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Graphic novel tackles disinformation around COVID-19 Vaccine and critical 5G infrastructure

Stockwood Strategy

Sophisticated social media campaigns sponsored by bad state actors are responsible for creating and spreading disinformation around the critical Covid-19 Vaccine and emerging infrastructure such as 5G technology for communications. Erly Stage Studios has today published Bug Bytes, the digital graphic novel, which sheds a light on the disruptive forces at work. This book is the second installment of the graphic novels that are a part of the Resilience Series commissioned by the US Cyber Infrastructure and Security Agency (CISA). Bug Bytes will inform and educate people on the dangers and risks associated with dis- and mis- information through fictional stories inspired by real-world events. In Bug Bytes, readers will meet the protagonist Ava Williams, a journalist and academic, patriot and member of Symous - a group fighting disinformation and foreign interference in elections as polling day approaches. Ava’s life gets tangled up in a web of lies as her father, a 5G technician gets hurt and she works to understand what a seemingly innocent poll online related to 5G technology has to do with the 5G Vaccine? Ava is surprised by the reaction of the anti-vaccination community at what is proven to be engineered data and has the unenviable task of making the case to the public at large for how they can be weary on data online with unproven provenance. Farid Haque, founder and CEO of Erly Stage Studios commented: “We’re delighted to have been commissioned by CISA to create a practical and engaging communication tool that highlights the existential threat of disinformation in the context of bad state actors. While the story is fictional many of the approaches shown are very much grounded in the reality of the technology we live with and are exposed to almost daily.” Bug Bytes provides a unique education for the reader about the world of social media and how digital resources can be hijacked to serve a more nefarious agenda. The ability for foreign bad state actors to weld this kind of influence on another nation is unprecedented as is their ability to twist and manipulate a narrative to use domestic groups to do their bidding. The work helps the reader understand the need to exercise care when it comes to consuming news and information via social media platforms and online sources of information. In the story, Ava Williams and a team of patriots are racing against the clock to shine a spotlight on the source of disinformation engineered to hurt critical communication infrastructure and damage the Vaccine roll-out efforts. Ava’s investigative journalism leads her through the metaverse to find allies and discovers through hard graft that foreign actors are tinkering with public data to maliciously mislead and influence perceptions of 5G as a communications technology and its fabricated link to vaccine effectiveness. “Bug Bytes is the culmination of the wealth of experience that Clint Watts brings in cyber warfare and disinformation and our studio’s creative direction and storytelling style. We spent months researching the real life incidents and then wrapped them into a fictional story” added Farid Haque. The graphic novel is being made available by CISA to the general public online as a free resource as the Covid19 vaccine roll out continues to have an impact across the United States and the world at large. The work is available for free for the public and media to read at the following URL: https://www.cisa.gov/cfi-resilience-series-graphic-novels. A first title in the series was released a few months earlier last year ahead of the US elections titled Real Fakes. Watch this space and log back into https://publishing.erlystagestudios.com/ to learn more. Contributing artists to Bug Bytes include: Jose Niño Galenzoga, Patricia Beja, Mona Shan and Joel Santiago. Lettering and layouts by Komal N. and Haroon M. Story by Clint Watts and Farid Haque, supported by the script writing team which includes Michael Gianfrancesco and Kabir Sabharwal. Edited by Tolly M. and Laila Khan. Special thanks to Randall Heather and Max Brooks. Erly Stage Studios is an indie publisher, headquartered out of London, United Kingdom, capturing iconic stories in serious graphic novels. We are an expert team of educators, storytellers, and artists working to create awareness about important topics using the graphic novel medium. The team loves shining a spotlight on stories that are yet to see the light of graphic novels. As an expert team of teachers, researchers and designers the team works with innovative organisations and policymakers around the world to deliver soft power through engaging and creative projects. Contact Details Erly Stage Studios Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@stockwoodstrategy.com Company Website https://publishing.erlystagestudios.com/

May 06, 2021 05:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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NEST joins executives from Ross Stores, Ascena Retail Group, Boot Barn, and Lush to discuss “What’s Next” in Retail Operations on May 11-12

NEST

NEST, the leading integrated facilities management company, will host a two-day webinar series with national retail executives on Tuesday, May 11 and Wednesday, May 12. The three 1-hour segments will dive into the future of retail operations following the pandemic. Select attendees will be chosen to nominate charities that will receive monetary donations from NEST Nurtures. Attendees can sign up for the “What’s Next” webinar via NEST’s website. Schedule to include: Session 1 on Tuesday, May 11 at 2 p.m. ET – “How is Post Pandemic Operations Really Different from Business-as-Usual?” Featured speakers: Russell Arbuthnot, Retail Maintenance Coordinator, Lush Josh Witte, Director, Store Operations, Brand Maintenance and Repair, Ross Stores Moderated by Kara Cutino, Vice President, Store Development, Facilities Services, Asset Protection & Store Purchasing, Ascena Retail Group, Inc. Session 2 on Wednesday, May 12 at 11 a.m. ET – “You Heard It from the Experts.” Featured speakers: Stacy Brown, Vice President of Customer Success, SiteCompli CJ Jernigan, Chief Revenue Officer, BFC Solutions Rob Almond, CEO, NEST Moderated by Alana F. Dunoff, ProFM, FMP, IFMA Fellow, Consultant/Instructor, AFD Professional Services, LLC Adjunct Professor, Temple University Session 3 on Wednesday, May 12 at 1 p.m. ET – “Operational Success Goes to New Heights” Randy Rokosz, Boot Barn’s Director of Procurement Rob Almond, CEO, NEST Since the pandemic hit the U.S. and Canada, NEST has played an important role to keep retailers’ doors open and maintain consumer confidence. From implementing new janitorial procedures to decreasing facility management expenses through an integrated approach, NEST is developing industry-leading facility management strategies for more than 40 retail clients. NEST manages approximately 60,000 individual retail locations in North America. NEST is the pioneer of the Integrated Facilities Management (IFM) industry in the United States and Canada since 1994. NEST’s Integrated Facilities Management solution pairs financial acumen and business analytics with a strategic consultative approach. Real-time data, reporting, and analytics technology empower business leaders and facility management teams with the informed insights that enable them to make smarter decisions. To learn more about NEST, visit enterNEST.com or follow NEST on LinkedIn. Contact Details Eric PR & Marketing, LLC Eric Nemeth +1 602-502-2793 nemeth@ericpr.com Company Website https://www.enternest.com/

May 05, 2021 11:31 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Shreesha Ramdas to join CIPIO’s Advisory Board to hyper accelerate growth

CIPIO.ai

CIPIO, a B2C Subscription Success company, today announced that Shreesha Ramdas has joined its board of advisors. Ramdas currently serves as SVP and GM for Medallia-owned Strikedeck – a powerful customer success automation solution. Prior to Medallia, Ramdas co-founded Leadformix, a marketing automation platform acquired by CallidusCloud in 2012. A seasoned entrepreneurial executive with a proven track record of launching and rapidly scaling automation solutions for customer success and marketing, Ramdas is constantly on the lookout for the “next big thing” in the customer engagement world – an attitude that led him to join CIPIO’s advisory board. Customer churn is a rampant reality in the B2C Subscription industry, given how easy it is for customers to downgrade, switch, or cancel service providers in a matter of just a few clicks. Industry study suggests that 96% of B2C Subscription businesses believe their customers churn for reasons that could have been prevented, managed, or fixed. Post Covid, Net Revenue Retention (NRR), and Customer Retention have become strategic priorities for B2C Subscription companies and will continue to become table stakes over time. According to Bain and Company, increasing customer retention rates by just 5% increases 25% profits for B2C Subscription companies. “In a world where the bar for customer engagement keeps going higher, I love how CIPIO is redefining customer retention - making it actionable, easy and impactful for B2C Subscription companies through its Data Apps,” said Ramdas. “The SaaS landscape continues to explode with solutions, yet there are literally very few solutions solving NRR and Customer Retention for the B2C Subscription companies. With its code-free Enterprise AI and Domain-Infused Data Apps Platform™, CIPIO offers the precise action to drive measurable results for B2C Subscription companies.” With the B2C Subscription Economy expected to be valued at a whopping $478 billion by 2025, it is surprising that the industry’s churn rate is two times that of the B2B SaaS Economy. CIPIO’s Domain-Infused Data Apps Platform™ aims to tip this balance back and level the playing field. “I’m ecstatic to have Shreesha onboard as we move full-speed into our next phase of growth and innovation. The hybrid economy is here, and you can no longer hope to just focus on acquisition as it costs five times as much to attract a new customer than to keep an existing one,” said Growson Edwards, Co-Founder, and CEO of CIPIO. “Our mission is to enable B2C Subscription companies to proactively prevent churn and achieve higher Net Retention Rate for consistent growth. Shreesha’s obsession and tremendous experience in launching customer success solutions and product experience will accelerate our product innovation yielding higher returns for our customers.” About CIPIO CIPIO is pioneering the Industry's first domain-infused Data Apps Platform™ that humanizes and automates predictions and recommendations to increase Subscriber engagement, retention, and growth for B2C Subscription Companies. CIPIO's early adopters include Crunch Fitness, Industry's Gym, Xponential Fitness, Motor City Church, Pure Barre, Club Pilates, AKT, YogaSix, NCFit, Cyclebar, RowHouse, Stretch Lab, and Stride who have witnessed a significant return on investment in a short time. Contact Details CIPIO Chris Foudy +1 831-238-1905 chris@cipio.ai Company Website https://cipio.ai/

May 04, 2021 02:20 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Cloudrise Honored as Gold Stevie® Award Winner

Cloudrise

Cloudrise was named the winner of a Gold Stevie® Award in the Tech Startup of the Year – Services category in The 19 th Annual American Business Awards®. More than 3,800 nominations – a record number - from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in a wide range of categories. As the Gold medal recipient in the category of “ Tech Startup of the Year – Services ”, Cloudrise was heralded by the judges: “Cloudrise’s data-centric approach to cybersecurity, and use of automation, are very much needed services for organizations to enable the digital transformation journey.” Cloudrise was founded in October 2019, and in 2020 they conquered the seemingly impossible, launching a new company amidst a global pandemic and economic downturn. Despite those challenges, Cloudrise had a successful year one in business, exceeding 2020 revenue targets, securing capital investments through investors, and delivering Managed Services and Security Process Automation to over 50 customers. Cloudrise’s CEO, Rob Eggebrecht, shared his thoughts about what makes Cloudrise different: “Cloudrise’s Security Process Automation services are a key differentiator in the marketplace. Organizations are dependent on data stored within a myriad of systems, requiring integration and automation to enable them to work at the speed of business. Cloudrise automates operational processes across data protection and privacy solutions, business applications, and visualization tools, to optimize manual processes, enhance reporting, and provide faster incident response. Starting with an assessment, we identify use cases, develop playbooks, and ultimately build, deploy, and manage the automation.” About the American Business Awards The American Business Awards are the U.S.A.’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word meaning “crowned,” the awards will be virtually presented to winners during a live event on Wednesday, June 30. Tickets for the virtual event are now on sale. More than 250 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select this year’s Stevie Award winners. “The American economy continues to show its resilience, and as we’re poised on the beginning of what should be a phenomenal period of growth, we celebrate the remarkable achievements of a wide range of organizations and people over the past 18 months,” said Stevie Awards president Maggie Gallagher. “This year’s Stevie-winning nominations in The American Business Awards are testament to the ingenuity, the commitment, the passion, the adaptability, and the creativity of the American people.” Details about The American Business Awards and the list of 2021 Stevie winners are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA. About the Stevie Awards Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com. Sponsors of The 2021 American Business Awards include John Hancock Financial Services, Melissa Sones Consulting, and SoftPro. About Cloudrise Cloudrise was founded by business and security entrepreneurs with experience in global markets, successful start-ups, and Fortune 500 companies. Combining decades of data protection expertise with automation, Cloudrise focuses on securing data wherever it resides. They assist organizations by assessing, enabling, automating, and managing their data protection and privacy programs. At Cloudrise, they are redefining data protection. Cloudrise can be found at www.cloudrise.com or on LinkedIn. Contact Details Jodi Lewis +1 800-917-7619 sales@cloudrise.com Company Website https://cloudrise.com/

May 04, 2021 11:11 AM Central Daylight Time

How To Reduce Social Security Taxes In Retirement by Jennifer Lang Financial Services

Jennifer Lang Financial Services, LLC

Contact Details Jennifer Lang Financial Services, LLC. Jennifer Lang +1 877-487-8926 mail@jenniferlangfinancialservices.com Company Website https://www.jenniferlangfinancialservices.com

May 04, 2021 10:05 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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BitX Funding offers painless loan applications for small businesses

BitX Funding

BitX Funding, an alternative business loan provider, promises an easy application for your next business venture. They offer a variety of options from startup loans, SBA 7(a), and PPP loans. If you couldn’t secure capital from a big bank during the COVID-19 shutdown, BitX Funding has you covered. President Todd Rowe urges businesses to contact his company now. The loan process is easily done online with a responsive A.I. system that works with the customer one-on-one. As a Fairfield Chamber of Commerce member, Rowe is acquainted with the business community across the United States. “We’re not a huge bank with all their regulations, bureaucracy, complex process, and lack of transparency. Trust the Fintech industry as we’re here to serve a certain niche that big banks struggle with, Todd Rowe said. “You need capital to expand your business? With a click of your mouse, you’ll receive it.” BitX Funding works with companies of varying sizes across the United States. Owners can expect an offer within 24 hours and funding in less than a week. Small business owners with lower credit scores (600-700) can still be a part of the competitive marketplace where lenders compete for your business. “We attract business owners that have issues with their financials, business credit, and or personal credit. They don’t fit the traditional bank’s lending box,” said Rowe. “They need the $50,000 now. We’re willing to provide it. Our lender's underwriting process is different. At BitX, we are pairing the client with the appropriate loan type and the lenders will compete for their business.” About BitX Funding: BitX Funding is your online marketplace for alternative small business loans and business insurance. From SBA, start-up loans, short-term loans, mid-term loans to merchant cash advances and business lines of credit, BitX is where lenders compete for your business. Our top-rated lenders focus on real-life business data and cash flow, which means you can qualify for small business loans even if your credit score isn’t perfect. We care about small business and it’s our mission to secure the right funding when you need alternative small business loans within our small business loan marketplace. Contact Details BitX Funding Todd Rowe +1 203-763-1430 info@bitxfunding.com Company Website https://www.bitxfunding.com

May 03, 2021 08:03 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Chia Launches its Green Digital Currency (XCH)

Chia Network

Highlights Eco-friendly chia (as “ XCH ”) commences its first transaction today with widespread digital exchange adoption expected in May Over the past 14 days, Chia Network has routinely been the largest and most decentralized blockchain by full node count - usually exceeding 100,000 full nodes Chia Network reinvents “mining” with energy efficient at-home “farming ” for everyone Chia + Chialisp are designed for secure “smart coin” transactions Chia Network Inc. (“Chia"), a new energy efficient decentralized blockchain created by Bram Cohen (the inventor of BitTorrent), today launches its revolutionary digital currency, chia. The green digital currency, chia (as “XCH”), is expected to gain widespread digital exchange listing, and rapid worldwide adoption in the financial, corporate, commercial, and governmental sectors. Founded in 2017 in the U.S. with a global workforce, Chia Network’s protocol seeks to become an alternative to traditional financial networks. It strives to provide a secure, energy-efficient network for modern finance and payments. Chia is green money XCH is Chia Network's native digital currency. Chia is created as a reward to chia “ farmers ” (the analogue to Bitcoin’s or Ethereum’s “miners”). The protocol uses an improved and simplified implementation of Bitcoin’s unspent transaction output (UTXO) model. These simplifications actually increase the flexibility and programmability of coins. Chia farming rewards 2 XCH per block for the first three years as the incentive mechanism that supports its new Nakamoto consensus. “The first chia transaction is an exciting milestone which furthers our long term mission to provide environmentally sustainable financial freedom. I am incredibly proud of our team and our reinvention of Bitcoin’s approach to the ‘everything is a coin’ model. We will continue to enhance the features of Chia and Chialisp in the areas of coloured coins, digital identity wallets, and NFT (non fungible token) support. This is just the beginning of our journey to become the core of a new financial architecture," shared Bram Cohen. Chia + Chialisp = secure “smart coin” transactions Chialisp is Chia Network’s smart coin language based on the functional language Lisp. Everything on the chia blockchain is a coin. Smart coins deliver smart contract and smart transaction capabilities in one package. Chilalisp has been designed for security and simplicity, while allowing for powerful and broad functionality. Applications running on Chia Network’s blockchain are intended to have functionality appropriate for banking, payments, asset issuance, global exchange, and other financial applications. Key feature sets of Chialisp include: Coloured coins Digital identity wallets Rate limited wallets Authorised payee wallets Multi-signature wallets Recoverable wallets Atomic swaps Chia Network’s blockchain will enable users to build and customize sophisticated custody and clearing arrangements. Chialisp will allow chia controls to match and exceed internal accounting controls and to safeguard funds from accidental loss, theft, or hacking with various risk tolerance levels in an easy to audit manner. Chia's Proof of Space & Time uses vastly less energy than Proof of Work In comparison with other blockchains, Chia greatly reduces energy consumption and environmental contamination while improving upon Nakamoto consensus. Chia’s blockchain replaces “Proof of Work”, which is the consensus protocol used by Bitcoin and Ethereum, with the first of its kind "Proof of Space and Time" consensus protocol that eliminates the unfairness, energy inefficiency, and centralization of Proof of Work. Instead of using power hungry specialized computing resources, Chia relies on storage space coupled with the added variable of time (via a “verifiable delay function”, or “VDF”) to ensure the integrity and security of the blockchain. A chia farmer will expend some CPU cycles to create "plots" on hard drives, but will then utilize the energy-efficient resource of drive space over the following years to participate in the consensus mechanism that verifies new blocks on the Chia blockchain. How to farm chia ("XCH") The goal of farming (verifying and ensuring the integrity of transactions on the Chia blockchain) is to utilize unused disk space to help validate financial transactions. Farming in the Chia network is a very lightweight process that leaves your computer free to do other things. To learn more about Chia’s blockchain, chia farming and the chia farming reward schedule, please watch the Company’s March 19th mainnet launch video and read Chia’s Business Whitepaper. For tips on how to plot and farm, please visit chiadecentral.com and review Chia plotting basics posted by Gene Hoffman, President of Chia Network. To get started, visit Chia Network GitHub to install the Company’s blockchain software. Chia offers broad OS support as well as a GUI for simple and easy wallet/farm management. The Company is committed to providing resources to enable simple and straightforward plotting and farming. About Chia Network Chia Network Inc. was founded by Bram Cohen, the inventor of BitTorrent. Chia Network is a state-of-the-art open-source decentralized blockchain, digital currency, and smart transaction platform. Using the first new secure Nakamoto consensus algorithm invented since Bitcoin, Chia aims to operate an eco-friendly, more secure and user-friendly payment system for cross border payments, issuing financial assets, lending, escrow payments, institutional custody, and distributed identity. Chia’s “Proof of Space and Time” based blockchain reduces waste in “Proof of Work” based blockchains. Built to run Chialisp, the company’s newly developed smart coin language, Chia’s blockchain allows its users to build and execute secure "smart coin" transactions. Chia believes that “digital money” should be easier to use than cash, harder to lose, and nearly impossible to steal. The Company is funded by leading venture capitalists including Slow Ventures, a16z, Naval Ravikant, Galaxy Digital, Greylock, True Ventures, MetaStable, Stillmark, DCM, and others. The Company’s Advisors include Dr. Dan Boneh, Research Partner at a16z and Applied Cryptography Professor at Stanford University; and Dr. Krzysztof Pietrzak, Cryptography Professor of IST Austria; and Ms. Katie Haun, General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz. Investor Relations Contact: Gretchen Lium. For more information, chia.net and connect with us on Twitter ( @chia_project ), Facebook, GitHub, Reddit, and LinkedIn. Contact Details Chia Network Inc. Gretchen Lium +1 303-638-9185 gretchen@chia.net Company Website https://www.chia.net/

May 03, 2021 07:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Seen #TeacherTok? Osmo For Schools Gifts 4 Lucky Teachers $500 Gift Cards For TikTok Videos, For National Teacher Appreciation Week

Osmo for Schools

Osmo for Schools, a division of Tangible Play, Inc., focuses on building in-classroom usage of Osmo’s award-winning educational systems. Using proprietary AI technology, these systems help teachers foster collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, and increased engagement in learning, in students. Osmo is used in more than 30,000 schools in North America. Tangible Play is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. For more information about Osmo for Schools and its products, visit schools.playosmo.com. Osmo for Schools, the educational division of Tangible Play, Inc. and part of the award-winning consumer STEAM brand Osmo, announces it has selected 4 lucky teachers on TikTok to each receive a $500 gift card, for their creative and inspiring videos, in honor of National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 1-7, 2021). “Throughout this past year, we were thrilled to see so many teachers who used their creativity to the max to get kids to learn during this challenging time, and we loved the heartwarming videos they posted on social media, to tell the world what they did and how,” says Jan Richards, head of education sales and marketing at Osmo for Schools, which promotes in-classroom usage of Osmo’s tools and recently received the 2021 EdTech Award for Curriculum and Instruction Solution. “We laughed a lot when the videos were funny, admired their dedication, and got inspired by so many. Osmo for Schools selected 4 teachers who present themselves as heroes going the extra mile during the pandemic.” The 4 winning teachers are: Tristan Campbell @trissssss10 Clamentia Hall, Jr. @mrclementineteach Mandy Curley @mandycurley1 Claudine James @iamthatenglishteacher Says kindergarten teacher Clamentia Hall, Jr., “Osmo has taken educational technology and teacher appreciation to an unprecedented level! It has been an absolute pleasure to share a bit of humor and joy with educators who could use a little morale boost. Osmo has affirmed that educators everywhere deserve an incredible amount of appreciation for the hard work they do.” On July 1, 2021, Osmo for Schools, in partnership with Osmo Cares, the charitable arm of Osmo, will begin accepting applications for its first-ever mini-grant consisting of $2000 worth of Osmo for Schools’ educational technology. A total of 20 in-kind, mini-grants will be awarded to U.S. public schools in time for the fall semester. The mini-grant is intended to help schools which lack needed funding to purchase educational technology. Mini-grant recipients, who will be announced Aug. 9, 2021, will be able to choose from a selection of Osmo for Schools products; only one recipient will be selected per school. Schools must already have appropriate tablets on hand, or a plan to purchase tablets--they are not included. For further details about the mini-grant and application process, visit here: schools.playosmo.com/grants. About Osmo for Schools Osmo for Schools, a division of Tangible Play, Inc., focuses on building in-classroom usage of Osmo’s award-winning educational systems. Using proprietary AI technology, these systems help teachers foster collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, and increased engagement in learning, in students. Osmo is used in more than 30,000 schools in North America. Tangible Play is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. For more information about Osmo for Schools and its products, visit schools.playosmo.com. Contact Details Carolyn Kamii PR +1 310-251-0550 carolynkpr@gmail.com Company Website http://schools.playosmo.com

May 03, 2021 04:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time

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Nottingham receives SEC effectiveness for its first mutual fund to ETF conversion

Nottingham

The Nottingham Company, a leading fund administrator and private label issuer to the mutual fund and ETF industry, is pleased to announce completion of the registration process for its first conversion of an open-end mutual fund to an exchange traded fund (ETF). Nottingham affiliated series trust Starboard Investment Trust completed the registration portion of the process recently, with an agreed upon conversion date of May 7 for The Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund. The Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund will convert all its assets to the Adaptive Growth Opportunities ETF (AGOX) on May 7th, with public trading of AGOX beginning on Monday May 10. “We are excited to be among the first mutual funds to convert to an ETF”, stated Adaptive CEO Greg Rutherford. “The wealth managers we work with to position our family of funds has been asking for the ETF structure for the past few years, and our plan it is to meet their request by converting our other Adaptive portfolios to ETFs in the coming months”. Kip Meadows, Founder and CEO of Nottingham, indicates Nottingham has had mutual fund conversions to ETFs on its radar for a few years. “We believe there will be a significant number of open-end mutual funds that want to convert to ETFs in the next few years, and we are very pleased to be the first fund administrator and private label issuer with success in this process”. Katherine Honey, President of Nottingham and affiliate ETF RIA OBP Capital added, “We did a lot of work with our outside counsel Greenberg Traurig and independent auditors BBD to make sure we understood the tax implications of a conversion. We feel like we have an excellent template to work with moving forward for more conversions.” About Adaptive Investments Adaptive Investments follows the theories and methodology of Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT), introduced by Harry Markowitz in the 1950s. The goal of MPT is a relatively simple, static allocation of assets could weather any market environment. To implement the MPT approach to investing, Adaptive Investments is a manager of managers investment platform that strives to deliver adaptive correlation strategies to financial advisors. Adaptive Investment’s solutions attempt to make portfolios more dynamic by systematically turning risk on or off based on market conditions. Adaptive markets its funds and now ETFs primarily to the wealth management and investment advisory community, helping advisors bring MPT to their client base. RCADP0421002 Investors should consider the investment objective, management fees, risks, charges and expenses of the Fund carefully before investing or sending money. The Prospectus and Summary Prospectus contains this and other information about the Fund. For a current Prospectus and/ or Summary Prospectus, call 888-721-4588, visit us at www.adaptiveinv.com or email us at info@adaptiveinv.com. Please read the Prospectus and/or Summary Prospectus carefully before you invest. Current and future holdings are subject to change and risk. An investment in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund is subject to investment risks, including the possible loss of some or the entire principal amount invested. There can be no assurance that the Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund will be successful in meeting its investment objective. Investment in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund is also subject to the following risks: Common Stock Risk, Control of Portfolio Funds Risk, Equity Securities Risk, Fixed Income Risk, ETF Investing Risk, Fund Investing Risk, Cash and Cash Equivalents Risk, Foreign Securities and Emerging Markets Risk, Investment Advisor Risk, Management Risk, Large-Cap Securities Risk, Market Risk, Portfolio Turnover Risk, Quantitative Model Risk, Small-Cap and Mid-Cap Securities Risk, Cybersecurity Risk, and COVID-19 Risk. The Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund may invest in foreign securities and emerging markets, and these investments have risks that differ significantly from those associated with domestic securities. More information on these risks can be found in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund’s prospectus. An investment in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities ETF is subject to investment risks, including the possible loss of some or the entire principal amount invested. There can be no assurance that the Adaptive Growth Opportunities ETF will be successful in meeting its investment objective. Investment in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities ETF is also subject to the following risks: Common Stock Risk, Control of Portfolio Funds Risk, Equity Securities Risk, Fixed Income Risk, ETF Investing Risk, Fund Investing Risk, Cash and Cash Equivalents Risk, Foreign Securities and Emerging Markets Risk, Investment Advisor Risk, Management Risk, Large-Cap Securities Risk, Market Risk, Portfolio Turnover Risk, Quantitative Model Risk, Small-Cap and Mid-Cap Securities Risk, Cybersecurity Risk, COVID-19 Risk, Authorized Participant Risk, ETF Structure Risks, and Early Close/Trading Halt Risk. The Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund may invest in foreign securities and emerging markets, and these investments have risks that differ significantly from those associated with domestic securities. More information on these risks can be found in the Adaptive Growth Opportunities Fund’s prospectus. The Adaptive Funds are distributed by Capital Investment Group, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC, 100 E. Six Forks Road, Suite 200, Raleigh, NC 27609, (800) 773-3863. There is no affiliation between Adaptive Investments, the Investment Advisor to the Fund, and Capital Investment Group, Inc. Since 1988 Nottingham has offered consulting for investment fund organization, and ongoing operations support for mutual funds and ETFs including fund accounting, compliance administration, and transfer agency for those funds. Nottingham offers a full range of turnkey services, managing relationships between clients and all outside vendors and services, including lead market markets and Authorized Participants, prime brokers and custodians, outside legal counsel, independent auditors, custodians, printers, insurance companies and the fund board. Nottingham remains one of the largest privately held fund administration firms in the US operating quite efficiently from eastern North Carolina. Contact Details Lindy Fields +1 252-984-3811 lindy.fields@nottinghamco.com Company Website https://www.ncfunds.com/

April 29, 2021 11:15 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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