Legislators are still tied up with health care issues, leaving retirement initiatives to flounder. Tax proposals may be the exception
Polls show that employees want an annuity option in their pension plan menu. But they also prefer a lump sum to an income stream when they hit retirement age
Combining a variable annuity with a guaranteed-minimum-withdrawal benefit in conjunction with a traditional portfolio can help hike income
Insurer's new boss said the Connecticut company will avoid focusing on any one product after VAs contributed mightily to two straight years of losses
They're not up to speed about the products themselves, either
An Idaho senator says people who have lost money in fraudulent investment schemes should be able to write off more of their state income taxes.
Sales of both variable annuities and fixed annuities fell in 2009, according to the latest data from LIMRA.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has retreated even further from the life settlements arena, shutting down Longmore Capital, its life settlements provider.
Volume from life settlements transactions is expected to reach $13 billion in face amount annually over the next three years, according to research from Aite Group.
For the first time they can recall, several independent broker-dealers have been solicited by life settlement companies to sell private placements of securities based on life insurance policies.
That's good news for consumer-oriented companies, which are likely to benefit from more incremental spending
Tighter regulation of sales, more mergers and continued capital building are three developments insurance carriers are likely to experience in 2010.
Sales of fixed annuities fell during the third quarter to $21.9 billion, a 21% decline from a year earlier, according to data from Beacon Research Publications Inc.
Reflecting the rebounding economy, financial advisers are attending more conferences and taking more courses for continuing-education credits.
Despite getting smaller, Royal Bank of Scotland still has some very big problems. Bad loans and a shaky economy top the list. Turning a profit? That's still a ways off.
The failure of Congress to plug the 2010 estate tax loophole has created considerable uncertainty.
With the estate tax laws set to expire by year-end — and no clear indication when Congress will address the issue — some financial advisers and attorneys see an opportunity for their high-net-worth clients in this extremely muddled situation.
Stocks have been in flux over the past few weeks as surprises kept coming from overseas. Greece's debt crisis, similar troubles in Portugal, and China's latest moves to slow down its economy have kept investors guessing.
