PAObank Showcases Pilot Case at Port Community System Rollout Ceremony

Pioneering Logistics Data Connectivity to Empower SME Financing

HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach Newswire - 19 January 2026 - In response to the evolving global trade landscape and accelerating digital transformation, Hong Kong is consolidating its strength and reinforcing its position as an International Trade Centre while driving industry digitalisation. PAO Bank Limited ("PAObank") has actively support the HKSAR Government's initiatives to promote data-sharing infrastructure and financial technology development. PAObank adopted data from "Port Community System" ("PCS"), serving as a pilot case to explore the potential of the PCS data in replacing traditional freight documentation. PAObank has been invited to join PCS Rollout Ceremony, sharing professional insights on leveraging cargo data to promote digital trade finance.

The PCS enables interoperability of logistics data across sea, land and air transport, establishing a comprehensive and reliable logistics footprint for cargo transiting through Hong Kong. PAObank, as the first digital bank to participate in the Commercial Data Interchange initiative, has become a leader in harnessing alternative data to streamline financing process. PAObank was invited to PCS Rollout Ceremony on 16 January to share its practical experience in utilising PCS for trade finance. The real-time import/export customs declaration and cargo data provided by PCS empower banks to better understand the trade and capital flows of SMEs, thereby reducing credit costs and enhancing the efficiency of trade finance.

Mr. Ambrose Wong, Alternate Chief Executive & Chief Risk Officer of PAObank, remarked in the panel discussion, "As one of the Ping An Group's integrated financial platforms in Hong Kong, PAObank is driven by the vision of empowering finance through technology. We are at the forefront of utilising alternative data to simplify SME financing and establishing industry benchmarks. Traditional port information is often fragmented, and banks lack access to consolidated trade data, making it difficult to assess business operations and credit risks in a timely and accurate manner, which affects financing efficiency. PCS provides unified, reliable, and comprehensive logistics data, further breaking down industry data barriers. This enables banks to access real-time data, quickly and accurately evaluate SME business conditions, and conduct more precise credit approvals to meet SMEs' funding needs and help them seize business opportunities."

Mr Ambrose Wong continued, "PAObank is honoured to serve as one of the pilot cases for the PCS, contributing to system optimisation and the realisation of cross-sector data sharing. PAObank will continue to support the HKSAR Government in jointly promoting the digitalisation of trade finance, deepening application scenarios, and enabling more SMEs to benefit from robust data-sharing infrastructure, contributing to strengthening Hong Kong's position as an international financial and trade centre."

Looking ahead, as part of Ping An Group's integrated financial platforms in Hong Kong, PAObank will continue to strengthen its commercial data utilisation, integrating diverse data from trade, logistics and finance to unlock data potential. The bank will continue to be the trade partner, offering banking services including foreign currency deposits, cross-border remittance, and foreign currency exchange to help SMEs unlock their business potential. In addition, PAObank is actively developing innovative financial technologies to provide more diversified services for SMEs and individual customers, working together to promote the sustainable and healthy development of Hong Kong's economy.
Hashtag: #PAObank #PCS #TradeFinancing

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

PAO Bank Limited

PAO Bank Limited ("PAObank"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufax Holding Ltd ("Lufax") (SEHK: 6623; NYSE: LU) and a member of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An") (SEHK: 2318; SSE: 601318), is committed to fostering financial inclusion and establishing a digital banking ecosystem by leveraging its extensive experience in SME banking services and its leading financial technology advantages. PAObank was granted a banking licence by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in May 2019 to offer banking services via virtual channels. PAObank is expanding diverse business segments including retail banking and SME banking, serving customers in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area, establishing itself as one of the Ping An Group's comprehensive financial platforms in Hong Kong.

HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach Newswire - 19 January 2026 - In response to the evolving global trade landscape and accelerating digital transformation, Hong Kong is consolidating its strength and reinforcing its position as an International Trade Centre while driving industry digitalisation. PAO Bank Limited ("PAObank") has actively support the HKSAR Government's initiatives to promote data-sharing infrastructure and financial technology development. PAObank adopted data from "Port Community System" ("PCS"), serving as a pilot case to explore the potential of the PCS data in replacing traditional freight documentation. PAObank has been invited to join PCS Rollout Ceremony, sharing professional insights on leveraging cargo data to promote digital trade finance.

The PCS enables interoperability of logistics data across sea, land and air transport, establishing a comprehensive and reliable logistics footprint for cargo transiting through Hong Kong. PAObank, as the first digital bank to participate in the Commercial Data Interchange initiative, has become a leader in harnessing alternative data to streamline financing process. PAObank was invited to PCS Rollout Ceremony on 16 January to share its practical experience in utilising PCS for trade finance. The real-time import/export customs declaration and cargo data provided by PCS empower banks to better understand the trade and capital flows of SMEs, thereby reducing credit costs and enhancing the efficiency of trade finance.

Mr. Ambrose Wong, Alternate Chief Executive & Chief Risk Officer of PAObank, remarked in the panel discussion, "As one of the Ping An Group's integrated financial platforms in Hong Kong, PAObank is driven by the vision of empowering finance through technology. We are at the forefront of utilising alternative data to simplify SME financing and establishing industry benchmarks. Traditional port information is often fragmented, and banks lack access to consolidated trade data, making it difficult to assess business operations and credit risks in a timely and accurate manner, which affects financing efficiency. PCS provides unified, reliable, and comprehensive logistics data, further breaking down industry data barriers. This enables banks to access real-time data, quickly and accurately evaluate SME business conditions, and conduct more precise credit approvals to meet SMEs' funding needs and help them seize business opportunities."

Mr Ambrose Wong continued, "PAObank is honoured to serve as one of the pilot cases for the PCS, contributing to system optimisation and the realisation of cross-sector data sharing. PAObank will continue to support the HKSAR Government in jointly promoting the digitalisation of trade finance, deepening application scenarios, and enabling more SMEs to benefit from robust data-sharing infrastructure, contributing to strengthening Hong Kong's position as an international financial and trade centre."

Looking ahead, as part of Ping An Group's integrated financial platforms in Hong Kong, PAObank will continue to strengthen its commercial data utilisation, integrating diverse data from trade, logistics and finance to unlock data potential. The bank will continue to be the trade partner, offering banking services including foreign currency deposits, cross-border remittance, and foreign currency exchange to help SMEs unlock their business potential. In addition, PAObank is actively developing innovative financial technologies to provide more diversified services for SMEs and individual customers, working together to promote the sustainable and healthy development of Hong Kong's economy.
Hashtag: #PAObank #PCS #TradeFinancing

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

PAO Bank Limited

PAO Bank Limited ("PAObank"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufax Holding Ltd ("Lufax") (SEHK: 6623; NYSE: LU) and a member of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An") (SEHK: 2318; SSE: 601318), is committed to fostering financial inclusion and establishing a digital banking ecosystem by leveraging its extensive experience in SME banking services and its leading financial technology advantages. PAObank was granted a banking licence by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in May 2019 to offer banking services via virtual channels. PAObank is expanding diverse business segments including retail banking and SME banking, serving customers in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area, establishing itself as one of the Ping An Group's comprehensive financial platforms in Hong Kong.

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Supported by the diamond industry’s largest marketing budget in 15 years, Desert diamonds Icons will launch ahead of the end of year holiday season and build on the Desert diamonds campaign’s success in driving natural diamond desire

LAS VEGAS, US - Media OutReach Newswire - 15 June 2026 - At the annual JCK Las Vegas Show – the largest jewellery event in the global calendar – De Beers Group today set out its view on the way forward for the natural diamond sector, calling on the trade to work together to capitalise on the early success of the Desert diamonds 'beacon' campaign with the introduction of Desert diamonds Icons.

The Desert diamonds beacon campaign launched in late 2025 and has already succeeded in shaping consumer demand for both natural diamonds in general and coloured diamonds in particular, with natural diamond sales at US independents increasing 4% in Q4 2025 and 9% in Q1 2026, while those in the K to Z colour range have seen even stronger growth, up 15% in Q4 2025 and 19% in Q1 2026.

Following the launch of Desert diamonds Bridal earlier this year, Desert diamonds Icons will focus on bringing a sense of newness and individuality to four iconic jewellery design classics – stud earrings, the eternity band, the tennis bracelet and the halo pendant – which between them comprise 70% of diamond jewellery acquisitions. Launching in September, the campaign will include training and marketing support for all retailers.

During a keynote presentation, De Beers Group executives stated that while demand has performed well for larger natural diamonds and this has supported stable retail sales value for natural diamond jewellery, it is critical for industry participants to work together on the campaign to drive demand across the natural diamond category as a whole.

With the campaign benefitting from the diamond industry's biggest natural diamond marketing budget in 15 years, Desert diamonds is expected to deliver enhanced retail impact in 2026, based on a range of positive data points from its initial run. Growth in natural diamond desirability, online searches for natural diamonds, and increased coloured natural diamond sales across independent jewellers all highlight that the momentum behind the campaign is building. Noting that the 2026 campaign run will also benefit from a geo-targeting approach that directs consumers to specific retailers carrying Desert diamonds, De Beers executives encouraged the entire trade to support the fast-growing trend by stocking Desert diamonds Icons products and by signing up to Promoboxx to access marketing materials and participate in geo-targeting.

The presentation also included a summary of key consumer and industry insights published today in The Diamond Report, highlighting how commercial dynamics are evolving at pace for US jewellery retailers as the synthetic lab-grown diamond sector matures while consumer interest in natural diamonds grows.

Speaking at the presentation, Al Cook, CEO of De Beers Group, said: "Consumer desire for natural diamonds is strong – but we need to work together as an industry in support of Desert diamonds to unlock the full value of the opportunity. The results from the campaign's initial run demonstrate how it is already stimulating demand, and with Desert diamonds Icons we are doubling down at a critical moment.

"The jewellery retail landscape is evolving at pace. With the sustained falls in price of synthetic lab-grown diamonds, and large falls in demand for larger synthetic lab-grown diamonds, there may be challenges ahead for retailers who focus on synthetic lab-grown diamonds."

"However, with challenge comes opportunity, and the growing success of the Desert diamonds campaign is evident. As we head into the campaign's second year, with the industry supported by the largest category marketing budget in 15 years, the natural way forward is clear to see."

De Beers Group also reported in its presentation how collaboration continues deliver progress in other areas, with GIA's purchase of an equity share in Tracr supporting the platform's path to independence and providing the potential for it to scale faster across the sector. Meanwhile, the Natural Diamond Council has put in place a compelling new strategy on the back of its growing budget, as more diamond producing countries and trade bodies have provided funding, and will introduce a new natural diamond trust mark to support consumer confidence through visible differentiation between natural diamonds and synthetic lab-grown diamonds.

Notes to editors
Desert diamonds marketing materials are available to download here
The Diamond Report is available to download here

Hashtag: #NaturalDiamonds #Diamonds #Dessertdiamonds #DeBeersGroup #JCK

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About De Beers Group

Established in 1888, De Beers Group is the world’s leading diamond company with expertise in the exploration, mining, marketing and retailing of diamonds. Together with its joint venture partners, De Beers Group employs more than 20,000 people across the diamond pipeline and is the world’s largest diamond producer by value, with diamond mining operations in Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa. Innovation sits at the heart of De Beers Group’s strategy as it develops a portfolio of offers that span the diamond value chain, including its jewellery houses, De Beers London and Forevermark, and other pioneering solutions such as diamond sourcing and traceability initiatives Tracr and GemFair. De Beers Group also provides leading services and technology to the diamond industry in the form of education and laboratory services and a wide range of diamond sorting, detection and classification technology services. De Beers Group is committed to ‘Building Forever,’ a holistic and integrated approach to sustainability that underpins our efforts to create meaningful impact for the people and places where our diamonds are discovered. Building Forever focuses on three key areas where, through collaborations and partnerships around the globe, we have an enhanced ability to drive positive impact; Livelihoods, Climate and Nature. De Beers Group is a member of the Anglo American plc group. For further information, visit www.debeersgroup.com.

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