Research & Reports
Reviewing Variable Insurance Fund Filings from April, 2022
In April we saw just a few new variable portfolio registrations and a rather mild degree of filings overall. Most filings in the month were related to changes to investment platforms…
Initial Coverage: Summaries of New Registered Index-Linked Annuities (RILAs) filed in 2022
This table contains summaries of new registered index-linked annuities (RILAs) filed with the SEC in 2022. This table covers three contracts, not including instances where a product was refiled…
Regarding Competition in the Registered Index-Linked Annuity Space
This year we expect registered index-linked annuities (RILAs) to continue to grow their market share, however they will encounter stiffer competition from other product types thanks to rising interest rates; moreover, things are getting tight...
Initial Coverage: Variable Defined-Outcome Portfolios
This spreadsheet contains data on the first variable defined-outcome portfolios; at the end of 2021 we counted 13 portfolios in operation, which held $37 million in assets…
Reviewing Variable Insurance Fund Filings from March, 2022
In this report we’ll cover notable fund filings from last month – as we usually do – and provide notes on variable defined outcome portfolios, as the first one commenced operations last year…
An Update on Variable Managed-Volatility Portfolios Through 4Q21
This spreadsheet concludes our coverage of variable insurance volatility-managed portfolios for 2021. By our count, as of December 31 there were 197 such portfolios in operation; assets grew slightly from the prior quarter to nearly...
Concluding Our Coverage of Managed-Volatility Portfolios for 2021
With this report we will wrap up our coverage of trends in variable managed-volatility portfolios for 2021, based on data we compiled from regulatory filings…
Some Thoughts on Guardian’s New Fixed-Indexed Annuity
Last week we published a report that covered recent developments and trends in fixed indexed annuities (FIAs), not realizing that an important piece of news was about to hit, namely Guardian Life’s introduction of its...
An Outlook on the Fixed-Indexed Annuity Market for 2022
Last year, we started commenting more often on fixed-indexed annuities (FIAs), and we plan to build on those efforts this year. In the process we will try to put matters in perspective with broader trends...