Marsh completes acquisition of Accel Holdings in Iowa
Marsh completes its acquisition of Iowa-based Accel Holdings, adding insurance, agribusiness, retirement and wealth advisory capabilities to Marsh Agency
News
Novatae Risk Group acquires trucking MGA Specialized Program Solution
Novatae Risk Group acquired Specialized Program Solutions, a New Jersey MGA focused on underwriting and program administration for long-haul trucking risks
New York declares measles disaster emergency as cases rise
New York declares a statewide measles disaster emergency after 108 cases in 2026, expanding MMR vaccination and testing authority
United Airlines Dulles-to-Rome flight canceled after 12-hour delay
United Airlines Dulles Rome flight was canceled after nearly 12 hours of delays involving technical issues, storms, refueling and crew limits
Hurricane Tracker: Invest 92L development odds rise to 90% as Florida tracks Gulf threat
Hurricane Tracker: Invest 92L has a 90% chance of developing in the Gulf, with a tropical depression expected before it turns toward the northern Gulf Coast
Why did I get $90 from Social Security? Who qualifies for payment
About 20.8 mn Medicare beneficiaries will receive a one-time $90 payment through Social Security, while roughly 40 mn Part B enrollees don’t qualify
UK polar vortex snow weather forecast as El Niño raises risks
El Niño raises the chance of wetter, stormier UK weather, but forecasts do not support widespread snow or a prolonged freeze
Black Sea drone attacks on ships raise marine insurance risks off Bulgaria and Romania
Drone attacks sank commercial ships off Bulgaria and Romania in two days, raising Black Sea shipping and marine war insurance concerns
ASOS hacked in data breach affecting UK and Australia
ASOS is investigating unauthorised activity after hackers sent customers a message claiming access to Snowflake. Names and contact details may be exposed
SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) stock climbs as Morgan Stanley backs $300 target
SpaceX shares rise after Morgan Stanley’s Adam Jonas repeats an Outperform rating and $300 target ahead of Starship Flight 15 and new AI deals
World Space Week 2026 focuses on Rocket Revolution
World Space Week 2026 runs under the Rocket Revolution theme, focusing on reusable rockets, commercial launches and wider access to orbit
Insurers brace for multimillion-dollar claims over rogue AI agents. OpenAI lawsuits
Insurers are assessing multimillion-dollar AI claims as autonomous agents raise questions over developer, executive and policyholder liability
Arsenal Insurance and VUSO pay $2.2 mn for Kyiv business centres damaged by missile strike
Arsenal Insurance and VUSO have completed the settlement of insurance claims related to damage to two business centres belonging to the same network in Kyiv following a missile attack
Hackers accessed VL Prosperity oil supertanker propulsion system near Texas
Hackers accessed the propulsion system of oil supertanker VL Prosperity near Texas, prompting an FBI and US Coast Guard cybersecurity investigation
Google and DOJ remain divided over final ad tech remedies
Google and the DOJ agree on core ad tech remedies but remain split over timelines, global enforcement, publisher data access and compliance monitoring
Publishers can seek $3.2 bn from Google in ad tech case
USA Today, Daily Mail and about 5,000 publishers can seek more than $3.2 bn from Google over alleged harm tied to its AdX advertising exchange
US commercial property insurance rates fall 14.5% as market softens
Commercial property insurance rates fell 14.5% in Q2 2026 as capacity increased, while cyber pricing stayed broadly flat and casualty increases moderated
El Niño shifts US weather risks after unusually quiet hurricane season
The Atlantic enters October without a hurricane as a strengthening El Niño raises winter risks from heavy rain, flooding and tornadoes in Florida
Cowbell launches Risk Advisor AI agent for cyber policyholders
Cowbell, a provider of AI-native cyber and specialty insurance for SMEs, launches Risk Advisor, an AI agent offering evidence-backed cyber risk guidance
AM Best affirms Active Re ratings with stable outlook
AM Best affirms Active Re’s A financial strength and a issuer credit ratings with stable outlooks, citing capital strength and solid underwriting results
Insurtech SecondSight raises Series A, names Jamie Bouloux president
SecondSight, an AI operating system provider for insurance, closes its Series A and appoints former Ryan Financial Lines CEO Jamie Bouloux as president
ANV Group completes acquisition of Assured Underwriting Group
ANV Group Holdings completes its acquisition of Assured Underwriting Group, a specialist MGA serving tour operators across the UK and Europe
OpenAI Medicare incident in Australia exposes AI agent disclosure risks
A Cloud Security Alliance report examines an OpenAI agent’s unauthorised access to Australia’s Medicare portal and the delay in notifying officials
Star Health and Allied Insurance data breach case reaches Supreme Court
India’s Supreme Court refused to quash criminal proceedings against cybersecurity researcher Himanshu Pathak over the Star Health and Allied Insurance data breach case
Four US healthcare providers report patient data breaches
WindRose Health Network, Advantage Home Health Care, Camden Family Health and Lakes Region VNA report cybersecurity incidents involving patient data
Times Car data breach exposes 6.6 mn customer accounts in Japan
Times Mobility says a cyberattack exposed data from 6.6 mn current and former accounts, including ID images, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses
A Texas judge approves $177 mn AT&T data breach settlement
A Texas federal judge approved AT&T’s $177 mn settlement over two 2024 data breaches affecting millions of current and former customers
7 Korean banks hit by suspected AI-linked cyberattacks
Seven Korean financial firms report cyber breaches as customers consider lawsuits and police examine possible use of the open-source Artex AI hacking tool
Japan data breaches expose millions of customer records
Monogatari and Daiwa Securities report cyber incidents in Japan, potentially exposing data tied to more than 10 mn restaurant customers and 110,000 brokerage clients
Pneumonic plague fears in Russia: how serious is the risk to the rest of the world?
Fears of a possible plague outbreak in Russia have spread beyond Siberia after the death of a worker at an institute that studies Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for plague
Amazon and Klarna adjust payment services in Austria under new EU credit rules
Amazon will end monthly invoicing in Austria, while Klarna prepares its payment services for stricter EU consumer credit requirements
British Airways BA295 returns to Heathrow after emergency over Ireland
British Airways flight BA295 to Chicago returned to Heathrow after declaring an emergency over Ireland and descending from 37,000 feet to 9,000 feet
Trump announces $90 Medicare payments for 20.8 mn Americans and repeats $5,000 pledge
Trump announces one-time $90 Medicare payments for 20.8 million Americans and repeats his $5,000 pledge if Republicans retain Congress
MCNA data breach settlement reached over breach affecting nearly 9 mn people
MCNA, MCNA Insurance and Healthplex reach a settlement over a 2023 data breach affecting nearly 9 mn people, with claims of up to $2,500
Denmark data breach exposes CPR records of 8.8 mn people
Denmark says unauthorized users accessed names, addresses and CPR numbers for about 8.8 mn people through a private company’s lawful registry access
UK electric vehicle (EV) registrations hit record through 2026
UK battery EV registrations rose 36.3% to 99,199 in September, taking 28.3% of the new car market as total registrations reached 350,518
El Niño Kelvin wave could raise California sea levels by up to 1 foot
A Kelvin wave linked to El Niño is expected to raise California sea levels by up to 1 foot, increasing coastal flooding and erosion risks along the West Coast
UK urged to act over prediction market Polymarket bets on HSBC and Lloyds failure
UK authorities face calls to act after Polymarket drew $77,507 in positions on whether major banks including HSBC and Lloyds will fail in 2026
UK gang jailed over £30 mn cash smuggling operation to Dubai
Members of a UK criminal gang have been jailed for smuggling almost £30 mn in cash to Dubai through Manchester, Birmingham and Brussels airports
Earthquake strikes Victoria, shaking Melbourne – Geoscience Australia
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck near Leongatha in Victoria, shaking Melbourne and South Gippsland before a magnitude 3.1 aftershock followed
Greg Lui DOJ charges allege $300 mn Nvidia AI server smuggling
Greg Lui DOJ charges accuse the Earthmade Computer owner of routing over $300 mn in Nvidia AI servers to China through Malaysia and Singapore
FintechZoom Markets World Indices: Nasdaq leads global rebound
FintechZoom Markets World Indices track gains in the S&P 500, Nasdaq and European stocks as weak US jobs data shifts rate expectations
Nasdaq gains 1.2% as weak jobs data lifts U.S. stocks
U.S. stocks rose on Oct. 2 as September payroll growth slowed to 29,000, easing rate-hike expectations while Nvidia and technology shares advanced
Global stock indices S&P 500, Nasdaq and STOXX 600 rise after weak US jobs data
S&P 500, Nasdaq and STOXX 600 rose after weak US payrolls reduced October Fed hike bets, while FTSE 100 still lost 2.2% for the week
Chubb appoints Paul Jones as Head of Accident & Health, EMEA
Chubb appoints Paul Jones as Head of Accident & Health for EMEA, overseeing the insurer’s regional A&H business and growth across corporate and consumer markets
Capital One $425 mn 360 Savings settlement payments delayed by appeal
Capital One’s $425 mn 360 Savings settlement has final court approval, but payments remain on hold as an appeal continues in the Fourth Circuit
Ellington Financial $EFC stake boosted by State Street as holdings rise 7.5%
State Street raised its Ellington Financial stake by 7.5% to 4.95 mn shares as analysts maintained a Hold rating and the dividend yield reached 12.6%
Allstate sues three New York pharmacies over no-fault insurance claims
Allstate filed three RICO lawsuits against New York pharmacies, seeking recovery of $414,000 paid and relief from more than $703,000 in unpaid claim
Luigi Mangione’s New York murder trial postponed over double jeopardy claim
Luigi Mangione’s New York murder trial is postponed indefinitely as his lawyers seek dismissal after his federal guilty plea in the Brian Thompson case
DentaQuest data breach exposes health and personal data of 15 mn people
DentaQuest says at least 15 mn people were affected by a May cyberattack that exposed personal, insurance and dental or vision health information
DriveWealth breach exposes data of Revolut trading customers
DriveWealth disclosed a September breach exposing personal data of some Revolut customers who used its US stock trading infrastructure
DIG Ventures closes $120 mn Fund III for AI infrastructure startups
European venture capital firm DIG Ventures closes a $120 mn Fund III to back about 30 early-stage AI-native enterprise and cloud infrastructure startups
Social Security benefit increase projection for 2027 reaches 3.5-3.6%
Social Security’s 2027 cost-of-living adjustment is forecast at 3.5-3.6%, above the 2.8% increase for 2026. he Senior Citizens League projects a 3.5% COLA, while AARP expects 3.6%
Insurtech One Inc launches XpressOne for insurance vendor payments
One Inc launches XpressOne, giving insurance vendors faster payments, simpler reconciliation, self-service controls and real-time payment visibility
Los Angeles asks LA28 to secure $650 mn cancellation insurance cover
Los Angeles has asked LA28 to obtain $650 mn in event cancellation insurance and cover losses above the limit ahead of the 2028 Olympic Games
Engine by Gen launches Savvy insurance marketplace for AI shopping agents
Engine by Gen launches an AI-agent-ready version of Savvy, its insurance marketplace, designed for private research, rate estimates and personalized quotes
Gallagher acquires Albany Insurance in New Zealand
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a global insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting firm, acquires New Zealand-based Albany Insurance Services
Fortitude Re parent acquires Dayforward annuity insurtech platform
Fortitude Re parent FGH Parent acquires Dayforward’s annuity technology platform, distribution agreements, IP, agency operations and employees
Florida Supreme Court to hear Citizens insurance arbitration case
Florida’s Supreme Court will review whether Citizens Property Insurance can require policyholders to resolve claims through binding arbitration before DOAH
Manulife closes $3.2 bn LTC reinsurance deal with Munich Re
Manulife closes a $3.2 bn long-term care reinsurance deal with Munich Re Life US, cutting LTC morbidity sensitivity by 24% across recent transactions
How Lloyd's institutional structure supports re/insurance underwriting across marine, aviation, energy, cyber and other complex insurance classes
Global insurance-linked securities market reached $145 bn in 2026, supported by record catastrophe bond issuance, 12.5% investor returns and expanding reinsurance sidecars
Global reinsurance capital reached $800 bn in 2026 as expanding capacity, lower property pricing and stronger catastrophe bond activity favor buyers
Insurance regulators in the US, UK and Japan are strengthening oversight of asset-intensive reinsurance, targeting counterparty credit risk, recapture reserve adequacy