Equitable, Allianz move into top 5 in final LIMRA 2024 annuity sales list

Equitable Financial and Allianz Life parlayed a strong 2024 into a top-five finish in the LIMRA annual annuity sales rankings.

For the first time ever, total quarterly annuity sales surpassed $100 billion in all four quarters of the year. Total annuity sales finished at $432.6 billion, up 12% yearly, according to LIMRA’s U.S. Individual Annuity Sales Survey, representing 83% of the U.S. annuity market. This is the third year of record-high annuity sales, which together represent $1.1 trillion.

Experts expect another strong year in 2025.

Athene Annuity & Life again topped the sales charts with $36 billion in sales. But those sales were basically flat year-over-year. Meanwhile, the rest of the top five made strong gains. Equitable and Allianz both improved sales by 20% to 25%, propelling them past New York Life.

In the fourth quarter, U.S. annuity sales totaled $100.6 billion, down 13% from the record-setting results in the fourth quarter of 2023. Falling interest rates dampened fixed-rate deferred (FRD) and income annuity sales, pulling down overall results.

“This was a remarkable year for the U.S. annuity market with nearly 80% of participating carriers reporting positive growth. Favorable economic conditions and growing investor awareness about the protections and guarantees that annuities offer propelled the broad growth,” said Bryan Hodgens, senior vice president and head of LIMRA research. “The past few years have transformed the annuity market. Although we don’t expect sales at the levels seen the past two years, LIMRA predicts total annuity sales to be well above $350 billion in 2025 and remain above $300 billion through 2027.”

LIMRA provided a further breakdown by product category:

Registered index-linked annuities

Registered index-linked annuity (RILA) sales jumped 35% to $17.5 billion in the fourth quarter. RILA sales reached $65.4 billion in 2024, 38% higher than the prior year. This is the 10th consecutive record-setting year for RILA sales and the first year RILA sales outperformed traditional variable annuity sales.

“Driven by greater competition and continuous product innovation, RILA sales have exploded over the past decade — from $3.7 billion in 2015 to $65.4 billion in 2024,” said Hodgens. “Given the current market uncertainty, RILA products have carved out a nice place along the product risk spectrum, positioned between traditional variable annuities and fixed index annuities. LIMRA is forecasting sales to remain at or slightly above the sales in 2024.”

Traditional variable annuities

In 2024, traditional variable annuity (VA) sales experienced growth for the first time in three years. Fourth quarter traditional VA sales grew 35% year-over-year to $16.6 billion and total 2024 sales jumped 18% to $60.8 billion.

Fixed indexed annuities

FIA sales were $31.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024. While 10% below the record-high sales in the third quarter, it was 28% above the prior year’s results. In 2024, FIA sales grew 32% to $126.8 billion. Three-quarters of the top 20 FIA carriers reported at least double-digit growth.

This is the third consecutive year of record FIA sales. Although lower interest rates will likely diminish demand for FIA products in 2025, LIMRA is forecasting FIA sales to remain above $100 billion in 2025.

Fixed-rate deferred

For the fourth consecutive quarter, FRD annuity sales fell year over year. Total FRD sales were $28.3 billion in the fourth quarter, down 52% from the record set in the fourth quarter of 2023. For the year, FRD sales fell 8% to $152.3 billion.

“The fourth quarter marked the lowest FRD sales in 10 quarters. Despite expected additional interest rate cuts, LIMRA expects FRD annuity sales to remain above $120 billion in 2025, which is double the sales recorded before 2022,” noted Hodgens.

Income annuities

After eight consecutive quarters, single premium immediate annuity (SPIA) sales fell below $3 billion. SPIA sales were $2.9 billion in the fourth quarter, down 18% from the prior year’s results. For the year, SPIA sales rose 1% to $13.4 billion, setting a new annual sales record.

Deferred income annuity (DIA) sales fell 22% year over year to $1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024. For the year, DIA sales increased 16% to $4.8 billion, a record for this product line.

More data can be found at LIMRA's Fact Tank.

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