• Hartford to Lower Estimate of Capital Position

  The drop in the S&P 500 Index during October has forced Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., to lower an earlier estimate of its projected year-end capital margin, the company reported.

• Invesco Starts Allocation Fund

  Invesco Aim Management Group Inc., a Houston investment management unit of Invesco Ltd., announced that it has launched the Aim V.I. PowerShares ETF Allocation Fund.

• Annuity Providers Facing Obstacle: Advisers' Aversion

  Many wealth managers are reluctant to recommend annuities to their clients, while providers try to disassociate themselves from the product's scandal-plagued past.

• Skuttlebutt about IFLM And Other 'Bucket' Methods

  One IFLM user is advisor John Barton, whose Wichita, Kan.-based firm, CenterPointe Wealth Management, is affiliated with Securities America, a broker/dealer that licenses IFLM from Wealth2K. So far, he likes it.

• NAVA Message Testing Service Looks to Ensure Compliance, Standards

  NAVA Inc. announced a new service to help insurers, annuity distributors and technology solutions providers ensure that their electronic data messages are compliant with NAVA's Straight-through Processing (STP) Standards Initiative.

• Variable Annuities Are Risky Business—Fitch Ratings

  Persistent adverse equity market conditions will continue to pressure the earnings and risk-based capital levels of U.S. life insurers active in variable annuities.

• Led by Fixed Annuities, Jackson National Posts Record Sales

  Jackson National Life Insurance Company generated $11.2 billion in total sales and deposits during the first three quarters this year, primarily because of higher sales of traditional fixed annuities and institutional products.

• More Insurers Suffer Analyst, Ratings Downgrades

  A Goldman Sachs stock analyst downgraded Prudential and MetLife on Monday due to both companies' mortgage-related holdings.

• Morningstar Launches Retirement Payout Funds

  Morningstar Investment Services has launched a new managed account service consisting of a line-up of three actively managed portfolios designed to generate retirement income over specified time horizons and risk levels.

• Sun Life Unveils Enhanced Living Benefits

  Enhanced living benefits on Sun Life Financial variable annuities will allow for greater flexibility in building retirement income plans, the company said.

• Fitch: U.S. Life Insurers Face Increasing Risk from Variable Annuities

  Fitch Ratings sees equity market performance 2008 as having a dramatic impact on U.S. life insurers active in the variable annuity market.

• Hartford Hires Manager in Germany

  Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. hired Stephan Schinnenburg as general manager of its German office in Frankfurt.

• Rumors of MetLife-Hartford Merger Dispelled

  MetLife Inc. recently approached Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. about a merger transaction.

• Jackson National Beefs Up Its Variable Annuity Options

  Jackson National Life Insurance Company has launched LifeGuard Freedom DB, a new guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit (GMWB) with an enhanced death benefit option.

• Allianz Life Launches Bonus EIA with Bonus GLWB

  Allianz Life has launched a new equity-indexed annuity, MasterDex X, that offers a 10% initial premium bonus and annual bonuses that can enhance the optional lifetime income benefits.

• NAVA Members Expect Consumers to Grow More Cautious

  NAVA, Inc., the Association for Insured Retirement Solutions, has surveyed 300 insurance industry professionals on their beliefs about possible consumer behavior in the face of an uncertain economy.

• AIG Insurance Subsidiaries Are Secure, NAIC Tells Congress

  New York's insurance regulator told Congress Tuesday how state insurance regulators nationwide have acted to ensure the solvency of the American International Group (AIG) insurance subsidiaries and protect policyholders.

• NAIC Bans Flimsy Senior Credentials

  The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has approved a model regulation designed to protect consumers from deceptive practices in the sale of life insurance and annuities.

• NAFA Goes to Washington to Fight 151A

  The National Association of Fixed Annuities (NAFA) recently met with Congressional representatives from Wisconsin to object to Rule 151A, and asked for support petitioning the SECe to withdraw the proposed rule.

• Sun Life's New Index Tracks Longer Work Lives

  Almost half of the American workforce will work past age of 67, but not for financial reasons, according to a new benchmark created by the U.S. division of Sun Life Financial.

• The Bucket List: IFLM Updates the Retirement Income Ladder

  The "bucket method" of assigning money to different short-, medium and long-term accounts has long served as a convenient and more or less reliable way for advisers to control risk and generate inflation-adjusted income for their retired clients.

• How to Put DB in DC

  At RIR's roundtable, experts say plan sponsors and participants should focus on income, not accumulation.

• The 2008 Retirement Roundtable

  Our industry experts gather to discuss the big issues facing financial advisors and their clients. Read their opinions on the decumulation phase of retirement plans, clients who spend too much money, preserving wealth in the weak economy and much more.

• Is Another Insurer Set for Bankruptcy?

  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, in pressing for passage of a $700 billion financial system rescue plan, said that a "major" insurance company was about to go bankrupt if financial markets weren't calmed.

• AIG Speaks Out

  An exclusive interview with the team at the top of AIG Advisor Group

• Citigroup Buys Wachovia, the Bank Channel's Top Annuity Seller

  Citigroup has taken over Wachovia, the nation's fourth largest bank and by far the biggest earner of fees and commission from the sale of annuities in the bank channel in the U.S.

• AIG's Ad Seeks to Calm Customers and Partners

  Troubled global insurance giant AIG reassured its customers and partners of the financial strength of its subsidiary insurance companies in a full page ad in the Sunday Business section of the New York Times.

• Bank of America Exec Addresses RIIA Annual Meeting

  At their 2008 annual meeting in Boston September 21 and 22, the Retirement Income Industry Association's leaders reported on their organization's progress toward its principal goals.

• Axa Selects Annuity Leader

  Axa Equitable Life Insurance Co. announced that it promoted Claude A. Methot to executive vice president of life and annuity product development.

• Several Firewalls Now Protect Investors from AIG, Lehman Failures

  Global insurance giant AIG sold more than $10.8 billion worth of annuities in the second quarter of 2008—more than any other insurer—and Lehman Brothers' Neuberger Berman mutual funds managed more than $250 billion.

• What Assets Will AIG Sell?

  In preparation to repay an $85 billion U.S. Federal Reserve loan that allowed it to avoid bankruptcy after taking losses on mortgage derivatives, AIG is expected to auction off assets.

• Economy Is Worst They've Seen, Say Americans Over Age 60

  More than half of Americans over age 60 say current economic conditions are the worst they've experienced, but they haven't rushed to withdraw retirement funds, according to a new poll.

• MassMutual Adds VA Investment Options

  MassMutual has enhanced its variable annuity product portfolio by adding investment choices and shortening the contingent deferred sales charge.

• Wachovia Offering Phone Consultations on Retirement

  Starting this month, Wachovia Retirement Services will offer free retirement consultation services by phone to any of the employees of the 6,400 companies for which Wachovia is the 401(k) provider.

• John Hancock Starts Annuity

  John Hancock Financial Services Inc., a Boston unit of Manulife Financial Corp., has launched JH Spectrum, a fixed deferred annuity with three withdrawal options: after five, six, and seven years.

• Old Mutual CEO Resigns Amid Soaring VA Costs

  Forced to reserve $155 million to offset unexpected costs associated with its variable annuity guarantees and faced with a $135 million write-down in the value of its stakes in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the CEO of Old Mutual plc has stepped down.

• New President Named at Prudential Annuities

  Stephen Pelletier has been named president of Prudential Annuities, replacing David R. Odenath.

• Bank Annuity Commissions Up 13% in First Half 2008

  Bank annuity commissions and fees rose 13.2% to $539.6 million in the first half of 2008 from $476.9 million in first half of 2007.

• Merging Mutual Funds, Annuities to Resonate with Retirees

  Baby Boomers and their financial advisors are going to increasingly look for one-stop-shop solutions that combine mutual funds, annuities and systematic or laddered drawn-down schedules.

• Refi-Program Previewers Raise Issues

  Lenders and servicers are grappling with how they might participate in the new housing law's $300 billion refinancing assistance program.

• UK Variable Annuity Launches Hit Snag

  Both Prudential plc and Standard Life have delayed their planned variable annuity products, although it is unclear why the launch dates have been pushed back.

• Despite Annuity Demand Banks Don't Respond

  Community bankers should take note that they're trailing their bigger brethren when it comes to offering a product rich in fees that consumers increasingly desire in uncertain times: annuities.

• Advantage Compendium Publishes GLWB Study

  Advantage Compendium Ltd. has published a comprehensive study of the guaranteed living withdrawal benefits (GLWBs) currently available.

• NAFA to Oppose SEC Proposed Rule 151A

  The National Association of Fixed Annuities (NAFA) announced its opposition to the Security & Exchange Commission's proposed Rule 151A.

• Insurance Man Bites Dog

  The editors of SmartMoney magazine recently cast variable annuities and guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefits in the worst light possible.

• The Arms Race for Distribution

  In the war for VA market share, it's all about wholesaling.

• Longer Life Spans Growing U.S. Annuity Market

  A symbiotic relationship between the lifespan of Americans and the market for annuities in the U.S. has come into focus.

• Abusive Annuity Sales Lead to $16.4M Settlement

  American Equity Investment Life Insurance Co. agreed to a $16.4 million settlement involving claims of abusive annuity sales that targeted the elderly.

• Illness May Accelerate Payouts from Prudential VA

  Prudential Annuities has added a feature that doubles the payout rate of its Highest Daily Lifetime Seven variable annuity option.

• SEC Poised to Regulate Index Annuities

  Concerned about reports of unsuitable index annuities sales to seniors, the SEC approved a proposal that would classify index annuities as federally regulated securities.

• As Annuity Sales Boom, Regulators Take Notice

  Regulators are stepping up their scrutiny of financial services institutions that sell annuities.

• Florida Toughens Penalties on Unsuitable Annuity Sales

  A new Florida law more than doubles the penalties for improperly selling annuities to the state's seniors or to residents who are developmentally disabled.

• Genworth Adds RetireReady IRA Annuity

  Genworth Financial Inc. has a new product called RetireReady IRA Annuity.

• For Wachovia, Annuities Are a Bright Spot: Amid Subprime Woes, Bank Topped Rivals in 2007 Annuity Fees

  The nation's fourth-largest bank earned $483 million in annuity fees and commissions in 2007—more than the amount earned by the next three biggest annuity sellers combined

• Annuities Get Hung up on "What Ifs"

  Clients nearing retirement worry they won't have anything to leave to their children or grandchildren.

• Fixed Annuity Sales Continue to Soar

  Sales of fixed-income annuities hit $18.8 billion in the first quarter of 2008, an increase of 35.2% over the first quarter last year and 7.2% higher than the fourth quarter.

• SEC Still Rattling Sabers at EIAs

  The SEC has unanimously voted to consider a rule that would reclassify most equity-indexed annuities (EIAs) as securities and not as insurance products.

• Variable Annuity Assets Drop

  Assets held in variable annuities fell 6%, to $1.4 trillion, during the first quarter from the end of 2007 and rose 0.5% compared with last year's first quarter.

• Assessing 'Arm's Race' in Annuity Riders

  Variable annuity providers are still trying to outdo one another's latest innovations.

• 1Q Fund, Annuity Income Up 3% in Year

  Banks' first-quarter income from the sale and servicing of mutual funds and annuities grew 2.9% from a year earlier, to $1.43 billion, according to the Michael White-Symetra Bank Fee Income Report.

• Annuities Remain Best Bet for Retirees

  Outside of a defined benefit plan, traditional life annuities issued by insurance companies are the best ways to reduce longevity risk for women.

• Flight to Guarantees?

  Variable annuity sales were up, but are they destined to suffer in today's rocky market?

• ING Names Two to Retail Annuity Roles

  ING Group NV has named Valerie Brown president of its retail annuity market segment, which is part of its wealth management group in New York.

• Genworth Unveils New GIA

  New group of guaranteed income annuities invest in mutual funds or ETF portfolios in AssetMark's managed account platform.

• Chasing Boomer Dollars

  Financial advisors will scramble to acquire the millions of prospective baby boomer clients entering retirement over the next two decades. Firms are competing by launching various retirement-income funds and cheaper immediate annuities.

• New Features in MetLife's Variable Lineup

  MetLife has revamped its variable annuity suite.

• Cheerleaders in Lab Coats

  Bob Veres's Industry Insight column: New research on variable annuities and their guarantees offers less than meets the eye. Read Ibbotson's rebuttal of this article.

• Eye on Flat-Fee VAs

  A look at tax-deferred flat-fee variable annuities.