Clearwater, Fla. – September 23, 2020 ‒ AmeriLife Group has acquired a majority interest in The Achievement Group. TAG is…
Read moreMINNEAPOLIS – Sept. 23, 2020 – As markets settle from initial COVID-19-related health and economic crises, Americans are evaluating the…
Many annuity manufacturers adopted product designs that essentially share the downside risk with the consumer. That gave rise to the registered index-linked annuities, which continue to post impressive sales numbers. Through the first half of 2020, RILA sаles were $9.4 billion, up 22% from the first hаlf of 2019.
MaxProtect™ joins CUNA Mutual Group’s already-robust portfolio of annuities, which had fourteen mentions in Barron’s 2020 Top 100 Annuities list. “If the past nine months have taught us anything, it’s that few things in life are guaranteed,” said Dave Hanzlik, Vice President of Annuity and Retirement Solutions, CUNA Mutual Group. With the minimum purchase amount…
More than half of Gen X-ers and 40 percent of Baby Boomers have never given advice to their children about planning for retirement, according to a new study from North American Company for Life and Health Insurance. One retirement industry leader says this lack of discussion about money matters can have a big impact on the future of savings.
The problem for the DOL is one of time. There might not be enough of it to do a major rewrite, and all of the analysis and legal testing that goes along with that. Ideally, the agency would need to publish its final rule by Nov. 1 at the latest, a former DOL official said Wednesday.
This level of functionality is vital, especially at a point in time when best interest standards are increasingly prevalent, to help agents and advisors demonstrate that they've done their homework and shopped the market for the most suitable product to fit the client's needs, “stated Robert Vandy, President at Advisor Insurance Brokers.
Columbus, OH —September 14, 2020— As the pandemic’s impact collides with powerful systemic pressures putting more responsibility on individuals to…
Frequently sought out by government and practitioners to help educate about, and craft solutions to address, modern challenges in the retirement income market, Professor Milevsky is an award-winning thought leader, and is excited to collaborate with Guardian Capital, on an exclusive basis in Canada, to provide his knowledge, experience and speaking prowess…
–SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. today announced that Nationwide, a leading insurance and financial services company, has partnered with SS&C to support and enhance its advisor-sold retirement plan platform. “Partnering with SS&C will allow Nationwide to accelerate our efforts to offer the value-added solutions that today’s plan sponsors and…
The COVID-19 pandemic, economic turmoil and market fluctuations are testing the messages that annuity sellers use to market products. Those…
The Department of Labor’s newest version of the investment advice rule requires a financial institution to be liable if a sale involves trail commissions. But insurance marketers are not considered financial institutions and life insurance companies don’t want to be responsible for independent insurance agents that they don’t control.
–Canvas, a Phoenix- based insurance agency owned by Puritan Life Insurance Company of America, is one of the first companies in the United States to launch fixed annuity options sold completely online, without commissioned sales agents. The Signature Future Fund and Flex Fund annuities from Canvas are sold directly to consumers and guarantee locked-in…
The NAIC revisions to the suitability in annuity transactions (#275) model law were adopted in February. Since then, only Arizona and Iowa have adopted the rules, which establish a best-interest standard that aligns with rules being considered by other agencies.
The transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020 pending regulatory approvals, will increase Empower’s participant base to more than 12.2 million and retirement services recordkeeping assets to approximately $834 billion administered in approximately 67,000 workplace savings plans.
Like gauze on a camera lens, a bull market can hide a lot of blemishes in retirement savings plans. If you find yourself stuck with a poor-performing 403 plan, you have a few options, said Scott Dauenhauer, a certified financial planner with Meridian Wealth Management in Murrieta, Calif., and founder of the Teacher's Advocate blog. You might be able to find a low-cost…
The rule would replace the controversial fiduciary rule published by the Obama administration. The Trump replacement has two main parts: a new exemption allowing advisors to provide conflicted advice for commissions; and a reinstatement of the “five-part test” from 1975 to determine what constitutes investment advice.
Industry veteran Scott Harrison has joined Securian Financial as a regional sales vice president working with financial professionals to bring the company’ s retirement plan solutions to small and mid-size employers. Prior to joining Securian Financial, he served as a retirement plan consultant with The Standard. A history of retirement plan service…
The life/annuity industry’s net income fell by 66% in the first half of 2020, compared with the year-ago period, A.M. Best reported today, driven by a major reinsurance agreement inked between Jackson National and Athene. The deal had the effect of moving approximately $27 billion of premium out of the U.S. statutory industry population.
SAN FRANCISCO and NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 1, 2020/ PRNewswire/– Joint research from RetireOne ® and Jackson National Life Insurance Company ® finds that 68% of registered investment advisors would consider recommending an annuity in cases where clients asked about annuities. “We are not surprised to see that RIAs are open to recommending annuities for clients…
The APP Annuity is the latest addition to the industry-leading product lines of A-CAP’ s two insurance subsidiaries, Sentinel Security Life Insurance Company and Atlantic Coast Life Insurance Company. The APP Annuity is distinct in the industry, and gives contract holders exclusive access to the Credit Suisse Momentum Index, as well as a unique 10- year…
Annuity sales were down sharply in all but two product categories during the second quarter, according to the Wink’s Sales & Market Report, in a particularly tough sales period. Just two product categories – multi-year guaranteed annuities and structured annuities, avoided big losses.
Consumers are rushing to safety as they did early in the Great Recession, but they are running toward different products during this economic downturn – and that trend is likely to continue even in this ultralow rate environment.
These uncertain times and the worldwide financial impact have many people searching for a retirement strategy that will provide answers to those questions. Annuities may be the answer to retirees’ worries and offer the best way to build financial security for their future.
Each presenter will be allotted a minimum of ten minutes in which to complete his or her presentation during a Sept. 3 public hearing, the DOL said. Depending on the number of people and organizations wishing to comment, the number of speaking slots might be curtailed, the DOL said.
Nationwide is joining product development partner Annexus, the premier independent designer of indexed retirement solutions, to launch of the Nationwide Defined Protection Annuity (DPA), a new registered index-linked annuity (RILA).
In 2017, after an analysis of public comments on the Obama fiduciary rule, the Wall Street Journal reported that “40% of respondents didn’t write the posts that were attributed to them,” with “most of the 345 comments [analyzed] critical of the fiduciary rule.” A trio of senators fear a new rule might also be attracting fake comments.
Eighteen organizations have issued a joint public comment on the Employee Benefits Security Administration's proposed rule entitled “Improving Investment Advice for Workers and Retirees”. The comment was written on Aug. 5, 2020, and posted on Aug. 10, 2020:. The comment was co-signed by the Alliance for Retired Americans, American Federation of State, County…
For financial professionals, the SECURE Act creates a prime opportunity to ask clients whether they already have access to guaranteed lifetime income through their employer plans. If not, an annuity can be a nice fit for a well-rounded retirement portfolio.
The Life Insurance and Annuities Committee granted two time extensions today to allow state regulators to finish work on a pair of key disclosure issues: one covering proprietary indexes in annuity sales, and another pertaining to a policy overview disclosure to be included with life insurance sales.
British insurer Prudential Plc. will spin off its American businesses, which include Jackson National Life Insurance Co., in order to focus on operations in Asia and Africa. Jackson was the leading seller of annuities in the U.S. market for 2019, although the insurer has struggled financially in 2020.
Brighthouse Financial held relatively steady in overall annuity sales with a year-over-year drop of 3% as the company pivots to…
A pair of major annuity sellers discussed second-quarter earnings today, as strategies emerged to limit financial losses to ultra-low interest rates and the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to pulling products, and/or limited sales, insurers are aggressively repricing and shifting product lineups.
Some language in the rule “could be understood to broadly impose fiduciary obligations in a manner similar to the Department’s 2016 fiduciary regulation,” reads the comment letter from the American Council of Life Insurers.
AIG executives say slow second-quarter annuity sales picked up near the end of the quarter and continued through July. Otherwise, the quarter was a struggle, with AIG posting a 56% fall in quarterly adjusted earnings, largely because of $458 million in pandemic losses in its general insurance business.
Morningstar said that the DOL could go further to protect all investors receiving rollover advice in a variety of contexts. The DOL should revisit the “regular basis” prong of the five-part test to either eliminate this requirement or presume that it is satisfied in the context of a rollover.
The annuity law was introduced in February and quickly passed the heavily Republican Idaho Legislature. Among the new mandates is a requirement that all indexed annuity advertising be preapproved by the Department of Insurance.
Annuity regulations finally appear to be aligned and workable. But the ink might not even dry before another election could potentially reverse the rules.
Bradford P. Campbell, who headed up the Employee Benefits Security Administration under President George W. Bush, called aspects of the new investment advice rule “misguided.” The Department of Labor proposal would replace the Obama administration fiduciary rule overturned by the courts.
Advice& Wealth Management delivered pretax adjusted operating earnings of $271 million in a difficult operating environment. This included an unfavorable impact of $122 million from the decline in the Federal Funds effective rate, lower transactional activity related to the pandemic and lower average equity markets. Adjusted operating net revenues…
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners revisions to the suitability in annuity transactions (#275) model law were adopted in February. Since then, Arizona and Iowa have adopted the rules, which establish a best-interest standard that aligns with rules being considered by other agencies.
Total annuity sales were $48.8 billion in the second quarter, down 24% from second quarter 2019, according to preliminary results from the Secure Retirement Institute annuity sales survey. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is being blamed for slowed sales, in part by preventing face-to-face contact.
To provide registered investment advisers with the best possible experience in helping clients achieve better retirement outcomes, Pacific Life today announced the integration of its commission-free variable annuity and fixed indexed annuity with the Orion Advisor Solutions platform. Orion is a premier provider of the tech-enabled fiduciary…
Critics claim the DOL is departing from precedent in a bid to push the reworked former fiduciary rule through quickly. Legislators and consumer advocates seek both a longer comment period and a public hearing.
–Verisk, a leading data analytics provider, today announced the release of Life Risk Navigator TM, an innovative, cloud-based stochastic risk modeling platform that offers in-depth portfolio analytics which can enhance risk selection, quantify changes in mortality rate, improve hedging strategies, and drive better financial decision-making.
2020 JUL 20– By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at CDC& FDA Daily– Nassau Financial Group launched Simple Annuity, its inaugural iOS mobile application, to support the sales of its fixed rate annuities. The Simple Annuity app marks a key step in Nassau’ s efforts to redesign the sales and consumer experience for annuities, empowering agents with digital tools to…
On Monday, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced the charges against Law Enforcement Employees Benevolent Association President Kenneth Wynder Jr., 56, of Stroudsburg, Pa., and the union's treasurer, Steven Whittick, 50, of Kingston. According to the criminal complaint unsealed Monday, Wynder, a former New York State Trooper, defrauded…
This merger is supported by the recent partnership with FormulaFolios, an RIA with $3.5 billion in AUM, and occurs just one year after AmeriLife forged its partnership with Brookstone, a leading RIA that provides fee-based asset management services. This latest announcement further positions AmeriLife as one of the largest independent marketing and RIA…
Regulators told the Life Insurance and Annuities Committee the nonforfeiture floor reduction is needed by insurers due to COVID-19 impacts. The 10-year Treasury rate fell well below 1% amid the virus outbreak in March and has not recovered.
President Of Law Enforcement Union Charged With Defrauding Union's Annuity Fund. Audrey Strauss, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, William F. Sweeny Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, New York Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Andriana Vamvakas, Northeastern Regional Director, U.S. Department of Labor Office of…
A state insurance regulator panel is set to develop guidance for states on adopting the best-interest annuity sales model law formalized earlier this year.
DPL Financial Partners and Midland National ® Life Insurance Company, are introducing a new, commission-free fixed index annuity, the Midland National Capital Income SM. “Health problems can dramatically impact a retiree’ s expenses,” said David Lau, founder and CEO of DPL, the leading insurance network for registered investment advisors.“ We wanted to create a…
