Is the SECURE Act Too Weak to Make a Difference?

Yes, there's a new 'safe harbor' for selecting an annuity provider for a 401(k) plan in legislation that appears headed for the president's signature. But there's no sign that many employers or employees want in-plan annuities, and the bill gives them no special reason to.

Do Fiduciary Rules Work, or Do They Backfire?

By Kerry Pechter
'We found that broker-dealer representatives in states with common law fiduciary duties sold cheaper and better products and sell fewer variable annuities overall,' said Manisha Padi, one of the authors of a new paper exploring the impact of imposing fiduciary duties on advisors.

Modern Monetary Inevitabilities

By Robert Dugger
'Debt resulting from tax cuts that are spent on mega-yachts would almost certainly be excessive; debt incurred to improve educational outcomes, maintain essential infrastructure, or address climate change would probably not be,' writes our guest columnist.

Honorable Mention

By Kerry Pechter
Generational views of retirement differ: TIAA; Stress on the Bank of Mom and Dad: Legal & General Group.

COVER STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

May 23, 2019

‘An Economist Walks Into a Brothel’

By George A. (Sandy) Mackenzie
The legalized version of the world's oldest profession offers a test-case of risk and reward in Allison Schrager's new book, subtitled, 'And Other Unexpected Places to Understand Risk.' Our guest columnist, a former...
May 16, 2019

Three Annuity Cures for Sequence Risk

By Kerry Pechter
New York Life and Fidelity have introduced a variable annuity with principal-protection over 10 years. Similar protection could be obtained with an indexed annuity or with a combination of a fixed rate annuity and...
May 10, 2019

How Debt Affects Retirement

By Kerry Pechter
“Remaking Retirement? Debt in an Aging Economy," was the theme of the 65th annual symposium of the Wharton School's Pension Research Council, held last week in Philadelphia. (Photo: Kitchen and retirement makeovers sometimes occur...