Description: Chairperson’s column discusses recent events in the investment industry.

Description: Summary of research project designed to document method to credit interest rates to account value based products. The investment year method (IYM) can theoretically align with investment strategy and be fair to policyholders. These products were designed in the 1980s with guaranteed nominal rates above what is currently accessible so most products credit the guaranteed rate. This paper documents how it could be resurrected during the next interest rate cycle.

Description: Review of changes made to life insurance taxation in Australia.

Description: Comparison of S&P’s published ratings standards in the United States and Europe with regards to capital adequacy ratios.

Description: Excellent big picture view for planning a social insurance system with pay-as-you-go, required self-funded, and voluntary plans.

Description: This article presents some thoughts on the role of the investment actuary in the United Kingdom. It is a topical subject, prompted by a feeling that the U.K. profession is not fulfilling its potential in this specialty. The article has three main themes: a Some historical perspective b What the professional actuary uniquely has to offer the investment marketplace and c What the consulting actuaries in the U.K. currently offer their clients.

Description: This article aimed to make Liability Driven Investing LDI more accessible by providing a simple definition and by showing how plans of different sizes and circumstances may adopt an appropriate LDI approach.

Description: Feature article discussing the 2009 price action - periods of extreme distress and incredible euphoria across the global financial markets. The reversals experienced from asset class lows to their highs have not been seen in decades.

Description: S&P Global released its initial version of proposed changes regarding its Insurer Risk-Based Capital Adequacy methodology and assumptions on Dec. 6th, 2021. Unlike prior guidance notes or criteria releases, the proposed changes comprehensively updated the current S&P rating criteria released in 2010. These updates would directly impact many insurers. S&P Global anticipates that 10 percent of existing ratings in the insurance sector would be impacted and the change would lead to more positive rating implications than negative impact. This article focuses on the proposed changes on the S&P risk-based capital (RBC) vs. the current model, then simulate impacts to a representative U.S. life insurer through an illustrative case study.

Description: Social security systems around the world have suffered from inadequate funding, leading to current or potential deficits and ultimate insolvency. This article discusses that this problem is a direct actuarial consequence of the inadequate funding that created the problem in the first place. It is simply an open group valuation problem.