Annuity News
Annuity News RSS Get our newsletter

AIG: Annuity Sales Showing ‘Strong Rebound’ Off Poor 2Q

Annuity News No comments.

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.

Read more

Annuity regulations finally appear to be aligned and workable. But the ink might not even dry before another election could potentially reverse the rules.

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.

Plenty of companies have discovered how challenging the switch from in-house to remote operations can be. However, there are simple shifts your company can make to ensure success.

Latest Exclusives >

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.

3D illustration of many arrows symbols pointing in the same direction and one arrow going back. Concept of regression.
Exclusive

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…

–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…

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…

The Destinations annuity is a first of its kind for the company, offering multiple allocation options including a new volatility-controlled index developed with Bank of America ®, the BofA Destinations Index™, which is exclusive to this product. “We are excited to collaborate with Bank of America, a leading global financial institution, and to give clients a…

For most Americans, Social Security plays an important role in maintaining retirement security. In other words, regardless of economic and market conditions, Social Security pays an annuity that will increase with inflation and continue for as long as you or your spouse lives. It is well known that workers and spouses who qualify for Social Security can elect…

Athene Holding, a leading provider of retirement savings products, agreed to fully reinsure $27.6 billion of Jackson’s in-force book of fixed and fixed index annuity liabilities in exchange for approximately $1.25 billion in ceding commission.

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered ultra-low interest rates, extreme market volatility and record-high unemployment — conditions that generally are unfavorable for annuity sales. The good news is annuity sales should bounce back strong in 2021 and 2022, the Secure Retirement Institute reports.

More than half agree that the pandemic has made them recognize the need for annuities to protect their retirement income and to protect their investments against market risk according to a recent survey from the Nationwide Retirement Institute. All guarantees and protections are subject to the claims paying ability of Nationwide Life Insurance Company.

AIG Life& Retirement, a division of American International Group, Inc. and a leading provider of annuities, today announced the launch of the new AQR DynamiQ Allocation Index, available exclusively through the Power Protector Series of Index Annuities. This multi-style index has been designed by AQR Indices, LLC, a subsidiary of AQR Capital Management, LLC, a…

Despite growing attention to COVID-19 in the run up to the March stock market crash, the sixth annual Guaranteed Lifetime Income Study finds that few clients or advisors believed a market downturn was very likely in 2020.

–Sammons Financial Group has named Khen Leuk as vice president, annuity product management. Leuk joined Sammons Financial Group in 2017 and was most recently associate vice president, annuity product management with responsibility to manage the profitability of the fixed annuity product line. A subsidiary of Sammons Enterprises, Inc., Sammons Financial…

Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill Friday that requires financial professionals to act in the best interests of the consumer. Arizona becomes the second state to adopt best-interest rules modeled on a proposal the National Association of Insurance Commissioners sent to the states earlier this year.

More fee-based products, new channels and growth in direct-to-consumer sales are some trends Chip Roame expects in the coming years. Roame, managing partner of Tiburon Strategic Advisors, characterized insurance products as being in a natural transition phase.

HARTFORD, Conn., June 3, 2020/ PRNewswire/– USAA Life Insurance Company, a provider of a wide range of insurance products and services and NEOS, a management consulting and delivery services firm specializing in insurance and financial services, recently worked to facilitate USAA’s expansion into third-party distribution. Previously, USAA products were…

Department of Labor officials alerted the White House Monday that is has completed work on a reworked rule to regulate investment advice to workers and retirees. Known the “DOL fiduciary rule” when proposed by former President Barack Obama’s DOL, an appeals court tossed out the rule in 2018.

–Fidelity National Financial, Inc. and FGL Holdings, today announced the completed acquisition of FGL Holdings by FNF on June 1, 2020. “We are excited to have closed the acquisition of F&G ahead of schedule and are thrilled to welcome F&G’s employees and policyholders into the FNF family,” commented FNF Chairman William P. Foley, II. BofA Securities and Trasimene…

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. and GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, May 28, 2020/ PRNewswire/– Fidelity National Financial, Inc. and FGL Holdings today announced the preliminary results of the elections made by F&G shareholders regarding the form of merger consideration they wish to receive pursuant to the previously announced merger agreement pursuant to which FNF will…

Equitable, a leading financial services company and subsidiary of Equitable Holdings, today announced it is working with BlackRock to provide simplified access to lifetime income through an annuity within a new target date investment solution for BlackRock’ s U.S. defined contribution plan clients.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. and GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, May 26, 2020/ PRNewswire/– Fidelity National Financial, Inc. and FGL Holdings today announced that FNF has received all regulatory approvals and clearances necessary to close the transaction under the previously announced merger agreement pursuant to which FNF will acquire F&G. FGL Holdings- the F&G family of…

The AiPEX family of indices was developed by EquBot and leverages the AI capabilities of EquBot and IBM Watson™ to turn Big Data into investment insight. Applying what has been learned through Big Data and AI, AiPEX uses a rules-based process to objectively evaluate each of the 1,000 largest U.S. publicly traded companies and selects those whose stock prices…

The interest rate aspect doesn’t yet receive the attention it deserves, likely because no one has any real-life experience with 0% rates in the U.S. The implications are not all positive. From a macro standpoint, 0% rates deprive the Federal Reserve of one of its most used economic tools.

Annuity carriers are always making changes to their products. But those changes came fast and furious during the month of March, as the COVID-19 pandemic sent shock waves through the financial industry. Now, two months later, some carriers are returning the products to the market.

Despite COVID-19, deferred annuity sales remained strong in the first quarter at $52.7 billion, a slim 1.1% decline, according to Wink’s Sales & Market Report. The pandemic affects came late in the first quarter, industry sources note, and its impacts might be seen in second quarter results.

Registered index-linked annuity (RILA) sales were $4.9 billion in the first quarter 2020, up 38% from the prior year results, according to final results from the Secure Retirement Institute U.S. Individual Annuity Sales Survey.

Insider

Equitable reported enhancements to its Structured Capital Strategies PLUS registered index-linked annuity that offers clients some upside potential even when the S&P 500 benchmark index goes down. According to a media release, the new feature, Dual Direction, is available within SCS PLUS annuities with the S&P 500 as the benchmark index.

Prudential Financial, Inc., launched FlexGuard℠ today, the company’ s first indexed variable annuity product, designed to provide customers with downside protection and the opportunity to grow and accelerate the performance of their retirement assets into the future. Dylan Tyson, President, Prudential Annuities. “FlexGuard is a first for Prudential and…

JOHNSTON COUNTY, N.C.- Wade Harmon, of Kenly, bought a single $300,000,000 Supreme Riches scratch-off ticket on his way home from work and won $10 million, the largest scratch-off prize in the stat, according to an NC Education Lottery news release. Harmon said he played Pick 3 and Pick 4 and tried his luck on a single $30 scratch-off ticket. Harmon, an iron worker,…

At a time when investors value protection most, Lincoln Financial Group expands its flagship, industry-recognized solution, Lincoln Level Advantage ® indexed variable annuity, with two new options that offer investors more ways to help grow their savings with a level of protection during market downturns and uncertainty. In April 2020, LIMRA Secure…

Brighthouse Financial is the name for the spinoff of MetLife.

Brighthouse Financial executives celebrated a successful first quarter Tuesday driven by a 15% increase in annuity sales year over year, and a 33% increase in life insurance sales.

Equitable, a leading financial services company and subsidiary of Equitable Holdings, today announced enhancements to its Structured Capital Strategies ® PLUS registered index-linked annuity that offers clients some upside potential even when the S&P 500 benchmark index goes down. The new feature, Dual Direction, is available within SCS PLUS annuities…

Doug Ommen

The Iowa Insurance Division adopted a best interest rule applying a new standard to the sale of annuities and other insurance products. The new rule is based on a best-interest model rule adopted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. announced today its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020. The company ended the first quarter of 2020 with common stockholders’ equity of $20.0 billion, or $198.62 per common share, and book value, excluding accumulated other comprehensive income of $17.3 billion, or $172.28 per common share.

Ameriprise reported strong first quarter financial results lead by their advice and wealth management business as clients sought the expertise of financial planners in the volatile markets. “While market conditions and the operating environment remain fluid, Ameriprise is in a strong position,” said chairman and chief executive Jim Cracchiolo in a news…

Annuity sales fell to $705 million, down 43% from the total for the year-earlier quarter, American Equity reported. A leading provider of fixed indexed annuities, the company will be making changes to its product portfolio and approach, CEO Anant Bhalla said today.

Genworth reported a first-quarter loss of $66 million, after reporting a profit in the same period a year earlier. The quarterly report comes two days after Fitch Ratings downgraded Genworth’s financial strength ratings from CCC+ to CCC.

–To meet growing client concerns about market volatility, North American Company for Life and Health Insurance ® is launching access to a new index designed by Fidelity for use in its crediting strategies. The index combines key factors in such a way to help enhance returns and manage risk given the current volatility of today’ s markets.. “Any index seeks to…