Description: This article is a discussion about the trends and changes affecting the life insurance industry by impacting product growth. Read how today's ideas can become tomorrow's successes.

Description: Two-and-a-half years ago the British Government started to issue index-linked securities-the redemption value and coupon both increase with the UK Consumer Price Index, but the value before redemption is determined by the stock market. Initially this was done in a small way and offered to a restricted group of investors pension funds, but now anybody can hold these securities. This article discusses the possibility of insurance companies using these securities to issue annuities that would increase with the UK Consumer Price Index.

Description: New York’s Regulation 126 effectively requires all companies doing business in New York to file an actuarial opinion and memorandum on their annuity and GIC business. This article attempts to answer 13 of the most commonly asked questions about this regulation.

Description: Recently the interest rates have been slowly trending up from the lowest point in August 2020. The focus of this article is on current market trends for long-duration products —including life insurance, annuities, and long-term care insurance —following an extended period of low interest rates, and lessons carriers can learn from similar historical periods of rising interest rates. Innovative and flexible product features will continue to be essential, as the current interest trend may not substantially increase insurers’ portfolio rates. When designing or modifying product features, insurers should consider profitability in a wide breadth of interest rate scenarios and be particularly mindful of the impact that crediting rates and asset durations will have on earnings.

Description: Provides in-depth discussion of IRS Rev. Proc. 2008-24, including tax background of partial annuity exchanges. Then discusses partial annuitizations and “modified endowment contracts.”

Description: A jurisdiction’s regulatory regime can make some insurance products capital intensive to write. This can increase incentives for insurers to enter into risk transfer arrangements, such as reinsurance, to support their business and growth objectives.

Description: Examines the trends affecting the distribution system for the industry's products, and the regulatory and tax environment in which life companies operate. Also looks briefly at the state of competition in the industry.

Description: A discussion of tail-design LTC riders for annuities and how contract cash values are offset by reductions to the annuity contract. LTC benefits, and how they relate to the annuity contracts, are also discussed.

Description: Owners of nonqualified annuity contracts, individuals under qualified retirement plans, and annuity issuers are left without any published guidance on when annuity payments can be used to satisfy the SEPP [Substantially Equal Periodic Payments] exceptions to the 10 percent penalty tax under sections 72q2D and 72t2Aiv. This article discusses that problem. The insurance industry requested guidance on this issue.8

Description: This article discusses the opportunity for annuity carriers created by the SECURE Act to distribute annuities through Employer Sponsored Defined Contribution Retirement Plans. The article covers a high-level overview of the changes enacted by the law that create the opportunity, as well as the potential opportunity for future annuity sales.