Annuity

An annuity comes in many forms, but a simple definition is that an annuity is a contract that converts a sum of money into a series of periodic payments for an agreed upon period of time. An annuity can be thought of as a financial vehicle that converts a pool of money into a stream of income. Annuities are most useful in addressing the financial planning needs of people in or approaching retirement. Annuities are unique in the financial world because they can provide protection against the risk or outliving one’s assets (longevity risk) by guaranteeing income payments in perpetuity or any other selected amount of time. Annuities can be viewed as a type of personal pension plan. Social Security is similar to an annuity in that money contributed over the course of one’s working years is converted into a series of periodic payments that provide income during retirement.

Moshe Milevsky on Annuity Market Reform

Moshe Milevsky is one of the leading figures in the annuity industry.

He is an Associate Professor of Finance at the Schulich School of Business in Toronto. Professor Milevsky always seems generous with his time and ideas--his writing and research reach wide popular, academic and industry audiences.

Professor Milevsky suggests that recent financial market dislocations provide the annuity industry with a golden opportunity to retool its thinking and products in order to fulfill...

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Moshe Milevsky

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Sequence of Returns Risk

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Standalone Living Benefit

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Insurance Companies

Moshe Milevsky

Leading Variable Annuity Company

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 09:52

Which company is the leading

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Variable Annuity

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Variable Annuity

Variable Annuity Assets Increase Despite Decrease in Sales

Assets in variable annuities in the United States increased at a relatively strong pace in the three month period ending June 30, 2009. Assets increased to $1.19 trillion from $1.07 trillion. Much of the increase in assets appears to be attributable to the recovery in capital markets rather than strong sales of new products. MetLife was in the top spot followed by Prudential . Source: Bloomberg Full Story

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The Risks of Fixed Income and Fixed Annuities

Inflation can be a positive for the owner of a fixed mortgage since the real value of future mortgage payments decreases. Inflation is terrible for the receiver of fixed payments since the real value of future receipts is eroded by inflation. As Brett Arends of the Wall Street Journal suggests in a recent column, owners of Treasurys and other fixed income investments (bonds) should be acutely aware of the risks that exist in the current environment. One scenario suggests that owners of 10 year...

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Alleged Ponzi Scheme Could Impact Charitable Gift Annuity Market

Robert Dillie allegedly operated a fraudulent foundation from 1996 to 2001. The foundation involved a ponzi scheme that issued $55 million in gift annuities to over 400 donors. As a result of the case, the Federal Court of Appeals has concluded that gift annuities are investment contracts under federal securities laws. The Court's conclusion will likely have a meaningful impact on the marketing activities of charitable foundations that are actively promoting gift annuities. Source: On...

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