Emerging Market Links + The Week Ahead (August 24-28, 2026)

Once again, this delayed (I am painting a barn and still have some pruning to do before going back to Malaysia) weekly post contains plenty of Q2/H2 earnings report presentations or articles as we approach the end of summer…

$ = behind a paywall

$ = Behind a paywall / 🗃️ = Link to an archived article (Note: Seeking Alpha earnings/conference etc. presentations are typically not paywalled) / ⛔ = Article archiving may not be working properly

🌏 Asian investors reassess US treasuries as global bond yields rise (The Asset) 🗃️

• Shorter maturities and domestic assets gain favour but sudden, significant exits unlikely

• Asian investors are becoming more cautious about adding long-duration US treasuries to their portfolios as the latest bond market sell-off pushes global yields higher. However, there is little evidence of a wholesale retreat from US government debt.

• As of August 19, the US 30-year treasury yield has risen above 5.3%, its highest level since 2007. Meanwhile, Japan’s 10-year government bond yield has approached 3%, and the benchmark 10-year German Bund yield has climbed to approximately 3.26%.

🌏 Asia’s rising riches protect insurers against China’s policy shifts (FT) $ 🗃️

• So long as the region’s wealth accumulation continues to outpace that of most developed economies

• For Hong Kong businesses from tourist hotels to high finance, China is both opportunity and threat. Insurers Prudential PLC (NYSE: PUK / LON: PRU) and AIA Group (HKG: 1299 / FRA: 7A2 / OTCMKTS: AAIGF) have recently felt the rough side of that.

🇨🇳 China’s 10-year bond yield falls to 13-month low (FT) $ 🗃️

• Weak economic growth pushes investors into sovereign debt

• Yields on China’s 10-year government bonds slipped 0.01 percentage point on Tuesday to 1.67 per cent, their lowest level since July last year. Bond yields move inversely to prices.

🇨🇳 China asset managers line up for active ETFs (The Asset) 🗃️

• Pilot programme marks largest product innovation window to open in mutual fund industry in years

• Barely a month after the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges issued guidance on actively managed exchange-traded funds ( ETFs ), 18 asset managers have begun filing registration applications with the regulator for launching the country’s first batch of active ETFs.

• The pilot programme marks the largest product innovation window to open in China’s mutual fund industry in years.

🇨🇳 ‘Not worth the squeeze’: global private equity makes zero deals in China (FT) $ 🗃️

• Firms avoid new equity investments as Beijing tightens scrutiny of foreign capital in sensitive sectors

• Ten of the largest global private capital firms, including KKR, Warburg Pincus and Blackstone, have made no new publicly disclosed equity investments in China in the first seven months of 2026, according to an FT analysis of figures from Dealogic and PitchBook.

🇨🇳 HSI Sep 2026 Index Rebalance: Post-Announcement Positioning (Smartkarma) $

• HSIL announced the Sep 2026 rebalance results, with two ADDs and no DELETE.

• Hua Hong Semiconductor (SHA: 688347 / HKG: 1347 / FRA: 1HH / OTCMKTS: HHUSF) and Weichai Power (SHE: 000338 / HKG: 2338 / FRA: WI4 / OTCMKTS: WEICF) join the HSI on 7 Sep 2026.

• Both ADDs fell into the announcement. Historically, positive opening gaps averaged -2.3% post-open, so we wait for the open before sizing.

🇨🇳 HS TECH Sep 2026 Index Rebalance: Post-Announcement Positioning (Smartkarma) $

🇨🇳 HSCI / HK Connect Sep 2026 Rebalance: Post-Announcement Positioning (Smartkarma) $

• The September 2026 HSCI review adds 53 names to southbound Connect, 49 new and 4 returning, and removes 15, all effective 7 Sep 2026.

• The announced list ran wider than our forecast. 33 of our 36 ADD calls and 14 of 25 DELETE calls were announced.

• Current ADDs rose into the announcement and DELETEs fell. Historically, ADD-NEWs outperformed ADD-REJOINs over the bridge, while DELETEs fell further after announcement.

🇨🇳 Alibaba announces $10.2bn share placement as Chinese companies expand AI investment (FT) $ 🗃️

• Equity issuance follows a strong reception for its latest Qwen 3.8-Max model

• China’s ecommerce and cloud group Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) is planning to raise HK$80bn ($10.2bn) from a share placement, as it steps up capital expenditure to compete with the world’s leading artificial intelligence companies.

🇨🇳 Michael Burry May Be Right: The AI Boom May Have Changed Alibaba For The Worse (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Alibaba: The Market Got This One Wrong (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Wall Street Breakfast Podcast: AI Plans Weigh On BABA (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Alibaba: Pay 13x FWD Earnings For 45% AI Cloud Growth (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Alibaba Q1 Earnings: Back To Cash Flow Basics (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Alibaba: AI Transformation Offsets E-Commerce Drag, Reiterate Buy (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Alibaba Group Holding Limited 2027 Q1 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Alibaba: Cloud Accelerated and the Margin Expanded (Coughlin Cap)

• Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) reported the June quarter Thursday. Cloud grew 45%, adjusted EBITA margin got to 11.6%, management said both should keep going in that direction, and then the stock fell 8.6% on Friday.

• I spent most of Friday and Saturday morning writing this with no idea why it sold off. Then Saturday afternoon word started going around that Alibaba is raising HK$80 billion, roughly $10.2 billion, through a share placement to fund the AI buildout. I don’t know if that leaked Friday. It would explain a lot if it did.

🇨🇳 Alibaba to Sell Gaming Unit as It Sharpens AI Focus (Caixin) $

• Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) has agreed to sell its video game unit Lingxi Games to private equity firm Trustar Capital, marking the tech giant’s latest move to offload non-core assets.

• The divestment was announced in an internal memo by Lingxi Games Chief Executive Officer Zhou Bingshu on Monday. A Bloomberg report valued the deal at $1.5 billion, though neither Alibaba nor Trustar, the private-equity arm of Citic Capital Holdings Ltd., has confirmed the figure. Zhou noted that both companies expressed confidence in the gaming unit’s value and future development.

🇨🇳 Baidu: Sell The AI Pivot Until The Ad Business Stabilizes (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu: Kunlunxin IPO Could Trigger A Major Re-Rating (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu: Don’t Buy The Post-Earnings Dip (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu: Unique Buy-The-Drop Opportunity (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu: Search Keeps Shrinking, But AI Cloud Is Taking Over (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu: The Innovator’s Dilemma, AI Strength Overshadowed By Ad Erosion (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Baidu, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇨🇳 Baidu (NASDAQ: BIDU) 🇰🇾 – Internet-related services, products & AI. Chinese search engine, Baidu Maps, etc. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 Part 2: Tencent has picked its super AI product: WorkBuddy (AI Proem)

• HY3, openclaw, workbuddy, workspace AI, ecosystem play

• In Part 1, we spent a lot of time with Yao Shunyu: why Tencent hired him/ why he joined Tencent, how the model layer was rebuilt around him, and why he was open-minded to court the products, and how he thinks about context and feedback when explaining what the next phase of AI would require.

• During Tencent’s Q2 earnings call this week, President Martin Lau addressed the capex question head-on and explained the thinking behind where all this money is going.

🇨🇳 Can You Have a Moat in China E-com? (TheCatalyst)

• It is an assumption by many that E-commerce in China is very competitive which is true but I think PDD Holdings (NASDAQ: PDD) or Pinduoduo might have carved out a moat based on these 7 powers.

• Switching costs are the weakest part of PDD’s moat.

• E-commerce has very little friction for buyers moving between platforms. Co-CEO Lei Chen warned investors about this, saying, “The e-commerce industry is highly competitive with low switching costs for consumers.” Because consumers can easily switch to another app if prices are lower, PDD cannot rely on switching costs as a competitive advantage.

🇨🇳 NetEase: An Interesting Idea For Long-Term Dividend Growth Investors (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 NetEase Q2 Review: The Company Needs Another Big Hit Post-Marvel Rivals Slump (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 NetEase, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇨🇳 NetEase (NASDAQ: NTES) 🇰🇾 – Premium online services centered around content creation. Mobile & PC games. Majority-controlled subs. Youdao (NYSE: DAO), technology-focused intelligent learning company; Cloud Music (HKEX: 9899), online music content community; & Yanxuan, private label consumer lifestyle brand. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 A Primer On JD.com (Shareholdersunite Essentials)

• JD.com (NASDAQ: JD / SGX: HJDD) is China’s third‑largest e‑commerce platform by GMV and a leading supply‑chain‑based technology and service provider, dual‑listed in the US and Hong Kong.

• Unlike pure marketplace peers, JD’s core differentiator is its self‑operated (first‑party) retail model combined with an owned, nationwide logistics and fulfillment network, which underpins its reputation for authenticity, fast delivery, and strong service in electronics, appliances, and general merchandise.

• JD operates a hybrid retail and services model centered on control of the end‑to‑end supply chain:

🇨🇳 Youdao, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇨🇳 Youdao (NYSE: DAO) 🇨🇳 – Online knowledge tools, learning services, smart devices & education digitalization solutions. Subs of NetEase (NASDAQ: NTES).

🇨🇳 Weibo: High Yield, Low Relevance; A Deep-Value Play In Search Of A Moat (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🇨🇳 Weibo Corp (NASDAQ: WB) – Social media for people to create, share & discover content online. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 Kuaishou: The AI Potential Vs. Advertising Reality (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 iQIYI: Divergent Read-Throughs From Q2 Disclosures (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Xiaomi: Smartphone Drag As SkyNomad Carries Full-Year EV Burden (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Xiaomi: Still Positive After In-Line Q2 And Improved Prospects (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Xiaomi Corporation 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌐 Xiaomi (HKG: 1810 / SGX: HXXD / FRA: 3CP / OTCMKTS: XIACF) 🇰🇾 – Consumer electronics & smart manufacturing company. Smartphones & smart hardware connected by an IoT platform at its core. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 ZTO Express: The Power Of Price Over Volume (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Full Truck Alliance: High-Quality Monetization At An Inflection Point, Reiterate Buy (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇨🇳 Full Truck Alliance (NYSE: YMM) – Digital freight platform connecting shippers with truckers to facilitate shipments across distance ranges, cargo weights & types.

🇨🇳 J&T Global Express Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Kingsoft Cloud Q2: Xiaomi Will Be The Partnership To Boost The Company Forward (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Kingsoft Cloud finds sunnier skies in AI cloud (Bamboo Works)

• The company’s revenue grew strongly and its loss narrowed sharply in the first half of the year, as it aggressive its develops AI cloud services

• Kingsoft Cloud Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ: KC) reported its revenue increased by 33.7% in the first half of the year, as its loss narrowed by 43%

• The cloud services company’s depreciation and amortization costs during the period nearly doubled

🇨🇳 VNET Group: Solid Wholesale Execution Overshadowed By Balance Sheet Reality (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 VNET Group, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Aurora Mobile Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 ZKH Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 MiniMax (100 HK): 1H26 Preview, Robust Revenue with Both Tech Risk and Buying Opportunity (Smartkarma) $

• We expect MiniMax Group (HKG: 0100 / FRA: E5A)’s H1 2026 revenue to be at least 5x its H1 2025 level.

• Technical rankings, such as intelligence and speed, dropped in August.

• The stock has been capped by 60-day moving average, but Price/Sales suggests a buying opportunity.

🇨🇳 CXMT: Path to Connect, STAR50 and CSI 300 Inclusion, and FF Nuances (Smartkarma) $

• Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT) (SHA: 688825) listed on the SSE STAR Market on 27 Jul 2026. This note works through the entry rules and timing for Stock Connect, STAR50 and CSI 300.

• We estimate Northbound Connect access in Nov 2026 and a possible STAR50 ADD in Dec 2026. Then CSI 300 ADD in December 2027.

• It is already in MS-China All Shares. Then a possible MS-China ADD would follow at the February 2027 review, effective 1 Mar 2027.

🇨🇳 China’s robots rock, box and mix drinks. Can they outperform humans? (FT) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Unitree Robotics soars 629% on trading debut (The Asset) 🗃️

• Record-breaking IPO gives an investor with minimum allotment a paper profit of nearly half a million yuan

• China’s leading humanoid robotics company Unitree Robotics [Yushu Technology Co Ltd (SHA: 688836)] saw its stock price soar 629% to 1,100 yuan ( US$116.3 ) as it started trading on the A-share market on Wednesday ( August 19 ), breaking its record initial public offering ( IPO ).

• Its blockbuster share sale last week ( August 10 ) was oversubscribed more than 8,200 times by retail investors, making it one of the hardest-to-get IPOs in the history of Shanghai Stock Exchange’s Sci-Tech Innovation Board ( SSE STAR Market ). An investor who won the IPO lottery and sold the shares immediately after trading started could have easily earned nearly half a million yuan.

🇨🇳 Five Things to Know About China’s Humanoid Robot Poster Child (Caixin) $

• China’s humanoid robot poster child has landed on the public markets with a valuation to match the hype.

• Unitree Robotics made a spectacular debut on Shanghai’s STAR Market on Wednesday, soaring 629% and raising 6.1 billion yuan ($905 million), making the Chinese robot-maker the best-performing new listing at the open on China’s A-share market this year.

• The opening price gave the Hangzhou-based company, officially known as Yushu Technology Co Ltd (SHA: 688836), a market capitalization of about 445 billion yuan. It also crystallized investor enthusiasm for humanoid robots, a technology that has become one of China’s hottest investment themes as companies race to integrate AI with machines.

🇨🇳 Unitree Shares Decline as Founder Flags Limits of Humanoid Robots (Caixin) $

• Shares of newly listed Unitree Robotics [Yushu Technology Co Ltd (SHA: 688836)] plunged 16% on their second day of trading after founder Wang Xingxing warned that the company’s humanoid robots are not yet ready for large-scale factory deployment.

• Wang said at the World Robot Conference on Thursday that robots remain less efficient than humans at simple assembly tasks and lack the generalization ability to adapt to new assignments without being retrained.

🇨🇳 In Depth: China’s AI Component Powerhouse Faces Geopolitical Reckoning (Caixin) $

• While open-weight models and industrial robotics are hogging the spotlight, China has become a powerhouse in another crucial piece of the global AI boom: optical modules that connect chips, servers and data centers.

• These modules convert electrical signals into light and back again, enabling data to travel through fiberoptic cables at the high bandwidths and long distances required by increasingly large AI computing clusters. Demand has surged as AI developers build clusters linking tens of thousands of processors, requiring faster optical modules, whose transmission speeds have jumped from 400 gigabits per second to as fast as 1.6 terabits.

🇨🇳 Conant Optical (2276 HKG): 1H26 Revenue and Margins Expand; XR Lenses Growth Story Slowly Unfolding (Smartkarma) $

• In 1H26, Shanghai Conant Optical Co Ltd (HKG: 2276) reported revenue rise of 8% YoY buoyed by growth across segments like multifunctional lens (up 12%) and customized lens (up 37%).

• In 1H26, the company kept up with its consistency of expanding its gross margins period after period, as margin expanded from 41% in 1H25 to 42.9% in 1H26.

• Shanghai Conant’s demand outlook, capacity expansion plans, R&D initiatives and margin strength offer a strong long term secular growth story.

🇨🇳 Iluvatar earns paper profit, as its core GPU business stays stuck in the red (Bamboo Works)

• The company forecast a move to the black in the first half of the year, but investors are still waiting for its core inference GPU business to become profitable

• Shanghai Iluvatar CoreX Semiconductor Co Ltd (HKG: 9903) expects to report a first-half profit of 60 million yuan to 140 million yuan, buoyed by more than 700 million yuan in paper fair value gains

• The GPU maker raised over HK$7 billion in a July share placement, with plans to use the funds to ramp up production

🇨🇳 InnoLight shines on AI infrastructure spending binge (Bamboo Works)

• The optical transceiver maker’s revenue rose 182% in the first half of this year, sharply accelerating from 70% growth for all of 2025

• Zhongji Innolight Co Ltd (SHE: 300308)’s revenue nearly tripled in the first half of the year, while its profit rose by an even stronger 243%

• The maker of optical transceivers said capital spending by China’s internet giants was notably lower than their global peers in the first quarter of this year

🇨🇳 China’s AI push propels chipmaker Biren toward breakeven (Bamboo Works)

[Shanghai Biren Technology Co Ltd (HKG: 6082)]

• The producer of GPUs for AI applications has flagged up a more than 18-fold leap in revenue and a sharply reduced loss, as it starts to capture economies of scale

• The company projected its six-month revenue would reach at least $170 million, already exceeding its full-year turnover for 2025

• But as China steps up its bid for self-reliance in AI hardware, fast product cycles mean R&D spending is likely to stay high

🇨🇳 SICC returns to growth and profits. But China’s SiC industry faces a tougher test (Bamboo Works)

• The silicon carbide substrate maker has built a leading position in a strategic semiconductor market, but now faces the harder task of turning the technology into a sustainable business

• Sicc Co Ltd (SHA: 688234 / HKG: 2631) has returned to revenue growth after a difficult period, but a return to profitability remains uncertain as price pressure continues across the silicon carbide industry

• China has made significant progress in building a domestic SiC supply chain, but companies now face a tougher challenge of surviving an industry shakeout

🇨🇳 Cowell remains tethered to Apple. But you could do worse (Bamboo Works)

• The optical module maker is heavily reliant on the U.S. tech giant, which accounted for 99% of its revenue in the first half of the year

• Cowell E Holdings Inc (HKG: 1415 / OTCMKTS: CWLLF) reported its revenue rose 18% in the first half of the year, while its profit rose at nearly twice that rate, up 33.4%

• The optical module maker is trying to diversify beyond its heavy reliance on Apple, but with little progress so far

🇨🇳 AAC Technologies Holdings Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Hesai Group: A Better Business At A Difficult Price (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🌐 Hesai Group (NASDAQ: HSAI) – Lidar products for autonomous mobility, robots, etc. Three-dimensional light detection & ranging (lidar) solutions. 🏷️

🇨🇳 StubWorld: Unicom’s “Hs” Are Cheap (Hong Kong/China M&A/Events) $

• After falling 12% post-1H26 results, China Unicom (HKG: 0762 / FRA: XCI) is inexpensive to its parent China United Network Communications Ltd (SHA: 600050) – its hybrid domestic A-share twin – and to peers

• Preceding my comments on Unicom, are the current setup/unwind tables for Asia-Pacific Holdcos.

• These relationships trade with a minimum liquidity of US$1mn, and a % market capitalisation >20%.

🇨🇳 Didi Swings to Quarterly Profit, but Overseas Push Weighs on First-Half Results (Caixin) $

• DiDi Global (OTCMKTS: DIDIY) returned to a net profit in the second quarter of 2026, but aggressive overseas expansion left the Chinese ride-hailing company in the red for the first half of the year.

• The results highlight the financial strain of Didi’s renewed push into international markets including Latin America, where heavy spending to gain market share is eating into the strong profits generated by its dominant domestic mobility business.

🇨🇳 Niu Technologies: A Disappointing Report Comes With A Silver Lining (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🌐 Niu Technologies (NASDAQ: NIU) – smart urban mobility solutions. Designs, manufactures & sells high-performance electric motorcycles, mopeds, bicycles & kick-scooters. 🇼

🇨🇳 BYD Company: Overseas Boom Changes The Entire Thesis (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Pony AI’s Robotaxi Revenue Jumps as Asset-Light Push Gains Traction (Caixin) $

• Autonomous driving company Pony AI Inc (NASDAQ: PONY) reported a 691.2% year-on-year increase in robotaxi revenue for the second quarter of 2026, driven by rapid fleet expansion and a strategic shift toward an asset-light business model.

• The faster commercialization of robotaxi services marks an important inflection point for the autonomous driving industry, where companies are under pressure to convert years of cash-intensive research into sustainable operations.

🇨🇳 XPeng Q2: A Better Bet Than Tesla (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🌐 XPeng (NYSE: XPEV) 🇨🇳 – Designs, develops, manufactures & markets Smart EVs. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 ATRenew: Q2 Performance Validates My Thesis (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 ATRenew Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 KE Holdings: Better Execution, Limited Upside (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 KE Holdings: Turning Positive On Q2 Outperformance And Likely Full-Year Improvement (Upgrade) (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🇨🇳 KE Holdings (NYSE: BEKE) – Integrated online & offline platform for housing transactions & services. Operates Lianjia, China’s leading real estate brokerage brand & an integral part of its Beike platform. 🇼 🏷️

🇨🇳 Tongdao Liepin Group 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Tongcheng Travel Holdings Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Atour Lifestyle: Retail And Product Upgrades Shield Mature Hotel Softness (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Atour Lifestyle Holdings Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 H World Group: A ‘Buy’ On Beat-And-Raise Quarter And Fresh Capital Distributions (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 H World Group: Capital Return Meets Solid Execution; Reiterate Buy (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 H World Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 H World ($HTHT) – Q2 2026 Results (Johnny’s bearish Investing)

• Some highlights from Q2 2026 H World Group (NASDAQ: HTHT)’s quarterly report

• H World primarily focuses on the mass-market segment, particularly the economy and mid-scale hotel segments, but it is also expanding into the upper mid-scale segment. The company currently has 1,738 hotels in this segment, including both operational and pipeline hotels, out of a total of 13,417 hotels.

• H World’s Path Towards a More Asset-Light Business Model

🇨🇳 Trip.com (TCOM US) (Asian Century Stocks) $

• China’s largest online travel agent, now expanding internationally

• Trip.com (NASDAQ: TCOM) is the company formerly known as “Ctrip”. It’s a typical two-sided network, where hotels and airlines offer room inventory and airline tickets on Trip’s platforms. Meanwhile, users go to the website to browse for tickets and pay through an online checkout process.

• The company has dominated the Chinese online travel agent market for decades, despite recurring threats from Qunar, Meituan, eLong, Fliggy, and now Douyin. The domestic market share remains over 50%, driven by slick user interfaces and strong customer support. Meituan (HKG: 3690 / 83690 / SGX: HMTD / FRA: 9MD / OTCMKTS: MPNGF / MPNGY) dominates only the sub-CNY 200 room market, where price matters more than brand.

🇨🇳 TH International Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Xiaocaiyuan shuns takeout delivery for in-restaurant dining (Bamboo Works)

• The mid-scale restaurant chain’s in-restaurant dining revenue rose 18.1% in the first half of 2026, more than double its 7% overall revenue growth

• Xiaocaiyuan International Holding Ltd (HKG: 0999)’s revenue rose 7% in the first half of the year, but its profit fell 24.3%, as it focused on a price-for-volume strategy and reined in its delivery service

• The mid-range restaurant operator slowed its expansion, opening just 17 new stores in the latest six-month period after opening 135 in the second half of 2025

🇨🇳 SELL Pop Mart (9992 HK): Assessment of Short Pre 1H26 Results (Smartkarma) $

[Pop Mart International Group (HKG: 9992 / FRA: 735 / OTCMKTS: PMRTY / POPMF)]

• Consensus. The Street reset its numbers after the March results and the May update, then stopped while July channel data weakened. We think a second reset is ahead.

• Positioning. July’s bounce is accompied by short covering. Southbound has been a seller since June and the company’s buyback has been idle since April.

• Guidance risk. Management has lowered the bar twice this year. We expect the results call to lower the growth tone again.

🇨🇳 SELL Pop Mart (9992 HK): 1H26 Post-Results Takeaway (Smartkarma) $

• Growth. 1H26 revenue growth slowed sharply vs what is implied from consensus, confirming the reset we expected heading into results.

• Geography. Overseas revenue growth turned negative for the first time in the current growth cycle.

• IP sustainability. The flagship IP “The Monsters” declined YoY, partially offset by Twinkle Twinkle.

Taiwan Snack-Maker’s Chairman Threatens Job Cuts as Consumer Tastes Shift (Caixin) $

• The chairman of Want Want China Holdings (HKG: 0151 / FRA: 4HQ / OTCMKTS: WWNTY / WWNTF) has warned employees about a major business crisis, threatening to dismiss underperforming managers as the Taiwanese snack and beverage giant struggles with plunging profits and shifting consumer tastes.

• The internal reprimand highlights the severe challenges facing the traditional consumer brand in the Chinese market, where fierce competition and a growing preference for healthier alternatives are rapidly eroding the dominance of legacy products.

🇨🇳 Want Want Begins Layoffs as Profit Slump Deepens Pressure on Legacy Snack Maker (Caixin) $

• Hong Kong-listed snack maker Want Want China Holdings (HKG: 0151 / FRA: 4HQ / OTCMKTS: WWNTY / WWNTF) has begun layoffs and required employees to submit self-evaluation reports as it confronts sliding profits and what its chairman has described as a major operational crisis.

• The moves underscore mounting pressure on the traditional food-and-beverage company, which is struggling to adapt its long-established product portfolio to changing consumer demand for healthier snacks and to disruptions in its core wholesale distribution channels.

🇨🇳 ZhongAn Online (6060.HK): The Insurtech Everyone Gave Up On (Substack von Philipp)

• The first internet insurer in China now trades below the book value of its own equity — while it writes profitable insurance, owns Hong Kong’s largest digital bank, and grows health premiums above 20%

• I first looked at ZhongAn Online P & C Insurance Co (HKG: 6060 / FRA: 1ZO) back at its IPO in 2017, and I did what most disciplined investors did back then: I passed. The stock came public at HK$59.70, ran to almost HK$98 within days, and was valued as though it had already conquered global insurance. It hadn’t. It was losing money on every policy it wrote.

• What followed was one of the more brutal de-ratings I have watched in Asia.

🇨🇳 Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Futu Holdings: The China Discount Is Obsolete After Q2 Earnings Report (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 LexinFintech Q2 Earnings Preview: Low Valuation Meets Unclear Inflection Points (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Lufax: A Mix Of Positives And Negatives (Rating Downgrade) (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 X Financial 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Daqo New Energy: Treading Water In An Increasingly Negative Polysilicon Market (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇳 Daqo New Energy Corp. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇨🇳 Junxin chases Hong Kong IPO, seeking funds to export its trash-to-cash story (Bamboo Works)

• The waste management specialist has received regulatory approval for its Hong Kong listing plan as it seeks growth outside its main market where it wields an effective monopoly

• Hunan Junxin Environmental Protection Co Ltd (SHE: 301109) has received regulatory approval to list in Hong Kong, aiming to sell global investors on its trash-to-cash story

• The company is looking to export its business model beyond the Central Chinese city of Changsha, where it holds an effective monopoly in waste management

🇨🇳 China Built 700 Waste-to-Energy Plants in 6 Years (Asianometry)

• In 2019, the BBC published a trashy story about one of Mainland China’s largest landfills. The Jiangcungou (江村沟垃圾填埋场) in the city of Xi’an, the story goes, had run out of capacity some 25 years ahead of schedule. That year, China had about 400 incineration and waste-to-energy plants. About 50% of the country’s municipal solid waste was processed by incineration. Six years later, the Chinese situation is a lot more interesting. In 2025, China has over 1,137 incineration plants and over 80% of Chinese municipal solid waste is incinerated. The country has about 1.2 million tons of daily incineration capacity, but just 700,000 tons of daily waste collection capacity. Thus, mothballed capacity plus counties digging up old landfills. Human history has never seen a more furious span of incinerator building. How did China build 700 incinerator plants in six years? In today’s video, a look at China’s 2020s incinerator boom.

🇨🇳 Cash-strapped Sirnaomics seeks lifeline in cosmetic treatments (Bamboo Works)

• The biotech is suing its former CEO over an ill-fated $20 million investment as it pursues a short-term pivot from skin cancer drugs to body-contouring therapies

• After the investment woes, loss-making Sirnaomics Ltd (HKG: 2257 / FRA: V5Z) faces a financial squeeze that, according to its auditor, puts a question mark over its long-term survival

• The company is seeking to boost its finances by redirecting research towards fat-reduction therapies, but the commercial prospects remain highly uncertain

🇨🇳 Zai Lab: Revenue Growth And Zoci’s Upside Optionality (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🇨🇳 Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ: ZLAB) 🇰🇾 – Commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company (oncology, immunology, neuroscience & infectious diseases).

🇨🇳 Trading Strategy of Shein on the First Day of IPO (Douglas Research Insights) $

• I discuss a trading strategy for Shein which starts trading in Hong Kong on 1 September. My base case valuation of Shein is target price of HK48.2 per share.

• I think its share price needs to decline another 25% or more for the valuation of the company to be more compelling.

• That would mean its share price would need to decline to about HK36.2 per share.

🇨🇳 🇭🇰 Shanghai’s answer to Nasdaq outstrips Hong Kong amid Chinese tech frenzy (FT) $ 🗃️

• Star 50 index up almost a quarter this year, leaving rivals behind

• The Star 50 index, which includes leading stocks on the city’s Star Market, has risen by 23 per cent this year. It is well ahead of the tech index in Shenzhen, which is up 10 per cent, and far better than the 14 per cent decline for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Tech Index.

🇭🇰 Hong Kong Banks Ask Mainland Clients to Verify Offshore Source of Investment Funds (Caixin) $

• Banks in Hong Kong have begun asking existing clients from the Chinese mainland to declare that funds used for their investment activities come from legal sources outside the mainland, as regulators tighten oversight of cross-border trading.

• The compliance push follows a Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) directive issued in May and marks the latest step by regulators to close loopholes in cross-border securities investment by mainland residents while clearing out inactive accounts.

🇭🇰 China to Let Mainland Insurers Buy Hong Kong ETFs Through Stock Connect (Caixin) $

• China’s top financial regulator said mainland insurance funds will be allowed to invest in Hong Kong-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) through the cross-border Stock Connect program, a move expected to bring a new pool of long-term capital into the city’s market.

• The change could strengthen Hong Kong’s role as an international asset-management hub while giving mainland insurers more options to diversify their portfolios.

🇭🇰 Prenetics Global: Marketing Mastery The Key To Robust Revenue Growth (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇭🇰 Champion Real Estate Investment Trust 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇭🇰 Sun Hung Kai & Co. Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇭🇰 CK Hutchison: Watch Deleveraging And Value-Unlocking Potential (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇭🇰 CK Hutchison Seeks $1.5 Billion in Damages From Panama Over Seized Ports (Caixin) $

• Hong Kong-listed conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings (HKG: 0001 / FRA: 2CKA / OTCMKTS: CKHUY / CKHUF) has launched international arbitration against the Panamanian government, seeking more than $1.5 billion in compensation for alleged violations of an investment protection treaty, according to a Thursday statement.

• The move introduces a new legal front in a battle over operating rights of two major container terminals along the Panama Canal. The dispute began last year and intensified after the Trump administration pressured Panama to wrest control from the China-linked operator.

🇭🇰 CK Hutchison (1 HK) Ratches Up Panama Canal Legal Wrangling (Hong Kong/China M&A/Events)

• Last week, CK Hutchison Holdings (HKG: 0001 / FRA: 2CKA / OTCMKTS: CKHUY / CKHUF) reported a 6.1% and 6.4% lift in 1H26 revenue and underlying net profit (excluding one-off items) to HK$241.6bn and HK$12.6bn. Pretty decent numbers.

• End-July, CKH offloaded its 49% stake in VodafoneThree for US$5.8bn. No mention of the AS Watson IPO in the results or the anaylsts’ call. Reportedly it’s been delayed to 2027.

• The Panama port cessation incurred a HK$496mn hit to EBITDA. CKH has now announced a Investment Treaty Arbitration against the Panamanian Republic, an entirely separate claim to the contractual arbitration.

🇭🇰 AIA Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇭🇰 uCloudlink Group Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇭🇰 MMTec: Now We’ve Even Seen A 100% Revenue Drop (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇲🇴 Macau market remains ‘very competitive’, says Seaport after meetings with managements of MGM, Wynn (GGRAsia)

• Brokerage Seaport Research Partners says the casino market in Macau “remains very competitive”, but there is a “revenue recovery evident” compared to the betting volume slowdown seen during the recent FIFA World Cup 2026, which took place between June and July.

• The comments by Seaport senior analyst Vitaly Umansky came after separate meetings with company management teams at MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and Wynn Resorts Ltd (NASDAQ: WYNN). These were held during the first day of the Seaport Annual Summer Conference, taking place this week.

• MGM Resorts is the U.S.-based parent of MGM China Holdings Ltd (HKG: 2282 / FRA: M04 / OTCMKTS: MCHVF / MCHVY), operator of the MGM Macau and MGM Cotai casino properties in Macau.

• U.S.-based Wynn Resorts Ltd (NASDAQ: WYNN) controls Wynn Macau Ltd (HKG: 1128 / FRA: 8WY / OTCMKTS: WYNMY / WYNMF), which runs the Wynn Macau and Wynn Cotai complexes.

🇲🇴 Moody’s affirms senior unsecured ratings for LVS, Sands China, amid parent’s ‘strong liquidity’ (GGRAsia)

• Moody’s Ratings has affirmed casino group Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) ‘Baa3’ senior unsecured rating, as well as the ‘Baa2’ senior unsecured rating of its Macau unit Sands China (HKG: 1928 / FRA: 599A / OTCMKTS: SCHYY / OTCMKTS: SCHYF). The outlooks for the two companies remain ‘stable’, the ratings agency said in an update.

• Moody’s added in its rating action, issued on Thursday: “The affirmations and stable outlooks reflect Las Vegas Sands’ strong liquidity, and our expectation that Las Vegas Sands will maintain debt/EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation] in the low 3x range.”

• The assessment also took into account Las Vegas Sands progressing with “major developments, including the Marina Bay Sands expansion in Singapore, which upon completion will deliver a considerable amount of additional visitation and in turn, considerable earnings and ability to reduce leverage”.

🇲🇴 Macau visitor arrivals top 3.5mln in July, but overnighters lagging (GGRAsia)

• Macau’s visitor arrivals in July rose 2.4 percent year-on-year, to just over 3.54 million, according to data published on Friday by the city’s Statistics and Census Service.

• Same-day visitors in July amounted to nearly 2.11 million, up 6.4 percent from the prior-year period. Overnight visitors – regarded by investment analysts as typically the most valuable to the city’s tourism sector – stood at about 1.43 million, 2.9-percent lower than a year ago.

🇹🇼 Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇼 Himax: The Quiet Automotive Chip Leader Wall Street Keeps Underestimating (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇹🇼 Quanta Computer Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌐 Quanta Computer (TPE: 2382 / OTCMKTS: QUCCF) – Notebook manufacturer + cloud computing business, enterprise network solutions, mobile communication products, smart home products, autotronics, smart healthcare, IoT & AI applications. 🇼 🏷️

🇰🇷 WSJ Reports Trump Wants to Meet Kim Jong-Un in 2026 – Impact on North Korea Related Stocks (Douglas Research Insights) $

• On 18 August, WSJ reported that the Donald Trump wants to meet North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un as soon as this fall.

• There is a trade involving this event which is to go long on a basket of stocks related to North Korea reconciliation leading up to meeting between Trump and Kim.

• I provide a list of 10 Korean stocks that could benefit from a reconciliation with NK. A key risk with this trade is if Trump and Kim never meets again.

🇰🇷 Mandatory Tender Offer for All Remaining Shares in Korea – Lawmakers Trying to Make This Into Law (Douglas Research Insights) $

• I believe the mandatory tender offer for all remaining shares is likely to be passed into law sometime in 2H 2026/1H 2027.

• If this is finally made into law, it will have a positive impact on the entire Korean stock market (reduced corporate governance concerns related to M&A tender offers).

• Democratic Party lawmaker Park Hong-bae has proposed a Capital Markets Act amendment requiring a mandatory tender offer for all remaining shares.

🇰🇷 Mergers in Korea to Be Completed Based on Fair Valuation Method Rather Than Average Market Prices (Douglas Research Insights) $

• An amendment to Capital Markets Act (mergers in Korea to be completed on fair valuation basis rather than average market prices) was passed at the National Assembly’s plenary session.

• It is likely that this amendment will be made into law by the end of this year.

• This is clearly a step in the right direction and takes Korea another step closer to reducing corporate governance problems that have persistently impacted lower relative valuations versus global peers.

🇰🇷 Korea Sector ETFs Weekly #2 [Week Ending 21 August 2026] (Douglas Research Insights) $

• These 30 sector ETFs in Korea were down on average 6.8% in the past one week, significantly underperforming KOSPI which was down 0.9% in the same period.

• Among the 30 sector ETFs below, only two ETFs outperformed KOSPI including TIGER Cosmetics (up 2.7%) and TIGER Semiconductor Top10 (up 0.6%).

• Overall implied market breadth continued to be very poor in Korea in the past week (90% of the sector ETFs underperforming KOSPI, 27 out of 30).

🇰🇷 Kangwon Land Inc paid US$427mln in public dues for 2025, more than S.Korea’s 17 foreigner-only casinos (GGRAsia)

• Kangwon Land (KRX: 035250), the only business in South Korea permitted to run a resort with a casino open to locals, paid more in national and local taxes and contributions to “funds” in 2025 than the country’s foreigner-only casino segment combined. That is according to data issued by the National Gambling Control Commission.

• Kangwon Land Inc, which runs Kangwon Land in an upland area approximately 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the capital Seoul, paid KRW603.30 billion (US$426.8 million) in dues last year, a 5.8 percent increase from 2024.

🇰🇷 KB Financial Group Remains A Good Value Play In The Global Banking Sector (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇰🇷 Magnachip: SiC Overtures Are Welcome, But Ongoing Portfolio Transformation Remain Iffy (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇰🇷 Samsung Has Thrived Without Directly Relying On Nvidia (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇰🇷 Samsung to return record $80bn to shareholders (FT) $ 🗃️

🇰🇷 Samsung Electronics Preparing to Announce Shareholder Returns of 100 Trillion Won+ (Douglas Research Insights) $

• Numerous major news outlets including Reuters have reported that Samsung Electronics (KRX: 005930 / 005935 / LON: BC94 / FRA: SSUN / OTCMKTS: SSNLF) is getting ready to announce a major shareholder return plan worth more than 100 trillion won ($72 billion).

• The proposed framework would return about 50% of free cash flow to shareholders, with dividends expected to make up most of the payout.

• Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) and Samsung Electronics Pref Shares (005935 KS) were up 3.9% and 8.3%, respectively today on the back of this news about the potential major shareholder returns.

🇰🇷 Why Samsung Electronics Should Buyback and Cancel At Least 10% of Its Preferred Shares (Douglas Research Insights) $

• In this insight, I argue why Samsung Electronics (KRX: 005930 / 005935 / LON: BC94 / FRA: SSUN / OTCMKTS: SSNLF) should buyback and cancel at least 10% of its preferred shares.

• Clearly, many shareholders have been disappointed with lack of buybacks/cancellations with the recent 30 trillion won dividend program.

• In order to appease many disappointed investors in Samsung Electronics, the company should significantly increase the buybacks/cancellation portion of the remaining shareholder returns, especially for the preferred shares.

🇰🇷 Cuckoo Holdings (192400 KR): A Blue Chip Rice Cooker Duopoly at a Discount, Value-Up Momentum (Demystified Value)

• EV/EBIT 4x, 5.7x P/E – Owners Earnings, 0.69x adjusted TBV and 6% dividend yield for an average to above average growing business with 70% Korean market share and excellent brand power.

• Cuckoo Holdings Co Ltd (KRX: 192400) is a Korean holding company that is engaged primarily in the manufacturing, R&D and sale of rice cookers and secondarily in sale or lease of kitchen and lifestyle appliances.

• Cuckoo Holdings is a great entry point into the South Korea trade. The holding company structure is easier to understand than most, avoids the general tax inheritance/family succession issues and its a simple easy to understand business and idea. It seems like there’s so many ideas that are similar to this where you aren’t really competing on uncovering information, you’re competing on just entering the market and buying a position, many don’t but overtime that may change as the Korean market reforms play into effect.

• There is nothing really interesting, hidden or eye popping about this stock, it’s a beloved blue chip rice cooker brand where you can purchase ₩4,600/sh of owners earnings or ₩38,285/sh of adjusted net tangible assets for ₩27,400/sh, collect the 6% dividend yield and wait for the value-up catalyst to workout or for investors to notice. It’s an average to above average business trading at Graham & Dodd prices and holding a basket of those type of ideas tend to do very well.

🇰🇷 Silicon2: Capital Raise of 300 Billion Won from CVC Capital (Douglas Research Insights) $

• Silicon 2 Co Ltd (KOSDAQ: 257720) has secured a third party allocated capital increase worth 300 billion won (representing 10.3% of market share) from CVC Capital private equity firm.

• Silicon2 plans to use the capital for working capital to expand its global logistics infrastructure and increase its market share overseas.

• The company’s excellent sales growth and profit margins in the past year have been able to reduce concerns about the U.S. tariffs.

• On 18 August, it was reported that Silicon2 (257720 KS) (market cap of 2.9 trillion won) has secured a third party allocated capital increase worth 300 billion won (representing 10.3% of market share) from CVC Capital private equity firm.

🇰🇷 Tender Offer of a 30% Stake in Refine Co by Stonebridge Capital and LS Securities (Douglas Research Insights) $

• Private equity firm Stonebridge Capital and LS Securities Co Ltd (KOSDAQ: 078020) are launching a tender offer for a 30% stake in Refine Co Ltd (KOSDAQ: 377450).

• Tender offer price of 17,600 won is 29.6% higher than the closing price on 14 August and reflects a 50.1% premium over the weighted average stock price of past month.

• I have a positive view on this tender offer. Clearly, the company is not doing enough to improve shareholder returns (net cash is 67% of market cap).

🇰🇷 SK Hynix’s 40 Trillion Won Share Buyback and Cancellation – Trading Implications (Douglas Research Insights) $

• SK Hynix (KRX: 000660) announced a major treasury shares repurchase and cancellation of about 40 trillion won ($29 billion), representing about 3.3% of outstanding shares.

• SK Hynix plans to return more than 50% of the cumulative free cash flow (FCF) generated during 2025-2027E to shareholders.

• In terms of trading implications in the next several weeks, this could positively boost SK Hynix’s share price back to about 2,200,000 won level (about 40-50% upside).

🇰🇷 I-Scream Media: Listening to Minority Shareholders and Estimated Dividend Yield of 13% (Douglas Research Insights) $

• I Scream Media Co Ltd (KOSDAQ: 461300) reported excellent results in 1H26. The company generated sales of 92.5 billion won (up 18.5% YoY) and operating profit of 23.9 billion won (up 64.5% YoY) in 1H26.

• The company is listening to its minority shareholders and seriously improving its corporate governance with higher shareholder returns. Estimated dividend yield is 13% this year.

• I Scream Media is trading at P/E of 4.5x and EV/EBITDA of 1.3x based on recent prices and TTM financials. Net cash as a percentage of market cap is 74%.

🇰🇷 Kakao Corp: Equity Spin-Off Plan [This Is Not What The Shareholders Want] (Douglas Research Insights) $

• On 21 August, Kakao Corp (KRX: 035720) announced that its BOD approved an equity spin off involving “Kakao AI” and “Kakao X.”

• Going through the details regarding this plan, I believe this is NOT what the shareholders want. I am Negative on this equity spin-off plan

• I am mainly Negative on this spin-off since I do not have enough confidence of Kakao AI newco’s ability to significantly increase its sales and profits expected by the company.

🇰🇷 Elice Group IPO Preview (Douglas Research Insights) $

• Elice Group is getting ready to complete its IPO on KOSDAQ in September. This is one of the largest IPOs in KOSDAQ this year.

• The IPO price range is from 70,400 won to 90,500 won. The total offering amount is expected to be between 156.4 billion won and 201.1 billion won.

• Elice Group provides full-stack AI solutions based on its proprietary AI cloud technology. Its core business is divided into AI Transformation (AX) and AI Cloud services.

🌏 Asean digital lending tipped to hit US$200 billion by 2030 (The Asset) 🗃️

• Super-apps shift focus to highly profitable embedded credit business

• Digital lending is rapidly reshaping the financial landscape of Southeast Asia, fuelled by massive demand from a vast underserved demographic. Over 70% of the adult population in the region remains unbanked or underbanked, creating an opportunity for technology companies to step in and fill the gap. Consequently, digital lending in Asean is expected to grow to about US$200 billion by 2030, up from just US$70 billion in 2024, according to Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry.

🇰🇭 Cambodia’s 1H duties from casinos and gambling down 26pct y-o-y to US$28mln: report (GGRAsia)

• First-half Cambodian state revenues derived from duties on casino gaming and gambling fell by 25.8 percent year-on-year to circa US$28 million, reported on Thursday the Khmer Times, citing information from the country’s Ministry of Economy and Finance.

• The news outlet said the information was in a Wednesday update from the ministry on the implementation of the country’s budget, covering the six months to June 30.

• The largest portion of revenue from gaming was said to have been derived from NagaCorp (HKG: 3918 / FRA: N9J / OTCMKTS: NGCRF), a casino resort with monopoly rights for the capital Phnom Penh, run by Hong Kong-listed NagaCorp Ltd. The casino firm is yet to issue its first-half results.

🇲🇾 PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇲🇾 AMMB Holdings Berhad 2027 Q1 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇲🇾 Genting Malaysia returns to profit in 2Q, as U.S. revenue soars and domestic performance is flat (GGRAsia)

• Global casino operator Genting Malaysia (KLSE: GENM OTCMKTS: GMALY / GMALF) reported a profit of MYR27.0 million (US$6.7 million) for the second quarter of 2026. That was an improvement on the MYR25.2-million loss it recorded for the first three months of 2026, but far from the MYR398.1 million profit of the second quarter of 2025.

• The quarterly profit was helped by a 32.6 percent year-on-year increase in group-wide revenues from leisure and hospitality operations, to nearly MYR3.81 billion, the company said in a Thursday filing to Bursa Malaysia.

• The firm decided not to declare an interim dividend for the period.

• “The group will continue to exercise prudent capital management, balancing business requirements and ongoing investments with efforts to pare down existing debt, with a focus on delivering sustainable long-term value to shareholders,” it said.

🇲🇾 GEN Malaysia U.S. operations seen at 36pct of group EBITDA in 2027: Maybank (GGRAsia)

• Genting Malaysia (KLSE: GENM OTCMKTS: GMALY / GMALF)’s United States and Caribbean operations are forecast to contribute 36 percent of the group’s annual earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in 2027, up 20 percentage points from 2025.

• That would be based on a projected 63.1 percent year-on-year increase in the U.S. and Caribbean segment’s EBITDA, to MYR1.45 billion (US$358.5 million) in 2027, from an estimated MYR889.2 million this year, led by performance at the Resorts World New York City (RWNYC) casino complex.

• So said Maybank Investment Bank Bhd in a Friday note, following Thursday’s issuance of Genting Malaysia’s second-quarter earnings. The casino firm returned to profit in the period, supported by soaring revenue in the U.S.

🇵🇭 Puregold Price Club, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇵🇭 JG Summit Holdings, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌏 JG Summit Holdings (PSE: JGSHI / OTCMKTS: JGSHF / JGSMY) – Conglomerate. Air transportation, banking, food manufacturing, hotels, petrochemicals, power generation, publishing, real estate & property development & telecommunications. 🇼

🇵🇭 Megaworld Corporation 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇵🇭 Security Bank Corporation 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇵🇭 GT Capital Holdings, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇵🇭 GT Capital Holdings (PSE: GTCAP) – Conglomerate. Banking, property development, infrastructure & utilities, auto assembly, importation, wholesaling, dealership & financing & life & non-life insurance. 🇼

🇵🇭 Jollibee Foods Corporation 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌐 Jollibee Foods (PSE: JFC / OTCMKTS: JBFCF / JBFCY) – Foreign & local fast food/restaurant brands in the Philippines & abroad (Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal, etc.). 🇼

🇵🇭 The Keepers Holdings, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇵🇭 Int Ent warns annual loss could widen to US$64mln on convertible-note fair-value hit (GGRAsia)

• Hong Kong-listed International Entertainment Corporation (HKG: 1009) says it expects its loss attributable to shareholders to widen to approximately HKD500 million (US$63.8 million) for the 12 months to June 30, despite growth in gross profit driven by its gaming operations.

• The forecast compares with a loss attributable to owners of the company of approximately HKD282.1 million in the preceding financial year, according to a Friday filing.

• International Entertainment controls the Manila Bay casino hotel in the Philippines formerly known as New Coast Hotel Manila, now promoted as LaVie Resort & Casino Manila.

• The company said the anticipated annual loss was mainly due to a non-cash loss of approximately HKD425 million arising from a change in the fair value of financial liabilities linked to HKD1.60 billion in convertible notes issued during the reporting period.

🇸🇬 Top Stock Market Highlights of the Week: Sembcorp Industries, Singapore’s Big Three Banks, Moderna and CapitaLand Investment (The Smart Investor)

• From major green infrastructure moves in Asia to breakthrough clinical trial results in the US, significant corporate developments are reshaping investor sentiment across key sectors.

  • An Indian renewables arm gets readied for the market

    • Sembcorp Industries (SGX: U96 / FRA: SBOA / OTCMKTS: SCRPF) is preparing to file for an initial public offering (IPO) of its Indian renewable energy unit, Sembcorp Green Infra, in a share sale that could raise as much as US$500 million.

  • Three local lenders bankroll a hydrogen-powered data centre

    • DBS Group (SGX: D05 / FRA: DEVL / DEV / OTCMKTS: DBSDY / DBSDF), Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) (SGX: O39 / FRA: OCBA / FRA: OCBB / OTCMKTS: OVCHY) and United Overseas Bank (SGX: U11 / FRA: UOB / UOB0 / OTCMKTS: UOVEY / UOVEF) have jointly extended a four-year green loan of S$530 million to DayOne, a global digital infrastructure platform, the banks announced on 18 August 2026.

    • The facility will finance DayOne’s first data centre in Singapore, which is expected to be the Republic’s first to feature on-site solid oxide fuel cell power generation – a proof-of-concept exploring hydrogen-based energy solutions.

  • A landmark cancer trial rewrites the mRNA investment case

  • A Raffles Place landmark looks set to change hands

🇸🇬 The Business With No Competitors (The Smart Investor)

• Some Singapore companies enjoy near-monopoly positions, but the real question is whether their competitive advantage can continue creating value.

  • A monopoly is just one kind of moat

  • Having a moat and using one well are different skills

  • 16 straight years of raising dividends

  • A moat is not a blank cheque

  • Get Smart: Look for the businesses nobody can copy

🇸🇬 BitFuFu: Q2 Performance Calls For A Neutral Stance (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇸🇬 Keppel REIT (KREVF) Presents at ASEAN Conference 2026 – Slideshow

• 🌏 Keppel REIT (SGX: K71U / OTCMKTS: KREVF) – Prime commercial assets in Asia Pacific’s key business districts. Singapore, Australia, Japan & Korea. 🇼 🏷️

🇸🇬 ASMPT Limited: An Obscure Upstream Semiconductor Company With 98% Bookings Growth In Q2 (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇸🇬 Sea: The Growth Model Remains Intact (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🌏 Sea Limited (NYSE: SE) – 3 core businesses: Garena (global online games developer & publisher), Shopee (largest pan-regional e-commerce platform in SE Asia & Taiwan), SeaMoney (leading digital payments & financial services provider in SE Asia). 🇼 🏷️

🇸🇬 Sea Limited Q2 2026 Earnings Review (GabGrowth)

• More top-line acceleration (48%!), profitability set to ramp in H2

• Revenue: $7.79B v $7.09B est. (+48.1% YoY) 🟢

• EPS: $0.70 v $0.79 🔴

• Sea Limited reported earnings on 11th August before the market open.

• The stock closed the day up 15%.

🇸🇬 5 High-Yield Singapore Stocks: Are Their Dividends Really Safe? (The Smart Investor)

🇸🇬 This Forgotten Blue Chip Raised its Dividends by 77%, is it Worth Another Look? (The Smart Investor)

• A 77% dividend increase is hard to ignore, but is it sustainable?

• DFI Retail Group (SGX: D01 / FRA: DFA1 / OTCMKTS: DFIHY) raised its interim dividend from US$0.035 per share to US$0.062 for the first six months of 2026 (1H 2026).

  • Where did the 77% come from?

  • Can free cash flow carry the dividend?

  • Where does DFI earn its money now?

    • DFI has four main operating divisions, namely Health and Beauty, Convenience, Food, and Home Furnishings.

  • What should you watch from here?

  • Get Smart: Take a cue from Warren Buffett before you decide

🇸🇬 STI 5,700: 3 Blue-Chip Dividend Singapore Stocks to Watch (The Smart Investor)

• The STI reached 5,700, but these three Singapore blue-chip dividend stocks reveal what really matters: the cash supporting their payouts.

  • ST Engineering keeps adding to the payout

  • Venture’s higher dividend needs a second look

    • Venture Corporation (SGX: V03 / FRA: VEM / OTCMKTS: VEMLF) raised its interim dividend 20% YoY to S$0.30 per share from S$0.25.

    • Second-quarter revenue rose 12.5% YoY to S$726.2 million.

    • Growth was driven by test and measurement instrumentation, networking and communications, and semiconductor equipment serving AI infrastructure, partially offset by weaker Lifestyle Consumer volumes.

  • Genting Singapore holds steady while it builds

    • Genting Singapore (SGX: G13 / FRA: 36T / OTCMKTS: GIGNF / GIGNY) declared an interim tax-exempt dividend of S$0.02 per share, unchanged from a year ago and payable on 22 September 2026.

    • It chose to hold rather than raise, and the spending is the backdrop.

  • Get Smart: put the payout next to the cash

🇸🇬 Shareholder Windfall: 3 SGX Stocks Boosting Dividends by 20%+ (The Smart Investor)

• Dividend hikes of over 20% put these three SGX stocks in focus, but the cash funding each payout tells a different story.

  • Can a smaller top line support a bigger dividend?

    • United Overseas Insurance (SGX: U13 / FRA: IZB), or UOI, underwrites general insurance in Singapore and belongs to the UOB Group.

    • Insurance revenue fell 8.9% year on year (YoY) in the first half of 2026 (1H2026) to S$52.1 million, down from S$57.2 million a year ago.

    • Yet, the interim dividend went in the opposite direction, jumping from S$0.07 to S$0.09.

  • Does the order book back the higher payout?

    • Nordic Group Ltd (SGX: MR7) provides engineering solutions through two units, Project Services and Maintenance Services, operating across Singapore, China and Malaysia.

    • Revenue edged up 3% YoY to S$87.2 million in 1H2026.

  • What happens when ERP 2.0 ends?

    • Vicom Ltd (SGX: WJP) delivered the second largest dividend hike of the trio – and the one driven by the least sustainable catalyst.

    • The testing and inspection group, a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Corporation (SGX: C52 / FRA: VZ1 / VZ10 / OTCMKTS: CDGLF / CDGLY), raised its interim dividend by 27.4% YoY, moving from S$0.031 to S$0.0395.

  • Get Smart: What paid for the raise

🇸🇬 3 Temasek-Backed Dividend Stocks Rewarding Investors Before September 2026 (The Smart Investor)

• DBS, Singapore Airlines and Olam Group are paying dividends this month, but the source of their payouts reveals very different income stories.

• DBS Group (SGX: D05 / FRA: DEVL / DEV / OTCMKTS: DBSDY / DBSDF) pays on 25 August.

• Singapore Airlines (SGX: C6L / FRA: SIA1 / OTCMKTS: SINGY / SINGF), or SIA, follows on 28 August.

• Olam Group Ltd (SGX: VC2 / FRA: K25 / OTCMKTS: OLGPF) closes the month on 31 August.

• Temasek holds 28% of DBS and 50% of SIA as at 31 March 2026, while its stake in Olam runs to 52%

  • Did this quarter earn DBS’s dividend?

  • Who paid for Olam’s special dividend?

  • Which financial year earned SIA’s payout?

  • Get Smart: Trace the cash before you count on it

🇸🇬 3 Cash-Rich SGX Dividend Stocks With Over 4% Yield (The Smart Investor)

• Three SGX dividend stocks yield above 4% with no bank borrowings, but free cash flow reveals how sustainable their payouts really are.

  • What does the largest cash pile buy?

    • HRNetGroup (SGX: CHZ) provides recruitment and staffing services across 19 Asian cities through 41 business units.

    • Its work spans permanent placement, executive search and contract manpower.

  • Can a company return cash and still lift its dividend?

    • Credit Bureau Asia Ltd (SGX: TCU), or CBA, supplies credit and risk information to banks, corporations and government bodies across Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia and Myanmar.

    • It operates credit bureaux through joint ventures on the financial institution (FI) on one side, and business information services through Dun & Bradstreet partnerships on the other.

  • Does a faster-growing dividend mean a safer one?

  • Get Smart: Which support is paying you?

🇸🇬 Get Smart: Record Profits, Bigger Dividends – But Are the Banks Still a Buy? (The Smart Investor)

🇸🇬 Are Singapore Blue Chips Too Expensive? 3 Stocks to Examine Before You Buy (The Smart Investor)

• Singapore blue chips have rallied strongly, leaving investors wondering whether they have become too expensive.

  • Before Calling a Stock “Expensive”, Check These 3 Things

  • DBS Group (SGX: D05 / FRA: DEVL / DEV / OTCMKTS: DBSDY / DBSDF): The Stock That Looks Expensive for Good Reason

  • Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SGX: Z74 / FRA: SIT / SIT4 / OTCMKTS: SGAPY / SNGNF) or Singtel: The Dividend Favourite

    • Singtel stands out as a go-to choice for income-focused investors, with its share price trading at S$4.45 (as of 20 August 2026), up 8.3% over the past year.

  • Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd (SGX: S63 / FRA: SJX / OTCMKTS: SGGKF) or ST Engineering: The Growth Stock at a Higher Multiple

    • ST Engineering has emerged as a premier industrial growth play, with its share price trading at S$10.85 as of 20 August 2026, far above its 52-week low of S$7.54.

  • Buy Now or Wait for a Pullback?

  • What Would Make These Stocks Truly Too Expensive?

  • Get Smart: Expensive Is Relative

🇸🇬 The best time to buy bank shares (The Smart Investor)

🇸🇬 Passive Income Boost: Singapore Banks Prepare to Pay Shareholders Next Week (The Smart Investor)

• DBS, OCBC and UOB are paying dividends next week, but investors should look beyond payout amounts to understand each bank’s income strength.

• DBS Group (SGX: D05 / FRA: DEVL / DEV / OTCMKTS: DBSDY / DBSDF) pays on 25 August 2026.

• Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) (SGX: O39 / FRA: OCBA / FRA: OCBB / OTCMKTS: OVCHY), or OCBC, and United Overseas Bank (SGX: U11 / FRA: UOB / UOB0 / OTCMKTS: UOVEY / UOVEF), or UOB, both pay on 28 August 2026.

  • What does DBS pay on 25 August?

  • Why did OCBC raise its dividend 15%?

  • What paid for UOB’s S$0.88 on 28 August?

  • Should you rank the three payments side by side?

  • Get Smart: Ask what paid for the payment

🇸🇬 Will DBS Reach S$100 by the End of 2026? (The Smart Investor)

• DBS Group (SGX: D05 / FRA: DEVL / DEV / OTCMKTS: DBSDY / DBSDF) has been one of Singapore’s best-performing blue-chip stocks in recent years. But could its shares realistically hit S$100 by the end of 2026, or are expectations getting ahead of fundamentals?

• Let’s examine the case for S$100 per share below.

  • How Far Away Is S$100?

  • What Would Need to Go Right?

  • What Could Prevent DBS From Reaching S$100?

  • Should Investors Focus on the Share Price Target?

  • Get Smart: Focus on the Business, Not the Number

🇸🇬 Meta Platforms vs OCBC: Which Stock Creates More Value for Shareholders? (The Smart Investor)

• One is an AI-powered technology giant, while the other is a leading Singapore bank. Despite operating in very different industries, both generate substantial value that supports long-term shareholder returns.

• This article compares how each company creates value for shareholders.

  • Different Business Models, Different Paths to Shareholder Returns

  • Capital Allocation: Two Different Philosophies

  • Which Type of Investor Might Prefer Each?

  • Common Mistakes Investors Make

  • Get Smart: Different Businesses, Same Goal

🇸🇬 3 SGX Dividend Stocks Rewarding Shareholders This Week (The Smart Investor)

• Three SGX dividend stocks are rewarding shareholders this week, but free cash flow reveals whether their payouts can continue.

• Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SGX: Z74 / FRA: SIT / SIT4 / OTCMKTS: SGAPY / SNGNF) or Singtel pays on 19 August 2026; iFAST Corporation Limited (SGX: AIY / FRA: 1O3 / OTCMKTS: IFSTF) follows a day later; and Keppel Ltd (SGX: BN4 / FRA: KEP / KEP1 /OTCMKTS: KPELY / KPELF) pays last on 21 August 2026.

  • Is iFAST’s dividend increase backed by profit?

  • What is actually funding Singtel’s dividend?

  • Can Keppel’s cash flow carry an unchanged dividend?

  • Get Smart: Trace the cash before you count the income

🇸🇬 3 Defensive S-REITs to Buy and Hold for Long-Term Passive Income (The Smart Investor)

• The best REITs for long-term passive income are not always the highest-yielding, and these three defensive S-REITs show why.

  • Parkway Life Real Estate Investment Trust (SGX: C2PU)

    • Parkway Life REIT offers specialised exposure to essential healthcare infrastructure across Singapore, Japan, and France.

  • CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (SGX: C38U / OTCMKTS: CPAMF), or CICT

    • CICT provides broad exposure to prime retail, office and integrated real estate assets across Singapore, Australia, and Germany.

  • Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U / OTCMKTS: MAPGF), or MLT

    • MLT owns and manages regional logistics and supply chain infrastructure across nine Asia-Pacific markets, holding 175 properties with assets under management of S$13.1 billion leased to 989 tenants as of 30 June 2026.

  • Building a Balanced Income Stream

  • Get Smart: Build Income That Lasts

🇸🇬 Is NetLink NBN Trust’s Highly Predictable Dividend Yield Sustainable? (The Smart Investor)

• NetLink NBN Trust has earned a reputation for delivering steady distributions backed by recurring cash flows, but can income investors count on those payouts to continue?

• NetLink NBN Trust (SGX: CJLU / OTCMKTS: NETLF), or NetLink, is Singapore’s poster child for predictability, with its ownership of the fibre network that carries broadband to nearly every office and home on the island.

• The question is whether the reliability can last.

  • Understanding NetLink’s Business Model

  • Why Its Cash Flows Are So Predictable

  • What Supports Its Distribution Per Unit (DPU)?

  • Can the Distribution Continue Growing?

  • What Are the Key Risks?

  • How Does NetLink Compare With Other Income Investments?

  • What Should Income Investors Look Out For?

  • Get Smart: Predictable Businesses Still Need Careful Analysis

🇹🇭 Banpu Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌏🇺🇸 Banpu PCL (BKK: BANPU / BANPU-R / FRA: NVAC / OTCMKTS: BAPUF) – Energy resources (coal & gas); energy generation (conventional & renewable); & energy technology (wind & solar, storage systems & energy technologies). 🇼 🏷️

🇹🇭 Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 PTT Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 PTT Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 IRPC Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 TTW Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 BTS Group Holdings Public Company Limited 2027 Q1 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Minor International Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Krungthai Card Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇭 Berli Jucker Public Company Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌏 Berli Jucker PCL (BKK: BJC / BJC-F / OTCMKTS: BLJZY) – Manufactures, distributes & services for packaging, consumer, healthcare & technical & modern retail supply chain businesses. 🏷️

🇮🇳 Infosys: Discipline Priced As Decline (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇮🇳 ReNew Energy: The Buy Paid Off, But Now It’s Time To Hold (Rating Downgrade) (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇮🇳 ReNew Energy Global Plc 2027 Q1 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇮🇳 Sansera Engineering: An Aerospace and Semiconductor Play (Smartkarma) $

• Post-Quarter order from existing semiconductor-equipment customer is described in management call notes as roughly Rs.1,250 crore over five years, taking ADS backlog from ~Rs.4,464 crore at Mar-26 to ~Rs.5,750 crore.

• ADS is a structurally higher-margin business. Management has indicated 25–30% margin potential at better utilisation, versus Sansera Engineering (NSE: SANSERA / BOM: 543358)’s Q1 FY27 consolidated EBITDA margin of 19.2%.

• Sansera is moving from an auto-heavy precision component maker toward a broader high-complexity engineering platform. The key debate shifts from auto cyclicality to ADS execution, capacity and valuation.

🇮🇳 Diamond Power Infrastructure: Growing Extra High Voltage and Data Center Segment (Smartkarma) $

• Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd (NSE: DIACABS / BOM: 522163) posted 129% YoY revenue growth and 191-257% PAT growth in Q1FY27, its seasonally weakest quarter, while completing a INR 1,640 crore QIP.

• Net worth turned positive for the first time since the company’s 2023 resolution plan, and the audit qualification on the books has been cleared.

• With an order book of INR 3,688 crore and eight capacity additions queued through FY28, the second half of FY27 is where guidance gets tested.

🇮🇳 Polycab India: FMEG Margin Inflection Becomes the Key Re-Rating Lever (Smartkarma) $

• Polycab India (NSE: POLYCAB / BOM: 542652) posted highest-ever Q1 revenue and PAT for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, with consolidated revenue up 39% YoY to Rs.8,209.73 crore and PAT up 33% to Rs.796.65 crore.

• Growth arrived on tough base (Q1FY26 volumes were up 26%), FMEG turned genuine profit engine at 8% EBIT margin, and market share is now 30-31%, up 300-400 bps in year.

• The next leg hinges on data centre and T&D capex converting from pipeline to invoices, export recovery from the Middle East, and whether Street valuations already price this in.

🇮🇳 R R Kabel: Whether FMEG Breakeven Put the Margin Thesis on Fast-Forward? (Smartkarma) $

[R R Kabel Ltd (NSE: RRKABEL / BOM: 543981)]

• Q1 FY27 revenue rose 54% YoY to INR 3,168 crore, EBITDA nearly doubled, and FMEG posted its first-ever operating breakeven quarter.

• The quarter validates the pivot from wire-heavy, low-margin volumes toward cables and premium FMEG under the three-year Project Rise roadmap.

• How INR 1,200 crore of new cable capacity, a 10.5% FY28 margin target, and rising export tariff risk shape the next two years.

🇮🇳 Groww: Can Margin Trading Become The Next Growth Engine? (Smartkarma) $

• Groww [Billionbrains Garage Ventures Limited (NSE: GROWW / BOM: GROWW)] has rapidly scaled its Margin Trading Facility (MTF) business, creating a new interest-income opportunity beyond traditional broking revenue.

• MTF can improve customer monetisation, increase wallet share and create a more recurring revenue stream for discount brokers.

• If Groww achieves meaningful MTF penetration similar to established players, the business model could shift from transaction-led to platform-led financial services.

🇮🇳 Indigo: Who Is Selling India’s Most Profitable Aviation Company? (Smartkarma) $

[Interglobe Aviation Ltd (NSE: INDIGO / BOM: 539448)]

• Promoter holding fell from 74.77% in Mar-22 to 41.57% in Jun-26, driven overwhelmingly by the Gangwal family’s planned monetisation.

• Gangwal-Linked ownership is down from about 36.9% to 5.85%, while the Bhatia side remains near 35.7%, preserving a clear ownership anchor.

• Residual promoter supply is now finite and quantifiable; fuel, FX, capacity and international execution increasingly matter more than the ownership overhang.

🇮🇳 Inox India Ltd: Backbone For Industrial Gases And Clean Energy (Smartkarma) $

[INOX India Ltd (NSE: INOXINDIA / BOM: 544046)]

• Q1 FY27 revenue rose 8.3% YoY to Rs.382 crore against an internal target of Rs.410-415 crore, while order inflow hit a record Rs.532 crore, taking the book to Rs.1,686 crore.

• The shortfall stems from freight and shipping delays, not demand weakness, and the company entered semiconductor infrastructure and deepened its aerospace pipeline in the same quarter.

• With Savli ramping, an export order book above Rs.1,140 crore, and 18-20% FY27 growth guidance reaffirmed, the near-term execution gap is worth scrutinizing before the growth thesis is dismissed.

🇮🇳 Aequitas: AGS Health Pre-IPO Tearsheet (Smartkarma) $

• Ags Health Limited (1539131D IN) is looking to raise about US$504m in its upcoming India IPO. The deal will be run by ICICI, JPM, Jefferies, Nomura and JM Fin.

• AGS Health (AGSH) is a technology-enabled healthcare revenue cycle management (RCM) company, providing billing, coding, analytics, automation and patient-access services primarily to U.S. healthcare providers.

• It contracts directly with US-based health systems, hospitals and large physician groups establishing direct relationships to optimize their revenue cycle operations across patient access, coding, billing and collections.

🇰🇿 Kazakh tenge soars as foreigners pile into government debt (FT) $ 🗃️

🇰🇿 Kaspi.Kz: Rabobank Acquisition Unlocks Flywheel Opportunity In Turkey (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇰🇿 Joint Stock Company Kaspi.kz 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇰🇿 KASPI (NASDAQ: KSPI / LON: 80TE / FRA: KKS) – Payments Platform, Marketplace Platform & Fintech Platform. 🇼

🇮🇱 Kenon Holdings: Decent NAV Discount, Data Centre Power Tailwind (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇮🇱 G. Willi-Food: The Delisting Discount Has Arrived (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇸🇦 Acwa to develop desalination plant in Indonesia (The Asset) 🗃️

• Facility will produce 62,500 cubic metres of potable water per day and 500,000 tonnes of high-purity industrial salt annually

• Saudi-listed Acwa Power Company SJSC (TADAWUL: 2082) has signed a joint development agreement with PT Garam, Indonesia’s state-owned salt enterprise, to build the country’s first utility-scale integrated seawater desalination and industrial salt production facility.

🇹🇷 Marti Technologies: Buy The Inflection Point (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇹🇷 Marti Technologies, Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

• 🇹🇷 Marti Technologies Inc (NYSEAMERICAN: MRT) – Mobility app for ride-hailing service (car, motorcycle & taxi drivers; delivery services; rental e-mopeds, e-bikes & e-scooters). 🇼

🇹🇷 Türkiye Sise Ve Cam Fabrikalari A.S. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇷 Dogus Otomotiv Servis ve Ticaret A.S. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇹🇷 Ülker Bisküvi Sanayi A.S. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌐 Ulker Biskuvi Sanayi AS (IST: ULKER / FRA: A7G / OTCMKTS: UELKY) – biscuits, cookies, crackers & chocolates + other F&B products. 🇼

🇦🇪 Yalla Group: Gaming Engine Humming, Free Cash And Buybacks Anchor Valuation (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇦🇪 Yalla Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

🌍 Jumia (Triple S Special Situations Investing)

• A 7x return bet on African E-Commerce

• Jumia, which was previously tied to Rocket Internet, was trying to build Amazon across Africa, in fourteen countries simultaneously, while also running food delivery, classifieds, travel booking and groceries.

• It listed in April 2019, peaked at $65 in February 2021 for reasons that had nothing whatsoever to do with African e-commerce, and has been skiing downhill since.

• They print a breakeven-ish Q4, deliver a much better 2027 with the losses going toward zero, and the market stops pricing this as a serial money loser and starts pricing it as a functioning e-commerce business, in which case the stock easily goes above $15 and our $1.15 turns into $8.00.

• Or this company continues to disappoint and fails on all metrics. There is a reason you are getting a huge multiple on this option trade. Be prepared for a zero.

🇳🇦 UIS it time to put some Andrada in the larder? (Wizard’s Winners)

• Andrada’s Uis mine is ramping up. The company is now on course to being FCF+ next year. What’s not to like… and is the Wizard buying?

• Namibia has been a mining backwater for a long time and well off the radar for most investors. More recently, however, change is in the air. Dominic Frisby has run the metaphorical slide rule over the country and found a lot to like in the jurisdiction, especially in the commodity’s space.

• Today we will look at one mining junior that has big plans for expansion there, with an enticing portfolio incorporating the three Ts of tin, tungsten and tantalum.

• But before we go there, we must say a few words about Namibia, where Andrada is based.

• Listed on AIM (ATM.L) with a market capitalisation of approximately £114m (at ~5.2p), Andrada Mining Ltd (LON: ATM / FRA: 9IA / OTCMKTS: ATMTF) is the only pure-play tin producer listed on the London market. The company controls a district-scale portfolio of critical mineral assets across the Erongo region of west-central Namibia, anchored by its flagship Uis Tin Mine.

🇿🇦 MTN Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

🇿🇦 Harmony Gold Mining: A Copper Pioneer By Capitalizing On The Gold Tailwind (Reaffirming Buy) (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇿🇦 Thungela Resources Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

🇿🇦 DRDGOLD Limited 2026 Q4 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

🇿🇦 Absa Group Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation

🇵🇱 KGHM Polska Miedz S.A. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇵🇱 Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen SA 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🇪🇺🏛️ PZU SA (WSE: PZU / FRA: 7PZ / FRA: 7PZ0) or Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen SA – Largest financial conglomerate in Poland & Central & Eastern Europe. Life, non-life & health insurance plus banking, investment, pension & health care products. 🇼 🏷️

🇵🇱 Dino Polska Can Build Stores. But Are the New Ones Still Creating Value? (DualEdge Invest)

• Revisiting a former finfluencer favourite, and the difference between scaling a footprint and compounding value

• Today, Dino Polska (WSE: DNP / FRA: 5Y2 / OTCMKTS: DNOPY) is discussed much less often in my corner of the internet. The business kept growing, but the share price did not follow. Compounding Quality’s full investment case was published around PLN 40.60 per share on today’s split-adjusted basis. Dino closed at PLN 32.49 on 19 August 2026. A falling share price does not prove a thesis failed, but it creates a useful moment to reopen the file.

• I am also looking at Dino as a different investor: older, more experienced and less willing to accept every good-news story at face value. “Founder-led compounder with a long runway” fits in a headline. Asking what a new store earns after cannibalisation, distribution capacity and working capital is harder. That second question is what matters.

• Dino operates compact supermarkets of roughly 400 square metres, mainly in smaller towns and less urbanised areas. A standard store carries about 5,000 products, parking and a staffed meat counter. Dino usually buys the land, builds to its own specification and connects the store to a company-controlled distribution network.

🌎 MercadoLibre: The Trend Has Turned, And I’m Buying The Breakout (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌎 The Price of Mercado Libre’s Dominance (CapexAndChill)

• Analysts are fixated on margin compression and credit expansion. Here is the structural alpha they are missing.

• Unsurprisingly, MercadoLibre (NASDAQ: MELI)’s second quarter earnings did not impress Wall Street. Wall Street was more concerned about the 550 basis point compression in operating margins than surpassing $10 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time with 43 percent FX-neutral growth. There was also a fair amount of concern over whether the credit portfolio is beginning to crack as it expanded by 75 percent year-over-year to $16.4 billion. MELI -1.90%↓

• I largely disagree with Wall Street’s consensus. Mercado Libre is not suffering from competitive erosion. Management has demonstrably continued to execute every quarter with strategic capital allocation, and this quarter is no different. They continue to utilize highly profitable segments to subsidize behavioral change in user habits across Latin America. In this post, I will focus on connecting the dots and examining some major insights that I found throughout this past quarter.

🇦🇷 Corporación América Airports: Buy The Earnings Dip And Enjoy The New 3.9% Yield (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇦🇷 Corporación América Airports S.A. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇦🇷 IRSA: Waiting For Ramblas (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇦🇷 YPF Sociedad Anonima: Affected By Macro Even Though Company Fundamentals Is Improving (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇦🇷 YPF: Vaca Muerta Delivers, But Political Risk Creates An Opportunity (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🇦🇷 🏛️ Ypf Sa (NYSE: YPF) – Vertically integrated, majority state-owned Argentine energy company. Oil & gas exploration & production + transportation, refining & marketing of gas & petroleum products. 🇼 🏷️

🇧🇷 Brazilian municipalities join BHP and Vale dam collapse payout scheme (FT) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 TIM S.A. (TIMB) Presents at XP CEO Conference – Slideshowv

🇧🇷 Verde AgriTech Limited 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇧🇷 Light S.A. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇧🇷 Marfrig Global Foods Showing Some Operational Improvements, But Volatility Remains A Key Issue (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 Election Risk, Market Opening, And Dividend Squeeze. Not A Good Moment For Cemig (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 Nu Holdings Still Has A Massive Growth Runway (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 NU’s Customers Are Getting More Valuable, Again (The Wolf of Harcourt Street)

• What the customer cohort data is revealing one year later

• Last September, I wrote [Nu’s Customers Get 34x More Valuable Over Time] about one of the most underappreciated parts of the Nu Holdings (NYSE: NU) investment thesis.

• NU’s data showed that a customer who generated $0.80 of monthly revenue in their first month would generate more than $27 per month after eight years. That is a 34x increase in revenue per customer.

• At the time, I used Q2 2025 data to ask a simple question:

• What happens to revenue if only NU’s existing customers mature?

🇧🇷 StoneCo Q2: Growing With Low Quality (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 StoneCo Ltd. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇧🇷 XP Inc. Q2: Better, But Not Way Better (Upgrade) (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇧🇷 XP Inc. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

• 🌎 XP Inc (NASDAQ: XP) – Wealth management & other financial services (fixed income, equities, investment funds & private pension products). 🇼

🇨🇱 Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile: Q2 Results And Positive Long-Term Lithium Market Outlook Make It A Buy (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🇨🇱 Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. 2026 Q2 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation (Seeking Alpha)

🇲🇽 Can Mexicans be weaned off an addiction to cash? (FT) $ 🗃️

🇲🇽 Wal-Mart De Mexico: Pressured By Weaker Spending And More Vigorous Discounters (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Heads We Win, Tails We Don’t Lose: The Beautiful Asymmetry of Burford Capital (Anthracite)

• Why Wall Street’s Panicked Re-Pricing of the YPF Court Case Has Created the Most Dislocated Valuation in the Market Today?

• At $4.35, you aren’t gambling on a binary court case.

• You are buying a cash-rich, highly diversified legal fortress with zero near-term debt risk, protected by a massive $3.34 cash-per-share floor.

• The market has panicked, and they are handing you a compounding machine for next to nothing.

• Heads we win big, tails we simply don’t lose.

🌐 Nebius: Why I Am Not Turning Bearish Amid Dilution (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Nebius: $18 Billion ARR By 2027 Makes This AI Play Too Cheap To Ignore (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Nebius: The Market Is Arguing About The Wrong Number (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Nebius: Strong Buy As AI Cloud Growth Explodes (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Nebius: Potential Road To $1,000 (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

🌐 Nebius: Explosive AI Growth, Expensive Expectations (Seeking Alpha) $ 🗃️

• 🌐 Nebius Group NV (NASDAQ: NBIS) – AI-centric cloud platform built for intensive AI workloads. Sold Yandex to a consortium of Russian investors. Retains several businesses outside of Russia. 🇼 🏷️

🌐 Nebius Group (NBIS): Q2 2026 Earnings Review (M. V. Cunha’s Substack)

• Today, Nebius Group NV (NASDAQ: NBIS) released its Q2 results.

• In my preview, I wrote that given this team’s track record, it wouldn’t make much sense to approach this report without being optimistic. Even so, they managed to surprise me again. Not so much on the headline numbers, which were quite good, but mostly on the economics behind them.

• Arkady opened his shareholders’ letter by saying this was the quarter the market validated the company’s strategy, and I think that’s a fair way to frame it.

• In this article, I’ll break down everything you need to know.

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Note: Investing.com has a full calendar for most global stock exchanges BUT you may need an Investing.com account, then hit “Filter,” and select the countries you wish to see company earnings from. Otherwise, purple (below) are upcoming earnings for US listed international stocks (Finviz.com):

Click here for the full weekly calendar from Investing.com containing frontier and emerging market economic events or releases (my filter excludes USA, Canada, EU, Australia & NZ).

Frontier and emerging market highlights (from IFES’s Election Guide calendar):

Frontier and emerging market highlights from IPOScoop.com and Investing.com (NOTE: For the latter, you need to go to Filter and “Select All” countries to see IPOs on non-USA exchanges):

MetaOptics (Uplisting) MOT Roth Capital Partners/The Benchmark Company, 3.0M Shares, $5.00-7.00, $18.0 mil, 8/24/2026 Week of

Note: This is NOT an IPO. This is a NASDAQ Uplisting – a public offering – from the Singapore Stock Exchange, where MetaOptics’ ordinary shares have been listed on the Catalist of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (the “SGX-ST”) since Sept. 9, 2025, under the ticker symbol “9MT” – according to the prospectus.

(Incorporated in the Cayman Islands)

We are a Singapore-based company that designs and manufactures metalenses – ultra-thin flat optical lenses that are smaller, lighter and more power efficient than traditional curved lenses.

Making Miniaturization Possible is our mission.

Note: MetaOptics says its metalens technology accommodates the demand for smaller and lighter lenses in smartphones, automotive technology and other uses.

From the prospectus:

We are a vertically integrated metalens technology company, combining core competencies across metalens equipment, foundry, products, and metaoptics artificial intelligence (“AI”). We conduct our operations through our wholly-owned subsidiaries in Singapore and the United States.

Metalenses are ultra-thin flat-surface lenses which are smaller, lighter, consume less power, and offer a wider field of view, compared to conventional optical lenses. The unique flatness of metalenses enables the correction of optical defects, delivering reasonable quality color images. Leveraging our AI-based algorithm and processing software, which incorporates several advanced algorithms to enhance the optical design and image processing, our metalens technology can further sharpen the images to achieve higher resolution and enhanced image quality, and allow users to manipulate the individual red, green and blue (“RGB”) channels to edit the color images through computational reconstruction. We believe that our innovations have transformative potential in shaping next-generation optical systems.

Our operations are centered on the design and manufacture of metalenses and metalens prototypes, and to demonstrate the viability, efficacy, applications and use cases of our metalenses, we have expanded our operations to include the development of metalens camera modules and metalens Internet of Things (“IoT”) products, such as infrared metalens cameras, pico projectors, and IoT metalens color cameras. Our metalenses have also been integrated into a wide range of applications by our customers, including fifth generation (“5G”) smartphones, contactless three-dimensional (“3D”) biometric modules, projectors, and for industrial applications such as IoT devices, light detection and ranging (“LiDAR”) devices and heads-up displays (“HUDs”) for planes and self-driving cars, and augmented reality/virtual reality (“AR/VR”) devices. To date, although we have achieved mass production capabilities for our metalens prototypes (“mass production” in our perspective refers to the shipment of one million metalens units per year), we have not yet received a critical mass of purchase orders from our customers necessitating mass production of our metalenses.

To facilitate small-scale production of our metalenses to fulfil purchase orders, reduce concentration risk and diversify our supply chain, and to demonstrate the manufacturing capabilities for our metalenses, we also design and produce equipment for the manufacture of metalenses, in particular 4-inch direct laser writers (“DLWs”). Our 4-inch DLWs enable our customers to revise specifications and design of metalenses directly, reducing the lead time and providing for a shorter turnaround time from prototyping to testing and deployment into end products. In addition, our metalens equipment offerings have grown to include the design and production of metalens automatic testers, for use by our customers to ensure quality control of metalenses prior to shipment. These capabilities enable us to serve as a one-stop provider of metalens and metalens IoT products, offer customers comprehensive end-to-end services, and preserve and grow our competitive advantage in the industry.

We offer our products to manufacturers of automotives, AR/VR devices, consumer electronic appliances, end-customers, and traders for the distribution of such products. While we offer our products worldwide, our existing customers for metalens equipment, metalenses and IoT products are mainly located in Singapore, Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, the United States, and several countries in Europe.

We intend to use the net proceeds from this offering primarily to support our expansion plans in the United States. See “Use of Proceeds.”

Note: Net loss and revenue are in U.S. dollars (converted from Singapore dollars) for the year that ended Dec. 31, 2025.

(Note: MetaOptics cut its NASDAQ Uplisting deal’s size to 3 million American Depositary Shares (ADS) – down from 4 million ADS – and disclosed a price range of $5.00 to $7.00 – a change from the assumed price of $8.15 per share – to raise $18 million, according to an F-1/A filing dated June 10, 2026. Each ADS equals 12 ordinary shares.)

(Background: MetaOptics disclosed the terms for its NASDAQ Uplisting – a small public offering – on May 18, 2026, in an F-1/A filing: 4 million ADS at an assumed price of $8.15 to raise $32.6 million. The price – $8.15 – is the as-converted last price of MetaOptics’ shares on May 15, 2026, on the Singapore Exchange. Initial Filing: MetaOptics filed its F-1 for its uplisting to the NASDAQ – an offering that MetaOptics calls its IPO – on May, 4, 2026, without disclosing the terms. MetaOptics’ stock is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange under the ticker “9MT” – according to the prospectus. Estimated proceeds for the NASDAQ uplisting – public offering – were up to $23 million.)

Web3Labs Global Inc. MDAT Eddid Securities USA, 6.3M Shares, $4.00-5.00, $28.1 mil, 8/24/2026 Week of

(Incorporated in the Cayman Islands)

We are a Hong Kong-based company that provides Web3-related business services to support blockchain companies and decentralized tech enterprises, including start-ups.

We aim to create a Web3 entrepreneurial platform through diverse services, investment acceleration, and technical collaboration.

We are an innovative Hong Kong-based Web3 service provider dedicated to empowering enterprises including start-ups in the blockchain space through comprehensive, tailored support. Web3 ecosystem refers to industries focused on the decentralized evolution of the internet, powered by blockchain technology, enabling user-owned data, peer-to-peer transactions, and trustless systems without intermediaries. We seek to promote the adoption of and commercialization of decentralized solutions by facilitating a robust ecosystem of resources, expertise, and opportunities. Since our inception, we have supported many enterprises in Web3 including many start-ups with incubation, consultation and operational services, and are working to establish an active presence through regional hubs in Asia. By fostering innovation, collaboration, and compliance, we seek to serve as a catalyst for the growth of the blockchain industry in Asia, helping enterprises transform forward-thinking ideas into scalable realities.

Our comprehensive service offerings in the Web3 ecosystem primarily include (i) strategic consulting services (such as producing feasibility reports and consultation regarding business models in the Web3 industry), (ii) acceleration program management services, where we bridge early-stage companies to blockchain infrastructures, bolstering the companies’ development in their applications including decentralized solutions and their commercialization through token generation events and market integration, and (iii) general business services including marketing, market research and other business consulting services provided to third-party startup entities (such as market trend analysis and marketing strategy support, coordination of collaboration opportunities, which serve to facilitate such early-stage companies in accessing infrastructure, industry resources, and applicable policies). We provide companies with services from the formation of a start-up through later stages of corporate development, and we are dedicated to helping companies establish their presence in Hong Kong.

As of the date of this prospectus, we have established relationships with eight public blockchains (a decentralized and open network that allows anyone to participate, read, and write data without requiring permission from a central authority) and an affiliate of another public blockchain in the Web3 ecosystem, including Neo, Zetrix, Ton, Mango, and Plume.

In addition, we aim to create a dynamic ecosystem that connects enterprises, investors, and regulators through venues including policy forums (such as the co-hosted real-world assets (“RWA”) policy forum) and advisory reports, aiming to promote the integration of decentralized technologies with traditional industries. This vision drives our efforts to foster sustainable growth and global connectivity for Web3 enterprises.

In the face of global technological competition in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, we strive to stay at the forefront of the market and have a deep understanding of the needs and challenges of entrepreneurs in the Web3 ecosystem. We are dedicated to facilitating a legitimate, comprehensive, professional, and in-depth entrepreneurial environment in the Web3 economy.

Note: Net income and revenue are in U.S. dollars for the 12 months that ended Dec. 31, 2025.

(Note: Web3Labs Global Inc. filed its F-1 on May 13, 2026, for its IPO and disclosed the terms: 6.25 million shares at a price range of $4.00 to $5.00 to raise $28.13 million, if priced at the $4.50 mid-point of its range.)

Advasa Holdings (Direct Listing) ADBT WestPark Capital (Financial Advisor), 94.1M Shares, $10.00-10.00, $940.5 mil, 8/25/2026 Tuesday

Note: This is NOT an IPO. This is a NASDAQ Direct Listing. WestPark Capital is the financial advisor.

(Incorporated in Delaware)

We are the holding company for Advasa Co., Ltd., a FinTech (financial technology) company based in Japan. We are focused on improving the ways that employees can get access to their incomes and manage it.

The FUKUPE platform is our core product. It’s a patented EWA (Earned Wage Access) solution that lets employees access their earned wages in real time rather than waiting for a traditional payday.

This service provides workers with greater financial flexibility, while integrating seamlessly with employers’ existing HR and payroll systems. Importantly, our solution requires no operational burden or funding obligation on the part of the employer.

FUKUPE is available through digital channels including mobile wallets, prepaid cards, and direct bank transfers, thanks to partnerships with financial institutions and global payment networks. The platform is supported by a portfolio of nine issued patents in key markets including the United States, Japan, and South Korea, with patent filings in 16 additional jurisdictions. Our intellectual property strategy allows us to commercialize our technology through both direct services and licensing, while also pursuing enforcement actions when necessary.

Our platform is delivered as a hosted, cloud-based service operated on our systems. Customers do not receive a license to install, download, or host our software on their own infrastructure. Instead, customers access our platform through secure connectivity to our hosted environment for the duration of their subscription.

Our platform is currently live in Japan, and we are preparing market launches in Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates. Our expansion strategy is focused on tailoring business models to local regulations and customer needs.

Note: Net income and revenue are in U.S. dollars for the year that ended March 31, 2026.

(Note: Advasa has registered to list up to 94.05 million shares of its stock on the NASDAQ in its Direct Listing. The price of $10.00 per share – in the prospectus – is the price that’s needed to meet NASDAQ requirements, according to the prospectus. The price in a Direct Listing often varies from the price in the prospectus.)

Climate change and ESG are some recent flavours of the month for most new ETFs. Nevertheless, here are some new frontier and emerging market focused ETFs:

Frontier and emerging market highlights:

Check out our emerging market ETF lists, ADR lists (updated) and closed-end fund (updated) lists (also see our site map + list update status as most ETF lists are updated).

I have changed the front page of www.emergingmarketskeptic.com to mainly consist of links to other emerging market newspapers, investment firms, newsletters, blogs, podcasts and other helpful emerging market investing resources. The top menu includes links to other resources as well as a link to a general EM investing tips / advice feed e.g. links to specific and useful articles for EM investors.

Disclaimer. The information and views contained on this website and newsletter is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice and/or a recommendation. Your use of any content is entirely at your own risk and it is your sole responsibility to evaluate the accuracy, completeness and usefulness of the content. Seek a duly licensed professional for any investment advice. I may have positions in the investments covered. This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any investment mentioned.

Emerging Market Links + The Week Ahead (August 24-28, 2026) was also published on our website under the Newsletter category.

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