iTP chose Cetera as its growth partner – a firm that makes the big feel small while delivering the platform and service to scale. Cetera’s defined growth system can help firms like iTP grow by adding clients and recruiting advisors

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cetera welcomes iTP Partners (iTP) and its independent RIA, Blue Horizon Equity, Inc., which iTP launched upon joining Cetera. Co-founded by experienced financial advisors Bob Sansone and Jeff Hartman, iTP oversees approximately $3.5 billion in AUA1 across nearly 50 financial advisors.

With headquarters in Pittsford, New York, and an additional office in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, iTP joins Cetera from Osaic, and will operate on Cetera’s Blueprint platform, designed to power growth for firms like iTP.

iTP has built a multi-state advisory practice on a culture of independence, shared ownership, and deep client relationships. The firm is distinguished by its structure: iTP advisors are not simply affiliated professionals – they are equity stakeholders in the enterprise they are building together.

When Sansone and Hartman set out to find a new partner, their mandate was clear: a firm that could make a large organization feel small in relationship and service, while delivering the technology, scale, and resources of a major firm. After an extensive due diligence process that included conversations with multiple broker-dealers, they chose Cetera.

What set Cetera apart was not a single tool, but a defined system for growth. Every Cetera firm operates inside the same model: a community of peers running comparable practices, a dedicated team organized around the firm’s written growth plan, and the infrastructure that makes that plan executable.

RIAs like Blue Horizon Equity can run on Cetera’s infrastructure layer called Blueprint, which is Cetera’s integrated technology and services platform, purpose-built for registered investment advisers. Blueprint delivers RIA-level autonomy, multi-custodial flexibility, and modular middle-office infrastructure, enabling advisory firms to scale efficiently without having to build that infrastructure on their own.

Crucially for iTP and Blue Horizon Equity, Blueprint is not a rigid, one-size-fits-all system – it’s intentionally shaped around the firms operating on it, with access to multiple custody and clearing options including Pershing, the platform iTP was already using and wanted to keep.

“Blueprint is a collaboration that gives iTP the infrastructure to scale on their own terms, backed by the technology, resources, service and support of Cetera overall,” said Andina Anderson, Head of Blueprint for Cetera. “We’re proud that iTP chose Cetera as its partner to help them write their next growth chapter.”

“What I liked about Blueprint and Cetera’s approach is that they’re not rigid, and they’re very willing to adjust to the needs at hand so things stay flexible as we move along. Cetera hasn’t dug their heels in on anything, and that’s refreshing,” said iTP Managing Director Bob Sansone, a founding partner of iTP.

That flexibility, paired with personalized service at the leadership level, proved decisive. It reflects how Cetera is built to work with its firms – one accountable relationship, specialists drawn against the firm’s growth plan, and support measured where it matters. It is the same model behind Cetera’s 98.4% advisor retention, among the highest in the industry.

“From day one, we’ve had people to work with; it’s already a partnership with real people we can reach whenever we need them, and that says a lot about Cetera and how they’ll support us,” said Jeffrey Hartman, Managing Director at iTP. “The high level of service and attention we’re getting from Cetera isn’t something we’ve experienced in a long time, and it makes all the difference.”

Hartman said growth was a central objective of iTP’s transition to Cetera. The firm’s structure is designed to attract like-minded advisors and advisory teams seeking genuine equity participation, institutional-grade infrastructure, and a culture that prioritizes relationships over transactions. With active conversations already underway with advisors in several regions, iTP is pursuing significant additional asset growth in the near term – and is particularly well-positioned to appeal to experienced advisors and independent practices evaluating the RIA model who do not want to shoulder the complexity of standing up that infrastructure on their own.

“The RIA model is the future of our industry. At iTP, we have created a home where an advisor can participate in the benefits of our model – including real ownership through equity – without having to do all the work of building it from scratch,” Sansone said. “That’s a powerful value proposition, and Cetera’s Blueprint platform amplifies it.”

The iTP story began in 1971, when Sansone entered the financial services industry and spent the next quarter of a century building his career through Mutual of New York (the MONY Group). He later served as a corporate officer with MONY before transitioning to AXA’s large-firm recruiting division, where he first connected with Hartman. In 2010, Sansone co-founded iTrust Advisors, a general insurance agency. By 2014, the two had joined forces to build what would become iTP Partners, initially affiliating with American Portfolios before transitioning through the Advisor Group/Osaic succession.

Today, iTP and Blue Horizon Equity operate a nationally dispersed advisor base from their Pittsford flagship and Ponte Vedra Beach offices, with growth-oriented leadership that has structured the firm to attract the next generation of entrepreneurial advisors.

In welcoming iTP, Cetera Wealth Management President Todd Mackay said: “Bob and Jeff have spent decades proving that building a firm the right way – anchored by relationships, advisor ownership, and a genuine culture of service – is how to create lasting value. iTP is exactly the kind of firm Cetera was built to serve because they’re sophisticated, growth-oriented, and deeply committed to the advisors and clients who make it what it is.”

About Cetera

Cetera is the premier financial advisor Wealth Hub, empowering independent advisors and institutions with personalized support, flexible affiliation models, and end-to-end growth solutions. Home to approximately 12,000 financial professionals and institutions, Cetera’s multi-channel ecosystem enables financial professionals to grow, scale or transition their businesses on their own terms.

Unlike traditional IBDs, Cetera offers true choice – blending modern technology, integrated wealth solutions, and a community-driven culture. Cetera’s five-channel model and commitment to long-term advisor value provide a scalable blueprint for consistent, repeatable growth.

As of March 31, 2026, Cetera firms manage approximately $630 billion in assets under administration and $296 billion in assets under management. Its Voice of the Customer program has captured nearly 50,000 advisor reviews, with more than 43,000 five-star ratings, giving Cetera a 4.7 out of 5 satisfaction score.

Learn more at www.cetera.com and follow Cetera on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and X.

Cetera is a network of independent retail firms, including those that are members of FINRA/SIPC: Cetera Advisors LLC; Cetera Wealth Services, LLC (formerly known as Cetera Advisor Networks); Cetera Investment Services LLC (marketed as Cetera Financial Institutions or Cetera Investors); and Cetera Financial Specialists LLC. Entities registered as investment advisers with the Securities and Exchange Commission include Cetera Investment Management LLC and Cetera Investment Advisers LLC. Cetera’s principal office is located at 655 W. Broadway, 11th Floor, San Diego, CA 92101.

Avantax Planning Partners, Inc., is an SEC registered investment adviser within the Aretec Group, Inc. (dba Cetera Holdings, an affiliate of CFG). All the referenced entities are under common ownership.

Cetera exclusively provides investment products and services through its representatives. Although Cetera does not provide tax or legal advice, or supervise tax, accounting or legal services, Cetera representatives may offer these services through their independent outside businesses. This information is not intended as tax or legal advice.

1Value approximated based on information provided to Cetera for asset holdings as of April 28, 2026.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/itp-partners-with-approximately-3-5-billion-in-aua-and-nearly-50-financial-advisors-joins-cetera-and-launches-new-independent-ria-302841758.html

SOURCE Cetera Financial Group

TORONTO, Aug. 4, 2026 /CNW/ — Propel Holdings Inc. (“Propel”) (TSX: PRL), the fintech facilitating access to credit for underserved consumers, announced today that Clive Kinross, CEO of Propel, is scheduled to participate in a fireside chat at the Canaccord Genuity 46th Annual Growth Conference on Tuesday, August 11, 2026 at 9:00am ET.

An archive of the recording will be accessible on the investor section of the company’s website at www.propelholdings.com.

Fireside chat details are as follows:

Date:   Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Time:  9:00 a.m. ET
Webcast: Click here  

About Propel

Propel Holdings (TSX: PRL) the fintech building a new world of financial opportunity for consumers, partners, and investors. Propel’s operating brands — Fora Credit, CreditFresh, MoneyKey and QuidMarket — together with Propel Bank facilitate access to credit for consumers underserved by traditional financial institutions. Through its AI-powered platform, Propel evaluates customers in a more comprehensive way than traditional credit scores can. The result is better products and an expanded credit market for consumers while creating sustainable, profitable growth for Propel. The revolutionary fintech platform has already helped consumers access over 2 million loans and lines of credit and over 3 billion dollars in credit. At Propel, we are here to change the way customers, partners and investors succeed together.  

Learn more at www.propelholdings.com.  

SOURCE Propel Holdings Inc.

AI-enabled customer operations achieve a 98.7% answer rate, nearly 80% autonomous problem resolution and approximately 1,500 hours of daily speech-to-text processing

BEIJING, Aug. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Yiren Digital Ltd. (NYSE: YRD) (“Yiren Digital” or the “Company”), a leading company specializing in financial technology and artificial intelligence innovation across multiple industries in China and global markets, today announced the continued expansion of AI deployment across customer operations, including intelligent customer service, outbound communications, quality controls and workflow automation.

Customer operations encompass some of the Company’s highest-volume workflows, spanning service, sales and asset-recovery interactions. Deploying AI across these high-volume workflows illustrates how the Company is extending AI beyond discrete task automation into shared operational capabilities that can be applied across additional business functions over time.

“Customer operations represent a proven example of how agent-driven execution can create value at scale,” said Mr. Ning Tang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Yiren Digital. “By embedding AI into high-volume workflows, we are expanding service capacity and responsiveness while enabling our teams to focus on cases that require greater judgment and human engagement. These module deployments provide a solid foundation to support our future expansion into AI-powered business beyond fintech.”

AI-Enabled Customer Operations at Scale

Yiren Digital’s self-developed AI agent platform, MagiCube 2.0, serves as the Company’s enterprise AI operating platform, providing the common infrastructure for AI agent deployment. XuanJi, the Company’s AI-driven workflow execution layer, supports repetitive, high-volume processes such as outbound customer service, telesales, insurance proposal generation, lending operations and post-sale engagement. Together, these systems enable AI deployment across multiple customer-facing workflows through a unified enterprise architecture.

Current examples of AI deployment across customer operations and related outcomes include:

Intelligent customer service: The Qingniao intelligent customer-service system achieved a 98.7% answer rate, and its text-based service agent’s autonomous problem-resolution rate increased from 60% to nearly 80%.

Voice-AI: The Fengchao AI voice agent supports approximately 1,500 hours of real-time speech-to-text processing per day, with recognition accuracy as high as 97.8%.

Automated quality assurance: A quality-inspection agent performs real-time checks on more than 2 million sales records daily, supporting consistent review at a scale that would be difficult to achieve through manual processes alone.

24/7 customer support: The Company’s credit business operates a 24/7 AI-assisted outbound-call customer-service center, extending service availability and supporting high-volume customer communications.

In addition to AI-enhanced customer solutions, all customer complaints were handled within 24 hours in 2025, and the Company’s complaint-handling success rate reached 100% with total complaint volume decreasing by 35.97% year over year. These results reflect the Company’s broader customer-protection and service-management efforts.

Embedding AI Across Customer Operations

Together, these deployments demonstrate how Yiren Digital is extending AI beyond standalone applications into core customer operations. By integrating AI agents, workflow execution and automated quality controls within a unified enterprise architecture, the Company is building a more consistent and scalable operating model while supporting its long-term transition toward an AI-native, multi-industry operating platform. 

Yiren Digital will continue expanding AI deployment across customer acquisition, customer service, quality assurance and post-sale engagement, supported by centralized orchestration and governance across regulated business lines.

About Yiren Digital

Yiren Digital Ltd. is a leading company specializing in financial technology and artificial intelligence innovation across multiple industries in China and global markets. The Company leverages advanced artificial intelligence and emerging technologies to enhance customer experience, optimize capital efficiency, and expand financial inclusion. Following the regulatory filing of its in-house developed Large Language Model Zhiyu, and the significant enhancement of its MagiCube Agent platform, Yiren Digital is establishing a new growth engine to accelerate its evolution into an AI-native, multi-industry operating platform extending beyond traditional financial services. For more information, please visit https://ir.yiren.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “aim,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “hope,” “going forward,” “intend,” “ought to,” “plan,” “project,” “potential,” “seek,” “may,” “might,” “can,” “could,” “will,” “would,” “shall,” “should,” “is likely to” and the negative form of these words and other similar expressions. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “target,” “confident,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations, assumptions, and assessments of current market and operating conditions. These statements involve inherent risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are outside the control of the Company, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors and other risks described in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no, and expressly disclaims any, obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/yiren-digitals-ai-agents-deliver-measurable-gains-across-customer-operations-302842106.html

SOURCE Yiren Digital Ltd.