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Mokam, Bangladesh’s Largest B2B Commerce Platform, Teams Up with Indonesian FMCG and Healthcare Leader Kalbe

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In an exciting development, Mokam, Bangladesh’s leading B2B commerce platform, has joined hands with Kalbe, the respected Indonesian Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) and healthcare giant. This significant agreement was sealed during the 38th Trade Expo Indonesia, marking a significant step in international cooperation. Notable attendees at the signing ceremony included Mr. Bujung Nugroho, Director, Kalbe International, and HE Heru H. Subolo, Ambassador of the Indonesian Embassy of Bangladesh and Nepal.

Kalbe, a renowned name in both FMCG and pharmaceuticals, takes pride in being the largest publicly listed company in Southeast Asia, boasting a market capitalization of over 5 billion USD. With a history dating back to 1966, Kalbe has steadily evolved into a diversified healthcare company offering a wide array of products and services. Their reputation extends far and wide, making them one of Southeast Asia’s key players in pharmaceuticals and healthcare.

At the core of Kalbe’s operations lies the production and distribution of pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, nutritional products, and various healthcare-related items. Having established a strong presence in Indonesia, Kalbe has ventured into international markets. Through this partnership, Kalbe looks forward to making a meaningful impact in the emerging Bangladeshi market. Kalbe operates in several countries globally, including Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, and numerous nations in Africa.

Mokam is the B2B commerce wing of ShopUp, connecting mills and manufacturers to small shops. Currently, 20 million people access food and essentials through Mokam’s nationwide network of small shops.

Mr. Nazir Ahmed, the CEO of Mokam CPG, expressed his enthusiasm for this collaboration, saying, “We are honored to partner with an esteemed organization like Kalbe and to introduce their high-quality products to the people of Bangladesh. We are dedicated to ensuring that these products are readily available to small retail stores, making them accessible to customers at affordable prices. This partnership is a testament to the robust distribution network we are building on a national scale.”

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Md. Ziaul Haque Bhuiyan, Chief of Staff at Mokam, shared his perspective on the partnership, stating, “This strategic collaboration with Kalbe represents a significant milestone in our journey to provide the best products and services to our retailers. It aligns perfectly with our mission to empower small businesses and retailers in Bangladesh. This is just the beginning and we look forward to many such successful and mutually beneficial partnerships.”

The partnership between Mokam and Kalbe reflects a shared commitment to enhancing access to top-tier healthcare and FMCG products for consumers across Bangladesh. It signifies the harmonious coming together of two industry leaders and embodies the spirit of cooperative growth and economic development between Bangladesh and Indonesia. Both nations are on the brink of an exciting new chapter in their trade relationship, and this partnership is a testament to their collaborative potential.

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Apple to spend $30 billion on Broadcom chips as it boosts US sourcing

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Apple , opens new tab plans to spend more than $30 ​billion under a multi-year chip supply deal with Broadcom, bolstering ‌its U.S. sourcing as President Donald Trump’s administration pushes to expand domestic chip manufacturing.
Broadcom shares rose more than 4%, while Apple shares were ​down marginally.
Apple said on Wednesday the deal, which ​was struck earlier this week and runs through 2031, ⁠covers FBAR filters – or radio-frequency chips used for ​wireless connectivity in its devices – that it had been ​developing with Broadcom since at least 2023.
Broadcom will invest $1.5 billion to expand its Fort Collins, Colorado, factory under the deal, which Apple ​said would result in the production of at ​least 15 billion chips and support its work with the Trump ‌administration ⁠to source more components domestically.
“The cutting-edge components built in Fort Collins are essential to delivering the incredible performance and connectivity our customers expect, and we’re proud to deepen our ​investments in ​U.S.-based suppliers ⁠that share our commitment to excellence and innovation,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in ​a statement.
“We’re grateful to the president and his ​administration ⁠for supporting important projects like this.”
In August 2025, Apple raised its U.S. investment commitment to $600 billion over four ⁠years, adding $100 billion ​to a previously announced spending ​plan.

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China plans to let top AI firms buy limited Nvidia H200 chips, the Information reports

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China is planning to allow the country’s top AI companies to buy a limited number of Nvidia’s, opens new tab H200 chips, ​the Information reported on Wednesday, citing two people with direct knowledge ‌of the matter.
Chinese officials have told Alibaba, opens new tab, ByteDance and DeepSeek in recent weeks that they may soon receive permission to buy some H200 chips, the report said.
Shares of Nvidia ​rose 1% after the report.
The chip giant did not immediately respond to ​a Reuters request for comment, nor did the U.S. commerce ⁠department, which oversees exports of advanced AI chips overseas.
China’s commerce ministry also ​did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Alibaba, ByteDance and ​DeepSeek did not respond outside of regular business hours.
The U.S. government has allowed Nvidia to sell its advanced H200 chips to China, and licensed about 10 Chinese firms to buy the ​chips. However, Chinese officials, keen to nurture domestic suppliers, have withheld approval so ​far.
Reuters reported in March that Nvidia had won Beijing’s approval to sell the chips to China, ‌citing ⁠sources, and around the same time, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also told CNBC that the company had clearance from China.
Beijing is still determining the exact number of Nvidia chips to approve, and it could amount to fewer than 200,000 ​in total, the ​Information said, adding ⁠that was less than half of what the companies requested earlier this year.
Last month, Reuters exclusively reported that Nvidia told ​Chinese clients its new “Vera” central processors for AI data centres ​could be ⁠available as soon as August and that they can begin placing orders.
Nvidia’s market share in China has effectively fallen to zero, Huang said in October, hurt ⁠by U.S. ​export controls and Beijing’s push for self-reliance in ​key technologies.
The potential shift in China’s stance underscores the growing computing capacity crunch that the country’s ​tech companies are facing.

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Australia’s under-16 social media ban fails first age check hurdle, study finds

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A team of software testers found that Australian social media platforms did not request age proof for any of 50 accounts that declared themselves to be 16, a result that leaves the country’s world-first under-16 ban “ineffective” at the most basic screening stage, according to a study seen by Reuters.

Since December, platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube have been required to bar people under 16 and take “reasonable steps” to verify age, with regulators recommending multiple layered checks. But the new research, conducted by those who advised the nationwide curb, shows that the initial vetting step, which estimates a user’s age from general online activity, is failing to flag young people for tougher verification.
The testers, who last year trialled age-assurance software on more than 1,000 Australians, opened 50 new accounts after the law took effect and set the age as 16. None of the platforms asked for additional proof, the researchers told Reuters. The findings highlight a flaw that has been largely overlooked while public debate has focused on photo-based age-estimation tools.

The ban’s rollout has been widely criticised after surveys indicated that most under-16s still access the platforms. The government last month doubled the maximum fine and warned of possible court action against tech giants, accusing them of setting the system up to fail. Platforms have countered that they are simply following the regulator’s guidance, which prioritises low-friction checks and prevents reliance on government ID alone due to privacy concerns.

Some advisers to the original trial said they had repeatedly warned that the testing process ignored real-world circumvention, including minors entering false birthdates. “We did want to talk about circumvention, but we kept on being told that that wasn’t part of the actual trial,” Colm Gannon of the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children told Reuters. A youth digital rights academic involved in a longer-term study of the ban said more impressive results might emerge once platforms move to age-inference methods later in the year. The regulator maintains that the recommended layered approach, if implemented correctly, ensures no single point of failure.

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