White succeeds Bhojwani as president and CEO of Allianz Life
White (pictured at left) joined Allianz Life in 2009 as chief administrative officer responsible for compliance, information technology, operations, and suitability.
Low Growth, High Inflation? It Could Happen.
"We have been buying inflation-linked bonds and selling government bond futures against them," writes the head of fixed income at Old Mutual Asset Managers.
See you in the new year!
Retirement Income Journal will not appear on December 28, 2011, in observance of the Christmas holidays. The next issue will appear on January 4, 2012. To all our subscribers...
Fitch calls U.S. life industry “stable,” but notes concerns
"The industry’s large in-force book of variable annuity business will continue to be a drag on profitability over the near term," the ratings agency said in a recent bulletin.
TD Bank predicts 2% growth, 8.8% unemployment in 2012
Economic headwinds include “market volatility, Europe's banking and fiscal crises, a polarized US Congress and overzealous fiscal restraint in Washington.”
Expect slow growth over next decade: Vanguard
The fact that 10-year Treasury rates are only about 2% indicates the market’s belief that the U.S. economy will grow slowly over the next decade, Vanguard pointed out.
Barclays Wealth and Securian announce new executives
Christopher M. Hilger has been appointed the 16th president of the 131-year-old Securian Financial Group, Inc., and Joseph Danowsky has been hired by Barclays Wealth as a Managing Director...
MassMutual introduces Pension Funding Scorecard
The Scorecard provides a quarter-by-quarter performance comparison for a liability-driven investing (LDI) portfolio vs. a traditional 60% equity/40% fixed income portfolio against the MassMutual Pension Liability Index (MMPLI).
Morningstar announces agenda for institutional conference
Thomas Sargent, winner of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences and professor of economics and business at New York University, will deliver the keynote address.
Envestnet acquires FundQuest
Timothy Clift, formerly chief investment officer and chairman of the investment committee at FundQuest, Inc., will join Envestnet|PMC as chief investment strategist, responsible for the development of investment strategies...
“Simpson-Bowles” reforms would reduce middle-class Social Security receipts: Urban Institute
Projected Social Security benefit reductions under the NCFRR recommendations are closely related to lifetime earnings, with those at the bottom of the lifetime earnings distribution largely shielded and those...
Sun Sets on Sun Life’s U.S. Annuity Business
New CEO Dean Connor decided to cut Sun Life's losses in the U.S. annuity business after a third quarter that negatively impacted many U.S. annuity issuers. The Canadian...
Passive Equity Strategies Are Still Valid
A true passive strategy, history shows, was never meant to be limited to the S&P 500 or to any other single asset class, writes the owner of Strategic Distribution...
Do Motley Fool stock recommendations beat the market?
“A strategy of shorting stocks with a disproportionate number of negative picks on the site and buying stocks with a disproportionate number of positive picks produces a return of...
Portugal to apply pension funds to deficit
The measure aims to transfer pension funds' liabilities to the Portugese Social Security program while using the assets to help the government meet its budget deficit target and pay...
New Celent report forecasts DC trends
The defined contribution industry will see growing use of collective investment trusts and custom target date funds, according to a new report from Celent.
The Fees Ate My Savings
A gerontology professor argues in a new article that Americans’ 401(k) holdings are coming up trillions of dollars short, thanks to high investment management fees.
Lynne Ford leaves ING
Ford’s departure was “the result of some consolidation within our broader retirement business," an ING spokesperson told RIJ.
Five Challenges for Life Insurers in 2012: E&Y
“Pressures such as low interest rates, volatile equities markets, and a political and regulatory environment in flux will continue to impact the industry, making it difficult for insurers to...
Correction
An article in last week's cover story ("Airbag-Equipped Annuities") erred in reporting that MassMutual had stopped selling variable annuities. The company said it has simply narrowed distribution to its...
