3 Annuities to Watch: Sammons, Athene, Manulife
July 23, 2018 by Allison Bell
Sammons Retirement Solutions has introduced a variable annuity with a guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit rider.
The new LiveWell Freedom Variable Annuity contract automatically includes a GLWB with a 2% minimum gain, and a 75% share of S&P 500 Index gains.
The annual GLWB charge will amount to 1.45% of the GLWB value.
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The maximum total GLWB value gain is 100% of the original value. The value will increase until the client makes a withdrawal, the total GLWB value doubles, or the client reaches the contract “freedom date.”
When the annuity holder gets to the freedom date, Sammons will stop collecting charges for the GLWB rider, and the annuity holder will have full access to the accumulation value, Sammons says.
The GLWB rider will pay out insurance company money from the contract itself, even if the annuity holder still has accumulation value money stored up.
Sammons says it believes the LiveWell Freedom GLWB rider is the first where the lifetime benefits come from the contract, even if the accumulation value is greater than zero.
The West Des Moines, Iowa-based company is issuing the annuity through its Midland National Life Insurance Company unit.
In other annuity launch news:
Athene Annuity and Life Company — a West Des Moines, Iowa-based unit of Athene Holding Ltd. — has introduced the Athene Agility indexed annuity contract.
The contract includes a built-in income and death benefit rider.
The contract offers access to eight indexed credited strategies, including two strategies available only from Athene.
The contract has a benefit base. The benefit base grows by 175% of any interest credits that are added to the annuity’s accumulated value, Athene says. The interest earned is subject to an annual spread, a cap rate and a participation rate.
The minimum interest rate is zero.
Manulife Hong Kong — a unit of Manulife Financial Corp. — has introduced the ManuDelight Annuity Plan in Hong Kong.
The contract offers purchasers in Hong Kong extra protection against severe stroke, kidney failure or Parkinson’s disease. An insured who suffers one of those conditions can get up to twice the guaranteed monthly income.
The new contract is aimed at relatively young pre-retirees. The company also offers annuities aimed at younger workers, workers closer to retirement, and workers who are already retired.
Hong Kong is a good retirement services market: About 49% of Hong Kong residents ages 30 to 54 have started saving money for retirement, and those people have allocated an average of 24% of their monthly income for retirement savings, according to Manulife Hong Kong survey results.
