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Minuteman Press Franchise in Bath, England Moves to New Location, Lands Bath City FC Sponsorship

Minuteman Press International Inc

After 23 years in business and now entering their 24 th year, the long-time Minuteman Press franchise in Bath England has moved to a beautiful new location located on Pines Way Industrial Estate in central Bath. Since the move, Minuteman Press in Bath has nearly doubled production capacity and produced quicker turnaround times for their clients. In what has been a busy year for Minuteman Press in Bath, they have also landed a back of shirt sponsorship for Bath City FC. Throughout the 2021/2022 season, Minuteman Press in Bath has had their logo on player uniforms to increase their brand awareness and visibility. Managing Director David Ghent and Marketing Director Dave Dixon talk about the history of the business as well as what the future holds for Minuteman Press in Bath. What is the history of the business? Dave Dixon: “It all started in 1998 when our MD David Ghent had a vision to provide the best printing services in Bath. He saw a gap in the market for a city-centre location to offer on-site print and copying services. We’ve since outgrown our Walcot Street site and have developed into a commercial, print and signage service in our new facility at Pines Way.” How has the business grown and what are the keys to your success? David Ghent: “For us it’s always been about putting our customers first. We like to help them stretch their marketing budgets as far as possible. Sometimes it’s not about finding the cheapest option, it’s about the maximum return on investment. The success of our customer base is our success. We still have customers today that placed their first orders back in 1998!” What would you say have been the major changes to the printing industry over the past decade? Dave Dixon: “Speed and print enhancements! Sure, if you want a simple brochure to go through the door or get picked up with a load of other flyers that’s great, we can produce thousands of those and you’ll get a small percentage return rate. However, we find that once we add a spot of gloss, gold ink or foil it stands out from the crowd. We’ve also invested heavily over the years in the most up to date technology and most reliable kit to ensure that we can produce great results on time and quickly. After all you’ve seen it on your screen and you are keen to have it in your hand.” How do you set yourself apart from the competition especially online suppliers? David Ghent: “Online print is great if you want cheap bulk printing and you’re 100 percent sure that your artwork is designed well, you’re not too concerned about the final colours and you don’t need any advice or are not expecting a long term relationship with a local supplier. Most of our clients value business relationships and like to discuss their print job and how they might make it look as good as possible. Alongside that excellent level of customer service, we are also able to meet almost any deadline; most of our work is produced the same day on site here at Pines Way, with real people checking your artwork, colours and print quality. We are also a one stop shop. We will deal with your business forms, flyers and brochures, and we can also produce shop signage, vehicle graphics and exhibition displays. You really don’t need to go to many sources for your marketing materials. That’s how we differentiate ourselves.” How did you adapt over the past two years and diversify your offerings? Dave Dixon: “We very soon discovered the joy of floor and wall graphics! We did a little but of that pre-pandemic, but then we had to take it to another level. Our Large Format Studio Manager was in fact working hard during the first lockdown producing a catalogue with a full range of social distancing signage. We also had to test the materials to ensure that they were safe enough for installation on the ground – we really didn’t want people slipping on our floor graphics! We produced thousands of linear metres of floor and wall graphics. We continue to do so now, but for marketing purposes rather than safety.” Why did you decide to move to your new location and what does it mean for your clients and your future? David Ghent: “In reality, we outgrew Walcot Street and we really could not reach our full potential there. The new location represents a €1 million investment in the business. We have two of Xerox’s top end presses and we have added the full range of specialty colours to those, this includes white, fluorescent, gold, silver and clear toners, the range of colours we can really achieve is impressive. We’ve added short run foiling in house and of course our huge vehicle bay means that we can now do signwriting on cars and vans. Our signage team is expanding our offerings further. Interiors will be a big growth area for us including printed graphics on walls, floors, and windows. Window blinds are very popular at the moment and a really cost-effective way to keep your branding visible.” What makes you most proud as you reflect on the past 24 years? Dave Dixon: “We are proud of our level of customer retention. We work closely with our client base to ensure that they are always happy. We are also always happy to give back to our local community through supporting charities and clubs with free or heavy discounted pricing, as well as being proud to be a local business taking part in the civic life of our city.” What’s next for Minuteman Press in Bath? David Ghent: “We are in the right premises at last, so we now need to consolidate and plan for expansion. We need to continue strengthening our print and signage offerings and ensure that we are seen locally as Bath’s number one printer, as well as growing our online sales.” For more information on Minuteman Press in Bath, England, visit https://minutemanbath.co.uk. Learn more about Minuteman Press UK franchise opportunities at https://minutemanpressfranchise.co.uk. Contact Details Minuteman Press International Chris Biscuiti +1 631-249-1370 cbiscuiti@mpihq.com Company Website https://minutemanpressfranchise.com

April 06, 2022 10:10 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Learn to Earn community, Qureos secures $3M funding round to accelerate 100M careers

Qureos

UAE-based EdTech and Future of Work marketplace Qureos has raised $3M million in its pre-seed round led by Dubai-based early-stage VC COTU Ventures and New York-based early-stage VC Colle Capital as it seeks to fast track growth and democratize “Learn to Earn” opportunities for talent globally. The round also saw participation from global and regional investors, including Globivest, Plutus21 Capital, Dubai Angel Investors, and AlZayani Venture Capital. ​​Several angel investors including current and former leaders of Swvl, Boston Consulting Group, Moelis & Company, Careem, Cisco Systems, Koinz, Message Bird, Bain & Company, Hiperpool, ADNOC, QIA, and other notable individuals. Founded in August 2021 by Alexander Epure, Mehrad Yaghmai and Usama Nini, Queros began life as a passion project for the founders to accelerate careers by making mentorship more accessible. This passion project was validated when selected by the Dubai Future Accelerators to solve the skill gap in the transition from campus to the workplace and in between jobs. Qureos is building an experiential learning community to change how people connect, learn and work. Qureos is helping people from over 127 countries learn in-demand skills through cohort-based learning paths led by world-class industry experts that match the hiring demands from Qureos’ business partners. Qureos is solving the skill gap in the transition from campus to the workplace and those changing careers. Globally, there are 254 million Gen Z who have graduated and are still unemployed due to the skill gap, most notably in emerging markets where youth unemployment is above 36%. The job market is changing faster than school curriculums and emerging talent are not getting traditional job placements. Qureos is tapping into the $470B e-learning and future of work markets that are currently separated. “We believe that new learning models like Qureos, which combine cohort-based, synchronous education with community, are going to become more mainstream and disrupt traditional players. From our perspective, the energy and passion that the team exhibited from our initial conversations, to the traction demonstrated so early on, and the deep product vision, were all ingredients to driving our conviction in the business. We’re excited to be a part of this journey and seeing the team’s vision of upskilling talent become a reality. “ said Amir Farha - Founder and Managing Partner at COTU Ventures With instant applications on many job platforms today, hiring fatigue is becoming a burden on HR teams with 47% of candidates failing job interviews due to a lack of alignment to the company. By 2025, Millennials and Gen Z will make up 75% of the global workforce according to Deloitte. As a result, businesses are facing an increasing average cost of hiring of $4,129 per hire and an average time-to-hire of 42 days. By creating a learning community, Qureos allows growing businesses to tap into an on-demand workforce of talent who have been mentored to deliver a high quality of work. With Qureos, businesses are able to reduce their cost-to-hire by up to 79% and their time-to-hire by 36% through Qureos’ proprietary performance-based hiring framework. “Learning and hiring are disconnected and Qureos aims to leverage its unique position at the nexus of these two markets through an experiential learning community where emerging talent can learn from industry experts and gain experience through mentor-led hiring cohorts from businesses,” said Alexander Epure, Co-Founder and CEO at Qureos. “Qureos is going after a massive opportunity with the ultimate aim of creating an ecosystem that unlocks the potential of the human capital. There is a huge untapped potential amongst emerging talent which is not harnessed and it’s about time we create an inspirational story that brings together people who align with our mission” said the founders. With native network effects of the platform, Qureos has been able to achieve phenomenal organic growth of 25,000+ users, as well as attracting mentors from leading organizations including Google, Paypal, Amazon, Cisco, and more than 100 business partners globally. “Creators and industry experts can seamlessly monetize their knowledge, build an online presence and personal brand while giving back to the local and global community.“ said Tomas Panek - Digital Marketing at Qatar Airways. Victoria Grace, Founder and Managing Partner at Colle Capital said: “We see tremendous opportunity in Qureos’ mission to bridge knowledge gaps and upskill professionals through leveraging the extraordinary pathway with direct mentorship. Simultaneously this platform provides a fantastic opportunity for highly skilled individuals to directly monetize their knowledge base, compounded by distinct network effects, and for companies to access high quality and motivated pool of talent. It is also extremely gratifying to see the proliferation of entrepreneurial talent in the region directly stemming from the success of Swvl. It is clear to us at Colle Capital that the rising Swvl Mafia will be at the forefront of ushering in a new and exciting wave of innovation in the MENA region and beyond.“ In November 2021, Qureos announced its partnership with DP World, a Dubai-based multinational logistics provider, to digitize the Tumoohi program, an initiative to support the Emirati society and contribute to the UAE government’s efforts to enable Emirati youth. “I am excited to see Alex and Usama, Swvl alumni, and the rest of the founding team raise a highly successful and oversubscribed round and launch in multiple markets. From Swvl’s reliable and affordable transport to Qureos’ Learn to Earn model, the common mission is enhancing access to work and education opportunities and empowering livelihoods. I am also encouraged to see Victoria, the CEO of Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, the SPAC Swvl is combing with, continue to invest in global players emerging out of the Middle East to scale internationally and access global pools of capital” said Youssef Salem, CFO of Swvl and Member of Board of Advisors of Qureos. Qureos plans to use this investment to build product-led operations and expand its remote-first team with a focus on hiring talent for their offices in the UAE, Pakistan and India. Its diverse team comes from 11 cities and 10 nationalities with experiences at Swvl, Cisco, Careem, EY, Daraz, HSBC and Aleph. About Qureos Qureos is a ‘learn to earn’ marketplace that makes it easy for emerging talent to learn in-demand skills from world-class industry experts through cohort-based learning paths led by world-class industry experts that match the hiring demand from Qureos’ business partners. About Investors COTU Ventures is a Dubai-based leading seed stage venture firm in the Middle East who partners with incredible founders at the beginning of their journey and accelerating their path to product-market fit and ensuring that they get access to the right capital and expertise. Colle Capital Partners is a global, opportunistic, early stage technology venture fund, based out of New York and founded by Victoria Grace who is also the founder of Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital which is leading the SPAC IPO of Swvl. Dubai Angel Investors is member-led Micro-VC made up of more than 100 like-minded angel investors and are passionate about entrepreneurs that have taken their ideas from concept to customer traction to scale with drive, energy, determination and ambition. Globivest, is a Beirut-based private investment firm with a primary focus on innovative and scalable early stage start-ups. Investments range across a spectrum of sectors and asset classes mainly in Europe and the USA. Plutus21 Capital, is a US-based multi-strategy investment firm focused on blockchain infrastructure investments. AlZayani Venture Capital, a portfolio company of AlZayani Investments and is focused on investing in innovative start-ups and disruptive technologies. Currently, it has investments in various companies in sectors such as Fintech, Retail, Food & Beverages, Tourism and EdTech. Contact Details Qureos Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@stockwoodtrategy.com Company Website https://www.qureos.com/

April 06, 2022 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Ukraine and Libya conflicts microcosms for upending today's world order

Morgan Marketing & Communications

Speakers JASON PACK ( Senior Analyst at the NATO Foundation and President of Libya-Analysis LLC ) and Ambassador Jonathan Winer (Former US Special Envoy to Libya and Non Resident Fellow at the Middle East Institute) will be illuminating today's dis-order in today's geopolitics at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on the occasion of the launch of Mr. Pack's new work, Libya and the Global Enduring Disorder, being held on Monday, April 11th from 3-5PM in the Zenger Room. The world seems to have gone directly from a hegemonic US-led international system to an interregnum in global order. The traditional phase of multipolarity—or a restoration of the balance of power, or even a struggle among rival systems of order, has been skipped. Jason Pack's Libya and the Global Enduring Disorder (Hurst/Oxford University Press) presents the Libya and Ukraine conflicts as an ideal microcosms for examining the collective action failures typical of our new geopolitics. Jonathan Winer's Afterword contextualizes what the Libya conflict reveals about today's international arena. Their talk is an examination of the current state of the world and American and Western policy towards key geostrategic hotspots framed in light of Jason Pack's Enduring Disorder concept. Broadening out from the discoveries of his core research on Libya, he will discuss how the West's response to the Ukraine crisis highlights where today's geopolitics seem to be headed -- bringing into sharp focus the need for a Western-led, rules-based global order. For more background on the book's main argument and its applicability to the current Ukraine crisis consult, Jason's recent pieces in New Lines Magazine Why Putin Is Playing Poker, Not Chess or with Foreign Policy ' Libya’s Chaos Is a Warning to the World '. For Mr Pack's, argument for a more robust transatlantic approach to order the current disorder, see his: When the US shrinks from the stage, things fall apart --- lead article Boston Globe IDEAS Section. For more information on the event, go to https://www.press.org/events/ukraine-libya-and-global-enduring-disorder Morgan Marketing and Communications is a client-based, retained marketing and communications agency in the maritime industry committed to providing its clients with the highest quality professional marketing and communications services available. Our mission is to partner with our clients to meet their needs, and exceed their goals. Contact Details Morgan Marketing & Communications Carleen Lyden Walker +1 203-260-0480 c.walker@morganmarketcomm.com Company Website https://morganmarketcomm.com/

April 05, 2022 04:12 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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ShipIn Systems Secures Funding for Innovative Visual Fleet Management Platform from Munich Re Ventures

ShipIn

ShipIn Systems, the world’s first Visual Fleet Management Platform, today announced an investment by Munich Re Ventures, the venture capital arm of Munich Re Group, one of the world’s leading providers of reinsurance, primary insurance, and insurance-related risk solutions. “By partnering with Munich Re Ventures, we are helping to build a safer and more productive future for the maritime industry,” said Osher Perry, Co-Founder and CEO of ShipIn Systems. “The reality is that as ships are getting bigger, crew are getting smaller. ShipIn’s mission is to give seafarers the advanced digital tools required to do their jobs better and fleet managers the experience and benefits of working ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ with their seaborne teams. We believe every ship will have Visual Fleet Management in the near future.” By deploying AI-powered cameras and real-time visual analytics, ShipIn proactively alerts shipowners, managers, and seafarers to onboard anomalies around bridge activities, safety and security, cargo operations and maintenance. With real-time notifications, benchmarking of vessel performance, and remote audits, ShipIn delivers a reduction of 40% in incidents and increase of cargo operations efficiency by 8%, directly improving financial performance of global fleets. "By investing in ShipIn, Munich Re Ventures has clearly shown their belief in the platform and the power it has to reduce incidents onboard ships, making voyages safer with AI technology,” said Dr. Kirsi Tikka, ShipIn Advisor and Maritime Leader. “I can foresee a future where having ShipIn onboard may reduce the cost of insurance for ship owners and will benefit the insurance industry as well." The maritime industry transports more than 90% of the world’s goods and energy, accounting for $14 trillion in world trade. The partnership with Munich Re Ventures will support ShipIn’s expansion, broadening access to Visual Fleet Management for fleets worldwide. “ShipIn’s patented platform brings the vision and capability to support the broader digitalization of the marine and cargo shipping industry,” said Timur Davis, Investment Principal, Munich Re Ventures. “We see this trend as an important enabler for marine organizations to make more informed decisions in managing assets at sea. Munich Re Ventures looks forward to collaborating with ShipIn to reduce incidents on a ship, improve overall safety and operations, and ensure effective and timely resolution to on-board incidents.” With more than $1 billion in assets under management, Munich Re Ventures invests in the most innovative startups engaged in developing new technologies and business models that will transform the future of risk and risk transfer. With its inaugural maritime investment, Munich Re Ventures supports a future of marine insurance and reinsurance driven by ShipIn’s innovative AI solutions to de-risk the future of transportation. “It’s clear to see the potential in ShipIn’s advanced AI technology for the maritime industry.” said Ronald Kargl, Chief Underwriting Officer for Marine Reinsurance, Munich Re. “We’re excited to see a solution that can make shipping safer for all onboard.” ShipIn Systems is the world’s first Visual Fleet Management Platform, enabling seamless ship-to-shore collaboration for maritime fleets. By deploying AI-powered cameras and real-time visual analytics, ShipIn’s platform proactively alerts shipowners, managers, and seafarers to onboard anomalies, reducing incidents onboard and increasing cargo operations efficiency. Creating a digital bridge between ship and shore, ShipIn provides objective insights into safety, security, cargo operations, maintenance, and more. With all tracking rolling up to an analytics dashboard, the platform makes it easy to benchmark performance, conduct remote audits, and improve the operational ROI of your entire fleet. Learn more at ShipIn.ai. Contact Details ShipIn Carleen Lyden Walker +1 203-260-0480 c.walker@morganmarketcomm.com

April 05, 2022 12:50 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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WATCHDOG GROUP SAYS FOREIGN AGENT INVESTIGATION OF HUNTER BIDEN SHOULD BE EXPANDED TO NONPROFIT GROUP AND UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

National Legal & Policy Center

The National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC), an ethics watchdog group, called upon U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware David C. Weiss to investigate the Truman National Security Project, the University of Pennsylvania and its Penn Biden Center to determine whether they violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for engaging in political activities on behalf of Burisma and Chinese interests. Recent press reports indicate a Delaware grand jury is looking into possible violations of FARA by Hunter Biden, and whether foreign payments received from CEFC China Energy, which paid $4.8 million to entities controlled by Hunter Biden and his uncle, should have triggered registration. NLPC’s 12-page complaint originally filed in October 2020 with the Department of Justice’s FARA Unit, draws upon press reports and other evidence that disclose incriminating emails and text messages on Hunter Biden’s laptop computer and statements against Hunter and his father President Biden by Tony Bobulinski, Hunter’s partner on Burisma, the Ukrainian oil company. Bobulinski was interviewed by the FBI in a criminal investigation into activities that most likely involve money laundering, tax evasion, wire fraud, and other crimes, and implicates his uncle James Biden, and his father, President Biden. The complaint cites one such text message on May 1, 2017 by Hunter to Bobulinski regarding their Chinese energy client, CEFC, “We don’t want to have to register as foreign agents... which is much more expansive than people who should know choose not to know.” In another email dated April 17, 2015, Burisma’s Vadym Pozharski thanks Hunter for arranging a meeting with his father, who was then Vice President. Hunter served as a board member until 2019 on the liberal Truman National Security Project along with Sally Painter, COO of Blue Star Strategies, a lobbying firm retained by Burisma to promote its interests before the State Department. The Truman Project, which endorsed Kamala Harris in 2016 for her Senate race, failed to note on its 2017 tax filing that Hunter and Painter had a business relationship with each other through Burisma. Finally, NLPC demands that U.S. Attorney Weiss investigate the source of over $22 million in anonymous donations from China to the University of Pennsylvania and its Penn Biden Center that may have been earmarked to promote Chinese interests and thus trigger registration as foreign agent. NLPC’s complaint cited prior FARA rulings in similar cases. “Hunter Biden did not act alone in a crack-induced fog. He was part of a network of individuals and institutions that received millions from foreign interests,” said NLPC Chairman, Peter Flaherty. “U.S. Attorney Weiss should pursue the larger Biden family influence-selling operation without any political pressure from the Merrick Garland Justice Department,” said Paul Kamenar, NLPC’s counsel who drafted the complaint. Founded in 1991, NLPC promotes ethics in public life and government accountability through research, investigation, education, and legal action. www.nlpc.org. Contact Details Paul Kamenar +1 301-257-9435 paul.kamenar@gmail.com Company Website http://www.nlpc.org

April 01, 2022 12:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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The Smiley Company Illuminates Cities for International Day of Happiness

YourUpdateTV

Timed to International Day of Happiness, The Smiley Company unveiled large-scale projections around the world featuring the iconic smiley logo in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. The projections are in support of the United Nations International Day of Happiness “2022 Happiness for All, Ukraine”* initiative and serve to call attention to and honor the bravery and resilience of the people of Ukraine. A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://youtu.be/AyFO6v2Ihbg The Smiley projections appeared on the streets of major cities around the world including London, Los Angeles, New York, Berlin, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Rome and Sydney. As part of this announcement, Smiley also donated to various humanitarian organizations supporting Ukraine and has been using its platform, The Smiley Movement, to further raise awareness and share resources for ways to donate to the Ukraine effort. Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2012, International Day of Happiness aims to remind people around the world that actions matter and each person can help build a more compassionate world, wherever they are. Since its inception 50 years ago, Smiley’s mission is to spread good news to demonstrate the immense power in a smile through the spread of positivity, good news and optimism around the world. For more information on how to support Ukraine, visit https://smileymovement.org/ for a list of charities, ways to donate and resources taking positive action. * This initiative is in support of the United Nations official International Day of Happiness campaign and The Smiley Company is not officially affiliated with the UN or their initiatives surrounding International Day of Happiness. About The Smiley Company: For the past 50 years, Smiley has embraced positivity, creativity, and collaboration, inspiring forward-facing optimism around the world. Born as a symbol for good news in the newspaper France Soir in 1972, Smiley is now a universally recognised TOP 100 global licensing company registered in over 100 countries. Working with brand partners and leading retailers, Smiley spreads positivity through fashion, accessories, beauty, homewares, food packaging, stationery, and entertainment products. A lifestyle brand that encourages everyone to express more empathy, compassion, and gratitude, Smiley is determined to build a better future. About The Smiley Movement: Smiley Movement is a nonprofit community interest company sponsored by the original SmileyⓇ brand. Our vision is to inspire positive change in society by creating a happier, more equal and sustainable world, where everyone works hand-in-hand to address urgent societal and environmental problems. In 2017, philanthropist and social entrepreneur Nicolas Loufrani – Smiley’s CEO – identified a gap in the market between the people looking for opportunities to give back and the millions of charitable causes in need of support. Market research at the time showed ‘92% of the UK public want to do good in the world but are unsure how to’ and ‘82% would volunteer more if they were better informed about the charity sector’. Smiley Movement was born in 2018 to address this need by providing the technology and ecosystems that empower communities around the world to act on issues important to them. Contact Details YourUpdateTV +1 212-736-2727 yourupdatetv@gmail.com

March 31, 2022 12:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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CEPRES Expands Due Diligence Solutions Suite with Launch of Fund Screener

CEPRES

CEPRES — the leader in private market investment technology — today announced the launch of CEPRES Fund Screener, a new product within CEPRES ’ s Due Diligence solution suite. CEPRES Fund Screener empowers limited partners (LPs) with powerful analysis capabilities on general partners ’ (GPs) track records within a secure, easy-to-use platform. The product enables investors to track and manage their fund investment pipeline and all the relevant information and GP contacts for their forward calendar. They can then drill into the GPs ’ track records via a secure data network with all the key analytics required by their investment committees. Users can also look through fund metrics using deal-level sensitivity analysis to see how different variables impacted the GP ’ s track record. CEPRES Fund Screener recently launched in private beta and has already been used by several of the most influential private market investors around the world. All gave universal praise to its streamlined approach and ease of usability in helping cut due diligence time without sacrificing quality and evaluate more investment opportunities. CEPRES chief product officer Chris Godfrey remarked, "Private market investors recognize they can no longer cope with only manual data handling and complex and error-prone Excels required to underwrite investments in today ’ s volatile environment. CEPRES Fund Screener empowers investors with better data and analytical tools so they can use their time on decision-making instead of chasing data errors and figuring out how to automate attribution analysis." CEPRES Fund Screener is part of the CEPRES ecosystem, which encompasses GP data look through, due diligence, portfolio monitoring, forecasting, and fund and deal benchmarking. Together, CEPRES drives better investment outcomes through unmatched data granularity and governance combined with insightful analytics. All CEPRES analyses are backed by deal-level cash flows and operating metrics direct from GPs — not just rolled up metrics. CEPRES Fund Screener data is 100% governed and actionable, eliminating the challenges of disparate data sources and types. CEPRES Fund Screener enables both self service via Excel data upload and managed service through CEPRES ’ s data network, which encompasses 10,500 funds — including 93% of the PEI 100 — and more than 105,000 portfolio company direct deals. CEPRES is the first platform built for the age of digital transformation in private markets. Our investment data platform provides real-time and predictive analytics to unlock better investment outcomes and drive better faster decisions. CEPRES clients leverage proprietary deal data and complete cash flows from the largest private market ecosystem, containing $35T in assets, 100K PE-backed companies, 10,000 funds, and 4,000 GPs and LPs. Accelerate your private equity digital transformation journey at CEPRES.com. Contact Details Marc Allen marc.allen@cepres.com Company Website https://www.cepres.com

March 31, 2022 11:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Zesty.ai Builds Upon Record-breaking Commercial Success with Key Strategic Growth Hire

Zesty.ai

Zesty.ai, the leader in property analytics powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), today announced that John Burega has joined the company as Chief Revenue Officer. Mr. Burega is a seasoned sales leader with a proven track record of rapidly scaling an insurance technology company with a successful exit to CoreLogic. Mr. Burega will be responsible for executing Zesty.ai’s sales strategy while building upon the company’s tremendous customer momentum from the past few years. “We’re humbled by the growth we’ve experienced as insurance carriers across the globe have embraced AI to better understand property valuation and manage risk,” said Attila Toth, Founder & CEO of Zesty.ai “The strong market demand makes it critical to have a veteran leader like John at the helm of our commercial growth. He has a proven track record of architecting industry-defining deals and building high performing sales organizations. He also has the entrepreneurial mindset to help Zesty.ai further cement our position as the leading AI platform for insurance and lead our expansion into real estate.” Mr. Burega has 25+ years of Information Technology and Sales experience, including over a decade of helping insurers adopt new technology. He served as Executive Vice-President, Global Sales at Symbility Solutions Inc., a provider of cloud-based claims technology for the property and casualty insurance industry. At Symbility, he was responsible for driving the company’s sales initiatives and implementing its long-term strategic plan, including expansion into new geographic markets. After seeing Symbility through its successful exit, an acquisition by CoreLogic in 2018, he stayed on to architect some of the largest partnerships with leading insurance carriers worldwide. “Insurance itself is at a critical inflection point with the adoption of artificial intelligence for rating and underwriting. The opportunity for Zesty.ai to make an immediate and measurable positive impact for customers is just starting to be realized,” said Mr. Burega. “The company’s steep growth is a clear reflection of the overarching digital transformation taking place across the industry. I look forward to helping Zesty.ai reach even greater heights in terms of market share and revenue.” Prior to Symbility, Mr. Burega co-founded WOBILO Inc., a global technology company of social games. Before co-founding WOBILO, he served as Vice President and General Manager for Compuware, where he spent over a decade scaling multiple business units and managed operations around the globe including in Canada, the United States, and Europe. For more information on Zesty.ai and its products, please visit www.zesty.ai. About Zesty.ai Zesty.ai offers insurers and real estate companies access to precise intelligence about every property in North America. The company uses AI, including computer vision, to build a digital twin for every building in North America, encompassing 200B property insights accounting for all details that could impact a property’s value and associated risks, including the potential impact of natural disasters. Visit https://zesty.ai for more information. Contact Details Abby Rieflin +1 216-870-1835 abby@clarity.pr

March 31, 2022 08:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time

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137 Countries Agree to Phase-Out Major Category of Fluorescent Lightbulbs

CLASP

At the Minamata Convention on Mercury fourth Conference of Parties (COP4), 137 governments adopted amendments to phase out a major category of fluorescent lighting, but actions were stalled on others. All fluorescent light bulbs contain mercury, a chemical of major public health concern according to the World Health Organization. In a major win for environmental and human health, the Parties agreed to phase-out compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) by 2025. By accelerating the transition to LED lighting, which is more energy-efficient and non-toxic, the move will avoid 26.2 metric tonnes of mercury pollution and 261.5 million metric tons CO 2 emissions from 2025-2050, and save people $77.8 billion in lower energy bills. However, last-minute interventions delayed a decision on linear fluorescent lamps (LFLs), the long tubes commonly found in offices and stores, until Minamata COP5 in November 2023. “LEDs are a rare silver bullet technology – they’re ready now, they cost half as much to run as fluorescents, and they constitute a double win for climate change mitigation and reducing toxics pollution. We were amazed to see the international cooperation on lighting at COP4. We hope for continued global alignment and momentum at COP5,” said Corinne Schneider, Chief Communications Officer at CLASP. Over days of intense negotiations, a group of countries came together to agree on phase-out dates for all lighting categories, including the EU, India, Indonesia, Japan, Norway, Pakistan, Switzerland, the US, and many Latin American governments, including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Colombia. However, not all Parties were prepared to move forward, citing the need for more time and additional feasibility analysis. A phase-out of LFLs by 2027 – the date that most countries rallied around by the end of the week – would have captured significantly greater benefits, avoiding a further 71.7 million metric tons mercury pollution and 2.72 Gt of CO2 emissions and saving $1.06 trillion in cost savings, according to experts at CLASP. Last year, 36 governments representing the Africa region submitted a proposal to the Minamata Convention to phase-out virtually all fluorescent lighting by the end of 2025. With many OECD countries banning fluorescents in the coming years in favor of more efficient LEDs, less regulated markets risk becoming dumping grounds for toxic lighting. “The Africa region recognizes that lighting is crucial in promoting livelihoods. Through our proposal, we took the first step towards a global phase-out of mercury-containing fluorescent lighting,” explained Oumar Cissé, Head of Delegation (Mali) in his opening statement at COP4. “The case to phasing out fluorescent lamps – both CFLs and LFLs – is already justified today from a public health, environmental, technical as well as economic perspective.” “The original proposal by the Africa region is consistent with our findings that a transition to clean and efficient lighting is feasible everywhere today. The move to phase out CFLs represents a major win, as it will remove toxic, inefficient bulbs from our homes. But keeping LFLs on the market continues to disadvantage our offices, hospitals, schools and childcare centers, needlessly increasing energy costs and risking mercury exposure,” said Ana Maria Carreño, Director of Climate at CLASP. NGO groups around the world advocated over the past year to address mercury in lighting at COP4. The Climate Action Network launched a petition that garnered over 200 signatures from climate and environmental groups, as well as the private sector, urging governments to take action to phase out fluorescents. “We are leaving this COP with mixed emotions. Un- and under-regulated markets are increasingly vulnerable to dumping of fluorescents that many countries have already banned due to their toxicity and inefficiency,” said Elena Lymberidi-Settimo, International Co-coordinator of the Zero Mercury Working Group. “The decision to phase out CFLs is one step in the right direction, and we congratulate governments for their efforts to progress the Convention’s promise to ‘Make Mercury History.’ We hope to see action on LFLs at COP5 in November 2023.” “We are proud of the work the Africa region has done to protect people from toxic lighting products,” said Roger Baro, Vice President of COP4 (Burkina Faso). “We will continue working to phase-out all fluorescent lighting and stop it from causing further mercury pollution in our communities.” Fluorescent lighting represents about 10% of mercury in all products globally. In the past, fluorescent lamps were promoted as an energy-efficient alternative to incandescent and halogen lamps, and the mercury risks were tolerated as a necessary tradeoff. Today, thanks to major advances in LED technology, mercury-free LED lamps can cost-effectively replace fluorescents in virtually all applications. CLASP improves the energy and environmental performance of the appliances & equipment we use every day, accelerating our transition to a more sustainable world. Contact Details CLASP Alexia Ross +1 339-222-4311 aross@clasp.ngo Company Website http://www.clasp.ngo/

March 31, 2022 09:11 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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