Finance, Banking & Insurance

Glastonbury, Conn. – September 29, 2026 -- Symmetry Partners has launched the Symmetry Panoramic International Country Momentum ETF (Ticker: ICMO), a rules-based fund that rotates capital toward international countries and regions showing the strongest relative momentum within the MSCI ACWI ex-US universe.

Top-performing countries have averaged nearly 27% annual returns over 15 years

According to Morningstar Direct data through August 25, 2026, the 13 best-performing countries over the trailing 15-year period generated average annual returns of almost 27%, based on MSCI indices. Symmetry cites this dispersion as the rationale for a momentum-driven allocation model targeting shifting country leadership rather than static regional weights.

Detroit – September 29, 2026 -- Benzinga and TradingView have integrated Benzinga's Analyst Insights product into TradingView's platform, giving the charting network's global trader base direct access to summarized sell-side research alongside its existing technical tools.

Analyst Insights converts dense sell-side reports into plain-language summaries

The product translates institutional analyst commentary on rating changes, price targets, and outlook shifts into concise takeaways, addressing what Benzinga describes as a longstanding accessibility gap between professional research and retail-facing trading tools.

Integration places research alongside TradingView's charting and community features

TradingView users can now cross-reference analyst commentary directly within the charts, technical indicators, and social feeds they already use, rather than switching between institutional research channels and trading interfaces.

Atlanta – September 29, 2026 -- Corgi Insurance has appointed Stephen Segroves as Head of Pricing, tasking him with building rating models for its trucking program and commercial lines nationwide.

Segroves brings nearly two decades of actuarial and pricing experience to Corgi's underwriting build-out

Segroves most recently served as Senior Director, Actuary at Nirvana Insurance, where he oversaw insurance analytics and pricing operations. Prior to that role, he spent three years as Senior Director of Data Science at VoyageWorks, leading a cross-functional team of data scientists, actuaries, and data engineers to develop predictive and machine learning models aimed at improving commercial auto profitability.

Singapore – – September 29, 2026 -- The Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) has appointed Professor Lawrence Loh, Associate Professor Eugene K.B. Tan, Professor Louis Chen and Ms Farah Jaafar as Executive Fellows, while elevating Distinguished Professor Patrick H. M. Loh to Co-Founder.

RFI expands leadership bench as digital finance regulation intensifies

The nonprofit, based in Singapore, said the appointments deepen its expertise in law, governance, digital policy and cross-border capital markets as regulators and institutions push to ground digital asset, AI and cross-border payment innovation in legal and ethical frameworks.

Phoenix – September 29, 2026 -- AZP Insurance Specialists has awarded Platinum certification to Gateless' Smart Underwrite®, marking the first technology provider to clear AZP's new AI Mortgage Technology Certification framework at its highest of four tiers.

Gateless earns top rating after 230,000 loans processed with zero claims

The Platinum designation reflects the performance of more than 230,000 loans manufactured and sold by lenders using Smart Underwrite®, all without a single claim filed. AZP said the certification evaluated the platform's governance, controls, auditability and operational maturity before granting the top rating.

Detroit – September 29, 2026 -- Rocket Mortgage will become the first mortgage lender to adopt VantageScore 4.0 as its preferred credit scoring model for eligible loans, starting in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Rocket Mortgage found VantageScore 4.0 qualifies more clients while cutting scoring costs

Following roughly four months of testing, the lender determined VantageScore 4.0 helped more clients move forward in the mortgage process and reduced credit scoring costs. So far in 2026, Rocket Mortgage pulled 1.4 million credit reports using both VantageScore and FICO models to compare outcomes.

Clients who saved with the new model averaged $1,600 at closing

The lender's internal study found VantageScore 4.0 opens access for some clients who would otherwise go unserved and allows many to secure mortgages on better pricing terms. For those who benefited, average savings totaled $1,600 at closing.

Miami – September 29, 2026 -- Chainlink said it is enabling financial institutions to connect their systems and key-signing infrastructure to Swift's blockchain ledger, opening a path for banks to run 24/7 tokenized deposit payments without replacing existing settlement arrangements.

Chainlink Runtime Environment powers a self-signing model for bank connectivity

The solution centers on a self-signing model built through the Chainlink Runtime Environment (CRE), which orchestrates workflows linking financial institutions to Swift's ledger while institutions retain control of transaction-authorizing keys. Banks can adopt round-the-clock tokenized payment workflows while preserving current security governance, approval processes, and operating models.

Chicago – September 29, 2026 -- The Society of Actuaries (SOA) has elected five new Board members and named Sherry Chan, FSA, EA, MAAA, FCA, as President Elect and Vice Chair for the 2026-2027 term, positioning her to become the organization's 79th President and Chair.

Five actuaries join the SOA Board for the 2026-2027 term

The newly elected Board members are Jessica Dang, FSA, FCIA, Ph.D.; Murshid Kuttihassan, FSA, MAAA, CERA, FCIA, FIA, CFA, FRM; Taylor Pickett, FSA, MAAA; Greg Warren, FSA, MAAA, FCA; and Andy Wieduwilt, FSA, MAAA. All will assume duties following the SOA ImpACT Annual Conference at the end of October 2026.

Chicago – September 29, 2026 -- Trintech unveiled three new AI agents at its Trintech Connect 2026 conference, expanding its financial close automation portfolio to five agents that execute work directly rather than merely surfacing insights.

Trintech adds Data Access, Accruals Intelligence and Exception Management agents to its AI platform

The Trintech Data Access Agent, Trintech Accruals Intelligence Agent and Trintech Exception Management Agent build on capabilities introduced earlier in 2026 with the Trintech Flux Agent and Trintech Variance Analysis Agent. The five agents now cover data preparation, accrual management and exception resolution within the same controls, approvals and audit trails finance teams already use.

Worcester, Mass. – September 28, 2026 -- The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE: THG) has secured a spot on TIME's World's Best Companies list for the fourth consecutive year and on Forbes' America's Best Insurance Companies list for the sixth year running.

TIME evaluated firms generating at least $100 million in revenue using data from roughly 200,000 global survey participants

The TIME rankings assessed revenue growth, employee satisfaction and sustainability transparency, with environmental, social and governance practices factored into the scoring alongside verified employee feedback and recommendations.