Just a few hours ago, Wokai announced that it will be concluding operations indefinitely. The microfinance nonprofit previously had the full confidence of the local community, having raised over half a million dollars in loan capital, garnered a network of thousands of investors and been featured by several major media (including CNN, Bloomberg and MSNBC). The shutdown has come as quite a shock to many, who last heard that the organization was simply seeking a new CEO.

We’ve received confirmation from organizers that US hip-hop star Yasiin Bey (or the artist formerly known as Mos Def) will not be performing at this weekend’s MIDI Festival as he had been scheduled to on Monday (April 30). The reason is unclear so far - feel free to speculate away in the comments space below - but we'll update you if we're able to get more comment from the organizers.

It seems the end to festival silly season could be in sight as summer music behemoth China Music Valley Festival has now released an official-looking lineup for the May extravaganza.

Happy Birthday, Shin Kong Place! This high-end department store first opened in April 2007, in a shopping climate worlds apart from the one we know now. Sanlitun Village didn’t exist yet (that happened in July 2008), nor did the "modern" Nanluogu Xiang (also around July 2008) or Qianmen’s renovated pedestrian street (August 2008). Some might say that Shin Kong Place spearheaded the growth of Beijing’s luxury shopping scene. Indeed, this swish mall has managed to attract over 900 international brands and restaurants to its premises, and will be hosting special promotions and exhibitions over this next month in celebration of its five-year anniversary. Read on for details.

It’s time to put on that fancy suit, laugh loud and dig deep for a good cause. The St. George’s Day Dinner is hitting the Beijing scene on April 28 at The Westin Beijing Chaoyang. This year, the proceeds will go towards Care for Children (an English charity dedicated to finding foster homes for orphaned children) as well as Little Flower (an independently funded hospice which offers long-term intensive care and medical treatment to sick and chronically ill Chinese children). We asked co-founder Martin Budzinski to clarify who exactly is St. George and why dinners are sometimes better than balls.