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National Study Reveals Canadian Mortgage Holders Face Growing Financial Vulnerability Despite Insurance Coverage 0

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National Study Reveals Canadian Mortgage Holders Face Growing Financial Vulnerability Despite Insurance Coverage

Pollara study commissioned by CAFII identifies critical gaps in protection awareness and confidence, pointing to opportunities for industry to better serve financially vulnerable families Toronto, ON (Nov. 25, 2025) – Half of Canadian mortgage holders could only maintain their lifestyle for less than six months without their primary income, according to groundbreaking research from Pollara, commissioned by the Canadian Association of Financial Institutions in Insurance (CAFII). The comprehensive Credit Protection Insurance (CPI) Segmentation Study surveyed more than 3,000 Canadians and reveals widespread financial stress alongside troubling gaps in protection confidence, even among those who already have insurance coverage. The research, the first in Canada to map behavioural segments among current and potential CPI customers, found that 44% of mortgage holders report the current economic situation is negatively impacting their personal finances, while 57% have concerns about job loss in the next 12 months. Perhaps most concerning: 50% say they would have serious problems paying bills if their main earner were unable to work. The Confidence Crisis Despite widespread insurance ownership, Canadians lack confidence in their existing safety nets. The study found that 35% don’t know how long their life insurance policy would last if needed, while only 38% feel confident...

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9 Tax Breaks for Clients Claiming the Standard Deduction

/ ThinkAdvisor provides financial advisors, registered investment advisors and wealth managers with comprehensive coverage of the products, services and information they need to guide their clients in making critical wealth, health and life decisions.

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Hong Kong Fire to Hurt Taiping Insurance Earnings, Fitch Says

Article 0 Comments The deadly fire that ripped through seven high-rise towers in Hong Kong is expected to result in a surge in near-term claims among insurers, and hit earnings of the complex’s main underwriter, an affiliate of China Taiping Insurance Holdings 0966.HK, an analyst at Fitch Ratings said on Thursday. China Taiping Insurance (Hong Kong) has coverage exposure of more than $200 million to the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex, and to the contractor of renovation work, publicly available owners’ meeting minutes and a project-briefing document showed. The city’s deadliest fire in decades killed at least 159 people. China Taiping Insurance (Hong Kong) is expected to be hit by a “temporary uptick” in its combined ratio, Fitch credit ratings agency analyst Mengyuan Wang said in a note. The ratio is a key performance gauge for property and casualty insurance underwriting profitability. Read more: Taiping Insurance Shares Hit by Over $200 Million Exposure to Hong Kong Fire It is also expected to see “modest capital erosion,” it added, but that’s unlikely to affect Taiping’s credit rating, Mengyuan said. A spokesperson for the Chinese insurance group declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. The insurer told Reuters on Tuesday it completed...

Deloitte 2026 Technology & Telecommunications Predictions: Narrowing the Gap Between the Promise of AI and its Reality 0

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Deloitte 2026 Technology & Telecommunications Predictions: Narrowing the Gap Between the Promise of AI and its Reality

Agents assemble: The global agentic AI market could reach $45 billion in 2030, but only if enterprises and providers perform proper orchestration. AI disrupts search: Daily usage of AI within search is expected to be three times greater than the usage of any standalone AI tool. Hardware heats up: Inference — the running of AI models — is predicted to make up two-thirds of all AI compute by 2026. However, Deloitte also forecasts that most inference will likely still take place in data centers using costly, power-intensive AI chips worth over $200 billion, rather than on inexpensive chips at the edge. Toronto, ON (Nov. 25, 2025) – Deloitte has released its annual “Technology, Media & Telecommunications Predictions” report, which highlights how AI is redefining the foundations of hardware, software, telecom, and media. AI is driving infrastructure investment, reshaping business models, and accelerating shifts in how people can connect and consume content—creating a more competitive and complex digital economy in 2026 and beyond. “AI is rapidly evolving from promise to practical progress, transforming how technology, media, and telecom companies create, connect, and compete,” said China Widener, vice chair and U.S. Technology, Media & Telecommunications industry leader, Deloitte. “Together, these sectors account...

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IRS Issues Trump Account Guidance

/ ThinkAdvisor provides financial advisors, registered investment advisors and wealth managers with comprehensive coverage of the products, services and information they need to guide their clients in making critical wealth, health and life decisions.

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Kansas Saves Elders About $5M from Financial Exploitation with New Legislation

Article 0 Comments Kansas Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt announced state efforts have prevented over $4.97 million from going to bad actors through the Protect Vulnerable Adults from Financial Exploitation Act. “Identification and prevention of financial exploitation in vulnerable populations is a priority for our Department,” said Commissioner Vicki Schmidt. “This law has given financial advisors, DCF and the Department of Insurance more tools to help prevent fraud and to go after bad actors.” Kansas legislation effective July 1, 2024, requires broker-dealers and investment advisers to report certain instances of financial exploitation, including potential exploitation. The Kansas Department of Insurance (KDOI) works with the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), Adult Protective Services (APS) on cases reported through this act. The law allows broker-dealers and investment advisers to delay transactions that are suspected financial exploitation so KDOI and APS can investigate. For fiscal year 2025, $10.5 million was reported lost by fraud and financial exploitation before KDOI and DCF were involved. Due to the protections provided by the Act, industry professionals, KDOI, and APS prevented $4.97 million from going to bad actors. Through the Act, 140 reports have been received. Ofthe 140 cases, 63 victims were female and 54 were...

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Illinois Attorney General Announces $120M Settlement With Monsanto

Article 0 Comments Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a $120 million settlement with Monsanto Company (Monsanto) and affiliates Solutia Inc. and Pharmacia LLC over the environmental and health effects of Monsanto’s decades-long production of polychlorinated biphenyls, known as PCBs. Raoul’s office filed a 2022 lawsuit alleging the company was aware of the chemicals’ toxicity while publicly denying any knowledge of the danger to human health and the environment. This settlement will provide funds to address PCB contamination in the state of Illinois, the city of Chicago and surrounding cities of Evanston, Lake Forest, North Chicago, Zion, Beach Park, Glencoe, Lake Bluff, Winnetka and Winthrop Harbor. “This settlement helps Illinoisans recover from the unlawful and reckless behavior that led to contamination in their communities,” Raoul said. “PCBs have been banned in the U.S. for decades. I’m pleased that this settlement will hold Monsanto accountable for producing and disposing of a dangerous toxic chemical that continues to impact Illinois’ natural resources.” Under the agreement, the state will receive $80 million by March 31, 2026, which will be allocated to the state and the nine settling cities. In addition, the state will receive a minimum of $40 million up to a maximum...

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Bob Doll: 6 Market, Economic Trends to Watch in 2026

/ ThinkAdvisor provides financial advisors, registered investment advisors and wealth managers with comprehensive coverage of the products, services and information they need to guide their clients in making critical wealth, health and life decisions.

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South Korean Police Probe Massive Data Leak at E-Commerce Giant Coupang

Article 0 Comments South Korean police said on Monday they were tracing IP addresses and looking into possible tech vulnerabilities at Coupang after the e-commerce giant suffered the country’s worst data breach in over a decade. Shares of the company fell 6.5% in morning trading. The personal data of more than 33 million customers was leaked in a breach believed to have started on June 24 through overseas servers, though the company did not learn of the problem until November 18. South Korea’s Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said on Sunday the perpetrator had “abused authentication vulnerabilities” in Coupang’s servers, and that authorities would be investigating whether the company violated rules regarding the protection of personal information. Coupang, which is backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group, has said the breach exposed customers’ names, email addresses, phone numbers, shipping addresses and certain order histories, but not payment details or login credentials. Broadcaster JTBC has reported that after conducting an internal investigation, Coupang suspects that a Chinese former employee, who was responsible for authentication tasks, was a key figure in the data breach. A former employee used their authentication key that was still active after the termination of the person’s contract to get access...