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Blockchain-Powered Data Validation Platform Enhances Cross-Boundary Academic Credential Verification

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HONG KONG, Feb. 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — With the continuous development of the Greater Bay Area, data flow between Shenzhen and Hong Kong becomes increasingly frequent. Recently, WeBank Technology Services, in collaboration with Certizen Technology from Hong Kong, launched an innovative application in the education sector on the Shenzhen–Hong Kong cross-boundary data validation platform, supporting Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) in securely and efficiently verifying the educational information of students from Chinese mainland. This application not only facilitates relevant process for these students studying in Hong Kong, but can also support Hong Kong universities in optimizing the admission review processes and safeguarding academic integrity.

Instant Verification Improves Admission Review Efficiency

In recent years, the number of Chinese mainland students applying to Hong Kong universities has been on the rise. For graduate applications alone, Hong Kong universities receive tens of thousands of documents such as diplomas, degree certificates, and transcripts each year. While manual verification is time-consuming and prone to errors, there are also challenges that online cross-boundary data transmission faces, including the high compliance threshold for sensitive personal data and the lack of necessary digital infrastructure. There is an urgent need for an innovative solution to efficiently verify educational information while complying with regulations in both regions.

In January 2025, WeBank Technology Services and Certizen Technology proposed an innovative solution for reliable academic credential verification on the Shenzhen–Hong Kong cross-boundary data validation platform. Chinese mainland students can obtain their academic documents through a trusted data space built by the Authority of Qianhai Shenzhen. The platform generates a hash value (“data fingerprint”) for the documents using cryptographic algorithms and records it on the blockchain to ensure data immutability.

After students submit their application materials on the university’s official website, the university generates a set of “data fingerprint” based on the same cryptographic algorithm. The university then compares the two sets of ‘data fingerprint’ on the cross-boundary data validation platform to verify the authenticity and consistency of the data. During the verification process, the platform does not access the original documents, but only compares the online “data fingerprint” to quickly complete the reliable verification.

As the first university to connect to the platform, PolyU’s Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology (PReCIT) predicts a trimmed verification cycle from eight hours to under two minutes per 100 applications while maintaining accuracy by combining this innovative solution with the Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) and its verifiable credential technology.

The First Shenzhen-Hong Kong Cross-boundary Data Infrastructure Expands to New Scenarios

The launch of the cross-boundary academic credential verification service marks a significant breakthrough of the Shenzhen–Hong Kong cross-boundary data validation platform in the education sector. It was jointly developed under the guidance and support of government departments from both regions. It is operated by China (Qianhai) Internet Exchange, Shenzhen Credit Service and WeBank Technology Services. WeBank providing the overall solution design and technical support.

The service platform is developed based on the Distributed Data Transmission Protocol (DDTP) concept proposed by WeBank, and is built with the technology ofthe open source blockchain platform FISCO BCOS. It uses the immutability and traceability of blockchain technology to secure authenticity of user-carried data through hash value verification, meeting cross-boundary data regulatory requirements while safely and efficiently enabling cross-boundary data flow. Notably, DDTP has successfully obtained approval for standardization from the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA). This positions DDTP to potentially become the first international standard in the field of trustworthy personal data portability.

As the first digital cross-boundary infrastructure between Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, the Shenzhen–Hong Kong cross-boundary data validation platform has been applied in eight scenarios across institutions, including MSME financing, enterprise account opening, and cross-boundary tuition payment. It has not only provided convenience for residents and enterprises in both regions but also injected new energy into the deep integration and high-quality development of the Greater Bay Area’s economy.

About WeBank Technology Services
Launched in Hong Kong in June 2024, WeBank Technology Services sets out to leverage WeBank’s cutting-edge fintech capabilities and digital finance best practice to deliver a variety of superior digital finance and digital infrastructure solutions to digital banks, financial institutions, government agencies, and industry partners worldwide.

About WeBank
Launched in 2014, WeBank Co., Ltd. (“WeBank”) is the first digital bank in China. WeBank provides convenient financial services to micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and the public, and continuously improves the quality of services in response to customers’ specific needs. WeBank ranks No. 1 in The Asian Banker’s Global Top 100 Digital Banks in 2025. By June 2024, WeBank has served over 400 million retail customers and 5 million MSMEs.

WeBank focuses on innovation and technology. WeBank has maintained its proportion of technical personnel above 50% since its establishment, while its research and development expenses have accounted for around 10% of its revenue. WeBank is now at the top of the industry in core technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, cloud computing and big data.

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/blockchain-powered-data-validation-platform-enhances-cross-boundary-academic-credential-verification-302385704.html

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Monster Energy’s Payton Talbott Defeats Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 332

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Rising Bantamweight Talent Talbott Secures First-Round TKO Victory Over Brazilian MMA Icon, Earns $25,000 Finish Bonus30-Year-Old Esteban Ribovics from Argentina Stops King Green in Round 1 34-Year-Old Johnny Walker from Brazil Earns First-Round KO Victory over Mick Parkin in Heavyweight Division Debut, Receives $100,000 Performance of the Night Bonus

SALT LAKE CITY, Oct. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Big night in SLC! Monster Energy congratulates MMA athlete Payton Talbott on defeating Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 332 in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Saturday night. In the Co-Main Event fight contested in the bantamweight division, the 28-year-old from Reno, Nevada, earned a thundering first-round TKO victory over the former UFC world champion. Talbot also received a $25,000 Finish Bonus for his stoppage victory.

Also on the Main Card, 30-year-old Esteban Ribovics from Tartagal, Argentina, stopped his Monster Energy teammate, 40-year-old Bobby “King” Green from San Bernardino, California, via TKO in the first round of their catchweight matchup. In the night’s Early Prelims, 34-year-old Johnny Walker from Rio Branco, Brazil, earned a dominant first-round KO victory over Mick Parkin in his heavyweight division debut. Walker also took home a $100,000 Performance of the Night Bonus for the brutal finish.

UFC 332: Silva vs. Wang was contested in front of a live crowd inside Delta Center in Salt Lake City. Featuring a total of five bouts on the Main Card and nine Prelims matchups, UFC 332 was broadcast live on Paramount+.

In Saturday night’s Co-Main Event fight, Monster Energy’s Talbott (12-1), came to Salt Lake City looking to score the biggest career win of his young UFC tenure. Talbott was riding a two-win streak after most recently defeating former two-division champion Henry Cejudo via unanimous decision at UFC 323 in December 2025.

Talbott’s opponent, Brazilian MMA icon Figueiredo (25-8-1), stepped into the Octagon to get back in the victory column after most recently suffering a submission loss against Song Yadong at a UFC Fight Night in May 2026. Now the former two-time UFC Flyweight Champion presented the biggest challenge to date for rising prospect Talbott.

Talbott started the fight in attack mode, pursuing the Brazilian and finding openings for heavy shots that landed. In a flurry of punches, Talbott landed a straight right hand that sent Figueiredo to the mat, although he immediately recovered. But it was a losing battle…

In another key scene, Talbott took Figueiredo down with a knee to the head, but the Brazilian survived by engaging in a body lock to slow the pace. Then it was all over as Talbott broke from the clinch to overwhelm Figueiredo again with one-two combos and punches from above until the Brazilian was left defenseless. At 2:09 of Round 1, referee Jason Herzog stopped the contest, pronouncing Talbott as the winner by TKO.

“Extremely happy,” said Monster Energy’s Talbott after securing the TKO win at UFC 332, adding: “I just mopped the floor with two champions back-to-back. And I want another one! Sean O’Malley, you can’t run forever! Give the people what they want.” Stay tuned for more from Talbott!

Earlier on the Main Card, two Monster Energy teammates faced off in a highly anticipated matchup. Argentinian knockout artist Ribovics (17-3) was riding high off a devastating second-round TKO victory over UFC veteran Edson Barboza at UFC 330 in August 2026. Nicknamed “El Gringo,” the Argentinian lightweight arrived at UFC 332 looking to climb into the lightweight top 15 with another signature performance.

Ribovics faced fellow Monster Energy athlete and lightweight division veteran Green (36-18-1), currently on a four-fight victory streak. Most recently, “King Green” earned a Performance of the Night bonus for a buzzer-beating first-round stoppage of Terrance McKinney at UFC 329 in July. The fight between Green and Ribovics had to be contested at catchweight after Ribovics missed weight at the ceremonial weigh-ins, adding to the pre-fight anticipation.

The fight opened at a fast pace as both fighters clashed in the middle of the Octagon, trading low kicks. Ribovics fired off quick combos and stung Green with a precise left hand early in the round. Setting the tempo, Ribovics kept the pressure on and landed a knee to the body before Green slowed the action by initiating a clinch.

With Green staying loose and attacking from a distance, Ribovics shot forward but absorbed a right jab to the face. The fight then unraveled as Ribovics dropped Green with a heavy left hook. Although Green recovered to his feet, Ribovics instantly kept raining combos and once again floored Green with another harsh left.

Although Green came back to his feet, Ribovics connected with another left that sent his opponent to the canvas a third time within moments. Having seen enough, referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop the fight at 4:08 of Round 1 with Ribovics as the winner by TKO.

“I love you, SLC. Sorry I missed weight! I don’t want to be the guy. Next time I’m going to be more professional,” said Monster Energy’s Ribovics upon winning at UFC 332. “I train hard every day to bring violence to the Octagon.”

Speaking of violence, there was one more first-round finish for the team at UFC 332. In the Early Prelims, Monster Energy’s Walker (23-10) came to Salt Lake City making his official heavyweight debut after a decorated career in the Light Heavyweight division. Walker earned a reputation as one of the UFC’s most exciting knockout artists at 205 pounds and was looking for a fresh start after losing his last Light Heavyweight bout to Dominick Reyes at UFC 327 in April.

Walker’s opponent, Mick Parkin (10-2), stepped into the Octagon as one of the UFC’s most promising heavyweight prospects. The British grappling expert came to UFC 332 looking for redemption after suffering his first career loss in his most recent fight against Marcin Tybura at UFC London in March 2025. But he had to get past Walker to make it happen!

The heavyweight showdown opened with Walker setting the tone from the opening bell, pressing the action with his signature striking and heavy hands. Then it was over really quickly! As Parkin closed the distance and engaged Walker in a clinch, the Brazilian asserted his dominance with a fast elbow followed by two consecutive knees that sent the British prospect crashing to the canvas. Game over! With Parkin unable to recover, the referee stepped in to end the fight at 3:35 of the opening round, awarding Walker the KO victory in his heavyweight debut.

“I don’t think there’s any heavyweight that can fight like me,” said Monster Energy’s Walker after his win at UFC 332.

Back in the winner’s circle, Walker just made a resounding statement about his future in the Heavyweight division, where his signature knockout power makes him an immediate threat. Stay tuned!

Download Photo Assets Here.

Monster Energy’s elite UFC athletes include Alex Pereira, Dricus Du Plessis, Merab Dvalishvili, Valentina Shevchenko, Weili Zhang, Marlon Vera, Justin Gaethje, Brandon Moreno, Johnny Walker, Sean Strickland, Dan Ige, Diego Lopes, Daniel Zellhuber, Derrick Lewis, Alexa Grasso, Raul Rosas Jr., Tatsuro Taira, Shara Magomedov, Maycee Barber, Aaron Pico, Jasmine Jasudavicius, Kayla Harrison, Malcolm Wellmaker, Mansur Abdul-Malik, Manuel Torres, Joshua Van, Reinier de Ridder, Alessandro Costa, Esteban Ribovics, Youssef Zalal, Jiri Prochazka, Manel Kape, Payton Talbott, Jalin Turner, Mackenzie Dern, Mikey Musumeci, Tommy McMillen, and Bobby Green.

For more on Monster Energy’s MMA athletes, visit www.monsterenergy.com. Follow Monster Energy on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok. For interview or photo requests, contact Kim Dresser.

About Monster Energy
Based in Corona, California, Monster Energy is the leading marketer of energy drinks and alternative beverages. Refusing to acknowledge the traditional, Monster Energy supports the scene and sport. Whether motocross, off-road, NASCAR, MMA, BMX, surf, snowboard, ski, skateboard, or the rock-and-roll lifestyle, Monster Energy is a brand that believes in authenticity and the core of what its athletes and musicians represent. More than a drink, it’s the way of life lived by athletes, bands, believers, and fans. See more about Monster Energy, including all of its drinks, at www.monsterenergy.com.

CONTACT: Kim Dresser C: (949) 300-5546 E: kim.dresser@indiepragency.com

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Power Knot MEA Recognized as THE BIZZ 2026 Winner for Business Excellence

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FREMONT, Calif., Oct. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Power Knot LLC, the market leader for on-site organic waste management solutions, announced that its sister office, Power Knot Middle East (PKME), has been recognized as a THE BIZZ 2026 Winner by the World Confederation of Businesses (WORLDCOB).

The recognition reflects PKME’s business excellence, leadership, and quality standards, highlighting its work to help organizations across the UAE and wider Gulf region improve food waste management.

PKME provides on-site food waste biodigestion technology through the LFC biodigester, an automated system that uses microorganisms and oxygen to digest food waste into wastewater within 24 hours. The regional team supports customers from equipment selection and installation to ongoing technical support.

Designed for commercial operations, the LFC biodigester helps facilities process food waste where it is generated, reducing reliance on storage, collection, and off-site disposal. This approach helps businesses reduce waste handling, improve kitchen hygiene, and lower the costs associated with transporting food waste to landfill.

Power Knot’s complementary equipment, including BCG shredders, SBT bin tippers, and water management systems, supports facilities with different waste volumes and operational requirements.

The award recognizes Power Knot’s commitment to delivering practical solutions backed by reliable equipment and customer support. As organizations across the Gulf seek more efficient ways to manage food waste, the team continues to help customers turn sustainability goals into everyday operational improvements.

About THE BIZZ Awards

The BIZZ Awards, hosted by the World Confederation of Businesses (WORLDCOB), recognize business excellence, innovation, and leadership across more than 130 countries. Winners are evaluated on business leadership, management, quality, innovation, and corporate social responsibility, joining a global network of organizations committed to excellence and continuous improvement.

For more information access https://thebizzawards.com/

About Power Knot

Power Knot provides safe, reliable, and economically sound solutions for commercial, industrial, and military organizations worldwide seeking to reduce waste and lower their environmental impact. Our products help organizations reduce their carbon footprint by efficiently moving, lifting, grinding, digesting, pumping, filtering, and reporting on waste streams. Designed, developed, and manufactured in Silicon Valley, California.

For more information, visit powerknot.com.

marketing@powerknot.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/power-knot-mea-recognized-as-the-bizz-2026-winner-for-business-excellence-302897697.html

SOURCE Power Knot LLC

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SafeGuard Privacy Wins Second AdExchanger Award for Best Privacy Technology

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SafeGuard Privacy has won the 2026 AdExchanger Award for Best Privacy Technology, its second win in the category and fourth straight year as a finalist. The award recognizes its role as the infrastructure behind privacy diligence in digital advertising, from powering the IAB Diligence Platform to bringing privacy diligence into IAB Tech Lab’s agentic buying specs.

NEW YORK, Oct. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — SafeGuard Privacy has won the 2026 AdExchanger Award for Best Privacy Technology, its second win in the category and its fourth consecutive year as a finalist. The award recognizes SafeGuard Privacy’s work as the infrastructure behind privacy diligence in digital advertising, including the IAB Diligence Platform and privacy diligence built into IAB Tech Lab’s agentic buying specs.

“When we started SafeGuard Privacy, the industry handled privacy diligence with spreadsheets and hope. Now it runs through a shared standard. As AI agents start buying media, diligence has to move at machine speed without losing its legal rigor.” Richy Glassberg, CEO, SafeGuard Privacy

“When we started SafeGuard Privacy, the industry handled privacy diligence with spreadsheets and hope,” said Richy Glassberg, CEO and Co-Founder of SafeGuard Privacy. “Now it runs through a shared standard, inside the IAB Diligence Platform and the Tech Lab’s agentic buying specs. Seeing AdExchanger recognize that shift, for the second time, means a lot. The next shift is already here. As AI agents start buying media on behalf of brands, diligence has to move at machine speed without losing its legal rigor. That’s what we’re building now, and I’m proud of the team doing it.”

Glassberg brings more than three decades of experience across media, advertising, technology, and privacy, including as a member of the founding team of CNN.com and a co-founder of the Interactive Advertising Bureau.

Highlights:

Industry standard: The IAB chose SafeGuard Privacy to power the IAB Diligence Platform and built the standardized assessments behind it.Agentic advertising: SafeGuard Privacy is integrated into IAB Tech Lab’s AAMP 2.3, bringing privacy diligence into the Buyer Agent as media buying moves to AI agents.International expansion: The IAB Diligence Platform expanded to Europe through work with BVDW and Nexida in Germany, including certification for the German market.Legal AI: Privacy Assist™ is purpose-built AI for privacy diligence. It suggests assessment answers, drafts RFI responses, and searches across vendors, assessments, and privacy law, turning days of work into minutes.Legal depth: Assessments cover 24+ U.S. states and global privacy requirements, built around how data moves through advertising.Adoption: A thousand companies are on the SafeGuard Privacy platform, including major advertisers, top agency holding companies, and ad tech companies that span the breadth of the industry.Recognition: SafeGuard Privacy has won AdExchanger’s Best Privacy Technology award twice and has been a finalist four consecutive years.

“Establishing a consistent approach to privacy diligence is critical to building greater accountability across digital advertising,” said Michael Hahn, EVP & General Counsel, IAB. “Our work with SafeGuard Privacy on the IAB Diligence Platform has helped make privacy compliance and vendor due diligence more standardized and scalable across the industry. Congratulations to Richy and the entire SafeGuard Privacy team on this well-deserved recognition and their continued commitment to advancing privacy standards.”

SafeGuard Privacy continues to build software that addresses the practical challenges companies face as advertising technology, data use, and privacy requirements become more complex.

“SafeGuard Privacy has helped us make our diligence efforts more efficient and standardized across partners. The ability to easily share assessments and the integration with the IAB Diligence Platform has helped set an industry standard and support our compliance efforts. The new agentic tools only help advance those efforts, and we are excited to leverage them,” said Rachel Glasser, Chief Privacy Officer, Magnite.

As privacy diligence becomes a more fundamental part of how the advertising ecosystem operates, SafeGuard Privacy will continue investing in the standards, software and legal expertise that make it possible to do that work at scale. From the IAB Diligence Platform to the next generation of agentic advertising, the company is focused on building privacy infrastructure that can keep pace with how the industry operates – and how it continues to evolve.

About SafeGuard Privacy

SafeGuard Privacy is the only privacy compliance solution purpose-built for companies that use consumer data. It is the first legal assessment and vendor management platform for leading global brands, publishers, and Ad Tech. The IAB chose SafeGuard Privacy to power the IAB Diligence Platform, creating the industry standard for privacy regulation compliance and vendor due diligence. Standardized, comprehensive, and fully auditable, SafeGuard Privacy now includes Privacy Assist™, the first suite of privacy-specific AI tools that helps compliance and legal teams complete assessments and RFIs faster with transparency and accuracy. SafeGuard Privacy makes it easy for buyers and sellers to accelerate growth while staying ahead of fast-changing privacy risks.

For more information, visit www.safeguardprivacy.com.

Media Contact

Matt Anderson, SafeGuard Privacy, 1 9174074047, matt@safeguardprivacy.com, www.safeguardprivacy.com

Lana McGilvray, Purpose Worldwide, 1 512.970.8310, lana@purposenorthamerica.com, https://www.purposenorthamerica.com/

View original content:https://www.prweb.com/releases/safeguard-privacy-wins-second-adexchanger-award-for-best-privacy-technology-302897501.html

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