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15 Best State Economies: 2025

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Stonetrust Insurance Credit Ratings Unchanged Amid Acquisition of Southern Vanguard

Article 0 Comments AM Best said that the Credit Ratings (ratings) of Southern Vanguard Insurance Company (Southern Vanguard) (Austin, Texas) and the members of Stonetrust Insurance Group (Stonetrust) (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) remain unchanged following the May 27, 2025, announcement that Wintaai America Inc. (Wintaai), Stonetrust’s holding company, will be acquiring Southern Vanguard, subject to regulatory approval. The members of Stonetrust have a Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) of “a-” (Excellent) with positive outlooks. Southern Vanguard has an FSR of A- (Excellent) and a Long-Term ICR of “a-” (Excellent) with stable outlooks. Wintaai owns 99.94% of Stonetrust and the remaining is owned by various employees. Wintaai will own 100% of Southern Vanguard following conclusion of the transaction, which is pending regulatory approval and expected to close by July 2025. Aside from the transaction cost, Wintaai will also add capital to Southern Vanguard as a post-close contribution. AM Best said it does not expect the transaction to have any material change to either the rating unit’s rating fundamentals or business operations. The credit ratings agency will continue to evaluate each of these organizations independently while monitoring the progress and the effects of this...

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10 Big Social Security Mistakes Advisors Make

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People Moves: Lloyd’s Makes Executive Team Changes

Article 0 Comments Lloyd’s, headquartered in London, the world’s leading marketplace for insurance and reinsurance market for global risk, made several new appointments and updates to its executive team. Rachel Turk is appointed as chief of market performance and will join the Council of Lloyd’s. Turk will assume the underwriting responsibilities of the former chief of markets role, subject to regulatory approval. She will also chair Lloyd’s Capital Planning Group (CPG). Caroline Sandeman-Allen is appointed to the executive team as chief of market oversight and will assume the oversight responsibilities of the former chief of markets role, subject to regulatory approval. This appointment reflects the increasing importance of Lloyd’s principles-based oversight framework. She will also chair Lloyd’s Market Oversight Group (MOG). Jonathan May is appointed to the executive team as CEO of Lloyd’s Insurance Company (LIC), the wholly owned subsidiary of Lloyd’s that facilitates Lloyd’s underwriting activity in the European economic area. This appointment will strengthen governance of the Corporation and recognizes the importance of Lloyd’s European business. Dawn Miller continues in her role as chief commercial officer and CEO, Americas. In addition to her existing roles, she will assume responsibility for the corporate affairs function. She will also chair...

CompareHealth Launches ‘Direct-to-Canadian’ Platform for Personal Health Insurance 0

CompareHealth Launches ‘Direct-to-Canadian’ Platform for Personal Health Insurance

A Winnipeg-built solution helping Canadians research coverage with confidence Toronto, ON (June 1, 2025) – CompareHealth, a tool trusted by advisors across Canada to compare personal health insurance, is launching a new ‘Direct-to-Canadian’ experience. CompareHealth’s newest feature allows Canadians to explore coverage options tailored to their age, province, and benefit preferences. The platform was founded by Evan Morgan, a former insurance advisor, who saw firsthand how complicated the process was when helping his parents find personal health insurance after retirement. “Few online resources offer reliable information on personal health insurance. Most websites have limited, outdated, or incorrect information,” says Morgan. “This becomes incredibly stressful for Canadians who need to make a quick decision often during a significant life change.” What the New Experience Offers CompareHealth’s new public-facing site, launched June 1, allows Canadians to: See plans that match their preferences across multiple personal health insurance providers Access helpful articles to better understand personal health insurance Use direct links to insurance providers to get additional details Easily connect with an advisor or insurance provider if they want help moving forward Canadians who verify their phone number can instantly unlock additional comparison features designed to enhance their experience, including: Sorting plans by...

Definity Financial Corporation Announces Acquisition of Travelers Canada 0

Definity Financial Corporation Announces Acquisition of Travelers Canada

Building a Canadian champion: Definity Financial Corporation announces agreement to acquire Canadian operations of Travelers for $3.3 billion and concurrent $351 million private placements of common shares Definity to acquire Canadian operations of Travelers for $3.3 billion1, representing ~1.4x P/B2 Establishes Definity as the #4 overall P&C insurer in Canada, strengthening leadership position in the broker channel, and delivering on financial objectives and inorganic growth strategy Immediately accretive to operating EPS3, expected to reach double-digits within 36 months of close; internal rate of return in excess of 20%4 Significant value creation opportunity through scale benefits with estimated run-rate expense synergies of ~$100 million (pre-tax), before considering loss cost improvements Effectively delivers on operating ROE3 target, with an expected improvement of over 200 bps on a run-rate basis, enabling Definity to sustainably target mid-teens post integration Optimizes balance sheet via strategic deployment of excess capital and utilization of significant financial leverage capacity Waterloo, ON (May 27, 2025) – Definity Financial Corporation is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Travelers to acquire Canadian operations of Travelers (other than Travelers’ Canadian surety business) for cash consideration of approximately $3.3 billion. The assets to be acquired as part...

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Merrill Picks Up 6 Advisors From Rival Wirehouses

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8 Questions to Ask Before Making a Roth Conversion

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Markel expands mea’s agentic AI platform to Canada to accelerate underwriter insights 0

Markel expands mea’s agentic AI platform to Canada to accelerate underwriter insights

insurer also planning to migrate Guidewire BillingCenter to the cloud; selects Guidewire ClaimCenter for its International Wholesale operation Richmond, VA (May 27, 2025) – Following the successful deployment of mea Platform’s generative AI (GenAI) solution within Markel’s London Wholesale operations, mea and Markel are pleased to announce the expansion of their strategic partnership to include Markel’s Canadian business.​ This next phase will see mea’s platform applied across Markel Canada’s underwriting operations to automate the extraction of unstructured data from submission-related documents. By utilizing mea’s agentic AI extraction tools and its mixture of experts architecture, this data will be transformed into structured, analyzable formats, enhancing operational efficiency and underwriter productivity while enabling faster, more informed decision-making. Maureen Tomlinson, Senior Vice President of Operations at Markel Canada, commented:​“We are excited to bring mea’s GenAI capabilities to our Canadian operations. This technology will allow us to streamline our submission processes, reduce manual workloads, and provide our underwriters with timely, actionable insights. It’s a significant step forward in our commitment to operational excellence and delivering superior service to our clients and brokers.”​ Martin Henley, CEO of mea platform, added:​“Expanding our partnership with Markel into the Canadian market is a testament to the success we’ve...

IBC welcomes The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group 0

IBC welcomes The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group

IBC member companies make up the vast majority of the property and casualty (P&C) insurance market in Canada Toronto, ON (May 26, 2025) – Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is proud to announce that The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group has joined its membership, which represents the vast majority of P&C insurers in Canada. With over 125 years of dedicated service to communities across Ontario, The Commonwell brings trusted expertise in home, commercial, farm, vehicle, and watercraft insurance to the industry association. “We are pleased to welcome The Commonwell to IBC,” said Celyeste Power, President and CEO, IBC. “We appreciate The Commonwell’s community spirit and value their commitment to fostering meaningful relationships with their customers. They will add their unique and strong voice to IBC’s broad membership that works to ensure our industry continues to provide strong support to Canadians from coast-to-coast.” The Commonwell has been built on more than a century of hands-on commitment to the local communities it serves. Since its founding, The Commonwell operates on the same historical premise of its three legacy companies – maintaining a focus on local presence and service that builds strong long-term relationships for the benefit of the greater community. It brings diverse...