This paper is aimed to answer a set of questions through an examination of the literature and empirical evidence on annuities. Every section of the paper try to address one specific question, naming: How important is the ageing problem in the world? How is social security being replaced or...

Longevity is increasing in the whole world, and savings for retirement are growing quickly. There is a potential demand for certainty in the income streams for pensioners since old-fashioned pay-as-you-go systems became financially stressed. A financial product, the annuity contract, offers...

The insurance industry, in its different business lines, concentrates 11 percent of the World financial assets. As in all the remaining financial activities, it is object of comprehensive regulation of structure, conduct and performance (with diverse emphasis), besides social scrutiny. The...

Prior to the 2008 global credit crisis, some developments had occurred in the regulation of the insurance industry worldwide. At different speeds, the world was heading toward a more risk-based solvency regulation and some convergence on principles and criteria. We see a common thread in the...

In this paper we advance the idea that optimal risk management under the Basel II Accord will typically require the use of a combination of different models of risk. This idea is illustrated by analyzing the best empirical models of risk for five stock indexes before, during, and after the...