Description: The information assembled here has been collected by the SOA ambassadors, and is meant to provide you with a window into the condition and practice of insurance in the host country.

Description: This web page describes the 2019 Student Case Study Challenge.

Description: One of the many resources that the SOA offers for download are experience studies, such as individual life with a focus on expense.

Description: Access the final timing and transition rules for the ASA curriculum changes.

Description: Download the most current issue, as well as back issues, of In the Public Interest newsletter.

Description: The Joint Risk Management Subcommittee of the Society's Committee on Life Insurance Mortality & Underwriting Surveys has completed their report on risk management practices of U.S. life insurance companies.

Description: Now get access to numerous publications with important information you need to know about the latest risk management issues and trends via EBSCO e-books. This new benefit is just one more way your membership in the Joint Risk Management Section pays off.

Description: This article reviews a paper developed by Rob Brown on the optimal design of retirement income security systems. The article intends to move readers to read Brown's article and consider how actuaries can play a significant role in the development and evaluation of social insurance policy. This will be of value to actuaries as the profession is presented the opportunity to participate in shaping financial security for all people.

Description: In 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) adopted significant revisions to the U.S. GAAP insurance accounting literature, via Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2018-12. The title of ASU 2018-12 is “Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts,” and as a result, a common acronym for ASU 2018-12 is LDTI (long-duration targeted improvements).

Description: In this article, we summarize inflationary factors that may result in a sharp increase in interest rates and implications for life insurer convexity risk exposure, most notably to dynamic policyholder lapsation. We further provide insights into potential ALM strategies to mitigate this convexity risk. Due to the prolonged low-interest rate environment and low minimum interest rate guarantees offered to policyholders, liability convexity is higher than prior historical periods, which results in life insurers’ ALM positions being extremely vulnerable to short-term interest rate spikes. Convexity mismatches cause issues for life insurers under both rising and declining interest rate scenarios. This means that life insurers are not compensated for taking convexity risk and, therefore, convexity matching should always be considered in the asset optimization process. There are mixed signals from policymakers and financial markets regarding potential inflationary and sharply rising interest rate scenarios. The key takeaway is that life insurers are not compensated for taking convexity risk and it is the right time for insurers to review convexity exposure. There are different approaches available to mitigate convexity exposure through rebalancing of asset positions and hedges within each life insurer’s risk limits.