‘Reinsurance Sidecars’: A Capital Idea

By Kerry Pechter
Athene Annuity & Life sold the most fixed deferred annuities in the first three-quarters of 2024. Its parent, Athene Holdings, has attracted billions in just-in-time third-party capital through Bermuda 'reinsurance sidecars.' Coincidence? Not likely.

Middleware is Central to In-Plan Annuities

By Kerry Pechter
Middleware is hub-and-spoke software that lets retirement plan recordkeepers and life insurers talk to each other. Steve McCoy of iJoin, a provider of managed account user interfaces, and Bill Mueller of IPX, a middleware provider, talk about their ventures with annuity issuers.

How T. Rowe Price Approaches the ‘401(k) Income’ Market

By Kerry Pechter
By bundling a deferred income annuity with a managed payout program, T. Rowe Price's optional 'out-of-plan' 401(k) income tool aims to boost participants' spending power in retirement by as much as 50%, relative to a managed payout program with no annuity.
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The Stakes in the Romney-Obama Contest

By Knowledge@Wharton
Expect big changes next January? Think again. While the candidates' economic philosophies and positions are dramatically different, divided government will prevent either from bringing his version of Morning to America, predicts a Wharton School professor.

To De-Risk or Re-Risk, That Is The Question

By Ashish Kapur
Pension fund managers across the Pond are feeling boxed-in. The author, European head of institutional solutions at SEI, feels their pain in an essay that first appeared in IPE.com.
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Britain adjusts to universal auto-enrollment

By Editor Test
“Many organizations are still in a head-in-sand mode,” said Dean Wetton, a pension consultant. “Auto-enrollment is lost somewhere between payroll, HR and the pensions department."

DALBAR validates Pacific Life funds as QDIAs

By Editor Test
The PL Portfolio Optimization Funds are five target-risk fund-of-funds, ranging from conservative to aggressive, that are designed to offer investors one-step diversification.