Customer experience

New York - XL Insurance, the global insurance operation of XL Capital Ltd., has completed the purchase of Global Asset Protection Services LLC (GAPS) from Swiss Re. GAPS is a provider of unbundled loss prevention consulting services, offering individually tailored risk management solutions to risk managers, insurance brokers and insurance company clients operating on a global basis.

Frisco, Texas - Mark Depker, president of Hall Financial Group's management division, announced Skywire Software signed a new 49,500-square-foot lease for its new worldwide corporate headquarters at 3000 Internet Blvd. in the Hall Office Park development in Frisco, Texas.

Boston - Liberty Mutual Agency Markets (a strategic business unit of Liberty Mutual Group) senior special investigator Barbara Parker was honored by the National Society of Professional Insurance Investigators (NSPII) with the 2007 F. Lee Brininger Award, which annually recognizes one insurance professional's outstanding contribution to the fight against insurance fraud.

Portland, Ore. - Kryptiq Corp., a provider of healthcare connectivity solutions, was recently acknowledged at the annual Portland Business Journal banquet honoring the most-admired companies in Oregon. The company received recognition as the fifth most-admired technology company, as determined by a survey of more than 2,000 Oregon CEOs.

Chicago - Aon Corp. has signed separate definitive agreements to sell its Combined Insurance Company of America (CICA) and Sterling Life Insurance Co. (Sterling). The Sterling transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter 2008, and CICA is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter 2008.

Columbus, Ohio - Grange Insurance, a Columbus, Ohio-based insurance provider, has been awarded the 2007 Insurance Standard of Excellence Award from the Web Marketing Association.

Windsor, Conn., and Atlanta - Member companies of LIMRA International and LOMA voted overwhelmingly in favor of the proposal to unite two of the world's largest insurance and financial services trade organizations. The merger will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2008.

New York - Lightyear Capital LLC, a New York-based private equity firm focused on financial services investing, completed the transactions related to the establishment of Antares Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda-based holding company whose businesses will include the sponsorship of a new Lloyd's of London syndicate ("Antares Syndicate 1274").

Atlanta - Connecture Inc., provider of Web-based sales, service and process automation solutions to the health insurance industry, has been awarded the Robinson College of Business (RCB) Eagle Award. The business school selected Connecture as a high achiever among fastest growing private companies in the Southeast.

As mortgage lenders struggle to contend with the double-barreled threat of rising defaults and lower origination volume, a third, less discussed source of risk is now starting to emerge.