Launching TRANSLASIA Holdings - The Localisation Experts to Enable Businesses to Take Flight Across Asia

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 25 March 2019 - TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD.  (TYO: 7921), one of two only companies in the whole of Japan specialising in financial disclosure advisory, has invested in TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd. which houses the rebranded Elite Asia brands (previously known as Elite Translations and Elite Interpreters) and the technology startup, AISA Digital Pte. Ltd. The company's first-ever investment in Southeast Asia shows its conviction in the growth of the East Asian and the Southeast Asian regions.

"Our investment in TRANSLASIA Holdings attests to our confidence in this region and our commitment to drive growth and expansion in East Asia and Southeast Asia. We see enormous potential in the Southeast Asian market and Singapore is a formidable gateway to that. We expect the growth of e-Commerce in this region to be immense and TRANSLASIA Holdings is strategically positioned to take advantage of this with its unique expertise in this region, its strengths, and its technological innovations," comments Ryusuke Okada, Director and Managing Executive Officer, TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD. and Chairman, TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd.

The fragmented nature of Asia has many businesses perplexed on how to successfully enter, grow, and succeed in this region. Businesses have to grapple with complex challenges like geographical and infrastructural disparity, cultural diversity, and language differences. Yet, its phenomenal growth rates and massive potential cannot be ignored by any business looking to succeed and thrive in the global economy. A Google--Temasek study projected that the Internet economy of Southeast Asia alone is set to exceed USD 240 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) by 2025, having already reached USD 72 billion in 2018.¹

This is where AISA Digital can play a significant role.

AISA Digital - Building for Now, Driving for the Future

Poised to serve online businesses and e-Commerce portals, AISA Digital will launch its very first end-to-end integrated localisation solution in March 2019 to companies who want to scale their businesses across Southeast Asia. The solution is powered by a hybrid model of AI technologies, a cloud-based localisation platform, and a marketplace solution for ASEAN linguists residing across Southeast Asia. And the result is the amalgamation of human and artificial intelligence to yield faster, good quality, and cheaper localisation services to translate digital contents or e-Commerce products to ASEAN languages.

"This innovation arm of TRANSLASIA empowers companies with massive localisation capabilities so that businesses can triumph over language barriers and outperform competitors in this immensely fragmented region," iterates Hong Yin Yin, CEO, TRANSLASIA Holdings. "We assist them to capitalise on the burgeoning digital economy and to be future-ready. Because the future is Asia."

Elite Asia - From Service Provider to Solution Partner

The launch of TRANSLASIA also marks the rebranding of Elite Translations and Elite Interpreters to Elite Asia. Established since 2006 and headquartered in Singapore with offices in Hong Kong and Malaysia, the company has evolved into a regional powerhouse that helps businesses navigate effortlessly across Asian borders through innovative language services and solutions powered by technology and people. Furthermore, Elite Asia will be liaising with TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD. to serve clients in Japan.

The rebranding entails a paradigm shift in Elite Asia's business model with a heavier investment in technology and a refocus on innovation. The company's solutions are aggregates of an uncompromising approach to address clients' needs, partnering them at a deeper level and going beyond just being a service provider.

LIT Asia 2019 - Expanding Businesses in Asia

The inaugural LITAsia event unfolded on March 26, 2019, 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM at CHIJMES Hall, Singapore. The half-day immersive event brought together media professionals, executives, customers, key partners, regional digital powerhouses, and in-house teams to learn from experts and get new ideas on how to navigate effectively and enhance experiences in the fragmented Southeast Asia region. Attendees acquired insights on how to expand successfully into the rest of Asia, overcome globalisation barriers, and develop meaningful connections with your customers using the newest language technology.

TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd., which houses the Elite Asia and AISA Digital brands, helps businesses overcome linguistic and cultural barriers and is the bridge to communication so businesses can understand their needs in new business environments. With TRANSLASIA, doing business in Asia feels like doing business at home.

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¹e-Conomy 2018 by Google and Temasek

ABOUT TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD.

TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD. is the industry leader providing financial disclosure support to listed companies in Japan as well as IPO-related services in local and overseas markets. It produces and sells printed materials related to the financial instruments & exchange act, the company law, and investor relations related information. It also operates in the production and handling of legal and IR-related advertisements. In addition, it provides translation services for disclosure and IR-related documents. Listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the company was founded on June 15, 1952 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

ABOUT TRANSLASIA HOLDINGS PTE. LTD.

TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd. comprises of a group of companies that provides suites of language and cultural services and advisory to help business excel in new host countries. Its innovative solutions, powered by technology and people, enable businesses to connect across East Asia and Southeast Asia with one voice. With TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD. as its major shareholder, TRANSLASIA helps businesses take flight across Asia by committing to the core values of clarity, transparency, collaboration, trustworthiness, and conviction.

ABOUT ELITE ASIA PTE. LTD.

Elite Asia enables businesses to market and communicate effectively across Asian markets, and to overcome business complexities brought on by cultural and linguistic barriers. Since its inauguration in 2006, this regional powerhouse has helped businesses navigate effortlessly across East Asia and Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore with offices in Malaysia, Hong Kong, the company serves multinational companies and regional firms through innovative language solutions powered by technology and people, and by communicating with clarity, expressing within cultural context, and speaking with conviction.

ABOUT AISA DIGITAL PTE. LTD.

AISA Digital Pte. Ltd. supports e-Commerce and digital businesses with artificial intelligence capabilities that enable massive localisation in Asian languages. AISA assists companies to actualise digital transformation and capitalise on digital economies. Powered by a hybrid model of AI technologies, cloud-based localisation technology, and a robust marketplace solution for ASEAN linguists living across the Southeast Asia, AISA delivers massive contextual translation in major ASEAN languages at high speed and at a fraction of the cost.