Unlikely Rescuer
At least three proposals have been floated to open state pensions to private sector workers who have no retirement plan. Given the troubles of many state plans, that's counterintuitive....
It’s a Twister, Auntie ‘Ben’
U.S. life insurers can weather the impact of 'Operation Twist' for a few years, Moody’s Investors Service says. But another five-plus years of rock-bottom interest rates could damage profits...
Three Steps to Annuity-Free Income
For retirees who say, 'Don't sell me a product!', Thornburg Investment Management recommends a retirement income strategy built on 'endowment' spending, three buckets and its own dividend fund.
‘Decumulation is Like a Rubik’s Cube’
The Money Management Institute has identified 34 financial services firms that have created what it calls Personal Retirement Income Solution Management (PRISM) tools or programs.
In Denim or in Suits, New Yorkers Want Market Reform
An 'Occupy Wall Street' protester at New York's Zuccotti Park expresses her opinion. The same day, at the NY Athletic Club, Wall Streeters themselves criticized their own industry.
RSQ-y Business at John Hancock B/D
John Hancock Financial Network will offer its advisors the Retirement Sustainability Quotient, an income planning tool that Moshe Milevsky (pictured) developed for ManuLife Financial, JHFN's Canadian parent.
‘Boom Time’ for Variable Annuities?
Guest speakers Fareed Zakaria (pictured) urged more fiscal stimulus for the economy while Andrew Friedman warned of looming tax hikes at the Insured Retirement Institute's conference in Boston. "Boom...
Introducing the Virtual RIA
Internet start-up Personal Capital is out to prove that mutual funds and face-to-face financial advice are obsolete. (At center, CEO Bill Harris, with Jim Del Favero, VP, product management...
Political Football
The Dept. of Labor's bid to strengthen the fiduciary standard for advisers to retirement plans and IRAs became a political football. Now the DoL has agreed to revise and...
Fishing for Trout, and for the Perfect Retirement
While vacationing in the upper Rio Grande Valley this summer, I caught two good-sized trout and a glimpse of my fantasy retirement. (Photo of the author by Lisa Higgins).
Actuaries Without Borders… Why Not?
Experts from Aegon Global Pensions, De Nederlandsche Bank and other Dutch pension and financial consulting firms are helping the Amsterdam-based P&D Network plant the seeds for "micropension" programs in...
Micro-Pensions in Central America
You've heard of micro-credit: those mini-loans to female entrepreneurs in emerging markets. Now a micro-pension movement is underway, and one of the first pilot projects starts next month in...
A Reference Work Built for You
The Society of Actuaries' recent book (available here in pdf form) puts the reader at the center of a web of hundreds of articles, research studies, other resources relevant...
Breakthroughs in Behavioral Finance
As an advisor, you can actually put clients in an annuity 'frame of mind.' These and other findings from behavioral finance research were presented at the 2011 Boulder Summer...
Do VA ‘Roll-Ups’ Have the Desired Effect?
Deferral bonuses, a key feature of many VAs, may not prevent contract owners from taking withdrawals, according to Milliman’s latest survey of issuers of VA guaranteed living benefits. Photo...
Dark Horse Candidate
How did upstart Jackson National Life get near the top of the VA heap? And why are so many advisors nervous that it may 'de-risk' its popular Perspective contract?...
The Stag Brings Back GLWBs
In an about-face on VAs, The Hartford has gone back to the GLWB, tempering its risks with a CPPI fund. The arrival of Steve Kluever from Jackson National in...
VAs: In Search of a Winning Formula
VA issuers should take a cue from Michael Jordan, and realize that team players win more championships than individual stars, advises Bing Waldert of Cerulli Associates.
Putnam, A Work in Progress
With the announcement of a retirement research center, Putnam Investments joins the "thought-leadership" game. It's all part of CEO Bob Reynolds' campaign to rebuild a tarnished brand--and to change...
At SPARK conference, a Plug for In-Plan Annuities
In touting his firm's LifePath TDF-based deferred income option, Chip Castille of BlackRock emphasized that insurers should position in-plan annuities as retirement income enhancers rather than longevity risk mitigators....
