Monthly Archives: <span>July 2020</span>

Reuters: Rite Aid Deployed China-Linked Facial Recognition in Poor Neighborhoods

Over about eight years, the American drugstore chain Rite Aid Corp quietly added facial recognition systems to 200 stores across the United States, in one of the largest rollouts of such technology among retailers in the country, a Reuters investigation …

COVID-19 Pandemic to Intensify Risks for Insurers: EU Regulator

Insurers in the European Union are confronted with risks on several fronts that are intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic, and could face lengthy legal battles from claims relating to lockdowns, the bloc’s insurance watchdog said on Thursday. Insurers and reinsurers …

Insurer Canopius Promotes Pike to Head of Credit & Political Risk

Canopius announced it has promoted Stephen Pike as head of Credit & Political Risk (CPR) team, part of the Credit, Political & Crisis (CPC) division, effective immediately. Pike joined Canopius as an underwriter in CPR in 2017 from ED&F Man …

AIR Worldwide Releases Updated Caribbean Cyclone and Earthquake Models

Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide (AIR) announced the release of its updated Tropical Cyclone and Earthquake Models for the Caribbean. These models will provide insurers and reinsurers with a comprehensive view of risk across 29 countries and territories in …

World Insurance Associates Acquires Airways International Insurance Services

World Insurance Associates LLC (WIA) acquired Airways International Insurance Services LLC (AIIS) of Mickelton, N.J., on May 1, 2020. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Alex Morris founded Airways International Insurance Services in 2006 after more than 30 years …

Japan Government Urges Firms to Aim for 70% Telecommuting as COVID Cases Surge

Japan’s economy minister said on Monday [July 27] the government would urge businesses to aim for 70% telecommuting and enhance other social distancing measures amid a rise in coronavirus cases among workers, some infected during after-work socializing. Though Japan has …

London Expects Only Half of Bankers to Return to Their Offices by Year-End

London’s normally buzzing financial districts will still be a pale shadow by the end of the year, as banks plan for no more than half their staff, who have mostly worked from home throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, to come to …

Generali’s First Half Net Profit Drops 56.7% with COVID Hit

Generali’s first half net profit dropped by 56.7% to €774 million ($909.8 million), compared with €1.8 billion (US$2.1 billion) reported for the same period in 2019. The combined ratio improved to 89.5% (91.8% in H1 2019), driven by the improvement …

New Hampshire Investigating Ventilation in Nursing Homes After Virus Outbreaks

New Hampshire health and fire safety officials will spend the next two weeks investigating whether ventilation systems have contributed to coronavirus outbreaks at nursing homes, Gov. Chris Sununu said Tuesday. More than 30 long-term care facilities have experienced outbreaks, and …

Finland’s Sampo Oyj Explores Cash Offer of UK Insurer Hastings

Finnish insurance group Sampo Oyj is exploring an entry into the UK market with a potential bid for general insurer Hastings Group Holdings Plc. Sampo and Hastings’s biggest shareholder, Rand Merchant Investment Holdings Ltd., have approached the London-listed insurer about …