News & Events

South African Rayno Nel has made history by becoming the first African champion and rookie winner since 1997 at the World’s Strongest Man competition in Sacramento, California. In a dramatic finale, the 30-year-old former rugby player clinched victory by just half a point over three-time champion Tom Stoltman.

Nel, standing 6’3″ and weighing 326 pounds, dominated the first day of finals but faced his biggest challenges in the final events – the 531-pound Flintstone Barbell and the Atlas Stones. Despite these being his weakest events, he secured a crucial third-place finish in the Atlas Stones to claim the title.

The victory marks the first time in the competition’s 48-year history that the title has gone to a competitor from outside Europe or North America. Nel, who only began competing in strongman events three years ago after his rugby career, credited his success to training at Terence Bosman’s facility near his home in South Africa.

Read the original article here: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/rayno-nel-wins-2025-worlds-strongest-man-becoming-first-champion-from-africa/ar-AA1F1ikj?ocid=BingNewsVerp

Malaysia has announced strategic partnerships with leading financial institutions to support its special economic zone in Johor, bordering Singapore. Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli revealed the initiative during the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone dialogue.

The project has secured letters of intent from major banks, including Bank of America, HSBC, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, CGS International Securities, Maybank, and CIMB Bank. Negotiations are ongoing with a European bank. These partnerships aim to stimulate private sector participation through capital pooling.

Established in January 2025, the Malaysia-Singapore initiative targets 50 projects and 20,000 skilled jobs within five years. A comprehensive blueprint is scheduled for release by year-end. Both countries will establish infrastructure funds to support businesses in the zone. Johor’s Chief Minister, Onn Hafiz Ghazi, reported impressive investment figures, with RM27.4 billion ($6.4 billion) secured in Q1 2025 and RM23 billion more anticipated. The state expects to exceed RM50- 60 billion in total investments this year, surpassing 2024’s RM48.5 billion.

Read the original article here: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/economy/malaysia-partners-with-banks-to-boost-investments-in-johor-special-economic-zone/ar-AA1F1QYo?ocid=BingNewsBrowse

Goldfinch Holdings (UK) and Digital Genesis Fund (Luxembourg) have announced a groundbreaking partnership at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, launching a USD 20 million fund to revolutionise media production through Web3 technologies.

The initiative, unveiled at the TechCannes Industry event, combines equal investments from Digital Genesis SICAV RAIF Fund and Goldfinch International. The partnership’s first strategic acquisition is Lumiere, a tokenised crowdfunding platform backed by Animoca Brands and Rolling Stone. Blockchain expert Patrice Poujol will join as Strategic Advisor. The collaboration will focus on developing Web3-native production studios and metaverse environments, including The Squad and the MILC metaverse. These platforms will integrate finance, rights management, and content distribution tools within an interactive digital ecosystem.

The partnership plans immediate international activation, starting with the Indonesia Creative Investment Forum later this year. With support from leading data centres and AI-powered production pipelines, the initiative aims to create a global marketplace for tokenised IP and revolutionise traditional media production methods.

Read the original article here: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/05/14/3081545/0/en/Goldfinch-Digital-Genesis-Launch-20-Million-Web3-and-AI-Entertainment-Venture-at-Cannes.html