Honorable Mention
In sales, deferred annuities finish 'up' year with a 'down' quarter: WinkIntel; AM Best upgrades Lincoln’s credit outlook; Axonic and Hexure collaborate on Waypoint MYGA; Invst launches pooled employer...
To tax or not tax Social Security benefits
President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign trial-balloon statement 'reduces incentives to save and work while increasing federal debt,' the analysis by the Penn Wharton Budget Model found. 'Wages and GDP...
Private Credit AUM to Double by 2028: Moody’s
The Moody’s report showed that, as of the end of the third quarter of 2024, private credit and insurance assets accounted for 52% the AUM of the four largest...
Honorable Mention
Merit Life reincarnated as Knighthead Life; Morgan Stanley to distribute five Allianz Life index annuities; BlackRock’s LifePath Paycheck reaches $16 billion in AUM.
Annuity issuers enjoy third-straight year of record sales: LIMRA
'Although lower interest rates likely will reduce some demand in 2025, LIMRA predicts innovative index design and competitive participation rates will keep FIA sales above $100 billion in 2025,'...
Honorable Mention
Nestimate publishes 'Retirement Income Landscape' chart; Fixed indexed annuity surrender rates have 'steadily increased," Milliman research shows; State Street and Verizon sued over pension risk transfer deal; Eldridge reorganizes,...
DOL names new members of ERISA Advisory Council
The 15-member council provides advice on policies and regulations affecting employee benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Higher interest rates drive record number of pension transfers: LIMRA
'Higher interest rates are driving companies to de-risk their pension liabilities to annuity providers. LIMRA expects this trend to continue through the rest of the year,' said Keith Golembiewski, assistant...
MetLife and General Atlantic create ‘Chariot Re’ sidecar
A flurry of news from MetLife regarding its Chariot Re 'sidecar' deal, its acquisition of PineBridge Investments and $100 billion in AUM, and its agreement to reinsure a $569...
Retirement income is Kevin Crain’s comfort zone
The new executive director of the Institutional Retirement Income Council, who is succeeding Michelle Richter-Gordon, brings decades of experience in the retirement industry to his new role. IRIC will...
Bermuda Shorts
Corebridge loses $1.2 billion on Fortitude Re derivative; Brighthouse turns to reinsurance for capital support; Kuvare-owned life insurer enhances FIA; RGA sidecar raises $480 million in capital.
Index-linked annuities lead sales surge: LIMRA
The overall sales leader was Athene Annuity & Life, with sales of $27.98 billion concentrated in fixed deferred annuities, followed by Corebridge, MassMutual, Allianz Life of U.S. and Equitable.
Honorable Mention
Federal watchdog report briefly covers U.S. insurance industry; Fidelity's annuity platform adds rare Fidelity annuity; High surrender rates accompany high annuity sales, AM Best says; Greg Lindberg pleads guilty...
Honorable Mention
Gainbridge, RetireOne to offer non-tax-deferred MYGA for RIAs; Income Lab launches new income planning tool; Schroders polls plan participants on appetite for private assets; Protective enhances its flagship variable...
Bermuda Shorts
Private credit sector growing fast: Financial Times; Venerable launches its own line-up of variable annuity insurance trusts.
Sen. Warren Speaks Up for ‘Fiduciary Rule,’ Puts Down Annuity Sales Perks
Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-MA) new white paper details the sales incentives that annuity issuers offer insurance agents; the incentives, she says, show that the DOL's long-denied 'fiduciary rule' is...
Private assets, reinsurance pose systemic risks, research warns
Life insurers’ exposure to risky assets and reliance on reinsurance raises concerns about their interconnectedness and complexity, research from the Bank of International Settlements shows.
Briefs from the ‘Bermuda Triangle’
US insurers hold more private equity, but income on PE drops; State Street sued again for recommending Athene in PRT deals; State Street and Apollo to partner on distribution...
Honorable Mention
Top news items: GAO investigators go 'undercover' to study conflicts of interest; SEC charges six major ratings agencies with record-keeping lapses; How the commercial real estate bust could affect...
US life/annuity insurers cede $1.74 trillion to reinsurers, 2016-23
New capital keeps flowing into the reinsurance segment, primarily via reinsurers owned by investment managers focused on annuity business, AM Best analysts write. These newer entrants co-insure assets that...
