2024年11月1日，新大陸科技集團30周年晚會慶典在福州隆重舉行。集團董事長胡鋼圍繞“感恩之心”“奇跡之旅”“與國同頻”“精神力量”和“新起點”五個主題，面向全球8000名新大陸人發表致辭。現將胡鋼董事長中英雙語演講稿全文刊發。
全球各地的新大陸同仁們，大家晚上好。
對于新大陸人來說，今天是個大日子。我們在這里歡聚一堂，共同慶祝新大陸科技集團30歲生日。
30年前，我和一批充滿激情的創業者們，在福州市鼓屏路銀聯賓館四樓租了兩個房間，房號是410和411。我至今清晰記得，1994年1月9日，我們召開創業團隊第一次全體會議，那時公司還沒有成立，尚處在籌備和規劃階段，我們在對未來的無限憧憬中，討論了公司框架和經營設想、管理原則等等，并且將公司正式命名為“新大陸”。
30年光陰荏苒、歲月如流，今天，當我站在新大陸30周年盛大慶典的舞臺上，回想起這一路走來的點點滴滴，令我百感交集，萬千感慨涌上心頭。
今天的新大陸，是值得我們驕傲的——
在支付領域，新大陸是全球第一的數字智能支付終端和支付方案供應商，終端累計交付數量超過1億臺。
在識別領域，新大陸是識讀設備全球第四、掃碼引擎全球第三的供應商。
在數字商業領域，新大陸是中國頭部的第三方支付運營商，服務370萬家商戶，年營業流水2.5萬億元。同時，我們還為中小微實體商戶累計提供了280億元小額貸款，解決他們的資金周轉難題。
在軟件和大數據領域，新大陸連續19次入選中國軟件百強企業，具備電信級大數據業務支撐核心平臺的能力。
在職業教育領域，新大陸是福建省唯一的國家級產教融合型企業，與全國1600多所院校開展合作。
在通信終端領域，新大陸為全球運營商提供智能終端，海內外智能制造中心年總產能合計可達5000萬臺。
在智慧交通各領域，新大陸參與全國16個省市約4500公里的近百條高速公路機電工程項目建設。
我們也在數字中國的戰略賽道上不斷創新探索。新大陸首次提出數字公民理念，推動全國首個數字公民試點落地，可信數字身份相關技術和應用正在多個行業逐步推廣。
我們基于在支付技術領域的長期積累，探索數字人民幣技術和應用創新，支撐北京冬奧會數字人民幣場景建設，發起成立數字人民幣聯盟并成為首任理事長單位。
我們還在大灣區試水跨境電商的業務，比如票務市場，比如跨境藥品、保健品銷售等等。
從18人到超過8000名全球員工，從21平方米的賓館套房到9萬平方米花園式科技園區以及世界多地的分子公司、辦事機構，從150萬元的營業規模到百億級的營收。新大陸30年跨越式發展，堪稱中國民營企業發展史上的一個奇跡。
我們值得一起為自己喝彩，我數一二三，大家一起喊：新大陸好樣的，新大陸人好樣的！
一，二，三！
二，
站在新大陸30年的時間節點上，我們充滿了感恩。
首先是感恩時代。企業發展壯大，從來都是在大時代背景下的，也就是“時勢造英雄”。新大陸在多次時代機遇面前都做出了正確的選擇，實現了今天的發展成果。
其次是感恩黨和國家。改革開放讓中國進入新時代，國家發生翻天覆地的變化，民營經濟因改革開放應運而生，也才有了我們施展拳腳的舞臺。
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第三是感恩關心和支持新大陸發展的相關領導和社會各界朋友們。創業之初，我們就得到了許多領導和各級黨委、政府的鼓勵和支持，尤其是福建省、福州市歷任主要領導。有些時候，我都感覺到有些坎要過不去了，但總有人伸出援手拉我們一把，幫助新大陸挺過難關。
第四是感恩客戶。客戶給企業提供產品和服務的機會，才有了企業及其從業者們以科技創新施展才華、實現理想的可能性，新大陸很多好的產品創意和服務理念，都是和客戶共同創造的，真正實現了“互利共贏”。
最后，我們要感恩新大陸的員工以及員工家屬們。新大陸人就像是我的家人，一代又一代的新大陸人在不同的階段為公司做出了卓越的貢獻。同時，也正是有了員工家屬們的默默奉獻、有所犧牲、有所擔當，才讓新大陸人能夠沒有后顧之憂地努力奮斗，創造業績、實現價值。
5年前，同樣是在這個舞臺上，我說過一句話：一路走來風風雨雨，我們相互砥礪，相伴相隨，共同度過最寶貴的青春歲月，締造了新大陸發展的傳奇。能夠和曾經的新大陸人、現在的新大陸人共度一段人生時光，這是我胡鋼莫大的福分！希望我們大家都更加珍惜。
那么，這30年，我們共同奮斗過什么、經歷過什么呢？這段時間，我對新大陸自1994年以來的“奇跡之旅”進行了系統思考，一共分為5個階段。
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第一個是創業階段，時間是1994年到1997年。
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1994年10月6日，在公司正式成立大約半年后，我們召開了第一次企業發展研討會。之所以開這個會是為了糾正幾個問題：發展上不夠務實，業務上不夠聚焦，內功上不夠夯實。這些問題往往會出現在企業的創業期和快速發展期。
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為此，我們明確提出了新大陸發展方向——以高科技為龍頭的產業化、多元化、國際化的集團。圍繞這一目標，我們在三年內完成了三步走：
1994年，建設產品研發體系和生產體系，初步構建全國性銷售網點；1995年，確定“有限多樣性經營”的策略，關閉一些已開設的小公司，集中投入金融信息化業務；1996年，探索軟件和系統集成行業，圍繞金融終端產品開發各種應用解決方案和銀行應用軟件。
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三年創業期，我們遇到了很多預想之外的困難，團隊成員肝膽相照、心心相印，共同撐過了這一段艱難的時期，資金得到快速積累，年營收從150萬到4500萬，員工數到287人。這些都為新大陸下一步發展奠定了很好的基礎。
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第二是二次創業階段，時間是1998年到2000年。
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我們清醒地意識到，企業在完成原始積累后，進入了轉折期，因此提出“二次創業”。1998年9月，我們召開了新大陸二次創業總動員會，重新梳理發展戰略愿景，推動從“技術為核心”向“市場為核心”轉變。
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這次會議上，我們明確提出，二次創業成功的標志是公司上市。為了快速做大規模，新大陸大舉進軍行業軟件和系統集成業，正是有了在金融行業的經驗，我們比較快速地在移動通訊、高速公路信息化領域有所斬獲。同時，1999年5月，我們成立了新大陸中安公司，這是自動識別公司的前身，開始探索二維碼技術。這一階段，新大陸生物公司、藥業公司和環保公司也相繼成立。
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2000年，新大陸在深交所上市，標志著本輪變革成功。
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第三是“拐大彎”階段，時間是2001年到2006年。
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2001年1月10日，集團年度總結大會上，凝聚新大陸集體智慧的《新大陸集團發展綱要（2001－2005）》首次亮相，提出了以“拐大彎”方式推進從“產品提供商”向“產品提供商與IT綜合服務提供商”的重大戰略轉變。
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2002年到2006年，我們推動“扁平化”組織變革：組建金融產品事業部、系統集成事業部、高速公路事業部、金融IT服務事業部，建立產品研發中心，“4+1”的組織結構形成；我們組建新大陸軟件工程公司，向行業IT服務商轉型繼續深入；我們成立上海翼碼公司，全力發展“電子回執”業務。
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也正是在這一階段，我們首次提出——要使新大陸POS產品、二維碼產品成為國產第一品牌。
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第四階段的變革，時間是2007年到2014年。
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2007年1月，新大陸在福州于山賓館召開研討會，提出進入第三輪變革。2008年，我們開始導入戰略管控型模式，梳理決策層、管理層、經營層三個層面責權利，成立各公司共享公共資源的服務平臺，也就是今天的總部職能平臺。
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之后的兩年間，我們做了兩個影響至今的變化：其一，將金融產品業務、IT行業應用、商用事業部以及研究院、制造工廠合并，組成電子產品公司，后來改名為數字設備公司。在此基礎上，新大陸支付公司于2012年正式成立；其二，成立房地產事業部，對大理、福建兩個地產公司實行統一管理，支撐地產業務創造出良好的業績，集團為了扶持上市公司發展，將福建地產項目裝入上市體系，緩解了主業的業績壓力，同時也解決了公司主要骨干的住房問題，為主業的創新發展和外延擴張提供了很好的現金流支持。
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第五是數字化轉型升級階段，時間是2015年至今。
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習近平總書記視察新大陸后，公司開啟第四輪變革，實現戰略聚焦，創新商業模式，圍繞戰略內生式增長與外延式并購雙輪驅動構建競爭力。從2015年到疫情之前的幾年中，公司業績實現穩步快速增長，人均效能也得到提升。
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這一階段，新大陸尤其在兩個方面發力，也成為如今業績的“支柱”：其一是從“賣鐵鍬”向“挖金礦”的轉變，2016年，我們以6.8億元收購國通星驛，先后一共陸續投入了十幾億的資金，進軍數字商業領域。其二是進一步加大強化國際化布局，以支付、識別、通信等智能終端產業為“走出去”的主力軍，收獲了比較好的成效。在國內業務內卷嚴重的當下，海外市場的重要性就顯得尤為突出了。
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同時，我們也在為數字經濟大爆發做準備。比如，我們以可信數字身份技術作為抓手，與公安部一所合作，做了大量基礎性、系統性的研發工作，共同開發了一些支撐軟件、專用芯片、專用服務器等，共同制定了許多技術規范和標準，協助開發一部分的系統平臺以及便于再開發的中間件產品。同時，我們在出行、旅游等垂直場景上做了深度研究和應用開發，有望在這些行業中開始規模性的推廣和應用。
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從新大陸發展歷程中，我們可以清晰地看到一條脈絡：從創業期到后續的四輪變革，我們始終圍繞國家戰略方向、圍繞時代發展趨勢，也通過自我革命來順應外部環境的變化，真正踐行了“科技創新，實業報國”的初心。
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新大陸與國家同頻共振的案例有很多。比如，二維碼應用已經融入我們生活的方方面面的，有一項統計說，全球每天會生成100億個二維碼，大家想象一下，如果我們每用一個二維碼，就要給外國企業付哪怕只是1分錢的專利費，總共累加起來，那也是天價。正是我們新大陸，為國家守住了二維碼技術專利。2011年，美國霍尼韋爾提出訴訟，說新大陸二維碼識讀產品侵犯了專利，要求賠付一筆巨款。但事實是，當時，霍尼韋爾為進軍條碼識讀的產業，先后收購了兩家行業內數一數二的公司，也向我們提出收購，想把新大陸自動識別相關技術和產品也兼并過去，但被我們拒絕了。因此，霍尼韋爾就威脅我們要打官司，意圖用這種方式拖垮我們。面對這樣的巨無霸企業，我們沒有退縮，尤其是我們得知，霍尼韋爾的目的是形成壟斷，讓我們每一次使用二維碼都要給它付專利費，這讓我們更加堅定要死磕到底。我們前后一共打了8年的官司，在美國打了兩場，在中國打了6場，一直打到國家最高法。這樣的巨無霸企業真的太厲害了，在最高法判決新大陸勝訴一年后，案子居然還能被翻出來復審，一直到2019年12月，我們才獲得了最終的勝利。大家可以想象，8年時間，公司花了多少錢，投入了多少資源，才捍衛住了這項技術。
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30年來，我們也積極履行社會責任。近年來，新大陸每年納稅貢獻5~6億元，每年吸納數百名來來自五湖四海的大學應屆畢業生，也多次捐資助學，幫助寒門學子。同時，我們還參與脫貧攻堅、環境保護等公益事業中。在國家危難時刻，也都有新大陸的身影，比如新冠疫情、非典、汶川地震等等，公司不僅捐錢捐設備，我們員工也義不容辭地沖在抗災第一線。據不完全統計，多年來，新大陸公司和領導員工們，一共捐贈了上億元回饋社會。
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當整體回顧完新大陸這30年的發展歷程，我不由得開始思考：應當如何總結和歸納這30年呢？我們成功的經驗到底是什么？面向未來，我們應當從中傳承些什么呢？
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人是要有一點精神的，企業同樣如此。尤其是在艱難的環境和巨變的局勢中，新大陸人寶貴的精神不僅不能丟，還要發揚光大。因此，在我看來，新大陸的企業精神，是最值得每一代新大陸人繼承發揚、代代相傳的寶貴財富。
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第一是敢為人先的創新精神。創新，是新大陸發展最大的核心競爭力，我們就是靠創新發展起來的，這是公司立業之根本，是我們的致勝法寶。
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“敢為天下先”的創新故事在新大陸屢見不鮮，除了大家熟知的第一臺分體式POS機、第一個二維碼解碼芯片外，今天我想講兩個鮮為人知的故事。
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也許很多人不了解，對社會經濟產生深遠影響的“第三方支付”模式其實是新大陸是先驅者。隨著移動通訊和電子商務的興旺，直覺告訴我們，這里應該是有創新機會的。為此，公司成立了一個創新小分隊，我對小分隊負責人說：“公司不會給你們具體的KPI指標，你們的任務就是去摸市場，找出一種新的商業模式。”之后，小分隊先后在重慶、江西、湖南等地深入調查，發現第三收單業務是有市場前景，而且能夠很好地和現有產業結合的。具體做法是，我們出錢鋪POS機，發展各類線下商戶，商戶在形成交易流水后，我們再與金融機構分成手續費用。我們投入了重金，也收購了一個團隊，正準備大干一場，可惜，當時第三方支付還是新鮮事物，政策法規還不夠完善，我們的創新模式遭到整個體制圍剿，十分艱難。最后我們和中國銀聯協商出一個折中的方案：新大陸把這些市場賣給銀聯，銀聯則大規模采購新大陸的POS機。
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還有另一個鮮為人知創新故事。掃一掃二維碼，就能完成支付，提到移動支付，大家更熟悉的是微信支付、支付寶支付等等，但其實新大陸才是中國最早創新移動支付的公司。眾所周知，新大陸的二維碼解碼技術是全球領先的，也是全國唯一一家，當時，我們派了很多員工去騰訊、阿里、京東等互聯網大廠，給他們講條碼怎么應用于支付，但是，互聯網企業的模式就是“贏家通吃”，我們教會了他們之后，他們就只跟新大陸買設備，我們也非常遺憾地沒有分享到運營的紅利。
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正因如此，新大陸開始反思：我們做了那么突破性的、改變人類生活的發明創造，但是，我們得到的商業利益太少。所以，我們又重新殺回第三方支付市場，開始做運營的工作，同時也參與到國家相關法規和標準的制定當中，為規范第三方支付市場做出貢獻。
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第二是腳踏實地的務實精神。踏實務實，是新大陸人最為寶貴優秀的品德，是我們能夠不斷在競爭中勝出的保障，也是沉淀至今的核心價值。
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多年來，我們一直在強調兩個觀點：一個是新大陸的核心能力是：基于行業洞察和場景深度研究，將客戶需求快速轉化為優質、低成本的產品和服務。二是打造比較優勢，這是形成核心競爭力的基礎。比較優勢怎么來？唯有依靠創新，并通過踏實務實的工作，也就是“苦練內功”，在經營各環節和生產各要素中，將其中一兩個做到極致。
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這幾年來，支付公司取得的發展成績，大家有目共睹。支付團隊總結的成功的經驗，我非常贊同。他們打造了一支密切合作的團隊，從業務部門發現銷售機會點，到研發響應實現需求，再到向客戶交付產品和服務，全鏈條高效協同。具體表現在兩點：一是團隊能夠敏銳洞察市場和客戶需求變化，快速響應、高效決策，集中優勢開發資源，實現短時間產品迭代；二是團隊形成系統性供應鏈優勢，各部門高效配合，交付保障表現出色。這些其實就是支付公司的比較優勢，他們已經把這個觀點真正融入到了經營工作中。
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此外，我們攻關二維碼解碼核心技術的故事，也是務實精神的典范。1999年5月，我們成立中安公司，專門研發二維碼技術產品，6個月后就和福州市公安局簽訂了“福州市暫住人口管理系統”項目。我們的二維碼識讀產品雖然有市場，可即便在微利情況下仍然飽受客戶抱怨——價格太貴。原因在于識讀設備核心部件得靠進口，尤其是識讀模組價格非常高。
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要不再受制于人，必須掌握二維碼核心技術。二維碼技術關鍵不在于“碼”，而是解碼，核心是識讀算法。由于前期研發投入大、周期長，中安公司連續虧損6年，新大陸也堅持投入了6年。同期，還有兩家實力比新大陸更加雄厚的公司也在攻關二維碼技術，一家是聯想，另一家是四通。但這兩家公司在兩三年努力沒有成果后，選擇了退出，最終只剩下新大陸還在堅持。為了鼓勵研發團隊，董事會每年都拿出錢來，給骨干工股權、工資、獎金激勵。我很少參加子公司半年會，唯有這家公司每年我都去，給團隊鼓勁打氣、提振士氣。
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我們的堅持得到了回報。2005年，新大陸成功開發具有自主知識產權的二維碼識讀模組，成為全球4家掌握二維碼核心解碼技術的企業之一。后來，四通公司三個股東之一的王輯志專門來福州找我。當時，他受聘一家著名央企科研公司，擔任首席科學家，唯一的工作就是幫助公司尋找下一代技術。他對我說，找了一大圈，還是看中了二維碼，令他費解的是，我在福州這個相對閉塞的地方，為什么能做成功？于是，我給王輯志講了這個故事，他聽了以后非常感慨地說：“實業創新就是一種堅守，只有堅定的信念和扎扎實實地不斷積累，才能取得最后的成功。”他很想說服我把二維碼技術賣給他們。我笑著回復道：“這是我們的核心技術，不可能賣的”。
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第三是善觀時變的發展精神。這是新大陸成為時代企業的根本。面對時代的變化，面對行業的洗牌，必須改變觀念，洞悉行業變化和市場脈絡，才能制定“順勢而為”的戰略和戰術。
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新大陸成長過程中的幾次變革，本身就是很好的例證，面對時代的變化和機遇，通過改變自我、調整自我來順應時代的發展。比如在數字商業領域，我們在2016年收購國通后，過了兩三年好日子，由于整個行業比較粗獷，處于大發展期，各家公司基本都賺到了錢。但從2019年開始，國家對金融行業開始嚴監管，行業環境翻天覆地。一方面，野蠻增長的風口已經過去了。另一方面，規范要求越來越多，大幅增加了企業經營難度和成本。我們都認識到：國通公司必須改變自身，如果再走老路，就是死路一條。
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為此，我們重拾收購國通時的初心，重回數字商業發展道路。2023年，董事會引入新經營團隊，調整經營思路，圍繞真實中小微商戶數字化、生態化的增值服務、數據服務、場景建設以及垂直行業的深耕等等方面下功夫。我們一方面圍繞國家的合規性要求進行大力整改，得到監管部門認可；另一方面秉持“結硬寨，打呆仗”的理念，優化迭代經營管理水平，對團隊進行了整合優化，導入AI技術提升產品和服務的精細度和精準度，同時加大激勵機制。經過一年多實踐，國通有了巨大變化，已經能夠比較好地適應外部環境，提升了經營業績，也提高了經營質量，最可貴的是，我們具備了可持續發展能力，盡管還面臨很多困難和變化，但數字商業前景還是非常樂觀的。
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正是在創新精神、務實精神、發展精神的引領下，新大陸一步一個腳印地走到今天，證明了新大陸人是有家國情懷、有使命擔當、有理想追求的一群人。我可以無愧于心地說：我們是中國優秀的民營企業，我們沒有辜負時代，也沒有辜負我們自己的人生！
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今年是新大陸30周年，也是新起點，我們開啟了新一輪變革，目的是應對外部環境的巨變。巨變從來都是機遇和挑戰并存，我們正是在一次次巨變中發展壯大的，歷史充分證明，新大陸人有能力在巨變中抓住機遇、戰勝挑戰，我們有用血和肉熬出的好精神、好經驗、好做法，我們有一支卓越 且久經考驗的團隊和員工隊伍，這些都是我們面對巨變的底氣。
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我們將在幾個方向上努力。第一，加強戰略引領，有所為有所不為，收緊不掙錢或前景不夠清晰的業務，加大力度支持符合時代發展趨勢的公司和業務。第二，緊隨國家數字經濟戰略，除已在做的智能設備繼續升級做大做強外，發展以數字商業、可信數字身份為基礎的相關產品、技術和服務。第三，進一步加強國際化的發展步伐，加速實現全球化布局。第四，實施雙輪驅動，讓資本和產業積極互動、相互賦能。第五，進一步優化和完善公司治理，完成有效傳承、新老交替。
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30年前，新大陸剛剛創立時，我曾引用一對古聯來激勵團隊：有志者事竟成，破釜沉舟，百二秦關終屬楚；苦心人天不負，臥薪嘗膽，三千越甲可吞吳。人同此心，人同此志，因此我把橫批擬定為——新大陸同志。
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30歲新大陸，有鮮衣怒馬的青春年華，有羽扇綸巾的從容氣魄，有華彩真章的錦繡前程。時光深沉悠遠，讓我們都毅然來到新起點，勇闖新征程，奔向新大陸！
English Version
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Newlanders from all over the world, good evening.
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This is a big day for all Newlanders. We gather here today for the celebration of Newland Hi-Tech Group’s 30th birthday.
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Thirty years ago, together with other passionate entrepreneurs, we rented two rooms, room 410 and room 411, at Yinlian Hotel, Guping Road, Fuzhou City. I still remember clearly that on January 9, 1994, our startup team convened the first meeting. At that time, we were still planning and preparing for the establishment of the company. Full of hope for the future, we discussed corporate frameworks, operation visions, and management principles, and formally named the new company Newland.
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Thirty years fly by. As I stand on the stage for the celebration of Newland’s 30th anniversary, I reflect on what we have been through all the way, and my mind brims with thoughts.
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Today’s Newland is our pride.
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In payment, Newland is the top global provider of commercial digital technology services, delivering over 100 million terminals.
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In AIDC, Newland is the world’s fourth largest handheld barcode scanner provider, and the third largest supplier of barcode scan engines globally.
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In digital commerce, Newland is among China’s leading third-party payment operators, serving 3.7 million businesses, with annual transactions worth 2.5 trillion yuan. We have provided microloans of 28 billion yuan to micro, small and medium-sized businesses to help them maintain cash flows.
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In software and big data, Newland has been listed among China’s top 100 software companies for 19 consecutive times, able to support core platforms with telecom-grade big data businesses.
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In vocational education, Newland is Fujian’s only state-level enterprise integrating industry and academic research, cooperating with more than 1,600 universities across China.
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In communication terminals, Newland provides smart terminals for global operators, and its smart manufacturing centers in China and beyond can produce as many as 50 million units annually.
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In smart transportation, Newland has participated in electromechanical engineering projects for nearly 100 highways stretching for approximately 4,500 kilometers in 16 provinces and cities nationwide.
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We also keep innovating and exploring in delivering the strategic initiative of Digital China. Newland has initiated the digital citizen concept and launched the first digital citizen pilot project. Technologies and applications related to credible digital identity are being gradually promoted in multiple industries.
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Based on our strong record of payment technology development, we have explored innovative E-CNY technologies and applications, supported E-CNY payment scenarios in Beijing Winter Olympics, and launched E-CNY Industry Alliance, in which it serves as the inaugural governing unit.
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We have also piloted cross-border e-commerce businesses for ticket market, and sales of medicines and healthcare products in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
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From 18 founding members to more than 8,000 employees worldwide, from 21 square meters of hotel rooms to 90,000 square meters of garden-like science and technology parks and various subsidiaries, branches and offices around the world, from businesses worth 1.5 million yuan to revenues reaching tens of billion yuan, Newland has made a quantum leap over the past 30 years, a miracle in the Chinese history of private enterprises.
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I think we deserve some recognition. On the count of one to three, let’s say together: Well done, Newland! Well done, Newlanders!
One, two, three!
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On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Newland, we are full of gratitude.
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First, we are grateful to the times.?As the saying goes, the times produce their heroes, companies always pursue progress against the backdrop of the times. Newland has made right choices in seizing multiple opportunities presented by the times, thus achieving today’s results.
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Next, we are grateful to the party and the nation.?The reform and opening up have propelled China into the new era, and the whole nation has undergone tremendous transformations. Thanks to reform and opening up, the private economy thrives, giving us a stage to shine.
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Third, we are grateful to officials and friends from all sectors who have supported Newland’s development.?Even when the company was just founded, we were encouraged and supported by officials from party committees and governments at all levels, especially major officials of Fuzhou City and Fujian Province. Sometimes even I felt that we were not going to make it this time, but there was someone who helped us get through difficulties.
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Fourth, we are grateful to our customers.?Customers offer us the opportunity to provide products and services, making it possible for us and our workers to show their talent and realize dreams through S &T innovations. Many of Newland’s great product ideas and service concepts are co-created with our customers, a true win-win.
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Finally, we are grateful to our employees and their families.?Newlanders are like my family, and generations of Newlanders have made great contributions to the company at different stages. At the same time, it is their families’ making sacrifices and shouldering responsibility that they can work hard carefree to create and deliver.
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Five years ago, on this same stage, I said that through the ups and downs, we have stood in solidarity, spent the most precious years of youth together, and achieved Newland’s legendary development. It is my greatest privilege to be able to spend a part of my life with the former and the current Newlanders. This is something we should all cherish.
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So, over the past three decades, what have we striven for and been through??Recently, I have systematically thought over Newland’s miraculous journey since 1994. I think there are five stages.
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Stage 1, entrepreneurship, from 1994 to 1997.
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On October 6, 1994, about half a year after the company was established, we held our first meeting on business development to address several problems: not pragmatic enough in development, not focused enough on business, and not solid enough in strength. These issues tend to appear in the start-up period and rapid development period of enterprises.
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Therefore, we charted the course for Newland’s future development, namely building a industrial, multi-pronged, global-oriented group driven by high tech. To this end, we have taken three steps in three years.
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In 1994, we established the product research and development system and production system, and basically put into place a national sales network. In 1995, we formulated the strategy of focused diversification, shut down some small companies, and concentrated on financial information business. In 1996, we explored the software and system integration industry, and developed various application solutions and banking application software centering on financial terminal products.
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During the three years of entrepreneurship, we encountered plenty of unexpected difficulties. But team members stood together to tough it out. Then our capital quickly accumulated; our annual revenue skyrocketed from 1.5 million to 45 million; and the number of our employees increased to 287. All these laid a sound foundation for Newland’s further development.
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Stage 2, the restart, from 1998 to 2000.
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We were soberly aware that the enterprise entered a transitional period after completing the original accumulation. Therefore, we believed it was necessary to have the restart. In September 1998, we held the pep rally for restarting Newland by rethinking development strategic visions and pushing for the transition from tech-centered to market-centered approach.
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At this meeting, we made it clear that the hallmark of a successful restart was the listing of the company. To scale up business quickly, Newland invested heavily in the industrial software and system integration industry. Thanks to our experience in the financial industry, we could make quick gains in mobile communications and highway informatization. At the same time, in May 1999, we established Newland Zhongan Company, the predecessor of Newland AIDC, and began to explore 2D barcode decoding technology. During this period, Newland Biotech, Newland pharmaceutical company and Newland Entech were also established.
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In 2000, Newland was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, marking the success of this round of reform.
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Stage 3, the momentous shift, from 2001 to 2006.
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On January 10, 2001, at the group’s annual meeting, the Newland Group Development Outline (2001-2005), the gems of collective wisdom, was released. It was proposed that the group should undergo a major strategic transformation from being only a product provider to become both product provider and integrated IT service provider by taking a big turn.
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From 2002 to 2006, we streamlined our organization by establishing financial products division, system integration division, highway division, financial IT service division, and product research and development center, thereby forming a 4+1 organizational structure; we set up Newland Software to continue transforming ourselves into an industrial IT service provider; and we founded Shanghai Imageco Information to develop the electronic receipt business.
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It was also at this stage that we proposed making Newland China’s top brand in POS products and 2D barcode decoding products.
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Stage 4, the transformation, from 2007 to 2014.
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In January 2007, Newland held a symposium in Fuzhou Yushan Hotel, proposing the third round of reform. In 2008, we began to introduce a strategic control model, identifying responsibilities, rights, and interests at decision-making, management, and operation levels, and establishing a service platform of shared public resources for all affiliated companies, which later became today’s headquarters functional platform.
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In the following two years, we made two changes with far-reaching impact till this day: the first was to merge the financial products business, IT industrial applications, commercial business department, and the research institute and manufacturing plant into an electronic products company, which was later renamed digital equipment company. On this basis, Newland NPT was established in 2012; the second was to establish the real estate business department, which put real estate companies in Dali and Fujian into unified management and supported the real estate business in delivering sound performance. The group supported the development of the listed company by integrating the Fujian real estate project into the listed system, which alleviated the pressure on the main business to deliver, and met the housing demand of the company’s top talent, providing a steady cash flow for the innovative development and outward expansion of the main business.
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Stage 5, the digital transformation and upgrade, starting from 2015.
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After General Secretary Xi Jinping’s inspection visit to Newland, the company initiated the fourth round of transformation to sharpen strategic focus, innovate business model, and build competitiveness by driving both strategic inherent growth and outward mergers and acquisitions. From 2015 till the outbreak of the pandemic, the company’s performance grew steadily and rapidly, and per capita efficiency also increased.
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During this period, Newland made particular efforts in two sectors, which have become the company’s pillars today. The first is the transformation from “shovels selling” to “gold mining”, exemplified by our acquisition of Fujian Guotong Xingyi Network Technology Co., Ltd., for 680 million yuan in 2016, and our total investment of over 1 billion yuan in digital commerce. The second is to further strengthen and expand our international presence, spearheaded by our smart terminal industries including payment, AIDC, and communication, which has delivered good results. As the domestic market becomes overcompetitive, the overseas market has grown in importance.
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At the same time, we are also preparing for the explosive growth of digital economy. For example, we are working with the First Institute of the Ministry of Public Security on plenty of fundamental and systematic R&D work of credible digital identity technology, jointly developing supporting software, special-purpose chips and servers, and formulating many technical specifications and standards. We have also assisted in the development of system platforms and reusable middleware products. Meanwhile, we have carried out in-depth research and application development for closely linked scenarios such as travel and transportation, which are expected to be promoted and applied at large-scale in these industries.
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We can clearly see a thread weaving through Newland’s history. From the entrepreneurial period to the subsequent four rounds of reform, we have always focused on national strategies and trends of the times, and adapted to external changes through self-revolution. We have truly lived up to our original aspirations of “Pioneer Technological Innovation, and Serve the Nation Through Industrial Endeavors”.
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There are many examples of Newland staying in tune with the state. For example, the 2D barcodes have already become part of our lives, with statistics showing 10 billion QR codes generated every day. You can imagine that even if one 2D barcode costs as little as 1 cent in patent fees payable to foreign enterprises, the total amount of expenses would still be dauntingly high. It is us Newland that has defended the 2D decoding technology patent for the nation.?
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Over the past 30 years, we have also actively fulfilled our social responsibility. In recent years, Newland has paid 500 to 600 million yuan in taxes annually, recruited hundreds of college graduates from all over the world every year, and donated on multiple occasions to help underprivileged students. We also participate in poverty alleviation, environmental protection and other public undertakings. Newland always rose to national emergencies including the Covid-19 epidemic, SARS, and Wenchuan earthquake, by not only donating money and equipment, but also having our people working on the front line of disaster relief. According to incomplete statistics, over the years, the Newland and its managers and employees have donated in total hundreds of millions of yuan to give back to society.
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After reviewing the 30-year history of Newland, I couldn’t help but start thinking: how should we summarize this 30-year period? What are our successful experiences? What should we carry forward to the next generation?
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People need to have a certain spirit, and the same is true for enterprises. Especially in difficult circumstances and landscapes undergoing tremendous shifts, Newlanders can only promote their precious spirits instead of losing them. Therefore, in my opinion,?Newland’s spirits are the most valuable asset that every generation of Newlanders should carry forward.
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The first is the pioneering spirit of innovation.
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Innovation, the biggest core competitiveness for Newland’s development, is the very reason why we have developed. It is the foundation of our business and our winning formula.
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The stories of daring to be the first in innovation are not uncommon at Newland. In addition to the well-known first split-type POS machine and the first 2D barcode decoding ASIC chip, today I would like to tell two lesser-known stories.
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Many people may not know that the third-party payment, a model with profound impact on socioeconomic development, was actually pioneered by Newland. We intuitively felt that thriving mobile communication and e-commerce provided possible opportunities for innovation. Therefore, the company formed an innovation team, and I told the team leader, “For you, the company will not set specific KPI indicators. Your task is to explore the market and find a new business model.” After that, the team conducted in-depth surveys in Chongqing, Jiangxi, and Hunan, and found that third-party payment receipt business was promising and could be well integrated with existing industries. The specific approach was that we would invest in promoting and introducing POS machines to various brick-and-mortar stores. After transactions were completed on the machines, we would then split the processing fees with financial institutions. We invested heavily and acquired a team, ready to make a big move. Unfortunately, at the time, third-party payment was still a novel concept, and the policy and regulatory framework was not yet fully established. Our innovative model was met with institutional objection, making it almost impossible to proceed. In the end, we compromised with UnionPay: Newland would sell these markets to UnionPay, and UnionPay would purchase large quantities of Newland’s POS machines.
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There is another lesser-known story about innovation. Completing payment is easy with scanning a 2D barcode. While WeChat Pay and Alipay are more familiar examples of mobile payment, Newland is actually the first in China to innovate in mobile payment. Newland was then known for its globally leading 2D barcode decoding technology as one of its kind in China. At that time, we sent many workers to big internet companies like Tencent, Alibaba, and JD.com to explain barcode application for payment. However, internet companies believe in “winner takes all”. After we taught them, they only bought devices from Newland. Regretfully, we did not share in the operational benefits.
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For this reason, Newland began to reflect on the minimal commercial benefits despite such groundbreaking and life-changing inventions. Therefore, we returned to the third-party payment market and began to do operational work, and also participated in the formulation of relevant laws and standards to contribute to the standardization of the third-party payment market.
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The second is a pragmatic spirit.
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Pragmatism is the most valuable quality of Newlanders, the guarantee for our continuous victories in competition, and the core value we still cherish today.
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For many years, we have been emphasizing two viewpoints. One is that Newland’s core capability is to quickly transform customer needs into high-quality, low-cost products and services based on industry insights and in-depth research of scenarios. The other is to create comparative advantages, which is the basis for forming core competitiveness. How to gain comparative advantages? Only through innovation and down-to-earth work to strengthen and excel ourselves in one or two aspects across all the processes of management and factors of production.
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In recent years, the achievements of the payment company have been evident to all. I wholeheartedly agree with the experience of success summarized by the payment team, and I highly endorse their approach. They have built a close-knit team that works closely together across all departments, from identifying sales opportunities in the business division to responding to customer needs in the research and development department and delivering products and services to customers. There are efficiency and synergy across the entire chain, specifically manifested in two features: the team can sharply identify changing markets and customer needs, quickly respond, make efficient decisions, concentrate their strengths on development and resources, and quickly upgrade their products; the team has formed a systematic supply chain advantage, with departments working efficiently together, delivering excellent performances. These are actually the payment company’s comparative advantages, and they have truly integrated this into their business operations.
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Moreover, our story of 2D barcode decoding core technology breakthrough is also a model of pragmatism. In May 1999, we established the Zhong’an Company specifically for the research and development of 2D barcode decoding products. Six months later, we signed an agreement with the Fuzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau over the project of non-permanent residents management system. Our 2D barcode decoding products were marketable, but despite tiny margins, we still received customer complaints about high prices. The reason was that the core components of barcode decoding products had to be imported, especially the 2D barcode OEM engines, which were overpriced.
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To break through the choke hold on supply, we must master the 2D barcode decoding core technology. The key to 2D barcode decoding technology is not the “barcode”, but decoding, and the core is barcode decoding algorithm. Due to large initial investment and long development cycle, Zhong’an Company suffered losses for six consecutive years, but Newland persisted in investing. During the same period, there were two other more resourceful companies also working on?2D barcode decoding?code technology, with one being Lenovo and the other Stone. But after two or three years of fruitless efforts, the two companies opted out, leaving Newland as the only one to persist. To encourage the research and development team, the board of directors earmarked funds each year to provide key employees with stock rights, salaries, and bonuses as incentives. I seldom attended the semi-annual meetings of subsidiary companies, but I went to Zhong’an Company’s semi-annual meeting every year to encourage the team and boost their morale.
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Our persistence paid off. In 2005, Newland successfully developed 2D barcode OEM engines with independent intellectual property, becoming one of the world’s only four companies mastering the 2D barcode decoding core technology. Later, Wang Jizhi, one of the three shareholders of Stone, made a point of visiting me in Fuzhou. At the time, he was hired by a well-known state-owned research company as chief scientist, and his only job was to help the company find the next-generation technologies. He told me that after looking around, he still found 2D barcode decoding technology most promising, but what puzzled him was how I had succeeded in the less connected city of Fuzhou. So I told him the story, and he said emotionally, “Industrial innovation is a matter of perseverance. Only with firm beliefs and consistent, solid work can one achieve ultimate success.” He really wanted to convince me to sell the 2D barcode decoding technology to them. I laughed and replied, “This is our core technology, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.”
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The third is the spirit of identifying changes of the times.
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This is what makes Newland a company of the times. In the face of changing times and industry reshuffling, it is necessary to change our views, gain insight into the industrial changes and market trends, in order to formulate strategies and tactics that follow the trend of the times.
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The transformations during Newland’s development is a good example of following the trend of the times by self-adjustment in the face of changes and opportunities of the times. For example, in digital commerce, after acquiring Guotong Xingyi in 2016, we had a few good years, as the entire industry was in a period of wild growth, and most companies made profits. However, starting from 2019, the government began to tighten regulations over the financial industry, and the industry environment underwent a complete transformation. On one hand, the time for wild growth was over. On the other hand, more regulations were been put in place, significantly increasing the difficulty and cost of business operations. We all realized that Guotong Xingyi must change itself, otherwise it would hit a dead end.
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Therefore, we have retraced our original path of digital commerce development when we acquired Guotong Xingyi. In 2023, the board of directors introduced a new management team and adjusted management strategies, focusing on ecology-based, data-driven, and scenario-based services and more refined industrial applications for related micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. On the one hand, we have made great efforts to comply with the regulatory requirements and have won regulatory approval. On the other hand, we uphold the vision of a strong fortress for a long fight, and upgrade and optimize our business and management levels, optimizing our team, introducing AI technology to enhance the precision and accuracy of our products and services, and increasing our incentive mechanism. After more than a year of practice, Guotong Xingyi has undergone significant changes and is now able to adapt better to the external environment. It has improved its business performance, and enhanced its business quality. What is most valuable is that we have the ability for sustainable development, and the prospect of digital commerce is still very bright despite many difficulties and changes.
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It is guided by the spirit of innovation, pragmatism and development that Newland has taken one step at a time to reach where it is today, proving that Newlanders are patriotic and mission-driven in pursuing their dreams. I can say from my heart that we are an outstanding private enterprise in China, and we have not failed our times nor ourselves!
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This year marks the 30th anniversary of Newland, and it is also a new starting point. We have launched a new round of reform aimed at adapting to the profound changes in the external environment. Profound changes always bring both opportunities and challenges. It is in the course of such profound changes that we have developed and grown. History has fully proved that Newlanders have the ability to seize opportunities and overcome challenges in profound changes. We have good spirits, good experiences, and good practices boiled down from blood, sweat, and tears. We have an outstanding and well-tested team and staff. All these are the confidence we have in facing profound changes.
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We will make efforts in following aspects.?First, we will strengthen strategic guidance, and stay focused. We will scale down not profitable or not promising businesses, and scale up our support for companies and businesses that are in line with the trend of the times. Second, we will follow the national digital economy strategy, in addition to continuing to upgrade and expand our smart devices, we will develop products, technologies, and services based on digital commerce and credible digital identity. Third, we will further accelerate our international reach and speed up the global presence. Fourth, we will be driven by both capital and industry, making them interact and mutually reinforce each other. Fifth, we will further optimize and improve corporate governance, and ensure effective transition from the old to the new.
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30 years ago, when Newland was just established, I quoted a famous Chinese couplet to inspire the team: where there is a will there is a way; breaking cooking pots, sinking their ships—the one hundred and two Qin cities were taken by Chu finally; man of firm resolve never forsaken by fate, but one needs to endure great hardship—just three thousand armoured Yue troops, great victory over Wu did scoop. The same aspirations unite us all, so I have decided to write the horizontal inscription as “Newlanders with shared aspirations.”
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Turning 30, the Newland boasts youthful exuberance, self-assured composure, and splendid prospects. The significance of time runs deep, so let us all resolutely set out on a new journey, bravely embark on a new expedition, and head for the new land!
