Description: This article offers a possible resolution to certain circularity issues that may arise while implementing the SOP.

Description: Discussions of alternative approaching to setting ascribed premiums for market risk benefits under FASB targeted improvements.

Description: Presents a practical solution to some of the distortion caused by a typical application of the retrospective assumption update (unlocking) method.

Description: The impact of bond default risk on retirement benefit obligations describes how the probability default on a bond is similar to the probability of death for an annuitant. Bonds are used to cash flow match retirement obligations cash flows to funding from bond. Just as the probability of non-payment happens on the liability side, we can do the same with selected bonds. The end result may be an adjustment to the discount rates used.

Description: This paper will provide demonstrations of the following three statements: That the calculation of principles-based reserves should ignore federal income taxes That the currently required statutory deferred tax calculation would need to be changed to permit an appropriate deferred tax asset to accompany such reserve so that the result can be correctly principles-based on a post-tax basis That the Tax DAC, pursuant to Section 848 of the Internal Revenue Code, is effectively a negative tax reserve.

Description: After a summary of FASB decisions in their GAAP Targeted Improvements project, this article describes several issues that will need to be resolved either by the board or in actuarial practice and argues for seeking solutions that provide meaningful results without overly complicating valuation processes.

Description: View the complete issue for the August 2014 Reinsurance News newsletter.

Description: Continues the look from previous articles at unlocking of traditional contract valuation assumptions, this time examining the effects of lapses.

Description: Continued look at unlocking of traditional contract valuation assumptions, this time examining the frequency of true up for actual experience.