Annuities

Small banks had total investment revenue of $266 million for the first half, up 11% over the same time period last year: report.

Advisors report that annuities are requested by clients more than any other unsolicited product, according to a new study from Cerulli Associates.

Advisors report that clients request annuities more than any other unsolicited product, according to new research from Cerulli Associates.

Indexed annuities have gained popularity while variable annuities have softened, as the players on the buy and sell side change.

The increase in both market volatility and interest from the Baby Boomers in generating retirement income should be a slam-dunk for variable annuities.

TD Ameritrade announced Wednesday it will introduce access to a full range of competitively priced annuities to help independent registered investment advisors meet increasing client demand for retirement income solutions.

While annuities have become more widely accepted as a vital part of a retirement strategy, there are millions of Americans who still aren't opting for them.

While a number of major carriers have exited the annuity industry due to capital constraints, continued volatility and historically low interest rates, key players contend that there is still plenty of capacity to meet growing market demand.

Over the next 10 years, advisors will help their clients facilitate the largest wealth transfer in the history of our nation's history and charitable planning will become an increasingly larger and more important part of that service.

Seventy-three percent of annuity owners and 17% of non-owners agreed that annuities are an important part of a retirement strategy, compared to 55% and 8%, respectively a year earlier, according to the survey of investors and financial advisors released at the IRI 2012 Annual Meeting,

"The industry has been in an interesting transformation," said Catherine J. Weatherford, president and CEO of the Insured Retirement Institute. "The financial crisis hit banks rapidly, but for the life insurance industry, it took a while for the issues from the crisis to develop."

Indexed annuity sales increased 8.3% and income annuities were up 6.1% in the second quarter, according to Beacon Research. It was the second-best quarter ever for those product types, Beacon said in a press release. Total fixed annuity sales were also up, but with a more muted 1% gain in the quarter. And they declined 17.2% from the year-ago period. …

Low interest rates, product complexity and (some say) incompetent advisors have converged to drive down annuity sales. Here's what you need to know.

Annuity sales in the second quarter of 2012 totaled $57 billion, down 8% from the year-ago quarter, according to LIMRA.

Lifelong income solutions for defined contribution plans are on the way. With defined benefit plans waning and life expectancy waxing, more retirees will need more guaranteed income than Social Security can provide.

More than three in four advisors expect to continue selling variable annuities and allocate 11% of their assets under management toward these products, according to Cogent Research.

In the first half of 2012, tons of cash flowed out of non-qualified annuities, according to the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.

Seventy-five percent of variable annuity buyers, 86% of indexed annuity buyers and 86% of traditional fixed annuity buyers reported being satisfied with their annuities.

Annuity income at banks overall increased; but an apples-to-apples comparison shows a clearer picture and tells a bleaker story.

Although overall activity in the annuity market has been down over the past 13 months, inflows in May increased by slightly more than 1% to $7.5 billion from $7.4 billion in April, according to the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.