beneficiaries under PMAY-G.

The Union Cabinet has approved the extension of PMAY-G for 5 more years (FY 2024-25 to 2028-29) to provide assistance for the construction of 2 crore additional rural houses. The Cabinet has also approved the updating of the Awaas+ List using modified exclusion criteria. A new survey is being conducted by the states/UTs using the technology-based solutions to maximize transparency and ensure sanctity in the process right from the identification to completion of the houses as per the detailed below:

Awaas+ 2024 app- a unique app specially designed under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G), having features of assisted survey through pre-registered surveyors, housing technology selection, face authentication, Aadhar based e-KYC, data capture of household, conditions of existing house, time stamped, and geo tagged photo capture of existing house proposed site of construction. The app works in online as well as offline mode. “Self-Survey” facility is available for eligible household in Awaas+2024 app Survey for next phase of PMAYG (2024-29).
Usage of AI/ML model to curb fraudulent activity and provide information of possible malpractices.
Recommendation System – This module identifies various house attributes such as pucca wall, pucca roof, kutcha wall, kutcha roof, logo, window, door, and person in the uploaded photos of a completed house and recommends a final photograph for approval.
e-KYC App – The app is integrated with Aadhaar and uses AI-enabled face authentication technology to conduct verification of PMAY-G beneficiaries.
Liveliness Detection: Eye Blink/ Motion detection feature in Awaas App for identification of the beneficiaries.
100% Aadhaar-Based Payments: Directly transferred to beneficiaries’ accounts.

The unit assistance provided to beneficiaries under PMAY-G is as per the approval of the Union Cabinet and at present the unit assistance of Rs. 1.20 lakh in plain areas and Rs. 1.30 lakh in North Eastern States, Hilly States (including UTs of J&K and Ladakh) is provided. The funding pattern between Centre and the State for the NER States and Himalayan States [Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir (UT)] is 90:10 whereas for the rest of the States is 60:40 and for Union Territories without legislature, 100% funding are borne by the Centre.

In addition to the unit assistance, the beneficiaries are facilitated with 90/95-man days of unskilled labour wages through mandatory convergence with Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). Support of Rs. 12,000 for construction of toilet is also provided through Swachh Bharat Mission – Gramin (SBM-G), MGNREGS or any other dedicated source of funding.

Some of the States/UTs are also providing top-up financial support over and above unit assistance to the PMAY-G beneficiaries for the house construction. To further support affordability, the scheme incorporates State-specific housing designs and promotes the use of local materials, reducing costs and environmental impact.

Under the scheme, to provide PMAY-G beneficiaries with the maximum number of benefits from different schemes, convergence with other schemes is encouraged. The guideline aids with the construction of toilets to be leveraged through convergence with SBM-G, MGNREGS, or any other dedicated source of funding. Convergence for piped drinking water, electricity connection, LPG gas connection, solar lanterns and cleaner cooking energy, solar roof top, fulfillment of requirement of construction material through MGNREGS and linkage with SHGs platform under Government programs is also being done.

The Ministry allocates targets to the State and further allocation of targets to the Districts/ Blocks/ Gram Panchayats is done by the State Government. The details of target allocated and houses sanctioned in Bhopal, Shahdol, Sidhi and Hathras Parliamentary Constituencies by the States are as under: –

[Unit in no]

Parliamentary Constituency (PC)	Target fixed by the State	Houses sanctioned by the State	Houses completed by the State
Bhopal*	47,719	49,971	35,575
Shahdol#	1,94,286	1,88,178	1,66,730
Sidhi $	136058	124293	101908
Hathras@	2361	2361	2327

*Bhopal PC covers Bhopal district and Sehore block of Sehore District
#Shahdol PC covers districts of Anuppur, Umaria and Jaisinghnagar , Burhar blocks of Shahdol

$Sidhi PC covers Sidhi distrct and Beohari block of Shahdol district
@Hathras PC covers Hathras, Sadabad, Sikhandrarao blocks of Hathras district and Iglas & Chhara blocks (located in Gangiri) of Aligarh district

This information was given by the Minister of State for Rural Development Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

*****

MG/RN/KSR/2780

(Release ID: 2112200) Visitor Counter : 42

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Aadhaar Based Payment Systems under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:54PM by PIB Delhi

To ensure timely payment of wages to the beneficiaries under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS and to address the issues arising due to frequent changes in bank account numbers of the beneficiaries and subsequent non-updation, it was decided to implement Aadhar Payment Bridge System (APBS). This has been made mandatory with effect from 1st January 2024. Payment of wages through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode has had positive impact on the livelihood of the beneficiaries as it ensures that the payment reaches directly into the accounts of the intended beneficiaries. Currently, against total of 13.55 crore active workers Aadhaar seeding of 99.49% have already been completed. State/UTs are continuously being monitored by the Central Government for achieving 100% Aadhaar Seeding and APBS conversion in NREGASoft. As and when any issue is flagged by the State/UT or any other stakeholders, same is resolved on priority basis.

As per section 6(1) of Mahatma Gandhi NREGA, the Central Government may, by notification, specify the wage rate for unskilled work for Mahatma Gandhi NREGS workers. Accordingly, the Ministry of Rural Development notifies wage rate for unskilled workers under Mahatma Gandhi NREGA every financial year. To compensate the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (Mahatma Gandhi NREGS) workers against inflation, the Ministry of Rural Development revises the wage rates every financial year based on Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourer (CPI-AL). The wage rate is made applicable from 1st April of each financial year. There is around 7% increase in the average notified wage rate during the FY 2024-25 compared to FY 2023-24.

Each State/UT can provide wages over and above the wage rate notified by the Central Government. In order to ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (Mahatma Gandhi NREGS), the Ministry has decided that States/UTs shall ensure capturing of attendance at the worksite through National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) App with two-time stamped, geo-tagged photographs of the workers in a day for all the works (except Individual Beneficiary Work) through NMMS w.e.f 1st January, 2023.

Further, to avoid any inconvenience to the workers due to NMMS, it has been decided that in case any worksite is not located in network covered area or attendance could not be uploaded due to any other network issue then attendance can be captured in offline mode and can be uploaded once the device comes into network covered area. In case of exceptional circumstances owing to which attendance could not be uploaded, the provision for exemption also exists which has been further decentralized to the level of Block administration.

To make the NMMS App more robust and user friendly, new enhancements have been done such as the provision of Eye blink facility, Head Count facility, Mate id mapping with Muster roll and relaxation in proximity range in linear types of community works (permissible) etc. in the NMMS application. Usage of NMMS app has also helped to ensure timely payment of wages to the workers.

Any issue brought to the notice of Ministry concerning NMMS are attended on top priority basis and efforts are to made to resolve the same at the earliest. Further, continuous awareness campaigns and training programs are being organized across States/UTs to familiarize workers/officials with the NMMS app.

State/UT-wise average wage per person day under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS during the current financial year 2024-25 (as on 13.03.2025) is given below:

State/UT-wise average wage per person day under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS during the current financial year 2024-25 (as on 13.03.2025)
SI. No.	States/UTs	Average Wage per person day (In Rs.)


1	Andhra Pradesh	255.52
2	Arunachal Pradesh	233.88
3	Assam	248.43
4	Bihar	239.03
5	Chhattisgarh	219.32
6	Goa	356
7	Gujarat	248.16
8	Haryana	363.55
9	Himachal Pradesh	270.89
10	Jammu And Kashmir	257.61
11	Jharkhand	271.79
12	Karnataka	328.57
13	Kerala	344.23
14	Ladakh	258.64
15	Madhya Pradesh	228.77
16	Maharashtra	282.1
17	Manipur	271.61
18	Meghalaya	253.9
19	Mizoram	265.95
20	Nagaland	233.97
21	Odisha	270.56
22	Punjab	316.86
23	Rajasthan	206.51
24	Sikkim	249.71
25	Tamil Nadu	275.14
26	Telangana	213.9
27	Tripura	218.35
28	Uttar Pradesh	236.33
29	Uttarakhand	236.89
30	West Bengal#	0
31	Andaman and Nicobar	330.15
32	Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu	324
33	Lakshadweep@	0
34	Puducherry	290.7
	Total	252.63

As per NREGASoft

# Release of funds to the State of West Bengal has been stopped since March 9, 2022, under Section 27 of the Act due to non-compliance with Central Government directives.

@ As per information available on NREGASoft no Person days have been generated in Lakshadweep in FY 2424-25 till date.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Rural Development Shri Kamlesh Paswan in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

*****

MG/RN/KSR/2844

(Release ID: 2112199) Visitor Counter : 45

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CE meets Secretary of CPC Dongguan Municipal Committee (with photo)

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

CE meets Secretary of CPC Dongguan Municipal Committee (with photo)
Mr Lee welcomed Mr Wei and his delegation to Hong Kong. Mr Lee noted that Hong Kong and Dongguan enjoy close geographical and cultural ties, and the two cities have long maintained close co-operation in various areas, including economics, trade, and shipping. As Dongguan is a renowned global manufacturing hub, Hong Kong will continue to give full play to its advantages as a bridge between the Mainland and the world, as well as its dual roles in going global and attracting foreign investment, offering services to assist Dongguan enterprises in expanding and developing international markets.

Mr Lee highlighted the successful collaboration between Hong Kong and Dongguan in operating the logistics park in Dongguan under the “sea-air intermodal cargo-transshipment” mode. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the Dongguan Municipal Government are jointly advancing the development of the Hong Kong International Airport Dongguan Logistics Park as a permanent facility, as well as expanding its scope and capacity. Combining Hong Kong’s strengths in aviation and logistics with Dongguan’s advantages in land and manpower resources, the project aims to create a model of successful co-operation within the GBA. This initiative will further enhance the logistics connectivity within the GBA and boost the international competitiveness of the GBA’s manufacturing and import-export industries.

Mr Lee expressed confidence that Hong Kong and Dongguan will continue to leverage their complementary advantages and promote co-operation between the two places at a higher level, making greater contributions to the development of a world-class bay area.
Issued at HKT 17:30

NNNN

Categories24-7, Asia Pacific, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Government special administrative region, MIL OSI

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: BOOSTING EXPORT OF SHRIMP CONTAINERS

Source: Government of India

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:37PM by PIB Delhi

The Government, under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) scheme, provides financial assistance to State Government, Union Territories and Implementing agencies for construction of fishing harbour, fish landing centres, modernisation/upgradation of existing fishing harbours and maintenance dredging of the fishing harbours. During the year, last five years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, Rs.3490 crore have been allocated under the scheme. The scheme provides for sustainable investment in infrastructure with objective of enhancing production, productivity, exports and addressing key gaps including reduction of post-harvest losses in various component of value chain.

Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), a statutory body under Ministry of Commerce and Industry promotes and regulates the export of marine products. The initiatives by MPEDA for boosting shrimp exports are oriented towards production and processing and not port specific. To strengthen the export value chain, the Government has sanctioned projects adjacent to Major Ports namely, modernisation and upgradation of fishing harbour at Visakhapatnam, Chennai, Paradip, Cochin and Mumbai Port with 100% financial assistances under PMMSY in convergence with Sagarmala at a total cost of Rs 651.14 crores. During the financial year 2023-24, India exported an all-time high volume of 17,81,602 MT of sea food worth Rs. 60,523.89 crore.

The information was given by the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

*****

GDH/HR/SJ

(Release ID: 2112193) Visitor Counter : 61

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: PARLIAMENT QUESTION: OVERSEAS SCHOLARSHIPS TO SC/ST STUDENTS

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:08PM by PIB Delhi

The details of the National Overseas Scholarship (NOS) provided by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to the students belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for studying abroad during the last ten years is as under:

S. No.	Year	Number of SC and ST students selected under NOS for studying abroad during last ten years
S. No.	Year	SC	ST
1.	2014-15	59	20
2.	2015-16	50	15
3.	2016-17	108	16
4.	2017-18	178	20
5.	2018-19	97	20
6.	2019-20	97	20
7.	2020-21	90	20
8.	2021-22	122	20
9.	2022-23	119	20
10.	2023-24	117	23
Total		1037	194
*Vacant slots of previous years were carried forward.

At present, 263 SC students and 39 ST students are studying abroad. New initiatives such as simplification of process, invitation of applications online through portal; doing away with Police Verification and obtaining self-declaration regarding pending case/non-conviction of offense; introduction of QS ranking based selection procedure; enhancing of family income ceiling, number of slots and amount of financial assistance have been taken by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

This information was provided by UNION MINISTER OF STATE FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE

AND EMPOWERMENT, SHRI RAMDAS ATHAWALE, in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

*****

(Lok Sabha US Q2921)

(Release ID: 2112162) Visitor Counter : 61

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CONTRIBUTION OF MOIL

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:03PM by PIB Delhi

During financial year 2023-24, MOIL Ltd. has produced 1.76 million tonne of manganese ore which is 52% of total domestic production of 3.37 million tonne of manganese ore in India.

MOIL Ltd. ensures welfare and working conditions of mine workers by maintaining several welfare facilities such as residential quarters, canteen, hospital/health care centre and providing support to schools in neighbouring areas of operating mines.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries, Shri Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

****

TPJ/NJ

(Release ID: 2112159) Visitor Counter : 18

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel inaugurates the India Innovation Summit – Pioneering Solutions to End TB

Source: Government of India (2)

Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel inaugurates the India Innovation Summit – Pioneering Solutions to End TB

Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India has embraced a multi-sectoral, innovation-driven approach to eliminating TB: Smt. Patel

“The number of missing cases reduced from 15 lakh in 2015 to 2.5 lakhs in 2023; 25.5 lakh TB cases in 2023 and 26.07 lakh cases in 2024 notified, marking the highest no. of notified cases ever”

“17.7% decline in incidence rate of TB in India, from 237 per lakh population in 2015 to 195 per lakh population in 2023; TB deaths reduced by 21.4% from 28 per lakh population in 2015 to 22 per lakh population in 2023”

“Innovations are crucial for TB elimination, offering faster and more accurate diagnostics, improved treatment regimens, and better prevention strategies”

India is resolved to eliminate 5 diseases in the coming 5 years that include: Leprosy, Lymphatic filariasis, Measles, Rubella and Kala-azar: Dr. VK Paul, Member, NITI Aayog

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 2:01PM by PIB Delhi

Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel inaugurated the India Innovation Summit – Pioneering Solutions to End TB, at Bharat Mandapam Convention Centre, here today. The Summit is being organized jointly by the Department of Health Research-Indian Council of Medical Research (DHR-ICMR) and the Central TB Division (CTD), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW). The summit aims to accelerate India’s progress towards TB elimination by 2025.

Addressing the gathering, Smt. Anupriya Patel highlighted India’s remarkable progress in TB control and the pivotal role of innovation in this mission. She stated that “under the pathbreaking leadership of our Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, India’s public health landscape has seen a remarkable transformation over the past decade and many of you have played a critical role in ensuring innovations and quality healthcare services reach the last mile.”

Highlighting the achievements of the National TB Elimination Program (NTEP), Smt. Patel stated that “the Program is steadily progressing towards the goal of eliminating TB by 2025. The number of missing cases has been reduced from 15 lakh in 2015 to 2.5 lakhs in 2023. The programme was able to notify 25.5 lakh TB and 26.07 lakh cases in 2023 and 2024-the highest ever.”

Citing the WHO’s Global TB Report 2024, Smt. Patel stated that “the incidence rate of TB in India has shown a 17.7% decline from 237 per lakh population in 2015 to 195 per lakh population in 2023. TB deaths have reduced by 21.4% from 28 per lakh population in 2015 to 22 per lakh population in 2023.” She also added that “TB treatment coverage in India increased by 32% in last eight years from 53% in 2015 to 85% in 2023.”

The Union Minister of State also highlighted the new initiatives under NTEP. She stated that “a shorter and safer oral Bedaquiline-containing drug resistant TB treatment regimen has been rolled out across all State/ UTs that has improved treatment success rates of drug-resistant TB patients from 68% in 2020 to 75% in 2022. A more efficacious treatment regimen, mBPaL (Bedaquiline, Pretomanid, Linezolid (300mg) has also been introduced for drug-resistant TB which is 80% more efficacious for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) and will reduce treatment duration to 6 months.”

She also highlighted the Energy Dense Nutritional Support (EDNS), offered to under-nourished TB patients during the first 2 months of their treatment along with drugs. Talking about the Ni-kshay Mitra Initiative that was launched with the objectives to provide additional support to TB patients in order to improve treatment outcomes, augment community involvement and leverage Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, Smt. Patel stated that “this initiative was launched to bring together people from all backgrounds into a ‘Jan Andolan’ and escalate the progress toward TB elimination.” She further added that “the Government has doubled the financial assistance under Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana (NPY) for nutritional support to TB patients from Rs 500/per month/per patient to Rs 1,000 per month per patient effective from 1st November 2024 while the Ni-kshay Mitra Initiative has also been expanded wherein food baskets to TB patients and their household contacts are being provided.

In addition to this, Smt. Patel also underscored the progress of the ongoing TB Mukt Bharat– 100 Days Intensified Campaign. Launched on 7^th December 2024, the campaign covers 455 selected high priority districts and involves a comprehensive strategy to mobilise resources, raise awareness and intensify actions against TB across all prioritized districts. The campaign activities involve active TB case finding in vulnerable populations, early diagnosis, prompt treatment initiation and linkage to nutritional care. The report of the campaign will be released on World TB Day on 24^th March 2025.

Underlining the new Innovations rolled out under the program, Smt. Patel stated that “ICMR has validated three indigenous handheld X ray devices, which makes it possible to reach vulnerable population groups for TB screening. Hand-held devices offer advantages of low weight, portability, and low radiation exposure and are being used in the 100-day accelerated programme.” She also added that “ICMR partnered with Institute of Plasma Research, Ahmedabad, to develop DeepCXR, a tool for artificial intelligence-based reporting chest X ray films. AI tools are expected to be a gamechanger in detecting presumptive TB patients and quick initiation of treatment. ICMR also validated CyTb skin test for detection of latent TB infection, developed by Serum Institute of India Ltd. against Interferon gamma release assay (IGRA), which is the preferred test for latent TB detection. However, IGRA is expensive and it may not be feasible to be introduced in resource limited countries. Overall performance of CyTb was better than the currently used tuberculin skin test.”

Smt. Patel further added that “ICMR conducted a multicentric validation of PathoDetectTM an indigenous molecular diagnostic NAAT test which can perform 32 tests simultaneously, detects MTB complex and first line drug resistance to rifampicin (RIF) and Isoniazid (INH) simultaneously as a one step process. Overall, the performance of PathoDetect^TM was comparable to other molecular assays. Deployment of this test in the 100-day program, along with the already available TruNat test, has enhanced capacity of molecular diagnosis of TB and early detection of drug resistance. Moreover, the Quantiplus MTB FAST Detection Kit developed by Huwel Lifesciences is the first in world indigenous open system RTPCR kits developed in India and validated by ICMR. In comparison to the gold standard liquid culture, sensitivity of the kit is 86 % and specificity is 96 %. These kits are likely to be low-cost and have a potential to expand the outreach of TB molecular testing, including more than 3300 RTPCR machines used during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“Health Technology Assessment India under Department of Health Research has assessed the TB health Technologies like Truenat for TB diagnosis, BPAL/BPALM regime for MDR TB, Techo plus for tracking and managing TB health services, AI enabled chest X-ray diagnosis and TMEAD an adherence monitoring device for TB treatment”, she further added.

Underlining the role of innovations in TB elimination, Smt. Patel stated that “innovations are crucial for TB elimination, offering faster and more accurate diagnostics, improved treatment regimens, and better prevention strategies. Use of digital health, artificial intelligence, data collection and health promotion will also play a critical role in reaching the “missing millions” of people with TB who go undiagnosed, and therefore untreated, each year.” In her concluding remarks, she encouraged all innovators “to continue their endeavour to develop useful tools for introduction into the program and help achieve the goal of TB elimination.”

In his address, Dr. V. K Paul, Member NITI Aayog, stated that “the event is an important step in the direction of innovation-led push in achieving the goal of elimination of TB. The Summit is bringing together pioneers in TB research and technology to translate ideas into impactful solutions.

He stated that “India has achieved tremendous success in the direction of eliminating TB under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.” India is resolved to eliminate 5 diseases in the coming 5 years that include: Leprosy, Lymphatic filariasis, Measles, Rubella and Kala-azar, he further stated.

Dr. Paul also underlined the need of advanced and better tools for diagnosis of drug-resistant TB and underlined the potential of AI to provide solutions for TB detection and elimination. He further stated that for elimination of TB, technology that can be taken to scale is of high priority along with facilitation of newer technologies and their approval while ensuring funding for important innovations and identify areas for further research.

He concluded his remarks by stating that “India’s efforts for TB elimination are truly global that will be beneficial globally”. He put emphasis on the need of bringing innovative ideas to the forefront that can “bring speed and scale to TB elimination and added that the summit will also help facilitate spin-offs for elimination of other diseases from the country.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Rajiv Bahl, Secretary, DHR & Director General, ICMR, highlighted the transformative role of research and indigenous technologies in India’s TB elimination effort. Emphasizing the role of technology in detection, treatment, rehabilitation and prevention of TB, he stated that “scientific advancements have been at the forefront of our fight against TB. Through rigorous research, we have validated innovative diagnostics, treatment regimens, and AI-based tools that enhance early detection and improve patient outcomes.” He added that “the summit serves as a crucial platform to bring together stakeholders and fast-track the adoption of these solutions into national TB programs.” He underlined the crucial role played by homegrown innovations benefit not only India but also contribute to the global TB elimination mission.

The one-and-a-half-day summit features over 200 groundbreaking innovations, including handheld X-ray devices for rapid TB screening, AI-powered diagnostic tools, and new molecular testing technologies. The event provides a platform for innovators to engage with policymakers, regulators, and experts, ensuring that promising solutions are integrated into national TB programs.

With over 1,200 participants from academia, industry, healthcare, and research, the summit aims to foster crucial collaborations. A key focus is identifying innovations with potential for large-scale implementation and linking them with government initiatives for further development. The India Innovation Summit reaffirms the government’s unwavering commitment to eradicating TB by 2025, leveraging scientific advancements and community-driven efforts to accelerate progress toward this ambitious goal.

More than 200 innovations shaping India’s fight against TB to be showcased at an exhibition along with over 30 scientific sessions on innovations, lectures, roundtable and panel discussions during the summit.

Former Secretary DHR and DG ICMR Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Joint Secretary DHR Ms Anu Nagar, Sr DDG (Admin) ICMR MS Manisha Saxena and other senior officials and scientists from the Ministry and ICMR also participated in the summit. Among the global participants, Dr. Trevor Mundel, President, Global Health, Gates Foundation and Prof. Guy Marks (the Union) marked their presence at the inaugural event.

****

MV

HFW/MoS inaugurates India Innovation Summit- Pioneering Solutions to End TB /18March2025/1

(Release ID: 2112158) Visitor Counter : 28

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Buildings Energy Efficiency (Amendment) Bill 2025 to be gazetted

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Buildings Energy Efficiency (Amendment) Bill 2025 to be gazetted
The spokesperson said, “The Amendment Bill seeks to enhance the buildings energy efficiency management regime of Hong Kong. It improves the energy efficiency of buildings to reduce the demand for power consumption and generation, which will not only reduce carbon emissions but also lessen the financial burden on the public for the increased use of clean fuels for electricity generation, thereby assisting Hong Kong to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.”

The Amendment Bill contains five parts, namely regulating the energy efficiency standards of building services installations for all data centres in Hong Kong; requiring more types of buildings to conduct regular energy audits; shortening the intervals of energy audits; disclosing certain technical information in energy audit reports; and including more qualifications eligible for registration as Registered Energy Assessors. If the Amendment Bill is passed by the Legislative Council (LegCo) and implemented in full, it is estimated that an additional 500 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of about 150 000 three-person households, could be saved in 2035.

The spokesperson added, “The proposed amendments to the Ordinance aims to achieve a win-win scenario of saving electricity cost for buildings, reducing carbon emission, and boosting the development of green economy.”

The EEB has extensively consulted relevant stakeholders on the legislative amendment proposals, which include trade associations, the property management sector, the construction industry, professional bodies, public services bodies, and the LegCo Panel on Environmental Affairs. The views received have been incorporated into the Amendment Bill as appropriate. Stakeholders generally support the proposals.

The Amendment Bill will be introduced into the LegCo for first reading and commencement of the second reading debate on March 26. The Government will fully support the work of the LegCo in scrutinising the Amendment Bill and looks forward to the LegCo’s support and passage of the Amendment Bill.
Issued at HKT 15:08

NNNN

Categories24-7, Asia Pacific, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Government special administrative region, MIL OSI

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Indore to set up India’s First PPP Green Waste Processing Plant

Source: Government of India (2)

Posted On: 18 MAR 2025 4:12PM by PIB Delhi

Under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban, Indore is poised to achieve a major milestone with the launch of India’s first green waste processing plant, developed through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

Indore is all set to make a significant leap towards environmental sustainability with the launch of India’s first PPP-model based green waste processing plant under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban. This groundbreaking initiative, aims to revolutionize the city’s waste management system by converting green waste into valuable resources. This project underscores the city’s commitment to innovation and sustainability in tackling urban waste challenges.

The facility will not only process green waste but also generate revenue, with the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) earning approx. Rs 3,000 per tonne in royalty for supplying wood and branches. Built on a 55,000 square feet land in Bicholi Hapsi, the plant will recycle wood and branches to produce wooden pellets, serving as an alternative to coal and promoting energy conservation.

Branches of large trees will be redirected to the Green Waste Processing Plant at City Forest, where they will be repurposed into valuable products. In addition, green waste generated from the premises of major institutions will be directly collected and sent to the facility, with a fixed fee structure in place. Every day, the bustling city of Indore generates approximately 30 tons of green waste—wood, branches, leaves, and flowers. As the seasons change, especially during autumn, this volume can soar to 60 to 70 tons.

Partnering with the Indore Municipal Corporation, Astronomical Industries Private Limited embarked on an ambitious initiative to transform the city’s green waste into something both sustainable and valuable—a fine sawdust that could be used across a wide array of industries. With a detailed plan in place, the idea is to dry the green waste over a span of three to four months. During this time, the moisture content would decrease by 90%, preparing the material for the next stage. As the months pass by, the green waste, once damp and cumbersome, would become light and brittle, almost ready for transformation. cutting edge machines will then help to break it down into fine dust particles – saw dust. Once an unremarkable byproduct of timber mills, now has a second life, contributing to a sustainable, circular economy.

The saw dust can be transformed into eco-friendly fuel, providing a cleaner alternative to traditional burning methods. It can be used to craft durable packing materials that reduce the need for plastic. Furniture manufacturers find it useful as a composite material, lending strength to products like chairs and tables. Fertilizers made from the sawdust enriches the soil, helping farmers grow healthier crops. And in the food industry, the sawdust can be moulded into disposable plates, offering a biodegradable alternative to plastic and Styrofoam.

Under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the IMC will play a pivotal role by providing and transporting land and green waste to the plant. Meanwhile, the private company will take on the responsibility of setting up the remaining infrastructure, including sheds, electricity, and water facilities. The private firm will also oversee the complete installation and operation of the plant, ensuring its smooth functioning from start to finish.

Other private firms have set up the Meghdoot and sub-grade plants, spanning an area of 10,000 to 15,000 square feet in Sirpur. These facilities are dedicated to processing garden waste, such as leaves and small twigs, sourced from the municipal corporation. As part of this initiative, composting is also being carried out in specially designed compost pits located within the municipal gardens, further enhancing waste management efforts. Wooden pellets, produced from green waste, are utilized across various industries, including the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), where they serve as an eco-friendly alternative for energy production and other applications.

The goal of this initiative is to efficiently manage green waste, promote environmental sustainability, and create additional revenue streams for the Municipal Corporation. It also plays a crucial role in controlling the Air Quality Index (AQI). By improving waste management practices, this initiative will enhance hygiene, reduce pollution, and curb the unnecessary burning of waste, contributing to a cleaner and healthier environment.

The project will also provide an alternative source of coal, contributing to AQI control while offering an effective solution for cleanliness and environmental protection. This initiative aligns with the vision of Garbage-Free Cities under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban, advancing efforts toward a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable urban environment.

*****

SK

(Release ID: 2112288) Visitor Counter : 29

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 19, 2025
MIL-OSI: KE Holdings Inc. Announces a Final Cash Dividend of US$0.4 Billion in Aggregate

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

BEIJING, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — KE Holdings Inc. (“Beike” or the “Company”) (NYSE: BEKE; HKEX: 2423), a leading integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services, today announced that its board of directors (the “Board”) approved a final cash dividend (the “Dividend”) of US$0.12 per ordinary share, or US$0.36 per ADS, to holders of ordinary shares and holders of ADSs of record as of the close of business on April 9, 2025, Beijing/Hong Kong Time and New York Time, respectively, payable in U.S. dollars. The aggregate amount of the Dividend to be paid will be approximately US$0.4 billion, which will be funded by cash surplus on the Company’s balance sheet.

For holders of ordinary shares, in order to qualify for the Dividend, all valid documents for the transfer of shares accompanied by the relevant share certificates must be lodged for registration with the Company’s Hong Kong branch share registrar, Computershare Hong Kong Investor Services Limited, at Shops 1712-1716, 17th Floor, Hopewell Centre, 183 Queen’s Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong no later than 4:30 p.m. on April 9, 2025 (Beijing/Hong Kong Time). Dividend to be paid to the Company’s ADS holders through the depositary bank will be subject to the terms of the deposit agreement. The payment date is expected to be on or around April 22, 2025 for holders of ordinary shares and on or around April 25, 2025 for holders of ADSs.

Under the Company’s current dividend policy, the Board has discretion on whether to distribute dividends, subject to certain requirements of Cayman Islands law. In addition, the Company’s shareholders may by ordinary resolution declare a dividend, but no dividend may exceed the amount recommended by the Board. If the Company decides to pay dividends, the form, frequency and amount will be based upon the Company’s future operations and earnings, capital requirements and surplus, general financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors that the Board may deem relevant.

About KE Holdings Inc.

KE Holdings Inc. is a leading integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services. The Company is a pioneer in building infrastructure and standards to reinvent how service providers and customers efficiently navigate and complete housing transactions and services in China, ranging from existing and new home sales, home rentals, to home renovation and furnishing, and other services. The Company owns and operates Lianjia, China’s leading real estate brokerage brand and an integral part of its Beike platform. With more than 23 years of operating experience through Lianjia since its inception in 2001, the Company believes the success and proven track record of Lianjia pave the way for it to build its infrastructure and standards and drive the rapid and sustainable growth of Beike.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that may constitute “forward-looking” statements pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “aims,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “likely to,” and similar statements. Beike may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the “Hong Kong Stock Exchange”), in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about KE Holdings Inc.’s beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: Beike’s goals and strategies; Beike’s future business development, financial condition and results of operations; expected changes in the Company’s revenues, costs or expenditures; Beike’s ability to empower services and facilitate transactions on Beike platform; competition in the industry in which Beike operates; relevant government policies and regulations relating to the industry; Beike’s ability to protect the Company’s systems and infrastructures from cyber-attacks; Beike’s dependence on the integrity of brokerage brands, stores and agents on the Company’s platform; general economic and business conditions in China and globally; and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in KE Holdings Inc.’s filings with the SEC and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and KE Holdings Inc. does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For more information, please visit: https://investors.ke.com.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:
KE Holdings Inc.
Investor Relations
Siting Li
E-mail: ir@ke.com

Piacente Financial Communications
Jenny Cai
Tel: +86-10-6508-0677
E-mail: ke@tpg-ir.com

In the United States:
Piacente Financial Communications
Brandi Piacente
Tel: +1-212-481-2050
E-mail: ke@tpg-ir.com

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI: KE Holdings Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2024 Unaudited Financial Results and a Final Cash Dividend

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

BEIJING, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — KE Holdings Inc. (“Beike” or the “Company”) (NYSE: BEKE and HKEX: 2423), a leading integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, and also announced a final cash dividend.

Business and Financial Highlights for the Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2024

Gross transaction value (GTV)¹ in 2024 was RMB3,349.4 billion (US$458.9 billion), an increase of 6.6% year-over-year. GTV of existing home transactions was RMB2,246.5 billion (US$307.8 billion), an increase of 10.8% year-over-year. GTV of new home transactions was RMB970.0 billion (US$132.9 billion), a decrease of 3.3% year-over-year. GTV of home renovation and furnishing was RMB16.9 billion (US$2.3 billion), an increase of 27.3% year-over-year. GTV of emerging and other services was RMB116.0 billion (US$15.9 billion), an increase of 17.6% year-over-year.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, GTV was RMB1,143.8 billion (US$156.7 billion), an increase of 55.5% year-over-year. GTV of existing home transactions was RMB744.8 billion (US$102.0 billion), an increase of 59.1% year-over-year. GTV of new home transactions was RMB355.3 billion (US$48.7 billion), an increase of 49.3% year-over-year. GTV of home renovation and furnishing was RMB5.3 billion (US$0.7 billion), an increase of 34.7% year-over-year. GTV of emerging and other services was RMB38.3 billion (US$5.3 billion), an increase of 50.0% year-over-year.
Net revenues in 2024 were RMB93.5 billion (US$12.8 billion), an increase of 20.2% year-over-year.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, net revenues were RMB31.1 billion (US$4.3 billion), an increase of 54.1% year-over-year.
Net income in 2024 was RMB4,078 million (US$559 million), a decrease of 30.8% year-over-year. Adjusted net income²in 2024 was RMB7,211 million (US$988 million), a decrease of 26.4% year-over-year.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, net income was RMB577 million (US$79 million), a decrease of 13.9% year-over-year. Adjusted net income was RMB1,344 million (US$184 million), a decrease of 21.6% year-over-year.
Number of stores was 51,573 as of December 31, 2024, a 17.7% increase from one year ago. Number of active stores³ was 49,693 as of December 31, 2024, an 18.3% increase from one year ago.
Number of agents was 499,937 as of December 31, 2024, a 16.9% increase from one year ago. Number of active agents⁴ was 445,271 as of December 31, 2024, a 12.1% increase from one year ago.
Mobile monthly active users (MAU)⁵ averaged 43.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, relatively flat compared to 43.2 million in the same period of 2023.

Mr. Stanley Yongdong Peng, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Beike, commented, “in 2024, China’s real estate industry is accelerating towards an advanced stage, with customer demand shifting towards reducing decision-making risks and pursuing higher living quality. We empower service providers with technology, enabling optimal decision-making and driving the industry’s leap toward higher service efficiency.”

“Under the strategy of active growth and ecosystem optimization, we achieved significant growth in several key metrics in 2024. The number of active stores on the platform reached nearly 49,700, an 18.3% increase year-on-year, while the number of active agents surpassed 445,000, a 12.1% increase year-on-year. The total GTV was RMB3,349.4 billion, with net revenues hitting a historic high of RMB93.5 billion, a 20.2% increase year-on-year. GTV of existing home transactions grew 10.8% year-on-year, while net revenues from new home transaction services increased by 10.1% year-on-year. The home renovation and furnishing services saw continuous improvement in scale and delivery capability, achieving net revenues of RMB14.8 billion, a 36.1% year-on-year increase. The home rental services managed over 430,000 units by the end of 2024, generating net revenues of RMB14.3 billion, a 135.0% year-on-year increase, with refined operations improving customer experience. Our Beihaojia business explored driving product strength and reduce risks in the new home industry through the C2M (customer to manufacturing) model.”

“Looking ahead, we remain committed to our strategic direction of becoming ‘more technology-driven and more human-centric.’ AI-powered technology will enable deeper insights into personalized customer needs and redefine the boundaries of service providers’ capabilities, while a human-centered approach will highlight the value of service. We believe that the integration of technology and human touch will drive a step-change in consumer experience and service efficiency, unlocking new possibilities for the residential services industry,” concluded Mr. Peng.

Mr. Tao Xu, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of Beike, added, “in 2024, both the existing and new home markets saw a significant recovery following the stimulus policies introduced in September. The total volume of existing home transactions saw year-on-year growth in 2024, and structurally, the proportion of existing home transactions within the overall real estate market further increased.

Facing market opportunities, we continued to make breakthroughs in scale in 2024. Our full-year net revenues reached RMB93.5 billion, up 20.2% year-over-year. Net revenues from existing and new home transaction services both grew year-over-year. Net revenues from non-housing transaction services grew by 64.2% year-over-year, accounting for 33.8% of total net revenues, serving as a new growth engine. Our earnings quality improved as well. Net operating cash inflow in 2024 was RMB9.45 billion, 1.3 times our adjusted net income for the year.

We placed great emphasis on shareholder returns. We have in aggregate repurchased shares with a total consideration of approximately US$716 million in 2024, which accounted for approximately 3.9% of the Company’s total issued shares at the end of 2023. Meanwhile, we are here to declare our final cash dividend, with an aggregate amount of approximately US$0.4 billion, reaffirming our commitment to sharing long-term value with our shareholders.

We believe our outstanding financial management capabilities will safeguard our ‘one body, three wings’ strategy and facilitate the steady growth of all business lines.”

Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Results

Net Revenues

Net revenues increased by 54.1% to RMB31.1 billion (US$4.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB20.2 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of total GTV and the expansion of home rental business. Total GTV increased by 55.5% to RMB1,143.8 billion (US$156.7 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB735.6 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the recovery of housing transaction market driven by the supportive policies and the Company’s proactive growth strategy and enhanced capabilities in market coverage.

Net revenues from existing home transaction services were RMB8.9 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024, increased by 47.5% from RMB6.0 billion in the same period of 2023. GTV of existing home transactions increased by 59.1% to RMB744.8 billion (US$102.0 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB468.1 billion in the same period of 2023. The higher growth rate in GTV compared to net revenues in existing home transaction services was primarily attributable to a decrease in the commission rate of existing home sales transaction services, driven by a strategic scaling-down of certain value-added services offerings as the Company prioritized service quality assurance to ensure the premium offerings maintain their value proposition to customers.
Among that, (i) commission revenue was RMB7.4 billion (US$1.0 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024, increased by 53.0% from RMB4.9 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of GTV of existing home transactions served by Lianjia stores of 65.7% to RMB311.7 billion (US$42.7 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB188.1 billion in the same period of 2023, partially offset by the decrease in the commission rate of existing home sales transaction services charged by Lianjia stores which was driven by a strategic scale back certain value-added services offerings; and

(ii) revenues derived from platform service, franchise service and other value-added services, which are mostly charged to connected stores and agents on the Company’s platform increased by 25.0% to RMB1.5 billion (US$0.2 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB1.2 billion in the same period of 2023, mainly due to an increase of GTV of existing home transactions served by connected agents on the Company’s platform of 54.7% to RMB433.2 billion (US$59.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB280.0 billion in the same period of 2023, partially offset by incentive-based reductions in platform service and franchise service fees for connected stores.

Net revenues from new home transaction services increased by 72.7% to RMB13.1 billion (US$1.8 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB7.6 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily due to the increase of GTV of new home transactions of 49.3% to RMB355.3 billion (US$48.7 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB238.0 billion in the same period of 2023, and the improved monetization capability. Among that, the GTV of new home transactions facilitated on Beike platform through connected agents, dedicated sales team with the expertise on new home transaction services and other sales channels increased by 51.6% to RMB287.5 billion (US$39.4 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB189.7 billion in the same period of 2023, and the GTV of new home transactions served by Lianjia brand increased by 40.4% to RMB67.8 billion (US$9.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB48.3 billion in the same period of 2023.
Net revenues from home renovation and furnishing increased by 12.8% to RMB4.1 billion (US$0.6 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB3.6 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to a) the increase of orders driven by the synergetic effects from customer acquisition and conversion between home transaction services and home renovation and furnishing business and b) a larger contribution from furniture and home furnishing sales in categories such as customized furniture, soft furnishings, and electrical appliances.

Net revenues from home rental services increased by 108.7% to RMB4.6 billion (US$0.6 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB2.2 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of the number of rental units under the Carefree Rent model.

Net revenues from emerging and other services were RMB0.4 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB0.7 billion in the same period of 2023.

Cost of Revenues

Total cost of revenues increased by 59.1% to RMB24.0 billion (US$3.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB15.1 billion in the same period of 2023.

Commission – split. The Company’s cost of revenues for commissions to connected agents and other sales channels increased by 71.7% to RMB8.7 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024, from RMB5.1 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily due to the increase in net revenues from new home transaction services derived from transactions facilitated through connected agents and other sales channels.

Commission and compensation – internal. The Company’s cost of revenues for internal commission and compensation increased by 64.8% to RMB6.5 billion (US$0.9 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB3.9 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily due to an increase in the net revenues from existing and new home transactions derived from transactions facilitated through Lianjia agents and the increase in fixed compensation costs mainly driven by the increased number of Lianjia agents and improved benefits for them.

Cost of home renovation and furnishing. The Company’s cost of revenues for home renovation and furnishing increased by 9.8% to RMB2.9 billion (US$0.4 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB2.6 billion in the same period of 2023, which was in line with the growth of net revenues from home renovation and furnishing.
Cost of home rental services. The Company’s cost of revenues for home rental services increased by 101.8% to RMB4.4 billion (US$0.6 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB2.2 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the growth of net revenues from home rental services.
Cost related to stores. The Company’s cost related to stores increased by 8.1% to RMB0.8 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB0.7 billion in the same period of 2023, primarily attributable to the increased number of Lianjia stores.

Other costs. The Company’s other costs increased to RMB0.7 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB0.5 billion in the same period of 2023, mainly due to the increased tax and surcharges in line with the increased net revenues and an increase in provision and funding costs of financial services.

Gross Profit

Gross profit increased by 39.4% to RMB7.2 billion (US$1.0 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB5.1 billion in the same period of 2023. Gross margin was 23.0% in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to 25.5% in the same period of 2023, primarily due to a) a lower contribution margin of existing home transaction services led by the increased fix compensation costs as percentage of net revenues from existing home transaction services and b）a lower contribution margin of emerging and other services.

Income from Operations

Total operating expenses increased by 15.8% to RMB6.2 billion (US$0.8 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB5.3 billion in the same period of 2023.

General and administrative expenses were RMB3.0 billion (US$0.4 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with RMB2.6 billion in the same period of 2023, mainly due to the increase in personnel costs, partially offset by the decrease of share-based compensation expenses.
Sales and marketing expenses increased by 12.7% to RMB2.3 billion (US$0.3 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB2.1 billion in the same period of 2023, mainly due to the increase in sales and marketing expenses for home renovation and furnishing business.
Research and development expenses increased by 38.4% to RMB739 million (US$101 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024 from RMB534 million in the same period of 2023, primarily due to the increased headcount of research and development personnel and the increased technical service costs.

Income from operations was RMB1,011 million (US$139 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to loss from operations of RMB173 million in the same period of 2023. Operating margin was 3.2% in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to negative 0.9% in the same period of 2023, primarily due to the improved operating leverage in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to the same period of 2023.

Adjusted income from operations⁶ was RMB1,755 million (US$240 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB856 million in the same period of 2023. Adjusted operating margin⁷ was 5.6% in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to 4.2% in the same period of 2023. Adjusted EBITDA⁸ was RMB2,343 million (US$321 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB1,700 million in the same period of 2023.

Net Income

Net income was RMB577 million (US$79 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB670 million in the same period of 2023, primarily due to an increase in income tax expenses.

Adjusted net income was RMB1,344 million (US$184 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB1,714 million in the same period of 2023.

Net Income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s Ordinary Shareholders

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders was RMB570 million (US$78 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB670 million in the same period of 2023.

Adjusted net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders⁹ was RMB1,336 million (US$183 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared to RMB1,713 million in the same period of 2023.

Net Income per ADS

Basic and diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders¹⁰ were RMB0.51 (US$0.07) and RMB0.49 (US$0.07) in the fourth quarter of 2024, respectively, compared to RMB0.58 and RMB0.56 in the same period of 2023, respectively.

Adjusted basic and diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders¹¹ were RMB1.19 (US$0.16) and RMB1.14 (US$0.16) in the fourth quarter of 2024, respectively, compared to RMB1.49 and RMB1.44 in the same period of 2023, respectively.

Cash, Cash Equivalents, Restricted Cash and Short-Term Investments

As of December 31, 2024, the combined balance of the Company’s cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments amounted to RMB61.6 billion (US$8.4 billion).

Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Results

Net Revenues

Net revenues increased by 20.2% to RMB93.5 billion (US$12.8 billion) in 2024 from RMB77.8 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of net revenues from new home transaction services and the expansion of home renovation and furnishing and home rental business. Total GTV increased by 6.6% to RMB3,349.4 billion (US$458.9 billion) in 2024 from RMB3,142.9 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the Company’s proactive growth strategy and enhanced capabilities in market coverage.

Net revenues from existing home transaction services were RMB28.2 billion (US$3.9 billion) in 2024, relatively flat compared with RMB28.0 billion in 2023. GTV of existing home transactions increased by 10.8% to RMB2,246.5 billion (US$307.8 billion) in 2024 from RMB2,028.0 billion in 2023.
Among that, (i) commission revenue increased by 1.0% to RMB23.1 billion (US$3.2 billion) in 2024, from RMB22.9 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the GTV of existing home transactions served by Lianjia stores increased by 8.4% to RMB918.5 billion (US$125.8 billion) in 2024 from RMB847.6 billion in 2023, mainly offset by a lower commission rate of existing home transaction services charged by Lianjia stores in Beijing; and

(ii) revenues derived from platform service, franchise service and other value-added services, which are mostly charged to connected stores and agents on the Company’s platform were RMB5.1 billion (US$0.7 billion) in 2024, relatively flat compared with RMB5.1 billion in 2023, while the GTV of existing home transactions served by connected agents on the Company’s platform increased by 12.5% to RMB1,328.0 billion (US$181.9 billion) in 2024 from RMB1,180.4 billion in 2023. The increase was mainly offset by the decrease in revenues from certain value-added services which were not directly driven by GTV of existing home transactions served by connected agents.

Net revenues from new home transaction services increased by 10.1% to RMB33.7 billion (US$4.6 billion) in 2024 from RMB30.6 billion in 2023, primarily due to the improved monetization capability, which was partially offset by the decrease of GTV of new home transactions of 3.3% to RMB970.0 billion (US$132.9 billion) in 2024 from RMB1,003.0 billion in 2023. Among that, the GTV of new home transactions facilitated on Beike platform through connected agents, dedicated sales team with the expertise on new home transaction services and other sales channels decreased by 3.1% to RMB784.4 billion (US$107.5 billion) in 2024 from RMB809.9 billion in 2023, and the GTV of new home transactions served by Lianjia brand decreased by 3.9% to RMB185.6 billion (US$25.4 billion) in 2024 from RMB193.2 billion in 2023.
Net revenues from home renovation and furnishing increased by 36.1% to RMB14.8 billion (US$2.0 billion) in 2024 from RMB10.9 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to a) the increase of orders driven by the synergetic effects from customer acquisition and conversion between home transaction services and home renovation and furnishing business, b) a larger contribution from furniture and home furnishing sales in categories such as customized furniture, soft furnishings, and electrical appliances, and c) the shortened lead time driven by enhanced delivery capabilities.
Net revenues from home rental services increased by 135.0% to RMB14.3 billion (US$2.0 billion) in 2024 from RMB6.1 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of the number of rental units under the Carefree Rent model.

Net revenues from emerging and other services increased by 8.8% to RMB2.5 billion (US$0.3 billion) in 2024 from RMB2.3 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the increase of net revenues from financial services.

Cost of Revenues

Total cost of revenues increased by 25.8% to RMB70.5 billion (US$9.7 billion) in 2024 from RMB56.1 billion in 2023.

Commission – split. The Company’s cost of revenues for commissions to connected agents and other sales channels increased by 11.5% to RMB22.8 billion (US$3.1 billion) in 2024 from RMB20.4 billion in 2023, primarily due to the increase in net revenues from new home transaction services derived from transactions facilitated through connected agents and other sales channels.
Commission and compensation – internal. The Company’s cost of revenues for internal commission and compensation increased by 11.1% to RMB18.9 billion (US$2.6 billion) in 2024 from RMB17.0 billion in 2023, primarily due to an increase in the net revenues from new home transactions derived from transactions facilitated through Lianjia agents and the increase in fixed compensation costs mainly driven by the increased number of Lianjia agents and improved benefits for them.

Cost of home renovation and furnishing. The Company’s cost of revenues for home renovation and furnishing increased by 32.8% to RMB10.2 billion (US$1.4 billion) in 2024 from RMB7.7 billion in 2023, which was in line with the growth of net revenues from home renovation and furnishing.
Cost of home rental services. The Company’s cost of revenues for home rental services increased by 121.0% to RMB13.6 billion (US$1.9 billion) in 2024 from RMB6.2 billion in 2023, primarily attributable to the growth of net revenues from home rental services.
Cost related to stores. The Company’s cost related to stores was RMB2.9 billion (US$0.4 billion) in 2024, relatively flat compared with RMB2.9 billion in 2023.

Other costs. The Company’s other costs increased by 13.6% to RMB2.1 billion (US$0.3 billion) in 2024 from RMB1.9 billion in 2023, mainly due to the increased tax and surcharges in line with the increased net revenues and an increase in provision and funding costs of financial services.

Gross Profit

Gross profit increased by 5.6% to RMB22.9 billion (US$3.1 billion) in 2024 from RMB21.7 billion in 2023. Gross margin was 24.6% in 2024, compared to 27.9% in 2023, primarily due to a) a lower contribution ratio of net revenues from existing home transaction services with a relatively higher margin than other revenue streams; and b) a lower contribution margin of existing home transaction services led by the increased fix compensation costs as percentage of net revenues from existing home transaction services.

Income from Operations

Total operating expenses increased by 13.3% to RMB19.2 billion (US$2.6 billion) in 2024 from RMB16.9 billion in 2023.

General and administrative expenses increased by 8.8% to RMB9.0 billion (US$1.2 billion) in 2024 from RMB8.2 billion in 2023, mainly due to the increase in personnel costs.
Sales and marketing expenses increased by 17.0% to RMB7.8 billion (US$1.1 billion) in 2024 from RMB6.7 billion in 2023, mainly due to the increase in sales and marketing expenses for home renovation and furnishing business.
Research and development expenses increased by 17.9% to RMB2.3 billion (US$0.3 billion) in 2024 from RMB1.9 billion in 2023, primarily due to the increased headcount of research and development personnel and the increased technical service costs.

Income from operations was RMB3,765 million (US$516 million) in 2024, compared to RMB4,797 million in 2023. Operating margin was 4.0% in 2024, compared to 6.2% in 2023, primarily due to a lower gross margin partially offset by the improved operating leverage in 2024, compared to 2023.

Adjusted income from operations was RMB6,890 million (US$944 million) in 2024, compared to RMB8.7 billion in 2023. Adjusted operating margin was 7.4% in 2024, compared to 11.2% in 2023. Adjusted EBITDA was RMB9,534 million (US$1,306 million) in 2024, compared to RMB11.3 billion in 2023.

Net Income

Net income was RMB4,078 million (US$559 million) in 2024, compared to RMB5,890 million in 2023.

Adjusted net income was RMB7,211 million (US$988 million) in 2024, compared to RMB9,798 million in 2023.

Net Income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s Ordinary Shareholders

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders was RMB4,065 million (US$557 million) in 2024, compared to RMB5,883 million in 2023.

Adjusted net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders¹² was RMB7,198 million (US$986 million) in 2024, compared to RMB9,792 million in 2023.

Net Income per ADS

Basic and diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders¹³ were RMB3.58 (US$0.49) and RMB3.45 (US$0.47) in 2024, respectively, compared to RMB5.01 and RMB4.89 in 2023, respectively.

Adjusted basic and diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders¹⁴ were RMB6.33 (US$0.87) and RMB6.10 (US$0.84) in 2024, respectively, compared to RMB8.34 and RMB8.13 in 2023, respectively.

Share Repurchase Program

As previously disclosed, the Company established a share repurchase program in August 2022 and upsized and extended it in August 2023 and August 2024, under which the Company may purchase up to US$3 billion of its Class A ordinary shares and/or ADSs until August 31, 2025, subject to obtaining another general unconditional mandate for the repurchase from the shareholders of the Company at the next annual general meeting to continue its share repurchase after the expiry of the existing share repurchase mandate granted by the annual general meeting held on June 14, 2024. As of December 31, 2024, the Company in aggregate has purchased approximately 109.1 million ADSs (representing approximately 327.4 million Class A ordinary shares) on the New York Stock Exchange with a total consideration of approximately US$1,625.4 million under this share repurchase program since its launch.

Final Cash Dividend

The Company is pleased to announce that its board of directors (the “Board”) has approved a final cash dividend (the “Dividend”) of US$0.12 per ordinary share, or US$0.36 per ADS, to holders of ordinary shares and holders of ADSs of record as of the close of business on April 9, 2025, Beijing/ Hong Kong Time and New York Time, respectively, payable in U.S. dollars. The aggregate amount of the Dividend to be paid will be approximately US$0.4 billion, which will be funded by cash surplus on the Company’s balance sheet.

For holders of ordinary shares, in order to qualify for the Dividend, all valid documents for the transfer of shares accompanied by the relevant share certificates must be lodged for registration with the Company’s Hong Kong share registrar, Computershare Hong Kong Investor Services Limited, at Shops 1712-1716, 17th Floor, Hopewell Centre, 183 Queen’s Road East, Wanchai, Hong Kong no later than 4:30 p.m. on April 9, 2025 (Beijing/Hong Kong Time). Dividend to be paid to the Company’s ADS holders through the depositary bank will be subject to the terms of the deposit agreement. The payment date is expected to be on or around April 22, 2025 for holders of ordinary shares, and on or around April 25, 2025 for holders of ADSs.

Under the Company’s current dividend policy, the Board has discretion on whether to distribute dividends, subject to certain requirements of Cayman Islands law. In addition, the Company’s shareholders may by ordinary resolution declare a dividend, but no dividend may exceed the amount recommended by the Board. If the Company decides to pay dividends, the form, frequency and amount will be based upon its future operations and earnings, capital requirements and surplus, general financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors that the Board may deem relevant.

Conference Call Information

The Company will hold an earnings conference call at 8:00 A.M. U.S. Eastern Time on Tuesday, March 18, 2025 (8:00 P.M. Beijing/Hong Kong Time on Tuesday, March 18, 2025) to discuss the financial results.

For participants who wish to join the conference call using dial-in numbers, please complete online registration using the link provided below at least 20 minutes prior to the scheduled call start time. Dial-in numbers, passcode and unique access PIN would be provided upon registering.

Participant Online Registration:

English Line: https://s1.c-conf.com/diamondpass/10045435-su5md1.html

Chinese Simultaneous Interpretation Line (listen-only mode): https://s1.c-conf.com/diamondpass/10045436-c4n72s.html

A replay of the conference call will be accessible through March 25, 2025, by dialing the following numbers:

United States:	+1-855-883-1031
Mainland, China:	400-1209-216
Hong Kong, China:	800-930-639
International:	+61-7-3107-6325
Replay PIN (English line):	10045435
Replay PIN (Chinese simultaneous interpretation line):	10045436

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will also be available at the Company’s investor relations website at https://investors.ke.com.

Exchange Rate

This press release contains translations of certain RMB amounts into U.S. dollars (“US$”) at specified rates solely for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise stated, all translations from RMB to US$ were made at the rate of RMB7.2993 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate in effect on December 31, 2024, in the H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board. The Company makes no representation that the RMB or US$ amounts referred could be converted into US$ or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all. For analytical presentation, all percentages are calculated using the numbers presented in the financial information contained in this earnings release.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company uses adjusted income (loss) from operations, adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders, adjusted operating margin, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders, each a non-GAAP financial measure, in evaluating its operating results and formulating its business plan. Beike believes that these non-GAAP financial measures help identify underlying trends in the Company’s business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of certain expenses that the Company includes in its net income (loss). Beike also believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information about its results of operations, enhance the overall understanding of its past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by its management in formulating its business plan. A limitation of using these non-GAAP financial measures is that these non-GAAP financial measures exclude share-based compensation expenses that have been, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, a significant recurring expense in the Company’s business.

The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to gross profit, net income (loss) or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of its operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review these non-GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. The non-GAAP financial measures presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures to the Company’s data. Beike encourages investors and others to review its financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure. Adjusted income (loss) from operations is defined as income (loss) from operations, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, and (iii) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets. Adjusted operating margin is defined as adjusted income (loss) from operations as a percentage of net revenues. Adjusted net income (loss) is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, (v) impairment of investments, and (vi) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments. Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is defined as net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, (v) impairment of investments, (vi) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments, and (vii) effects of non-GAAP adjustments on net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) income tax expense, (ii) share-based compensation expenses, (iii) amortization of intangible assets, (iv) depreciation of property, plant and equipment, (v) interest income, net, (vi) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (vii) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, and (viii) impairment of investments. Adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is defined as adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating adjusted net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted.

Please see the “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” included in this press release for a full reconciliation of each non-GAAP measure to its respective comparable GAAP measure.

About KE Holdings Inc.

KE Holdings Inc. is a leading integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services. The Company is a pioneer in building infrastructure and standards to reinvent how service providers and customers efficiently navigate and complete housing transactions and services in China, ranging from existing and new home sales, home rentals, to home renovation and furnishing, and other services. The Company owns and operates Lianjia, China’s leading real estate brokerage brand and an integral part of its Beike platform. With more than 23 years of operating experience through Lianjia since its inception in 2001, the Company believes the success and proven track record of Lianjia pave the way for it to build its infrastructure and standards and drive the rapid and sustainable growth of Beike.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that may constitute “forward-looking” statements pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “aims,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “likely to,” and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from management in this press release, as well as Beike’s strategic and operational plans, contain forward-looking statements. Beike may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the “Hong Kong Stock Exchange”), in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about KE Holdings Inc.’s beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: Beike’s goals and strategies; Beike’s future business development, financial condition and results of operations; expected changes in the Company’s revenues, costs or expenditures; Beike’s ability to empower services and facilitate transactions on Beike platform; competition in the industry in which Beike operates; relevant government policies and regulations relating to the industry; Beike’s ability to protect the Company’s systems and infrastructures from cyber-attacks; Beike’s dependence on the integrity of brokerage brands, stores and agents on the Company’s platform; general economic and business conditions in China and globally; and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in KE Holdings Inc.’s filings with the SEC and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and KE Holdings Inc. does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:
KE Holdings Inc.
Investor Relations
Siting Li
E-mail: ir@ke.com

Piacente Financial Communications
Jenny Cai
Tel: +86-10-6508-0677
E-mail: ke@tpg-ir.com

In the United States:
Piacente Financial Communications
Brandi Piacente
Tel: +1-212-481-2050
Email: ke@tpg-ir.com

Source: KE Holdings Inc.

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data)
	As of December 31,	As of December 31,
	2023	2024
	RMB	RMB	US$

ASSETS
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents	19,634,716	11,442,965	1,567,680
Restricted cash	6,222,745	8,858,449	1,213,603
Short-term investments	34,257,958	41,317,700	5,660,502
Financing receivables, net of allowance for credit losses of RMB122,482 and RMB147,330 as of December 31, 2023 and 2024, respectively	1,347,759	2,835,527	388,466
Accounts receivable and contract assets, net of allowance for credit losses of RMB1,681,127 and RMB1,636,163 as of December 31, 2023 and 2024, respectively	3,176,169	5,497,989	753,221
Amounts due from and prepayments to related parties	419,270	379,218	51,953
Loan receivables from related parties	28,030	18,797	2,575
Prepayments, receivables and other assets	4,666,976	6,252,700	856,615
Total current assets	69,753,623	76,603,345	10,494,615
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment, net	1,965,098	2,400,211	328,828
Right-of-use assets	17,617,915	23,366,879	3,201,249
Long-term investments, net	23,570,988	23,790,106	3,259,231
Intangible assets, net	1,067,459	857,635	117,496
Goodwill	4,856,807	4,777,420	654,504
Long-term loan receivables from related parties	27,000	131,410	18,003
Other non-current assets	1,473,041	1,222,277	167,451
Total non-current assets	50,578,308	56,545,938	7,746,762
TOTAL ASSETS	120,331,931	133,149,283	18,241,377


KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Continued) (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data)

	As of December 31,	As of December 31,
	2023	2024
	RMB	RMB	US$

LIABILITIES
Current liabilities
Accounts payable	6,328,516	9,492,629	1,300,485
Amounts due to related parties	430,350	391,446	53,628
Employee compensation and welfare payable	8,145,779	8,414,472	1,152,778
Customer deposits payable	3,900,564	6,078,623	832,768
Income taxes payable	698,568	1,028,735	140,936
Short-term borrowings	290,450	288,280	39,494
Lease liabilities current portion	9,368,607	13,729,701	1,880,961
Contract liability and deferred revenue	4,665,201	6,051,867	829,102
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	5,695,948	7,268,505	995,782
Total current liabilities	39,523,983	52,744,258	7,225,934
Non-current liabilities
Deferred tax liabilities	279,341	317,697	43,524
Lease liabilities non-current portion	8,327,113	8,636,770	1,183,233
Other non-current liabilities	389	2,563	352
Total non-current liabilities	8,606,843	8,957,030	1,227,109
TOTAL LIABILITIES	48,130,826	61,701,288	8,453,043

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Continued) (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data)
	As of December 31,		As of December 31,
	2023		2024
	RMB		RMB		US$

SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
KE Holdings Inc. shareholders’ equity
Ordinary shares (US$0.00002 par value; 25,000,000,000 ordinary shares authorized, comprising of 24,114,698,720 Class A ordinary shares and 885,301,280 Class B ordinary shares. 3,571,960,220 Class A ordinary shares issued and 3,443,860,844 Class A ordinary shares outstanding⁽¹⁾as of December 31, 2023; 3,479,616,986 Class A ordinary shares issued and 3,337,567,403 Class A ordinary shares outstanding⁽¹⁾as of December 31, 2024; and 151,354,549 and 145,413,446 Class B ordinary shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2023 and 2024, respectively)	475		461		63
Treasury shares	(866,198	)	(949,410	)	(130,069	)
Additional paid-in capital	77,583,054		72,460,562		9,927,056
Statutory reserves	811,107		926,972		126,995
Accumulated other comprehensive income	244,302		609,112		83,448
Accumulated deficit	(5,672,916	)	(1,723,881	)	(236,171	)
Total KE Holdings Inc. shareholders’ equity	72,099,824		71,323,816		9,771,322
Non-controlling interests	101,281		124,179		17,012
TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY	72,201,105		71,447,995		9,788,334
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY	120,331,931		133,149,283		18,241,377

(1) Excluding the Class A ordinary shares registered in the name of the depositary bank for future issuance of ADSs upon the exercise or vesting of awards granted under our share incentive plans and the Class A ordinary shares repurchased but not cancelled in the form of ADSs.

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data, ADS and per ADS data)
	For the Three Months Ended						For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$

Net revenues
Existing home transaction services	6,049,963		8,922,030		1,222,313		27,954,135		28,201,003		3,863,522
New home transaction services	7,574,098		13,076,767		1,791,510		30,575,778		33,653,403		4,610,497
Home renovation and furnishing	3,640,928		4,106,834		562,634		10,850,497		14,768,947		2,023,337
Home rental services	2,194,485		4,580,502		627,526		6,099,747		14,334,479		1,963,816
Emerging and other services	744,752		438,974		60,139		2,296,775		2,499,666		342,453
Total net revenues	20,204,226		31,125,107		4,264,122		77,776,932		93,457,498		12,803,625
Cost of revenues
Commission-split	(5,073,602	)	(8,709,790	)	(1,193,236	)	(20,419,577	)	(22,766,957	)	(3,119,060	)
Commission and compensation-internal	(3,917,437	)	(6,456,881	)	(884,589	)	(17,015,927	)	(18,903,786	)	(2,589,808	)
Cost of home renovation and furnishing	(2,628,015	)	(2,884,614	)	(395,190	)	(7,705,325	)	(10,229,696	)	(1,401,463	)
Cost of home rental services	(2,166,138	)	(4,370,712	)	(598,785	)	(6,163,044	)	(13,619,506	)	(1,865,865	)
Cost related to stores	(727,054	)	(785,966	)	(107,677	)	(2,872,093	)	(2,854,988	)	(391,132	)
Others	(547,934	)	(746,958	)	(102,333	)	(1,882,952	)	(2,138,510	)	(292,973	)
Total cost of revenues⁽¹⁾	(15,060,180	)	(23,954,921	)	(3,281,810	)	(56,058,918	)	(70,513,443	)	(9,660,301	)
Gross profit	5,144,046		7,170,186		982,312		21,718,014		22,944,055		3,143,324
Operating expenses
Sales and marketing expenses⁽¹⁾	(2,080,363	)	(2,344,000	)	(321,127	)	(6,654,178	)	(7,783,341	)	(1,066,313	)
General and administrative expenses⁽¹⁾	(2,647,739	)	(2,961,294	)	(405,695	)	(8,236,569	)	(8,960,747	)	(1,227,617	)
Research and development expenses⁽¹⁾	(533,620	)	(738,683	)	(101,199	)	(1,936,780	)	(2,283,424	)	(312,828	)
Impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets	(55,441	)	(115,179	)	(15,779	)	(93,417	)	(151,576	)	(20,766	)
Total operating expenses	(5,317,163	)	(6,159,156	)	(843,800	)	(16,920,944	)	(19,179,088	)	(2,627,524	)
Income (loss) from operations	(173,117	)	1,011,030		138,512		4,797,070		3,764,967		515,800
Interest income, net	311,963		283,417		38,828		1,263,332		1,260,163		172,642
Share of results of equity investees	(18,130	)	6,144		842		9,098		10,192		1,396
Impairment loss for equity investments accounted for equity method	(4,187	)	–		–		(10,369	)	–		–
Fair value changes in investments, net	4,127		125,333		17,171		78,320		312,791		42,852
Impairment loss for equity investments accounted for using Measurement Alternative	(16,605	)	(971	)	(133	)	(28,800	)	(9,408	)	(1,289	)
Foreign currency exchange loss	(174,459	)	(6,805	)	(932	)	(93,956	)	(34,674	)	(4,750	)
Other income, net	832,103		192,069		26,313		1,869,300		1,566,038		214,546
Income before income tax expense	761,695		1,610,217		220,601		7,883,995		6,870,069		941,197
Income tax expense	(91,632	)	(1,032,969	)	(141,516	)	(1,994,391	)	(2,791,889	)	(382,487	)
Net income	670,063		577,248		79,085		5,889,604		4,078,180		558,710

KE Holdings Inc.
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS (Continued)

(All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data, ADS and per ADS data)

For the Three Months Ended

For the Year Ended

December 31,
2023

December 31,
2024

December 31,
2023

December 31,
2024

RMB

US$

RMB

US$

Net income attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders

(458

)

(7,256

)

(994

)

(6,380

)

(13,280

)

(1,819

)

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.

669,605

569,992

78,091

5,883,224

4,064,900

556,891

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders

669,605

569,992

78,091

5,883,224

4,064,900

556,891

Net income

670,063

577,248

79,085

5,889,604

4,078,180

558,710

Currency translation adjustments

(138,522

)

348,802

47,786

574,223

217,142

29,748

Unrealized gains (losses) on available-for-sale investments, net of reclassification

133,067

(15,206

)

(2,083

)

82,800

147,668

20,230

Total comprehensive income

664,608

910,844

124,788

6,546,627

4,442,990

608,688

Comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders

(458

)

(7,256

)

(994

)

(6,380

)

(13,280

)

(1,819

)

Comprehensive income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.

664,150

903,588

123,794

6,540,247

4,429,710

606,869

Comprehensive income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders

664,150

903,588

123,794

6,540,247

4,429,710

606,869

	For the Three Months Ended			For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2023	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2024
	RMB	RMB	US$	RMB	RMB	US$

Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in computing net income per share, basic and diluted
—Basic	3,449,700,565	3,356,948,233	3,356,948,233	3,521,379,938	3,409,772,592	3,409,772,592
—Diluted	3,557,221,957	3,525,088,426	3,525,088,426	3,611,653,020	3,537,408,029	3,537,408,029

Weighted average number of ADS used in computing net income per ADS, basic and diluted
—Basic	1,149,900,188	1,118,982,744	1,118,982,744	1,173,793,313	1,136,590,864	1,136,590,864
—Diluted	1,185,740,652	1,175,029,475	1,175,029,475	1,203,884,340	1,179,136,010	1,179,136,010

Net income per share attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders
—Basic	0.19	0.17	0.02	1.67	1.19	0.16
—Diluted	0.19	0.16	0.02	1.63	1.15	0.16

Net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders
—Basic	0.58	0.51	0.07	5.01	3.58	0.49
—Diluted	0.56	0.49	0.07	4.89	3.45	0.47

(1) Includes share-based compensation expenses as follows:
Cost of revenues	138,967	135,358	18,544	502,523	521,293	71,417
Sales and marketing expenses	51,347	53,410	7,317	180,465	197,320	27,033
General and administrative expenses	580,363	360,801	49,430	2,345,895	1,821,817	249,588
Research and development expenses	47,761	45,499	6,233	186,666	185,645	25,433

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP RESULTS (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data, ADS and per ADS data)
	For the Three Months Ended						For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$

Income (loss) from operations	(173,117	)	1,011,030		138,512		4,797,070		3,764,967		515,800
Share-based compensation expenses	818,438		595,068		81,524		3,215,549		2,726,075		373,471
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement	155,039		33,695		4,616		613,307		247,862		33,957
Impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets	55,441		115,179		15,779		93,417		151,576		20,766
Adjusted income from operations	855,801		1,754,972		240,431		8,719,343		6,890,480		943,994

Net income	670,063		577,248		79,085		5,889,604		4,078,180		558,710
Share-based compensation expenses	818,438		595,068		81,524		3,215,549		2,726,075		373,471
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement	155,039		33,695		4,616		613,307		247,862		33,957
Changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration	546		27,960		3,831		(26,315	)	24,371		3,339
Impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets	55,441		115,179		15,779		93,417		151,576		20,766
Impairment of investments	20,792		971		133		39,169		9,408		1,289
Tax effects on non-GAAP adjustments	(6,561	)	(6,495	)	(890	)	(26,243	)	(26,399	)	(3,617	)
Adjusted net income	1,713,758		1,343,626		184,078		9,798,488		7,211,073		987,915

Net income	670,063		577,248		79,085		5,889,604		4,078,180		558,710
Income tax expense	91,632		1,032,969		141,516		1,994,391		2,791,889		382,487
Share-based compensation expenses	818,438		595,068		81,524		3,215,549		2,726,075		373,471
Amortization of intangible assets	158,339		38,041		5,212		627,146		268,684		36,810
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment	196,436		238,496		32,674		775,042		743,728		101,890
Interest income, net	(311,963	)	(283,417	)	(38,828	)	(1,263,332	)	(1,260,163	)	(172,642	)
Changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration	546		27,960		3,831		(26,315	)	24,371		3,339
Impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets	55,441		115,179		15,779		93,417		151,576		20,766
Impairment of investments	20,792		971		133		39,169		9,408		1,289
Adjusted EBITDA	1,699,724		2,342,515		320,926		11,344,671		9,533,748		1,306,120

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders	669,605		569,992		78,091		5,883,224		4,064,900		556,891
Share-based compensation expenses	818,438		595,068		81,524		3,215,549		2,726,075		373,471
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement	155,039		33,695		4,616		613,307		247,862		33,957
Changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration	546		27,960		3,831		(26,315	)	24,371		3,339
Impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets	55,441		115,179		15,779		93,417		151,576		20,766
Impairment of investments	20,792		971		133		39,169		9,408		1,289
Tax effects on non-GAAP adjustments	(6,561	)	(6,495	)	(890	)	(26,243	)	(26,399	)	(3,617	)
Effects of non-GAAP adjustments on net income attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders	(7	)	(7	)	(1	)	(28	)	(28	)	(4	)
Adjusted net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders	1,713,293		1,336,363		183,083		9,792,080		7,197,765		986,092

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP RESULTS (Continued) (All amounts in thousands, except for share, per share data, ADS and per ADS data)
	For the Three Months Ended			For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2023	December 31, 2024	December 31, 2024
	RMB	RMB	US$	RMB	RMB	US$

Weighted average number of ADS used in computing net income per ADS, basic and diluted
—Basic	1,149,900,188	1,118,982,744	1,118,982,744	1,173,793,313	1,136,590,864	1,136,590,864
—Diluted	1,185,740,652	1,175,029,475	1,175,029,475	1,203,884,340	1,179,136,010	1,179,136,010

Weighted average number of ADS used in calculating adjusted net income per ADS, basic and diluted
—Basic	1,149,900,188	1,118,982,744	1,118,982,744	1,173,793,313	1,136,590,864	1,136,590,864
—Diluted	1,185,740,652	1,175,029,475	1,175,029,475	1,203,884,340	1,179,136,010	1,179,136,010

Net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders
—Basic	0.58	0.51	0.07	5.01	3.58	0.49
—Diluted	0.56	0.49	0.07	4.89	3.45	0.47

Non-GAAP adjustments to net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders
—Basic	0.91	0.68	0.09	3.33	2.75	0.38
—Diluted	0.88	0.65	0.09	3.24	2.65	0.37

Adjusted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders
—Basic	1.49	1.19	0.16	8.34	6.33	0.87
—Diluted	1.44	1.14	0.16	8.13	6.10	0.84

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS (All amounts in thousands)
	For the Three Months Ended						For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$

Net cash provided by operating activities	1,767,804		5,202,518		712,740		11,414,244		9,447,137		1,294,255
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	3,712,203		(2,015,584	)	(276,133	)	(3,977,440	)	(9,378,025	)	(1,284,784	)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	(1,475,585	)	1,109,860		152,050		(7,218,210	)	(5,794,635	)	(793,862	)
Effect of exchange rate change on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(142,337	)	184,196		25,237		44,608		169,476		23,216
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash	3,862,085		4,480,990		613,894		263,202		(5,556,047	)	(761,175	)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the beginning of the period	21,995,376		15,820,424		2,167,389		25,594,259		25,857,461		3,542,458
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the end of the period	25,857,461		20,301,414		2,781,283		25,857,461		20,301,414		2,781,283

KE Holdings Inc. UNAUDITED SEGMENT CONTRIBUTION MEASURE (All amounts in thousands)
	For the Three Months Ended						For the Year Ended
	December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023		December 31, 2024		December 31, 2024
	RMB		RMB		US$		RMB		RMB		US$
Existing home transaction services
Net revenues	6,049,963		8,922,030		1,222,313		27,954,135		28,201,003		3,863,522
Less: Commission and compensation	(3,355,714	)	(5,315,541	)	(728,226	)	(14,762,910	)	(16,016,079	)	(2,194,194	)
Contribution	2,694,249		3,606,489		494,087		13,191,225		12,184,924		1,669,328
New home transaction services
Net revenues	7,574,098		13,076,767		1,791,510		30,575,778		33,653,403		4,610,497
Less: Commission and compensation	(5,574,423	)	(9,723,154	)	(1,332,067	)	(22,455,253	)	(25,304,481	)	(3,466,700	)
Contribution	1,999,675		3,353,613		459,443		8,120,525		8,348,922		1,143,797
Home renovation and furnishing
Net revenues	3,640,928		4,106,834		562,634		10,850,497		14,768,947		2,023,337
Less: Material costs, commission and compensation	(2,628,015	)	(2,884,614	)	(395,190	)	(7,705,325	)	(10,229,696	)	(1,401,463	)
Contribution	1,012,913		1,222,220		167,444		3,145,172		4,539,251		621,874
Home rental services
Net revenues	2,194,485		4,580,502		627,526		6,099,747		14,334,479		1,963,816
Less: Property leasing costs, commission and compensation	(2,166,138	)	(4,370,712	)	(598,785	)	(6,163,044	)	(13,619,506	)	(1,865,865	)
(Deficit)/Contribution	28,347		209,790		28,741		(63,297	)	714,973		97,951
Emerging and other services
Net revenues	744,752		438,974		60,139		2,296,775		2,499,666		342,453
Less: Commission and compensation	(60,902	)	(127,976	)	(17,532	)	(217,341	)	(350,183	)	(47,974	)
Contribution	683,850		310,998		42,607		2,079,434		2,149,483		294,479

1 GTV for a given period is calculated as the total value of all transactions which the Company facilitated on the Company’s platform and evidenced by signed contracts as of the end of the period, including the value of the existing home transactions, new home transactions, home renovation and furnishing and emerging and other services (excluding home rental services), and including transactions that are contracted but pending closing at the end of the relevant period. For the avoidance of doubt, for transactions that failed to close afterwards, the corresponding GTV represented by these transactions will be deducted accordingly.
² Adjusted net income (loss) is a non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, (v) impairment of investments, and (vi) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
³ Based on our accumulated operational experience, we have introduced the operating metrics of number of active stores and number of active agents on our platform, which can better reflect the operational activeness of stores and agents on our platform.
“Active stores” as of a given date is defined as stores on our platform excluding the stores which (i) have not facilitated any housing transaction during the preceding 60 days, (ii) do not have any agent who has engaged in any critical steps in housing transactions (including but not limited to introducing new properties, attracting new customers and conducting property showings) during the preceding seven days, or (iii) have not been visited by any agent during the preceding 14 days. The number of active stores was 42,021 as of December 31, 2023.
4 “Active agents” as of a given date is defined as agents on our platform excluding the agents who (i) delivered notice to leave but have not yet completed the exit procedures, (ii) have not engaged in any critical steps in housing transactions (including but not limited to introducing new properties, attracting new customers and conducting property showings) during the preceding 30 days, or (iii) have not participated in facilitating any housing transaction during the preceding three months. The number of active agents was 397,135 as of December 31, 2023.
⁵ “Mobile monthly active users” or “mobile MAU” are to the sum of (i) the number of accounts that have accessed our platform through our Beike or Lianjia mobile app (with duplication eliminated) at least once during a month, and (ii) the number of Weixin users that have accessed our platform through our Weixin Mini Programs at least once during a month. Average mobile MAU for any period is calculated by dividing (i) the sum of the Company’s mobile MAUs for each month of such period, by (ii) the number of months in such period.
⁶ Adjusted income (loss) from operations is a non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined as income (loss) from operations, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, and (iii) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
⁷ Adjusted operating margin is adjusted income (loss) from operations as a percentage of net revenues.
⁸ Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) income tax expense, (ii) share-based compensation expenses, (iii) amortization of intangible assets, (iv) depreciation of property, plant and equipment, (v) interest income, net, (vi) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (vii) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets,and (viii) impairment of investments. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
⁹ Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is a non-GAAP financial measure and defined as net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, (v) impairment of investments, (vi) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments, and (vii) effects of non-GAAP adjustments on net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
¹⁰ ADS refers to American Depositary Share. Each ADS represents three Class A ordinary shares of the Company. Net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is net income (loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted.
¹¹ Adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is a non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined as adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating adjusted net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
¹² Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is a non-GAAP financial measure and defined as net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long-term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) impairment of goodwill, intangible assets and other long-lived assets, (v) impairment of investments, (vi) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments, and (vii) effects of non-GAAP adjustments on net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.
¹³ ADS refers to American Depositary Share. Each ADS represents three Class A ordinary shares of the Company. Net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is net income (loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted.
¹⁴ Adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders is a non-GAAP financial measure, which is defined as adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.’s ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating adjusted net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted. Please refer to the section titled “Unaudited reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP results” for details.

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: President Lai meets Commander-in-Chief of US Veterans of Foreign Wars Alfred Lipphardt

Source: Republic of China Taiwan

Details
2025-02-17
President Lai meets former United States Deputy National Security Advisor Matthew Pottinger
On the morning of February 17, President Lai Ching-te met with a delegation led by former United States Deputy National Security Advisor Matthew Pottinger. In remarks, President Lai thanked the delegation for demonstrating staunch support for Taiwan through their visit. The president pointed out that increased cooperation between authoritarian regimes is posing risks and challenges to the geopolitical landscape and regional security. He emphasized that only by bolstering our defense capabilities can we demonstrate effective deterrence and maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and around the world. The president stated that moving forward, Taiwan will continue to enhance its self-defense capabilities. He also expressed hope of strengthening the Taiwan-US partnership and jointly building secure and resilient non-red supply chains so as to ensure that Taiwan, the US, and democratic partners around the world maintain a technological lead. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: I am delighted to welcome our good friends Mr. Pottinger and retired US Rear Admiral Mr. Mark Montgomery to Taiwan once again. Last June, Mr. Pottinger and Mr. Ivan Kanapathy came to Taiwan to launch their new book The Boiling Moat. During that visit, they also visited the Presidential Office. We held an extensive exchange of views on Taiwan-US relations and regional affairs right here in the Taiwan Heritage Room. Now, as we meet again eight months later, I am pleased to learn that Mr. Kanapathy is now serving on the White House National Security Council. The Mandarin translation of The Boiling Moat is also due to be released in Taiwan very soon. This book offers insightful observations from US experts regarding US-China-Taiwan relations and valuable advice for the strengthening of Taiwan’s national defense, security, and overall resilience. I am sure that Taiwanese readers will benefit greatly from it. I understand that this is Mr. Montgomery’s fourth visit to Taiwan and that he has long paid close attention to Taiwan-related issues. I look forward to an in-depth discussion with our two friends on the future direction of Taiwan-US relations and cooperation. Increased cooperation between authoritarian regimes is posing risks and challenges to the geopolitical landscape and regional security. One notion we all share is peace through strength. That is, only by bolstering our defense capabilities and fortifying our defenses can we demonstrate effective deterrence and maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and around the world. Moving forward, Taiwan will continue to enhance its self-defense capabilities. We also hope to strengthen the Taiwan-US partnership in such fields as security, trade and the economy, and energy. In addition, we will advance cooperation in critical and innovative technologies and jointly build secure and resilient non-red supply chains. This will ensure that Taiwan, the US, and democratic partners around the world maintain a technological lead. We believe that closer Taiwan-US exchanges and cooperation not only benefit national security and development but also align with the common economic interests of Taiwan and the US. I want to thank Mr. Pottinger and Mr. Montgomery once again for visiting and for continuing to advance Taiwan-US exchanges, demonstrating staunch support for Taiwan. Let us continue to work together to deepen Taiwan-US relations. I wish you a smooth and fruitful visit. Mr. Pottinger then delivered remarks, first congratulating President Lai on his one-year election anniversary and on the state of the economy, which, he added, is doing quite well. Mentioning President Lai’s recent statement pledging to increase Taiwan’s defense budget to above 3 percent of GDP, Mr. Pottinger said he thinks that the benchmark is equal to what the US spends on its defense and that it is a good starting point for both countries to build deterrence. Echoing the president’s earlier remarks, Mr. Pottinger said that peace through strength is the right path for the US and for Taiwan right now at a moment when autocratic, aggressive governments are on the march. He then paraphrased the words of former US President George Washington in his first inaugural address, saying that the best way to keep the peace is to be prepared at all times for war, which captures the meaning of peace through strength. In closing, he said he looks forward to exchanging views with President Lai.

Details
2024-12-26
President Lai presides over second meeting of Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee
On the afternoon of December 26, President Lai Ching-te presided over the second meeting of the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee. President Lai stated that the committee’s goal is to enhance overall resilience in terms of national defense, economic livelihoods, disaster prevention, and democracy through five key areas: civilian force training and utilization, strategic material preparation and critical supply distribution, energy and critical infrastructure operations and maintenance, social welfare, medical care, and evacuation facility readiness, and information, transportation, and financial network protection. That morning, he said, was the first time that central and local government officials, as well as civilian observers, gathered at the Presidential Office to conduct cross-disciplinary tabletop exercises, demonstrating cooperation between central and local governments to jointly enhance social resilience. President Lai also announced that the existing Wan An and Min An Exercises, which are air raid drills and disaster response drills, respectively, beginning from next year will be combined into the 2025 Urban Resilience Exercises, the nomenclature of which matches up with that of similar exercises carried out overseas. The exercises, he said, will strengthen the defensive mechanisms of the non-military sector, and verify the ability of civil defense and disaster preparedness systems to protect our nation’s people. The president emphasized that combining government and private-sector forces is the only way to strengthen Taiwan’s overall defense capabilities, jointly consolidate global democratic resilience, and maintain regional peace and stability. A translation of President Lai’s opening statement follows: Today, we are convening the second meeting of the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee, implementing the conclusions reached at the last meeting, conducting tabletop exercises, and verifying the preparedness of government agencies to address extreme situations. Looking back over the past year, circumstances at home and abroad have changed rapidly. Authoritarian states around the world continue to converge, threatening the rules-based international order, and they now present a collective challenge to the peace and stability of the entire first island chain. To address threats, whether natural disasters or ambitions for authoritarian expansion, we believe that as long as the government and all of society are prepared, we can respond. With determination, there is no need to worry. With confidence, our people can rest assured. This is the goal of whole-of-society defense resilience. Of course, these preparations are not easy. Taiwan’s society must race against time, and work together to build capabilities to respond to major disasters and threats, and deter enemy encroachment. Therefore, the goal of this committee is to formulate action plans through the five key areas: civilian force training and utilization, strategic material preparation and critical supply distribution, energy and critical infrastructure operations and maintenance, social welfare, medical care, and evacuation facility readiness, and information, transportation, and financial network protection, thereby verifying central and local government capacities to respond in times of disaster, and enhance overall resilience in terms of national defense, economic livelihoods, disaster prevention, and democracy. This morning at the Presidential Office, we conducted the first-ever cross-disciplinary tabletop exercises involving central and local government officials as well as civilian observers. Participating teams from central government departments were all led by deputy ministers, Tainan City Deputy Mayor Yeh Tse-shan (葉澤山) led a team, and Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) also came to participate, demonstrating cooperation between central and local governments to jointly enhance social resilience. The exercises were based on Taiwan’s mature disaster prevention and relief system’s response to comprehensive threats. We had scenarios, but no scripts, so the participating units did not prepare notes in advance, but reacted on the spot. When presented with a problem, they proposed countermeasures, which is closer to a real crisis situation. To address the continued threat of authoritarian expansion to regional stability and order, in the first scenario we simulated that a high-intensity gray-zone operation occurred; for the second scenario, we simulated a state of being on the verge of conflict. The most important core objectives of the exercises were to ensure that people could carry on their daily lives and that society could function normally. I would like to thank our three deputy conveners for serving as exercise commanders, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) and Minister without Portfolio of the Executive Yuan Chi Lien-cheng (季連成) for serving as deputy exercise commanders, and Deputy Secretary-General to the President Chang Tun-han (張惇涵) as well as National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) for serving as chief officials. I also want to thank all our advisors, committee members, and colleagues from government agencies at both the central and local levels for coming together to complete tabletop exercises aimed at testing out components of the five key areas. After conducting numerous exercises in the past, many government agencies improved their emergency response capabilities, and I want to recognize those achievements. However, I also want to emphasize that we must identify problems in our current systems, and then make improvements. Whether it be the central or the local level, we cannot just talk about the good things and sweep the unpleasant things under the rug. We have to rigorously ascertain numbers and make sure just how accurate the sources of our information are, because it is always a good thing when we discover problems in our exercises, and find places where improvements are needed. This means that our testing has achieved its purpose, and that there is much room for progress and improvement. I also want to report to you all that, over the past few years, due to the global pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, countries throughout the world have been bolstering their defense resilience. NATO and the European Union, for example, have both adopted guidelines aimed at strengthening whole-of-society resilience. This shows that Taiwan is not a special case. The task of whole-of-society defense resilience is being addressed throughout the world. Taiwan’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its whole-of-society defense resilience is something the international community at large is wanting to see. This month I visited the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, and the Republic of Palau, all of which are Pacific allies of Taiwan, and I made transit stops in the United States islands of Hawaii and Guam. Friends in each of these places expressed firm support for Taiwan and repeatedly said they hope for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. We must continue taking action to respond to the international community’s support. Taiwan must have the capability to defend its own security. As president, I want to take this opportunity to emphasize to the international community that Taiwan is determined to defend regional peace and stability. We will accelerate the pace of efforts to build a more resilient Taiwan. I therefore wish to announce that our existing Wan An and Min An Exercises, which are air raid drills and disaster response drills, respectively, beginning from next year will be combined, and we will hold the 2025 Urban Resilience Exercises. This new nomenclature matches up with that of similar exercises carried out overseas, making it easier for others to understand the efforts that Taiwan is putting forth. In addition, the 2025 Urban Resilience Exercises will feature absolutely no reliance on military support, and will have a design that takes the latest international experiences into account. These resilience exercises will be distinct from the Han Kuang military exercises, and yet complementary at the same time. In other words, whole-of-society defense resilience must particularly strengthen the defensive mechanisms of the non-military sector, and must verify the ability of civil defense and disaster preparedness systems to protect our nation’s people. I want to emphasize once again that the more resilient we make Taiwan, like-minded nations around the world will be more willing to coordinate with us in responding to various challenges together. I realize that to defend democracy, we must gather together every bit of strength we have. The task of promoting whole-of-society defense resilience is a massive undertaking. The public sector must adopt a more open-minded attitude and be willing to tap into private-sector human resources, because combining government and private-sector forces is the only way to jointly respond to challenges arising under extreme conditions, and is the only way to strengthen Taiwan’s overall defense capabilities, jointly consolidate global democratic resilience, and maintain regional peace and stability. In just a few moments, Minister Liu will deliver a report on the progress of certain items listed in the first committee meeting, and Deputy Secretary-General Lin will deliver a report on the outcomes of the tabletop exercises held this morning. Next, let us engage in open discussions and examine and verify each component of the tabletop exercises, so that together we can improve whole-of-society defense resilience, make Taiwan more secure, and make the region more stable. Thank you. After listening to the report on the progress of certain items listed in the first committee meeting and the report on the outcomes of the tabletop exercises, President Lai exchanged views with the committee members regarding the content of the reports.123

Details
2024-11-30
Presidential Office thanks Biden administration for announcing its 18th military sale to Taiwan
On November 29 (US EST), the United States government announced that it had notified Congress of the sale to Taiwan of two military packages: a US$320 million sale of spare parts and support for F-16 aircraft and Active Electronically Scanned Array radar spare parts and support; and a US$65 million sale of Improved Mobile Subscriber Equipment Follow-on Support and related equipment. Presidential Office Spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) stated that the Presidential Office is sincerely grateful to the US government for its unwavering commitment to continue to strengthen the cooperative partnership between Taiwan and the US and support Taiwan in enhancing self-defense capabilities in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances. Spokesperson Kuo stated that this marks the 18th military sale to Taiwan announced during the Biden administration since 2021, emphasizing that the deepening Taiwan-US security partnership is a critical cornerstone for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. The spokesperson said that in the face of mounting security challenges in the region, Taiwan will continue to enhance self-defense capabilities and work alongside like-minded countries to jointly defend the values of freedom and democracy and ensure the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific region.

Details
2024-10-26
Presidential Office thanks Biden administration for announcing its 17th military sale to Taiwan
On October 25 (US EST), the United States government announced that it had notified Congress of the US$1.988 billion sale to Taiwan of three military packages, including the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System as well as L-band and non-L-band radar turnkey systems. Presidential Office Spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) on October 26 stated that strengthening Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities is the foundation for maintaining regional stability. The spokesperson said that the Presidential Office is grateful to the US government for continuing to provide Taiwan with the weaponry it needs in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances. Spokesperson Kuo stated that this marks the 17th military sale to Taiwan announced during the Biden administration since 2021, as well as the largest single military sale since President Biden took office, demonstrating the unwavering commitment of the US government to the security of Taiwan. She emphasized that Taiwan will continue to strengthen its self-defense capabilities as it works to maintain the rules-based international order, ensuring the peace, stability, and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region.

Details
2024-09-26
President Lai presides over first meeting of Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee
On the afternoon of September 26, President Lai Ching-te presided over the first meeting of the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee. As the committee’s convener, the president presented committee members with their letters of appointment, and explained that in order to build up our whole-of-society defense resilience, we will actively engage in comprehensive preparation to make our nation stronger and our people more confident. The president stated that we will enhance Taiwan’s response capabilities and expand cooperation between the public and private sectors. He stated that he looks forward to working together with everyone to establish a platform through which we can communicate and coordinate on our national resilience strategy, fostering a national consensus, and strengthening resilience throughout Taiwan in national defense, economic livelihoods, disaster prevention, and democracy. President Lai stated that a more resilient Taiwan will contribute more to global democracy, peace, and prosperity. He emphasized that as our society becomes better prepared, our nation grows more secure; and as Taiwan shows more determination to defend itself, the international community will feel more at ease. He expressed hope that we will engage in wide-ranging discussions and build a fortress of unity, making Taiwan a cornerstone for ensuring regional stability and democratic sustainability. A translation of President Lai’s opening statement follows: In order to consolidate forces from various sectors to strategize on national development, at the end of my first month in office, I announced that the Presidential Office will establish three committees in response to three major global issues: climate change, health promotion, and social resilience. Last month we convened the first meetings for two of those committees – the National Climate Change Committee and the Healthy Taiwan Promotion Committee. Today, we are convening the first meeting for the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee. I want to thank our three deputy conveners and all advisors and committee members for their joint commitment. I also want to thank our fellow citizens and friends for following the committee’s proceedings online. Climate change, large-scale natural disasters, and the threat to democracy posed by expanding authoritarianism are all challenges not just for Taiwan, but for the entire world. The operations and goals of these three committees are interrelated, and they are closely connected by the issue of national resilience. We intend to build up a more resilient Taiwan, proactively deal with challenges, and bring Taiwan into deeper cooperation with the international community. When former President Tsai Ing-wen was in office, the government took stock of resources in the public and private sectors in order to lay a solid foundation on which to build up our social resilience. Now, we will continue forward, from stocktaking to validation. This will entail three principles for whole-of-society defense resilience. The first principle is “preparedness through vigilance.” We will actively engage in comprehensive preparation to make our nation stronger and our people more confident. That way, in a disaster or emergency, the government and the public can quickly leverage their respective strengths and maintain the normal operation of society. The second principle is “enhanced response, fearlessness in action.” We will expand the training and utilization of civilian forces, enhance our strategic material preparation and critical supply distribution, and reinforce the operations and maintenance of energy and critical infrastructure. We will also improve the readiness of our social welfare, medical care, and evacuation facilities, and ensure the protection of information, transportation, and financial networks. All of this will enhance Taiwan’s response capabilities. The third principle is “orderly execution, methodical action.” At all levels of government, from central to local, we will conduct extensive validation and drilling, and we will expand connections with civil society groups and societal forces so that we can all work together, in a systematic and professional manner, to identify problems, propose solutions, and follow through with implementation. This is how we will resolve problems. The work involved in whole-of-society defense resilience is diverse and complex. Accordingly, this committee needs members from the public and private sectors who can work together in coordination. The members must be guided by practical experience, have interdisciplinary expertise, span different generations, and constitute a balance between the genders. These were the factors we took into consideration when we invited representatives from industry, government agencies, academia, and research institutions to serve as the four advisors and 23 members who make up this committee. Of the total committee membership, 67.7 percent are not government officials, and 32.3 percent are women. First, I want to thank the committee advisors who have taken on that important responsibility. With us today we have Master Jing Yao (淨耀) of the Buddhist Association of the Republic of China; Huoh Shoou-yeh (霍守業), chairman of the Institute for National Defense and Security Research; and Lin Ming-hsiung (林敏雄), chairman of Chuan Lian Enterprise Co. I thank each of you for your participation, and look forward to seeing you provide the committee with broadly considered, professional views on such matters as civilian force preparedness, strategic frameworks, and supply distribution. I also want to introduce committee members who are here today. We have with us Wang Pao-tzong (王寶宗), chairman of the Holy Glory Temple; Chen Hsin-liang (陳信良), general secretary of the General Assembly Executive Committee of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan; and Yen Po-wen (顏博文), CEO of the Tzu Chi Charity Foundation. I thank you all for your commitment and for giving us all the opportunity to learn how religious groups engage in disaster preparedness and relief efforts. Let me also thank James Liao (廖英熙), president of the National Defense Education Association; Enoch Wu (吳怡農), founder of the Forward Alliance; Hsiau Ya-wen (蕭雅文), honorary chairperson of the Taiwan Development Association for Disaster Medical Team; Liu Wen (劉文), chairperson of the Kuma Civil Defense Education Association; and Tseng Po-yu (曾柏瑜), consultant at Doublethink Lab. You have all been long involved in civil defense education, emergency medicine, and other fields, so I am quite confident that you will help the committee to better understand civilian force training and utilization. Let me also introduce Tu Wen-ling (杜文苓), distinguished professor in the Department of Public Administration at National Chengchi University, and Hsiao Hsu-chun (蕭旭君), associate professor of Computer Science and Information Engineering at National Taiwan University. I thank both of you for generously contributing your expertise to make Taiwan’s energy and critical infrastructure operations more robust. Also, I want to thank Wu Jong-shinn (吳宗信), director general of the Taiwan Space Agency; Kenny Huang (黃勝雄), chairman of the Taiwan Network Information Center; and Dai Chen-yu (戴辰宇), board member of the Association of Hackers in Taiwan. Your involvement will contribute immensely to the protection of information, transportation, and financial networks in Taiwan. Among our committee members we have the following six government representatives: Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄); Minister of Economic Affairs Kuo Jyh-huei (郭智輝), who could not attend today’s meeting; Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱); Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季); Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源); and Minister of Ocean Affairs Council Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲). The committee has two executive secretaries, namely Chi Lien-cheng (季連成), minister without portfolio of the Executive Yuan, and Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳). In addition, one member who will be joining us shortly is Bob Hung (洪偉淦), general manager of Trend Micro Taiwan. I also want to introduce one advisor and three committee members who could not attend today. They are, respectively, Robert Tsao (曹興誠), founder of United Microelectronics Corporation; Kuo Chia-yo (郭家佑), president of the Taiwan Digital Diplomacy Association; Liu Yu-hsi (劉玉晳), associate professor in the Department of Communications Management at Shih-Hsin University; and Tina Lin (林雅芳), managing director of sales and operations at Google Taiwan. I also thank them for participating in this committee’s operations and for contributing their valuable advice at today’s proceedings in written form. Last Saturday marked the 25th anniversary of the major earthquake that struck Taiwan on September 21, 1999. For the past 25 years, we have worked continuously to improve Taiwan’s disaster preparedness and relief capabilities. Today, our purpose in building up whole-of-society defense resilience is to enable each and every individual to realize, when an emergency arises, where to best make a contribution and how to protect themselves, contribute to society, or deter an approaching enemy. We want to enable all our citizens to feel utterly confident in the continuity and future of Taiwan’s society. Today, in this first meeting of the committee, the National Security Council (NSC) will brief us on the topic of “Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience: Planning and Challenges.” The NSC will familiarize all of us here, as well as our citizens and friends watching online, with the concepts and operations involved in whole-of-society defense resilience, the associated challenges and goals, and the progress we have made toward achieving our tasks. I have said before that a sudden natural disaster is like an acute cold, while climate change is more like a chronic disease. What whole-of-society defense resilience addresses is both the chronic and the acute. In addition to national disasters and emergencies, Taiwan has also been dealing for a long time with the challenges of gray-zone aggression and cognitive warfare. Located in the first island chain, Taiwan stands on the frontline of the democratic world. As such, we have always endeavored to safeguard regional peace and stability. I firmly believe that a more resilient Taiwan will contribute more to global democracy, peace, and prosperity. I also believe that when Taiwan is properly prepared and shows determination, our like-minded partners from around the world will be more willing to help Taiwan, jointly respond to all kinds of challenges, and work in concert to mitigate risks. As the people of Taiwan become more united, our nation grows more stable. As our society becomes better prepared, our nation grows more secure. And as Taiwan shows more determination to defend itself, the international community will feel more at ease. And so, I want to thank all of you once again for taking on the major task of enhancing our whole-of-society defense resilience. I look forward to working together with everyone, as we continue to observe global conditions, to establish a platform through which we can communicate and coordinate on our national resilience strategy, thereby fostering a nationwide consensus and strengthening resilience throughout Taiwan in national defense, economic livelihoods, disaster prevention, and democracy. Moving forward, let us engage in wide-ranging discussions, build a fortress of unity, and further empower our whole-of-society defense resilience, making Taiwan a cornerstone for ensuring regional stability and democratic sustainability. Thank you. Following his statement, President Lai presented letters of appointment to the committee members and heard a report from NSC Deputy Secretary-General Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) on the topic of “Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience: Planning and Challenges.” Afterward, President Lai exchanged views with the committee members regarding the content of the report and the Rules of Procedure for Meetings of the Office of the President Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee.

Details
2025-03-13
President Lai holds press conference following high-level national security meeting
On the afternoon of March 13, President Lai Ching-te convened a high-level national security meeting, following which he held a press conference. In remarks, President Lai introduced 17 major strategies to respond to five major national security and united front threats Taiwan now faces: China’s threat to national sovereignty, its threats from infiltration and espionage activities targeting Taiwan’s military, its threats aimed at obscuring the national identity of the people of Taiwan, its threats from united front infiltration into Taiwanese society through cross-strait exchanges, and its threats from using “integrated development” to attract Taiwanese businesspeople and youth. President Lai emphasized that in the face of increasingly severe threats, the government will not stop doing its utmost to ensure that our national sovereignty is not infringed upon, and expressed hope that all citizens unite in solidarity to resist being divided. The president also expressed hope that citizens work together to increase media literacy, organize and participate in civic education activities, promptly expose concerted united front efforts, and refuse to participate in any activities that sacrifice national interests. As long as every citizen plays their part toward our nation’s goals for prosperity and security, he said, and as long as we work together, nothing can defeat us. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: At many venues recently, a number of citizens have expressed similar concerns to me. They have noticed cases in which members of the military, both active-duty and retired, have been bought out by China, sold intelligence, or even organized armed forces with plans to harm their own nation and its citizens. They have noticed cases in which entertainers willingly followed instructions from Beijing to claim that their country is not a country, all for the sake of personal career interests. They have noticed how messaging used by Chinese state media to stir up internal opposition in Taiwan is always quickly spread by specific channels. There have even been individuals making careers out of helping Chinese state media record united front content, spreading a message that democracy is useless and promoting skepticism toward the United States and the military to sow division and opposition. Many people worry that our country, as well as our hard-won freedom and democracy and the prosperity and progress we achieved together, are being washed away bit by bit due to these united front tactics. In an analysis of China’s united front, renowned strategic scholar Kerry K. Gershaneck expressed that China plans to divide and conquer us through subversion, infiltration, and acquisition of media, and by launching media warfare, psychological warfare, and legal warfare. What they are trying to do is to sow seeds of discord in our society, keep us occupied with internal conflicts, and cause us to ignore the real threat from outside. China’s ambition over the past several decades to annex Taiwan and stamp out the Republic of China has not changed for even a day. It continues to pursue political and military intimidation, and its united front infiltration of Taiwan’s society grows ever more serious. In 2005, China promulgated its so-called “Anti-Secession Law,” which makes using military force to annex Taiwan a national undertaking. Last June, China issued a 22-point set of “guidelines for punishing Taiwan independence separatists,” which regards all those who do not accept that “Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China” as targets for punishment, creating excuses to harm the people of Taiwan. China has also recently been distorting United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, showing in all aspects China’s increasingly urgent threat against Taiwan’s sovereignty. Lately, China has been taking advantage of democratic Taiwan’s freedom, diversity, and openness to recruit gangs, the media, commentators, political parties, and even active-duty and retired members of the armed forces and police to carry out actions to divide, destroy, and subvert us from within. A report from the National Security Bureau indicates that 64 persons were charged last year with suspicion of spying for China, which was three times the number of persons charged for the same offense in 2021. Among them, the Unionist Party, Rehabilitation Alliance Party, and Republic of China Taiwan Military Government formed treasonous organizations to deploy armed forces for China. In a democratic and free society, such cases are appalling. But this is something that actually exists within Taiwan’s society today. China also actively plots ways to infiltrate and spy on our military. Last year, 28 active-duty and 15 retired members of the armed forces were charged with suspicion of involvement in spying for China, respectively comprising 43 percent and 23 percent of all of such cases – 66 percent in total. We are also alert to the fact that China has recently used widespread issuance of Chinese passports to entice Taiwanese citizens to apply for the Residence Permit for Taiwan Residents, permanent residency, or the Resident Identity Card, in an attempt to muddle Taiwanese people’s sense of national identity. China also views cross-strait exchanges as a channel for its united front against Taiwan, marking enemies in Taiwan internally, creating internal divisions, and weakening our sense of who the enemy really is. It intends to weaken public authority and create the illusion that China is “governing” Taiwan, thereby expanding its influence within Taiwan. We are also aware that China has continued to expand its strategy of integrated development with Taiwan. It employs various methods to demand and coerce Taiwanese businesses to increase their investments in China, entice Taiwanese youth to develop their careers in China, and unscrupulously seeks to poach Taiwan’s talent and steal key technologies. Such methods impact our economic security and greatly increase the risk of our young people heading to China. By its actions, China already satisfies the definition of a “foreign hostile force” as provided in the Anti-Infiltration Act. We have no choice but to take even more proactive measures, which is my purpose in convening this high-level national security meeting today. It is time we adopt proper preventive measures, enhance our democratic resilience and national security, and protect our cherished free and democratic way of life. Next, I will be giving a detailed account of the five major national security and united front threats Taiwan now faces and the 17 major strategies we have prepared in response. I. Responding to China’s threats to our national sovereignty We have a nation insofar as we have sovereignty, and we have the Republic of China insofar as we have Taiwan. Just as I said during my inaugural address last May, and in my National Day address last October: The moment when Taiwan’s first democratically elected president took the oath of office in 1996 sent a message to the international community, that Taiwan is a sovereign, independent, democratic nation. Among people here and in the international community, some call this land the Republic of China, some call it Taiwan, and some, the Republic of China Taiwan. The Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China are not subordinate to each other, and Taiwan resists any annexation or encroachment upon our sovereignty. The future of the Republic of China Taiwan must be decided by its 23 million people. This is the status quo that we must maintain. The broadest consensus in Taiwanese society is that we must defend our sovereignty, uphold our free and democratic way of life, and resolutely oppose annexation of Taiwan by China. (1) I request that the National Security Council (NSC), the Ministry of National Defense (MND), and the administrative team do their utmost to promote the Four Pillars of Peace action plan to demonstrate the people’s broad consensus and firm resolve, consistent across the entirety of our nation, to oppose annexation of Taiwan by China. (2) I request that the NSC and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs draft an action plan that will, through collaboration with our friends and allies, convey to the world our national will and broad social consensus in opposing annexation of Taiwan by China and in countering China’s efforts to erase Taiwan from the international community and downgrade Taiwan’s sovereignty. II. Responding to China’s threats from infiltration and espionage activities targeting our military (1) Comprehensively review and amend our Law of Military Trial to restore the military trial system, allowing military judges to return to the frontline and collaborate with prosecutorial, investigative, and judicial authorities in the handling of criminal cases in which active-duty military personnel are suspected of involvement in such military crimes as sedition, aiding the enemy, leaking confidential information, dereliction of duty, or disobedience. In the future, criminal cases involving active-duty military personnel who are suspected of violating the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces will be tried by a military court. (2) Implement supporting reforms, including the establishment of a personnel management act for military judges and separate organization acts for military courts and military prosecutors’ offices. Once planning and discussion are completed, the MND will fully explain to and communicate with the public to ensure that the restoration of the military trial system gains the trust and full support of society. (3) To deter the various types of controversial rhetoric and behavior exhibited by active-duty as well as retired military personnel that severely damage the morale of our national military, the MND must discuss and propose an addition to the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces on penalties for expressions of loyalty to the enemy as well as revise the regulations for military personnel and their families receiving retirement benefits, so as to uphold military discipline. III. Responding to China’s threats aimed at obscuring the national identity of the people of Taiwan (1) I request that the Ministry of the Interior (MOI), Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), and other relevant agencies, wherever necessary, carry out inspections and management of the documents involving identification that Taiwanese citizens apply for in China, including: passports, ID cards, permanent residence certificates, and residence certificates, especially when the applicants are military personnel, civil servants, or public school educators, who have an obligation of loyalty to Taiwan. This will be done to strictly prevent and deter united front operations, which are performed by China under the guise of “integrated development,” that attempt to distort our people’s national identity. (2) With respect to naturalization and integration of individuals from China, Hong Kong, and Macau into Taiwanese society, more national security considerations must be taken into account while also attending to Taiwan’s social development and individual rights: Chinese nationals applying for permanent residency in Taiwan must, in accordance with the law of Taiwan, relinquish their existing household registration and passport and may not hold dual identity status. As for the systems in place to process individuals from Hong Kong or Macau applying for residency or permanent residency in Taiwan, there will be additional provisions for long-term residency to meet practical needs. IV. Responding to China’s threats from united front infiltration into Taiwanese society through cross-strait exchanges (1) There are increasing risks involved with travel to China. (From January 1, 2024 to today, the MAC has received reports of 71 Taiwanese nationals who went missing, were detained, interrogated, or imprisoned in China; the number of unreported people who have been subjected to such treatment may be several times that. Of those, three elderly I-Kuan Tao members were detained in China in December of last year and have not yet been released.) In light of this, relevant agencies must raise public awareness of those risks, continue enhancing public communication, and implement various registration systems to reduce the potential for accidents and the risks associated with traveling to China. (2) Implement a disclosure system for exchanges with China involving public officials at all levels of the central and local government. This includes everyone from administrative officials to elected representatives, from legislators to village and neighborhood chiefs, all of whom should make the information related to such exchanges both public and transparent so that they can be accountable to the people. The MOI should also establish a disclosure system for exchanges with China involving public welfare organizations, such as religious groups, in order to prevent China’s interference and united front activities at their outset. (3) Manage the risks associated with individuals from China engaging in exchanges with Taiwan: Review and approval of Chinese individuals coming to Taiwan should be limited to normal cross-strait exchanges and official interactions under the principles of parity and dignity, and relevant factors such as changes in the cross-strait situation should be taken into consideration. Strict restrictions should be placed on Chinese individuals who have histories with the united front coming to Taiwan, and Chinese individuals should be prohibited from coming to Taiwan to conduct activities related in any way to the united front. (4) Political interference from China and the resulting risks to national security should be avoided in cross-strait exchanges. This includes the review and management of religious, cultural, academic, and education exchanges, which should in principle be depoliticized and de-risked so as to simplify people-to-people exchanges and promote healthy and orderly exchanges. (5) To deter the united front tactics of a cultural nature employed by Chinese nationals to undermine Taiwan’s sovereignty, the Executive Yuan must formulate a solution to make our local cultural industries more competitive, including enhanced support and incentives for our film, television, and cultural and creative industries to boost their strengths in democratic cultural creation, raise international competitiveness, and encourage research in Taiwan’s own history and culture. (6) Strengthen guidance and management for entertainers developing their careers in China. The competent authorities should provide entertainers with guidelines on conduct while working in China, and make clear the scope of investigation and response to conduct that endangers national dignity. This will help prevent China from pressuring Taiwanese entertainers to make statements or act in ways that endanger national dignity. (7) The relevant authorities must adopt proactive, effective measures to prevent China from engaging in cognitive warfare against Taiwan or endangering cybersecurity through the internet, applications, AI, and other such tools. (8) To implement these measures, each competent authority must run a comprehensive review of the relevant administrative ordinances, measures, and interpretations, and complete the relevant regulations for legal enforcement. Should there be any shortcomings, the legal framework for national security should be strengthened and amendments to the National Security Act, Anti-Infiltration Act, Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, Laws and Regulations Regarding Hong Kong & Macao Affairs, or Cyber Security Management Act should be proposed. Communication with the public should also be increased so that implementation can happen as soon as possible. V. Responding to threats from China using “integrated development” to attract Taiwanese businesspeople and youth (1) I request that the NSC and administrative agencies work together to carry out strategic structural adjustments to the economic and trade relations between Taiwan and China based on the strategies of putting Taiwan first and expanding our global presence while staying rooted in Taiwan. In addition, they should carry out necessary, orderly adjustments to the flow of talent, goods, money, and skills involved in cross-strait economic and trade relations based on the principle of strengthening Taiwan’s foundations to better manage risk. This will help boost economic security and give us more power to respond to China’s economic and trade united front and economic coercion against Taiwan. (2) I request that the Ministry of Education, MAC, Ministry of Economic Affairs, and other relevant agencies work together to comprehensively strengthen young students’ literacy education on China and deepen their understanding of cross-strait exchanges. I also request these agencies to widely publicize mechanisms for employment and entrepreneurship for Taiwan’s youth and provide ample information and assistance so that young students have more confidence in the nation’s future and more actively invest in building up and developing Taiwan. My fellow citizens, this year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. History tells us that any authoritarian act of aggression or annexation will ultimately end in failure. The only way we can safeguard freedom and prevail against authoritarian aggression is through solidarity. As we face increasingly severe threats, the government will not stop doing its utmost to ensure that our national sovereignty is not infringed upon, and to ensure that the freedom, democracy, and way of life of Taiwan’s 23 million people continues on as normal. But relying solely on the power of the government is not enough. What we need even more is for all citizens to stay vigilant and take action. Every citizen stands on the frontline of the defense of democracy and freedom. Here is what we can do together: First, we can increase our media literacy, and refrain from spreading and passing on united front messaging from the Chinese state. Second, we can organize and participate in civic education activities to increase our knowledge about united front operations and build up whole-of-society defense resilience. Third, we can promptly expose concerted united front efforts so that all malicious attempts are difficult to carry out. Fourth, we must refuse to participate in any activities that sacrifice national interests. The vigilance and action of every citizen forms the strongest line of defense against united front infiltration. Only through solidarity can we resist being divided. As long as every citizen plays their part toward our nation’s goals for prosperity and security, and as long as we work together, nothing can defeat us.

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Building energy efficiency mooted

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Buildings Energy Efficiency (Amendment) Bill 2025 will be published in the Gazette on Friday, seeking to enhance Hong Kong’s buildings energy efficiency management regime and lessen the financial burden on the public.

The Environment & Ecology Bureau noted that the proposed amendments aim to achieve a win-win scenario of saving electricity costs for buildings, reducing carbon emissions and boosting the development of a green economy.

The amendment bill contains five parts – regulating the energy efficiency standards of building services installations for all data centres in Hong Kong; requiring more types of buildings to conduct regular energy audits; shortening the intervals of energy audits; disclosing certain technical information in energy audit reports; and including more qualifications eligible for registration as Registered Energy Assessors.

The bureau said if the amendment bill is passed by the Legislative Council and implemented in full, it is estimated that an additional 500 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of about 150,000 three-person households, could be saved in 2035.

The amendment bill will be introduced into LegCo for first reading and the commencement of second reading debate on March 26.

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI: Aurora Mobile’s SendCloud Partners with SaleSmarly to Revolutionize Email Marketing Solutions
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SHENZHEN, China, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aurora Mobile Limited (NASDAQ: JG) (“Aurora Mobile” or the “Company”), a leading provider of customer engagement and marketing technology services in China, today announced that its subsidiary Wuhan SendCloud Technology Co., Ltd. (“SendCloud”), a trusted email solution provider, has recently established a strategic partnership with SaleSmartly, a leading omni-channel customer communication platform, for over three years.

SaleSmartly has leveraged SendCloud to send an average of 400,000 triggered notification emails per month, achieving a remarkable 96% delivery rate. Additionally, SaleSmartly’s clients send an overall of 700,000 emails per month via the SendCloud Email API. This partnership has transformed email communication strategies, enabling SaleSmartly’s business worldwide to achieve unparalleled efficiency, scalability, and performance in email campaigns and API integration.

Key Highlights of the Partnership Include:
- Enhanced Email Campaigns: Currently, SaleSmartly sends an average of 400,000 triggered notification emails per month to users through SendCloud. With a 96% delivery rate, these emails achieve an open rate of over 20%, making email one of the most important channels for customer engagement.
- Seamless API Integration: As an omnichannel customer communication platform, SaleSmartly has integrated SendCloud’s powerful API into its platform to provide email services to its clients. Beyond email sending, SendCloud’s API supports real-time tracking and multi-dimensional analytics, helping clients optimize their email marketing campaigns.
This collaboration empowers SaleSmartly with advanced email marketing capabilities, driving higher engagement rates and improving overall marketing ROI.

SendCloud Powers EngageLab’s Email Solutions

In addition to its collaboration with SaleSmarly, SendCloud plays a pivotal role in supporting EngageLab, another subsidiary of Aurora Mobile, by providing its email infrastructure and expertise. EngageLab leverages SendCloud’s email technology to offer businesses a comprehensive suite of email marketing solutions designed to maximize customer engagement and conversion rates.

EngageLab, a subsidiary of Aurora Mobile (NASDAQ: JG), is a leading multi-channel engagement solution provider, that combines technology and versatility to offer seamless customer interactions across every channel, including Email, AppPush, WebPush, OTP, SMS, WhatsApp. It empowers businesses to build lasting relationships and achieve higher conversions and retention. With a strong focus on innovation and performance, EngageLab supports businesses in over 220 countries and regions, delivering more than 1 million messages every second across various channels.

With SendCloud’s email technology at its core, EngageLab ensures a 99.97% inbox placement rate, advanced sender certification, and cutting-edge features like BIMI implementation and real-time analytics.

For more information about EngageLab and its suite of solutions, visit www.engagelab.com.

About SaleSmartly

SaleSmartly is a leading omnichannel customer communication platform, trusted by over 10,000 businesses globally. By integrating tools such as Live Chat, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Telegram, Line, Email, and WeChat, SaleSmartly enables businesses to optimize the entire customer journey from connection to conversion. For more information, please visit https://www.salesmartly.com/en/.

About Aurora Mobile Limited

Founded in 2011, Aurora Mobile (NASDAQ: JG) is a leading provider of customer engagement and marketing technology services in China. Since its inception, Aurora Mobile has focused on providing stable and efficient messaging services to enterprises and has grown to be a leading mobile messaging service provider with its first-mover advantage. With the increasing demand for customer reach and marketing growth, Aurora Mobile has developed forward-looking solutions such as Cloud Messaging and Cloud Marketing to help enterprises achieve omnichannel customer reach and interaction, as well as artificial intelligence and big data-driven marketing technology solutions to help enterprises’ digital transformation.

For more information, please visit https://ir.jiguang.cn/.

Safe Harbor Statement

This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “confident” and similar statements. Among other things, the Business Outlook and quotations from management in this announcement, as well as Aurora Mobile’s strategic and operational plans, contain forward-looking statements. Aurora Mobile may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including but not limited to statements about Aurora Mobile’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: Aurora Mobile’s strategies; Aurora Mobile’s future business development, financial condition and results of operations; Aurora Mobile’s ability to attract and retain customers; its ability to develop and effectively market data solutions, and penetrate the existing market for developer services; its ability to transition to the new advertising-driven SAAS business model; its ability to maintain or enhance its brand; the competition with current or future competitors; its ability to continue to gain access to mobile data in the future; the laws and regulations relating to data privacy and protection; general economic and business conditions globally and in China and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of the press release, and Aurora Mobile undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.

For more information, please contact:

Aurora Mobile Limited
E-mail: ir@jiguang.cn

Christensen

In China
Ms. Xiaoyan Su
Phone: +86-10-5900-1548
E-mail: Xiaoyan.Su@christensencomms.com

In US
Ms. Linda Bergkamp
Phone: +1-480-614-3004
Email: linda.bergkamp@christensencomms.com

For Media Inquiries:
Contact: marketing@engagelab.com | Website: www.engagelab.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6fc678d4-f7f2-47af-8a86-f49fa7e8c331

The MIL Network –
March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI: From Experiment to Execution: WSO2 Brings AI into the Heart of Modern Software Development

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Austin, TX and Barcelona, Spain, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emerging artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are disrupting business models and opening opportunities to drive cost-efficiencies and new revenue streams. However, few AI proof-of-concept projects actually make it to production because current software platforms lack the abstractions and building blocks to include AI components in production-grade applications in a way that is easy and scalable. Today, WSO2 is closing this gap with the next generation of its industry-leading, open-source platform, which has been reinvented for the AI era.

AI is now a first-class concept across the entire spectrum of products that comprise the WSO2 software stack—enabling enterprises to easily create (code), integrate, manage and secure intelligent digital products and services. The newest WSO2 product offerings are generally available, and their AI-native capabilities are being demonstrated at WSO2Con 2025, which runs March 18-20, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain.

Taking a Comprehensive Long-View to AI
WSO2’s AI-native platform is the result of the long-term strategy that WSO2 product and research teams have built around generative AI (GenAI) and the agentic economy. It builds on WSO2’s breadth of functionality and experience to cover an AI application’s entire lifecycle, from coding through delivery, monitoring and observability.

The platform brings together low-code and pro-code programming for building AI agents, applications that leverage Gen AI and AI agent capabilities, and a novel programming approach that combines natural language and code. Additionally, the open WSO2 platform integrates out-of-the-box with AI ecosystem libraries, agent frameworks, knowledge bases, and GenAI APIs. Together, the capabilities allow enterprises to build resilient, scalable, secured and observable AI APIs, applications and agents while leveraging WSO2’s GenAI productivity support to reduce both costs and time to market.

Enterprises can also onboard AI agents built on their framework of choice and apply WSO2’s quality of service capabilities—including security, governance or monitoring. Moreover, the open, highly extensible WSO2 platform is designed to evolve with AI technology developments, providing enterprises with a future-proof platform for their intelligent digital experiences.

“AI is fundamentally changing the applications that enterprises are building, as well as how they are building them,” said Dr. Sanjiva Weerawarana, WSO2 founder and CEO. “WSO2 is on a transformational journey across the company to help our customers use AI to boost their own productivity and deliver great digital experiences. As part of this journey, we are building on our commitment to open-source software, a key enabler of AI adoption. We’re also investing in our team, and we are excited to have AI expert Rania Khalaf join WSO2 as Chief AI Officer to spearhead our company-wide strategy and roadmap for delivering on the promise of the AI era.”

Supporting AI Across the Software Development Lifecycle
“The modern application is AI native. The current software development lifecycle (SDLC) and software application stack are not,” said Rania Khalaf WSO2 chief AI officer. “What is happening is a fundamental co-evolution of both—at every level and stage—as generative AI boosts developer productivity and pushes multi-modal understanding and synthesis deep into the development stack. WSO2 is positioned at the center of this shift with an open-source platform that, for the first time, brings AI-native capabilities to functions across the SDLC.”

Today, product offerings across the WSO2 platform bring together the AI-native capabilities enterprises need to easily code, integrate, manage and secure intelligent digital products and services.

Code: WSO2 supports a new AI-native “natural programming” approach via its Ballerina specialized integration language. WSO2 also provides the ability to create AI agents and AI APIs, as well as build retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and other AI-driven applications using capabilities from the Choreo internal developer platform as a service (IDPaaS), WSO2 Integration Manager and Devant integration platform as a service (iPaaS), and WSO2 API Manager and Bijira API management software as a service (SaaS). Additionally, these products feature a range of AI-powered tools to support developer productivity.

Integrate: WSO2 enables developers to use AI to create intelligent integrations, supported by extensive connectivity to large language models (LLMs), vector databases, AI agents, APIs and systems using WSO2 Integration Manager and the Devant IpaaS. Meanwhile the AI Gateway employed by WSO2 API Manager and Bijira API management SaaS provides visibility and control over third-party APIs for AI services and LLMs along with multi-model backend support for seamless, dynamic routing of AI API requests between OpenAI, Microsoft Azure OpenAI, and Mistral models.

Manage: WSO2 empowers development teams to manage AI APIs, AI agents, and AI integrations using Choreo, WSO2 API Manager, WSO2 Integration Manager, Bijira and Devant. WSO2’s API management products also add AI-driven governance to automatically ensure API compliance with organizational policies and industry standards. Additionally, the Choreo IDPaaS delivers new AI-driven capabilities to help teams identify spending patterns, detect anomalies, and recommend cost-saving actions, enabling organizations to proactively manage cloud costs and improve financial efficiency.

Secure: AI agents are first-class citizens in WSO2 identity and access management (IAM) products—securing access to agents and controlling what agents can access, as well as enabling the delegation of access from human users to the agents that are helping them get work done. The products include WSO2 Identity Manager, WSO2 Private Identity Cloud, and the Asgardeo identity as a service (IDaaS). At the same time, all WSO2 cloud offerings, including Choreo, Asgardeo, Devant and Bijira provide robust zero-trust security.

For More Information
To learn more about WSO2’s AI-native capabilities, visit the WSO2 AI page and reference the press announcements synchronized with WSO2Con 2025 for WSO2’s Choreo, API Management, Integration, and IAM business units.

About WSO2
Founded in 2005, WSO2 is the largest independent software vendor providing open-source API management, integration, and identity and access management (IAM) to thousands of enterprises in over 90 countries. WSO2’s products and platforms—including our next-gen internal developer platform, Choreo—empower organizations to leverage the full potential of artificial intelligence and APIs for securely delivering the next generation of AI-enabled digital services and applications. Our open-source, AI-driven, API-first approach frees developers and architects from vendor lock-in and enables rapid digital product creation. Recognized as leaders by industry analysts, WSO2 has over 800 employees worldwide with offices in Australia, Brazil, Germany, India, Sri Lanka, the UAE, the UK, and the US, with nearly USD100M in annual recurring revenue. Visit https://wso2.com to learn more. Follow WSO2 on LinkedIn and X (Twitter).

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI: UP Fintech Holding Limited Reports Unaudited Fourth Quarter And Full Year 2024 Financial Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SINGAPORE, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — UP Fintech Holding Limited (NASDAQ: TIGR) (“UP Fintech” or the “Company”), a leading online brokerage firm focusing on global investors, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2024.

Mr. Wu Tianhua, Chairman and CEO of UP Fintech stated: “Both of our financial and operating performance have achieved significant growth in the fourth quarter and the full year of 2024. Total revenue in the fourth quarter reached US$124.1 million, representing a sequential increase of 22.8% and a year-over-year growth of 77.3%. The full year total revenue amounted to US$391.5 million, a 43.7% increase from 2023. Bottom line also largely increased on a GAAP and non-GAAP basis. Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech in the fourth quarter reached US$28.1 million, representing a quarter-over-quarter growth of 58.0% and compared to a net loss of US$1.8 million in the same quarter of last year. Non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech in the fourth quarter amounted to US$30.5 million, a quarter-over-quarter increase of 51.7% and a year-over-year increase of 2772.5%. The full year net income and non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech in 2024 were US$60.7 million and US$70.5 million, increased 86.5% and 65.0% respectively compared to prior year. We are pleased to see that both our annual and quarterly topline and bottom line have reached an all-time high as we keep executing internationalization strategy and building a resilient business model with healthier operating leverage.

In the fourth quarter, we added 59,200 customers with deposits, an increase of 17.2% quarter over quarter and 51.4% year over year, bringing our yearly total to 187,400, exceeding our yearly guidance of 150,000. The total number of customers with deposits at the end of 2024 reached 1,092,000, a 20.7% increase compared to 2023 year-end. Additionally, asset inflows remained robust, with a net inflow of US$1.1 billion in the fourth quarter, primarily from retail investors. This was slightly offset by a mark-to-market loss. As a result, the total account balance rose by 2.4% quarter over quarter and 36.4% year over year, reaching a record US$41.7 billion. Over the past three years, the number of customers with deposits and total account balance have achieved compound annual growth rates (“CAGRs”) of 17.5% and 34.7%, respectively.

We have continued to roll out a range of localized products and features designed to enhance the user experience. In late January, our cryptocurrency platform, YAX (Hong Kong) Limited, received official approval from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (HKSFC), becoming a licensed virtual asset trading platform (VATP) in Hong Kong. Recently, we officially upgraded our AI investment assistant, TigerGPT to TigerAI and integrated with leading AI models, making it the first brokerage platform globally to incorporate such technology.

Our corporate business continued to perform well in the fourth quarter of 2024. During this period, we underwrote a total of 14 U.S. and Hong Kong IPOs, including “Mao Geping Company”, “Pony AI Inc.” and “WeRide Inc.”, bringing the total number of U.S. and Hong Kong IPOs underwritten for the year to 44. In our ESOP business, we added 16 new clients in the fourth quarter, bringing the total number of ESOP clients served to 613 as of December 31, 2024.”

Financial Highlights for Fourth Quarter 2024

Total revenues increased 77.3% year-over-year to US$124.1 million.
Total net revenues increased 98.9% year-over-year to US$107.4 million.
Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$28.1 million compared to a net loss of US$1.8 million in the same quarter of last year.
Non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$30.5 million, compared to a non-GAAP net income of US$1.1 million in the same quarter of last year, an increase of 2772.5%. A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial metrics to the most comparable GAAP metrics is set forth below.

Financial Highlights for Fiscal Year 2024

Total revenues increased 43.7% year-over-year to US$391.5 million.
Total net revenues increased 46.6% year-over-year to US$330.7 million.
Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$60.7 million compared to a net income of US$32.6 million in 2023, an increase of 86.5%.
Non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$70.5 million, compared to a non-GAAP net income of US$42.7 million in 2023, an increase of 65.0%. A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial metrics to the most comparable GAAP metrics is set forth below.

Operating Highlights as of Year End 2024

Total account balance increased 36.4% year-over-year to US$41.7 billion.
Total margin financing and securities lending balance increased 88.2% year-over-year to US$4.5 billion.
Total number of customers with deposit increased 20.7% year-over-year to 1,092,000.

Selected Operating Data for Fourth Quarter 2024

	As of and for the three months ended
	December 31,	September 30,	December 31,
	2023	2024	2024
In 000’s
Number of customer accounts	2,195.7	2,368.0	2,449.3
Number of customers with deposits	904.6	1,032.8	1,092.0
Number of options and futures contracts traded	8,044.5	15,261.2	18,926.3
In USD millions
Trading volume	81,765.2	162,990.0	198,016.9
Trading volume of stocks	19,711.6	41,406.3	55,502.6
Total account balance	30,597.5	40,763.6	41,725.2

Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Results

REVENUES

Total revenues were US$124.1 million, an increase of 77.3% from US$70.0 million in the same quarter of last year.

Commissions were US$56.0 million, an increase of 154.9% from US$22.0 million in the same quarter of last year, due to an increase in trading volume.

Financing service fees were US$2.8 million, a decrease of 12.7% from US$3.2 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to a decrease in securities lending activities of our fully disclosed account customers.

Interest income was US$55.8 million, an increase of 39.6% from US$40.0 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to the increase in margin financing and securities lending activities of our consolidated account customers.

Other revenues were US$9.6 million, an increase of 96.2% from US$4.9 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to the increase in IPO subscription incomes and currency exchange incomes.

Interest expense was US$16.7 million, an increase of 4.6% from US$16.0 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to the increase in margin financing activities.

OPERATING COSTS AND EXPENSES

Total operating costs and expenses were US$73.1 million, an increase of 39.3% from US$52.5 million in the same quarter of last year.

Execution and clearing expenses were US$6.1 million, an increase of 171.5% from US$2.2 million in the same quarter of last year due to an increase in our trading volume.

Employee compensation and benefits expenses were US$37.2 million, an increase of 40.5% from US$26.5 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to an increase of global headcount to support our global expansion.

Occupancy, depreciation and amortization expenses were US$2.1 million, a slight decrease of 2.4% from US$2.2 million in the same quarter of last year.

Communication and market data expenses were US$11.8 million, an increase of 38.2% from US$8.5 million in the same quarter of last year due to increased IT-related fees.

Marketing and branding expenses were US$9.5 million, an increase of 64.2% from US$5.8 million in the same quarter of last year, primarily due to higher marketing spending this quarter.

General and administrative expenses were US$6.4 million, a decrease of 11.8% from US$7.3 million in the same quarter of last year due to a decrease in professional service fees.

NET LOSS/INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO ORDINARY SHAREHOLDERS OF UP FINTECH

Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$28.1 million, as compared to a net loss of US$1.8 million in the same quarter of last year. Net income per ADS – diluted was US$0.158, as compared to a net loss per ADS – diluted of US$0.012 in the same quarter of last year.

Non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech, which excludes share-based compensation, was US$30.5 million, as compared to a US$1.1 million non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech in the same quarter of last year. Non-GAAP net income per ADS – diluted was US$0.172 as compared to a non-GAAP net income per ADS – diluted of US$0.007 in the same quarter of last year.

For the fourth quarter of 2024, the Company’s weighted average number of ADSs used in calculating non-GAAP net income per ADS – diluted was 179,173,811. As of December 31, 2024, the Company had a total of 2,640,326,072 Class A and B ordinary shares outstanding, or the equivalent of 176,021,738 ADSs.

Full Year 2024 Financial Results

REVENUES

Total revenues were US$391.5 million, an increase of 43.7% from US$272.5 million in 2023.

Commissions were US$159.0 million, an increase of 71.8% from US$92.6 million in 2023, due to an increase in trading volume.

Financing service fees were US$11.3 million, a decrease of 7.1% from US$12.2 million in 2023, primarily due to a decrease in securities lending activities of our fully disclosed account customers.

Interest income was US$191.8 million, an increase of 28.4% from US$149.3 million in 2023, primarily due to the increase in margin financing and securities lending activities of our consolidated account customers.

Other revenues were US$29.4 million, an increase of 59.6% from US$18.4 million in 2023, primarily due to the increase in IPO subscription incomes and currency exchange incomes.

Interest expense was US$60.8 million, an increase of 29.5% from US$47.0 million in 2023, primarily due to the increase in margin financing and securities lending activities.

OPERATING COSTS AND EXPENSES

Total operating costs and expenses were US$252.3 million, an increase of 30.9% from US$192.7 million in 2023.

Execution and clearing expenses were US$14.7 million, an increase of 61.3% from US$9.1 million in 2023 due to an increase in our trading volume.

Employee compensation and benefits expenses were US$122.4 million, an increase of 21.5% from US$100.8 million in 2023, primarily due to an increase of global headcount to support our global expansion.

Occupancy, depreciation and amortization expenses were US$8.6 million, a decrease of 8.9% from US$9.4 million in 2023.

Communication and market data expenses were US$38.9 million, an increase of 26.1% from US$30.8 million in 2023 due to increased IT-related fees.

Marketing and branding expenses were US$28.5 million, an increase of 36.8% from US$20.9 million in 2023, primarily due to higher marketing spending this year.

General and administrative expenses were US$39.3 million, an increase of 80.2% from US$21.8 million in 2023 due to an increase in bad debt expense.

NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO ORDINARY SHAREHOLDERS OF UP FINTECH

Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech was US$60.7 million, as compared to a net income of US$32.6 million in 2023. Net income per ADS – diluted was US$0.366, as compared to a net income per ADS – diluted of US$0.207 in 2023.

Non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech, which excludes share-based compensation, was US$70.5 million, as compared to a US$42.7 million non-GAAP net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech in 2023. Non-GAAP net income per ADS – diluted was US$0.424 as compared to a non-GAAP net income per ADS – diluted of US$0.270 in 2023.

CERTAIN OTHER FINANCIAL ITEMS

As of December 31, 2024, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents, term deposits and long-term deposits were US$396.0 million, compared to US$327.7 million as of December 31, 2023.

As of December 31, 2024, the allowance balance of receivables from customers was US$15.3 million compared to US$1.0 million as of December 31, 2023, which was due to a bad debt provision concerning the recoverability of a specific Hong Kong stock pledge business faced with extreme market situation and significant price drop, leading to a provision for the loan balance.

Conference Call Information:

UP Fintech’s management will hold an earnings conference call at 8:00 AM on March 18, 2025, U.S. Eastern Time (8:00 PM on March 18, 2025, Singapore/Hong Kong Time).

All participants wishing to attend the call must preregister online before they may receive the dial-in numbers. Preregistration may require a few minutes to complete.

Preregistration Information:

Please note that all participants will need to pre-register for the conference call, using the link:

https://register-conf.media-server.com/register/BId5c2bd4696d14e7ba2bc391b87ede751

It will automatically lead to the registration page of “UP Fintech Holding Limited Fourth Quarter And Full Year 2024 Earnings Conference Call”, where details for RSVP are needed.

Upon registering, all participants will be provided in confirmation emails with participant dial-in numbers and personal PINs to access the conference call. Please dial in 10 minutes prior to the call start time using the conference access information.

Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available at https://ir.itigerup.com

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In evaluating our business, we consider and use non-GAAP net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech and non-GAAP net loss or income per ADS – diluted as supplemental measures to review and assess our operating performance. The presentation of the non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with the United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“U.S. GAAP”). We define non-GAAP net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech as net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech excluding share-based compensation. Non-GAAP net loss or income per ADS – diluted is non-GAAP net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech divided by the weighted average number of diluted ADSs.

We present these non-GAAP financial measures because they are used by our management to evaluate our operating performance and formulate business plans. Non-GAAP net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech enables our management to assess our operating results without considering the impact of share-based compensation. We also believe that the use of these non-GAAP financial measures facilitates investors’ assessment of our operating performance.

These non-GAAP financial measures are not defined under U.S. GAAP and are not presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. These non-GAAP financial measures have limitations as an analytical tool. One of the key limitations of using these non-GAAP financial measures is that they do not reflect all items of income and expenses that affect our operations. Share-based compensation has been and may continue to be incurred in our business and are not reflected in the presentation of non-GAAP net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech. Further, these non-GAAP financial measures may differ from the non-GAAP financial information used by other companies, including peer companies, and therefore their comparability may be limited.

These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or construed as alternatives to total operating costs and expenses, net loss or income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of our operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review these historical non-GAAP financial measures in light of the most directly comparable GAAP measures. These non-GAAP financial measures presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting the usefulness of such measures when analyzing our data comparatively. We encourage investors and others to review our financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

About UP Fintech Holding Limited

UP Fintech Holding Limited is a leading online brokerage firm focusing on global investors. The Company’s proprietary mobile and online trading platform enables investors to trade in equities and other financial instruments on multiple exchanges around the world. The Company offers innovative products and services as well as a superior user experience to customers through its “mobile first” strategy, which enables it to better serve and retain current customers as well as attract new ones. The Company offers customers comprehensive brokerage and value-added services, including trade order placement and execution, margin financing, IPO subscription, ESOP management, investor education, community discussion and customer support. The Company’s proprietary infrastructure and advanced technology are able to support trades across multiple currencies, multiple markets, multiple products, multiple execution venues and multiple clearinghouses.

For more information on the Company, please visit: https://ir.itigerup.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This announcement contains forward−looking statements. These statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward−looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “may,” “might,” “aim,” “likely to,” “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates” and similar statements or expressions. Among other statements, the business outlook and quotations from management in this announcement, the Company’s strategic and operational plans and expectations regarding growth and expansion of its business lines, and the Company’s plans for future financing of its business contain forward-looking statements. The Company may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on Forms 20−F and 6−K, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties, including the earnings conference call. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about the Company’s beliefs and expectations, are forward−looking statements. Forward−looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: the Company’s ability to effectively implement its growth strategies; trends and competition in global financial markets; changes in the Company’s revenues and certain cost or expense accounting policies; and governmental policies and regulations affecting the Company’s industry and general economic conditions in China, Singapore and other countries. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company’s filings with the SEC, including the Company’s annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on April 22, 2024. All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of this press release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company’s filings with the SEC.

For investor and media inquiries please contact:

Investor Relations Contact

UP Fintech Holding Limited

Email: ir@itiger.com

UP FINTECH HOLDING LIMITED UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (All amounts in U.S. dollars (“US$”))
	As of December 31,		As of December 31,
	2023		2024
	US$		US$
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	322,599,616		393,576,874
Cash-segregated for regulatory purpose	1,617,154,185		2,464,683,625
Term deposits	896,683		1,075,260
Receivables from customers (net of allowance of US$991,286 and US$15,284,002 as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2024)	753,361,199		1,052,972,649
Receivables from brokers, dealers, and clearing organizations	541,876,929		2,305,740,507
Financial instruments held, at fair value	428,159,554		75,547,082
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	17,936,180		17,629,819
Amounts due from related parties	7,987,756		16,720,671
Total current assets	3,689,972,102		6,327,946,487
Non-current assets:
Long-term deposits	4,225,412		1,369,994
Right-of-use assets	9,067,885		10,880,673
Property, equipment and intangible assets, net	16,429,543		15,358,528
Goodwill	2,492,668		2,492,668
Long-term investments	7,586,483		7,658,809
Equity method investment	—		10,203,622
Other non-current assets	5,282,012		6,828,553
Deferred tax assets	10,990,998		8,573,135
Total non-current assets	56,075,001		63,365,982
Total assets	3,746,047,103		6,391,312,469
Current liabilities:
Payables to customers	2,913,306,558		3,574,651,125
Payables to brokers, dealers and clearing organizations	114,771,931		1,914,769,701
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	42,381,946		67,263,254
Deferred income-current	819,809		—
Lease liabilities-current	4,133,883		4,153,928
Amounts due to related parties	10,148,142		874,331
Total current liabilities	3,085,562,269		5,561,712,339
Convertible bonds	156,887,691		159,505,397
Lease liabilities-non-current	4,777,134		5,902,323
Deferred tax liabilities	3,397,831		2,068,661
Total liabilities	3,250,624,925		5,729,188,720
Mezzanine equity
Redeemable non-controlling interest	6,706,660		7,177,668
Total Mezzanine equity	6,706,660		7,177,668
Shareholders’ equity:
Class A ordinary shares	22,528		25,427
Class B ordinary shares	976		976
Additional paid-in capital	505,448,080		619,030,730
Statutory reserve	8,511,039		12,425,463
(Accumulated deficit) Retained earnings	(19,600,434	)	37,843,547
Treasury Stock	(2,172,819	)	(2,172,819	)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(3,232,993	)	(11,919,310	)
Total UP Fintech shareholders’ equity	488,976,377		655,234,014
Non-controlling interests	(260,859	)	(287,933	)
Total equity	488,715,518		654,946,081
Total liabilities, mezzanine equity and equity	3,746,047,103		6,391,312,469

UP FINTECH HOLDING LIMITED
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME/(LOSS)
(All amounts in U.S. dollars (“US$”), except for number of shares (or ADSs) and per share (or ADS) data)

	For the three months ended						For the years ended
	December 31,		September 30,		December 31,		December 31,		December 31,
	2023		2024		2024		2023		2024
	US$		US$		US$		US$		US$
Revenues:
Commissions	21,954,587		41,207,882		55,964,174		92,593,458		159,045,052
Interest related income
Financing service fees	3,174,949		2,803,878		2,770,419		12,178,838		11,311,560
Interest income	39,956,315		47,957,486		55,762,091		149,291,006		191,754,746
Other revenues	4,895,109		9,084,834		9,605,165		18,444,293		29,430,071
Total revenues	69,980,960		101,054,080		124,101,849		272,507,595		391,541,429
Interest expense	(15,995,738	)	(15,700,359	)	(16,731,341	)	(46,957,657	)	(60,803,516	)
Total Net Revenues	53,985,222		85,353,721		107,370,508		225,549,938		330,737,913
Operating costs and expenses:
Execution and clearing	(2,244,785	)	(3,518,611	)	(6,095,132	)	(9,084,089	)	(14,651,612	)
Employee compensation and benefits	(26,458,931	)	(28,769,980	)	(37,163,110	)	(100,750,644	)	(122,365,537	)
Occupancy, depreciation and amortization	(2,190,610	)	(2,162,704	)	(2,137,586	)	(9,387,056	)	(8,554,315	)
Communication and market data	(8,532,128	)	(9,730,680	)	(11,787,814	)	(30,831,488	)	(38,893,381	)
Marketing and branding	(5,790,739	)	(8,223,404	)	(9,507,918	)	(20,859,834	)	(28,530,053	)
General and administrative	(7,293,530	)	(6,932,672	)	(6,432,737	)	(21,791,263	)	(39,278,674	)
Total operating costs and expenses	(52,510,723	)	(59,338,051	)	(73,124,297	)	(192,704,374	)	(252,273,572	)
Other (loss) income:
Others, net	(1,664,053	)	(5,189,945	)	3,469,021		13,148,173		3,299,308
(Loss) income before income tax	(189,554	)	20,825,725		37,715,232		45,993,737		81,763,649
Income tax expenses	(1,498,639	)	(2,907,080	)	(9,488,084	)	(12,986,310	)	(20,409,721	)
Net (loss) income	(1,688,193	)	17,918,645		28,227,148		33,007,427		61,353,928
Less: net (loss) income attributable to non-controlling interests	(1,293	)	3,353		12,563		(98,285	)	(4,477	)
Accretion of redeemable non-controlling interests to redemption value	(148,624	)	(160,998	)	(164,328	)	(542,187	)	(630,485	)
Net (loss) income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech	(1,835,524	)	17,754,294		28,050,257		32,563,525		60,727,920
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax:
Unrealized loss on available-for-sale investments	(450,325	)	—		343,892		(450,325	)	343,892
Changes in cumulative foreign currency translation adjustment	7,261,631		16,119,046		(17,440,809	)	(545,498	)	(9,022,611	)
Total Comprehensive income (loss)	5,123,113		34,037,691		11,130,231		32,011,604		52,675,209
Less: comprehensive (loss) income attributable to non-controlling interests	(8,222	)	(7,023	)	24,226		(92,526	)	3,121
Accretion of redeemable non-controlling interests to redemption value	(148,624	)	(160,998	)	(164,328	)	(542,187	)	(630,485	)
Total Comprehensive income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech	4,982,711		33,883,716		10,941,677		31,561,943		52,041,603
Net (loss) income per ordinary share:
Basic	(0.001	)	0.008		0.011		0.014		0.025
Diluted	(0.001	)	0.007		0.011		0.014		0.024
Net (loss) income per ADS (1 ADS represents 15 Class A ordinary shares):
Basic	(0.012	)	0.113		0.164		0.210		0.379
Diluted	(0.012	)	0.110		0.158		0.207		0.366
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in calculating net (loss) income per ordinary share:
Basic	2,336,018,747		2,362,528,627		2,557,911,677		2,325,338,439		2,404,640,854
Diluted	2,336,018,747		2,467,241,917		2,687,607,158		2,427,268,831		2,534,097,315

Reconciliations of Unaudited Non-GAAP Results of Operations Measures to the Nearest Comparable GAAP Measures
(All amounts in U.S. dollars (“US$”), except for number of ADSs and per ADS data)

For the three months ended December 31,
2023

For the three months ended September 30,
2024

For the three months ended December 31,
2024

non-GAAP

GAAP

Adjustment

non-GAAP

GAAP

Adjustment

non-GAAP

GAAP

Adjustment

non-GAAP

US$

Unaudited

2,896,312

(1)

2,331,274

(1)

2,421,342

(1)

Net (loss) income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech

(1,835,524

)

2,896,312

1,060,788

17,754,294

2,331,274

20,085,568

28,050,257

2,421,342

30,471,599

Net (loss) income per ADS – diluted

(0.012

)

0.007

0.110

0.124

0.158

0.172

Weighted average number of ADSs used in calculating diluted net (loss) income per ADS

155,734,583

157,931,785

164,482,794

179,173,811

(1) Share-based compensation.

Reconciliations of Unaudited Non-GAAP Results of Operations Measures to the Nearest Comparable GAAP Measures
(All amounts in U.S. dollars (“US$”), except for number of ADSs and per ADS data)

For the year ended December 31,
2023

For the year ended December 31,
2024

non-GAAP

GAAP

Adjustment

non-GAAP

GAAP

Adjustment

non-GAAP

US$

Unaudited

10,147,362

(1)

9,736,901

(1)

Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders of UP Fintech

32,563,525

10,147,362

42,710,887

60,727,920

9,736,901

70,464,821

Net income per ADS – diluted

0.207

0.270

0.366

0.424

Weighted average number of ADSs used in calculating diluted net income per ADS

161,817,922

162,607,678

168,939,821

(1) Share-based compensation.

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI: Nasdaq and nuam Strengthen Technology Partnership to Drive Capital Market Integration in Latin America

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK AND SANTIAGO, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) and nuam (NUAM: nuam), the merger of Santiago, Lima, and Colombia stock exchanges, today announced an extension of their strategic technology partnership, which will see all three exchanges’ central securities depositories (CSD) adopt Nasdaq’s CSD platform to optimize post-trade processing in the region.

The agreement expands Nasdaq’s existing relationship with nuam, with the exchanges currently consolidating their trading infrastructures on Nasdaq’s platform to help attract global sources of liquidity. It also builds on Nasdaq’s longstanding technology partnership with Chile’s CSD, Depósito Central de Valores (DCV), one of the region’s most advanced CSD platforms.

nuam’s integrated post-trade infrastructure will benefit from a unified solution based on international standards, while greater interoperability across both trading and CSD infrastructure will reduce the costs and barriers associated with accessing the individual markets, increase liquidity, and enhance operational efficiencies across the three exchanges.

“Having high technological standards is essential for providing security and confidence to investors, as well as expanding investment opportunities and access to new markets,” said Juan Pablo Córdoba, CEO of nuam. “Our alliance with Nasdaq reaffirms our commitment to building an integrated, efficient, and accessible capital market in Latin America. The adoption of this technology will optimize connectivity, strengthen our infrastructure, and facilitate access for global investors, boosting competitiveness and the growth of the Latin American financial ecosystem,” Córdoba noted.

“Enhancing the infrastructure underpinning global capital markets is essential to maintaining systemwide resilience and an incredibly powerful catalyst for growth,” said Magnus Haglind, SVP and Head of Marketplace Technology at Nasdaq. “nuam is at the heart of Latin America’s extraordinary journey, with the region’s markets embracing modernization at a phenomenal rate. By adopting world-leading technology they can attract international investors while ensuring they have the agility to incorporate innovative, new technologies to better serve the three markets and unlock new sources of revenue.”

According to a recent Nasdaq survey, 84% of respondents said that they are keen to increase their investment in Latin America¹. Yet the survey also revealed structural challenges that restrict flows and adds to costs: 59% of respondents said that market structure issues impose limits on their investment flows. Specifically, fragmentation, processing errors and a lack of standardization are hampering operations, with respondents seeking greater cohesion and automation to increase efficiency and improve market access.

The implementation of Nasdaq’s CSD technology will introduce more standardized business processes and connectivity, simplifying investors’ ability to settle trades across each market. Removing barriers to investment can help attract more international capital to nuam exchanges and support the rapid development of the Latin American economy.

Nasdaq’s technology is used by 97% of global systematically important banks, half of the world’s top 25 stock exchanges, 35 central banks and regulatory authorities, and 3,500+ clients across the financial services industry. As a scaled platform partner, Nasdaq draws on deep industry experience, technology expertise, and cloud managed service experience to help financial services companies solve their toughest operational challenges while advancing industrywide modernization.

Media Contacts

Camille Stafford; +1 (234) 934 9513; Camille.Stafford@nasdaq.com

Chile: Diego Schiaffino Tyrer; +569 5528 3560; diego.schiaffino@nuamx.com

Colombia: María Paula Aristizábal Bedoya; +57 311 2238929; maria.aristizabal@nuamx.com

Perú: Diana Sánchez Guerrero: +51 938 946 452; diana.sanchez@nuamx.com

About nuam:

nuam (Stock Exchanges: NUAM) is the first multi-country stock exchange integration, bringing together the Chilean, Colombian, and Peruvian markets. It aims to standardize trading conditions and regulations across the three countries while adhering to the highest international standards. This, in turn, attracts foreign investment flows with greater strength and confidence, ultimately improving the lives of citizens in Chile, Colombia, and Peru. Through this integration, the company seeks to position itself as a key player in the global market infrastructure industry. For more information: www.nuamx.com.

About Nasdaq:

Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a leading global technology company serving corporate clients, investment managers, banks, brokers, and exchange operators as they navigate and interact with the global capital markets and the broader financial system. We aspire to deliver world-leading platforms that improve the liquidity, transparency, and integrity of the global economy. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software, exchange capabilities, and client-centric services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence. To learn more about the company, technology solutions, and career opportunities, visit us on LinkedIn, on X @Nasdaq, or at www.nasdaq.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

Information set forth in this press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Nasdaq cautions readers that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and that actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “will” and “can” and other words and terms of similar meaning. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements related to the benefits of Nasdaq’s central securities depository infrastructure and related technology solutions. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond Nasdaq’s control. These risks and uncertainties are detailed in Nasdaq’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q which are available on Nasdaq’s investor relations website at http://ir.nasdaq.com and the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Nasdaq undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

-NDAQG-

^{_______________________________
1}https://www.nasdaq.com/solutions/fintech/resources/survey/latam-markets-report

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI: New Report Exposes Climate Finance Failures, Calls for Urgent Investment Migration Solutions

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

LONDON , March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A groundbreaking climate finance report, released today by the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) and Henley & Partners, highlights the failings in funding urgent climate action and explores how investment migration can unlock vital resources for climate resilience in the world’s most at-risk nations.

The CVF, an international organization of 70 climate-vulnerable countries representing 1.75 billion people — 20% of the global population — accounts for just 6% of global emissions yet faces the most severe impacts of climate breakdown. By 2030, these nations will require an estimated USD 500 billion annually to fund climate action, development, and nature preservation.

As CVF Secretary-General and former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, points out in the Citizenship by Investment: Sustainable Climate Finance for Governments report, global climate finance remains sluggish, restrictive, and largely inaccessible to those who need it most. “While wealthy nations delay climate action and funding commitments, frontline countries are left fighting for survival. The international financial system is failing us, and we need bold solutions to shift the balance of power in climate finance. Over the past two decades, CVF countries have already lost 20% of their potential GDP growth due to climate impacts. We cannot rely on charity from industrialized nations. Urgent initiatives are needed to ensure direct and immediate access to climate finance.”

Mobilizing private capital for climate resilience

Through its globally leading international government advisory practice, Henley & Partners has been providing strategic consulting to countries on the development, implementation, and management of investment-based residence and citizenship programs. To date, the firm has facilitated over USD 15 billion in foreign direct investment in many states. Its most recent initiative led to the establishment of the first climate-related citizenship investment program, the Nauru Economic and Climate Resilience Citizenship Program.

Commenting in the report, H.E. Hon. David W.R. Adeang, M.P., President of the Republic of Nauru, says “our program funds critical resilience initiatives — from coastal reinforcement to modernized water management and sustainable food production. Similar models have strengthened climate resilience in small island states like Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda, but Nauru’s is the first to put climate adaptation at its core. The innovations we implement against rising seas can help shape global strategies for resilience.”

According to the UN, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have suffered USD 153 billion in climate-related losses over the past five decades, despite contributing less than 1% of global emissions, and the financial burden on these nations is further exacerbated by a USD 34 billion climate adaptation finance gap. Compounding these challenges, 70% of SIDS exceed sustainable debt levels, and climate disaster damages in these regions have surged by 90% from 2011 to 2022.

Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, says “by mobilizing international investment, we can provide immediate, non-debt funding for climate resilience projects, offering a crucial financial lifeline for vulnerable nations while enabling investors to support global climate action. Rethinking how private wealth and capital intersects with public financing needs is key to bridging the climate finance gap.”

From sovereign debt to sovereign equity

The report outlines how investment migration programs can be structured to create Investment Migration Resilience Funds (IMRFs) that channel private capital into critical climate resilience projects without increasing national debt. By linking these programs with natural capital endowment trusts, countries can secure sustainable revenue streams to finance coastal protection, carbon offset initiatives, and the expansion of the blue economy. Successful models of this approach include leveraging blue bonds, eco-tourism, and carbon credit markets to generate funds for climate adaptation and economic diversification.

Henley & Partners’ Chief Economist Jean Paul Fabri explains how, “effective IMRFs will operate like sovereign wealth funds, aimed at reducing economic fluctuations, funding long-term sustainability initiatives, and providing a financial cushion against climate and economic challenges. However, they differ from traditional models by incorporating climate finance, risk management, and economic development into their governance.”

“For too long, climate-vulnerable nations have been told to adapt, cope, and endure — as if resilience were simply an act of will, rather than a matter of investment,” insists Sara Jane Ahmed, Managing Director of CVF and V20 Finance Advisor at the CVF-V20 Secretariat. “By funding climate resilience, the world is not just aiding at-risk nations — it is unlocking markets, strengthening economies, and shaping a shared future. The future belongs not to those who wait, but to those bold enough to build it.”

Read the Full Press Release

Media Contact: Sarah Nicklin

Group Head of PR

sarah.nicklin@henleyglobal.com

+27 72 464 8965

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI: QuantHouse expands US equity market data offering with Cboe One Feed

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

London, March 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Iress today announced that its QuantHouse division is partnering with Cboe Global Markets, a leading global derivatives and securities exchange network and one of the largest US equity exchange operators, to increase its US equity market data offering through the Cboe One Feed.

The Cboe One Feed is Cboe’s premier consolidated data feed and provides market participants with a cost-effective, high-quality and unified view of the market from Cboe’s US equity exchanges, with real-time reference quotes and trade data. Cboe operates four US equity exchanges and is one of the largest exchange operators for equities trading in the US. On average, Cboe One Feed quotes are within 1% away from the National Best Bid and Offer (NBBO) 97.26% of the time.¹

QuantHouse’s Head of EMEA Sales and Business Development, Rob Kirby, said: “We’re delighted to add the Cboe One Feed to the wide range of trading venues available from QuantHouse. Demand for Cboe One has initially come from our clients in Asia Pacific and this continues to demonstrate that our clients value choice and access to the widest range of global market data available.”

Cboe’s Global Head of Data Vantage, Adam Inzirillo, added: “Cboe is committed to meeting the growing demand for access to US markets, particularly from APAC investors, by delivering access to high-quality and real-time market data as seamlessly and efficiently as possible. We are thrilled to expand on this mission through our collaboration with QuantHouse and providing their clients with access to the Cboe One Feed.

“Data drives decision making and is critical for trading strategy implementation, and the Cboe One Feed helps participants better understand the markets by providing real-time and highly reliable US market data.”

The Cboe One Feed is available now for all QuantHouse clients.

¹Cboe: https://www.cboe.com/market_data_services/us/equities/cboe_one/

-Ends-

For further details, please contact:

Melanie Budden

Mobile: +44 (0) 7974 937970

Email: melanie.budden@therealizationgroup.com

About QuantHouse

QuantHouse ( part of Iress) is a leading provider of international market data. It delivers high-performance API data feeds, historical and analytics data products it has crafted over the past 20+years to hedge funds, investment banks, brokers, market makers, financial technology providers and trading venues supporting integrated trading strategies, applications, and analytic databases.

For more information please visit the website.

About Iress

Iress (IRE.ASX) is a technology company providing software to the financial services industry. We provide software and services for trading & market data, financial advice, investment management, superannuation, life & pensions and data intelligence in Asia-Pacific, North America, Africa, the UK and Europe.

www.iress.com

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI: Sampo Group’s annual reporting for 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Sampo plc, annual financial report, 18 March 2025 at 9:30 am EET

Sampo Group’s annual reporting for 2024

Sampo has published its Board of Directors’ Report and Financial Statements for 2024 and the Remuneration Report for Governing Bodies at www.sampo.com/year2024.

The Financial Statements are published in accordance with the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF) reporting requirements. The Board of Directors’ Report includes the Corporate Governance Statement and the Sustainability Statement, which has been prepared in accordance with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

The Group CEO’s Review for 2024 by Torbjörn Magnusson is available at the same address.

Sampo Group’s Solvency and Financial Condition Report will be published in May 2025.

The XHTML and PDF files of Sampo’s Board of Directors’ Report and Financial Statements and the Remuneration Report for Governing Bodies are attached to this release.

SAMPO PLC
Investor Relations and Group Communications

For further information, please contact:

Sami Taipalus
Head of Investor Relations
tel. +358 10 516 0030

Maria Silander
Communications Manager, Media Relations
tel. +358 10 516 0031

Distribution:
Nasdaq Helsinki
Nasdaq Stockholm
Nasdaq Copenhagen
London Stock Exchange
FIN-FSA
The principal media
www.sampo.com

Attachments

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Politics with Michelle Grattan: Barbara Pocock on the Greens’ policy priorities

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

The Greens have heaped a lot of pressure on the government during this term, from issues of the environment, housing, and Medicare, to the war in the Middle East.

With the polls close to a dead heat and minority government appearing a real possibility, would the Greens push a minority Labor government even harder in pursuit of their agenda?

To talk about the Greens’ policies and prospects, we’re joined by South Australian Greens senator Barbara Pocock, who is the party’s spokeswoman on employment, the public sector and finance.

After their efforts in this term, Pocock says the Greens would be just as tough in pushing a possible Labor minority government next term:

People can judge us on our record in the last few years. People saw us really fight hard on housing – we wanted to see something meaningful. It is the most significant post-war crisis in housing that is affecting millions of Australians’ lives and certainly an intergenerational crisis.

So we held out for a long time to try and push Labor to improve its offering on public housing [and] on housing spending and we achieved some real wins there. We will fight hard for the things that matter.

We will push very hard on those core issues of a better health system, putting dental into Medicare. We pushed very hard on that in the last time there was a minority government and won it for kids. We want to see everyone be able to get to the dentist, and we really want to see reductions in student debt.

However, Pocock stresses that keeping Peter Dutton out of government remains a key focus:

We are very focused on preventing a Dutton Coalition government, because everything we hear from that stable sends a shiver down my spine.

Pocock did a lot of work during the Senate inquiry investigating consulting services and she warns Dutton’s policy to cut 36,000 public servants would lead to a return to consultants:

In that last year of the Morrison government, we saw a spend of $20 billion on consulting and labour hire and a hollowing out in the public sector. We are still seeing a slow regrowth of the capability of the federal public sector following the scandals relating to the consulting industry and the way it worked with government.

I am very worried about the Coalition’s proposals for a 36,000 cut in the public sector. That’s one in five public sector workers gone and that means services like Centrelink, Veterans Affairs, services that Australians depend on cannot deliver on what they suggest. And we also need to remember that a very significant number – something like two-thirds of our public service, federal public service – actually live outside Canberra.

All they would be doing is taking that money, which pays for public servants, doing a whole range of many different things and taking it across to, in many cases, their supporters and buddies and donors in the consulting and labour hire industry and it’s a very bad value-for-money proposition for the Australian voter.

As spokeswoman on employment, Pocock is a strong advocate for the Greens policies on a four-day work week:

If we go right back to 1856 when Australia led the world on reducing working hours, and the eight-hour day, now we were the first to adopt that internationally for stonemasons in Melbourne. And in the last 40 years, [we] have not seen any reduction in average working time. It’s been 38 hours now since 1983. In that 40 years, we’ve seen massive changes in technology. We have seen increases in productivity. And in the last 10 years, we’ve seen private profit increase by 97% while wages have gone up by 50%. And what we’re saying is, let’s look at the length of the average full-time working week and let’s see how we can move the dial on that.

We’d certainly like to see a wide range of pilots, diverse experimentation, real change, working with those who are ready for it, who are up for it, but making sure we collect the evidence and then move over time towards a national test case, which is the way in which over decades we have slowly ratcheted back the length of the working week.

On the attack from the opposition and others that the Greens are anti-Semitic, Pocock defends the Greens as an anti-racist party.

I think there are diverse views out there in the community and certainly, and we can see it every day, but I think that there are also many people, including many Jewish people, who understand that you can have a critique of a war that’s had such a terrible consequence for civilian women and children in Gaza, and you can still take a very strong position in relation to the kinds of attacks we’ve seen on the Jewish community, for example.

We are an anti-racist party. We want to call out behaviour which is wrong wherever it happens and we have certainly been critical of the behaviour of the Israeli state, their military, and the way they continue to conduct a war against the civilians in Gaza.

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Politics with Michelle Grattan: Barbara Pocock on the Greens’ policy priorities – https://theconversation.com/politics-with-michelle-grattan-barbara-pocock-on-the-greens-policy-priorities-252502

MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

March 18, 2025
MIL-Evening Report: Treasurer Chalmers promises ‘meaningful and substantial’ cost of living help in Tuesday’s budget
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

Next week’s budget will have cost-of-living assistance that will be meaningful and substantial but “responsible”, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has said.

In a Tuesday speech framing the budget Chalmers said, “it will be a responsible budget which helps with the cost of living, builds our future, and makes our economy more resilient in the new world of global uncertainty”.

He said the budget would have five major priorities:
- helping the recovery and rebuild following Cyclone Alfred, for which it will provide $1.2 billion
- helping with the cost of living and finishing the fight against inflation
- strengthening Medicare and funding more urgent care clinics
- putting money into every stage of education
- making the economy more competitive and productive.
In the question-and-answer part of his appearance at the Queensland Media Club Chalmers refused to be drawn on whether the cost-of-living relief would include more help on power bills, as is widely expected.

He was also put on the spot about his future leadership ambitions, initially being asked whether, given federal Labor’s poor showing in Queensland, it would do better with a leader from that state.

After diverting the question with a joke and a vigorous defence of Anthony Albanese’s “practical pragmatism” and his appreciation of Queensland, he was asked directly, “So you don’t have aspirations to become leader one day yourself?” “No”, he replied.

Chalmers is lowering expectations of extensive new initiatives being announced next Tuesday, because big spending measures in health, education and infrastructure have been announced.

The budget will project deficits throughout the forward estimates. But Chalmers said Treasury did not expect the bottom line this year or the coming years to be substantially changed from the mid year update.

In the mid-year update release in December, Treasury said it expected the deficit this financial year to be $26.9 billion. The deficit was forecast to increase further next year to $46.9 billion, compared with $42.8 billion forecast in last year’s budget.

Chalmers sought to scotch incorrect predictions he said had been made.

“For example, some commentators have made wild and wide-of-the-mark predictions about big surges in revenue.

“Some wrongly predict the tax-to-GDP ratio will go up this year, when Treasury expects it to be stable or even a bit down.

“Revenue upgrades have actually come off very significantly since the highs of October 2022.”

Chalmers argued the Australian economy “has turned a corner” but acknowledged “a new world of uncertainty” in which it was operating.

“The global economy is volatile and unpredictable.

“There’s a new US administration disrupting trade, a slowdown in China, war in eastern Europe and a fragile ceasefire in the Middle East, division and dissatisfaction around the world.

“Overnight, the OECD downgraded its growth expectations for next year and the year after.”

The OECD cut its forecasts for GDP growth to just 1.8% in 2026, down from an earlier forecast of 2.5%.

“Treasury forecasts in the Budget will have Chinese and American growth slowing to around 4.5 and 2 per cent next year, respectively.

“The forecasts for the US are the same as the mid-year update but the downside risks are weighing more heavily now.

“Unemployment is rising overseas from higher interest rates, and in the UK inflation is going up again.

“This is the global backdrop for the Budget.”

Chalmers repeated the government’s criticism of the US failure to grant an exemption from the steel and aluminium tariffs.

He said Treasury had modelled the impact of tariffs on our economy, both before the US election, and after the inauguration.

“Treasury estimates the direct hit to GDP from steel and aluminium tariffs would be less than 0.02 per cent by 2030. So the direct overall impacts on Australia should be manageable.

“But when you add in the indirect effects, the hit to GDP could be more like 0.1 per cent by 2030.

“In fact, over a range of scenarios, Treasury found the indirect GDP impacts of a trade war could be up to four times larger than the direct effects of tariffs on our economy.

“In a world of retaliation and escalation, the impacts of tariffs are amplified, they linger for longer, resulting in a bigger reduction in GDP and a bigger increase in prices.”

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Treasurer Chalmers promises ‘meaningful and substantial’ cost of living help in Tuesday’s budget – https://theconversation.com/treasurer-chalmers-promises-meaningful-and-substantial-cost-of-living-help-in-tuesdays-budget-252173
MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –
March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI: NBPE Announces February Monthly NAV Estimate

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN OR INTO AUSTRALIA, CANADA, ITALY, DENMARK, JAPAN, THE UNITED STATES, OR TO ANY NATIONAL OF SUCH JURISDICTIONS

St Peter Port, Guernsey 18 March 2025

NB Private Equity Partners (NBPE), the $1.2bn¹, FTSE 250, listed private equity investment company managed by Neuberger Berman, today announces its 28 February 2025 monthly NAV estimate.

NAV Highlights (28 February 2025)

NAV per share was $27.16 (£21.57), a total return of 0.2% in the month
Approximately 87% of fair value based on private company valuation information as of Q4 2024 or based on 28 February 2025 quoted prices
Based on information received so far, private company valuations increased by 3.1% during Q4 2024 on a constant currency basis
NBPE expects to receive additional updated Q4 2024 financial information which will be incorporated in the monthly NAV updates in the coming weeks
$279 million of available liquidity at 28 February 2025
~220k shares repurchased during February 2025 at a weighted average discount of 27% which were accretive to NAV by ~$0.04 per share. Year to date, NBPE has repurchased ~359k at a weighted average discount of 28% which were accretive to NAV by ~$0.06 per share

As of 28 February 2025	Year to Date	One Year	3 years	5 years	10 years
NAV TR (USD)* Annualised	2.7%	1.6%	(0.2%) (0.1%)	72.3% 11.5%	165.3% 10.3%
MSCI World TR (USD)* Annualised	2.8%	16.1%	35.8% 10.7%	96.4% 14.5%	168.9% 10.4%

Share price TR (GBP)* Annualised	1.6%	(0.1%)	11.3% 3.6%	77.8% 12.2%	205.5% 11.8%
FTSE All-Share TR (GBP)* Annualised	6.9%	18.4%	27.7% 8.5%	53.4% 8.9%	82.7% 6.2%

* All NBPE performance figures assume re-investment of dividends on the ex-dividend date and reflect cumulative returns over the relevant time periods shown. Three-year, five-year and ten-year annualised returns are presented for USD NAV, MSCI World (USD), GBP Share Price and FTSE All-Share (GBP) Total Returns.

Portfolio Update to 28 February 2025

NAV performance during the month driven by:

0.3% NAV increase ($3 million) from the value of quoted holdings (which now constitute 6% of portfolio fair value)
0.1% NAV decrease ($2 million) attributable to expense accruals
Immaterial NAV change from new private company valuation information and changes in FX

$29 million of realisations in 2025 year to date

$26 million of realisations received during the month of February, consisting primarily of exit proceeds from NBPE’s investment in USI and a partial realisation in Tendam

$279 million of total liquidity at 28 February 2025

$69 million of cash and liquid investments with $210 million of undrawn credit line available

2025 Share Buybacks

~220k shares repurchased in February 2025 at a weighted average discount of 27%; buybacks were accretive to NAV by ~$0.04 per share
On 19 February 2025, NBPE’s board announced that it had reserved $120 million for buybacks over the next three years
Year to date, NBPE has repurchased ~359k at a weighted average discount of 28% which were accretive to NAV by ~$0.06 per share

Portfolio Valuation

The fair value of NBPE’s portfolio as of 28 February 2025 was based on the following information:

6% of the portfolio was valued as of 28 February 2025
- 6% in public securities
81% of the portfolio was valued as of 31 December 2024
- 81% in private direct investments
13% of the portfolio was valued as of 30 September 2024
- 13% in private direct investments

For further information, please contact:

NBPE Investor Relations +44 (0) 20 3214 9002
Luke Mason NBPrivateMarketsIR@nb.com

Kaso Legg Communications +44 (0)20 3882 6644

Charles Gorman nbpe@kl-communications.com
Luke Dampier
Charlotte Francis

Supplementary Information (as at 28 February 2025)

Company Name	Vintage	Lead Sponsor	Sector	Fair Value ($m)	% of FV
Action	2020	3i	Consumer	74.8	5.9%
Osaic	2019	Reverence Capital	Financial Services	68.9	5.4%
Solenis	2021	Platinum Equity	Industrials	60.0	4.7%
BeyondTrust	2018	Francisco Partners	Technology / IT	50.0	3.9%
Monroe Engineering	2021	AEA Investors	Industrials	42.6	3.3%
Business Services Company*	2017	Not Disclosed	Business Services	40.1	3.1%
Branded Cities Network	2017	Shamrock Capital	Communications / Media	39.2	3.1%
GFL (NYSE: GFL)	2018	BC Partners	Business Services	35.5	2.8%
Mariner	2024	Leonard Green & Partners	Financial Services	34.8	2.7%
FDH Aero	2024	Audax Group	Industrials	33.0	2.6%
True Potential	2022	Cinven	Financial Services	32.2	2.5%
Staples	2017	Sycamore Partners	Business Services	31.6	2.5%
Marquee Brands	2014	Neuberger Berman	Consumer	31.2	2.4%
Fortna	2017	THL	Industrials	28.7	2.3%
Auctane	2021	Thoma Bravo	Technology / IT	28.7	2.3%
Viant	2018	JLL Partners	Healthcare	27.1	2.1%
Stubhub	2020	Neuberger Berman	Consumer	26.5	2.1%
Benecon	2024	TA Associates	Healthcare	26.0	2.0%
Agiliti	2019	THL	Healthcare	25.3	2.0%
Solace Systems	2016	Bridge Growth Partners	Technology / IT	24.4	1.9%
Engineering	2020	NB Renaissance / Bain Capital	Technology / IT	24.1	1.9%
Addison Group	2021	Trilantic Capital Partners	Business Services	23.8	1.9%
Kroll	2020	Further Global / Stone Point	Financial Services	23.6	1.8%
Qpark	2017	KKR	Transportation	22.0	1.7%
Excelitas	2022	AEA Investors	Industrials	21.9	1.7%
CH Guenther	2021	Pritzker Private Capital	Consumer	21.4	1.7%
Exact	2019	KKR	Technology / IT	21.4	1.7%
AutoStore (OB.AUTO)	2019	THL	Industrials	19.5	1.5%
Bylight	2017	Sagewind Partners	Technology / IT	19.5	1.5%
Real Page	2021	Thoma Bravo	Technology / IT	18.5	1.5%
Total Top 30 Investments				$976.2	76.5%

*Undisclosed company due to confidentiality provisions.

Geography	% of Portfolio
North America	78%
Europe	21%
Asia / Rest of World	1%
Total Portfolio	100%

Industry	% of Portfolio
Tech, Media & Telecom	23%
Consumer / E-commerce	21%
Industrials / Industrial Technology	17%
Financial Services	14%
Business Services	12%
Healthcare	8%
Other	4%
Energy	1%
Total Portfolio	100%

Vintage Year	% of Portfolio
2016 & Earlier	10%
2017	16%
2018	15%
2019	14%
2020	12%
2021	18%
2022	5%
2023	2%
2024	8%
Total Portfolio	100%

About NB Private Equity Partners Limited
NBPE invests in direct private equity investments alongside market leading private equity firms globally. NB Alternatives Advisers LLC (the “Investment Manager”), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Neuberger Berman Group LLC, is responsible for sourcing, execution and management of NBPE. The vast majority of direct investments are made with no management fee / no carried interest payable to third-party GPs, offering greater fee efficiency than other listed private equity companies. NBPE seeks capital appreciation through growth in net asset value over time while paying a bi-annual dividend.

LEI number: 213800UJH93NH8IOFQ77

About Neuberger Berman
Neuberger Berman is an employee-owned, private, independent investment manager founded in 1939 with over 2,800 employees in 26 countries. The firm manages $508 billion of equities, fixed income, private equity, real estate and hedge fund portfolios for global institutions, advisors and individuals. Neuberger Berman’s investment philosophy is founded on active management, fundamental research and engaged ownership. The firm’s leadership in stewardship and sustainable investing is recognized by the PRI based on its consecutive above median reporting assessment results. Neuberger Berman has been named by Pensions & Investments as the #1 or #2 Best Place to Work in Money Management for each of the last eleven years (firms with more than 1,000 employees). Visit www.nb.com for more information. Data as of 31 December 2024, unless otherwise noted.

¹Based on net asset value.

This press release appears as a matter of record only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any security.

NBPE is established as a closed-end investment company domiciled in Guernsey. NBPE has received the necessary consent of the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. The value of investments may fluctuate. Results achieved in the past are no guarantee of future results. This document is not intended to constitute legal, tax or accounting advice or investment recommendations. Prospective investors are advised to seek expert legal, financial, tax and other professional advice before making any investment decision. Statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are based on current expectations, estimates, projections, opinions and beliefs of NBPE’s investment manager. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, and undue reliance should not be placed thereon. Additionally, this document contains “forward-looking statements.” Actual events or results or the actual performance of NBPE may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such targets or forward-looking statements.

Attachment

February 2025 NBPE Factsheet vF

The MIL Network –

March 18, 2025

MIL-OSI United Nations: Granada International Convention on the Economics of World Heritage
Source: United Nations

From March 20 to 21, 2025, the Association for Cultural Economics International (ACEI) and the Alhambra and Generalife Council, in cooperation with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre are organizing a scientific forum “Granada International Convention on the Economics of World Heritage”, in Granada, Spain.

The conference will address the Economics of World Heritage from various perspectives. Topics such as economic valuation, tourism impact, governance, sustainability, preservation challenges, international cooperation, community involvement and the effects of heritage on creativity and local economic development, among others, will be examined.

The Convention has been able to gather scholars from different universities around the world, together with experts from leading cultural institutions in the field, as well as a wide geographical representation of world case studies. It will offer a valuable platform for professionals and enthusiasts in the field of cultural heritage to engage with contemporary issues and contribute to the advancement of sustainable practices in heritage economics.

Who will participate?

The event is expected to bring together a diverse group of stakeholders, including:
- Academics
- Heritage experts
- Cultural economists
- World Heritage site managers
- Policy-markers
What can attendees expect?

Over two days, academics, cultural economists, heritage experts, site managers and representatives of leading cultural institutions will share insights and case studies from world heritage sites worldwide, promoting a rich exchange of knowledge and practical strategies for effective world heritage management and planning. The Deputy Director of the World Heritage Centre will present the Culture 2030 Indicators programme as well as perspectives and tools related to sustainable development from the UNESCO World Heritage Centre.

Simultaneous interpretation is available in English and Spanish. For those unable to attend in person, the event will be live streamed on the YouTube channel.

MIL OSI United Nations News –
March 18, 2025
MIL-OSI Australia: Business News ‘Politics & Business’ breakfast

Source: Australian Government – Minister of Foreign Affairs

Acknowledgements omitted

I always enjoy the perspective of Western Australia and Perth which reflect your economic position and your geographic position, so close to Southeast Asia and so engaged with the regional economies.

I know the business community thinks deeply about what it means to protect and promote Australia’s interests in an increasingly uncertain world.

I know you think deeply about how we shore up Australia’s prosperity despite that uncertainty. I don,t need to tell this room, Western Australia is vital to that prosperity: when you succeed, the whole country prospers.

That success includes WA resources, metals, critical minerals and rare earths but it also includes WA manufacturers and workers, your universities, research and technology, which are all globally prized.

So what’s my role as Foreign Minister? Amongst other things and importantly, it is to help create opportunities, and promote and protect Australia’s interests as a reliable exporter of choice in an increasingly competitive international environment.

Our foreign policy helps build and maintain the strategic conditions that enable our stability and prosperity.

And you have to say that is a task that is not getting any easier.

Each day, our assumptions are being tested.

We live in a world of increasing strategic surprise. We live in a world that is ever more uncertain and unpredictable.

We see the devastating human toll of conflicts including in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan.

Malign actors continue to engage in sabotage and terrorism.

Bullies threaten to use nuclear weapons, and authoritarianism is spreading.

Some countries are shifting alignment, high global inflation continues to put pressure on working people.

And institutions that we helped build are being eroded and rules that we helped write are being challenged.

These factors compound threats and risks in our own region from a changing climate, military buildup without transparency, and disruption of trade – as well as the risks inherent in great power competition.

I recently released the 2025 Snapshot of Australia in the World, a summary of our foreign policy strategy, priorities and policy achievements.

What it clearly shows is that even though we face a time of growing uncertainty, Australia is well-placed to protect our security, our stability and our prosperity.

But that is only if we continue to build our disciplined focus on our region, because it is here where our interests are most at stake; if we invest not only in traditional but also in more diverse relationships; and if we work with partners to uphold international rules that protect us all.

We have to apply ourselves to these tasks with ambition and calm, consistent and disciplined engagement.

This is the approach the Albanese Government is taking with the United States.

President Trump’s America First agenda envisages a very different role for America in the world, and that is what the American people have chosen.

President Trump campaigned on change and none of us should try to minimise the implications of this change.

And over the first seven weeks of the Trump Administration we have seen how broad those implications are around the world.

Mindful of the scale of this change involving our most important strategic partner, there has been extensive engagement across senior levels of the Albanese Government.

In addition to our relentless Ambassador in Washington, the Prime Minister has had two productive phone calls with the President.

I had the honour of being the first Australian Foreign Minister ever to be invited to attend a Presidential Inauguration, and I was able to put the case for Australia to the Secretary of State Marco Rubio on his first day in office.

The Deputy Prime Minister was Secretary Hegseth’s first international counterpart to meet with him following his confirmation.

The Treasurer has made an early connection with his counterpart, US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent.

And our Trade and Tourism Minister has also been engaging with his counterparts.

In those interactions we make the point that the US enjoys a two-to-one trade surplus with Australia and has since the Truman Presidency.

We make the point that US exports to Australia face no tariffs.

And that our trade and investment relationship is important for US industry and jobs. Half of Australia’s exports are inputs into US manufacturing and construction. And of course, we are a top 10 investor in the United States.

And given the pool of funds under management in Australia’s superannuation sector that can only grow.

Nevertheless, last week we saw that the second Trump administration has hardened its position in favour of tariffs as a centrepiece of its economic policy.

And whereas the first Trump administration exempted 36 countries from steel tariffs and 32 countries from aluminium tariffs, this time not one single country has been exempted.

Not Australia. Not Japan. Not anyone.

And the degree of a country’s engagement has not changed the outcome.

Indeed, the administration has been clear that the exemptions granted in its first term were a mistake.

Our response to the Trump administration’s imposition of tariffs on Australia has been firm and it has been clear.

As the Prime Minister has said, these measures are “entirely unjustified”.

And “it is against the spirit of our two nations, enduring friendship and fundamentally at odds with the benefits our economic partnership has delivered over more than 70 years.”

Steel and aluminium exports to the US represent 0.18 per cent of Australia’s total exports in 2023.

We will continue to press the case for all Australian exporters, including steel and aluminium.

We will continue to have advocate for the existing economy-wide access commitments under the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement. They should be maintained.

And we will also keep making the case for the many opportunities Australia has to offer.

After the US announced their position, Peter Dutton said he would “do a deal” and “there’s no question about that”.

Given not one leader of the 36 countries that got a deal last time got a deal this time, Australians are right to be incredulous about that claim.

And they,re rightly concerned Peter Dutton would do a deal at any cost.

Unlike Mr Dutton, we are not going to give away the farm – and we don,t have to.

We will always put the interests of Australian industries and workers first.

Remember, these tariffs do not necessarily mean that Americans won,t keep buying Australian products.

And many nations want our exports. This state understands that possibly more than any part of Australia.

We have a strong track record of supporting our exporters diversify their export markets, and regardless of what happens with US tariffs, that is a priority we will continue to pursue.

One of the priorities I have brought to this job has been a focus on Southeast Asia, in part because of where I,m from originally, but in part because of my firm belief that ASEAN and the countries of Southeast Asia are critical to our next generation’s stability and prosperity.

So just to our north, Indonesia stands as a major and growing power in our region and beyond.

The world’s third largest democracy, projected to become the world’s fifth largest economy.

So deepening our economic engagement with Indonesia is of enormous value to Australia, and part of our broader effort to diversify our economy, especially through Southeast Asia.

Now we have our work cut out. When we came to government, Australian direct investment in Southeast Asia was lower than it was in 2014.

Over this period, while international investment in the region had grown apace, Australia’s investment in it had gone backwards, both in relative and absolute terms.

And by 2040, Southeast Asia is predicted to be the world’s fourth-largest economy after the United States, China and India.

Australia’s trade and investment has simply not kept pace – and we need to turn this around.

Australia has been central to the north Asian economic growth story, so we must be to the Southeast Asian economic growth story.

That’s why we appointed Nicholas Moore AO as Australia’s Special Envoy to Southeast Asia and charged him with developing a Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040.

In the almost 18 months since its launch, we have made tangible progress.

We have now implemented a number of initiatives responding to its recommendations, including new deal teams to identify and facilitate Australian investment in the region.

New landing pads in Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City, in addition to the existing hub in Singapore, to help our tech companies scale up.

Business and investment missions, including three to Singapore, one of which was our largest ever outbound investment mission by value, representing a combined $2.5 trillion of assets under management.

Improved visa access for businesspeople from the region and the establishment of the ASEAN-Australia Centre because we have to continue to build Southeast Asia literacy and enhance business and cultural ties.

It’s no accident that Austrade had their best ever client results in Southeast Asia in 2024, with over $1 billion in commercial outcomes.

We all need to play our part in diversification.

Complacency, or business as usual, risks compromising our influence today and our prosperity tomorrow.

Nobody today could claim they don,t understand the risk of putting too many eggs in one market.

As you know, China’s growth has been a crucial driver of Australia’s prosperity and the world’s prosperity – and we know this has never been straightforward for business.

Especially during the last term of government, when China’s doors were closed to many of our exports.

Since the Albanese Government was elected you have seen a concerted effort to restore dialogue and stabilise the relationship with our largest trading partner.

We pressed China to lift impediments on more than $20 billion of Australian exports – barley, wine, coal, timber logs, cotton, beef, hay and copper ores, concentrates, and lobsters.

The final impediments on lobster were lifted in late December, and we have seen in just the first month of the crayfish trade resuming into China, sales have already reached $118 million.

We know how important that is to Western Australia. In 2023-24, China received 56 per cent of exports from this state. And what we want is grow opportunities for our great exporters – both into China and elsewhere across our region.

The China relationship will continue to face challenges.

You see, the term stabilisation has never meant there would be no problems.

It has always meant we should be able to engage directly with China in order to manage differences and problems that are inevitable – without these problems derailing our ability to talk to each other – as we saw in the past.

And that is what we will keep doing – and it is what the Australian people expect of us, your government – to engage confidently, calmly and consistently, protecting our sovereignty and advancing our interests.

We have seen in recent weeks that the same people who had no regard for the consequences for Australian exporters and jobs are at it again – trying to turn China into an election issue, with inflammatory language.

This country, as you all know, built our prosperity in great part because we are a trading nation.

A great trading nation has to grapple with a world where trade can be a vulnerability as well as an opportunity.

And the whole country, all of us, government, business, the workforce – we have to manage these risks together.

We can’t imagine the challenges away nor can we put other countries, interests ahead of ours.

What we can do is recognise our challenges in the world are growing.

That our interests are most at stake in our region.

And that we must not just invest in our traditional relationships but also in diversified relationships.

And if we do these things, we can be confident that together as Australians we can meet these challenges, and keep building a better future.

MIL OSI News –

March 18, 2025

Category: Economy

Progress on major initiatives taken by Ministry of Cooperation

A. Making Primary Cooperatives economically vibrant and transparent

24. Individual housing loan limit more than doubled by RBI for Rural and Urban Cooperative Banks:

H. Other Initiatives

Prime Minister’s Young Authors Mentorship Scheme (YUVA) SchemeEmpowering Young Writers for a Global Stage

Who will participate?

What can attendees expect?

Prime Minister’s Young Authors Mentorship Scheme (YUVA) Scheme

Empowering Young Writers for a Global Stage