Description: Summary of the health section council’s research project to assess the accuracy of commonly used IBNR estimation methods over a wide range of scenarios.

Description: This article analyzes two common interpretations of SOP 03-1 in determining the guaranteed minimum death benefit GMDB liability in a variable annuity contract, and it analyzes the resulting impact on the initial GMDB reserve and on the volatility of GAAP earnings as actual experience emerges. This analysis could be applied to the guaranteed minimum income benefit GMIB, guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit GMAB, guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit GMWB and other guaranteed benefits in a variable annuity contract that are subject to SOP 03-1, and the conclusions would be similar.

Description: A discussion of alternative meanings to “Best” in best estimate. When one is trying to estimate a result that is normally distributed, the mean, median and mode will all equal one another. However if the results are not normally distributed, different variance metrics will result in different “best” estimates. When different parts of a financial statement use different criteria for measuring best estimates and different processes for handling variances, the results can be volatile, unpredictable and perhaps unreasonable.

Description: Insurance company financial reporting and performance measurement are going through a significant transformation. Insurers are beginning to look at their business based on what many refer to as the “economic value framework.” Under this framework insurance companies determine the economic value of the capital invested in their business and the economic value of earnings to derive a risk-adjusted return on capital. Standard setters, primarily European insurance regulators through Solvency II and the International Accounting Standards Board through IFRS Phase II, propose adopting many of these concepts for solvency and performance reporting.

Description: An Overview of Stochastic Simulation modeling techniques and usages

Description: A discussion of the use of stochastic modeling in Embedded Value financial reporting

Description: An Overview of Embedded Value and its uses, its advantages versus other financial reporting methodologies, recent trends and an outlook into the future.

Description: The article described two methods for calculating the benefit ratio described in AICPA Standard of Practice SOP 03-1. Method 1 calculates the benefit ratio as the quotient of the expectation of A and the expectation of B where A is benefits and B is assessments. Method 2 calculates the benefit ratio as the expectation of the quotient of A and B.

Description: A discussion of European CFO Embedded Value Guidelines

Description: Summarizes the Section's sponsored 2011 Annual Meeting sessions: business meeting, receptions and 3 programs - 'IFRS: The Future of Accounting for Insurance and its Implications', 'Where Enterprise Risk Management Meets Capital Management' and 'Managing Longevity and Mortality Risks and their Global Activities', plus some non-technical sessions on successful retirement.