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New LIMRA research finds that while most Americans approaching retirement have considered how they will generate income after leaving the workforce, many have yet to translate that awareness into a formal retirement plan or seek professional financial guidance.

According to the Retirement Income Readiness Report, 88% of preretirees have thought about retirement income, but half do not have a recently updated written retirement plan. Only 40% said they work with a financial advisor, while 76% reported either having no retirement plan or spending fewer than five hours planning for retirement over the past year.

“Most people, unfortunately, spend more time on their vacation planning than they do on their retirement planning,” said Bill Nash, vice president and head of member relations and sales, LIMRA and LOMA. “I think the really big opportunity for us there is really access to guidance.”

The report, which surveyed preretirees and retirees age 45 and older, found that nearly six in 10 preretirees consider themselves well prepared for retirement, while about four in 10 do not. Current retirees reported a similar assessment when reflecting on their preparedness before leaving the workforce.

Cost-of-living increases remain the top concern for preretirees, cited by 43% of respondents, followed by the possibility of outliving retirement savings, cited by 30%.

Working with an advisor is key

LIMRA said consumers who work with a financial advisor are significantly more likely to feel prepared for retirement. Seventy-seven percent of respondents with an advisor rated themselves highly prepared, compared with 47% of those without one. Among the least-prepared consumers, only 8% reported working with a financial advisor.

The study also found strong interest in guaranteed lifetime income products. Nearly three-quarters of preretirees said they want to learn more about protected lifetime income options, while 78% of respondents with a pension or annuity reported feeling highly prepared for retirement, compared with 50% of those without either source of guaranteed income.

Despite that interest, only 25% of preretirees believe their protected income sources will be sufficient to cover essential living expenses in retirement. By comparison, 52% of retirees said their protected lifetime income currently covers their basic living expenses.

Annuity sales have nearly doubled in five years to more than $450 billion. But studies like the new LIMRA report continue to point to a much-larger potential market. The challenge for advisors is to connect with more clients through education and better financial tools, Nash said.

“I think the industry has taken some really great strides in getting access to more guidance,” he said. “But it’s one of those things we look at with technology and some of the mediums to be able to deliver that guidance. We’ve got to continue to widen as an industry.”

Taking the steps

The report also found that consumers who felt well prepared for retirement were more likely to have taken steps to learn about protected income options. Ninety-three percent of highly prepared preretirees said they had sought information on guaranteed income products, compared with 67% of those who reported low preparedness.

LIMRA said the research also found that retirement preparedness is influenced by more than accumulated savings. Among preretirees, wealth, retirement planning and access to protected lifetime income all contribute to confidence about retirement.

For retirees, wealth remains the primary driver of preparedness, while planning and guaranteed income continue to reinforce financial confidence.

The findings suggest insurers, retirement plan providers and financial professionals have an opportunity to improve retirement readiness by expanding planning resources, financial advice and access to products that provide predictable lifetime income, the report concluded.

Bryan Hodgens, senior vice president and head of LIMRA Research, echoed the growing demand for education and retirement income solutions.

“Consumers are telling us exactly where the industry can help,” Hodgens said in a press release. “They value guaranteed lifetime income, they’re worried about outliving their money, and three-quarters of them are raising their hands to learn more. The companies that meet that demand with clear education, accessible advice and products that address cost and control concerns will define the next decade of retirement security.”

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Home insurance premiums have risen dramatically across the country, with homeowners in disaster-prone areas facing the steepest increases.

“A myth I see repeated regularly is the idea that some people deserve to pay more for insurance because they chose to live in a risky place,” said Moira Birss, senior fellow at the Climate and Community Institute.

According to Birss, this point of view is problematic for a number of reasons. First, climate risk is rising everywhere. If it’s not wildfires or hurricanes in your area, it could be hail, floods, or landslides.

Second, your ability to choose where you live is often constrained by things like where your job or family is located, or where you can afford the rent or mortgage.

You may also have moved somewhere long before disasters were as frequent as they are today, and are now stuck.

“The only ones who truly get to choose where they live are the rich,” Birss explained.

That’s why the Climate and Community Institute proposes a federal solution to the home insurance crisis: a collective protection system in which risk is shared and Americans recognize that disasters affect us all, especially as climate change worsens.

Unless policymakers prioritize making housing safer and helping us pool our shared exposure to disaster risks, rather than trying to rescue insurance companies, the crisis will continue, the institute said.

Critics say trillion-dollar losses possible

The institute is promoting a holistic approach through a proposed National Housing Resilience Agency (NHRA). The agency would aim to reduce disaster risk by moving away from fossil fuels to limit further climate change while also investing in measures to make homes more resilient, the institute said.

It would also help spread out the costs of disasters so that all U.S. homeowners have adequate financial protection when they need it because the reality is, everyone faces disaster risk, no matter where they live, the institute said.

The controversial proposal would establish a single-payer national disaster insurance and risk mitigation. Critics, insurance industry stakeholders, and fiscal analysts raise significant concerns regarding this model.

Critics argue that replacing private property/disaster insurance markets with a federal single-payer backstop puts taxpayers on the hook for trillion-dollar climate-related losses. Skeptics question the feasibility of initial capitalization, noting that forcing levies or retroactive fees on private lenders and insurers could disrupt the broader housing finance market.

Don Griffin, senior department vice president with the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, shared this statement on the institute’s proposal:

“APCIA supports policies that make communities safer, more resilient, and insurance coverage more affordable. The most effective path forward is not replacing the private market with a government-run system, but reducing risk through stronger mitigation, resilient infrastructure, modern building codes, and policies that support competitive insurance markets and consumer choice.”

‘Address the root causes’

Birss said bolder action is needed.

“Advisors and homeowners must vote and advocate for policies that address the root causes of the insurance crisis: climate change, corporate profiteering, and an individualistic approach to large-scale disasters,” Birss said.

Everyone needs to understand that if those policy shifts don’t happen, she said, insurance will continue to become more inadequate, unaffordable, and unavailable.

One significant barrier for many property owners nationwide is the limited options for insurance coverage.

Of course, homeowners can reduce coverage or increase deductibles, but that leaves them exposed to major financial losses in the case of a big disaster.

“In some places they might have access to so-called ‘surplus line’ coverage, but these policies are less regulated and therefore provide less protection from price gouging or company bankruptcy,” Birss noted.

Also, while homeowners in many states can turn to their state’s insurance-of-last-resort program, often known as the FAIR Plan, these programs tend to only offer bare bones coverage at high rates.

How the proposal would work

Today’s insurance industry is built on the assumption that risk is relatively predictable and stable so that insurers can easily predict claims payout costs.

However, when risk becomes less predictable and climbs over time, private insurance companies charge higher premiums, drop policyholders, and cherry-pick the lowest risk customers.

“This enables insurers to keep their balance sheets healthy, but leaves households unprotected and public coffers to cover uninsured costs,” Birss explained.

Most policy approaches today seek to rescue the industry from this situation through deregulation that allows insurance companies to charge higher premiums faster.

However, this doesn’t solve the insurance crisis and in many cases, it exacerbates it.

“The policy priority should be making our homes safer and protecting our household finances when disaster strikes,” Birss said.

‘Would be greatly improved’

“If we imagine it’s 2036 and we’ve had a National Housing Resilience Authority for the last five years, the country’s insurance availability and affordability situation would be greatly improved,” Birss explained.

Across the U.S., households will have had help hardening their homes and communities against the various disasters they may face, be it wildfires, hurricanes, hailstorms, landslides, earthquakes, or floods.

“Disasters may still cause damage, though, and the NHRA will provide financial protection so that households can recover rather than be bankrupted or even forced onto the streets,” Birss added.

Lastly, there would be more affordable housing options located in less risky areas and built to stronger resilience standards.

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Tuesday saw Jackson Financial CEO Laura Prieskorn deliver her final quarterly earnings report, concluding her 40-year career with robust results.

Retail annuity sales of $5.9 billion were up 34% from the second quarter of 2025, including record registered index-linked annuity sales of $2.3 billion, up 69% from the year-ago quarter. Jackson posted adjusted operating earnings of $513 million, for a record $7.30 per diluted share in the second quarter, compared to $350 million, or $4.87 per diluted share in Q2 2025.

Prieskorn will step down from her active role as president, CEO, and board member on Sept. 30. To ensure a smooth transition, she will continue serving as a corporate advisor through Dec. 31. The Jackson board named Chief Financial Officer Don Cummings as her successor.

“Under her steadfast leadership, the company navigated the transformational period, advancing many important strategic initiatives that have strengthened our foundation and positioned Jackson well for continued growth,” Cummings said of Prieskorn. “I look forward to leading Jackson through its next phase of growth.”

Brian Walta will succeed Cummings as executive vice president and CFO, also effective Oct. 1.

The quarter was so strong that the first question, from Wall Street analyst Suneet Kamath of Jeffries, is whether Jackson can duplicate it.

Jackson benefitted from stronger equity investment performance, Cummings noted, and higher earnings and interest rates. Assets under management were up nearly 50% year over year, contributing to strong spread earnings, he added.

“Higher equities, higher interest rates are good for our businesses, and while we’re not providing full-year financial guidance, they are a couple of indicators that I think bode well for us having strong results going forward,” Cummings said.

Powerful annuity sales

Jackson reported total retail annuity sales of $5.9 billion in the second quarter, up from $4.4 billion in the year-ago quarter. The insurer once thrived off industry-leading traditional variable annuity sales, before the product fell into disfavor. Second-quarter VA sales of $2.7 billion were up from $2.5 billion in the second quarter of 2025, reflecting higher sales of products without lifetime benefits.

Record RILA sales of $2.3 billion in the second quarter were up from $1.4 billion in the second quarter of 2025. Fixed and fixed index annuity sales in the second quarter of $812 million were up from $470 million in the second quarter of 2025.

“We anticipate continued RILA sales growth resulting from our June launch of Market Link Pro Four and Market Link Pro Advisory Four,” Prieskorn said. “This latest addition to our RILA product suite is the first in the industry to reflect the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index option.”

Recent policyholder behavior trends have been more favorable than in previous periods ahead of the company’s annual review of actuarial assumptions later this year, Cummings said.

Jackson also reiterated its willingness to pursue acquisitions or block transactions that diversify its business beyond annuities. Executives said opportunities involving life insurance liabilities would receive particular interest if they complement the company’s long-term strategy, although any transaction would be evaluated against returning capital to shareholders.

Quarterly Highlights

• Total adjusted capital of $5.8 billion at the end of Q2, and an estimated risk-based capital ratio at Jackson National Life Insurance Co. of 538%.
• Cash and highly liquid securities at the holding company of nearly $1.4 billion as of June 30, above the company’s updated target of $325 million.
• Institutional Products reported pretax adjusted operating earnings of $29 million in the quarter, compared to $19 million in Q2 2025, driven by higher spread income resulting from higher AUM.
• Closed life and annuity blocks reported a pretax adjusted operating income loss of $10 million in the second quarter, compared to $22 million in the year-ago quarter, “primarily reflecting lower limited partnership income, partially offset by decreases in reserves from the runoff of in-force business.”

By The Numbers

• Net Income: $644 million ($168 million in Q2 2025)
• Adjusted Operating Earnings: $513 million ($350 million in Q2 2025)
• Earnings Per Share: $7.30 per share ($4.87 in Q2 2025)
• Share Repurchases: $227 million in Q2 2026
• Dividend Declared: $63 million in Q2 2026
• Stock Price Movement: Shares rose more than 6% by late Tuesday to $133.76

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Atlanta-based American Growth Insurance recently announced its launch as an AI-enabled insurance brokerage growth platform with almost $70 million in committed equity funding.

Backed by Rockbridge Growth Equity, a partnership-oriented middle market private equity firm, and Atomic, a venture capital studio, AGI is a retail brokerage in the specialty market serving commercial and personal lines clients.

Brian Morgan, CEO of AGI, said the company aims to “enable greatness by unlocking its partners’ full potential through modern technology and traditional client relationships.”

The platform is specifically engineered for insurance firms that are committed to pursuing long-term growth by pairing AI, collaboration, cultural alignment, and enhanced client service.

The meaning of an “AI-native” brokerage

AGI describes itself as an “AI-native” brokerage rather than a brokerage that simply uses AI. This means AI is foundational to the technology platform the company designed to run its business.

“It’s not a shiny new object we bolted on and are trying to integrate with other systems, which is the challenge many other brokerages are facing,” Morgan said.

Before launching AGI, executives asked one core question: “If we were going to build a brokerage today that will fundamentally improve on the existing models, what would we build?”

That question ultimately led AGI to build AI into its operating model from the ground up, to improve efficiency and enhance how its professionals serve clients.

How the AI-first approach boosts profitability

Before completing its first acquisition, AGI worked with 10 agencies to develop and test its AI-first operating model, the company said, increasing profitability by over 50% through a combination of revenue and productivity gains.

According to Morgan, a key driver of this success was making data entry more efficient, particularly across workflows like submissions, re-marketing, client servicing, and endorsements that require employees to spend a great deal of time entering information.

“Ultimately, we made it possible for producers and account managers to direct more of their efforts toward prospecting and advising clients,” Morgan explained.

When paired with highly qualified and passionate professionals, AI serves as a vital relationship-building tool.

“The benefit of AI from our point of view is that it gives us more time to invest in clients, listen to their needs, and find solutions for their risk challenges,” Morgan said.

A new model for independent agency growth

It’s no surprise that independent agencies are being approached by private equity firms almost daily. However, AGI’s partnership model is different from a traditional acquisition.

“We aren’t simply looking to stitch together a series of acquisitions. We are an operator with extensive experience building successful brokerages, and our model enables our partners to become better brokers,” Morgan explained.

As a result, AGI is selective in the types of partner agencies the brokerage brings on board, focusing on those that are aligned culturally and share its vision for scaling operations in the future.

“AGI wants to build the brokerage platform of the future with partners that share our values and our vision for growth through enhanced client service,” Morgan added.

The skills advisors will need to thrive

In the future, successful insurance advisors won’t need to be experts in the technical components of how AI works.

However, they should possess AI-native skills.

“Advisors must understand what AI does well, how to prompt it, and how to automate routine tasks they handle,” Morgan said.

At the same time, the majority of their days will be spent with clients, so they will need to rely on attributes that have always been important: the ability to listen, anticipate what clients need, and use creativity to solve problems.

“What will separate successful brokers in the future from others in an AI-driven industry is their understanding of how AI technology can make them better at the human side of the insurance business,” Morgan added.

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A California federal judge again threw out a lawsuit accusing Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. and its codefendants of running a whole life insurance tax-avoidance scam.

In her ruling last week, however, Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett gave the 29 plaintiffs one final opportunity to revive several fraud-related claims through an amended complaint. Plaintiffs have 21 days to file a third amended complaint.

In an order issued in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the judge granted motions to dismiss filed by Penn Mutual and Wintrust Life Finance, finding that the plaintiffs failed to adequately plead several causes of action, including Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) claims against Wintrust and claims alleging breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing against both companies.

The court concluded that further amendment of those claims would be futile. The judge previously tossed out a second amended complaint in December.

The ruling, however, allows plaintiffs to file a third amended complaint seeking to bolster RICO claims against Penn Mutual and Crosslin PLLC, an accounting firm, as well as fraud and negligent misrepresentation claims against Penn Mutual, Wintrust and Crosslin.

Agent pleaded guilty

The defendants include former Penn Mutual agent Randall Scott Boll, who was indicted in 2021 on four counts related to violations of federal money laundering laws and banking regulations.

Boll pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to cause a financial institution to fail to file currency transaction reports and to structure financial transactions. He was sentenced to one day behind bars in California, court records say, and two years of supervised release.

The lawsuit alleges that Penn Mutual and Boll – along with several other law, lending, accounting and financial planning firms also named as defendants – constituted a “High-Premium Insurance Enterprise.”

“The HPI Enterprise was an organization consisting of individuals and business entities associated for the common or shared purpose of selling, promoting and/or marketing high-premium life insurance policies and related products to plaintiffs through deceptive and misleading sales tactics and materials, and deriving profits from those activities,” the lawsuit reads.

Penn Mutual whole life policies were aggressively marketed as offering “significant tax advantages,” plaintiffs say. “Boll and other members and associates of the enterprise would reap high commissions (as much as 75-125% of the initial annual premium paid by the policyholder) for each HPI policy sold.”

Plaintiffs accuse Penn Mutual of ignoring its own underwriting guidelines “by repeatedly accepting insurance applications for plaintiffs that … falsely inflated the net worth of plaintiffs.” The policies equated to big profits for the insurer because all of plaintiffs’ policies “were designed to (and in fact did) terminate long before the insureds’ life expectancies,” the lawsuit states.

One type of “sham tax avoidance strategy” incorporated premium financing life insurance loans to finance the policies, the lawsuit alleges.

Tax strategies endorsed

The court stated that the second amended complaint alleges that a Penn Mutual representative endorsed tax strategies promoted by defendant Boll during conversations with several plaintiffs, including statements regarding the tax deductibility of life insurance premiums and policy loan interest.

Because plaintiffs allege those representations were false, the judge found amendment of those claims would not necessarily be futile.

The judge also found that plaintiffs could potentially cure deficiencies in their RICO allegations by more specifically alleging that Penn Mutual shared a common fraudulent purpose with Boll and by identifying allegedly fraudulent statements with greater particularity.

If plaintiffs fail to refile an amended complaint, Penn Mutual and Wintrust will be dismissed from the litigation. At the same time, defendants Boll and Crosslin will be required to answer the existing complaint within 14 days thereafter.

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A National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ working group is moving into a new phase of its effort to overhaul annuity illustration rules, shifting from collecting ideas to building consensus on potential changes to Model Regulation 245.

The Life Insurance and Annuities Illustrations Working Group held the first of four conference calls on Thursday, designed to reach a consensus on the difficult illustration rules.

Chairman Ben Slutsker, director of life actuarial valuation at the Minnesota Department of Commerce, said the goal is to develop technical proposals after the upcoming NAIC Summer National Meeting in Columbus, Ohio.

“We’re at the point where we can start to try and build consensus to make some conceptual decisions, piece by piece,” Castaneda said. “If we can’t do it in four calls, we’ll schedule more than four calls.”

The working group plans to address illustration length, disclosures, accountability and illustrated crediting rates before considering whether an interim actuarial guideline or other temporary measure is needed. At the same time, states adopt revisions to Model 245.

The parent Life Insurance and Annuity Committee gave the working group the go-ahead last month to begin revising Model 245. The Executive Committee is expected to vote on final approval during the summer national meeting, Aug. 11-14.

Focus on illustration length

The group’s first substantive discussion centered on reducing the size and complexity of annuity illustrations.

Among the concepts under consideration are allowing or requiring shorter illustration periods instead of projecting values through maturity, eliminating redundant narrative sections and combining multiple illustration tables into more compact side-by-side presentations.

“In our research, we’ve seen multiple illustrations that are 30 pages of quantitative information,” Slutsker said. “If we can just have a table that’s a little bit more compact, it just is a bit less daunting.”

Working group members generally supported simplifying illustrations but cautioned against creating loopholes.

Tomasz Serbinowski, an actuary with the Utah Insurance Department, warned that companies could potentially extend illustration periods by adding immaterial product features that begin decades into a contract.

“It invites some possible gaming,” he said.

Several regulators spoke in favor of standardized illustrations, saying simpler, more uniform presentations would better serve consumers nearing retirement.

“If these are actually intended to be used as educational documents, there’s no reason that we can’t work to standardize them,” said Joshua Blakely of Oregon, “which I think overall would help the consumers’ understanding if they’re trying to compare products or just understand how one product works versus another.”

The working group eventually reached preliminary consensus to pursue shorter and combined illustration formats while emphasizing standardized requirements rather than leaving presentation largely to company discretion.

Debate over disclosures

The group then turned to disclosure requirements, examining proposals to strengthen warnings that illustrations are not projections, expand disclosures about anticipated changes in non-guaranteed elements, add standardized disclosure language and further distinguish guaranteed from non-guaranteed values.

Model 245 already requires disclosures stating that illustrated values are not guarantees and that non-guaranteed elements may change, raising the question of whether additional language would meaningfully improve consumer understanding.

Several regulators questioned whether adding more disclosures would solve the underlying problem.

“I’m generally not in favor of adding to disclosures,” Serbinowski said. “I don’t view disclosures as particularly useful.”

Mike Yanacheak is the chief actuary at the Iowa Insurance Division. Consumers often become anchored to large illustrated account values regardless of cautionary language, he explained.

“When you show a consumer an illustration that says, ‘At some future point you’re going to have 10,000 times the amount of money you’ve got now,’ they’re already anchored,” Yanacheak said. “It doesn’t matter what you say in your disclosure. They’ve already got the concept in their head that they’re just flat out going to be rich.”

Yanacheak also pointed to existing Model 245 language requiring illustrations to reflect anticipated changes in non-guaranteed elements, adding that he rarely sees companies incorporate expected future changes into their illustrations despite the existing requirement.

“I’ve never seen this language in Model 245 respected and taken into account,” he said. “I’m not saying it hasn’t happened. I’ve just not seen it.”

Consumer advocates urge testing

Consumer representatives urged regulators to test any proposed revisions with actual consumers before finalizing new requirements.

Bonnie Burns, a training, policy, and technical assistance consultant at California Health Advocates, said disclosures remain important but should be evaluated based on how consumers actually experience them.

Burns also argued that consumers consistently want information about insurers’ financial strength, even though regulators suggested setting that issue aside because of its broader implications.

“Almost every person who comes in for counseling on insurance of any kind, one of the things that they want to know is that company strong enough that it’s going to be there later,

Dick Weber is CEO and co-founder of the Life Insurance Consumer Advocacy Center. He said consumers tend to form expectations based primarily on the illustrated numbers rather than accompanying explanations.

“The numbers form an immediate expectation,” said Weber, also an NAIC consumer liaison. “I don’t think yet another disclosure is going to do it.”

The working group is expected to continue discussing disclosure issues and later move into the more technically complex questions surrounding illustrated crediting rates and hypothetical returns during upcoming calls.

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A federal appeals court sided with Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. on Thursday in affirming a lower-court ruling that a $4 million life insurance policy purchased on a New Jersey retiree was an illegal stranger-originated life insurance arrangement.

The Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of Ameritas, rejecting claims brought by Wells Fargo Bank as securities intermediary for Vida Longevity Fund, which had acquired the policy years after it was issued.

“[Z]ero evidence indicates that the representations Wells Fargo relies on are true,” wrote Judge Bobby E. Shepherd, writing for the three-judge panel.

The decision continues a summer winning streak for life insurers in stranger-originated life insurance, or STOLI, cases. In June, the 3rd Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of Lincoln National Life Insurance Co., rejecting investor claims involving two life policies worth a combined $8 million.

Both the Ameritas and Lincoln cases originated in New Jersey. Applying New Jersey law, the courts concluded the policies were classic STOLI arrangements because investors with no insurable interest were the intended beneficiaries from the outset.

New Jersey law and the state’s Supreme Court have consistently held that STOLI arrangements violate public policy and are void from inception.

Wells Fargo could not be reached for comment. Ameritas did not provide a comment by the time this article was published.

2008 life policy

The Ameritas-Wells Fargo dispute concerns a $4 million policy issued in 2008 on the life of Jerry Freid, a retired New Jersey resident who died in 2020. Vida sought to collect the death benefit after purchasing the policy as part of a portfolio of life insurance contracts.

Ameritas, which succeeded the original issuer, refused payment, arguing that the policy was void from its inception because it was created as part of a STOLI scheme.

The appeals court agreed that the evidence overwhelmingly showed the coverage was procured not for legitimate estate planning, but to benefit investors lacking an insurable interest in Freid’s life.

“The summary judgment record does not permit a reasonable trier of fact to conclude that the Policy was anything other than STOLI,” Shepherd wrote.

The policy originated with insurance producer Michael Binday, who operated a brokerage business that federal prosecutors later alleged orchestrated a widespread STOLI scheme. Binday and insurance agent James Kevin Kergil were convicted in 2013 of mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy after a jury found they had deceived insurers by arranging policies for seniors that were intended to be sold to investors after contestability periods expired.

According to the opinion, Binday recruited seniors who had little need for large life insurance policies, obtained life expectancy reports for potential investors, and created trusts to own the policies before arranging premium financing through an entity known as HM Ruby.

The financing structure eliminated virtually all financial risk for insureds by allowing the policies to satisfy the loans if they were not repaid. The court said HM Ruby expected the policies to be transferred to investors rather than retained for estate planning purposes.

‘Laughed out loud’

Freid was 72 when the policy was issued and had a net worth of no more than about $500,000, court documents say. He rented his home and could not afford the policy’s $177,000 annual premium. Yet the insurance application represented that his net worth exceeded $4.4 million.

When  Freid’s daughter, who later administered his estate, heard the $4.4 million figure, she “laughed out loud,” court documents say.

Vida ultimately acquired the policy despite internal due diligence describing the portfolio as perhaps “the worst overall block [it] had ever looked at,” and characterizing the HM Ruby-financed policies as “premium finance loan-to-own” business, court documents say.

On appeal, Wells Fargo argued that Florida law should apply because the trust’s trustee may have signed the application there. The court rejected that argument, ruling that the policy’s “conformity with laws” provision was not a choice-of-law clause and that New Jersey had the most significant relationship to the transaction because Freid lived there, the application and policy were prepared on New Jersey forms, and all parties expected New Jersey law to govern.

The decision leaves intact the district court’s dismissal of Wells Fargo’s breach of contract and bad-faith claims.

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Like most financial products, market value-adjusted (MVA) fixed annuities come with trade-offs.

In exchange for potentially higher interest rates, any withdrawals above the free withdrawal limit during the surrender period may be adjusted, depending on how interest rates have changed since the annuity was purchased.

“If interest rates have declined, an early withdrawal could result in a positive adjustment that increases the amount a client receives,” said Brian Kunkel, senior vice president of marketing strategy and field services at AmeriLife.

Conversely, if interest rates have increased since the client purchased the annuity, an early withdrawal may result in a negative adjustment that reduces their total payout. However, if the contract is held until the end of the surrender period, the MVA never comes into play.

“An MVA fixed annuity may be appropriate for someone with a longer time horizon who doesn’t anticipate they’ll need access to funds during the surrender period,” said Tom Buckingham, chief growth officer at Nassau Financial Group.

How to decide if an MVA makes sense

Annuities are long-term retirement vehicles. Therefore, determining whether to purchase an annuity shouldn’t revolve around whether it’s an MVA or non-MVA product, advisors say.

Rather, the decision should be based on the client’s time horizon, liquidity and income needs, and long-term retirement objectives. Advisors should also consider what benefits an MVA contract provides and how that fits into the overall retirement strategy.

The key question is whether the client can leave the funds invested without needing significant access during the surrender period.

“If the funds are intended for long-term retirement income and the client has sufficient liquid assets elsewhere, an MVA may be appropriate,” Kunkel explained.

However, if they’re designed for emergency use, an MVA annuity isn’t the best choice.

Ultimately, annuities with MVA fees should be used with a defined time horizon.

“This allows them to complement market-based investments by providing principal protection while equity investments can be used for longer-term growth,” said Angie Welsh, founder and president at My Annuity Agents.

Explaining MVAs to clients

Not every retirement dollar needs to do the same job. Some assets offer liquidity, some support growth, and some provide guaranteed income.

“The advisor’s role is to match each solution to the client’s objectives and help them understand the trade-offs involved,” explained Buckingham.

That’s why it’s important to explain that an MVA annuity is not designed to serve every purpose.

Instead, it may be a good option for clients who are seeking long-term retirement income and have other assets available for short-term needs.

Also, when discussing MVAs, advisors must debunk the common misconception that an MVA is always subject to a penalty.

Instead, this type of annuity includes an adjustment that may be positive or negative, depending on interest rate movements.

In declining interest rate environments, an MVA can result in an adjustment in the client’s favor, while in rising interest rate environments, it can result in a negative adjustment.

At the end of the day, an MVA is primarily designed to discourage policyholders from withdrawing funds early. It isn’t added as another revenue-generating source for the insurance company.

“MVA annuities are not inherently better or worse than other financial planning tools,” Welsh said.

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The Cigna Group reported better-than-expected second-quarter results, fueled by strong performance in its Evernorth health services business and Cigna Healthcare insurance operations.

President and CEO Brian C. Evanko said that even better days are ahead. Cigna’s investments in artificial intelligence and personalized healthcare are positioning the company for long-term growth, he told Wall Street analysts during a conference call Thursday.

“We are leveraging technology and AI to drive better health outcomes, simplifying personalized customer experiences, and lower costs, and then execute that at scale,” he explained.

Conversations with employers, healthcare providers and customers have consistently highlighted two priorities: affordability as healthcare costs continue to rise, and demand for more personalized, consumer-friendly healthcare experiences, Evanko stressed.

Unlike most of their competitors, Cigna saw a 2% uptick in medical customers by the end of Q2. However, total “customer relationships,” which include dental and pharmacy, declined 3% from the end of 2025 to 182.8 million.

“The current environment is certainly dynamic,” Evanko said. “I see the landscape as ripe with opportunity to innovate, drive change, and forge a new path in healthcare.”

Demand for GLP-1s abates

Evernorth Health Services, Cigna’s pharmacy, care and health services business, posted results slightly ahead of expectations, with revenue increasing 6% from a year earlier.

Executives said adoption of specialty generic drugs and biosimilars accelerated during the quarter, helping lower costs for employers and patients while supporting earnings growth.

“We’re still at the starting point of a multiyear wave with respect to more biosimilars, especially generics, coming to market,” Evanko said.

Evernorth now provides access to more than 330 limited-distribution specialty medications, supported by clinical care teams and personalized patient engagement programs.

Demand for specialty medications continues to expand as more patients require treatment for complex medical conditions, executives said.

Cigna is seeing a steady decline in the number of employer plans willing to cover GLP-1 drugs for weight loss, Evanko said. That trend both helps on the health insurance side and hurts Evernorth pharmacy sales.

“We continue to offer a variety of financing solutions for employers that range from covering the cost of the GLP-1 drugs to covering a portion of the cost, to offering it on more of a sponsored or voluntary basis,” Evanko said. “So this space will certainly continue to evolve in the future.”

Cigna itself created a stir in June when it announced that it will stop covering GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, including Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, in its ​employee health plan. That decision took effect July 1.

Evernorth’s pharmacy benefit services business generated $609 million in adjusted pretax earnings, reflecting the financial impact of previously announced client contract renewals and investments in the company’s new rebate-free pharmacy benefit model, known as “Signature.”

The company is seeing strong early interest from health plans and employers as it prepares for a broader commercial rollout of Signature in 2028, Evanko said.

AI central to strategy

Evanko repeatedly emphasized artificial intelligence as a key component of Cigna’s long-term strategy.

AI is being integrated with technology and clinical programs to deliver more personalized healthcare experiences, improve actionable insights and help consumers better navigate the healthcare system.

In one example, Evernorth has launched a new AI-powered ​specialty pharmacy program last month to reduce the time ‌it takes to process prescriptions and improve customer service.

The program, called Pharmacy Forward, is supported by a $100 million ​investment through 2028, Cigna said.

AI-driven innovation comes as healthcare organizations face rising demand for complex care, Evanko explained, increasing specialty drug costs and growing consumer expectations for digital experiences comparable to those available in other industries.

“The results speak for themselves,” Evanko said. “Customers who engage AI programs reduce medical costs by approximately $2,000 per year on average. Early engagement has already yielded a 42% reduction in avoidable inpatient stays amongst those customers.”

Quarterly Highlights

• The Cigna Healthcare medical cost ratio was 84.5% for second quarter, compared to 83.2% for prior-year quarter, primarily reflecting “higher prior year risk adjustment benefits within our Individual and Family Plans.”
• Second-quarter adjusted revenues at Cigna Healthcare increased 9% compared to the second quarter of 2025, primarily due to premium rate increases.
• Total pharmacy customers at the end of Q2 decreased 4% from Dec. 31 to 118.2 million, reflecting expected client transitions and lower membership from health plan clients.

By The Numbers

• Total Revenue: $71.7 billion ($67.2 billion in Q2 2025)
• Net Income: $1.66 billion ($1.53 billion in Q2 2025)
• Earnings Per Share: Adjusted after-tax income of $7.78 ($7.20 in Q2 2025)
• Share Repurchases: $250 million in Q2 2026
• Dividend Declared: $1.56 per share in Q2 2026
• Stock Price Movement: Shares dropped 2% to $290.20 Thursday afternoon.

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As inflation expectations rise, geopolitical uncertainty persists, and investors look ahead to the Federal Reserve’s upcoming meetings, advisors are closely monitoring how these factors may impact client portfolios.

According to Security Benefit’s recent data from its Q2 Financial Professional Outlook Index, 51% of financial professionals expect inflation to remain between 3% and 3.9% over the next 12 months, suggesting today’s higher interest-rate environment could continue.

“Higher rates can allow those in or near retirement to lock in attractive interest potential through higher fixed rates or higher caps and participation rates in fixed index annuities,” said David Byrnes, head of distribution at Security Benefit.

With all the uncertainty, it’s more important than ever for advisors and their clients to assess their current standing with respect to retirement goals and identify strategies that strike a balance between growth and downside protection.

Meeting in Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Fed voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged. Members of the central bank’s rate-setting committee may not be so reluctant to act when they gather again next Sept. 15-16.

Inflation has been stuck above the Fed’s 2% target for more than five years. New Fed Chair Kevin Warsh told Congress earlier this month that he had “no tolerance’’ for elevated inflation. Warsh presided over his second policy meeting this week.

Managing portfolio risk

Security Benefit found that 76% of advisors consider geopolitical instability the most difficult risk to plan for, and 39% have increased allocations to international equities.

Diversifying internationally could make sense, but advisors should also consider whether protection-based products like fixed indexed annuities fit within a client’s broader retirement strategy.

“These types of products offer a backstop to the turmoil by providing a principal guarantee that helps protect against market losses while offering interest potential tied to market performance,” Byrnes explained.

Building multiple retirement strategies

Though the Economic Outlook Index declined from 59 in Q1 to 55 in Q2, 56% of advisors believe a recession is unlikely to occur over the next year.

Even so, Byrnes points out that advisors are facing no shortage of issues to discuss with clients.

“A new chair at the Federal Reserve, ongoing geopolitical turmoil, U.S. debt concerns, rising healthcare costs, and longevity risks all have the potential to significantly affect retirement planning,” Byrnes explained.

Advisors should recognize this and focus on building flexible retirement income strategies that can withstand a variety of economic scenarios while keeping clients invested for the long term.

Why interest rates matter right now

Although rates could decline over time, that doesn’t appear likely in the near term.

“Since fixed rates remain high and some fixed annuities are paying greater than 5%, it may be prudent to lock them in before year end,” Byrnes said.

If there is any change in Fed priorities that results in lower rates, advisors should review client retirement income strategies to determine whether annuities or other products still align with their goals.

By combining growth strategies with appropriate protection solutions, advisors can help clients build retirement plans designed to weather market volatility while supporting their long-term income goals.

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