Description: The purpose of this paper is to survey some new results concerning the term structure of interest rates and discuss actuarial applications. The term structure of interest rates exhibits the relationship among the yields on default free debt instruments of different maturities. Although there is a considerable volume of literature dealing with the determinants of the term structure the analysis has until recently been presented for the most part in a deterministic i.e. non- stochastic framework. This constrasts with the treatment of capital assets where equilibrium prices have been obtained under the assumption that returns on these assets are random variables.

Description: This paper, chapter VI of the 1987 Valuation Actuary Handbook, discusses a framework for the valuation of reserves and surplus in statutory financial statements, first providing a detailed section of definitions to clarify to clarify the terms used in the paper. The “new” environment of volatile interest rates is discussed, and the mathematics underlying ruin probabilities, and combinations of risks. Procedures for different products with different types of risks are discussed. Other topics include coordination of investment policy and product policy, aggregate reserves and surplus needed, use of simplifications, financial planning, and reinsurance.

Description: The article focuses on the need to develop a strategy for investing surplus resulting from the buildup of significant excess capital. The author discusses three principles on which a company can base its surplus investment strategy, including the risk/return preference of the client, attribution of surplus to the products and an investment strategy based on all company risks.

Description: This teaching session was presented as Session 6B at the 1987 Valuation Actuary Symposium. The subject was modeling techniques for use in testing the scenarios being developed by the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, ‘CIA,’ Solvency Standards Committee. The presenters, members of the Committee, have been working on developing a generic modeling approach. Their presentation is limited to the first of three phases of proposed CIA standards for solvency reporting dealing with scenario testing, namely the projection of surplus under various prescribed and selected scenarios.

Description: Traditional mean-variance method does not take skewness of the random rate of return into consideration. It only considers minimum variance for a given acceptable rate of return, which limited the probability of obtaining higher rate of return. If the skewness of return for the portfolio is incorporated into model of traditional approach, then the resulting non-linear programing model is not computational efficient, which certainly is complicated. On the other hand, possibilistic programming provides more efficient techniques to solve the imprecision nature of rate of return and also preserves the original linear model.

Description: Panel discussion focused on the Effective Use of Capital. Topics included: 1. Definition of capital 2. Appropriate level of capital and surplus in a life insurance company 3. Alternatives for deploying capital 4. Returns a life company should demand on invested capital 5. How much a company should charge for lending its capital in reinsurance transactions

Description: From the 1985 Valuation Actuary Symposium Discussion of techniques for determining capital requirements needed to support an insurance business, based on the nature of the assets and liabilities on the books and related investment strategies, using ALM modeling

Description: This material, Appendix II of the 1987 Valuation Actuary Handbook, is an appendix to Chapter II of the Handbook, ‘Methods of Analyzing cash Flows to Test for Reserve Adequacy.’ In this appendix, the authors provide more detail on what they call cash-flow based surplus, and how this concept can be used. It is defined as the amount of cash that could be removed and leave assets sufficient to mature all benefits on a true economic basis, i.e. ignoring statutory accounting requirements, under an assumed interest rate and experience scenario.

Description: Investment Fallacies: Future Equity Returns

Description: A discussion of the possible effort required and impacts resulting from the implementation of C3 Phase II for establishing risk-based capital for variable annuities. This article will describe practical considerations gleaned from actual valuation calculations recently performed by a consulting firm.