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Binance’s CZ pledged billions for travel permission, the SEC again delays a decision on Ether ETFs, and X payments account suggests “everything app” is on the way.

Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation reportedly traced Monero transactions in connection with the criminal trial of Julius Aleksanteri Kivimäki and the Vastaamo hack.

Bitcoin may be clear to attack resistance higher up, but the odds of sweeping recent lows later on remain convincing among BTC price pundits.

Elon Musk’s auto company has liquidated 70% of its Bitcoin portfolio to date yet exhibits caution in letting go of the remaining holdings.

Ivan Turogin and Sergei Potapenko face 18 charges in the United States and long prison terms for allegedly making HashFlare a Ponzi scheme.

Court filings reveal ongoing conflicts between Binance and the U.S. SEC over evidence production and the arrangement of witness testimonies.

The echoes of the 28th UN Climate Change Conference’s (COP28) groundbreaking commitments lingered as the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos became the epicenter of global dialogues this month. Against this backdrop, SAP’s innovative strides in sustainability and artificial intelligence (AI) spotlighted the transformative potential of technology in addressing pressing global challenges.

SAP’s presence at both events exemplifies the seamless connection between environmental commitment and technological innovation. The nearly 100 initiatives SAP was involved in at COP28 last month demonstrated the company’s unwavering focus on fostering collaboration across governance, the private sector, and civil society, which, coupled with a commitment to transparency, also resonated with Davos’ core values.

For example, the “From Farm to Consumer” showcase emphasizing intelligent agriculture solutions at COP28 and the WEF Collaboration Village at Davos both showed the power of technology, such as how AI can optimize all industry practices and foster collaboration across the supply chain. This embodies SAP’s multifaceted approach to innovation.

The company’s strategies involve valuing carbon assets, supporting collaborative supply chains, and actively backing local climate initiatives. Recent studies highlight how SAP solutions can seamlessly integrate sustainability into core business strategies, giving companies a competitive edge. By treating emissions tracking with the same rigor as financial transactions, SAP solutions can enable data-driven decision-making for positive environmental impact.

Record, report, and act with SAP Sustainability solutions Learn more Navigating the AI Landscape Responsibly

As the WEF in Davos unfolded, the pervasive enthusiasm for AI became evident along the promenade. A dedicated pavilion called “AI House” served as a testament to the technology’s significance in shaping the future. SAP’s commitment to innovation aligns with the forum’s pulse, offering a glimpse into how AI can transform industries and societies.

AI’s impact on the global workforce was a central concern at Davos. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warns that the AI revolution could affect almost 40% of jobs worldwide, including highly skilled ones. In industrialized countries, this number could surge to 60%. The integration of AI in various industries can exacerbate inequalities, especially in terms of job displacement. However, SAP believes the time is right to explore the implications and the steps required for this future. One of the first mind shifts may be seeing AI as a coworker rather than a software tool.

SAP’s approach seeks to mitigate potential inequalities. The company didn’t merely showcase innovation at Davos; it actively engaged in discussions to address the complexities surrounding AI and find solutions for a responsible approach.

Striking the Balance: A Global Perspective

SAP recognizes the broader, global context of responsible AI, particularly with varying regulatory standards in the U.S. and China. The discussions at Davos provided a platform for SAP to advocate for a harmonized approach to AI regulation, which is especially relevant for the EU. The company’s commitment to finding the right balance resonated in discussions about regulatory standards, emphasizing the need for global cooperation to navigate the evolving landscape of AI. This global perspective gains profound meaning when viewed through the lens of COP28.

COP28 concluded with a landmark decision by nearly 200 countries to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems. The renegotiated text emphasized a just, orderly, and equitable shift, aiming to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. This signifies a global move, committing nations to tripling renewable energy use by 2030 and doubling energy efficiency. The resolution proposes the first-ever phase-out of fossil fuels, accelerating coal’s exit, boosting renewable energy, and emphasizing energy efficiency. However, the resolution falls short of a complete commitment due to opposition from economically reliant countries like Saudi Arabia. And despite progress, vulnerable island nations stress the need for inclusive decision-making, as they face immediate threats from climate change and depend on global solidarity for survival.

Hand-in-Hand: AI and Climate Action

It’s crucial to recognize AI’s broader role in climate action. Scaling proven applications and technology, AI has the potential to unlock insights that could help mitigate 5% to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and significantly bolster climate-related adaptation and resilience initiatives. Approximately 87% of executives view AI as having the potential to address climate issues, making it a key player in the fight against climate change.

AI contributes to climate protection not only by helping to reduce emissions but also by helping to navigate unavoidable climate change impacts and provide essential capabilities that enable climate action. SAP, alongside its dedication to AI ethics, wants to ensure that its AI solutions drive sustainability strategies and contribute to a more resilient and adaptive world.

SAP believes that working together and being open and transparent are key to solving bigger challenges. It’s not just about cool tech; it’s about creating real connections. As AI evolves, SAP’s dedication to a responsible and inclusive future shows the power of teamwork in making a difference.

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The U.S. Department of Defense has defined multiple goals for implementing and training AI for resilience to attacks and processing data, as it anticipates a battle between AI and counter-AI.

Some community members criticized Warden, saying she qualifies as an intern for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Bitcoin faces a trip to “at least” $30,000 under a scenario favored by former ARK Invest crypto lead Chris Burniske.

Analysts from JPMorgan believe the majority of “profit taking” from Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust is now likely over, while U.S. Bitcoin funds have just recorded their biggest day of net outflows.

The Bitcoin halving could spell a great deal of pain for Bitcoin miners if the price of BTC fails to surge, though hedging strategies could mitigate this risk.

OKX token flash crash wipes $6.5B off market cap, arrest warrent issued for crypto exec Mr Bang, Hong Kong exchanges go global: Asia Express.

Pundits predict which Web3 game could see the next ‘Axie Infinity moment,’ transferable gamertags, Nine Chronicles Mobile & more. Web3 Gamer.

When Danielle Thomé was a teenager, she asked her father for a job. That’s not unusual, especially since her father was the founder of Projex Engenharia, a successful business in Brazil. But the business focused on civil and industrial construction, an industry where a 15-year-old girl didn’t fit the typical job description, despite her passion for civil engineering. Although Thomé would eventually take over her father’s business, her road to success was paved with many challenges.

“One of the biggest challenges I faced was the age-old problem of gender discrimination,” Thomé recalled years later. She is one of many women driven to lead businesses that reflect their life passions.

Like other entrepreneurial women, she needed support. But where are the networks to help women turn their passions into successful businesses? Thomé found her network in an SAP customer. WEConnect International connects women-owned businesses to qualified buyers around the world. As a result of becoming WEConnect International certified – and a lot of hard work by Thomé and her team – Projex Engenharia’s revenue grew by a staggering 200% in just two years.

Many Challenges, Huge Potential Impact

Women who start and lead businesses face unique challenges. Cultural and social norms, or simply being underestimated by investors, can impede their entrepreneurial efforts. Harvard Business Review observes that “women are massively under-represented among both venture-backed entrepreneurs and VC investors.” It adds that companies founded solely by women receive less than 3% of all venture capital investments.

Also, the pandemic exacerbated the imbalance in unpaid care work – managing the household or caring for children and aging parents – which disproportionally affects women in business.

Women must also deal with the challenges other businesses face, including access to markets, information technology gaps, and the red tape involved with government programs designed to help new businesses.

Yet despite these challenges, women-owned and women-led businesses offer the potential to make a significant impact on the global economy. The World Economic Forum (WEF) observed that “societies with greater gender equality not only offer better socioeconomic opportunities for women, but also tend to grow faster and more equitably.”

The WEF also reports that advancing women’s employment could add US$12 trillion to global GDP and boost some countries’ economic output by as much as 35%.

Yet despite a clear business case, the WEF sees global progress stagnating.

Who Has the Power to Drive Change? All of Us.

Traditionally, the procurement function within larger organizations has held the power to fill supply chain gaps and build networks of suppliers. Yet today, other voices are making themselves heard. Consumers are expressing preferences to buy from women and other diverse businesses. Around the world – for example in the United States, Australia, and Canada – government regulations are requiring increased diversity and inclusion.

SAP Business Network powers transparency, resiliency, and sustainability Learn more

Additionally, the C-suite is reframing corporate policy to reflect more sophisticated approaches to selecting suppliers. In my role as customer officer, SAP Intelligent Spend & Business Network, I see business leaders prioritizing inclusive sourcing metrics within their procurement strategies to help ensure they have access to all the world’s best suppliers, not just the ones they always buy from.

Concerned about supply chain risks, procurement leaders are increasingly adopting localization strategies. While seeking new local suppliers, they also focus on inclusive sourcing. Of course, finding diverse suppliers is not easy – even local ones. Many women-owned businesses are small entities, not well-known in the business community. They often lack access to communication technology that would help them create greater visibility for the business.

How can we make it easier to connect enterprise buyers and women-owned businesses?

Creating Connections with SAP Technology

As president, CEO, and co-founder of WEConnect International, Elizabeth Vazquez is a leader in women’s economic empowerment and global supplier diversity and inclusion. Through WEConnect International, she helps women around the world grow their businesses to create wealth, hire more people, and contribute to the prosperity of their communities.

Last week, she participated in panel discussions during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. The discussions focused on opportunities to direct more corporate spend to women-owned businesses, not only to do good but to close supply chain gaps.

“Women-owned businesses are a valuable and under-utilized resource,” she said. “The women who run these businesses understand what their communities need most, and they are in a unique position to help solve them. In the process, they are creating entirely new industries.”

WEConnect International recognizes that to compete in the global marketplace, women-owned businesses must be visible to potential customers. It developed the WECommunity platform, a global register of women-owned businesses that makes it easier for buyers to find women-owned suppliers.

Unfortunately, the initial version of WECommunity relied on technology that delivered a poor user experience, making searching the register cumbersome. WEConnect International needed a scalable, global solution that offered smooth user experiences in multiple languages for buyers and suppliers.

The SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance solution and SAP Business Network more than met these criteria. As an added advantage, many of the WECommunity member buyers were already transacting on SAP Business Network. SAP partner Premikati Inc., a women-owned business, was engaged to help deploy the SAP solutions.

In its first year, the improved functionality of WECommunity produced dramatic outcomes:

• Buyer membership increased by 91%, a $2 trillion increase in purchasing power.
• Over 6,000 women-owned businesses experienced revenue growth, creating 24,000 new jobs.
• Over 7,800 new registered women-owned businesses joined the database, a 95% growth.

“By making it easier for women to register their businesses and for large buyers to find them, our online portal based on the SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance solution, SAP Business Network, and SAP Business Technology Platform helps women compete in a global marketplace,” Vazquez explained.

Breaking Through the Barriers

Remember Thomé, the teenage girl who wanted to work in her father’s construction business? Today, she is owner-director of Projex Engenharia, the business her father founded.

As a noted in a recent profile, Projex Engenharia earned the WEConnect International Women’s Business Enterprise Certification. Thomé leveraged the global network of women suppliers and large buyers to become a more confident and assertive leader.

The relationship has also helped produce significant benefits for her business. In just six years, Projex Engenharia landed six large corporations as clients. This enabled the company to hire more people, ensure their safety and well-being, and support social, health, and environmental campaigns.

SAP is committed to helping all customers achieve their diversity and equity goals. And it is gratifying to know that our technology has become a valuable tool in making this happen.

Megan O’Connor is customer officer for SAP Intelligent Spend & Business Network.

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Central bank digital currencies are becoming more politicized globally, “but in the U.S. they seem to be ‘hyper-politicized.’”

Much has changed for Nassozi Berna, her husband, and their seven children since she began farming oil palm trees on Kalangala, an island in Uganda’s Lake Victoria, 11 years ago. Before that, Berna and her husband were subsistence farmers growing cassava, banana, and some coffee and living in a small, timber-framed house.

Like many other farmers on Kalangala, Berna started growing oil palm trees in 2012 while emphasizing sustainability and avoiding the deforestation and other issues associated with oil palm farming in some parts of the world.

Oil palm trees bear the fruit that makes palm oil, a much more reliable and lucrative crop than the cash crops they were producing previously. “When we were farming cassava, bananas, and coffee, we were affected by monkeys. They came and destroyed our crops,” she says.

She also explains that she had to leave home and go to the market to find a buyer for the crops that survived the monkey attacks and never knew in advance how much they would fetch. “Our living conditions where bad,” she remembers. She and her family lived in a makeshift timber house. “In the night when we were sleeping, winds would come and destroy our houses and our children fell sick almost every day.”

Cloud Technology Empowers Ugandan Island Community

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That began to change when Berna began working with the Kalangala Oil Palm Growers Trust (KOPGT) and the family planted their first oil palm trees in 2012. They expanded their crop in 2019 and again in 2022. In Kalangala, many of the people are oil palm farmers. “When a day starts, some of my family members help me with the pruning,” she says. “The others go to the plantation and do other activities.”

As part of its mission, KOPGT teaches farmers better agricultural practices. But perhaps most importantly, it has created a transparent payment system so farmers get paid faster and know if what they’re getting paid is accurate, increasing the standard of living of the farmers and, subsequently, much of the island itself.

As the number of farmers and transactions increased, KOPGT needed a digital solution to enable continued growth. Since 2009, SAP has worked to create applications that help smallholder farmers in developing nations, primarily across Africa, enhance food production.

David Balironda, KOPGT’s general manager, explains that the trust’s system is based on SAP Rural Sourcing Management, which can digitally record information on producers, their farms, and communities at every level of the value chain. This helps provide visibility and allows parties to easily and quickly communicate with each other.

Build a sustainable and traceable agriculture supply chain with SAP Learn how Sustainability

Underscoring the importance of sustainability to KOPGT, the trust conducted an initial environmental impact assessment before launching the project and uses SAP Analytics Cloud to monitor the farmer plantings and ensure they are in compliance with the National Environment Management Authority guidelines.

SAP cloud technology also enables KOPGT to ensure that the oil palm planting meets the most stringent sustainability guidelines set by Uganda’s National Environmental Authority. “We are in the process of applying for that certification by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil to make sure that we work within those guidelines,” says Fredrick Sulwe, KOPGT’s finance and administration manager.

As part of KOPGT’s commitment to sustainability, the trust maintains a lake buffer zone between the planting and the lake itself and even rehabilitates those areas that have been damaged by other plantings. “Restoration of those areas – the lake buffer zones – is key,” says Sulwe.

In addition to maintaining the buffer zones, the trust also follows recommendations for the stocking of trees and ensures that no chemicals or herbicides are used. “As we increase household income, we must keep an environment that is free of any distortion by the project,” explains Sulwe.

The KOPGT system allows the farmers to input information about their crops using the lead farmer’s mobile phone and enables them to receive information and advice back from the trust. The system also includes a mapping feature that has helped farmers to know exactly how much land they are farming. “That means when I go to the bank to get a loan, I’m sure of the size of my lot,” explains Berna.

In addition, she also knows exactly how much of the loan is outstanding and when it needs to be repaid. “Previously, we would almost spend a year without knowing the status of our loan,” she says. “Now we can learn the status of our loans monthly. This never existed before.”

Better Information

She also credits the system with making her a better and more informed oil palm farmer. “At the end of the month I get an SMS that shows how much I have harvested from my lot,” she says. Before the system came online, she says the family was spending a lot of money on transport going to and from the KOPGT office.

“Oil palm has not only impacted my life, but also the community,” she says. “There are many farmers who are like me who have built houses and some have bought cars. They have used the money they got from oil palm to start new businesses on Kalangala and outside.”

Big Dreams

Berna says her hopes and dreams are enormous. “I have started to achieve some of them,” she says. “Now, because I have a permanent house, I am able to sleep well, my children no longer get sick, and I’m sure that the winds won’t take my house.”

“Now, we are able to take our children to school. We can live a decent life. We have some place to stay, and we get paid every month. We are sure that our life has greatly changed,” she adds. And although she doesn’t yet own a car, she hopes to learn to drive in the coming years.

Meanwhile, she says she wants to thank everyone for their help. “What gives me confidence is we have good officers at KOPGT that have tried to give us a good direction. We hope that when they continue doing what they are doing our lives will be impacted greatly.”

Berna’s confidence and newly found optimism reflects the success of the vegetable oil program on Kalangala island. Because palm fruits can be harvested throughout the year – compared to one or two seasonal harvests – and have high yields, palm farming has become a viable alternative for the residents.

Palm oil is already the most widely used vegetable oil on the planet, with about 71 million tons consumed in 2021. And there is not only a domestic need, but also a demand from the foreign market that Ugandan smallholder farmers like Berna’s family and neighbors can help fill.

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With the SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition 2402 update, we are bringing a new round of exciting innovations.

Over the last year, artificial intelligence (AI) has taken the world by storm and captured our collective imagination – and it has been a clear focus for us. We see a lot of potential in how AI can improve user and organizational productivity: doing things faster, making better decisions, and automating business processes. We have been embedding intelligent capabilities in our product regularly and will continue to invest in AI to help organizations be successful. 

Simply Ask Joule

Available through the SAP Early Adopter Care program, Joule, our AI-powered copilot, can redefine user interaction, streamline business processes, and enhance productivity. It can offer quick, contextual access to content and applications; users can simply ask Joule for guidance and get pointed in the right direction.

Catch a glimpse into the future of AI in ERP and find more information about the development of AI and Joule in SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition here.

Improve Productivity with Embedded AI

The 2402 update also enhances productivity across various business processes through embedded AI capabilities. Examples include:

• Sales order auto-completion helps accelerate sales order creation and processing by providing smart input field recommendations.

Input recommendations for sales order completion. Click to enlarge.

• Automated material inspection helps streamline material inspection for customer returns, enhancing logistical efficiency and flexibility.

Automatic material inspection in customer returns. Click to enlarge. Adopt a Modern and Collaborative User Experience

The launch of spaces and pages in the SAP Fiori design system can offer a more intuitive user experience, enabling better task organization and quicker resource access. Highlights include:

• The new My Home space helps enhance personalization for end users, including personalization export/import and improved language support for System News. Watch a video to learn more.
• Collaborative stage view integration facilitates information sharing in Microsoft Teams, helping to enhance collaborative efforts across platforms. Watch a video to see it action.

Integration of collaborative stage view in Microsoft Teams. Click to enlarge.

• Contact card collaboration is now possible by initiating chats, calls, or video meetings directly from the To Do section in My Home. Watch a video to see how.

New features on My Home. Transforming to Intelligent and Sustainable Finance

One important aspect is treasury and risk management, where IDC MarketScape has positioned us as a leader for SaaS and cloud-enabled enterprise applications. Our latest finance enhancements are specifically designed to help elevate businesses into sustainable, intelligent enterprises:

• Enhanced compliance through improved risk management can increase transparency and process health, helping to ensure a more robust compliance structure in your financial operations.

Integration of risk management into financial compliance management.

• Integrated financial planning with CO2e insights in SAP Analytics Cloud allows planning alongside economic sustainability goals. This can provide a dual perspective on financial metrics and environmental impact, aiding in the development of eco-responsible strategies and identification of related financial risks.

Sustainability planning in integrated financial planning. Click to enlarge.

• The integration with Planon Real Estate focuses on seamless data management for enhanced efficiency in real estate and contract management processes.

Powering Service-Centric Companies

We have seen a spike in service-centric companies using SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition and were named a leader in this area by Gartner. Based on feedback from our customers and partners, we are continuously improving the product experience. Examples include:

• The Project Control – Professional Services Projects app can offer a detailed project overview, enabling managers to monitor project health and address issues like missing time entries, pending invoices, or unassigned roles. This can allow for more proactive and efficient project management.

Project Control – Professional Services Projects app. Click to enlarge.

• The improved billing solution helps prevent revenue losses and streamline billing processes for increased flexibility and accuracy. Enhancements include editing billing due dates, merging billing plan items, and creating preliminary billing documents, all within the Manage Project Billing app.
• The SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP)-based module of SAP Subscription Billing is tightly and seamlessly integrated. It can support customers’ transitions to subscription-based commercial models. Effective and detailed profitability analysis becomes instrumental to maximize revenue with tailored subscription-pricing models with the seamless support of profit centers. Take a look at our brand-new interactive value journey.
• Advanced solution order management can elevate your sales strategies. By integrating sales kits into solution orders, we provide the tools to help enhance your solution selling approach, working to ensure that every sales opportunity is maximized for optimal results, enhancing the process from ordering to billing and accounting.

Sales kits in solution orders. Click to enlarge. Boosting Manufacturing and Product-Centric Companies

The enhancements for product-centric companies help elevate operational efficiency, streamline processes, and unlock new revenue opportunities. Gartner named SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition as a cloud ERP market leader for product-centric enterprises. Highlights of the 2402 update include:

• For manufacturing sectors operating under the produce and sell standard products model, we now offer integration between SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition and the SAP Integrated Business Planning application for demand. This synergy allows you to leverage comprehensive data insights for precise production planning, helping to ensure that your manufacturing processes align seamlessly with market demand.
• Efficient third-party order processing (TPOP) is tailored for businesses in a two-tier ERP setting and can simplify direct shipments from suppliers to customers with enhanced order fulfillment, greater sourcing flexibility, and reduced logistical expenses.

Efficient third-party order processing. Click to enlarge.

• The automatic linkage of equipment to service contracts helps improve the combined sales of a physical good and a service and enables you to increase revenue by selling combinations of physical products, one-time services, and recurring services. This also helps to avoid errors and reduce manual effort.

Automatic linkage of equipment to service contracts. Click to enlarge. Enhancing Global Reach

We further invested in localization, so our software complies with local regulations and cultural norms:

• With the 2402 update we are introducing new local versions for Kuwait, Oman, Kazakhstan, and Slovenia to meet specific regional requirements.
• We extended the business scope in our standard 59 local versions, responding to customer needs and enhancing local compatibility.
• We enhanced scope in our Customer Local Version countries (formerly CLT) to include baseline, finance, and now product-centric capabilities, catering to a wider range of customer needs.

And So Much More…

Throughout this year, we will deliver many more innovations that help bring value to your business. For more details around what is being delivered for the 2402 update, see the SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition release info. For more information on SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition:

• Visit the SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition community
• Watch product videos on our SAP S/4HANA Cloud YouTube playlist
• Explore the early release webinar series here
• See what’s new here
• Visit our product page on the SAP Help Portal site
• Explore extensibility options by leveraging sample scenarios from SAP in the SAP Extensibility Explorer tool
• Learn more about SAP Business AI

Arpan Shah is SVP of Public Cloud ERP Product Management at SAP.

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