Pharos Network Unveils High-Performance Layer 1 Testnet to Unlock RWA Adoption
HONG KONG, May 7, 2025 /CNW/ -- Pharos Network, a high-performance blockchain built for real-world assets (RWAs), announced the launch of its Testnet today. Designed for institutional-grade RWAs and enterprise-scale DeFi, Pharos offers a next-generation, modular infrastructure that addresses the key bottlenecks preventing institutions from entering Web3. The platform powers scalable deployment of decentralized applications, enables efficient payment solutions, and unlocks new use cases for tokenized assets.
The Pharos Testnet achieves up to 30,000 transactions per second with one-second finality, setting a new benchmark for Layer 1 blockchain performance. Its GPU-like architecture could support billions of users and reduce storage usage by 80%. The network also features built-in support for decentralized AI and privacy preserving SPN. With ZK-based KYC/AML capabilities, Pharos ensures enterprise-ready security and compliance. It remains fully EVM-compatible, offering faster and cheaper transactions, while enabling flexible, on-chain innovation.
Pharos's product stack directly addresses the core bottlenecks in RWA adoption—scalability, compliance, and flexibility—unlocking new use cases across sectors such as renewable energy industry finance, payment, supply chain finance, and tokenized real estate. Its modular, high-throughput infrastructure enables secure deployment of RWA at scale, while meeting the regulatory and performance demands of the financial industry.
A growing ecosystem is already emerging on the Pharos Testnet, enabling innovative Defi use cases for RWAs. As an early collaborator of Pharos, OKX Wallet will support Pharos Testnet natively at launch. Early Pharos ecosystem projects include Zenith Swap, ELFi, Buzzing Club, Nextmate.AI, Faroswap, R2, OpenFi, Hemera, Blocksense, Supra, and more.
Founded by former AntChain and Alibaba blockchain leaders, the Pharos team brings deep enterprise experience, uniquely positioning it to deliver enterprise-grade solutions for institutions exploring green finance, payments, and new forms of programmable ownership and asset tokenization.
"The Pharos Testnet represents a significant milestone in our mission to unlock the true potential of RWAs. By providing a high-performance, scalable, and adaptable platform, Pharos meet the needs of bringing real world assets on a chain and bringing utilities to these assets." said Alex Zhang, CEO of Pharos Network. "We're excited to watch innovation flourish on Pharos and accelerate the convergence of traditional finance and decentralized technology.
Developers and users can access and experience the Testnet by visiting testnet.pharosnetwork.xyz.
About Pharos
Pharos Network is a revolutionary Layer 1 blockchain platform that sets new benchmarks in decentralized technology with its extreme performance and scalability. Founded by ex-blockchain leaders from Ant Financial and Alibaba, Pharos aims to build the best chain for RWAs and enterprise-grade DeFi, achieving the highest EVM Layer-1 performance with 50K TPS and being the first to reach 2 gigagas/sec. In addition, Pharos is a co-developer of SmartCogent, an AI toolkit for large language models (LLMs), and the core development team of DTVM technology. For more information, please visit https://pharosnetwork.xyz.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Globe and Mail
an hour ago
- Globe and Mail
Baidu Trading at a Discount at 8.59X: Should You Buy the Stock?
Baidu, Inc. BIDU is currently trading at a discount relative to its industry and historical metrics, with its forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio sitting below its five-year average, as shown below. It currently has a Value Score of B. This is a deep discount to the broader tech sector and even to Chinese peers. By comparison, Alibaba BABA has a forward P/E of 10.96 and Tencent TCEHY has 16. Meanwhile, the Zacks Computer and Technology sector is currently trading at 26.22X. Baidu Valuation Image Source: Zacks Investment Research In terms of Baidu's share price performance, its shares have gained only 1.8% so far this year. Meanwhile, its peers Alibaba and Tencent have surged 40.8% and 24.2%, respectively, during the same time frame. The Zacks Internet – Services industry has lost 6.3%, and the Zacks Computer and Technology sector has gained 1.3% year to date. Share Price Performance Let's analyze BIDU's current strengths and risks to determine if the stock warrants an investment at this stage. Baidu's Growth Drivers Baidu's most immediate opportunity lies in the continued rapid scaling of its AI Cloud business. In the first quarter of 2025, AI Cloud revenue surged 42% from a year ago to RMB 6.7 billion, accelerating from 26% growth in fourth-quarter 2024. This segment now makes up 26% of Baidu Core revenue, up from 20% a year ago—a clear sign that AI Cloud is becoming a central growth driver. Triple-digit growth in generative AI and foundation model-related revenue within Cloud further suggests strong demand tailwinds. As China's enterprise AI adoption deepens, Baidu's Qianfan MaaS platform—with its broad model library, industry-leading inference cost efficiency, and support for multimodal and reasoning models—positions the company to consolidate its share in this expanding market. Another major opportunity is Baidu's autonomous driving business. Apollo Go provided approximately 1.4 million rides in first-quarter 2025, up 75% year over year, and management confirmed that the service is now fully driverless in mainland China and entering new global markets such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Hong Kong. The fleet of more than 1,000 driverless vehicles and the unique, sub-$30,000 unit cost of the RT6 purpose-built robotaxi give Baidu an edge in scaling autonomous mobility. New partnerships, such as with CAR Inc., could further support asset-light, scalable growth. Baidu's AI-powered search transformation also represents a significant long-term opportunity. As of April 2025, about 35% of mobile search results contained AI-generated content, up sharply from 22% in January. Management expects this penetration to keep rising in the second quarter. While monetization is in early testing, the ability to monetize long-tail queries and new formats could eventually expand Baidu's ad revenue base beyond the limits of traditional search. Baidu's Challenges to Overcome While user experience and engagement metrics are improving with AI search, monetization approaches are still being rebuilt from scratch, with management cautioning that the transformation will place notable near-term pressures on revenue and margin. There is uncertainty around how quickly and effectively Baidu can convert AI-driven engagement into sustainable ad revenue. Again, AI chip supply constraints are an external risk. U.S. export restrictions on advanced AI chips could affect Baidu's ability to support large-scale training and inference for its models. Management emphasized its flexibility with domestic chips and software optimizations, but the risk remains that supply limitations or performance gaps in domestic chips could hinder Baidu's AI Cloud scalability or competitiveness. Competitive intensity is rising in both AI cloud and AI search. Chinese tech giants are racing to release advanced models, improve inference cost structures, and capture enterprise cloud spend. Moreover, large platforms with massive user traffic (e.g., Tencent, Alibaba) are integrating AI into their ecosystems, increasing competitive pressure. Margin pressure from elevated AI investments is another consideration. In the first quarter, Baidu reported negative free cash flow of RMB 8.9 billion, largely due to heightened AI investments. With R&D intensity declining (R&D expenses were 16% of Baidu Core revenue this quarter, down from 21% from a year ago), Baidu must balance innovation speed with financial discipline. Earnings Estimates Trend & Growth Rate for Baidu Over the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Baidu's current-year earnings per share (EPS) has decreased, as you can see below, depicting analysts' concerns over the company's prospects. How to Play BIDU Stock Now? Despite trading at a seemingly attractive discount, Baidu's near-term risks outweigh its potential rewards. The company faces rising uncertainty in monetizing its AI-driven businesses. While AI Cloud growth is robust, it remains vulnerable to escalating competition from peers like Alibaba and Tencent, both of whom are outpacing Baidu in stock performance. Furthermore, Baidu's AI search transformation is still in its infancy, with unproven monetization strategies likely to pressure revenue and margins in the coming quarters. The company is also exposed to U.S. AI chip restrictions, which could impair the scalability of its models. Baidu's negative free cash flow and declining R&D intensity raise additional concerns about its ability to maintain a technological edge. The recent downward trend in EPS estimates underscores analysts' growing caution. With stronger-performing alternatives in the Chinese tech space and rising operational headwinds, now appears an opportune time for investors to exit BIDU stock. BIDU currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor Stock It's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom. With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028. See This Stock Now for Free >> Baidu, Inc. (BIDU): Free Stock Analysis Report Tencent Holding Ltd. (TCEHY): Free Stock Analysis Report
Cision Canada
2 hours ago
- Cision Canada
TALON METALS ANNOUNCES UPSIZED $39 MILLION FINANCING COMPRISED OF $25 MILLION BROKERED PRIVATE PLACEMENT AND CONCURRENT $14 MILLION NON-BROKERED PRIVATE PLACEMENT
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, , June 9, 2025 /CNW/ - Talon Metals Corp. (TSX: TLO) (OTC Pink: TLOFF) (" Talon" or the " Company") is pleased to announce that as a result of strong investor demand, the Company has amended its agreement with Canaccord Genuity Corp. (" Canaccord Genuity") on behalf of a syndicate of underwriters (the " Underwriters") to increase the size of its previously announced "bought deal" private placement of units of the Company (the " LIFE Units") to raise gross proceeds of $25,300,000 (the " LIFE Offering"), consisting of 115,000,000 LIFE Units at a price of $0.22 per LIFE Unit (the " Offering Price"). Concurrent with the LIFE Offering, the Company plans to complete a non-brokered private placement of up to 62,227,274 units of the Company (the " Non-LIFE Units" and, together with the LIFE Units, the " Units") at the Offering Price per Non-LIFE Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of up to approximately $13,690,000 (the " Non-LIFE Offering" and, together with the LIFE Offering, the " Offerings"). The Non-LIFE Units will be issued on the same terms as the LIFE Units. The Non-LIFE Units may be offered to purchasers resident in Canada pursuant to applicable prospectus exemptions, other than the Listed Issuer Financing Exemption (as defined below), in accordance with applicable laws, and may also be offered in other qualifying jurisdictions outside of Canada on a private placement basis pursuant to relevant prospectus or registration exemptions in accordance with applicable laws. Any securities issued under the Non-LIFE Offering to purchasers resident in Canada will be subject to a hold period in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws, expiring four months and one day following the issue date of the Non-LIFE Units. The Non-LIFE Offering will be completed with certain directors, officers and affiliates of Pallinghurst Nickel International Ltd. Each Unit will be comprised of one common share of the Company (a " Common Share") and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant of the Company (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a " Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder thereof to acquire one Common Share (a " Warrant Share") at a price of $0.28 per Warrant Share for a period of 36 months from the closing of the LIFE Offering or Non-LIFE Offering, as applicable. In the event that the closing price of the Common Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange (the " TSX") (or such other Canadian stock exchange on which the Common Shares are then listed) for twenty (20) consecutive trading days exceeds $0.56, the Company may, within 10 business days of the occurrence of such event, deliver a notice (including by way of a news release) to the holders of Warrants accelerating the expiry date of the Warrants to the date that is 30 days following the date of such notice. The LIFE Units will be offered pursuant to Part 5A of National Instrument 45-106 – Prospectus Exemptions, as amended by Coordinated Blanket Order 45-935 – Exemptions from Certain Conditions of the Listed Issuer Financing Exemption (the " Listed Issuer Financing Exemption"), to purchasers resident in Canada (other than the province of Québec), and in other qualifying jurisdictions outside of Canada that are mutually agreed to by the Company and the Underwriters on a private placement basis pursuant to relevant prospectus or registration exemptions in accordance with applicable laws. The securities issued under the LIFE Offering to Canadian subscribers will not be subject to a hold period in Canada. There is an amended and restated offering document related to the LIFE Offering (the " Offering Document") that can be accessed under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at and on the Company's website at Prospective investors should read the Offering Document before making an investment decision. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Offerings to advance the Tamarack Nickel Project and for general and administrative expenses and working capital purposes, as further described in the Offering Document. The Offerings are expected to close on or about June 19, 2025, or such other date as the Company and Canaccord Genuity may agree (the " Closing Date"). The Non-LIFE Offering may close on a date subsequent to or prior to the closing date of the LIFE Offering at the discretion of the Company. The Offerings are subject to the Company receiving all necessary regulatory approvals, including the approvals of the TSX. The closing of the LIFE Offering is not conditional upon closing of the Non-LIFE Offering, and the closing of the Non-LIFE Offering is not conditional upon closing of the LIFE Offering. The Units (and the underlying securities) to be offered pursuant to the Offerings have not been, and will not be, registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the " U.S. Securities Act") or any U.S. state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, United States persons absent registration or any applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. About Talon Talon is a TSX-listed base metals company in a joint venture with Rio Tinto on the high-grade Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project located in central Minnesota. Talon's shares are also traded in the US over the OTC market under the symbol TLOFF. The Tamarack Nickel Project comprises a large land position (18km of strike length) with additional high-grade intercepts outside the current resource area. Talon has an earn-in right to acquire up to 60% of the Tamarack Nickel Project and currently owns 51%. Talon is focused on (i) expanding and infilling its current high-grade nickel mineralization resource prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 to shape a mine plan for submission to Minnesota regulators, and (ii) following up on additional high-grade nickel mineralization in the Tamarack Intrusive Complex. Talon has a neutrality and workforce development agreement in place with the United Steelworkers union. Talon's Beulah Mineral Processing Facility in Mercer County was selected by the US Department of Energy for US$114.8 million funding grant from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the US Department of Defense awarded Talon a grant of US$20.6 million to support and accelerate Talon's exploration efforts in both Minnesota and Michigan. Talon has well-qualified experienced exploration, mine development, external affairs and mine permitting teams. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements". All statements, other than statements of historical fact that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations and beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Such forward-looking statements include statements relating to the Offerings, including the completion and anticipated timing for completion of the Offerings, the potential size of the Offerings, the Company's intended use of the net proceeds of the Offerings, the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including the approvals of the TSX, and the Company's exploration and development plans. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on the Company. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.
Cision Canada
3 hours ago
- Cision Canada
Decision Notice - CIRO Sanctions Jonathan Thomas Jones Français
VANCOUVER, BC, June 9, 2025 /CNW/ - On May 30, 2025, a hearing panel of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) held a hearing pursuant to the Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules and accepted a settlement agreement, with sanctions, between Enforcement Staff and Jonathan Thomas Jones. Jonathan Jones admitted to trading in a security by means other than the entry of an order on a marketplace. Pursuant to the settlement agreement, Jonathan Jones agreed to pay a fine of $21,000 and costs of $2,000. The Settlement Agreement is available at: The hearing panel's decision will be made available at At all material times, Jonathan Jones conducted business with Haywood Securities Inc. in the Vancouver, British Columbia area. Jonathan Jones is currently registered as a Dealing Representative with Leede Financial Inc. The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) is the national self-regulatory organization that oversees all investment dealers, mutual fund dealers and trading activity on Canada's debt and equity marketplaces. CIRO is committed to the protection of investors, providing efficient and consistent regulation, and building Canadians' trust in financial regulation and the people managing their investments. For more information, visit All information about disciplinary proceedings relating to current and former member firms and individual registrants under the Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules (for investment dealers), the Mutual Fund Dealer Rules (for mutual fund dealers) and the Universal Market Integrity Rules (UMIR) is available on CIRO's website. Background information regarding the qualifications and disciplinary history, if any, of advisors currently employed by CIRO-regulated investment firms is available free of charge through the AdvisorReport service. Information on how to make dealer, advisor or marketplace-related complaints is available by calling 1-877-442-4322. CIRO investigates possible misconduct by its member firms and individual registrants. It can bring disciplinary proceedings which may result in sanctions including fines, suspensions, permanent bars, expulsion from membership, or termination of rights and privileges for individuals and firms. SOURCE Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)
