Cogent Research's new 2012 Assets in Motion study can help you understand and benefit from the rising flow of money from qualified plans to rollover IRAs.
In this video sponsored by Vanguard, Burton Malkiel, Princeton professor and author of "A Random Walk Down Wall Street," talks with RIJ editor Kerry Pechter about what "efficient market" means to him. The 10th edition of "A Random Walk" has just been published.
With the numbers of people over age 100 growing rapidly, there is an equally growing need for advisors to consider an array of retirement income solutions.
Annuity issuers are making a concerted effort to implement and promote paperless document delivery services.
A growing number of 401(k) plan sponsors, retirees, record keepers and regulators want retirees to stay in their plans well into, or even straight through, retirement, PIMCO has found.
TIAA-CREF’s TC Listens website is an innovative new medium for obtaining client feedback online.
TIPS can preserve purchasing power, provide systematic income and offer the assurance of a government guarantee for retirees depending on income from their investments.
With variable annuity sales down, firms are intensifying online product marketing campaigns to reach more prospective investors.
Annuity issuers are reaching out to non-English-speaking investors through websites written in Spanish and Asian languages, according to Corporate Insight.
PIMCO and its Allianz affiliates recently sponsored a new study, “Behavioral Finance and the Post-Retirement Crisis.” PIMCO Retirement Product Manager Tom Streiff explains how the study’s findings can foster the development of successful retirement income products.
A growing number of annuity issuers are using creative approaches on Twitter to reach new audiences online.
Many firms have launched engaging online sales campaigns focusing on the Roth IRA conversion opportunities that will be available in 2010.
Annuity firms introduced enhanced online security measures in 2009, but they remain laggards in the financial service industry.
The annuity industry has been slow to adopt social media. But given the industry’s target audiences, does it matter? Download an excerpt from the report "Social Media: Trends and Tactics in the Financial Services Industry."
Our latest research shows that dynamic displays, such as Flash interfaces, offer firms engaging new ways to present and market online educational content to advisors.
Industry Views are special reports that are sponsored and independent from RIJ's editorial content.
Wed, Feb 01, 2012
This hip-hop bout between "Keynes" and his nemesis "Hayek" was screened at the IMCA conference Tuesday. If you're not among the millions who've seen it on YouTube, prepare for highbrow humor with a back beat (you can't lose it).
Wed, Feb 01, 2012
Job losses in higher-income industries like government and financial services have apparently added to the weakness in household earnings and hurt overall spending.
Wed, Feb 01, 2012
Carmen Reinhart, co-author with Kenneth Rogoff of the best-selling "This Time Is Different," spoke at the IMCA conference in New York this week. We're five years into a 10-year recovery from the credit binge, she said.
Tue, Jan 24, 2012
Much of the year-to-date gain in U.S. stocks has occurred in overnight futures trading, said Trim Tabs executive vice president David Santschi.
Thu, Jan 19, 2012
More than half of all investors surveyed said they expect to be in a better position financially two years from now compared with today.
Thu, Jan 19, 2012
But 65% just want to be left alone by the government to enjoy the wealth they’ve earned, an annual PNC survey shows.
Wed, Jan 18, 2012
Bond funds saw net inflows of $116 billion during 2011, while equity funds saw net outflows of $51 billion for the year, according to Strategic Insight.
Wed, Jan 04, 2012
For those who like diving into economic statistics, even the 16-page summary of the 2011 Financial Report of the U.S. Government provides an ample pool of data.
Wed, Jan 04, 2012
A trusted source for information on a wide array of products, Consumer Reports decided to investigate online and full-service brokerage services by polling their readers and sending mystery shoppers to brokerages. Here's how 13 services measured up.
Mon, Dec 19, 2011
"The industry’s large in-force book of variable annuity business will continue to be a drag on profitability over the near term," the ratings agency said in a recent bulletin.
Mon, Dec 19, 2011
Economic headwinds include “market volatility, Europe's banking and fiscal crises, a polarized US Congress and overzealous fiscal restraint in Washington.”
Mon, Dec 19, 2011
The fact that 10-year Treasury rates are only about 2% indicates the market’s belief that the U.S. economy will grow slowly over the next decade, Vanguard pointed out.
Wed, Dec 07, 2011
The defined contribution industry will see growing use of collective investment trusts and custom target date funds, according to a new report from Celent.
Wed, Dec 07, 2011
“Pressures such as low interest rates, volatile equities markets, and a political and regulatory environment in flux will continue to impact the industry, making it difficult for insurers to boost earnings," Ernst & Young said iin a release.
Wed, Dec 07, 2011
“A strategy of shorting stocks with a disproportionate number of negative picks on the site and buying stocks with a disproportionate number of positive picks produces a return of over 9 percent per annum over the sample period,” a National Bureau of Economic Research paper said.
Wed, Dec 07, 2011
As the living benefits of variable annuities became more valuable during the financial crisis, contract owners astutely held on to them, according to a presentation by Ruark Consulting at a recent Society of Actuaries meeting in Chicago.
Wed, Dec 07, 2011
A gerontology professor argues in a new article that Americans’ 401(k) holdings are coming up trillions of dollars short, thanks to high investment management fees.
Wed, Nov 23, 2011
Variable annuity product development slowed in Q3 2011, according to the quarterly report from a vice president in Morningstar’s Insurance Solutions group.
Wed, Nov 23, 2011
Looking closely at retirement data, researchers discover that the interplay of taxes, Social Security benefits, tax benefits, and take-home pay can be complex--and can vary considerably from worker to worker.
Wed, Nov 16, 2011
Although the capital impact has been partially mitigated by substantial capital raising in recent years, additional capital requirements are likely to emerge if low interest rates persist.
Wed, Nov 16, 2011
'After the ups and downs of recent months, investors seem to be suffering from volatility fatigue,' said Ari Nachmany of Strategic Insight.
Tue, Nov 15, 2011
The wealthy have mixed feelings about passing money to the next generation and about the link between money and happiness, according to a new Barclays Capital survey.
Tue, Nov 08, 2011
While forecasting a 10% decline in investment yields for life insurers due to Fed interest rate policy, Ernst & Young proposes six strategies firms can use to combat the impact of low rates. E&Y's Doug French (pictured) spoke with RIJ.
Tue, Nov 08, 2011
U.S. life insurers can weather the impact of 'Operation Twist' for a few years, Moody’s Investors Service says. But another five-plus years of rock-bottom interest rates could damage profits and ratings.
Wed, Nov 02, 2011
Inflows for all annuity types processed in September declined by 19% to $6.7 billion from $8.3 billion in August, according to the Depositary Trust and Clearing Corp.
Wed, Oct 26, 2011
Low sales of individual income annuities "should not be viewed as an indicator of underlying preferences but rather as a consequence of institutional factors about the availability and framing of annuity options,” Shlomo Benartzi and Richard Thaler asserted.
Wed, Oct 26, 2011
This excerpt from a new Congressional Budget Office report on wealth inequality in the U.S. shows that "highly compensated workers have replaced people whose income is from property or securities at the top of the income distribution."
Thu, Oct 20, 2011
About two-thirds of state and local workers leave public employment with little or no pension, according to a new research brief from Alicia Munnell and colleagues at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.
Sun, Oct 16, 2011
An 'Occupy Wall Street' protester at New York's Zuccotti Park expresses her opinion. The same day, at the NY Athletic Club, Wall Streeters themselves criticized their own industry.
Wed, Oct 05, 2011
The study analyzed seven state retirement systems that offer a choice between DB and DC plans to find that the DB uptake rate ranged from 98% to 75%, with the balance choosing the DC plan.
Wed, Sep 28, 2011
'Last year, DFA and BlackRock were the only Stars in our mutual fund company commitment ranking,' said Cogent principal John Meunier. 'This year, a total of four firms made it into the top tier.'
Wed, Sep 28, 2011
Investors are using technology for pre-work before contacting a financial professional, to check up on their advisor and to monitor their advisor’s account management, the consulting firm has found.
Wed, Sep 28, 2011
"Ten years of well-behaved markets can have less impact on the ultimate success or failure of a portfolio than a couple of outlier months of extreme returns," says Russell Investments in a new report on dynamic asset allocation.
Wed, Sep 28, 2011
Investors have been asking Moody's if variable annuity issuers have made their products safer, and how Moody's evaluates the safety of VA guarantees. For answers, Moody's turned to the issuers themselves.
Wed, Sep 21, 2011
Fidelity, ING, TIAA-CREF and VALIC continued to solidify their positions in the marketplace, according to a new report on the 403(b) retirement plan market from Retirement Research Inc.
Thu, Sep 15, 2011
Russell Investments recommends that each year a defined contribution plan participant should be saving a percentage of salary equal to 30% of his or her final income replacement rate, net of Social Security income.
Wed, Sep 14, 2011
Most people dread nursing homes. 83% of Americans age 50 and older would rather survive five years at home than 10 years in a nursing home.
Wed, Sep 14, 2011
Vanguard pulled ahead of the group of 36 leading DC investment managers to score the highest in overall favorability. Fidelity was rated first in overall awareness.
Wed, Sep 14, 2011
Cogent Research's 2011 Advisor Brandscape survey shows that many advisors sell annuities and are highly loyal to certain variable annuity providers. But on average they don't devote much of their clients' assets to annuities--and don't plan to in the future. At left, Cogent principal John Meunier.
Tue, Sep 06, 2011
The research arm of the non-profit retirement plan for educators has just published the results of a forum it hosted last December on best practices and potential improvements in the design of defined contribution plans.
Tue, Sep 06, 2011
Plan sponsors who urge union members to participate or to contribute more by pointing out other employees' saving behavior may produce unintended consequences, Harvard's David Laibson (in photo) and other researchers found.
Mon, Aug 29, 2011
On average, active managers will underperform a portfolio of investable index funds. But 20-40% of managers show persistent outperformance, says Dutch asset manager Robeco.
Wed, Aug 24, 2011
If they were more financially sophisticated, Americans could be paying much less in mortgage interest and mutual fund fees, says financial literacy scholar Anna Lusardi.
Tue, Aug 16, 2011
The average retirement age for men, which was 65 in 1962, fell to about 62 between 1985 and 1995 but has since risen to 64, according to a new paper from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.
Tue, Aug 16, 2011
About a third of the 65-and-older households that owned a home in 2009 had a mortgage, according to the Census Bureau’s American Housing Survey.
Fri, Aug 12, 2011
The Society of Actuaries' recent book (available here in pdf form) puts the reader at the center of a web of hundreds of articles, research studies, other resources relevant to the risks and opportunities of Boomer retirement.
Tue, Aug 09, 2011
SunAmerica's 'Retirement Re-Set' study showed why some retirees are happier than others. Jana Greer, president and CEO of SunAmerica Retirement Markets, explains. The company was the sixth biggest VA-seller in 1Q 2011.
Tue, Aug 09, 2011
“The financial services industry needs to start executing on the reality that many investors don’t plan to retire,” said Laura Varas, Hearts & Wallets principal.
Wed, Jul 27, 2011
In his regular quarterly update, the product manager of Morningstar’s Annuity Solutions reviews second-quarter VA manufacturer activity and looks ahead.
Tue, Jul 19, 2011
A poll sponsored by AARP and others found that 83% of Democrats, 73% of independents and 68% of Republicans favor a single federal agency dedicated to protecting consumers from financial fraud and misconduct.
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RIJ Publishing, 4340 Knollwood Dr., Emmaus, PA 18049, 610-965-3103
Retirement Income Journal is a new online magazine dedicated to writing for and about the industry that has coalesced around the challenge of helping Americans turn their savings into secure lifetime incomes. This industry includes members of the insurance, asset management, banking, pension, structured products, reverse mortgage, information technology, financial planning and academic communities and the professional organizations that serve them.
Send editorial queries to kerry.pechter@retirementincomejournal.com.
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