Description: Update on research projects sponsored by the Financial Reporting Section.

Description: The author refers to a separate article in this edition of Risks and Rewards, in which Babbel, Gold and Merrill provide an excellent exposition of three approaches to present-valuing a series of risky cash flows and provide several insights into the way modern finance theory deals with risk. The purpose of this article is to bring these insights to the world of insurance risks and view them in relation to existing actuarial techniques. The author also discusses direct discounting and the actuarial appraisal method and their consistency.

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: Article explores two very different approaches that are currently being considered for use in projecting credited rates on interest sensitive products and show how they can be reconciled with one another.

Description: This article addresses the key capital and risk management issues immediately confronting the industry.

Description: The NAIC is working with state insurance departments to replace the existing rules-based valuation laws with principle-based valuation laws. On the GAAP front, both the International Accounting Standards Board, which sets GAAP accounting guidance for many countries outside the United States, and the Financial Accounting Standards Board, which promulgates GAAP guidance in the United States, are moving toward a “current estimate” standard of valuation, which often results in a fair value or similar measurement basis. This article reviews the IASB’s discussion paper on insurance valuation and the American Academy of Actuaries’ response to it.

Description: Article examines some of the shortcomings of Market Consistent Embedded Value reporting as it is currently constructed—particularly in periods of heightened volatility—and recommends some possible improvements that the CFO Forum is likely to consider.

Description: Discusses the newly adopted actuarial guideline for variable annuity reserving which is principles-based. It requires the calculation of both, a standard deterministic scenario reserve and a stochastic reserve - of which the larger of the two is used. This article discusses why for some companies the deterministic reserves dominate and for others the stochastic one does.

Description: Article discussing the International Actuarial Association's meeting in November 2008.

Description: In light of the recent financial crisis, this article discusses whether Fair Value Accounting is a trouble maker or life saver.