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Japanese Fintech Leader Smartpay, partners with Chubb Insurance to accelerate digitization of the Japanese Insurance Industry, Anticipated to Surge to 80 Trillion Yen (USD $500 Billion) by 2027

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TOKYO, March 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The partnership between Smartpay, one of Asia’s fastest growing fintechs and Chubb, a world leader in insurance with operations in 54 countries and territories, has been established for the development of digital insurance products for Japanese consumers needs.

The need for service innovation in the Japanese insurance industry

In the Japanese insurance industry, innovation is expected to respond to the changes in the digital economy requirements from consumers post-COVID.

Demand for more efficient and smoother digital user experience with personalized insurance purchase processes and real-time support

Easy payment processes with digital-first security measures and strong consumer data protection.

The insurance market will be primarily made up of digital purchases, adding 80 trillion yen by 2027.

Why Smartpay and Chubb are partnering:

Sam Pemberton-Ahmed, CEO and Founder of Smartpay, says “The vision we have as partners is ’embedded insurance’. Embedded insurance allows consumers to purchase insurance that complements the products they are purchasing, such as furniture and travel packages, at the point of checkout. By integrating insurance into the customer journey at checkout and providing it in a personalized manner, users can purchase insurance seamlessly at a price that suits their needs.”

Japan’s Travel Insurance Market is estimated to be USD 678.89 Mn in 2023 and is expected to reach USD 1523.76 Mn by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 17.55%. 47% of Japanese travelers who have purchased travel insurance since the pandemic are seeking a new way to buy travel insurance different from the traditional methods. Embedded insurance is expected to lead the way in new practices to buy insurance and drive the growth of the expanding Japanese insurance market.

Making ‘Embedded Insurance’ that Drives Insurance Market Growth More Accessible with Smartpay and Chubb.

Sam Pemberton-Ahmed says, “We are honored to collaborate with Chubb’s world leading team and insurance products to integrate with our Japanese leading payment and digital finance solutions.”

In December 2022, Smartpay launched “Smartpay Bank Direct”, Japan’s first and only digital financing service that allows customers to pay for online purchases straight from their bank accounts. This service has given Japanese consumers who prefer not to pay by credit card (which is 70% of purchase in Japan), a digital payment method that aligns to their needs and provides convenient digital financing and installments.

Smartpay is the only payment company in Japan that has signed and integrated with the 20 largest banks in Japan and over 200 credit unions thus accessible to 90% of Japan’s population with bank accounts. Smartpay Bank Direct was developed with the Japan Electronic Payments Promotion Organization (JEPPO).

Addressing security concerns, Smartpay uses industry best practices, including user verification, two-factor authentication, biometric security, data encryption, and 3DS. Prioritizing security, Smartpay introduced 3D Secure ahead of the mandatory introduction by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry.

Chubb has a strong track record in leading digitalization and technological innovation with partnerships in the insurance industry. An example is their partnership with the Southeast Asia-based super app Grab, which started in 2018. This collaboration allowed Chubb to provide insurance products to millions of Grab users. Additionally, Chubb teamed up with Brazil’s Nubank to offer fully digitalized life insurance. This partnership enabled local customers to access a wide range of financial services.

By combining Smartpay’s achievements of various domestic initiatives, such as Smartpay Bank Direct and Chubb’s innovation in the insurance field, the two companies will provide innovative digital insurance solutions in the future, starting with embedded insurance in Japan.

Smartpay Corporation, which provides the digital financing service “Smartpay” (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, Managing Director and Chief Revenue Officer: Naoya Otsubo, hereinafter referred to as “our company”), has entered into a business partnership with Chubb Insurance, a Japanese subsidiary of the world leader in insurance, Chubb Group (hereinafter referred to as “Chubb”), for the development and provision of digital insurance products.

About Smartpay

Smartpay is introducing several first-to-market features in Japan for both consumers and merchants. For consumers, Smartpay is the first in Japan to offer no interest, no late fees, and free of charge services. It provides the only checkout process with credit card or direct from bank account that takes less than 10 seconds and with a hassle-free fully automated installment experience. Additionally, there is no need for consumers to visit a convenient store for installment payments or have cash ready for delivery, and there is no information sharing anxiety for consumers with merchants they don’t know. The service offers three installments over an eight-week period.

For Japanese merchants, Smartpay takes all the fraud risk, which is critical as we transition to digital payments. It manages all fraud chargebacks, saving money, time, and resources for merchants. Smartpay’s integration process is fast, requiring only a day with its highest quality SDKs and APIs compared to the industry norm of two weeks. Apple Pay and Google Pay are automatically integrated into the Smartpay solution, saving merchants from costly integration resources. Additionally, Smartpay offers free e-commerce training for 10,000 Japanese merchants to learn e-commerce best practices in increasing website conversions, attracting new customers, and increasing the average order value for businesses. For more details, please visit https://smartpay.co/.

About Chubb Insurance Japan

Chubb Insurance Japan provides property and casualty, accident and health, automobile, travel and other types of insurance to both individuals and businesses. Chubb Insurance Japan has over 100 years of experience in the Japanese market, through its predecessor companies, the longest among all foreign insurers in Japan.

Chubb Insurance Japan is rated AA- by Standard & Poor’s (as of March. 2024).

About Chubb Group and Chubb Limited

Chubb is a world leader in insurance.  With operations in 54 countries and territories, Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. As an underwriting company, we assess, assume and manage risk with insight and discipline. We service and pay our claims fairly and promptly. We combine the precision of craftsmanship with decades of experience to conceive, craft and deliver the very best insurance coverage and service to individuals and families, and businesses of all sizes.

Chubb is also defined by its extensive product and service offerings, broad distribution capabilities, direct-to-consumer platform partnerships, exceptional financial strength and local operations globally. The company serves multinational corporations, mid-size companies and small businesses with property and casualty insurance and risk engineering services; affluent and high net worth individuals with substantial assets to protect; individuals purchasing life, personal accident, supplemental health, homeowners, automobile and specialty personal insurance coverage; companies and affinity groups providing or offering accident and health insurance programs and life insurance to their employees or members; and insurers managing exposures with reinsurance coverage.

Chubb has $228.8 billion in assets and reported $57.5 billion of gross premiums written in 2023. Chubb’s core operating insurance companies maintain financial strength ratings of AA from Standard & Poor’s and A++ from A.M. Best.(As of March 2024)

Chubb Limited, the parent company of Chubb, is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: CB) and is a component of the S&P 500 index.

Chubb maintains executive offices in Zurich, New York, London, Paris and other locations, and employs approximately 40,000 people worldwide.

1:https://covergenius.com/embedded-insurance-travel-japan/
2:https://www.gfmreview.com/press-release/smartpay-japan-wins-the-fastest-growing-fintech-asia-2023-award-by-global-financial-market-review

 

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SOURCE Smartpay K.K.

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Canton Fair Buyers Alliance Launched as the 140th Edition Opens

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GUANGZHOU, China, Oct. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On October 15, the Canton Fair Buyers Alliance was officially launched at the Canton Fair Complex, marking a significant milestone as the fair celebrates the 70th anniversary of its founding.

More than 140 overseas buyers attended the launch ceremony, highlighting the fair’s enduring role as a bridge connecting global commerce with China’s export sector.

Speaking at the ceremony, Luís Vilariça, CEO of Joinco, Import & Export, Ltd., discussed his company’s long-standing relationship with the Canton Fair. Drawing on years of participation, he reflected on the growth opportunities created through cooperation with Chinese suppliers and highlighted the fair’s role in supporting international business development and global trade exchanges.

The ceremony also featured a joint declaration by alliance members. Representatives from five member companies read the statement in their respective native languages, underscoring the international character of the new organization. Additional members sent video congratulatory messages, joining the celebration and witnessing the official launch of the alliance.

The Canton Fair Buyers Alliance represents one of the fair’s key service innovations. Designed primarily for Fortune Global 500 companies, buyers from the world’s top 250 retailers and leading sourcing enterprises across a diverse range of markets, the alliance aims to offer members a platform for information sharing and resource coordination. The first cohort of alliance members includes 58 companies from 32 countries and regions across 5 continents. Through the alliance, members will gain access to a range of priority benefits spanning four major areas: services, events, resources and information.

 For more convenient attendance, please click here for pre-registration:

https://buyer.cantonfair.org.cn/register/buyer/email?source_type=16

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/canton-fair-buyers-alliance-launched-as-the-140th-edition-opens-302911896.html

SOURCE Canton Fair

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Bioethanol from human hair – Indian start-up’s solution to rising prices of grains and sugar

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GUJARAT, India, Oct. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In what could be called the beginning of the 5G (fifth-generation) of bioethanol or non-cellulosic bioethanol or non-sugar-based biofuels, an Indian start-up, Techofest Global, based out of Gujarat, has developed its own, indigenous, and patented technology for the production of bioethanol from waste human hair. Such processes would significantly reduce the employment of sugars, grains, and agricultural residues, which form the classical first- and second-generation bioethanol feedstocks. As a result, the rising fuel-vs.-food/fodder debate is anticipated to reduce, and instead, ethanol produced from municipal/industrial waste, after trials, can supplement the current supply being used as blends with presently retailed fossil fuels (E20, E27, etc.). 

As stated by Dr. Ravi, the founder-CEO of Techofest Global, the strategic priority and the USP of the start-up is industrial symbiosis, which, typically, involves an ecosystem of up-cycling/valorising the effluents of an industry, thereby creating a value-chain for residues often lacking an end-of-life. With more than three decades of experience in designing customized nuclear fusion reactors for international programmes, such as ITER, JET/UKAEA and SST-1, Dr. Ravi, a seasoned mechanical engineer, spearheads the start-up’s patented technologies’ scale-up and commercialization.

Two biochemical engineers, Dr. Navnit – the former CTO, and Dr. Kabilan – the former CEO of Biomakerz, Chennai, are the brains behind the current technology/process portfolio of the joint-venture between Techofest Global and Biomakerz. They have been working on biorefineries’ process intensification for more than a decade. “Having foreseen the fuel-vs-fodder/food competition as early as the year 2015, we began developing techno-economically feasible and viable in-vitro metabolically-engineered bioprocesses for scaling-up ethanol production from municipal waste streams between 2019–2021”, says Navnit. After developing operational technologies for international biofuel organizations, serving process engineer roles with certain biorefineries-related OMC R&D’s of India, Dr. Navnit, presently works for a premier academic institution.

An on-going fermentation trial at the Techofest Global-Biomakerz JV’s R&D facility

Techofest Global has developed and tested, in its R&D JV’s pilot-facility of ~100-L, 3 innovative and cost-effective technologies, such as 5G ethanol production using human hair, used cooking oil (UCO), and enriched bio-methane production from disposed sanitary napkins.

“With massive CapEx and OpEx, 2G ethanol technology is facing a major commercialization bottleneck, owing to competition with food/livestock fodder, requirement of a cost-intensive pre-treatment procedure, and the requirement of cellulolytic cocktails, which have a poor recycle efficiency. The proprietary 5G SAFE process developed for the start-up circumvents the mentioned constraints, and instead, utilizes a single-stage saccharification followed by fermentation, and records over 85–90% biocatalyst recovery. Likewise, the proprietary SIM process for bio-methane production, exclusively developed for the start-up, is 2x faster with improved intermittent feeding cycles and continuous gas harvest”, says Navnit.

“With on-going pre-commercialization trials, the proprietary ethanol and bio-methane processes of ours are soon being commercialized”, says Ms. Bhumika, the co-founder and the corporate advisor of the start-up. Furthermore, Mr. Ronak pilots the organization’s global market entry and commercialization frontier.

Techofest Global’s veteran Principal Technology Advisors include: Dr VS Tripathi, former Joint Director, DRDE Gwalior, Dr B S Munjal, former Director, Structures and Thermal group, SAC/ISRO, Academician and Advisor CIKS-Dharohar, GTU, and Dr AV Santhanababu, former Scientist at Satish Dhawan Space Centre. With on-going R&D activities, Dr. Munjal says, “the start-up is striving to provide a unique solution along the lines of the Atmanirbhar and Viksit Bharat Vision 2047”.

Media Contact: www.techofestglobal.com; e-mail: info@techofestglobal.com; contact person: The PR team of Techofest Global.

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As AI Speeds Up Marketing, Louisville’s RedTag Bets on Strategy

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Independent agency unveils new brand and website, and co-hosts Louisville’s PROOF AI Workshop

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Oct. 17, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — RedTag, an independent Louisville-based marketing agency, this month unveiled new positioning, marking its evolution from a digital performance agency into a strategy-first marketing partner. The move comes as AI makes execution faster than ever, and RedTag is betting that strategy, not speed, is what will set businesses apart. Clients can now choose from outcome-based programs that best fit their marketing needs. 

“Clients don’t come to us needing more tactics. They come to us needing a path,” said Russ Renbarger, founder and CEO of RedTag. “Our new brand says out loud what our work has shown for years: We start with strategy and build everything on that foundation.”

RedTag built its reputation on high-performing paid digital campaigns. Over the years, the agency expanded into strategy, creative, video production and website development, giving clients one partner for the full scope of their marketing. Most recently, a team of automation specialists has integrated AI across the agency to speed up production and analysis, guided by an internal AI policy that keeps people accountable for quality. The time AI saves goes back into strategy: knowing what to say, who to say it to and why.

“Our best client relationships have always been partnerships, where we’re in the room when the big decisions get made,” said Alison Conway, chief client officer at RedTag. “This evolution is about bringing that strategic partnership to every client.”

On Oct. 14, RedTag co-hosted the PROOF AI Workshop with Slingshot, Vsimple and Advanced Business Solutions. The hands-on event gave Louisville business leaders practical experience applying AI to their own work. RedTag led the event’s AI in Marketing and Branding track, with four sessions ranging from AI search optimization to a playbook for adopting AI across an organization.

“AI can produce hundreds of ads in an afternoon, but it can’t tell you which one your brand actually needs and why,” Renbarger said. “The faster the tools get, the more valuable human-led strategy becomes.”

RedTag was named the agency of record for the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 2025. Its client list includes PGA of America, Castle & Key Distillery, Bourbon Barrel Foods, ShopCaterpillar and American Beverage Marketers. Since 2023, RedTag’s work has received two Emmy Awards and more than 35 ADDY and AIGA awards. The agency is a four-time Louisville Business First Fast 50 honoree and was named one of the 2026 Best Places to Work in Kentucky.

To learn more about its outcome-based programs, visit RedTag Programs

About RedTag

RedTag is an independent, strategy-first marketing agency based in Louisville, Kentucky. Established in 2008, the agency starts every engagement by understanding the goal before recommending tactics. With a foundation rooted in discovery, RedTag delivers full-scale marketing campaigns built around each client’s business goals. RedTag serves organizations across hospitality, sports, agriculture, government, retail and consumer packaged goods. Learn more at redtag.agency.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/as-ai-speeds-up-marketing-louisvilles-redtag-bets-on-strategy-302911869.html

SOURCE RED TAG LLC

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