Description: Businesses across the board have been drastically impacted by the effects of COVID-19 over the course of 2020, and insurance was not immune. Perhaps most relevant to this industry’s current capital and liquidity concern is the prevailing low interest rate environment. This has been a global trend in the last decade, and treasury rates in much of the developed world are at or near zero. Reduced investment returns limit an insurer’s ability to achieve their desired return on equity, eliminating previously profitable strategies that depended on the leverage of life and annuity balance sheets. Focus and activity have instead shifted to other methods to counteract the low interest rate markets and accompanying capital strain. Examples include increased mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity within the insurance industry and an increasing focus by private equity firms in the insurance market for asset-intensive products, both of which reflect the goal of increasing yield rates on capital.

Description: This article provides an update, as of October 2023, on Financial Reporting Section research projects in process and those recently completed.

Description: Column from the chairperson of the SOA's Financial Reporting Section describing the research and webcasts available to section members.

Description: In the United States, there has been much industry discussion of the challenges associated with a sustained low interest rate environment, which impacts both the asset and liability sides of the balance sheet in unfavorable ways. The intent of this article is not to focus on these strategic issues. Rather, we attempt to shine a spotlight on some of the modeling challenges that practicing actuaries may experience when incorporating negative interest rates into their models.

Description: Provides an update, as of September 2022, on Financial Reporting Section sponsored research projects in process and those recently completed.

Description: Pandemic impact on continuing education. Financial Reporting Section and Community Engagement. US GAAP textbook update for LDTI. IFRI textbook update for amendments.

Description: Welcome to the May edition of The Financial Reporter! In her “Chairperson's Corner”, Joy Zhang highlights the section's upcoming activities for the year and ways for everyone to get engaged.

Description: A description and status update on all recent research reports sponsored by the Financial Reporting Section.

Description: This article provides a summary of the research paper and Excel-based tool that can be found on the SOA’s website at Regulatory Capital Adequacy for Life Insurance Companies: A Comparison of Four Jurisdictions | SOA.

Description: An overview of how the VM-31 requirements for documenting PBR approaches and assumptions can/should reflect the Actuarial Standard of Practice on Modeling, ASOP No. 56