Oyo State, Nigeria – October 13, 2026 -- KuCoin Nigeria Limited has received conditional Approval-in-Principle (AIP) from the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigeria (SEC Nigeria) for admission into its Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP), but the approval does not allow it to operate in the country.

AIP is not a licence and does not permit client onboarding

SEC Nigeria's conditional AIP is not a final registration, licence, endorsement or recommendation. It does not authorise KuCoin Nigeria to commence operations, onboard clients or offer services to the Nigerian public. The company states that admission into ARIP does not assure or predetermine the grant of formal registration.

Redmond – October 13, 2026 -- Halfpricesoft.com has added an IRS-authorized direct e-filing module for Form 941 to its ezPaycheck payroll software, with e-filing priced from $5.95 per form ahead of the November 2, 2026 third-quarter filing deadline.

E-file module covers 941, 940 and other 94x forms inside the application

The update lets employers submit quarterly Form 941, annual Form 940 and other 94x series forms directly from ezPaycheck. A dedicated portal tracks submission status and lets users resolve filing errors immediately.

Volume discounts are available for businesses with larger filing needs, according to the company.

Payroll engine automates federal tax calculations and covers all 50 states

The software automatically factors in Federal Withholding Tax, Social Security, Medicare, Employer Unemployment Taxes (FUTA) and differential pay. Built-in tax tables cover all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

Birmingham, Mich. – October 13, 2026 -- Only 14% of Finance leaders say their AI investments have delivered "enterprise value and decision impact," even though 74% now use AI to reduce manual work, according to OneStream's inaugural Forward Finance Index.

The survey covers 1,300 CFOs and equivalent Finance leaders at mid-market ($500M-$999.9M revenue) and enterprise ($1B-$10B+ revenue) organizations in the U.S., U.K., and France. It benchmarks them across five areas: AI strategy, data, workforce, operations, and IT collaboration.

Only 6% of Finance organizations lead across all five areas

More than half (52%) rank as "Followers," held back by data they cannot fully trust, AI without measurable ROI, limited visibility into operational decisions, disconnected IT roadmaps, and an unprepared workforce. Four in ten executives say data quality issues regularly block or delay AI projects.

Austin – October 13, 2026 -- UpCodes' AI Plan Review has surfaced more than $1 million in estimated potential construction error costs on average per project, based on more than 1,300 construction plan sets reviewed since its June launch.

The tool has identified more than 180,000 potential issues across those plan sets. Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, BDG Architects and Hereford Dooley Architects are among the companies newly adopting the technology.

Plan Review combines multimodal AI with code libraries to read drawings

UpCodes says Plan Review pairs AI models with its building code and construction content libraries. The system interprets both the visual and technical information in drawings, including geometry, dimensions, annotations and spatial relationships. The aim is to flag problems earlier in design, before they become costlier during review or construction.

West Des Moines – October 13, 2026 -- Criterion, the new name for Sammons Financial Group's wealth advisory holding company, launched with more than $27 billion in assets under management or advisement (AUM/AUA) across three national advisory firms.

The company groups Beacon Capital Management, NorthRock Partners and Wealthcare. Sammons Financial Group established the holding company as its expansion beyond core insurance and annuity business lines.

Criterion plans acquisitions and technology spending to compete in U.S. wealth management

Criterion describes the launch as the next step in a long-term plan built on strategic acquisitions, technology investments and expanded capabilities for financial advisors and their clients. It will also invest in talent across its advisory firms.

London – October 13, 2026 -- Movable Ink has launched headless marketing capabilities built on a Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server that exposes more than 50 APIs across eight Da Vinci domains, letting marketers run campaigns from external AI tools such as Claude and ChatGPT.

MCP Server connects outside AI tools to Movable Ink execution

The server links external AI tools to Movable Ink while keeping execution context-aware and brand-consistent inside the platform. Marketers can use natural-language prompts to manage, schedule and proof content across all channels, and to manage and activate audiences and data.

Further functions include creating, reviewing, approving and managing creative, accessing brand assets and creative guidelines, and pulling campaign, creative and performance reporting.

Taipei – October 13, 2026 -- Gemtek Technology, Qualcomm Technologies and gFiber are targeting commercial deployment in 2027 for an AI-native Wi-Fi 8 broadband gateway, with gFiber set to be the first operator to roll it out. Gemtek is showing the device at Network X 2026.

Gateway runs on Qualcomm's Dragonwing NPro A8 Elite platform

Gemtek engineered the gateway on the Qualcomm Dragonwing NPro A8 Elite Platform. It combines Wi-Fi 8 Quad-Band connectivity with Edge AI computing. Software comes from Genix Networks, a Gemtek subsidiary.

The device is designed as a home internet hub and a local platform for agentic AI. It supports network optimization, device awareness, security and proactive management.

Amsterdam – October 13, 2026 -- YeePay has been granted an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license by De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), the Dutch central bank, giving the cross-border payments provider a second European EMI authorization after its existing UK license.

Dutch license adds to a multi-jurisdiction regulatory portfolio

The Netherlands is a major financial hub within the European Union. YeePay said the approval strengthens its regulatory footprint and supports compliant, localized payment services for businesses operating across international markets, subject to applicable regulatory requirements.

The company's existing licenses and registrations include:

Beijing – October 13, 2026 -- The second season of the reality show "From Far Lands to China's Farmlands" has drawn 420 million online views, putting Xiangfeng Village in Changsha County, Hunan Province, at the center of a "courtyard economy" push for rural cultural tourism.

Seven foreign youths from six countries film in Xiangfeng Village

The show placed seven young people from six countries, including the United States, Germany and Malaysia, in the village as "new farmers". They worked alongside local villagers and took part in courtyard-centered rural tourism activities.

Activities included herbal hot pot and intangible cultural heritage (ICH) experiences. Visitors could also buy oven-baked bread and specialty coffee in the village.

Dallas – October 13, 2026 -- S2 Capital has completed loan modifications and refinancings on 26 multifamily assets carrying about $1.2 billion in loan balance, covering 8,223 units across seven markets.

S2 Capital ends foreclosure proceedings on 12 of 26 communities

Twelve of the 26 communities were subject to foreclosure proceedings. Those proceedings have been terminated in connection with the modifications.

The transactions extend maturity dates, revise pricing, and resolve existing defaults and near-term maturities. The Dallas-based investment manager said the changes let it concentrate on operating performance across the portfolio. The transactions were funded in connection with the initial closing of S2's continuation vehicle.