Man and robot celebrate 100-years Shell innovations by sounding gong

On 24 February 2014 it will be precisely 100 years since Shell (ticker symbol: RDSA) began its research activities in Amsterdam Noord. With the help of a robot from the University of Twente, Shell’s Chief Technology Officer Gerald Schotman sounds the gong to kick off this jubilee year, and to highlight the cooperative efforts of universities, government and companies aimed at accelerating the rate of innovation in the Netherlands.

The robot arm, specially programmed for this occasion by staff from the University of Twente, symbolizes cooperation between participants in the European Petrobot project. Together with other parties, including scientific advisors from the University of Twente and the University of Zurich (ETH), Shell is working within the framework of the EU to develop robots that can inspect petrochemical tanks. What began as a modest laboratory in Amsterdam, has since become a leading institute, and one of Shell’s three most important global technology centres.

For more information: www.shell.com

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Hulplijn Amsterdam visits Euronext Amsterdam

Hulplijn Amsterdam (previously known as Sensoor Amsterdam) has already been active for over 50 years and sounds the gong for its new identity.

Hulplijn Amsterdam is a 24 hours chat- and phone helpline for everyone in need of an anonymous conversation. Hulplijn Amsterdam is a professional organisation with on average 80 well-trained volunteers and a small permanent team of paid staff. Hulplijn Amsterdam provides a service in which the volunteer offers real attention and contact to the person calling. All together the volunteers have more than 20.000 conversations per year. The reasons for people to contact are varied and topics range from depression and psychological problems to loss of work and health. Loneliness plays a big part in many of these cases. CEO Ed Theunen sounds the gong.

For more information: www.hulplijnamsterdam.nl

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Gong marks listing Novisource

CEO of Novisource, Willem van der Vorm, sounds the gong to mark the listing of Novisource (ticker symbol: NOVI).

The new listing gives Novisource access to the capital market, enabling it to give further shape to its growth strategy. Novisource’s portfolio of brands includes Novisource Banking & Investments, Novisource Insurance & Pensions, Novisource Technology Services, B-Street and quality rating company Inhuurwijzer. Every day, Novisource’s project managers, business consultants and interim managers translate current and relevant business and ICT themes into the operations and operational processes of organisations, predominantly in the financial sector. They bring to the table a purely enterprising approach and the ability to deliver. Novisource helps organisations to develop and to achieve their goals. Novisource’s Technology Services brand chiefly targets the Telecom, Technology and Utilities industries. Under the B-Street label, the company supplies and deploys interim professionals who are hired externally. B-Street allows the company to respond quickly to clients’ requests without being exposed to any risk of overcapacity. B-Street possesses an extensive network of external interim professionals.

For more information: www.novisource.nl

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Kids Moving the World and PostNL sound the gong

The Kids Moving the World Foundation, and PostNL, sound the gong in honour of the 444,000th child to take part in one of the programmes organised by Kids Moving the World.

Kids Moving the World works to raise awareness among children in the Netherlands of some of the issues the world faces. Various education modules are used to introduce children to issues such as hunger, poverty and sustainability. For over 10 years PostNL, together with Ricoh and PWC, have supported the lesson plans that the organisation develops for primary school children. Their employees act as Game Guides, providing the final lessons for primary school classes from years 1 to 8. Game Guides play a colourful, interactive game with the children, which corresponds to learning material that teachers have presented to them in advance. Currently, over 250 volunteers are active as Game Guides, providing 1700 lessons at 550 schools throughout the Netherlands. Game Guide Vesna de Buck from PostNL sounds the gong along with three pupils from the De Rosa School in Amsterdam.

For more information: www.kidsmovingtheworld.nl

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Tradzster sounds gong for launch of trading platform

On the 18th of February Tradzster launches the first, full release of its innovative trading platform. CEO, Robbert Boutkan, sounds the gong.

The new broker/trading platform Tradzster will focus on innovation and useful functionality benefiting the online investor. Tradzster is a trading name of Capital Intervest BV and is active as a Dutch broker since the end of 2013 with a user friendly, in-house developed trading platform which enables the online investor to manually or automatically trade the global financial markets. Tradzster stands for innovative online trading for both the retail and professional online investor.

For more information: www.tradzster.com

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Marianne Vos sounds the gong to celebrate being named Sportswoman of the Year

Marianne Vos, a cyclist from Brabant who has been named Sportswoman of the year for the third time, sounds the gong.

Vos has won twelve world titles in three different cycling events: cyclo-cross, road and track. At the beginning of February she won the World Cyclo-Cross Championship, which was held in Hoogerheide, for the seventh time. She also holds two Olympic titles. During the 2008 Beijing Olympics she captured the title for the points race in field cycling. Four years later, in London, Marianne’s career reached a high point when she won the most coveted gold medal in cycling: the road race title. The winner of so many awards is certainly one of the most successful sportspersons in the Netherlands.

Marianne Vos is also active when she is not cycling. As a member of the Athletes Committee of the UCI (the international cycling union) she represents the women’s team, with a special focus on the future of women’s cycling. In addition, Marianne Vos is an ambassador for BikePure and 100% Dope Free, anti-doping organisations that want to ensure that the sport is completely clean.

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Only Friends & Johan Cruijff Foundation celebrate anniversary

Sport club Only Friends sounds the gong to celebrate its 14^th anniversary.

Founder Dennis Gebbink started Only Friends 14 years ago and celebrates this together with  the Johan Cruijff Foundation, a foundation with which Only Friends has a close relationship for many years now.

Only Friends is an organization that provides sports and activities for disabled children and young adults. With the help of 150 volunteers and 50 interns the organization is able to offer the 600 members a variety of 19 sports and activities, 7 days a week. Chairman of Only Friends, Jacques Parson, and president of the Johan Cruijff Foundation, Carole Thate, sound the gong.

For more information: www.onlyfriends.nl

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Royal Delft Group celebrates 60th listing anniversary

CEO of the Royal Delft Group, Henk Schouten, opens trading to celebrate 60 years of listing at Euronext Amsterdam.

For Delft earthenware manufacturer “De Porcelyne Fles”, established in 1653, 2014 is a special anniversary year in a couple of ways. 110 Years ago, in February 2014, the company turned the legal entity form into a Public Limited Company (PLC). Besides this it is 60 years ago that the company applied for stock exchange listing on Euronext Amsterdam.

Since 2008 the Royal Delft Group does not only consist of Royal Delft, well-known for the Delft Blue earthenware, but also Royal Leerdam Crystal, silver manufacturer Koninklijke Van Kempen & Begeer and BK Cookware. From that moment forward the group has also been active on the markets for pans, cutlery and designer products.

For more information: www.royaldelftgroup.com

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ALS Foundation sounds gong for Valentine’s Run

On Friday February 14, Valentine's Day 2014, the first edition of Valentine’s Run is organized in the Vondelpark in Amsterdam.

In America, the Valentine's Run is hugely popular and millions of dollars have been raised for charity so far. The Valentine’s Run is an official five-mile track, but before and after the run several romantic activities are organized to celebrate love. On top of that, money will be raised for the ALS Foundation. The registration limit for single women has been achieved, but for about 50 single men, there is still a chance to sign up for the most loving run of the Netherlands. ALS Foundation sounds the gong together with the event organizer Tim van Os and Madventures CEO, Maarten Hendriks.

For more information: www.valentijnsloop.nl and www.stichting-als.nl

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iShares sounds gong for ETF launch

iShares, the exchange-traded funds offering of BlackRock (ticker symbol: BLK), listed its iShares Euro Stoxx 50 ex-Financials UCITS ETF (EXFN) on the Amsterdam market of Euronext. This fund is the first ETF to come to market in continental Europe using an international security structure, where settlement of transactions is exclusively at Euroclear Bank – the Brussels-based international central securities depository (ICSD).Head of iShares The Netherlands, Gert-Jan Verhagen, sounds the gong.

The newly listed iShares EURO STOXX 50 ex-Financials UCITS ETF is a physically replicating fund which invests in blue chip stocks from 12 eurozone countries, while excluding companies from the financial sector, potentially providing investors with a less volatile exposure to Eurozone equities. The fund has a total expense ratio of 20 basis points.

The newly listed ETF follows a successful year of new listings on Euronext’s ETF market in 2013. Euronext reported growth in new ETF listings of 76% versus 2012, with a total of 51 listings on its European market totalling 564 ETFs. In Amsterdam, the growth in new ETFs was up by 223% compared to 2012, totalling 127 ETFs.

For more information: www.blackrock.nl

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Opkikker foundation sounds gong for new campaign

The 8-year-old Jay-jay Willems experienced the day of his life thanks to the Opkikker Foundation. Together with the Ajax Foundation his dream of playing together with Ajax came true.

Besides being a cheerful boy of eight and Ajax at heart, Jay-jay is chronically ill. Via a tube in his stomach he receives almost one liter of medication every day. The disease has a huge impact on his daily life and his family. The Emma Children’s Hospital Jay - jay was signed at the Emma Children 'cheer.

Opkikker organizes special ‘Opkikker’ days for families with a chronically ill child. Jay-jay is the face of the new campaign in which the foundation calls attention to the need for these days for families with a sick child. The unique images of Jay-jay 's Opkikkerdag have been viewed more than a million times. The entire campaign was developed free of charge.

For more information: www.opkikker.nl

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Winners investment competition ‘Battle of the Schools’ sound gong

Students from the Olympus Collegefrom Arnhem sound the gong to celebrate their victory in the investment competition for schools.

The Battle of the Schools is an investment game for students and teachers in the upper classes of the secondary and advanced secondary school system. Students are divided into groups of three or four. Each group takes on the role of an investment advisor who is responsible for advising a family member, for example a father, mother or grandparent. The students are given a virtual capital of 100,000 Euros to invest in shares and investment funds listed on Euronext Amsterdam.

For more information: www.scholenstrijd.nl

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DSM celebrates 25 years listing anniversary

By sounding the gong, DSM celebrates 25 years as a listed company on the Amsterdam exchange. DSM listed on 6 February, 1989.

DSM was mainly a petrochemical company and predominantly active in the Netherlands. Now, 25 years later, DSM is a global Life Sciences and Materials Sciences company with more than 200 locations worldwide and activities on five continents. In these 25 years, DSM’s share price has increased by more than 500%. DSM is represented at Euronext Amsterdam by a group of young managers, active in various functions, including Mergers & Acquisitions, Business Control, Operational Audit, Tax, Treasury, Production, Investor Relations and Communications. Investor Relations Manager at DSM, Marc Silvertand, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.dsm.com

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World Cancer Research Fund NL for World Cancer Day 2014 and 20th anniversary

Nowadays cancer is worldwide the leading cause of death with over 8.2 million deaths per year. On World Cancer Day 2014, that took place on Tuesday 4 February with the theme ‘Debunk the myths about cancer’, attention is given to the fact that cancer is the key health burden we face in our generation. World Cancer Research Fund NL sounds the gong to raise awareness for the importance of and the need for cancer prevention.

This year World Cancer Research Fund NL celebrates its 20th anniversary as the leading authority in the field of cancer prevention through diet and lifestyle in the Netherlands. The foundation is part of the global World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) network, a network of independent organizations around the world who are committed to the prevention of cancer. Scientific evidence shows that over a third of the most common cancers can be prevented by eating a healthy diet, being regularly physically active and being a healthy weight. Director of the World Cancer Research Fund NL, Nadia Ameyah, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.wcrf.org

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DEGIRO highlights leverage campaign

DEGIRO, an online broker and investment platform, sounds the gong to highlight the launch of its leverage campaign. The campaign is targeted at experienced, active investors. As from today they can invest via DEGIRO in leveraged products issued by ABN AMRO, ING, RBS, Citi and Commerzbank, and pay €0 in transaction costs for the first six months.

Cooperating with other issuers in the area of IT, generates more efficiency with respect to leveraged products such as Turbos, Sprinters and Speeders. Gijs Nagel, retail director, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.degiro.nl

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Gong marks Amsterdam City Index

The gong ceremony marks the Amsterdam City Index that ended at 118 in 2014.

The index is published by theCompanies Association Amsterdam Cityandmeasuresthe economic climate of the Amsterdam City Center XL - the extensive downtown from Central Station to Cornelis Schuytstraat and Haarlemmerbuurt to Carré. Last year the index ended at 117. Chairman of Amsterdam City, Willem Koster, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.amsterdamcityindex.nl

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Gong marks Philips Innovation Award

This year, the ninth edition of the Philips Innovation Award (PHIA) is organised for students and by students. The PHIA has grown to become the largest student-entrepreneur competition in the Netherlands. Every year the organisation helps students with an innovative spirit from idea to business plan, and from business plan to start-up.

The PHIA invites students to participate in the business plan competition before the 16^th of February. Experienced business professionals, who will provide participants with feedback, will judge the plans. The ten best entries will be coached by partners of the organisation before participating in the semi-finals on March 27. The five finalists will compete for the grand prize on the 24^th of April.

In order to help students writing a business plan, the organisation has developed an online lecture trajectory. In four lectures, experts touch upon intellectual property protection, marketing, finance and many more crucial topics for start-ups. The lectures can be viewed via the organization’s web page on a computer, tablet and/or smartphone. The lectures are interactive, which means guest lecturers can answer questions.Daan van Maanen, Senior Director M&A Philips, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.phia.nl

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Dutch Heart Foundation celebrates its 50th anniversary

On 29 January the Dutch Heart Foundation will celebrate its 50^th anniversary by sounding the gong at Beursplein 5.

Kicking off the festive launch of this jubilee year is the director of Heart Foundation, Floris Italianer, with the assistance of Mrs Ruigrok. Mrs Ruigrok has had personal experience of the vital importance of resuscitation. She was successfully resuscitated by her partner and lived to tell the story. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. This year the primary objective of the Heart Foundation is to create a 6-minute zone in the Netherlands: a zone in which it is possible to carry out all necessary actions in the event of a heart attack within 6 minutes. These include calling the emergency number, resuscitation and defibrillation. The Heart Foundation hopes that this will increase the survival rate to 25%.

The Dutch Heart Foundation is proud to announce that several listed companies are offering their support to a heart-healthy society by helping to accomplish the 6-minute zone. The Dutch Heart Foundation is thankful to Aegon, Corio, DSM, Fugro, Imtech, Philips, PostNL, Unilever, Ziggo and Wolters Kluwer for their support.

For more information: www.hartstichting.nl

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