<img src="https://ml.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/7bc19f77-d3a5-4592-997c-120ea65004c5?size=2" nborder="0" align="left" hspace="5" vspace="5" title="CredFin - Logo HiRes.png" alt="CredFin, Inc."/>National Business Credit and Funding Advisory Firm Partners with Industry Veteran Rob Thomas to Equip Forward-Thinking Insurance Agents with the Capital Firepower Needed to Acquire, Consolidate, and Lead in the Era of Artificial Intelligence DisruptionMIAMI, May 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CredFin, Inc., the national business credit and funding advisory firm headquartered in Miami, Florida, today announced a landmark strategic alliance with The Agent Underground, the premier professional networking and mentorship platform for independent insurance agents, founded and led by seasoned insurance industry veteran Rob Thomas. The announcement comes at a critical inflection point for the United States insurance industry. With artificial intelligence reshaping the distribution landscape at an unprecedented pace, hundreds of thousands of independent insurance agents face mounting uncertainty, together with a narrowing window to position themselves on the right side of history. THE DISRUPTION IS REAL, AND IT IS HERE NOW The evidence is impossible to ignore. Bank of America Global Research has warned that more than fifteen billion dollars in agent commissions, paid by just six major carriers including Progressive, Travelers, and Hartford in 2025 alone, are at direct risk of artificial intelligence-driven disintermediation. In their analysis, BofA maintained a bearish outlook on insurance distribution stocks, noting that standard home, auto, and small commercial policies represent low-complexity transactions where AI-powered direct-to-consumer channels can eliminate the human intermediary entirely. The market has already reacted. In early 2026, the global insurance industry experienced a significant valuation correction triggered by the rapid deployment of agentic AI tools, which are systems capable of sophisticated advisory, document sorting, and personalized policy comparison. These tools are actively eroding the information advantage historically held by human brokers. Digital insurer Insurify launched a ChatGPT-powered conversational interface automating tasks previously performed by human advisors. OpenAI approved its first carrier-built insurance application through Spanish digital insurer Tuio, confirming that generative AI is no longer a future-state technology. It is a present, disruptive force reshaping legacy pricing power and distribution hierarchies. The numbers behind this transformation are staggering. The global AI in insurance market, valued at $4.59 billion in 2022, is projected to reach $79.86 billion by 2032, growing at more than 33 percent annually. Mergers and acquisitions activity within AI in insurance skyrocketed in 2025, registering growth of 328 percent in deal value and 125 percent in deal volume. Forrester projects that United States insurance industry technology spending will increase by $173 billion in 2026, a 7.8 percent year-over-year advance, as carriers pivot from modernization toward intelligence, efficiency, and AI-driven competitive differentiation. Meanwhile, the human side of the industry faces an equally significant structural reckoning. According to OPTIS Partners, more than 30,000 independent agencies across the United States generate less than $1.25 million in annual revenue; the vast majority have no viable internal succession or perpetuation plan. There were 695 insurance agency mergers and acquisitions completed in 2025, and industry analysts expect large-scale consolidation to accelerate in 2026 as smaller agencies face the dual pressure of AI disruption and ownership transition challenges. THE STRATEGIC ALLIANCE: FUNDING THE AGENTS WHO LEAD THE REVOLUTION CredFin, Inc. was built for precisely this moment. Powered by the proprietary Funding Ready™ and Lender Match™ System, which leverages data from Dun and Bradstreet, Equifax Business, and Experian Business, CredFin helps small business owners, including independent insurance agents and agency owners, become Funding Ready™ and connect with the right capital sources to fuel their strategic ambitions. Rob Thomas and The Agent Underground bring the industry's most motivated and forward-thinking agents to this alliance. Founded by Rob Thomas, an insurance broker, financial advisor, industry mentor, and partner in WaterRock Financial Network, The Agent Underground has established itself as the foremost platform for seasoned and aspiring agents who wish to build independent agencies, shorten the learning curve, and create long-term financial stability. Rob's platform provides education, agency-building blueprints, and hands-on mentorship that equips agents to navigate complexity, not retreat from it. Together, CredFin and The Agent Underground are launching what promises to be the most impactful capital access program in the independent insurance agency sector. The program is designed to equip qualified agents with the business credit and funding infrastructure required to acquire under-capitalized or succession-challenged agencies, positioning them as the consolidators rather than the consolidated. “We are standing at the most important crossroads the insurance industry has ever faced. Artificial intelligence is eliminating the agents who are unprepared, yet for agents who understand what is happening and move decisively, this is the greatest opportunity for wealth creation and agency growth in a generation. CredFin gives our agents the financial firepower to be the buyers in a market full of sellers.” Rob Thomas, Founder, The Agent Underground “Rob Thomas has spent his career building agents who think and operate like business owners. CredFin, Inc. exists to give those agents access to the capital that converts their vision into acquisition strategy. When a funded, forward-thinking agent engages with an undercapitalized agency that has no succession plan, the outcome is predictable and enormously valuable for both parties. We are pioneering the playbook for this new era.” Ray A. Smith, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, CredFin, Inc. WHAT THIS MEANS FOR INDEPENDENT INSURANCE AGENTS Through this alliance, qualified independent insurance agents affiliated with The Agent Underground's network will gain direct access to CredFin, Inc.'s Funding Ready™ and Lender Match™ System, the same institutional-grade business credit and funding infrastructure used by growth-oriented small businesses nationwide. Agents will be guided through a structured process to optimize their business credit profiles across all three major commercial bureaus, then matched with lenders aligned to their specific acquisition or operational funding goals. The strategic advantages for participating agents are profound: <ul type="disc"><li style="margin-top:2pt; margin-bottom:2pt; text-align:justify;">Access capital to acquire independent agencies with no succession plan, at a time when thousands are entering the market as available opportunities</li><li style="margin-top:2pt; margin-bottom:2pt; text-align:justify;">Fund operational expansion, technology upgrades, and talent acquisition to compete in an AI-driven marketplace</li><li style="margin-top:2pt; margin-bottom:2pt; text-align:justify;">Build business credit profiles across all three major commercial bureaus that support long-term agency scalability and financial independence</li><li style="margin-top:2pt; margin-bottom:2pt; text-align:justify;">Assume the role of industry consolidator, leveraging the very disruption that is overwhelming unprepared competitors</li><li style="margin-top:2pt; margin-bottom:2pt; text-align:justify;">Join two organizations purpose-built to help agents not merely survive, but lead in this new landscape </li></ul> "The agents who move now will look back on this moment as the turning point that defined their careers. The agents who wait will look back and wonder why they did not." JOIN THE MOVEMENT: ATTEND THE BUSINESS FUNDING READY™ WORKSHOP Insurance agents who are ready to take control of their financial future and position themselves ahead of the AI disruption curve are invited to attend the CredFin Business Funding Ready™ Workshop, hosted by Ray A. Smith, Chief Executive Officer of CredFin, Inc., and Rob Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of The Agent Underground. The workshop is a live, interactive event designed specifically for insurance professionals who want to understand how business credit works, how to become Funding Ready™, and how to access the capital needed to grow, acquire, and thrive in the rapidly consolidating insurance marketplace. Attendees will receive hands-on guidance directly from two of the industry's most knowledgeable voices in funding strategy and agency growth. Seating is limited. This workshop is for the agent who refuses to be left behind. Register today at: <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=WC4jEGtVpsM8VK6OBk6OwLb__bFk89Lt-4eEiGZTX9MFqQoAbkyPTTgcStUeb6GcULbF3jnYh7Z_Xk0ngBilIL2WxXWyoN4WndPvSg4vQrDXeFfq0IK-rt6N3u1TTvo9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="">https://workshop.credfin.ai</a> FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations and assumptions. These statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Words such as "may," "expects," "positioned," "designed to," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. CredFin, Inc. undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date of this release. DISCLAIMER CredFin, Inc. is not a lender and does not make credit decisions. The company may, in certain circumstances, introduce business owners to independent third-party financing providers. All financing decisions, terms, and approvals are made solely by those independent providers and are subject to their own underwriting criteria. Participation in the workshop and use of CredFin, Inc.'s advisory services are voluntary and may not be suitable for all businesses. Outcomes vary based on individual business circumstances, creditworthiness, lender criteria, and market conditions, and there is no assurance that any business will obtain financing as a result of participation. ABOUT CREDFIN, INC. CredFin, Inc. is a business credit and funding advisory firm headquartered at 1395 Brickell Ave, Ste 800, Miami, FL 33131. The company provides educational resources and advisory services designed to help small business owners understand commercial credit data and prepare for potential financing opportunities. Founded by Ray A. Smith, CredFin integrates data from three business credit bureaus (Dun and Bradstreet, Equifax Business, and Experian Business), the Secretary of State, IRS and various other public databases, to help clients identify areas of their business credit profile that may benefit from correction or improvement. CredFin, Inc. is not a lender and does not provide credit directly. It may introduce clients to independent third-party financing providers whose decisions are made subject to their own underwriting standards. For more information, visit credfin.ai or the CredFin newsroom at credfin.ai/news. ABOUT THE AGENT UNDERGROUND &amp; ROB THOMAS The Agent Underground is an online platform and professional networking brand founded by Rob Thomas — insurance broker, financial advisor, and industry mentor. Through The Agent Underground and in partnership with WaterRock Financial Network, Rob provides education, agency-building blueprints, and coaching designed to help seasoned and aspiring agents shorten the learning curve, enter agency ownership, and create long-term financial stability. Rob Thomas is licensed to sell health, life, and annuity products, and brings decades of hands-on industry experience to every agent he mentors. For more information, visit TheAgentUnderground.com. MEDIA CONTACT CredFin, Inc. 1395 Brickell Ave, Ste 800 Miami, FL 33131 Email: success@credfin.ai <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=aE7jqeXNho1R0o5N2v9-I5tCo0maE0NCunDq_mb8HMvsgvlfqWT9HmlC6_nGHDNiit1FQLSixBkq1TJ3w4ROEA==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="CredFin.ai">CredFin.ai</a> | <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=a3B-T_55Xchc07SWB-B5dtK_P8U1Qfc3E9rPvyukfo79stuA9AeknPb92hrA4Hd4ar-K_7tOcisMHdjHltKBQanqFexeMHPc33_6w7fmq9A=" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="Workshop.CredFin.ai">Workshop.CredFin.ai</a> <img alt="" src='https://ml.globenewswire.com/media/NWYzY2U0NDQtZTFjZi00ODRiLWJhZTctNDVmMjRiOWVkNzI2LTEzMjMxNTYtMjAyNi0wNS0yOC1lbg==/tiny/CredFin-Inc-.png' referrerpolicy='no-referrer-when-downgrade' />

GlobeNewswire Inc.

CredFin, Inc. and The Agent Underground Join Forces to Pioneer the Insurance Industry Revolution

Latest news from the world of business and finance – both local and global

MONEY FM 89.3 is Singapore's first and only Business and Personal Finance station, featuring local and international business and financial news.

MONEY FM 89.3

Discover newsletters from our DJs on LinkedIn