Tech

Crawford & Company reports net income attributable to shareholders rises to US$36.0 million in 2016 compared to loss in 2015

Atlanta-based Crawford & Company posted net income attributable to shareholders for both the full year and fourth quarter of 2016 – reaching about US$7.8 million and about US$36.0 million – compared to losses in the prior-year periods. Net income attributable to shareholders of Crawford & Company was US$7.8 million in the quarter ending Dec. 31, […]

By Canadian Underwriter | February 27, 2017

4 min read

Tech

Global organizations will spend US$1.2 trillion on “digital transformation technologies” in 2017: International Data Corporation

Global organizations will spend US$1.2 trillion on digital transformation this year, with the fastest growth coming from insurance, banking, retail and healthcare providers, International Data Corporation (IDC) said on Thursday. A new update to IDC’s Worldwide Digital Transformation Spending Guide forecasts worldwide spending on digital transformation (DX) technologies to be more than US$1.2 trillion in […]

By Canadian Underwriter | February 24, 2017

3 min read

Legal / Regulation

Ontario Securities Commission, U.K. regulator sign co-operation agreement on fintech businesses

The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) and the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have signed a new agreement under which fintech businesses in both jurisdictions will be able to seek support from their financial regulators as they look to operate in the other’s market. Signed on Wednesday, the Co-operation Agreement allows the FCA and the […]

By Canadian Underwriter | February 23, 2017

2 min read

Global insurance CEOs concerned about skills shortages and related pace of technological change: PwC survey

Insurance CEOs have the biggest concerns in the financial services industry over skills shortages and the related pace of technological change, according to a new survey from PwC. The survey, titled Ahead of the curve: Confronting the big talent challenges in financial services, involved 487 CEOs in the banking and capital markets, asset and wealth […]

By Canadian Underwriter | February 22, 2017

4 min read

Half of all phishing attacks in 2016 aimed at stealing money: Kaspersky analysis

Almost half of all phishing attacks registered in 2016 by Kaspersky Lab were aimed at stealing victims’ money, the cybersecurity company reported on Wednesday. According to the Financial Cyberthreats in 2016 report, 47.48% of all phishing attacks – fraudulent email messages or “copycat” websites that appear legitimate – registered in 2016 by Kaspersky’s heuristic detection […]

2 min read

Confront risks of financial technologies to reap benefits: FINTRAC

OTTAWA – The head of Canada’s financial intelligence unit warns that regulators must grapple with the challenges of emerging financial technologies, some of which he says have been exploited by terrorism and organized crime. But while it’s necessary to safeguard consumers and the country’s financial stability from the risks posed by some of these innovations, […]

By Jason Contant | February 22, 2017

3 min read

Global spending on worldwide cloud services and infrastructure to reach US$122.5 billion in 2017: International Data Corporation

Worldwide spending on public cloud services and infrastructure will reach US$122.5 billion in 2017, an increase of 24.4% over 2016, suggested new research from Framingham, Mass.-based International Data Corporation (IDC). The new update to the IDC’s Worldwide Semiannual Public Cloud Services Spending Guide, released on Monday, showed that worldwide spending on public cloud services and […]

3 min read

Nearly half of global insurers expect to acquire new technologies through M&A in the next three years: Willis Towers Watson survey

Nearly three-quarters of global insurers (74%) believe that their sector has failed to show leadership in digital innovation, according to a new survey by Willis Towers Watson (WTW) released on Thursday. The report, titled New horizons: How diverse growth strategies can advance digitalisation in the insurance industry, involved a survey of 200 senior-level executives within […]

4 min read

The Co-operators launches mobile app for clients to access and manage insurance information

Guelph, Ont.-based The Co-operators announced on Thursday that it has launched a new mobile app providing clients with a “quick, easy and secure way” to access and manage their insurance information. With the free app, available through iTunes and Google Play, clients can use their smartphones or tablets to: access their policies with The Co-operators […]

2 min read

Auto executive warns U.S. Congress it will be ‘pretty hard’ to make autonomous vehicles ‘safe in all conditions’

Companies aiming to deploy autonomous vehicles in the next few years are “typically” referring to vehicles that are only autonomous under certain conditions, such as good weather, a Toyota executive suggested this week to a subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives. The Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection of the House of […]

3 min read