Kyle Busch’s Crash Course in IUL

By Kerry Pechter
An indexed universal life policy demands about as little maintenance as an eight-cylinder, 750-horsepower, 200-mph NASCAR stock car. And in the hands of an unskilled, or untrustworthy driver, or pit crew, such a policy can crash and burn.

Insurance Professionals Comment on Kyle Busch Case

By Editorial Staff
Perspectives on the Kyle and Samantha Busch v. Pacific Life IUL lawsuit from Sheryl Moore, Bobby Samuelson, David Macchia, Larry Rybka, Peter Gould, Antoine Orr, Barry Flagg, and Tom Love.
Anecdotal Evidence

How the ‘Harkin Amendment’ Enabled the ‘Bermuda Triangle’

By Kerry Pechter
My bias regarding the Bermuda Triangle' was confirmed when I read “The Law of Capitalism” (Yale, 2025) and “The Code of Capital” (Princeton, 2019) by Columbia law professor Katharina Pistor. Assets are legal constructs, her books explain.

Private Credit News

By Editorial Staff
Dimon’s ‘cockroach’ comment sparks minor run on private credit firms; Global watchdogs scrutinize private credit ratings; Eldridge and Carlyle AlpInvest credit fund gets ~$1.5 billion.

Pacific Life’s Motion to Dismiss the Busch’s Suit: Excerpts

By Editorial Staff
Pacific Life's motion to dismiss the Busches' complaint against it was filed January 22, 2026 in U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina, by the law firms of Carlton Fields in Washington, D.C. and Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein in Raleigh, NC.
Guest Column

When Private Equity Owns Both Sides of Your Transaction

By Peter Dziedzic
'We’re not just watching private equity invest in carriers. We’re watching capital buy carriers, distribution, advisor platforms, and the technology layer, all at the same time,' warns the president and general counsel of the Life Insurance Strategies Group.

Bulletin Board

By Editorial Staff
Sale of PHL Variable blocks ‘no longer feasible’; Delaware Life FIA now offers a Bitcoin crediting method; Corebridge FIA also includes 'modest' exposure to Bitcoin; Ratings of insurers involved in 777 controversy are downgraded.

COVER STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

January 2026

Dutch Pensions Go Collective

By Kerry Pechter
Today’s financial Goldilocks moment—with strong equity returns and robust fixed income yields—creates favorable conditions for the Netherlands to complete its long-planned switch from traditional private defined benefit plans to 'collective defined contribution.' 'You...
December 2025

Research Roundup

By Editorial Staff
We feature two deep-dive research papers on private credit. One is from Victoria Ivashina of Harvard Business School and the other from a team that includes Amir Sufi, co-author of "House of Debt" (U....
November 2025

Third Point Joins the Triangle, Cayman-Style

By Kerry Pechter
Another asset manager goes subtropical. Third Point Investors Ltd. established Malibu Re in the Cayman Islands, bought a Texas life insurer from Mutual of America, acquired a private credit shop, and received $25m each...