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Name release: Boating incident death, Napier

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Source: New Zealand Police

Police can release the name of the man who died following a boating incident off the coast of Napier on 21 October.

He was Howard Reese, 78, of Napier.

Police extend their condolences to his family and friends.

The death will be referred to the coroner.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre

MIL OSI

“Chengdu Panda Week” Series of Events Reach Multiple European Cities, Extending an Invitation from the Hometown of Pandas

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Source: Media Outreach

CHENGDU, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2025 – From October 24 to 27, Chengdu, China, hosted the “Invitation from the Hometown of Pandas–Chengdu Panda Week” series of events in Frankfurt, Germany; Vienna, Austria; Paris, France; and Brussels, Belgium. The events included overseas promotion of the giant panda IP, panda-themed vehicle parades, art exhibitions, and more.

“Hometown of Pandas: Dreams and Life” Themed Art Exhibition

The year 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the European Union. To promote cultural exchange and mutual understanding between China and Europe and enhance the city brand of “Park City · Happy Chengdu”, the Chengdu Municipal People’s Government Information Office launched the “Invitation from the Hometown of Pandas–Chengdu Panda Week” series of events. These events aim to showcase Chengdu’s achievements in green ecology, industrial and trade cooperation, music and arts, and cultural tourism and to tell the story of China-Europe exchanges and development.

In France, a country with a deep-rooted connection to giant pandas, Chengdu continues to write new chapters of the “panda story” through the “Hometown of Pandas: Dreams and Life” themed art exhibition held at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers in Paris. The exhibition features over 200 works across eight categories, including paintings, sculptures, trendy toys, photography, intangible cultural heritage, cultural and creative products, books, and digital innovations. It offers a multifaceted perspective on the integration of pandas and Chengdu’s culture.

Jean-Louis Balandraud, former Deputy Secretary-General of the French Tourism Development Agency, praised: “Chengdu uses pandas as a cultural bridge, building a cultural and tourism link. Its ‘cultural connection and industrial implementation’ model has great potential for promotion.”

In Brussels, the “Exhibition of Park City: Hometown of Pandas” is displayed at a municipal public cultural space. Using ecological photo walls and documentaries, it vividly presents the beautiful living environment of Chengdu, known as “A Park City Blessed with Snow Mountains”. The exhibition has attracted thousands of visitors.

During the concurrent “Chengdu-Brussels Eco-Dialogue”, topics such as “urban green governance” and “biodiversity conservation” sparked lively discussions. Dr. Jella Wauters, Head of Giant Panda Research at Pairi Daiza Zoo in Belgium, remarked, “Chengdu’s approach of integrating development with ecology offers valuable insights for European cities. Through this dialogue, we felt a sincere invitation from Hometown of Pandas, and we look forward to more in-depth technological cooperation in the future.”

Beyond Paris and Brussels, the “Invitation from the Hometown of Pandas–Chengdu Panda Week” series of events also took place in Frankfurt, Germany, and Vienna, Austria, featuring economic, trade, and musical dialogues that showcased the city’s rich and diverse culture.

In recent years, Chengdu’s exchanges and cooperation with EU countries have deepened continuously. As of 2025, Chengdu has established sister city or friendly cooperation relationships with 31 cities across the EU, and 19 cargo and passenger routes connect Chengdu directly to the EU. In 2024, Chengdu recorded 142.16 billion yuan in total import and export volume with the EU and attracted USD 1.671 billion in foreign direct investment, ranking first among the cities in central and western China.

Hashtag: #ChengduInformationOffice

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

XTransfer Returns to Hong Kong FinTech Week and Singapore FinTech Festival 2025

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Source: Media Outreach

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2025 – XTransfer, World’s Leading B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform,will participate this year in two world-class fintech events simultaneously, Hong Kong FinTech Week 2025 and Singapore FinTech Festival 2025. This marks the second consecutive year that XTransfer has been present at both events at the same time. As the Official Fintech Partner of Hong Kong FinTech Week, XTransfer will comprehensively showcase its innovations and global footprint in cross-border collections and payments, compliance and risk control, and inclusive finance.

XTransfer Returns to Hong Kong FinTech Week and Singapore FinTech Festival 2025

Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer, together with the company’s management team, will engage intensively in showcases and closed-door sessions at both venues. They will share insights on topics including AI risk control and operations, the practical rollout of inclusive finance, the internationalisation of Chinese fintech enterprises, and local currency settlement in emerging markets. During the events, the company will also hold strategic cooperation signing ceremonies with multiple international financial institutions, further expanding its global clearing network and multi-currency settlement capabilities, delivering a more secure, faster, and lower-cost cross-border payment experience for SMEs across the region and worldwide. During the shows, XTransfer will also release the “X-NET White Paper” on the B2B trade settlement network and risk control system for SMEs.

Since entering the Hong Kong market in 2023, XTransfer has continued to provide local foreign trade SMEs with cross-border financial services, including global collections, payments, and foreign exchange. The XTransfer-to-XTransfer (X2X) payment service enables buyers and sellers to complete “Account-to-Account” fund transfers through the XTransfer platform, achieving secure, compliant, and twenty-four-seven instant payment similar to local transfers. This significantly reduces handling fees and FX costs, and notably improves operating capital efficiency and stability of cash turnover.

In Singapore and the ASEAN market, XTransfer continues to accelerate its expansion. This year, the company obtained a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and launched local services in Singapore. Leveraging the institutional and infrastructural strengths of Hong Kong and Singapore, two international financial hubs, XTransfer is rapidly enabling multiple local currencies settlement capabilities. Its services now cover regions and countries across North America, the Eurozone, Australia, ASEAN, Latin America, and Africa, supporting over 30 local currencies. This helps alleviate transaction frictions arising from USD shortages in emerging markets, reduces forced FX conversions and exchange losses by correspondent banks, and enables SMEs to settle in ways closer to buyers’ local practices.

https://www.xtransfer.com
https://www.linkedin.com/company/xtransfer.cn
https://x.com/xtransferglobal
https://www.facebook.com/XTransferGlobal/
https://www.instagram.com/xtransfer.global

Hashtag: #XTransfer #HKFTW2025 #SFF2025 #Crossborder #Payment #SMEs

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

Correction: Update to Police arrest two men in relation to Te Puke homicide

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Source: New Zealand Police

Please use the following version of the article issued 29 October, 8pm.
If you’ve used this in an article, please amend your story to correct the charge details.
We apologise for any inconvenience.

Please attribute to Detective Senior Sergeant Natalie Flowerdew-Brown, Western Bay of Plenty Area Investigations Manager:

Police have arrested two men wanted in relation to death of Tristan Oakes, 29, in Te Puke on Saturday 25 October.

The two men are aged 39 and 40.

Both men will appear in the Tauranga District Court tomorrow on charges of murder.

Tristan died in hospital on Saturday, after being critically injured when shot at his Te Puke home.

Our thoughts are with this friends and family at this difficult time.

Police would like to thank the community for their assistance during the investigation.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

MIL OSI

Update: Police arrest two men in relation to Te Puke homicide

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Source: New Zealand Police

Please attribute to Detective Senior Sergeant Natalie Flowerdew-Brown, Western Bay of Plenty Area Investigations Manager:

Police have arrested two men wanted in relation to death of Tristan Oakes, 29, in Te Puke on Saturday 25 October.

The two men are aged 39 and 40.

Both men will appear in the Tauranga District Court tomorrow on the charge intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Tristan died in hospital on Saturday, after being critically injured when shot at his Te Puke home.

Our thoughts are with this friends and family at this difficult time.

Police would like to thank the community for their assistance during the investigation.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

MIL OSI

IntelWave Launches Custom-Trained AI Chatbot for Singapore SMEs, Cutting CX Work by 4–6 Hours Daily

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Source: Media Outreach

Secure, company-data-grounded AI assistant handles FAQs, bookings, and lead capture; early adopter Linkflow Capital reports ~40 hours saved per month and ~80% of routine responses automated.

  • From FAQs to appointments and lead gen, IntelWave turns customer queries into lead capture and bookings, within a protected chat environment with early pilots showing strong productivity gains.
  • The secured, data-trained AI assistant handles customer conversations 24/7, freeing customer service teams to refocus on higher-value work as IntelWave moves from beta to general release.
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 October 2025 – Intelwave.ai announced the beta launch of its AI Chatbot for SMEs, a secure, company-trained AI assistant that can be customized on each business’s proprietary data such as product catalogues, FAQs/knowledge bases, and service information. The AI chatbot automates frontline customer conversations, appointment bookings, and lead capture.

Designed for Singapore’s small and medium businesses, the Intelwave AI Chatbot is expected to reduce 4–6 man-hours per day for a typical customer service representative by handling repetitive queries, guiding buyers to the right offering, and handing off qualified leads or bookings to sales staff.

AI is a game-changer and leveller for SMEs,” said Kingsley Ong, CEO of Intelwave. “Our chatbot is built to augment, not replace, people, freeing teams to focus on higher-value work while maintaining fast, accurate responses within a secured chat environment.”

Built for real-world SME use cases

Early results from a Singapore SME

Linkflow Capital, a leading SME financing consultancy, implemented the IntelWave AI Chatbot to respond to generic queries and speed up lead qualification.

The chatbot from IntelWave will save us about 40 man-hours a month answering generic customer queries. We can now deploy manpower to other strategic, higher-value activities while automating roughly 70% of operational responses,” said Benjamin Teo, Business Development Manager at Linkflow Capital.

SMEs in Singapore can now avail to their businesses AI technologies and automation tools which provide tangible benefits and ROI with Intelwave’s AI solutions.

Availability

The Intewave AI Chatbot is in beta now and will launch broadly in Q4 2025. Singapore SMEs can register interest and request a demo via Intelwave.ai.

https://www.intelwave.ai/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/intelwave-ai
https://x.com/IntelWaveAI

Hashtag: #AI #Intelwave #chatbot

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

Reserve Bank of NZ – Protecting independence while embracing partnership

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Source: Reserve Bank of New Zealand

29 October 2025 – Reserve Bank Governor Christian Hawkesby has reaffirmed the crucial importance of central bank operational independence, while highlighting the need for partnership to enable the economic wellbeing of New Zealanders.

In remarks delivered to an RBNZ event with industry stakeholders, Mr Hawkesby said that central bank operational independence does not mean complete autonomy or isolation. Rather, he emphasised the importance of the central bank and the government working in partnership.  

He explained the government’s critical role in monetary policy and financial stability. This includes owning the pieces of legislation underpinning the Reserve Bank’s mandates, outlining policy objectives, and making resolution decisions in case of a deposit taker or financial system failure.

Mr Hawkesby also noted that the central bank’s huge responsibility of having operational independence for setting monetary policy and prudential policy needs to go hand in hand with transparency and accountability.

“While respecting each other’s roles, a clear division of roles and responsibilities between government and central bank can enable an effective partnership, ultimately supporting the prosperity and wellbeing of New Zealanders,” he said.

Mr Hawkesby also acknowledged that working in partnership needs to extend beyond the central bank and the government.

“We need to work together with our Council of Financial Regulators [1] colleagues, the financial industry, fintechs, academics, the business sector, communities, iwi and a range of other government agencies on the future of money, the future of cash, the future of banking, the future of payments and the future of insurance.”

“The benefits to all New Zealanders will not be achieved without collective commitment and collective action,” he concluded.  

More information:

Protecting independence while embracing partnership – Reserve Bank of New Zealand – Te Pūtea Matua: https://govt.us20.list-manage.com/track/click?u=bd316aa7ee4f5679c56377819&id=3b4ee90e82&e=f3c68946f8

MIL OSI

Federated Farmers – Survey reveals shocking cost of consents

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Source: Federated Farmers

A new survey shows the cost and complexity of resource consents have reached breaking point, highlighting the need for urgent Government intervention.
Federated Farmers’ Survey on Resource Consents found four out of five farmers are worried about gaining or renewing consents, and the average bill for gaining a new consent has hit nearly $45,000. Renewal permits aren’t far behind, averaging $28,000.
“Our survey makes for incredibly sobering reading, as it’s shown us the true scale of the consenting problems,” Federated Farmers freshwater spokesperson Colin Hurst says.
“It’s staggering to learn the average total cost farmers are being stung with for regional council and consultancy fees is $45,000.
“It’s even worse for Canterbury farmers, who are forking out over $60,000.
“These numbers paint a damning picture of a system that’s simply not working.”
Hurst says it’s getting harder and more expensive every year to get a consent to keep farming, and there’s no clear reason why.
“The whole process has become so uncertain and complex that most farmers now must rely entirely on consultants and expert advisors.
“Even then, there’s no guarantee they’ll get a fair or timely decision.
“Farmers and growers are exhausted, stressed out and losing faith in a system that seems to prioritise paperwork over environmental outcomes.”
Completed by Federated Farmers members nationwide in September and October, the survey shows frustration among farmers is boiling over.
“Many farmers described the consenting process as ‘a rort’, ‘ridiculous’, ‘extortion’, and ‘a nightmare’,” Hurst says.
“How are they supposed to have the confidence to keep investing in their businesses if they don’t even know whether they’ll be allowed to keep farming next year?
“The simple answer is they can’t. The uncertainty is pulling the handbrake on growth and productivity right across the sector.”
With thousands of consents due to expire in the coming months, Federated Farmers says the situation is now urgent and requires immediate action.
“The Government’s plans to reform the RMA and replace it with a more workable framework are welcome – but that won’t happen overnight,” Hurst says.
“We’re staring down the barrel of even more stress and confusion if nothing changes.
“Farmers need certainty right now. Let’s end the consent chaos and give farmers the certainty they deserve.”
Federated Farmers is calling on the Government to allow all existing consents to roll over until the new system is in place.
“That would be a simple, practical step to save farmers time, money and stress,” Hurst says. 
Key Findings
  • Effluent consents are the most common (24%), followed closely by farming (land use) and water take/irrigation (both 21%).
  • 38% of respondents applied for a resource consent in the past year, indicating frequent engagement, while 31% applied over five years ago, suggesting varied consent durations.
  • The average spend on regional councils for consents was $17,400 with Auckland ($24,300) and Canterbury ($25,000) being the most expensive regions.
  • District council costs averaged $9,000, with Canterbury districts ($15,800) the most expensive.
  • Consultant costs averaged $27,500 nationally, with Canterbury ($47,700) again the highest.
  • 40% plan to apply for or renew consents in the next 24 months, expecting to spend an average of $28,574 on consultants alone.
  • Nearly four out of five farmers (78%) are concerned about gaining or renewing resource consents, reflecting anxiety about regulatory hurdles.
  • 40% expect to pay fees to affected parties (e.g. iwi), with 31% unsure, indicating uncertainty around additional costs.
  • Qualitative comments highlight frustration with excessive costs, bureaucratic delays, council incompetence, inconsistent implementation between council planners, iwi consultation fees, council use of consultants and farmers paying for the training of council planners. Farmers and growers also noted a lack of environmental logic and are calling for significant reform.

MIL OSI

Road reopened, Ōhaupō Road, Hamilton City

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Source: New Zealand Police

Ōhaupō Road in Hamilton City has now reopened following a single-vehicle crash just after 4.30pm today.

Police were called to Braemar Hospital on Ōhaupō Road after receiving a report a car had crashed into the fence of the hospital.

Police thank drivers for their patience.

ENDS

MIL OSI