Description: This article examines the impact of a changing smoking rate on population-level mortality improvement and the importance of taking this driver into account.

Description: Enterprise Risk Management incorporates integrated risk management due to the fact that the majority of company failures result from multiple correlated causes. Sites findings from Mercer study

Description: Asia is experiencing changing demographic, social, and cultural tides which threaten to submerge existing retirement-pension systems.

Description: Haven’t we all been watching for the next big financing transaction and wondering whether it will be done by a reinsurer or an insurer? Also will it support XXX reserve redundancies or will the market have finally “cracked the code” for the financing of AXXX reserves?

Description: Attempts to Quantify Potential Impact of Pandemic Influenza on the U.S. Life Insurance Industry

Description: Key excerpts from research recently performed by Milliman consultants for the SOA on the impact of VM-20 on life insurance product development.

Description: In this discussion of President Obama’s financial regulatory reform on start-up companies, the author believes”that the proposed requirement has the potential to significantly increase the financial burden on an early-stage firm through increased scrutiny and record-keeping” This paper outlines the extent of the issues facing a start-up company due to the Administration's proposals, and offers solutions to the problems facing these entrepreneurs.

Description: Insurance companies utilize derivatives in a variety of ways to manage and mitigate risks that are inherent in their investment or liability portfolios. They can be characterized by three main features: medium long-term duration; large volumes; and significant market risk exposure. Given the persistent low interest rate environment across the curve since the 2008 financial crisis, large companies need to hedge their liabilities, as illustrated by the significant recent increase from $786 billion as of fiscal year 2010 to $1,885 billion as of FY 2014 by insurance companies.As the Variable Annuities (VA) guarantees embedded within those liabilities hold a strong convex risk profile with respect to the underlying stock, VA carriers need to buy some convex hedge assets such as options to match the liability risk profile to improve hedge effectiveness, implying the growing cost of hedging. Such market impact of the quantity on the cost of hedging is further magnified in the recent period with the short-lived, but sharp transitions from low volatility to high volatility, when market volatility suddenly increases, even when there were no well-known fundamental catalysts. This partially stems from the growing managed volatility funds embedded within VA ($bn 400).VA carriers willing to trade a large quantity of options will see such market impact as an important dilemma, as the cost of placing one large order to close position will be far greater than the sum of infinitely small orders differed in time. In that context, managing market impact requires introducing an explicit market impact function, the influence of which the agent will try to minimize. The effect on hedge asset prices significantly depends on whether there is or not significant delta hedging activity. In case of no significant delta hedging activity, the risk appetite has a significant influence on the optimal execution strategy. If there is significant delta hedging activity, the optimal trading involve

Description: Panel discussion on inflation's impact on business procedures, contingency plans, long-term benefit levels, and determination of financial reporting items such as future reserves, surplus levels, operating expenses, and net gains. Presented at the Spring 1975 Meeting in Los Angeles.

Description: This is a summary of topics discussed at the 1996 Bowles Symposium: “The Old Age Crisis: Actuarial Opportunities,” September 26-27, 1996, at Georgia State University, Atlanta.