Insurance

Annuity persistency refers to whether people hold on to their existing annuity products or exchange them--typically through a Section 1035 exchange --for new products. Higher levels of persistency suggest that annuity owners are sticking with existing products which are likely more valuable than what would be available in the current market through an exchange.

MetLife is reportedly discontinuing the sale of long term care insurance beginning January 1, 2011. The largest U.S. life insurance company cites "financial challenges" facing the industry in the current environment. According to a recent Bloomberg article:

Variable annuity sales are, to say the least, strong at Jackson National Life Insurance Company.

The Dutch financial services company ING Groep is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) of its U.S. based insurance business. The company agreed to split its banking and insurance businesses when it gained approval from the European Commission to receive government funds during the financial crisis. ING has spent considerable time and resources addressing issues related to its U.S. variable annuity business, and the company feels that these efforts are almost complete with the business...

Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America reported strong revenue growth for the third quarter of 2010. Fixed indexed annuity sales increased 36 percent and totaled $1.9 billion. Variable annuity sales quadrupled to $800 million. Allianz attributes the revenue growth to more risk averse consumers in the wake of the financial crisis.