Edward Jones protected against VA ban by Protective

Protective Life Corp. stopped taking 1035 exchanges and rollovers into its variable annuities Monday, but the ban on these dollars won't affect advisers with Edward Jones. The firm currently offers the O-share version of Protective Life's variable annuity, a share class that combines the pricing attributes of A and B shares. Protective has long been a top VA brand at Edward Jones. It was the No. 3 variable annuity provider at the brokerage last year, trailing only Lincoln National Corp. and Prudential Financial Inc. “They're consistently among the top four or top five,” said Merry Mosbacher, principal in the insurance marketing unit at Edward Jones. The firm has a relationship with Protective Life dating back to 1994. In a May 13 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Protective sought to ban 1035 exchanges and rollovers in an attempt to moderate its variable annuity inflows. Retrenchment in the VA space has led to pickups in volume at other companies, including Protective: The firm generated $580 million in sales during the first quarter, up from $567 million in the year-earlier period. Eva Robertson, a spokeswoman for Protective, noted that VA products offered by the insurer can differ from one channel to another and that in this particular circumstance, Edward Jones isn't affected.