In news from and about Taiwan this morning ....

Shin Kong Life Insurance has held a groundbreaking ceremony on plots of land
at Taipei's Beitou-Shilin Technology Park that have been selected by Nvidia
for its overseas headquarters.

The groundbreaking ceremony took place as the Taipei City Government is
trying to persuade Shin Kong Life to accept compensation and relinquish its
surface rights to the plots - to allow the government to sign a new agreement
directly with Nvidia.

Shin Kong Life won the bid for surface rights to the T-17 and T-18 plots in
2021 and plans to build an eco-friendly office complex for technology and
commercial use.

Both the city government and Nvidia want Shin Kong Life to terminate the
contract.

However, they have yet to agree on the amount of compensation.

TaiShin Financial Holdings President Welch Lin refused to discuss the
compensation issue at the groundbreaking ceremony - saying it was held on an
auspicious date under the lunar calendar and was "not a provocative move."

According to Lin, the company followed all regulations and has not delayed
construction, as has been alleged by Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Shu-chuan - and
it received the miscellaneous structures permit on October 9.

TaiShin Financial Holdings is Shin Kong Life's parent company.