Robert Muriel, director of the Illinois Department of Insurance, announced that he’ll leave his position on Dec. 11. Muriel was…
This report compiled by InsuranceNewsNet staff.
Staff Reports
Congressional Centrists Float $908B Aid Package
The package is trillions of dollars less than Democrats say are necessary to help Americans, but it provides aid to critical areas such as unemployment compensation and vaccine distribution.
Whole Life Sales Lone Bright Spot In Third-Quarter Sales: Wink
Third-quarter sales of whole life registered $1.05 billion, up 12.9% when compared with the previous quarter, according to Wink’s Sales & Market Report. But sales were down more than 10.2% as compared to the same period last year.
Life Insurance Sales To Match Pre-Pandemic Growth By 2022: LIMRA
COVID-19 has increased consumer awareness about the need for life insurance. LIMRA research finds 6 in 10 Americans say they have a heightened awareness about the need for life insurance due to the pandemic and 29% say they are more likely to buy life insurance in the next 12 months.
3Q Annuity Sales Reveal Good News, So-So News Amid Pandemic
Wink reports that deferred annuities sales came to $54.2 billion, an increase of more than 18% over the devastating second quarter. However, the $54.2 billion still falls short of where sales have been in the past, said Sheryl J. Moore, president and CEO of both Moore Market Intelligence and Wink, Inc.
Driven by strong growth in whole life and term products, total individual life insurance new annualized premium increased 2% and the number of policies sold jumped 7% in the third quarter, according to LIMRA’s Third Quarter 2020 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Sales Survey.
FlexGuard, Prudential Financial’s first indexed variable annuity product, achieved $1 billion in sales less than six months after launch, making it the fastest-selling product of its kind ever, according to annuity sales data from the Secure Retirement Institute.
TIAA CEO Roger Ferguson To Retire As Biden Cabinet Rumors Swirl
TIAA, a leading provider of secure retirements and outcome-focused investment solutions, said Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., intends to retire as president and CEO on March 31, 2021. Ferguson is rumored to be on President-elect Joe Biden’s shortlist for a cabinet position.
Trump’s Fed Nominee In Danger After 3rd GOP Senator Opposes
President Donald Trump’s conservative nominee for the Federal Reserve is in danger today after Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., withdrew support. The surprising announcement puts the controversial economist’s confirmation in doubt during the the final months of the Trump presidency.
Wells Fargo’s former chief executive and former head of Wells Fargo’s Community Bank defrauded investors by using a metric that was inflated by accounts that were opened for consumers who did not ask for or want them, according to new charges filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Pooled employer plans will give employers, especially small unrelated employers, a way of offering their employees a workplace retirement savings option with reduced burdens and cost.
The NAIC Center for Insurance Policy and Research (CIPR) will hold a three-hour special session on business interruption insurance during…
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule to provide regulatory guideposts for plan fiduciaries seeking to invest using non-pecuniary principles, particularly those involving environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing.
Total annuity sales were $54.8 billion in the third quarter, up 13% from the second quarter, but down 8% from 3Q 2019, according to preliminary results from the Secure Retirement Institute U.S. Individual Annuity Sales Survey.
Industry representatives are still reviewing the contents of Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2020, but applauded the bill’s bipartisanship as well as the urgency of the U.S. retirement crisis.
A leading seller of fixed index annuities, American Equity announced the Brookfield deal with a Sunday news release. Brookfield will acquire a 19.9% ownership interest in the common shares of AEL in two stages, starting with an initial purchase of a 9.9% interest at $37 per share promptly following required regulatory approval.
Developed exclusively for the state of New York, AIG said the Power Index Premier NY is currently the only index annuity that gives New York residents the option of a living benefit rider. New York passed Regulation 187 last year, considered the toughest annuity sales rules in the country.
Young People Driving Huge Life Insurance Application Gains: MIB
With a 4% growth rate for 2020 through the third quarter, life insurance application activity has “returned to pre-pandemic normal levels,” according to the MIB Life Index. The third quarter experienced the largest quarter-over-quarter gain since 2011 at 9.2%, MIB said, driven primarily by 12.8% growth in 0-44 age group and 9.2% growth in 45-59 age group.
In South Korea, China, France and India the top reason for owning life insurance is to supplement their retirement income, whereas in Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, consumers are far more concerned about replacing the income of a wage earner.
LL Global, the parent company for LIMRA, LOMA and Secure Retirement Institute, today named Mark Poklar to lead its insurance research unit. He will report to Alison Salka, senior vice president and head of LIMRA Research.
