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WorldFirst, part of Ant International, has secured approval and a Class A licence from Bank Negara Malaysia to expand its digital payment and treasury…

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WorldFirst, part of Ant International, has secured approval and a Class A licence from Bank Negara Malaysia to expand its digital payment and treasury services. The licence allows WorldFirst to support SMEs in cross-border trade as Malaysia pushes forward with its digital economy goals.

<a href="/company/tesla">Tesla</a> is disbanding its Dojo supercomputer team and shifting to external chipmakers including <a href="/company/nvidia">Nvidia</a>, AMD, and Samsung for <a href="/industry/ai">AI</a> compute. Program lead Peter Bannon will depart, and remaining staff are being reassigned. The move comes amid wider executive exits and the emergence of spinoff DensityAI.

General Motors will source batteries from China’s <a href="/company/catl">CATL</a> for its next-generation Chevrolet Bolt, set to launch in 2026, absorbing steep tariffs to keep costs down. The two-year arrangement serves as a stopgap until GM and South Korean partner LG begin US battery production in 2027.

<a href="/company/ant-group">Ant Digital Technologies</a> is promoting its Jovay blockchain platform for real-world asset (RWA) tokenization in Hong Kong, positioning itself as a bridge between Web2 and Web3. The push comes as the city’s stablecoin law takes effect, with Jovay set to launch in September.

Chinese drone maker <a href="/company/dji">DJI</a> faces a potential US ban unless it passes a national security audit, but no agency has stepped forward to conduct the review. Despite holding 70% of the US commercial drone market, DJI reportedly said lawmakers have ignored its outreach amid growing concerns over Chinese technology and data security.

<a href="/company/huawei">Huawei</a> and <a href="/company/chery">Chery's</a> <a href="/industry/ev">EV</a> joint venture plans to invest over RMB 10 billion and expand its R&amp;D team to 5,000, aiming to strengthen its technology lead, the company said in a WeChat post. No timeline was provided for the expansion.

Chinese firms sold a record USD132.5 billion in USD-RMB options in H1 2025 as exporters leveraged low Chinese yuan volatility to hedge currency risk and boost returns. Despite greenback weakness, many retained foreign exchange holdings, avoiding conversion into low-yielding yuan.

<a href="/company/alibaba">Alibaba’s</a> Hema plans to open 100 new stores this fiscal year, bringing its total to over 500. Addressing closure rumors, the company said shutdowns of its X membership stores affected less than 2% of locations. Hema recently reported its first full-year profit and ranked among China’s top three supermarket chains by sales.

General Motors and Hyundai will co-develop five vehicles by 2028, including pickup trucks for Latin America and an electric van for the US, in response to China’s growing <a href="/industry/ev">EV</a> dominance. The partnership targets lower costs and 800,000 units a year, though analysts doubt its ability to match China’s price advantage.

China’s goods trade rose 3.5% YoY to RMB 25.7 trillion in the first seven months of 2025, as exports grew 7.3% and imports fell 1.6%. Trade with ASEAN expanded 9.4%, while US trade declined 11.1%. Private firms accounted for over half of total trade. Electromechanical and car exports climbed, while lower prices pulled down major commodity imports.

After backlash over a controversial Li i8 crash test that implicated a Chenglong truck, <a href="/company/li-auto">Li Auto</a> and CAERI issued an apology to Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor, stating the test was not intended to assess other brands. In a joint statement, the three firms called for fair competition and stricter safeguards in vehicle testing.

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WorldFirst gains licence in Malaysia

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From sofas to prefab spaces, Outer wants to shape the future of backyard living

These middle-aged men know Xiaohongshu better than anyone, and they’re all in Zhengzhou

Could Watcha be “China’s Product Hunt” for AI products?