A Closer Look at CLOs

New research into collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), which are helping reshape the investment policies of the life/annuity industry, explores whether they have the same vulnerabilities as the 'CDOs' in 'The Big Short,' the book and 2015 film starring actor Steve Carell (in photo), Brad Pitt and others.
Anecdotal Evidence

Biden’s Retirement Policy

By Kerry Pechter
Biden has made strong promises about fixing Social Security, strengthening labor unions, and helping to finance a green economy. Will he be able to keep those promises? Does he understand that the country isn't 'broke'?
Behavioral finance

‘Survival pessimism’ dulls the appetite for annuities

By Editorial Staff
Those in their early 60s underestimate the chance of survival to 75 by more than 25 percentage points, on average, and those in their early 70s underestimate survival to age 85 by more than 15 percentage points, new research shows.
Interest Rate Policy

Federal Reserve issues FMOC statement

By Editorial Staff
The Federal Open Market Committee 'decided to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 0.25% and expects it will be appropriate to maintain this target range until... inflation has risen to 2% and is on track to moderately exceed 2% for some time.'

Honorable Mention

By Editorial Staff
Mercer and Empower will partner on forthcoming ‘PEP’; New ‘structured outcome’ ETF from TrueMark; ‘Annuity Switchboard’ now available from Beacon Annuity Solutions; IRS publishes inflation adjusted limits for employers (Wagner Law Group); US financial assets surpass $50 trillion (Cerulli Associates).

COVER STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

October 29, 2020

Now Divesting: AIG, Equitable and Great American

By Kerry Pechter
De-risky business: AIG will spin off its Life & Retirement division, Venerable Holdings will reinsure $12bn worth of Equitable's pre-2010 variable annuities with living benefits, and Commonwealth Annuity (part of Global Atlantic) will reinsure...
October 22, 2020

Drama in Des Moines

By Kerry Pechter
Rejecting a takeover bid by Athene and MassMutual, fixed index annuity issuer American Equity will partner with Brookfield Asset Management. The deal releases up to $350m in capital for American Equity, and makes it...
October 15, 2020

The Five Most Important Retirement Income Decisions

By Steve Vernon
'Many of the decisions presented here are beyond the skills of most pre-retirees and retirees,' writes the author, a research scholar at the Stanford Center on Longevity. 'They’re going to need help.'