SINGAPORE - MediaOutReach - 25 March 2019 - TAKARA PRINTING CO., LTD.  (TYO:7921), one of two only companies in the whole of Japan specialising in financialdisclosure advisory, has invested in TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd. whichhouses the rebranded Elite Asia brands(previously known as EliteTranslations and EliteInterpreters) and the technology startup, AISA Digital Pte. Ltd. The company'sfirst-ever investment in Southeast Asia shows its conviction in the growth ofthe East Asian and the Southeast Asian regions.

"Our investment in TRANSLASIA Holdings attests to ourconfidence in this region and our commitment to drive growth and expansion inEast Asia and Southeast Asia. We see enormous potential in the Southeast Asianmarket and Singapore is a formidable gateway to that. We expect the growth ofe-Commerce in this region to be immense and TRANSLASIA Holdings is strategicallypositioned 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. andChairman, TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd.

The fragmented nature of Asia has many businesses perplexedon how to successfully enter, grow, and succeed in this region. Businesses haveto grapple with complex challenges like geographical and infrastructuraldisparity, cultural diversity, and language differences. Yet, its phenomenalgrowth rates and massive potential cannot be ignored by any business looking tosucceed and thrive in the global economy. A Google--Temasek study projectedthat the Internet economy of Southeast Asia alone is set to exceed USD 240billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) by 2025, having already reached USD 72billion 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-Commerceportals, AISA Digital will launchits very first end-to-end integrated localisation solution in March 2019 tocompanies who want to scale their businesses across Southeast Asia. Thesolution is powered by a hybrid model of AI technologies, a cloud-basedlocalisation platform, and a marketplace solution for ASEAN linguists residingacross Southeast Asia. And the result is the amalgamation of human andartificial intelligence to yield faster, good quality, and cheaper localisationservices to translate digital contents or e-Commerce products to ASEAN languages.

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

Elite Asia - From Service Provider to Solution Partner

The launch of TRANSLASIA also marks the rebranding of EliteTranslations and Elite Interpreters to Elite Asia. Established since 2006 andheadquartered in Singapore withoffices in Hong Kong and Malaysia, the company has evolved intoa regional powerhouse that helps businesses navigate effortlessly across Asianborders through innovative language services and solutions powered bytechnology and people. Furthermore, Elite Asia will be liaising with TAKARAPRINTING CO., LTD. to serve clients in Japan.

The rebranding entails a paradigm shift in Elite Asia'sbusiness model with a heavier investment in technology and a refocus oninnovation. The company's solutions are aggregates of an uncompromisingapproach to address clients' needs, partnering them at a deeper level and goingbeyond just being a service provider.

LIT Asia 2019 - Expanding Businesses in Asia

The inaugural LITAsiaevent 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-houseteams to learn from experts and get new ideas on how to navigate effectivelyand enhance experiences in the fragmented Southeast Asia region. Attendeesacquired insights on how to expand successfully into the rest of Asia, overcomeglobalisation barriers, and develop meaningful connections with your customersusing the newest language technology.

TRANSLASIA Holdings Pte. Ltd., which houses the Elite Asiaand AISA Digital brands, helps businesses overcome linguistic and culturalbarriers and is the bridge to communication so businesses can understand theirneeds in new business environments. With TRANSLASIA, doing business in Asiafeels 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 providingfinancial disclosure support to listed companies in Japan as well asIPO-related services in local and overseas markets. It produces and sellsprinted materials related to the financial instruments & exchange act, thecompany law, and investor relations related information. It also operates inthe production and handling of legal and IR-related advertisements. Inaddition, it provides translation services for disclosure and IR-relateddocuments. Listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the companywas 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 culturalservices and advisory to help business excel in new host countries. Itsinnovative solutions, powered by technology and people, enable businesses toconnect across East Asia and Southeast Asia with one voice. With TAKARAPRINTING CO., LTD. as its major shareholder, TRANSLASIA helps businesses takeflight across Asia by committing to the core values of clarity, transparency,collaboration, trustworthiness, and conviction.

ABOUT ELITE ASIA PTE. LTD.

Elite Asiaenables businesses to market and communicate effectively across Asian markets,and to overcome business complexities brought on by cultural and linguisticbarriers. Since its inauguration in 2006, this regional powerhouse has helpedbusinesses navigate effortlessly across East Asia and Southeast Asia.Headquartered in Singapore with offices in Malaysia, Hong Kong, the companyserves multinational companies and regional firms through innovative languagesolutions 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 digitalbusinesses with artificial intelligence capabilities that enable massivelocalisation in Asian languages. AISA assists companies to actualise digitaltransformation and capitalise on digital economies. Powered by a hybrid modelof AI technologies, cloud-based localisation technology, and a robustmarketplace solution for ASEAN linguists living across the Southeast Asia, AISAdelivers massive contextual translation in major ASEAN languages at high speedand at a fraction of the cost.