Market Newsdesk

ARMONK, N.Y., Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — IBM (NYSE: IBM) has been named to the Leaders Category in the latest IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Advanced Machine Learning Software Platforms 2020 Vendor Assessment (October 2020, IDC # US45358820). The report evaluated vendors who offer tools and frameworks for developing advanced machine learning models and solutions.

As reported by the IDC MarketScape, IBM offers a wide range of innovative machine learning (ML) capabilities as part of its Watson portfolio on a worldwide level. IBM has a Watson Anywhere approach that brings AI to wherever the data resides —across any cloud —to help companies unearth hidden insights, automate processes, and ultimately drive business performance.

The report highlights that IBM should be considered when clients are embarking on a business transformation that exploits build and deployment of a broad set of ML and optimization solutions in hybrid cloud environments.

The IDC MarketScape also notes the value that IBM has delivered over the past three to five years from the organization linkage between IBM Research and IBM products.

“By combining the power of AI with the flexibility and agility of hybrid cloud, our clients are driving innovation and digitizing their operations at a fast pace,” said Daniel Hernandez, general manager, Data and AI, IBM. “The IDC MarketScape’s recognition of IBM’s Watson portfolio highlights the innovations of IBM Research powering our commercial AI offerings, and the value we can deliver to our clients by making advanced AI capabilities accessible to them.”

“At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Highmark Health had an urgent opportunity to build a new AI model based on insurance claims data from our millions of members to identify high-risk sepsis patients and enable providers to prioritize care,” said Curren Katz, Director of Data Science R&D, Highmark Health. “By tapping into IBM Watson’s AI, we were able to quickly develop and deploy a cutting-edge AI model based on trusted data in a matter of weeks, which has enabled our data scientists and researchers to stay on top of new research findings as COVID-19 evolves, changes and unveils new data.”

“The global pandemic has accelerated the need for organizations to transform and respond to an unprecedented change in customer behavior and market risks. Digital Transformation (DX) is one of the key enablers of this change, and AI/ML solutions are improving the DX success rate,” says Ritu Jyoti, program vice president, AI research with IDC’s software market research and advisory practice. “IBM’s Watson offerings and capabilities are designed to give CXOs a playbook for operating in the new crisis and resilient environment. They help address customer challenges around the volume, complexity, and distributed nature of data and around developing and operationalizing AI/ML solutions at scale.”

About IBM Watson

Watson is IBM’s AI technology for business, helping organizations to better predict and shape future outcomes, automate complex processes, and optimize employees’ time. Watson has evolved from an IBM Research project, to experimentation, to a scaled set of products that run anywhere. With more than 30,000 client engagements, Watson technology is being applied by leading global brands across a variety of industries to transform how people work. To learn more, visit: https://www.ibm.com/watson.

About IDC MarketScape
IDC MarketScape vendor assessment model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of ICT (information and communications technology) suppliers in a given market. The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendor’s position within a given market. IDC MarketScape provides a clear framework in which the product and service offerings, capabilities and strategies, and current and future market success factors of IT and telecommunications vendors can be meaningfully compared. The framework also provides technology buyers with a 360-degree assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and prospective vendors.

Media Contact:

Tyler Allen

IBM Media Relations
[email protected]

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SOURCE IBM

• Sheri Griffiths, Head, Greater Ontario, Canadian Commercial Banking honoured at WXN Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards
• BMO Entrepreneurs Award celebrates 14 thriving women business owners

TORONTO, Dec. 2, 2020 /CNW/ – For the fifth consecutive year, a BMO Financial Group leader is among the recipients of the WXN (Women’s Executive Network) Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards. 

Sheri Griffiths, Senior Vice President, Head, Greater Ontario, Canadian Commercial Banking, has been recognized for her leadership and will be celebrated along with 105 honourees in various categories at the virtual Top 100 Awards Gala on Thursday, December 3. In addition to marking this achievement, BMO is sponsoring the Entrepreneurs Award, recognizing 14 women business owners who are growing their businesses while navigating challenging circumstances during the pandemic. The sponsorship is part of BMO’s ongoing work to support small businesses in making real financial progress, especially those led by women.

Launched in 2003, the Top 100 Awards celebrate the incredible accomplishments of Canada’s leading female executive talent as well as their organizations and networks. The awards serve to recognize talented leaders in the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors as well as inspire the current and next generation of women to push the boundaries of what’s possible. The winners are selected by WXN’s Diversity Council of Canada.

Named to Canada’s Most Powerful Women list, Sheri Griffiths has an MBA from Dalhousie University and more than three decades of extensive retail and commercial banking experience. Her tenure at BMO spans 20 years; in her current role, she leads Commercial Banking throughout Greater Ontario. She is an executive sponsor of BMO for Women, a program which supports and advances women in business; she also leads the Canadian Commercial Banking National Diversity and Inclusion Council, which supports BMO’s commitment to building a future with zero barriers to inclusion. Griffiths’ deep passion for supporting women entrepreneurs, creating a culture of equality, and empowering those around her have contributed to her standing among WXN Canada’s Most Powerful Women.

“Known for her leadership, mentorship, and efforts to advance the success of women business owners, Sheri Griffiths is truly deserving of this outstanding achievement – especially as she actively grows the good for customers and colleagues,” said Mona Malone, Head of People & Culture and Chief Human Resources Officer, BMO Financial Group. “Supporting women business leaders and owners is an ongoing commitment for BMO. In a year when the pandemic has disproportionately affected their livelihoods, we’re also proud to recognize the perseverance of women entrepreneurs through our sponsorship of the Top 100 Awards.”  

As part of the awards program, 14 women will be recognized with the BMO Entrepreneurs Award for their flourishing success. The list of winning entrepreneurs can be found here.

Throughout November, the recipients of the BMO-sponsored award have been included in various virtual events with the bank’s senior leaders, such as thought-leadership presentations, roundtable discussions, and networking luncheons with fellow honourees.

As part of BMO’s ongoing support of small and women-led businesses, recent initiatives focused on female entrepreneurs include:

• The BMO Celebrating Women Grant Program awarded $100,000 in grants to women business owners on Women’s Entrepreneurship Day
• Creation of a new women-owned business directory to encourage consumers to buy women-owned products and services
• Ongoing work to double the bank’s industry-leading support for women entrepreneurs as part of its Purpose commitments, along with its ongoing investment of $3 billion in capital over three years to women-owned businesses and programs across Canada to ensure they succeed, and an online training module to aid Relationship Managers in having more in-depth conversations with women business owners and investors
• Online resource centre for women at bmoforwomen.com that provides critical advice for building a successful business through workshops, webinars, and award-winning podcast, Bold(h)er

For more information about WXN Canada’s Most Powerful Women, please visit: https://wxnetwork.com/page/top100awards. For more information on BMO for Women, visit: https://bmoforwomen.com/ourcommitment/.

About BMO Financial Group 
Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly diversified financial services provider – the 8th largest bank, by assets, in North America. With total assets of $949 billion as of October 31, 2020, and a team of diverse and highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

Internet:
www.bmo.com
   Twitter: @BMOMedia

SOURCE BMO Financial Group

VANCOUVER, BC, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ – RYU Apparel Inc. (TSXV: RYU) (OTCQB: RYPPF) (FWB: RYAA) (“RYU” or the “Company“), creator of award-winning urban athletic apparel, is pleased to share an update from CEO Cesare Fazari on the branding and clothing placement in Branded Entertainment Inc’s (BEI) new flagship series “The Count.”

Dear Shareholders,

A key component of our growth strategy at RYU is to look for innovative and novel branding and marketing partnerships. This plan of action incorporates our partnership with François De Gaspé Beaubien and Zoom Media, Canada Skateboard and the inaugural Olympic team as well as our compelling new activation with BEI’s new flagship series “The Count”.

I wanted to take a moment and personally expand on our partnership with (BEI) and Academy Award winning Producer Jonathan Sanger. Firstly, Mr. Sanger is the CEO of BEI and his storied career, includes the production of 50 films, namely The Elephant Man, Without Limits, Vanilla Sky and Mission Impossible 2. In partnership with Tom Cruise, Mr. Sanger also served as the President of Mr. Cruise’s production company, Cruise/Wagner.

Partnering RYU with Mr. Sanger’s “The Count” aligns us with an incredible host of potential marketing affiliates and platform partners including, but not limited to, FITE TV, Triller, OF, PokerStars, FanDuel/DraftKings, 888poker, OMG Cannabis and more.

Our blueprint for this partnership is to follow successful examples of brand integration in film and television such as Avion Tequila in HBO’s hit series Entourage and BMW in Sanger’s Mission Impossible. Research shows that when done properly, product or brand integration has a greater impact on brand awareness, brand recall, and purchase intent than traditional TV commercials.

We will be working with Mr. Sanger to organically weave RYU’s clothing into no less than five of the first ten episodes of season one of “The Count.”  To elevate this product integration from awareness to the actual purchase of product directly through viewership of the show, not only will viewers be able to purchase RYU clothing directly after watching “The Count” but RYU will also be participating in ongoing social media collaborations with the stars of the show as well as its social media influencers, who will be able to act as affiliates and or brand ambassadors continuing to sell RYU products.

The star power for the “The Count” already includes:

Armand Assante

Mike Tyson

Kevin Pollak

Ernie Hudson

Olek Krupa

Tom Sizemore

Willie Garson

Mekhi Phifer

Robert Iler 
Mars Callahan
Kassem Gharaibeh
Joe Perrino
Gerry Bednob
Brande Roderick
Roy Jones Jr.
Glenn Plummer
and Daniel Negreanu

Daniel Negreanu is the 2^nd largest live poker tournament winner of all time, with $16mm in lifetime winnings and has been a shareholder of, and the face of, PokerStars.com since 2007.  He has also been inducted into the poker Hall of Fame and was recently voted Poker Player of the Decade.

Our team at RYU immediately saw how BEI and Mr. Sanger’s unique approach to film and television production, incorporating brand partners directly into the story-telling process of the films and television shows they produce, would be a second-to-none brand and product placement opportunity for RYU.

Further, BEI is leading the charge toward the decentralization of the distribution of content, allowing multiple platforms the ability to distribute BEI content directly to their built-in user bases. 

I personally share Mr. Sanger’s prediction that the decentralization of the distribution of content is the future. “This will allow our flagship show, The Count, to be distributed through many different platforms at the same time, accessible to hundreds of millions of potential viewers”, Sanger says.

We took the first exciting step this past weekend. Through this marketing and branding arrangement, RYU and its clothing were featured in “The Count”, as it premiered on www.fite.tv, Triller, and OF on November 28^th, 2020 in connection with the mega-fight between boxing legends Mike Tysonand Roy Jones Jr.

Click the Link Below and Watch the Original Series 3 Episode Premier on FITE TV.

The Count – FiteTv Channel Page

About RYU Apparel

RYU Apparel (TSXV: RYU, OTCQB: RYPPF, FWB: RYAA), or Respect Your Universe, is an award winning urban athletic apparel and accessories brand engineered for the fitness, performance and lifestyle of the athletic man and woman. Designed without compromise for fit, comfort, and durability, RYU exists to facilitate optimal human performance. For more information, please visit the RYU website at: http://ryu.com

Forward Looking Statements Disclaimer

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange Inc.) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

This news release contains forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance of RYU, BEI or “The Count”; Such statements as regarding the development and implementation of product placement in the series, celebrity product seeding, viewership or the increase of RYU’s visibility to investor, viewers or customers. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and RYU’s plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including those arising from the COVID-19 pandemic or otherwise, and which may result in the inability to develop and/or implement a comprehensive investor relations strategy and/or enhancement of RYU awareness with the investment community, including any capital market strategy, the investor relations providers failing to deploy their best-in-class platforms or to otherwise communicate any compelling value proposition of RYU, the failure of the campaign to highlight renewal of the RYU brand and subsequent successes under the its CEO, the possibility that RYU does not achieve positive cash flow operations. Except as required by law, RYU does not intend to update these forward-looking statements.

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SOURCE RYU Apparel Inc.

AIRPORT CITY, Israel, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — My Size, Inc. (the “Company” or “My Size”) (NASDAQ: MYSZ) (TASE: MYSZ), the developer and creator of smartphone measurement solutions, today announced its partnership with UniformMarket, significantly expanding their presence in workwear. The partnership will see the MySizeID solution made available to nearly 3,000 online stores that are part of the UniformMarket network.

The workwear market is expected to reach $42.1 billion by 2025, yet it still faces significant costs related to ill-fitting uniforms and gear, which can pose occupational hazards as well. MySize’s partnership with UniformMarket is designed to address these issues by bringing accurate sizing to the primary marketplace of the workwear market. Workwear brands can finally provide accurate sizing and give the confidence necessary to customers in order to complete their purchases online.

MySize’s agreement with UniformMarket builds upon an already growing presence in the workwear space, with integrations in process with Tricorp, Victory Cheer Uniforms, Rumina `Nursingwear, and others. The demand for accurate, trustworthy sizing in the workwear category is especially important due to the occupational hazards that many industries face – construction and medical workers among them. With great fits, not only can they do their job better, but they can ensure a safer working environment as well.

“UniformMarket is very much the Shopify of the workwear brands world and having them partner with MySize is yet another big vote of confidence in our solution and the importance of sizing in the workwear category,” said Ronen Luzon, CEO, and Founder of MySize. “Now thousands of the largest businesses in the workwear category will have access to a wide range of top quality products and the ability to trust their sizing and make purchases online – that’s a big step forward.”

“Partnering with MySize was really an easy choice once we experienced the solution for ourselves,” said Ashok Reddy, CEO and Founder of UniformMarket. “Our customers aren’t looking for a complicated sizing solution requiring a camera and a friend. They want something simple and effective, and that’s exactly what our partnership with MySize provides.”

About MySize Inc:

My Size, Inc. (TASE: MYSZ) (NASDAQ: MYSZ) has developed a unique measurement technology based on sophisticated algorithms and cutting-edge technology with broad applications including the apparel, e-commerce, DIY, shipping and parcel delivery industries. This proprietary measurement technology is driven by several algorithms which are able to calculate and record measurements in a variety of novel ways. To learn more about My Size, please visit our website: www.mysizeid.com. We routinely post information that may be important to investors in the Investor Relations section of our website. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter.

Please click here for a demonstration of how MySizeID provides a full sizing solution for the retail industry.

Own a fashion store and want to increase sales as well? Click here

Please click here to download MySizeID for iOS.

Please click here to download MySizeID for Android.

About UniformMarket: UniformMarket, the Workwear ecommerce technology division of SellersCommerce LLC is one of the most sought-after e-commerce solution providers for the uniform, footwear, and gear industries for the past 15 years. Today, it is front-lining revolutionary e-commerce solutions to these industries through its unparalleled expertise and innovation. UniformMarket grew from Made to Measure magazine, the go-to industry trade journal for 90 years.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are identified by the use of the words “could,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “continue,” “predict,” “potential,” “project” and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that these plans, objectives, expectations or intentions will be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience and present expectations or projections. Actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and the trading price for our common stock may fluctuate significantly. Forward-looking statements also are affected by the risk factors described in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

U.S. Press Contact:


Strauss Communications
[email protected]
www.strausscomms.com 

My Size Investor relations contact:


Or Kles,CFO
[email protected]

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mysize-partners-with-uniformmarket-expanding-availability-among-workwear-brands-301183411.html

SOURCE My Size Inc.

CORK, Ireland, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI), the global leader for smart and sustainable buildings, released the findings of its annual Energy Efficiency Indicator survey, which found that more than half of organizations plan to increase investment in energy efficiency, renewable energy and smart building technology next year, comparable with investment trends after the 2010 recession.

Of the factors determining investment, the majority (85 percent) said that reducing energy costs was a very or extremely important driver of investment and more than three-quarters (76 percent) believe that protecting the health and safety of occupants during emergencies was a very or an extremely important driver of investment.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to improve the health and safety of buildings, particularly by increasing their ability to operate under different conditions, both planned and unforeseen,” said Clay Nesler, vice president of global energy and sustainability at Johnson Controls. “Though the pandemic has altered how people are investing in their buildings, occupant health and energy efficiency continue to be top of mind and we anticipate these investments will be a priority in 2021 as more people return to shared spaces.”

Despite reduced occupancy, the study found that facility energy use dropped surprisingly little during the pandemic, with less than 10 percent of facilities reducing energy use more than 20 percent.

Investments in Air Quality and Flexibility

As the world learns more about the spread of Covid-19 through aerosol transmission, indoor air quality has become one of the most pressing issues for facility managers to address. The survey found that 79 percent have already or are planning to increase air filtration, three-quarters have already or are planning to install an air treatment system and 72 percent have already or are planning to increase outdoor air ventilation rates.

The majority of respondents, 81 percent said that increasing the flexibility of facilities to quickly respond to a variety of emergency conditions was very or extremely important driver of investment.

Further, in an increasingly digital world, the integration of systems has become more important than ever. Three-quarters (75 percent) of respondents’ organizations have invested in the integration of security systems with other building technology systems, a 36 percent increase from the 2019 study. And one-third of respondents (33 percent) plan to invest in the integration of building technology systems with distributed energy resources in the next year, a 15 percent increase over 2020.

“Digital offerings that integrate a number of systems are more of a priority than ever for organizations evaluating their investment plans for 2021,” said Michael Ellis, executive vice president and chief customer and chief digital officer at Johnson Controls. “We took note of this trend, which is why we invested in our comprehensive OpenBlue offerings and continue to expand those with partners to meet their increasingly interconnected needs around energy efficiency, sustainability, digitization and occupant health.”

The integration of new technology continues to be a theme, with 79 percent of respondents noting that data analytics and machine learning will have an extremely or very significant impact on buildings, up five percent from last year’s study.

Increased Interest in Net Zero Energy Buildings

The study found growing interest in net zero energy buildings and resiliency, with 70 percent of organizations very or extremely likely to have one or more facilities that are nearly zero, net zero or positive energy or carbon status in the next ten years – an increase of seven percent from 2019.

Further, two-thirds of organizations are very or extremely likely to have one or more facilities able to operate off the grid in the next ten years – an increase of three percent from 2019. Additionally, 63 percent of organizations invested in onsite renewable energy in 2020, a 22 percent increase from the organizations that said they were planning to in the 2019 study.

Funding Facility Improvements

The 2020 survey found that funding for facility improvements increasingly came from internal capital budgets (71 percent), energy services agreements (24 percent) and economic stimulus and recovery funds (20 percent).

To download a summary of the 2020 Energy Efficiency Index please go to: https://www.johnsoncontrols.com/-/media/jci/corp/media/news/files/2020/2020_eei_survey.pdf

Survey methodology: This independent survey was fielded online to 150 energy and facility management executives across the U.S. between September 11, 2020 through October 5, 2020. Of respondents, 27 percent held roles in commercial organizations, 37 percent in institutions, 23 percent in industry and 13 percent in other organizations.

About Johnson Controls:
At Johnson Controls, we transform the environments where people live, work, learn and play. From optimizing building performance to improving safety and enhancing comfort, we drive the outcomes that matter most. We deliver our promise in industries such as healthcare, education, data centers and manufacturing. With a global team of 100,000 experts in more than 150 countries and over 130 years of innovation, we are the power behind our customers’ mission. Our leading portfolio of building technology and solutions includes some of the most trusted names in the industry, such as Tyco®, YORK®, Metasys®, Ruskin®, Titus®, Frick®, Penn®, Sabroe®, Simplex®, Ansul® and Grinnell®. For more information, visit www.johnsoncontrols.com or follow us @johnsoncontrols on Twitter.

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SOURCE Johnson Controls International plc

NEW INVESTOR SLIDE PRESENTATION AVAILABLE AT WWW.MEDICURE.COM/INVESTORS

WINNIPEG, MB, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ – Medicure Inc. (“Medicure” or the “Company“) (TSXV: MPH) (OTC:MCUJF), a cardiovascular pharmaceutical company, today announces that it has retained the services of Renmark Financial Communications Inc. (“Renmark“) to conduct investor relations activities.  Additionally, the Company’s website, www.medicure.com/investors, has been updated with a revised investor slide presentation.

“We are pleased to engage Renmark for investor relations activities. In relation to these activities, we have updated the investor presentation available on our website. We look forward to working with Renmark to enhance communication with a wider shareholder base and share the exciting developments at Medicure,” stated Dr. Albert Friesen PhD, Chief Executive Officer of the Company and Chair of its Board of Directors.

In consideration of the services to be provided, the fees incurred by Medicure will be cash consideration of $5,000 per month, starting December 1, 2020 and ending on April 30, 2021.

Renmark does not have any interest, directly or indirectly, in Medicure or its securities, or any right or intent to acquire such an interest.

About Medicure Inc.
Medicure is a pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapies for the U.S. cardiovascular market. The present focus of the Company is the marketing and distribution of AGGRASTAT^® (tirofiban hydrochloride) injection and ZYPITAMAG^TM (pitavastatin) tablets in the United States, where they are sold through the Company’s U.S. subsidiary, Medicure Pharma Inc. For more information on Medicure please visit www.medicure.com. For additional information about ZYPITAMAG^TM, refer to the full Prescribing Information.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/medicure-retains-investor-relations-firm-renmark-financial-communications-inc-301183624.html

SOURCE Medicure Inc.

VANCOUVER, BC, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — FinCanna Capital Corp. (CSE:CALI) (OTCQB:FNNZF), based in Vancouver, BC, today announced that Andriyko Herchak, CEO, will present live at VirtualInvestorConferences.com on December 3^rd.  

DATE: December 3^rd, 2020

TIME: 12:00pm PST, 9:00am EST

LINK:
https://bit.ly/33ggdsm

This will be a live, interactive online event where investors are invited to ask the company questions in real-time. If attendees are not able to join the event live on the day of the conference, an archived webcast will also be made available after the event.

It is recommended that investors pre-register and run the online system check to expedite participation and receive event updates.

Learn more about the event at www.virtualinvestorconferences.com.

About FinCanna Capital Corp.
FinCanna is a royalty company that provides growth capital to rapidly emerging private companies operating in the licensed U.S cannabis industry.  The Company earns its revenue from royalties paid by its investee companies that are calculated based on a percentage of their total revenues. 

FinCanna’s scalable royalty model provides an attractive alternative or complement to debt or equity financing for its investee companies. FinCanna is focused on delivering high-impact returns to its shareholders by way of a strategically diversified investment portfolio. 

For additional information visit www.fincannacapital.com and FinCanna’s profile at www.sedar.com.

About Virtual Investor Conferences

Virtual Investor Conferences (VIC) is the leading proprietary investor conference series that provides an interactive forum for publicly-traded companies to meet and present directly with investors.

A real-time solution for investor engagement, Virtual Investor Conferences is part of OTC Market Group’s suite of investor relations services specifically designed for more efficient Investor Access.  Replicating the look and feel of on-site investor conferences, Virtual Investor Conferences combine leading-edge conferencing and investor communications capabilities with a comprehensive global investor audience network.

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SOURCE VirtualInvestorConferences.com

PLEASANTON, Calif., Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — FHA loan interest rates continued to decrease to historic lows in October, spurring millennials to take advantage of the government-backed home financing option, according to the latest Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker^™. Sixteen percent of home loans closed by millennial borrowers in October were FHA loans, secured with an interest rate of 2.99%. That is the lowest these rates have been since Ellie Mae began tracking this data in 2016.

“FHA loans were especially popular among younger millennials under age 30,” observed Joe Tyrrell, president of ICE Mortgage Technology, a division of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE). “Nearly a quarter of them chose this financing option, in part because of the more flexible qualification criteria; however, older millennials preferred conventional loan products.”

Ninety-three percent of all closed FHA loans to millennials were for purchases in October, down one percentage point from September, while seven percent of them were for refinances. Purchase loans closed by millennial borrowers – across all loan types – held steady month-over-month at 56 percent, as did refinances at 43 percent. 

Days-to-close across all loans remained the same from September to October at 49 days. FHA loans also took 49 days to close, which was a day longer than the prior month. There were also slight upticks in days-to-close for Conventional loans month-over-month from 49 to 50 days, and for VA loans from 55 to 60 days.

The Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker provides more insights into two groups of millennial homebuyers: older millennials between 30 and 40 years old, and younger millennials between 21 and 29 years old.

Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker – Older Millennials vs. Younger Millennials

The Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker is an interactive online tool that provides access to up-to-date demographic data about this new generation of homebuyers. It mines data from a robust sampling of approximately 80% of all closed mortgages dating back to 2014 that were initiated on Ellie Mae’s Encompass^® all-in-one mortgage management solution. Given the size of this sample, it is a strong proxy of millennial mortgage indicators across the country. Searches can be tailored by borrower geography, age, gender, marital status, FICO score and amortization type. For more information, visit http://elliemae.com/millennial-tracker.

About the Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker
The Ellie Mae Millennial Tracker focuses on millennial mortgage applications during specific time periods. Ellie Mae defines millennials as applicants born between the years 1980 and 1999. New data is updated on the first Monday of every month for two months prior. The Millennial Tracker is a subset of the Origination Insight Report, which details aggregated, anonymized data pulled from Ellie Mae’s Encompass origination platform. Additional information regarding the Origination Insight Report can be found at http://elliemae.com/resources/origination-insight-reports. News organizations have the right to reuse this data, provided that Ellie Mae, Inc. is credited as the source.

About Ellie Mae
Ellie Mae, now ICE Mortgage Technology, a division of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), is the leading cloud-based loan origination platform provider for the mortgage industry. Ellie Mae’s technology solutions enable lenders to originate more loans, lower origination costs, and reduce the time to close, all while ensuring the highest levels of compliance, quality, and efficiency. Visit ‪EllieMae.com or call ‪(877) 355-4362 to learn more.

© 2020 Ellie Mae, Inc. Ellie Mae^®, Encompass^®, AllRegs^®, Mavent^®, Velocify^®, Capsilon

^®

, the Ellie Mae logo and other trademarks or service marks of Ellie Mae, Inc. appearing herein are the property of Ellie Mae, Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Other company and product names may be trademarks or copyrights of their respective owners.

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SOURCE Ellie Mae

NEW YORK, Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) today announced that CIT Northbridge Credit, as advised by CIT Asset Management LLC, served as sole lead arranger on a $20 million senior secured credit facility for Laurel Grocery Company LLC.

Headquartered in London, Kentucky, Laurel Grocery is a wholesale distributor of grocery products to more than 160 independent grocers in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee and West Virginia. The company, founded in 1922, also provides a range of business services, including accounting, insurance, merchandising, advertising and third-party warehousing and logistics.

Proceeds will be used to repay debt, finance growth initiatives and support ongoing operations.

“With consumers cooking and dining more at home, we’re seeing increased demand by grocers for the products they need to keep their shelves stocked with perishable and non-perishable items,” said Laurel Grocery CEO Winston Griffin. “We appreciated the expertise of the CIT Northbridge team in arranging the financing we use to support our operations and help our customers succeed.”

“Laurel Grocery is a leading distributor with a long tradition of serving independent grocers in the South and Midwest,” said Neal Legan, who leads CIT Northbridge. “We were pleased to work closely with the company’s leadership to understand their needs and develop the financing to support their business strategy.”

CIT Northbridge Credit is a trusted financial partner supporting middle-market companies with a broad range of flexible asset-based debt solutions. A joint venture advised by CIT Asset Management, it provides revolving and term loan commitments from $15 million to $150 million to companies across various industries and business cycles, and serves primarily as sole lender, agent, club participant or co-lender.

About CIT

CIT is a leading national bank focused on empowering businesses and personal savers with the financial agility to navigate their goals. CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) is a financial holding company with over a century of experience and operates a principal bank subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A. (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender). The company’s commercial banking segment includes commercial financing, community association banking, middle market banking, equipment and vendor financing, factoring, railcar financing, treasury and payments services, and capital markets and asset management. CIT’s consumer banking segment includes a national direct bank and regional branch network. Discover more at cit.com/about.

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John M. Moran

212-461-5507
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SOURCE CIT Group Inc.

RICHMOND, Va., Dec. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Despite the efforts of long term care providers to absorb many of the costs associated with COVID-19 as they put their own lives at risk to care for their clients, long term care costs increased substantially this year, particularly for assisted living facilities and in-home care, according to Genworth’s 17th annual Cost of Care Survey.

To explore Cost of Care data by city, state or zip code, find trend charts and access lists of states ranked in order of care costs, visit www.genworth.com/costofcare.

Over the course of a single year, the cost of care increased as follows:

• Assisted living facility rates increased by 6.15% to an annual national median cost of $51,600 per year.
• Homemaker services, which includes assistance with “hands-off” tasks such as cooking, cleaning and running errands, has increased 4.44% to an annual median cost of $53,768¹, followed closely by the cost of a home health aide, which includes “hands-on” personal assistance with activities such as bathing, dressing and eating, which has increased 4.35% to an annual median cost of $54,912.²
• The national median cost of a semi-private room in a skilled nursing facility rose to $93,075, an increase of 3.24%, while the cost of a private room in a nursing home increased 3.57% to $105,850.

Why Rates Are On the Rise
In a supplemental study to better understand why costs are rising, Genworth researchers conducted follow-up online discussions with owners and senior administrators of 79 long term care providers across the country. Participants spoke with pride about the selflessness and resiliency of their staffs as they stepped up to meet the challenge of caring for their clients amid the risks posed by COVID-19, and they outlined the market dynamics that are forcing them to increase the cost of care they are providing under these extraordinary circumstances.    

“They told us that the same factors responsible for the continuing increase in long term care costs in recent years – a shortage of workers in the face of increasing demand for care, higher mandated minimum wages, higher recruiting and retention costs, and an increase in the cost of doing business, including regulatory, licensing and employee certification costs — were made even worse by the pandemic,” said Gordon Saunders, senior brand marketing manager at Genworth who manages the Cost of Care Survey.

“Providers have been competing with higher-paying, less-demanding jobs for years, but with COVID-19, they told us it has become much more difficult to recruit and retain care professionals because of factors such as concerns about exposure to COVID-19 and parents needing to stay home with school-age children,” Saunders said.

As a result, providers have had to raise wages – in some cases, offering hazard pay of up to 50 percent more for workers caring for COVID-19-sickened clients – and increase spending for training on new safety procedures, testing, purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning supplies, and benefits, such as free child care to attract and retain staff. Although many providers contacted by Genworth said they were trying to absorb these new costs, more than half (62 percent) predicted that they would eventually be forced to raise rates in the next six months with 43 percent saying those increases would top five percent or more.

Bright Spots For Home Care
In subsequent, separate conversations with CEOs of two national home care companies, the executives acknowledged that while COVID-19 has created serious challenges for the industry, the pandemic has also produced a few bright spots, namely, the recognition that home care is an equally valued part of the healthcare delivery system, and the acceleration of technology that has made their services better and safer.    

“The pandemic has shined a bright spotlight on the value of home care,” said Jeff Huber, CEO of Home Instead Senior Care, based in Omaha. “We can increase the capacity of the healthcare delivery system. The hospital of the future looks a lot like your living room. As a part of a value-based care package, we can reduce costs, admissions, readmissions, and overall usage of the healthcare system. And, we can keep clients safer and improve the quality of life for the whole family by keeping sons and daughters in the workforce while we care for their parents.”

He said the pandemic has also accelerated adoption of technology that allows his company to onboard and train new caregivers and continue to train them remotely. Home Instead Senior Care also is bringing digital capabilities into the home that connect care professionals with their clients and families, which effectively extends the care team and enables the company to quickly attend to any issues that arise in the home.

Seth Sternberg, CEO of Honor, one of the largest owned and operated home care companies in the U.S., has seen average hours of home care increase from 35 to 45 hours per week among his clients during the pandemic, driven by more acute needs, fear of contracting COVID-19 in a communal care setting, and everyday tasks becoming riskier than they used to, such as shopping for groceries.

He said his company has invested in new infection prevention protocols, as well as technology that allows it to quickly backfill care professionals who may not be able to come to work, mitigating the challenges of reduced availability of care professionals. Honor has built out additional COVID-19 response programs, including investment in PPE, training and additional paid time off for caregivers. 

“The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for technology to help enhance safety and reliability in home care,” he said. “This year we added new protocols into our technology platform specifically to meet those needs. Some of the additional features include pre- and post-visit wellness checks, replacement staffing tools and contact tracing. These enhancements added significant upfront costs, but they are worth doing because they have enabled more older adults to live independently at home – and will keep people safer well beyond the end of the pandemic.”

Genworth’s Cost of Care Planning Resources
“COVID-19 has also underscored the need to plan ahead for long term care, considering both where we want to receive care as well as how we will pay for it,” Saunders said. “Our purpose as a company is to help people prepare for the challenges of growing older so that they can continue to live their lives on their own terms. We provide our annual Cost of Care Survey and award-winning interactive website to arm individuals and their families with the education and tools that can empower them to make those important plans, well before they need it.”

In addition to the Cost of Care calculator, Genworth’s website contains long term care planning tools, practical information on topics such as understanding Medicare and Medicaid, conversation starters, impairment simulations, options for financing long term care, and videos of real families sharing their long term care stories.  

• To access 17-year Cost of Care trend charts, click here.
• To access tables ranking states from the highest to lowest cost in each care category, click here.

About Genworth’s 17^th Annual Cost of Care Survey
Genworth’s annual Cost of Care Survey, one of the most comprehensive studies of its kind, contacted nearly 60,000 long term care providers nationwide to complete almost 15,000 surveys for nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult day health facilities and home care providers during July and August, 2020. The survey includes 435 regions based on the Metropolitan Statistical Areas, defined by the Office of Management and Budget. CareScout®, part of the Genworth Financial family of companies, has conducted the survey since 2004. Located in Waltham, Massachusetts, CareScout has specialized in helping families find long term care providers nationwide since 1997.

About Genworth Financial
Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a Fortune 500 insurance holding company committed to helping families achieve the dream of homeownership and address the financial challenges of aging through its leadership positions in mortgage insurance and long term care insurance. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Genworth traces its roots back to 1871 and became a public company in 2004. For more information, visit genworth.com. 

From time to time, Genworth releases important information via postings on its corporate website. Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings. Enrollment information is found under the “Investors” section of genworth.com. From time to time, Genworth’s publicly traded subsidiary, Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia Limited, separately releases financial and other information about their operations. This information can be found at  http://www.genworth.com.au.

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¹ Based on 44 hours per week for 52 weeks
² Based on 44 hours per week for 52 weeks

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SOURCE Genworth Financial, Inc.