Research & Reports
Reviewing Variable Insurance Fund Filings from March, 2007
Maybe we’ve said this all too often, but a pervasive theme in variable funds of late has been that of asset allocation, and in March this held true again, as there were a number of...
Beyond Product – Insurers Work to Become Retirement Planners, Aggregators
There’s little doubt that success in the variable annuity marketplace over the years has been largely dictated by product and distribution strength, competition depending on what’s currently in favor, whether it be the latest VA...
Continuing the Discussion: VA Industry Issues Informing Product Designs
With this commentary we’ll follow up on our previous report by reflecting on some important themes in the variable annuity industry and how they are intimately connected to the products, features and funds being marketed...
“Next Generation” VA Withdrawal Benefits and Shapes They Are Taking
The rate of filing activity around variable annuity Guaranteed Minimum Withdrawal Benefits (GMWBs) remains vigorous and will probably pick up as we approach the May prospectus update season. Since the beginning of the year some...
Public Insurers’ Q4 VA Results Point to Overall Improvement for the Industry
For the fourth quarter of 2006 variable annuity sales grew for all the publicly-traded insurers we track, reflecting the experience of the industry as a whole, which we hear rebounded from the lackluster sales of...
Dueling GMIBs – The Arms Race Persists on Base Growth, Special Provisions
We’re constantly maintaining that the importance of living benefits to the variable annuity business cannot be overstated. Although most of the market right now is concentrated on lifetime withdrawal benefits, there’s been resurgence in competition...
Impressions on the Variable Annuity Business in 2007 – Part II
In this report, our last of the year, we’ll conclude our two-part commentary summarizing key forces influencing the sale of variable annuities in 2007 – our main three being “features, shelf space and scale” –...
Insurers Fine-Tune Their VA Living Benefit Guarantees – Continued
This week we’re going to continue on the theme of our previous commentary by noting more adjustments insurers are making to their variable annuity living benefits, fees and related provisions…
A Simpler Story – Insurers Move to Streamline VA Sub-Accounts, Features
In getting started with the New Year, we’ll comment on a growing tendency for insurers to trim the number of sub-account options and features on their variable annuities in order to make them simpler for...
