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86 FLORIDA M&T Bank to Implement Black Knight's EBI Florida-based Black Knight, Inc. has signed an agreement with M&T Bank, to implement Black Knight's Enterprise Business Intelligence (EBI) solution to provide broader and deeper insight into the bank's mortgage portfolio and to help improve efficiency across M&T Bank's origination and servicing opera- tions. LoanSphere Data Hub and LoanSphere Motivity—the primary components of the Enterprise Business Intelligence solution—are central to Black Knight's innovative Loan- Sphere platform of integrated software, data, and analytics that supports the mortgage and home equity loan life cycle. "Further expanding our relationship with Black Knight by implementing business intel- ligence into our company's data strategy will help M&T Bank take advantage of additional benefits, such as identifying opportunities to add value for our customers, and adding an- other tool to support our compliance efforts," said Michael Todaro, EVP of the Mortgage and Consumer Lending Division of M&T Bank. Black Knight's EBI solution leverages data to help both lenders and servicers generate and protect revenue, improve efficiency and per- formance, and reduce compliance risk. M&T Bank currently uses Black Knight's suite of LoanSphere solutions, making it one of Black Knight's enterprise clients. "By integrating Black Knight's suite of LoanSphere solutions and data assets from origination to servicing and bankruptcy/fore- closure, M&T Bank is implementing the most efficient operating model in the mortgage space. No other provider in the mortgage industry can offer Black Knight's complete range of innovative, mission-critical solutions and data across the loan lifecycle to help clients eliminate inefficiencies, discover insights, drive down costs and reduce risk," said Tom Sanzone, CEO at Black Knight. Florida Ends Housing Aid Program With $88 Million Unspent e state of Florida ended three programs designed to distribute federal housing aid funds, all under the banner of the Florida Hardest-Hit Fund (HHF). While that in itself would be noteworthy, the decision to end the programs is drawing criticism from some due to there being some $88 million left unspent. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Florida state officials say the HHF programs in ques- tion "helped tens of thousands of struggling Floridians" by providing principal mortgage reduction, mortgage help for the unemployed, and help with delinquent home loans. Trey Price, Executive Director for Florida Housing Finance Corporation, said, "Al- though the Florida HHF programs were originally slated to conclude by December 2020, we were able to meet the needs of strug- gling homeowners ahead of schedule." Several Florida HHF programs will remain open, including those focused on mortgage assistance for the elderly, mortgage modifications, and down payment assistance. e state says it will distribute the remain- ing $88 million in federal funds among these remaining programs. However, the Sentinel reports that these programs have thus far drawn only around a tenth of the applications of those the state is shuttering. U.S. Rep. Darren Soto, (D-Orlando), said, "Unfortunately, Governor Scott and Repub- lican legislators dragged their feet for years in getting the FHFC [Florida Housing Finance Corporation] to deploy significant funds and various assistance programs, undermining the effort and stifling its effectiveness." According to the Sentinel, the HHF programs "helped only about half the number of the approximately 100,000 Floridians who applied since it launched in 2010." According to a 2015 federal report, the Florida program also had a low admission rate compared to the 17 other states that participated. Unsurprisingly, Florida saw an uptick in mortgage delinquencies in the back half of 2017 and the wake of last year's powerful hur- ricane season. Old Republic Title Partners with Pavaso for eClosing Florida-based Old Republic National Title Insurance Company (ORNTIC) has unveiled a national digital strategy that involves the exclusive use of Pavaso's eClosing solution for processing digital real estate transactions in ORNTIC's direct and national settlement operations. According to a release by ORNTIC, Pava- so's eClosing platform uses digital technology that facilitates fast, consistent, accurate and compliant closings. is solution offers a better consumer, title agent, and lender experience by using a single, collaborative, secure portal. "Technological advances as well as shifting market demands and demographics make it clear that the title insurance industry is mov- ing quickly into the digital space," said Rande Yeager, Chairman, and CEO, Old Republic National Title Holding Company. "Our early support and commitment to the development and implementation of Pavaso represents a significant tactical step in advancing our of- ferings to today's customers and tomorrow's capital markets. e goal of our digital strategy is to provide eClosing experiences that are streamlined for everyone." Old Republic Title's Pavaso solution inte- grates disruptive technologies like BlockChain and electronic notary and allows title agents to assimilate a suite of complementary applica- tions into a single portal. "Old Republic Title's implementation of Pavaso technology creates a national 'digi- tal' network of title and closing agents fully capable of closing anything from paper to fully digital transactions," said Mark McEl- roy, CEO, Pavaso. "e result is a modern ecosystem for the real estate agent, mortgage lender and title agent, that puts the consumer front and center." GEORGIA HED: LendingQB Adds FormFree Technology to its 'Lean Lending' LOS Georgia-based Fintech company, Form- Free, announced the availability of its AccountChek automated asset verification service within LendingQB's web-based loan origination software (LOS). e integration enables lenders to order AccountChek Asset Reports directly from LendingQB's verifica- tions dashboard. FormFree's flagship AccountChek service lets borrowers demonstrate their ability to repay mortgage loans without tracking down bank statements or other asset documents. e secure process results in a smoother borrower experience that reduces loan processing and underwriting time as well as the total time required to close a loan.