24, Aug 2026
Consortium launches cross-regional pilot on post-quantum security with participation from banks and regulatory stakeholders
Convened by the Responsible Fintech Institute with Safeheron as technology partner, to evaluate and eventually open-source quantum-resilient infrastructure for wallet generation and digital asset transfers in a regulated, cross-jurisdiction setting.
SINGAPORE, Aug. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) and Safeheron have launched a pilot initiative to evaluate post-quantum cryptography for digital asset transactions, with participation from selected financial institutions and regulatory stakeholders across multiple jurisdictions. The initiative is designed to move quantum-safe financial infrastructure from concept into practical testing with participating institutions.
The pilot will focus on a post-quantum cryptography (PQC) research program built around a multi-party computation (MPC) protocol that supports ML-DSA-65, the NIST FIPS 204 digital signature standard, with participant testing covering wallet generation and on-chain transfer activity on the quantum-resistant NEAR testnet. The initiative brings together banks and regulators from multiple jurisdictions to examine cross-border interoperability, operational resilience and governance considerations in parallel with technical evaluation.
“No single bank, vendor, or regulator solves this alone,” said Chia Hock Lai, Chairman of the Responsible Fintech Institute. “By bringing policymakers and financial institutions across jurisdictions together to test the same post-quantum architecture, and transparently sharing that research with every participant, we are building a compliance and security reference the whole industry can stand on — and a standard we all helped write.”
“AI is accelerating the pace of change and likely bringing the quantum threat closer to reality — quantum-ready infrastructure has never been more critical, and the time to act is now,” said Jag Foo, Chief Security & Policy Officer at Safeheron. “By integrating NIST’s post-quantum signature standard with advanced MPC technology, we are building the architecture required to secure the next generation of financial networks. Safeheron has long advocated for open-source cryptography, because accountability and good governance demand it. We intend to open-source our PQC code. Cryptography securing institutional assets should stand up to independent scrutiny, not ask for trust.”
“As the financial sector prepares for future cybersecurity challenges, initiatives that encourage collaboration and knowledge-sharing among industry participants are increasingly important,” said António Henriques, CEO of Bison Bank. “We are pleased to support discussions around post-quantum security and to contribute to broader industry understanding of how financial institutions can prepare for the evolving risk landscape.”
“We welcome the industry’s initiative to identify a reliable protocol that safeguards digital asset transactions,” said David Peters, Managing Director of the Gelephu Financial Services Office. “Ensuring the continuing integrity of these transactions and protecting client funds is critical to the smooth functioning of the investment market.”
“Preparing for the potential impact of quantum computing on the financial system requires early engagement, collaboration and a better understanding of how post-quantum technologies can operate in practice,” said Alan Decelis, Head of Supervisory ICT Risk and Cybersecurity at the Malta Financial Services Authority. “The MFSA welcomes initiatives that bring together regulators, financial institutions and technology experts to explore these challenges in a controlled environment. Participating in this initiative provides a valuable opportunity to contribute a supervisory perspective while developing our understanding of the operational, governance and resilience considerations associated with the transition towards quantum-safe financial services.”
Why quantum-safe infrastructure matters
Quantum computing is widely expected to create long-term risks for the public-key cryptography that underpins large parts of today’s financial system, and financial-sector transition planning has become increasingly important. As noted in a 2025 paper on quantum-readiness for the financial system published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the transition requires coordinated planning, cryptographic agility and phased migration, rather than a simple algorithm swap.
At the same time, regulators are sharpening their focus on AI- and quantum-driven cyber risks. In July 2026, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) announced the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce (ACT), an industry-wide initiative to strengthen collective cyber and technology resilience against emerging threats from frontier AI models. Regionally, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has embedded quantum readiness into its Fintech 2030 strategy, launching a Quantum Preparedness Index and whitepaper to benchmark banks’ transition to post-quantum cryptography and signalling an ambition to achieve full sectoral quantum-ready status by 2030.
Within this pilot, participating institutions will test a shared application environment that enables quantum-resistant MPC signing under consistent conditions, while regulators take part in an observer role during the first phase and contribute to a governance workstream in the next stage. The proof of concept also envisages publication of a whitepaper covering the research, protocol design and testing findings so that the wider market can assess and build on the results, reinforcing the sector’s collective learning and preparedness. Furthermore, the underlying protocol technology will eventually be open-sourced to maximize transparency, encourage independent security auditing, and promote accountable, industry-wide standards.
About the pilot
The proof of concept is positioned as a collaborative effort for regulated financial institutions, with Safeheron leading protocol and engineering work and the Responsible Fintech Institute leading governance, convening and cross-jurisdiction stakeholder coordination. Current participants include regulators such as Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Gelephu Financial Services Office (GFSO) and Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) alongside participating banks including Bison Bank and DK Bank, with additional institutions in discussion to join.
Participating financial institutions will contribute to the evaluation of operational, governance and interoperability considerations associated with post-quantum cryptographic approaches. Levels of participation may vary depending on the role and scope agreed by each institution.
The pilot has been structured to stay close to real institutional operating models, including a tentative non-custodial 2-of-2 MPC participation design intended to minimize operational burden while preserving institutional control over key ownership. Its broader objective is to help the market better understand how secure digital asset transaction flows could evolve across regions as financial institutions prepare for a quantum-safe future, in alignment with evolving supervisory expectations on cyber resilience and quantum readiness.
About the Responsible Fintech Institute
The Responsible Fintech Institute is an independent nonprofit organization focused on bridging traditional and decentralized finance through standards, governance and responsible adoption. In this pilot, it convenes regulators, banks and market infrastructure stakeholders across jurisdictions and supports governance and publication of the initiative’s research findings.
About Safeheron
Safeheron is a digital asset custody and operating system infrastructure provider focused on advanced cryptographic infrastructure, including multi-party computation and trusted execution environment capabilities. In this pilot, it is responsible for the PQC-enabled MPC protocol, ML-DSA-65 signing implementation and testing application used by approved participants.
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- By Sai Krishna
23, Aug 2026
Additional Information on the Ehrmann Family Increasing Its Equity Stake in Artprice by Artmarket as Part of Artprice’s “AI-First” Transformation
PARIS, Aug. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As announced in Artmarket.com’s Q2 2026 press release published on August 13, 2026, under the title “Artmarket.com: Q2 2026 Growth — From Progressive Transition to Artprice’s ‘AI-FIRST’ Mutation”, Thierry Ehrmann, Founder and CEO of Artmarket.com, and his family reaffirm their complete confidence in the future of Artprice by Artmarket.com—the global leader in Art Market information—and in the sustained growth of its operations. This momentum is driven, in particular, by substantial investments committed to developing Artprice by Artmarket.com’s proprietary vertical AI solutions: “Intuitive Art Market ©” and “Blind Spot ©”.
The conviction of the Ehrmann family and Groupe Serveur, the majority shareholder, in the continued expansion of Artprice by Artmarket will materialize shortly through an increased equity stake in Artmarket.com via the acquisition of additional Artmarket.com shares. All mandatory regulatory disclosures will be filed with the AMF (the French Financial Markets Authority) and published online within legal deadlines, with share purchases executed strictly within authorized trading windows.
These current and upcoming transactions are intended solely to reaffirm their confidence in the future of Artprice by Artmarket.com and to provide full support to Artmarket.com. They are in no way intended to initiate a takeover bid or squeeze-out offer (tender offer / buyout), contrary to persistent misinterpretations across certain forums, nor do they involve any failure by the Ehrmann family to disclose transactions or threshold crossings.
The ONDE extranet (Outil de Notification et de Déclaration Électronique), the AMF’s secure platform dedicated to filing official regulatory declarations (insider transactions, major shareholding threshold crossings, etc.), lists the following current and upcoming filings:
- 1st filing — No. 2026DD1133787 (published on 08/17/2026)
- 2nd filing — No. 2026DD1134265 (published on 08/20/2026)
- 3rd supplementary filing — No. 2026DD1134267 (published on 08/20/2026)
In alignment with this determination to increase the family’s equity participation in Artmarket.com, Mrs. Nadège Ehrmann, Board Member of Artmarket.com, has acquired additional Artmarket.com shares. Because the aggregate total of her acquisitions exceeded the statutory regulatory threshold, she completed the mandatory disclosures with both the issuer and the AMF in full compliance with Article 19 of the EU Market Abuse Regulation (MAR).
Furthermore, these share purchases follow ordinary market price fluctuations, which in no way alter the Ehrmann family’s commitment to reinforcing its equity position in Artprice by Artmarket.com.
By way of an iterative update, Thierry Ehrmann has completed the manuscript of an 1,800-page philosophical and scientific treatise dedicated to Artificial Intelligence from 1987 to the present day. The central chapters of this work (approximately 450 rigorously documented pages) chronicle the untold human odyssey of Artprice, culminating in the worldwide construction of a universal memory of the Art Market, forged through extraordinary encounters with the pioneers of Art Market sociology and historic market figures who have since passed away.
These historic relationships enabled Artprice to become the trusted custodian of the collective memory of these very figures. Among other insights, the work provides a scientific account of Artprice’s “AI-First” transformation, grounded in a philosophical framework articulated in 2026 under the AI concept of “alignment.”
This multilingual work will be distributed globally in a free digital edition and as a paid print edition in bookstores. The English version will be released in late August 2026 across OpenAI, Gemini, and on Artprice by Artmarket.com, prior to the launch of the French edition in September 2026.
This brief excerpt from the raw typescript illustrates both the literary style and the philosophical premise of the treatise—namely, the role of artificial intelligence in the formation of thought and memory:
“Artprice was not born to wrest secrets from the Art Market. It was born to prevent the public Market from succumbing to amnesia. This distinction is fundamental. It carries a specific conception of freedom. Transparency is not the abolition of privacy; it consists in rendering intelligible that which already belongs to the common sphere.
The more Artprice grew, the more we realized that we had become responsible for something far exceeding the mere economic and industrial function of a database. When you own a few books, you may do with them as you please. When you have gathered hundreds of thousands of unique fragments of the world’s Art Market memory from across multiple continents, legal ownership does not absolve moral responsibility: it transforms you into a custodian of this universal Art Market memory.
To receive without erasing. To connect without standardizing. To measure without diminishing. To render transparent without desecrating. To leverage digital technology without supplanting the human gaze. To build a digital information economy without ever forgetting that behind every data point lies a work of art, and behind every work of art lies a human being.
For nearly thirty years, we lived by these principles without ever feeling the need to enshrine them in a manifesto. Then, artificial intelligence transformed the nature of the challenge. With AI, memory is no longer merely consulted; it becomes an absolute training ground for learning.
A vertical, proprietary AI can now navigate volumes of information that no assembly of art historians or researchers could absorb in a lifetime. Connecting. Correlating. Detecting patterns. Surfacing anomalies. Rebuilding affinities. Identifying blind spots. Generating algorithmic hypotheses. It is a power of extraordinary magnitude. Yet it makes the authenticity and quality of the primary source more vital than ever.
At that exact moment, the thousands of libraries we salvaged across the globe undergo another shift in status. They are no longer simply Artprice’s past; they become the ultimate guarantee of its future. A vertical AI dedicated to the Art Market is meaningful only if anchored in a memory whose genealogy is flawlessly traceable across catalogues, manuscripts, codices, photographs, biographies, auction records, cross-verified sources, human corrections, and decades of rigorous standardization.
The source precedes the model. Always.”
Copyright 1987-2026 thierry Ehrmann www.artprice.com – www.artmarket.com
Artprice’s econometrics department can answer all your questions relating to personalized statistics and analyses: econometrics@artprice.com
Find out more about our services with the artist in a free demonstration: https://artprice.com/demo
Our services: https://artprice.com/subscription
About Artmarket.com:
Artmarket.com is listed on Eurolist by Euronext Paris. The latest TPI analysis includes more than 18,000 individual shareholders excluding foreign shareholders, companies, banks, FCPs, UCITS: Euroclear: 7478 – Bloomberg: PRC – Reuters: ARTF.
Watch a video about Artmarket.com and its Artprice department: https://artprice.com/video
Artmarket and its Artprice department were founded in 1997 by thierry Ehrmann, the company’s CEO. They are controlled by Groupe Serveur (created in 1987). cf. the certified biography from Who’s Who In France©:
Artmarket is a global player in the Art Market with, among other structures, its Artprice department, world leader in the accumulation, management and exploitation of historical and current art market information (the original documentary archives, codex manuscripts, annotated books and auction catalogs acquired over the years) in databanks containing over 30 million indices and auction results, covering more than 915,300 artists.
Artprice Images® allows unlimited access to the largest art market image bank in the world with no less than 181 million digital images of photographs or engraved reproductions of artworks from 1700 to the present day, commented by our art historians.
Artmarket, with its Artprice department, constantly enriches its databases from 7,200 auction houses and continuously publishes art market trends for the main agencies and press titles in the world in 121 countries and 11 languages.
Artmarket.com makes available to its 9.3 million members (members log in) the advertisements posted by its Members, who now constitute the first global Standardized Marketplace® for buying and selling artworks at fixed prices.
There is now a future for the Art Market with Artprice’s Intuitive Artmarket® AI.
Artmarket, with its Artprice department, has twice been awarded the State label “Innovative Company” by the French Public Investment Bank (BPI), which has supported the company in its project to consolidate its position as a global player in the art market.
Artprice by Artmarket publishes its 2025 Global Art Market Annual Report, published in March 2026:
https://www.artprice.com/artprice-reports/the-art-market-in-2025
Artprice by Artmarket publishes its 2025 Contemporary Art Market Report:
https://www.artprice.com/artprice-reports/the-contemporary-art-market-report-2025
Summary of Artmarket press releases with its Artprice department: https://serveur.serveur.com/artmarket/press-release/en/
Follow all the Art Market news in real-time with Artmarket and its Artprice department on Facebook and Twitter:
www.facebook.com/artpricedotcom/ (more than 6.4 million subscribers)
Discover the alchemy and the universe of Artmarket and its Artprice department: https://www.artprice.com/video
whose head office is the famous Museum of Contemporary Art Abode of Chaos dixit The New York Times / La Demeure of Chaos:
https://issuu.com/demeureduchaos/docs/demeureduchaos-abodeofchaos-opus-ix-1999-2013
Madame Rachida Dati, French Minister of Culture, has granted official recognition to thierry Ehrmann’s Abode of Chaos as a ‘total work of art’, the global headquarters of Artprice by Artmarket.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/madame-rachida-dati-french-minister-of-culture-has-granted-official-recognition-to-thierry-ehrmanns-abode-of-chaos-as-a-total-work-of-art-the-global-headquarters-of-artprice-by-artmarket-302409684.html
La Demeure du Chaos/Abode of Chaos – Total Work of Art and Singular Architecture.
Confidential bilingual work, now made public: https://ftp1.serveur.com/abodeofchaos_singular_architecture.pdf
- L’Obs – The Museum of the Future: https://youtu.be/29LXBPJrs-o
- https://www.facebook.com/la.demeure.du.chaos.theabodeofchaos999 (more than 4.1 million subscribers)
https://vimeo.com/124643720
Contact Artmarket.com and its Artprice department – Contact: ir@artmarket.com
Logo – https://mmx.prnewswire.com/media/MS1060280/Artmarket-logo.jpg?id=OA2904828
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23, Aug 2026
HTX Research Examines U.S. AI Equities: Technology Remains Early, While Capital Expenditure and Valuations Have Entered the Late Cycle
APIA, Samoa, Aug. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — HTX Research, the dedicated research arm of HTX, has released a new report titled The Industrialization of Intelligence and the Bubble Cycle: Token Economics, Capital Expenditure, and the Repricing of Risk-Reward Across U.S. AI Equities. Its central argument is that the AI industry and AI equities are not at the same point in their respective cycles — technological diffusion remains in its early stages while capital expenditure, valuations, and investor sentiment have moved well ahead of it.
The Variables Driving Equity Prices
Markets first priced the scarcity of GPUs, high-bandwidth memory, servers, and data-center capacity, and later the capability gains delivered by frontier models and coding agents. In 2026, the variables driving equity returns are shifting away from model parameter counts and the scale of capital expenditure toward token production costs, task-completion reliability, usage intensity, enterprise-workflow penetration, and the ability of enormous AI investments to generate durable free cash flow.
Behind that shift is a change in the magnitude of capital spending. J.P. Morgan Asset Management estimates that five U.S. hyperscalers will spend approximately $697 billion in 2026, with capital expenditure rising from roughly 33% of their operating cash flow in 2023 to an estimated 93%. Once capital expenditure consumes the overwhelming majority of operating cash flow, market attention necessarily moves from revenue growth to return on capital.
The Bubble Sits in the Financial Architecture, Not the Industry
Cloud revenue, coding-agent adoption, semiconductor sales, and enterprise demand are all growing in real terms, meaning AI technology itself is not a false narrative. Capital expenditure, external financing, data-center projects, private-model valuations, and a number of high-multiple second-tier equities, however, display increasingly speculative characteristics.
Headline price-to-earnings ratios also fail to represent true valuation levels: Alphabet’s multiple is distorted by investment income, and Amazon’s current accounting profit does not reflect a normalized valuation. What genuinely offers value is the closest alignment among normalized valuation, competitive moats, cash flow, and AI optionality.
At current prices and cycle positions, the report views Alphabet as offering the most compelling overall asymmetry, and applies the same framework across Microsoft, Meta, TSMC, NVIDIA, Amazon, Oracle, Micron, AMD, Arista, and Vertiv — distinguishing businesses with high fundamental win rates from those whose valuations already demand near-flawless execution.
AI Is Reshaping How Crypto Investors Allocate Capital
AI’s role as a shared theme across global capital markets extends beyond U.S. equity pricing into the allocation behavior of crypto investors. As names including NVIDIA, Micron, TSMC, Broadcom, Meta, and Alphabet enter the everyday portfolios of crypto users alongside gold, crude oil, ETFs, and pre-IPO assets, a growing share of users now treat crypto and U.S. equities as different allocation directions within a single global risk-asset system.
HTX has been one of the earliest crypto exchanges to systematically pursue this direction. According to data disclosed in August 2026, cumulative trading volume in the platform’s TradFi perpetuals section has exceeded $2.5 billion, with support for more than 170 TradFi-related assets spanning U.S. equities, ETFs, gold, silver, crude oil, AI semiconductors, memory, aerospace, and pre-IPO themes such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
What makes this model work is the platform’s existing base of crypto users who have completed registration, verification, and funding. Holding stablecoins such as USDT, they can trade TradFi assets within the same account without opening a brokerage account or moving capital into a separate financial system — allocating toward gold, ETFs, or large-cap technology when risk appetite declines, and raising crypto and high-beta AI exposure when it recovers.
The Competitive Boundary for Trading Platforms Is Shifting
Competition among trading platforms will extend beyond spot markets, derivatives, liquidity, and listing speed toward a broader contest spanning multi-asset access, wealth management, and AI investment tools. Platforms with durable competitiveness will see their core capability evolve from execution alone toward global asset distribution.
This confirms a larger judgment in the report: AI is changing not only model capability and compute demand, but capital flows, allocation behavior, and how financial products are organized. HTX’s early positioning in TradFi corresponds with HTX Research’s sustained tracking of the AI theme and cross-market capital flows — identifying cycle positions, reading capital flows, and understanding how assets move in relation to one another sits at the core of research work, and also forms a source of first-mover advantage in business decisions. As AI drives global markets into a new phase of convergence, institutions capable of understanding both industrial cycles and capital flows are better positioned for the next round of competition.
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*The above content is not an investment advice and does not constitute any offer or solicitation to offer or recommendation of any investment product. |
About HTX Research
HTX Research is the dedicated research arm of HTX Group, responsible for conducting in-depth analyses, producing comprehensive reports, and delivering expert evaluations across a broad spectrum of topics, including cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, and emerging market trends. Committed to providing data-driven insights and strategic foresight, HTX Research plays a pivotal role in shaping industry perspectives and supporting informed decision-making within the digital asset space. Through rigorous research methodologies and cutting-edge analytics, HTX Research remains at the forefront of innovation, driving thought leadership and fostering a deeper understanding of evolving market dynamics. Visit us.
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22, Aug 2026
Chandigarh University Hosts Global Architectural Voices to Deliberate on Technology, Heritage and Future of Architecture
Leading Architects Deliberate Artificial Intelligence, Emerging Technologies & the Future of Architecture
CHANDIGARH, India, Aug. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Aimed at transforming industry–academia engagement from dialogue into tangible collaboration, the 4th International Conference on Trends in Architecture and Construction (ICTAC 2026) was inaugurated today at Chandigarh University, bringing leading architects, academicians, researchers, industry professionals and scholars onto a single platform to deliberate on the future of architecture and construction.
The conference set the stage for new industry partnerships, architecture and research consultancy, professional knowledge exchange and stronger industry exposure for future architects. Organised by the University Institute of Architecture (UIA), Chandigarh University, the two-day hybrid conference is being held on August 20 and 21, 2026 at Chandigarh University.
The inaugural day brought together eminent voices from the field of architectural education, research and professional practice, including Prof. Jayshree Deshpande, Director of the Council of Architecture – Training & Research Centre (COA-TRC) as Chief Guest, Yatin Pandya, Founder & Principal Architect, Footprints EARTH, Ahmedabad, Manmohan Khanna, Founder & Principal Architect, KMA Architecture and Chairman-IIA, Chandigarh Chapter as Guest of Honours, Prof. (Dr.) Vikas Rai Bhatnagar, Group Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr R Jagdeesh Kannan, Pro Vice Chancellor-Academic Affairs, Chandigarh University among other dignitaries.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Jayashree Deshpande, Director of the Council of Architecture – Training & Research Centre (COA-TRC) said, “AI and other emerging technologies are a blessing because they can help us to think and design better. Architecture today deals with projects which are immense in scale, and it is not possible for an architect to do everything single-handedly. We must therefore learn to collaborate with engineers, planners, policymakers, consultants and specialists and technology can enable us to work together more effectively.”
Deshpande added, “We are entering an extraordinary phase of technological change, with artificial intelligence, digital twins, generative design, robotics and data-driven planning transforming the way we conceive, design and construct our buildings and cities. But technology should remain a means and not become the mission. Technology must be used to improve the quality of human life, to create spaces, cities and communities that are stronger, more resilient, inclusive and connected. Technology is smart, but the human should be wiser. If we learn to use technology properly, we can create wise cities that are technologically advanced but emotionally connected. This is particularly important as we work towards the vision of Viksit Bharat. Our young professionals should engage with the various initiatives of the Government of India and utilize the opportunities available to contribute to the development of the country. Ultimately, our responsibility as architects is not simply to create iconic buildings, but to create places where people feel safe, included, inspired and at home. If technology can help us achieve that, then it has truly served society and contributed to the larger vision of a Viksit Bharat.”
Yatin Pandya, Founder & Principal Architect, Footprints EARTH, Ahmedabad said, “Architecture is not merely about buildings or forms; it is about the experience, emotion and impact we create. Trends may come and go, but what is truly appropriate and meaningful can remain timeless. As architects, we must observe, understand and foresee the implications of even the smallest design decisions, because our responsibility extends beyond an individual client to the larger community and the future of our planet.”
Manmohan Khanna, Founder & Principal Architect, KMA Architecture said, “Chandigarh University has the potential to become one of the leading institutions in the country and the world and the students here are fortunate to be part of that journey. Students are our future and together we must work towards building the finest professionals for the country.”
A key thrust of ICTAC 2026 is its emphasis on creating concrete mechanisms for sustained industry–academia engagement. The inaugural day also featured the opening of the Heritage Exhibition – ‘Pehchan 2.0’, placing India’s architectural heritage within the wider discourse on identity, conservation and contemporary architectural practice.
The programme further witnessed the unveiling of the ICTAC Inaugural Board and the release of the Abstract Book, followed by paper presentations. The research presentations provided scholars and participants with a platform to share emerging ideas, studies and perspectives in architecture and construction.
The second day of the conference will feature the Industry Colloquium, comprising plenary sessions and high-level panel discussions with distinguished experts from academia, government and industry. A major highlight will be the signing of an MoU between UIA and Walia Creative Architects, creating a formal avenue for closer engagement between academic and professional practice.
About Chandigarh University
Chandigarh University is a NAAC A+ Grade University and QS World Ranked University. This autonomous educational institution is approved by UGC and is located near Chandigarh in the state of Punjab. It is the youngest university in India and the only private university in Punjab to be honoured with A+ Grade by NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council). CU offers more than 109 UG and PG programs in the field of engineering, management, pharmacy, law, architecture, journalism, animation, hotel management, commerce, and others. It has been awarded as The University with Best Placements by WCRC.
Website address: https://www.cuchd.in/
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21, Aug 2026
BL Networks (BLNWX) Details Major Global Infrastructure Expansion and Upgrades
SHERIDAN, Wyo., Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — BL Networks, operating under ASN 399629, today detailed its ongoing global infrastructure expansion. Highlighting a multi-year project to strategically meet demand for associated privacy-VPS provider BitLaunch, it reinforces its commitment to deliver high-performance and low-latency networking to a growing global user base of privacy-conscious cloud users.
BLNWX: The Latest Network Expansions
Over the past three years, BL Networks has ramped up its mission to deliver private infrastructure to growing internet populations. Its most recent expansions include:
1. Singapore (May 2026) – BLNWX’s APAC debut
Responding to demand in the Asia-Pacific region, BLNWX launched its newest location in Singapore. The location was selected to deliver low-latency service to BitLaunch customers in the APAC region while maintaining the reliability and performance its users have come to expect.
2. Amsterdam (September 2025) – The 20 Gbps Upgrade
Amsterdam is one of Europe’s most critical routing hubs and therefore one of the most popular hosting locations. To meet significant user demand, BL Networks rolled out a third Amsterdam location with major upgrades. 20 Gbps network speeds built on tier-1 multi-homed bandwidth and modern DELL server hardware ensure that even the most bandwidth-heavy workloads remain stable.
3. Bucharest, Romania (March 2024) – Extending the European footprint
While locations in London and Amsterdam provided BL Networks with excellent coverage across Europe, there was room for improvement in the east. The launch of a new data center region in Bucharest delivered ultra-low latency to users in Eastern Europe. A favorite location for VPNs and web hosting providers, Romania has the fastest internet speeds in the region, enabling BitLaunch to deliver 20 Gbps up/down.
4. Dallas, Texas (February 2024) – Serving the South
Following rollouts in Los Angeles and Chicago, the next logical step was to serve the US’s southern states. Lying in the center of the telecom corridor, Dallas, TX was the natural choice. Strong fiber coverage and a low incidence of natural disasters, combined with proximity to some of the world’s largest networking firms, made it the near-perfect expansion choice.
Hardware specifications and performance standards
Rather than confusing users with varying hardware profiles, BL Networks has opted for strong baseline specifications built on:
- Modern Dell server hardware featuring Intel Gold CPUs
- Fast Samsung Enterprise SSDs configured in RAID10 for maximum I/O and redundancy
- High-speed ECC memory (RAM)
- Hardware-level KVM virtualization
- Industry-leading, heuristic DDoS protection
Just as crucial as the specifications themselves, however, is BLNWX’s philosophy of scaling sustainably with demand. Rather than overselling like many providers, it endeavors to under-promise and over-deliver.
BLNWX’s Eco Commitment
BL Networks’ philosophy of sustainability extends beyond responsible infrastructure scaling. As it expands its physical footprint, it remains committed to environmental sustainability through its Carbon Negative Pledge.
Doubling its commitments until it pays off its historic carbon debt, it has directly funded the planting of almost 25,000 trees and offset 961.54 tons of CO2e. It also endeavors to reduce its e-waste output by purchasing refurbished server hardware whenever it reasonably can without sacrificing quality.
BitLaunch VPN and the Future
BLNWX’s continuing infrastructure expansion enables not only capacity for its VPS customers but also new regions for BitLaunch VPN, which it launched in July 2025. The service allows users to deploy their own, private VPN across multiple regions in seconds.
Looking ahead, BL Networks remains dedicated to expanding its first-party network to more regions while maintaining its rigorous privacy and sustainability standards and continuing to eliminate the barriers associated with traditional payment methods.
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21, Aug 2026
Penske Automotive Sets Scene for Freedom 250 Grand Prix: NYSE Content Update
NYSE issues a pre-market daily advisory direct from the trading floor.
NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) provides a daily pre-market update directly from the NYSE Trading Floor. Access today’s NYSE Pre-market update for market insights before trading begins.
Ashley Mastronardi delivers the pre-market update on August 21st
- The Freedom 250 Grand Prix commences this weekend.
- Representatives from Penske Automotive (NYSE: PAG) and McLaren will join NYSE Live this morning.
- President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are expected to attend the race.
- The Freedom 250 Grand Prix marks the first ever NTT INDYCAR series race on the National Mall.
- Manchester United (NYSE: MANU) representatives will join Taking Stock.
- Manchester United begins its Premier League season on Saturday at 7:30 AM ET.
- The club will host a special match screening at Pier 17 in New York City.
- Investors are tracking the latest bond market movement.
- The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield reached its highest level since 2007 earlier this week.
Opening Bell
Penske Automotive (NYSE: PAG) celebrates the Freedom 250 Grand Prix in Washington D.C.
Closing Bell
Manchester United (NYSE: MANU) celebrates the start of the Premier League season
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21, Aug 2026
Selective UPI MDR Will Need Reliable Merchant Intelligence, Not Just a Pricing Rule
As India reopens the UPI economics debate, the implementation challenge will be identifying, classifying and treating merchants fairly
BANGALORE, India, Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — At CARD91, we believe the UPI MDR debate must go beyond pricing. Any selective framework will require accurate merchant verification, consistent classification and ongoing risk visibility to protect legitimate businesses and ensure fair implementation.
The passage of the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 has reopened the industry discussion around the Merchant Discount Rate, or MDR, on UPI transactions.
The amendment creates a legal pathway under which the existing zero-MDR structure may be modified for specified digital payment transactions. However, the Government has clarified that no immediate charge has been introduced. Consumers and person-to-person payments will remain free, small merchants will remain protected, and no final MDR framework has been announced.
Beyond the question of whether MDR should return, the industry must consider how any selective framework would work in practice. If future rules differentiate between transactions or merchant segments, banks and acquiring institutions will need accurate and current information about the businesses accepting those payments.
Incorrect merchant identity, outdated business information or inaccurate classification could result in inconsistent policy application and unnecessary disputes.
“The most difficult part of a selective MDR framework may not be setting a rate; it will be applying the policy consistently to the right merchant,” said Ajay Pandey, CEO, CARD91. “Whatever parameters are eventually adopted, banks and acquirers will need verified and explainable information about the businesses accepting payments. The quality of merchant data will directly influence how fairly any differentiated framework operates.”
Four Questions the Ecosystem Must Address
1. Is the merchant identity properly verified?
Merchant verification must go beyond collecting documents. Banks and acquirers need to establish that the business is genuine, operational and consistent with the credentials submitted during onboarding.
2. Is the merchant classified correctly?
A merchant’s declared activity, actual business model and assigned Merchant Category Code should remain aligned. Institutions also need reviewable processes for identifying and correcting classification errors.
3. Has the merchant’s profile changed?
Verification should not end after onboarding. Business activities, ownership details, digital footprints and transaction behaviour can change over time. Material changes may require additional review, but controls should remain proportionate and should not create unnecessary friction for genuine merchants.
4. What happens when the system gets it wrong?
Merchants need a clear process for correcting identity, classification or policy application errors. Explainable decisions and transparent redress will be essential if financial policies are applied differently across merchant segments.
Why Merchant Intelligence Matters Now
UPI processed 23.66 billion transactions worth approximately ₹29.88 lakh crore in July 2026. At this scale, inaccurate merchant records can create operational complexity for financial institutions and businesses.
The issue extends beyond MDR. Reliable merchant information also supports appropriate transaction limits, effective fraud controls, regulatory compliance and accurate payment categorisation.
In July 2025, before the current MDR discussion, CARD91 introduced an AI-led merchant verification and classification capability to help regulated institutions strengthen business verification and classification. The current debate highlights why accurate and current merchant information matters beyond onboarding.
A risk score or automated system should not independently decide whether a merchant is subject to MDR. Any future structure must follow the regulations and operating rules established by the Government, RBI and NPCI. Technology should support institutional judgement and consistent implementation, not replace them.
“The goal should not be to add more friction to merchant acceptance,” said A.G. Ramakrishna, Chief Product Officer, CARD91. “It should be to ensure that legitimate businesses are treated consistently while financial institutions have the information required to manage risk and implement policy responsibly.”
India built UPI’s reach by making digital payment acceptance simple and accessible. If a selective MDR model is introduced, preserving that accessibility will depend not only on the pricing decision but also on the quality, transparency and fairness of its implementation.
About CARD91
CARD91 is a payments and onboarding risk infrastructure provider, enabling regulated entities to launch and scale customer programs with ease. The platform supports seamless onboarding journeys, fraud detection, credit decisioning, card issuance across credit, prepaid, and forex, and UPI stack capabilities across issuance and acquiring.
Through its NPCI-certified capabilities and technology stack, CARD91 helps institutions design bespoke customer payment programs and market them with speed, security, and a seamless digital experience. Built by a team of bankers and technologists and proudly made in India, CARD91 operates across key financial hubs, including Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, and Chennai.
For more information, visit https://card91.io/ or contact sales@card91.io.
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21, Aug 2026
Global Artist Hajime Sorayama Establishes Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd. and Announces New Management Structure
Best known for his iconic Sexy Robot series and the original design of Sony’s “aibo,”
Sorayama enters a new chapter of global creative activity
TOKYO, Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ —
Establishment of Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd.
Hajime Sorayama has officially ended his management agreement with Nanzuka Gallery and has established Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd.
Effective immediately, Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd. will serve as the exclusive point of contact for all matters relating to Hajime Sorayama, including licensing, brand collaborations, artwork management, exhibitions, media inquiries, and all other business affairs.
Official Instagram Account
At present, neither Hajime Sorayama nor Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd. has access to or holds administrative control over the Instagram account that had previously been used as his official account (@hajimesorayamaofficial).
Accordingly, information published through that account may not represent communications from Mr. Sorayama or Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd.
We are currently taking the necessary steps to regain administrative access to the account.
To avoid confusion, we kindly ask collectors, fans, business partners, members of the media, and all interested parties to refer only to the official website for accurate information regarding Hajime Sorayama and his activities.
Official Website: www.sorayamahajime.com
Intellectual Property and Artwork Deliveries
Following the end of the management agreement, we are currently organizing the transfer of the intellectual property and managed assets belonging to Hajime Sorayama.
At this time, there remain certain matters relating to the transfer of trademarks, artworks, and other managed assets that have not yet been completed. We will continue to work with all relevant parties to reach an appropriate resolution.
During this transitional period, delivery of certain artworks previously purchased by collectors may take longer than originally anticipated.
We sincerely apologize for any concern or inconvenience this may cause.
If you have any questions regarding an existing order or the delivery status of an artwork, please contact us using the information below. We are committed to responding promptly and in good faith.
Autographed Trading Cards Sold by “KAKAWOW”
Currently, within the product “2026 KAKAWOW Phantom Hajime Sorayama Trading Cards,” there are certain cards that are advertised to bear Sorayama’s hand-signed autographs. We have confirmed that these autographs were not signed by Sorayama himself.
Hajime Sorayama is consulting with the relevant authorities regarding suspected forgery and unauthorized use of his personal signature.
Hajime Sorayama and our company consider it our highest priority to protect his fans and customers from any further confusion and harm. We kindly ask all fans, business partners, and other concerned parties to exercise caution regarding this matter.
Notice to Collectors, Partners, and the Media
As we continue through this transitional period, we are aware that some inquiries are still being directed at former points of contact or based on outdated information.
For all inquiries regarding Hajime Sorayama, including artwork licensing, brand collaborations, exhibitions, media requests, and other business matters, please contact Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd.
Our mission is to protect and manage Hajime Sorayama’s artistic legacy and intellectual property while continuing to develop new projects with partners around the world.
We sincerely appreciate your understanding, patience, and continued support during this transition.
Statement from Hajime Sorayama
To my fans, collectors, business partners, and everyone who has supported me throughout the years, I would like to express my sincere apologies for any concern or inconvenience caused during this transition.
I am deeply grateful to everyone who has supported my artistic journey. Going forward, Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd. will serve as the official source of accurate information regarding my work and activities.
I remain fully dedicated to creating new work every day. Throughout my career, I have always pursued the challenge of creating what no one has ever seen before—work that is unlike anything anyone else has created. This philosophy continues to guide my practice, and I look forward to sharing new works with audiences around the world.
I will continue to approach every new creation with sincerity and dedication, striving to inspire curiosity and excitement through my art. I am currently working on many exciting projects that I’m sure will surprise everyone, so please stay tuned.
Thank you for your continued trust and support.
Hajime Sorayama
About Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd.
Sorayama Hajime Estate Co., Ltd. was established to manage and protect the artworks, intellectual property, licensing activities, and brand collaborations of internationally acclaimed artist Hajime Sorayama.
The company serves as the exclusive representative for Mr. Sorayama’s business affairs and is committed to protecting his artistic legacy while fostering new collaborations and projects worldwide.
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21, Aug 2026
Sprite and IRCTC Flag Off India’s First Branded Train as the Sprite Tejas Express
The Sprite Tejas Express will operate on the Lucknow–New Delhi–Lucknow route, bringing Sprite’s signature refreshment and experiences to Indian travellers.
NEW DELHI, Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Rail travel has long been an integral part of India’s mobility and social fabric, connecting cities, communities, and millions of passengers across the country. In a first-of-its-kind partnership, Sprite and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) today flagged off the Sprite Tejas Express, in the presence of senior leadership from Indian Railways, IRCTC and Coca-Cola India. Bringing together Sprite’s signature refreshment with India’s diverse travel culture, the partnership creates a new experience for passengers travelling between the two cities, where varied tastes, preferences and shared moments come together along the journey.
The Delhi–Lucknow corridor offers Sprite an opportunity to connect with consumers across one of its key markets, while reaching travellers across business, leisure, and family journeys. The Sprite Tejas Express will operate on the Lucknow–New Delhi–Lucknow route for six months starting August 2026, with five coaches featuring Sprite branding across the exterior. The train will also be announced as the Sprite Tejas Express at originating and en route stations on both legs of the journey.
The experience extends onboard, with Sprite featuring as part of the passenger food bundle. The inauguration will also see passengers receive Sprite samples and merchandise, with the association set to bring further Sprite-led experiences onboard.
Abhishek Gupta, Vice President, Customer Development, Coca-Cola India & Southwest Asia, said, “We congratulate IRCTC on this innovative partnership and an important milestone for travel experiences in India. At Coca-Cola, we continue to explore collaborations that can unlock new avenues for growth and create shared value. Our association with IRCTC reflects our commitment to building long-term customer relationships and expanding our presence across the travel ecosystem. With the Sprite Tejas Express, we are bringing Sprite’s refreshment and creating a more engaging experience for travellers.”
The Sprite Tejas Express directly integrates sustainability into the passenger journey by incorporating practical, recycled material applications on ground. At the station, benches made from recycled plastic, with each bench repurposing approximately 45 kg of post-consumer packaging waste. Extending this approach to its ceremonial launch, the train’s flag-off featured an official flag made from repurposed PET bottles, demonstrating how discarded materials can be transformed into functional and meaningful elements.
Ajit Kumar Sinha, Chief Regional Manager, Lucknow Division, IRCTC, said, “At IRCTC, we continuously look at opportunities to enhance the passenger experience across our premium train services through relevant partnerships and initiatives. Our association with Sprite on the Tejas Express brings an established consumer brand into the travel environment through an integrated onboard experience. We look forward to making the journey more engaging for passengers travelling on the Lucknow–New Delhi route.”
Further building on Sprite’s connection with food culture, the brand has also collaborated with Wow! Momo as part of the Sprite Tejas Express experience.
The Sprite Tejas Express marks a new association for Sprite, bringing the brand into the travel occasion and creating new opportunities to connect with consumers through the moments, preferences and experiences that shape their journeys.
About Coca-Cola:
Coca-Cola in India is one of the country’s leading beverage companies, offering a range of high-quality and refreshing beverage options to consumers. The company, in line with its vision of ‘Beverages For Life’ offers a wide portfolio of products which includes hydration, sports, sparkling, coffee, tea, nutrition, juice and dairy based products. In India its beverage range includes Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Diet Coke, Thums Up, Thums Up XForce, Charged, Fanta, Limca, Sprite, Sprite Zero, Kinley Soda, Rimzim, Maaza, Minute Maid range of juices and Honest Tea. The Company also offers hydration beverages including Limca GlucoCharge, Smartwater, Kinley, Kinley Copper, Dasani and Bonaqua packaged drinking water. Premium products constitute Schweppes’ range and Smartwater. In addition, it offers a Costa Coffee range of tea and coffee. The Company is constantly transforming its portfolio, from reducing sugar in its drinks to bringing innovative new products to market.
The Company along with its owned bottling operations and franchise bottling partners has a strong network of over six million retail outlets through which it refreshes millions of consumers across the country. It seeks to positively impact people’s lives, communities, and the planet through water and packaging initiatives, sustainable agriculture and emission reductions across its value chain.
Globally together with its bottling partners, The Coca-Cola Company employs more than 700,000 people, helping to bring economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at www.cocacolacompany.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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21, Aug 2026
STARTRADER Launches XAUUSD247, Extending Gold CFD Access Across the Full Week
The new instrument provides XAUUSD247 quotes during weekends and overnight hours, subject to scheduled maintenance windows.
PORT LOUIS, Mauritius, Aug. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — STARTRADER today announced the launch of XAUUSD247, a gold CFD that provides quotes across the full week, including weekends and overnight hours when the traditional gold market is closed. The instrument goes live on MetaTrader 5 on 21 August 2026, with Web and app availability to follow in early September. Availability depends on account type, client classification and jurisdiction; the instrument is not available to clients in all countries.
The launch responds to the fact that developments affecting gold can occur outside traditional market hours. Gold responds to geopolitical developments, central bank decisions, and shifts in risk sentiment that do not follow a five-day trading week.
Now, XAUUSD247 sits alongside the existing XAUUSD, which remains available on unchanged terms. Clients can access XAUUSD247 alongside the existing XAUUSD, subject to applicable account and jurisdictional availability.
The launch is consistent with STARTRADER’s broader 24/7 product direction, reflecting an effort to extend access beyond standard market hours where the product structure allows. XAUUSD247 extends that approach to commodities.
“Gold is one of the most event-sensitive instruments on the market. Developments that move it do not wait for Monday. XAUUSD247 provides quoted pricing during these periods, including when the traditional market is closed.”
– Peter Karsten, Chief Executive Officer, STARTRADER
STARTRADER expects to explore continuous access across other asset classes where client activity and market-moving developments are least aligned with standard trading hours.
CFDs are complex instruments and carry a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Entity-specific disclosures apply by jurisdiction.
About STARTRADER
STARTRADER is a global multi-asset broker empowering retail and institutional partners to access global markets through a range of platforms, including MetaTrader, STARTRADER APP, and STAR Copy. STARTRADER operates through entities licensed and regulated by authorities including CMA, ASIC, FSCA, FSA and FSC, combining strong governance with a client-first approach, serving both retail clients and partners with a commitment to transparency, reliability, and long-term growth.
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