Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

Equitable CEO Mark Pearson expressed satisfaction with profit margins in the RILA market, in spite of reports of new players jumping into that market. “It’s still the case that it’s sort of eight players in the market there against nearly 50 players in the fixed annuity market,” Pearson said. Equitable has heard of the new entrants, “but, at the moment, we don’t see them,” Pearson said. “Pricing remains very, very strong.” 5. Some companies still like the market for multi-year guaranteed annuities. Earlier this year, some executives at insurers and insurance company owners seemed to imply that the market for annuities that guarantee a fixed rate of return for a specified number of years was too competitive. This quarter, no one had bad things to say about MYGA contracts, and Charles Lowrey, the CEO of Prudential Financial, noted that his company had introduced the Wealth Guard MYGA contract. 6. Insurers seem to be comfortable with surrender levels. In the past, rapid increases in interest rates have caused consumers to trade fixed products with low rates for variable products or for fixed products with higher rates. In some cases, those kinds of asset flows have caused problems for financial services companies....

Three life insurers face lawsuits from consumers in Illinois who object to use of family history questions in life insurance underwriting. The plaintiffs contend that use of family history questions violates the Illinois Genetic Information Privacy Act of 1998, or GIPA. Attorneys with McGuire Law filed all three suits. The suits name affiliates of MassMutual, Pacific Life and State Farm as the defendants. All three plaintiffs are seeking class-action status. A representative from Pacific Life declined to comment on pending litigation. Representatives for MassMutual and State Farm did not respond to requests for comment. GIPA: The federal Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act of 2008, or GINA, regulates how insurers in all states use genetic information, including information about people’s family medical history. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 also includes provisions that define genetic information and regulate its use. GINA provisions can hold down damages, and the courts have tended to limit plaintiffs’ ability to use GINA as the basis for class-action lawsuits, according to an analysis by a team at Faegre Drinker.

Ryan Detrick, Carson Group’s chief market strategist, sees the stock market rallying through year’s end and continuing its bullish run well into 2024. He cites an economy that’s on firm footing. “Sure, things are ‘slowing down’ some, but we like to say they are normalizing, not slowing down. Could we really keep growing at 400k jobs a month like last year? No, but a steady 150k to 200k is perfectly normal and in line with pre-COVID trends,” he wrote in a column posted on the firm’s blog Thursday. “The consumer remains strong and incomes are growing at a very healthy clip as well. If we can avoid a recession next year — our base case — then we think the chances of a year with potential low double digits returns is quite likely,” Detrick said. Carson Group expects a year-end rally and believes that stocks probably will reach all-time highs in 2024’s first half. The following are three reasons for Detrick’s bullishness. Strong Earnings “We’ve seen analysts continue to come in way too low on estimates and this trend likely continues. The third quarter was expected to see earnings fall slightly, now S&P 500 earnings are expected to come in...

Columbia Threadneedle plans to lay off most of the portfolio managers and analysts on three equity investment teams in the United States as the firm seeks to cut costs. The asset manager confirmed that 14 portfolio managers will exit the firm at year’s end. “The asset management industry is experiencing significant change and we are taking action to manage our business thoughtfully, with a focus on prudent expense management and operational efficiency,” a firm spokesman told ThinkAdvisor by email Friday, confirming a story that appeared on Citywire on Thursday. “We have made a strategic decision to streamline our investment resources in areas where we have duplication and where we believe making portfolio management changes is also in the best interest of our clients.” The firm, which is part of Ameriprise Financial, is making personnel changes to three U.S.-based equity investment teams: Acorn International, Integrated Equity and Small Cap Value II.

5. Medical Savings Account This is a type of account available to participants in certain high-deductible Medicare plans. For taxable years beginning in 2024, the term “high deductible health plan” means, for self-only coverage, a health plan that has an annual deductible that is not less than $2,800 and not more than $4,150, and under which the annual out-of-pocket expenses required to be paid (other than for premiums) for covered benefits do not exceed $5,550. For family coverage, the term “high deductible health plan” means a health plan that has an annual deductible that is not less than $5,550 and not more than $8,350, and under which the annual out-of-pocket expenses required to be paid (other than for premiums) for covered benefits do not exceed $10,200. Credit: Adobe Stock