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Nationwide E&S goal; 5th Atlantic hurricane; Blue Cross/Cambia merger on hold

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Nationwide E&S goal; 5th Atlantic hurricane; Blue Cross/Cambia merger on hold

Nationwide Mutual Group is looking to generate about $1 billion of premium from its broker-placed excess and surplus lines and specialty business by 2023, an executive told The Insurance Insider. Tom Jurgens, senior vice president for the brokerage underwriting arm of Nationwide E&S/Specialty, said the company's goal is to balance its portfolio. Click here to see S&P Global Market Intelligence's ranking of E&S underwriters for the second quarter.

Organizations operating at Lloyd's of London could be ejected if they fail to comply with changes that the insurance marketplace is pushing through to stamp out inequality and harassment, CEO John Neal said. They could also be called out if they fail to meet new gender diversity targets.

The pending merger between Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina and Cambia Health Solutions Inc. was put on hold following reports about an allegedly alcohol-related traffic accident involving the former's president and CEO, Patrick Conway, The Wall Street Journal reported. Conway was charged with DUI and misdemeanor child abuse.

The New York Department of Financial Services entered into a consent order under which six U.S.-based life insurers will pay a collective amount of about $1.8 million for leading customers to swap their "more financially favorable" deferred annuities for immediate annuities.

Tropical Storm Karen drenched Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands overnight, with rains and flash flooding expected to continue today. Karen is expected to produce additional rainfall accumulations of 1 to 2 inches across Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, with isolated storm totals of 8 inches.

Lorenzo became the fifth Atlantic hurricane of the season, as its maximum sustained winds increased to near 80 mph with higher gusts. Lorenzo is forecast to become a major hurricane by Thursday.

Investment manager Twelve Capital said Hurricane Dorian and Typhoon Faxai may partially erode some underlying protection in insurance-linked securities portfolios. For Dorian alone, Twelve Capital expects "this event will have only a marginal impact on ILS portfolios, if any."

Triple-S Management Corp. and Puerto Rico-based subsidiary Triple-S Propiedad Inc. remain "comfortable" with the latter's reserves for hurricane-related claims. Triple-S Propiedad has paid $687.8 million in claims related to Hurricane Maria, resolving 96% of the 17,746 total claims received as of Sept. 23.

Hong Kong-based FWD Group Management Holdings Ltd. and JSC Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, or Vietcombank, are close to reaching an agreement over an insurance deal, Bloomberg News reported. The deal will see FWD Group pay US$400 million for a unit of Vietcombank and a long-term insurance distribution agreement with the bank.

The Oklahoma Insurance Department approved a 5.1% decrease in workers' compensation insurance loss costs for 2020 in the state.

The Insurance Council of Australia welcomed a call by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority for substantially greater investment in natural disaster mitigation. The council believes this will improve the affordability and availability of general insurance in northern Australia.

Willis Towers Watson PLC and other parties launched the private-sector led Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment. The group brings together over 30 organizations across the investment value chain to address climate resilience challenges. Chaired by Willis Towers Watson CEO John Haley, the coalition aims to change infrastructure investment by integrating climate risks into decision-making.

Top SEC officials are split over whether the regulator needs to develop a uniform framework for corporate America to follow when making environmental, social and governance disclosures.

Now featured on S&P Global Market Intelligence

New retirement savings rules expected to grow accounts, assets: A Labor Department rule change that takes effect Sept. 30 will allow small companies to partner with others in offering retirement plans. The SECURE Act, which is sitting in the U.S. Senate, would open up those possibilities much further.

In other parts of the world

Asia-Pacific: Alibaba closes Ant Financial stake purchase; Australia hints at further rate cut

Europe: UK court loss; Santander sees €1.5B charge; HSBC fine junked

Middle East & Africa: Bank of Israel to grant license to 1st new bank in 40 years; Morocco holds rate

The day ahead

Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.

In Asia, the Hang Seng declined 1.28% to 25,945.35, and the Nikkei 225 was down 0.36% to 22,020.15.

In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 fell 0.86% to 7,227.91, and the Euronext 100 slid 1.32% to 1,074.14.

Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.

On the macro front

The new home sales report, the State Street Investor Confidence Index, the U.S. Energy Information Administration Petroleum Status Report and the U.S. survey of business uncertainty are due out today.

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