Description: Chairperson's Corner is the introduction to the JRMS newletter

Description: Hear from the editor on the December 2017 issue of Risk Management published by the JRMS.

Description: Risk Management, the newsletter of the Joint Risk Management Section. December 2012

Description: The article discusses modeling of variable annuity behavior risk, with a particular focus on how interaction between different behavioral assumptions complicates modeling. The article gives a brief overview of variable annuity behavior risk, discusses the challenges that behavioral interactions pose for VA modeling, and discusses three potential solutions for dealing with this complexity.

Description: In this article, we summarize inflationary factors that may result in a sharp increase in interest rates and implications for life insurer convexity risk exposure, most notably to dynamic policyholder lapsation. We further provide insights into potential ALM strategies to mitigate this convexity risk. Due to the prolonged low-interest rate environment and low minimum interest rate guarantees offered to policyholders, liability convexity is higher than prior historical periods, which results in life insurers’ ALM positions being extremely vulnerable to short-term interest rate spikes. Convexity mismatches cause issues for life insurers under both rising and declining interest rate scenarios. This means that life insurers are not compensated for taking convexity risk and, therefore, convexity matching should always be considered in the asset optimization process. There are mixed signals from policymakers and financial markets regarding potential inflationary and sharply rising interest rate scenarios. The key takeaway is that life insurers are not compensated for taking convexity risk and it is the right time for insurers to review convexity exposure. There are different approaches available to mitigate convexity exposure through rebalancing of asset positions and hedges within each life insurer’s risk limits.

Description: Evan and Brad interview Larry Moews, Chief Actuary and Risk Officer of SCOR. The discussion focuses on Larry's insights and experiences in Risk Management.

Description: This article argues that wealth managers should advocate dynamic spending in proportion to survival probabilities, adjusted up for exogenous pension income and down for longevity risk aversion. The authors criticize the rule of thumb of spending a fixed 'x' percent of assets for retirement planning purposes.

Description: The Federal funds rate increased by 4.25% in 2022 with further increases in 2023, which have already resulted in a liquidity crisis for a few banks. As the rapid increase of the interest rates pushed the new money rates above the yields of many life insurers’ investment portfolios, insurance companies are facing a dilemma between compressed margins from peer pressure and the concern with liquidity shortfalls and realized capital losses should mass surrenders happen. This paper discussed main emerging risks under rising interest rate environment, and several ways to mitigate these risks.

Description: This Chairperson's Corner article discusses the SOA becoming the pre-eminent risk management profession. The Chairman's message is that actuaries have the inside track on risk management positions in the insurance industry and have a basis for competing for similar positions in the broader financial services industry.

Description: In this article, the editor talks about the contents of this issue of the Risk Management Newsletter. Also mentioned are the three categories the newsletter tries to cover 1. Risk Identification, 2. Risk Response, and 3. Risk Culture & Disclosures.