The Fiduciary Rule: Going, Going…
The longer the DoL takes to draft a new version of its proposed fiduciary rule, the likelier it is that the re-proposal—if one ever appears at all—will be timid...
Merrill Lynch’s Intentions are “Clear”
"I want to be careful not to call it a product or a service. It’s an approach,” said David Tyrie, head of Personal Wealth and Retirement at Merrill...
MetLife’s New DIA, and Its Competition
This story includes a handy chart that can help you compare the features of the deferred income annuity contracts currently offered by eleven U.S. life insurers. MetLife’s is the...
The One True Path to Income
As we curse the low payouts of income products, it’s worth remembering that the fault isn’t entirely in our stars (low interest rates), but also in ourselves (insufficient savings)....
Is Social Security Unsociable to Annuities?
Virtually all American retirees already own a pension that's more generous than any retail annuity could ever be: their Social Security benefits. But how much does the entitlement "crowd...
It’s 2024. Do You Know Where Your Industry Is?
A new report from Diversified Services Group, Inc. and Greenwald & Associates offers predictions from 24 industry experts about the shape of the retirement industry ten years from now....
Ten Images that Explain Retirement
No, this image isn't one of them! A while ago, we asked retirement advisers what images they use to illustrate complex financial principles. The frequent response: “When you find...
The Retirement Industry Conference
Want lots of 2013 data on annuity sales and VA rider use? You’ll find it—plus Richard Thaler’s crowd-stumping riddle—in this roundup of news from the recent LIMRA/LOMA/SoA conference in...
Waiting for the Fiduciary Train
Don't hold your breath waiting for the second draft of the Department of Labor's fiduciary proposal. That's one takeaway from a four-hour meeting at the Practicing Law Institute in...
With New Indexed Annuity, Nationwide Takes a Walk on the Wild Side
In February, Nationwide introduced New Heights, a fixed indexed annuity with an enticing "uncapped" crediting strategy and a novel living benefit rider for the b/d and independent agent channels....
SEI Ups its TDF Game
Six months ago, SEI, which specializes in multi-manager TDF funds, recruited veteran defined contribution specialist Scott Brooks (left) away from Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management to start making presentations...
Happy Fifth Anniversary, RIJ
Today’s issue of RIJ, which represents our 250th issue and marks our five-year anniversary as a publication, seems like an appropriate vehicle for a brief message about how we’re...
Where Young Advisors Can Give and Get Advice
“Think of the robo-advisors as high-tech, low-touch, and the high-minimum fee-only planners as low-tech, high-touch. We’re high-tech, high-touch," said Alan Moore, a young planner who, with Michael Kitces, has...
Whose Retirement Crisis Is It, Anyway?
The thrust of last week’s ICI Retirement Summit was that there’s no broad retirement savings crisis needing government action. But that doesn’t mean Boomers won’t need help with decumulation....
Orange You Glad the Re-branding Campaign is Almost Over?
“Orange signals our optimism,” Ann Glover, the CMO of Voya Financial, told RIJ in talking about the importance of Voya's keeping the ING color as it separates from ING...
Bill Sharpe’s New Retirement Blog
On the verge of his 80th birthday, Sharpe, who won the 1990 Nobel Prize for his Capital Asset Pricing Model, has been writing a blog that documents his work...
Managed-Vol: Bromide for Queasy Retirees
Managed-volatility funds can adequately address the income volatility worries of many high net worth retirees, say Milliman and Jefferson National, both of whom are pitching such funds. ...
The Bucket
Brief or late-breaking items from Great-West Lifeco, fi360, SunGard and Cerulli.
In Radical Move, Britain Deregulates Retirement
“Pensioners will have complete freedom to draw down as much or as little of their pension pot as they want, any time they want,” said the UK Chancellor of...
Top 20 annuity sellers in 2013
In 2013, Jackson National Life sold $20.9 billion worth of variable annuities and New York Life sold $6.5 billion worth of fixed annuities, to lead those categories. Jackson had...
