Description: This presentation is from session number 25, presented at the 1999 Valuation Actuary Symposium, held September 23-24 in Los Angeles. The panelists discuss Actuarial Guideline XXXIV, which was effective year-end 1998 and addresses reserving for minimum guaranteed death benefits associated with variable annuities, including the requirements of Actuarial Guideline XXXIII. Companies are now offering other guaranteed benefits such as guaranteed living benefits, and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners [NAIC] and the American Academy of Actuaries are working to address reserving for these benefits. The panelists describe the minimum guaranteed benefits in the marketplace and the risks associated with them. Current reserving practices and the latest NAIC and Academy developments are discussed. Discussion from participants is included.

Description: New Zealand is about to launch its first variable annuity with guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefits. The product design is mindful of the lessons from the financial crisis in the United States, Europe and Japan.

Description: This presentation, session number 7PD, took place at the 2000 Annual Meeting of the Society of Actuaries, held October 15-18 in Chicago. The panelists discusses current separate account product topics including quantifying the cost of guarantees such as minimum death benefits and minimum living benefits, and equity-indexed product investing and hedging. Discussion from participants is included. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Volume 26, No. 3.