Declining variable annuity sales will likely lead to enhancements to and new uses for VAs as carriers look for additional ways to appeal to high-net-worth investors.
MassMutual Financial Group is counting on the fact that consumers worry about whether they have made the right financial choice with its new campaign, Good Decisions.
To reinvest or not to reinvest — that's a question facing today's nervous investors as they wonder whether it's best to plow back dividend distributions or use the money elsewhere.
As leaner times sweep through the asset management industry, everything from travel expenses and catering services to payroll (read: bonuses) is on the chopping block.
I read Libby Dubick's Marketing Strategies column, "Grit your teeth and make that call," in the Aug. 19 issue on reaching out to clients during this volatile time, and I couldn't agree with her more.
Advisers are selling more insurance, particularly long term care insurance, according to the InvestmentNews 2008 Insurance Product Survey, which polled 445 financial advisers.
As part of an effort to make their mark on the industry, many members of the Financial Planning Association's NexGen group of young advisers have targeted the underserved middle market — those with less than $500,000 in investment assets — as a niche that they want to develop in the future.
While Generations X and Y consider earning money a top priority, many are not self-sufficient, while others fail to include retirement considerations in their financial plans, according to a new report.
As the comment period ends this Wednesday on an SEC proposed rule that would regulate certain index annuities as securities, independent distributors are gearing up in anticipation of the rule's enactment.
John H. Sykes, founder and chairman emeritus of Sykes Enterprises Inc., based in Tampa, Fla., will assume the role of chairman of the board of Gunn Allen Holdings Inc.,
The U.S. unemployment rate rose to 6.1% in August, marking the highest level since 2003 and the eighth consecutive month of slashed payrolls, according to the Department of Labor.
Bank of America Corp. said yesterday that it is ready to settle with state and federal regulators over a probe into its marketing of auction rate securities.
Sun Life Financial Inc.’s U.S. division has launched its charitable estate planning campaign to teach advisers and clients about using life insurance for charitable purposes.
Neither Sen. Barack Obama nor Sen. John McCain possesses a solid sense of the economy political commentator Tucker Carlson told attendees of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisers conference today.
Ameriprise Financial Inc. has defeated a group of advisers who sought a class action alleging that, because the company recently changed its name, the power of its brand had been diminished.
American International Group Inc. is reportedly in talks with JPMorgan Chase & Co. to spin off some its subprime assets into a new company, according to The New York Post.
Overall individual-annuity sales grew 4% during the second quarter, buoyed by a spike in fixed-annuity sales, according to Limra International Inc.
Worries about bank failures and the stability of other financial institutions are all over the news lately.
Two former Credit Suisse brokers were charged today with defrauding their customers by making more than $1 billion in unauthorized purchases of subprime-related auction rate securities.
Small-cap companies in the Russell 2000 Index climbed 3.6% during August, turning out a positive return for every sector, according to Russell Investments of Tacoma, Wash.
