Texas lawmakers should consider giving a state agency clear authority to oversee the investment side of the life settlement business, outgoing Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin says.
Geeslin, who is set to retire as insurance commissioner when his term ends Feb. 1., says in an annual report submitted to the Texas Legislature that state law regulates the parties involved in the initial 
sale of a life settlement.
But a lack of regulation of the purchasing side of the business has "produced a substantial amount of harm to Texas investors, resulting in at least five receiverships and bankruptcies involving several hundred million dollars in investor funds," Geeslin says.
Texas life settlement sales peaked at about $1 billion in 2008.
The Texas department of insurance has received complaints from consumers about the investment side of the industry, Geeslin says.
"Due to confidentiality issues that limit the ability of investors to verify that the life insurance policies, and the sale, are bona fide, some investors have provided funds for policies not yet owned by the operator," Geeslin says. He adds that life settlement deals in the state have gone bust for a variety of reasons, "including operators misappropriating money and securing investment funds based on incorrect life expectancy estimates."
In some cases, Geeslin says, entities seem to have sold more
