Welcoming 2025 in spectacular style, Natural8 India has announced its latest India Exclusive, Natural8 India X APT Manila Classic 2025, to the delight of poker enthusiasts across the country. The multi-table tournament, scheduled to take place on January 19, will offer participants a chance to fight for the massive event prize pool and the glory of winning a prestigious APT Trophy. But that’s not all, for nine finalists will also secure an all-expense paid trip to participate in APT Manila – competing for the grand prize at a grand stage with some of the sharpest poker players in all of Asia!

With a buy-in of only INR 5,500, Natural8 India X APT Manila Classic 2025 will offer flight and stay packages for nine finalists, worth up to INR 100,000 each, for the upcoming APT Manila Classic. In addition, the top four finalists will secure a Main Event ticket worth INR 90,000 each at APT Manila Classic 2025, while the other five will win Mini Main Event tickets worth INR 37,000 each. The tournament also has various satellites running daily from January 12 to January 19, with a buy-in of just INR 550.

Speaking on the upcoming India Exclusive, Kunal Patni, Executive Director and Country Head – Natural8 India, said, “2024 was a spectacular year for Natural8 India and the broader Indian poker community. Throughout the year, we saw a strong response to the various India Exclusives, which not only nurtured the country’s growing poker landscape but also connected poker enthusiasts to the broader Asian poker scene on a more consistent basis. We took 23 players to various APT events in 2024 through these India Exclusive APT events. With the Natural8 India X APT Manila Classic 2025, we expect a similarly stellar response, especially with mega bonus on offer worth up to INR 15 lakh. Our latest India Exclusive will set the tone for the rest of the year and give poker enthusiasts and professional players across the country a chance to start 2025 on a bang!”

On Jan. 14, 2025, Sands China Ltd., Alipay and Macau Pass jointly introduced the Alipay Tap! service at Sands Resorts Macao. Utilising innovative payment interaction technology, the service will further enhance the payment experience of visitors in Macao and enable new digital business and marketing opportunities. It will also contribute to the city’s smart city development while supporting digital upgrades and connectivity within the Greater Bay Area.

Alipay Tap! is an innovative payment service introduced by Alipay in July 2024 in the Chinese mainland. Users can simply unlock their phones and tap the merchant’s payment device to complete the transaction, without opening the Alipay app. This solution has quickly become popular with both users and merchants and is currently available in over 100 cities and more than 1000 shopping malls and commercial districts in the Chinese mainland. In addition to payments, Alipay has also collaborated with partners to create over 50 Alipay Tap! digital industry solutions, such as “Tap to Order” and “Tap to Open Self-service Vending Machine”.

In this first phase, Sands China has rolled out Alipay Tap! across 300 merchants in its integrated resorts, including The Venetian Macao, The Parisian Macao, The Londoner Macao and Sands Macao. It can be used for a variety of payments, such as hotel accommodation, dining, shopping and ticketing, providing customers with a convenient payment experience. Chinese mainland tourists using Alipay Tap! in Sands Resorts Macao can also enjoy multiple offers during the promotional period, including an exclusive coupon for the first transaction via Alipay Tap! in Macao and other cross-border travel promotions released.

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Merchants can use one terminal to meet the payment needs of both tourists and local residents using mainstream e-wallets. A representative from a Sands Resorts Macao merchant shared, “As Chinese mainland tourists are generally familiar with Alipay Tap!, combined with various recent promotional offers, the number of Alipay Tap! transactions has significantly increased since its launch, greatly enhancing operational efficiency”.

Jiajia Li, Vice President of Alipay, Ant Group, said: “Macao has unique geographic advantages, providing an ideal environment for the introduction of innovative technologies. Alipay and Alipay+’s cross-border services have already covered nearly 90% of merchants in Macao. The successful introduction of Alipay Tap! in Macao will further enhance the convenience of payments for Chinese mainland visitors, accelerate the digital transformation of businesses, unlock more commercial potential, and promote the digital connectivity of digital everyday services within the Greater Bay Area.”

The introduction of Alipay Tap! in Macao is not just a simple replication of the payment model but also creates a local digital business model benchmark. The collaboration between the three companies integrates Alipay’s user experience and membership preferences, Sands China’s unique services and benefits, and Macau Pass’s regional coverage and operational expertise. Together, they have created a new digital business model.

BETER, an award-winning provider of fast betting content and data, has expanded its proprietary Setka Cup table tennis tournaments to a new country by opening an arena there. The brand-new venue is located in New Delhi, India. This marks the first-ever Setka Cup arena in the region, emphasizing another step in the provider’s ambitious expansion strategy.

Tournaments at the new arena are being held in a best-of-five format, with more than 900 matches scheduled each month. Bettors can wager on over 30 markets per match.

The Setka Cup is a flagship product of BETER’s fast betting sports offering, which also includes the BSKT Cup basketball league. In total, it provides players with more than 11,000 events per month to bet on. All matches are provided with 24/7 live streaming, real-time data, and odds.

BETER has several sports locations across three European countries, collaborating with local table tennis federations and associations. The addition of the Indian location will allow BETER to attract more professional athletes from the region, delivering more content for its operator partners and their bettors.

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Another major advantage of the new arena is that BETER can add more time slots to its offering, benefiting operators and players in Europe who will be able to watch and wager on the action from 3:30 AM to 11 AM every day—traditionally a time less fulfilled with betting content.

Maksym Vitushko, Sports General Manager at BETER, said: “Setka Cup is a world-renowned product and has taken the industry by storm. We are committed to constantly improving and driving growth, and to do this, we are always refining our product, increasing the number of events, and adding new locations worldwide while forging partnerships with Tier-1 operators.

“The demand for fast betting content is significant, and the Setka Cup sets the standard for a top-tier player experience. Our new arena elevates this even further, marking our entry into India and strengthening our position in key markets like Europe by delivering best-in-class fast-paced content while adhering to the principles of fair play, thanks to the efforts of our Integrity team.

“This is just the first of several planned new countries, with the doors set to open on a new table tennis location in one of Latin America’s countries shortly.”