As an editor I receive quite a few PR pitches. Many go into the trashcan, as they don't fit our idea of news or are deemed not a benefit to financial advisors.
One that caught my eye recently was an email from Genworth announcing that after "having been out of (the index annuity) market for a number of years" they were getting back in. Yes, my eyes opened wide, particularly in light of recent articles our site had published on companies jumping off the annuity bandwagon, particularly variable annuities.
So I went back to the source and spoke with Pat Foley, (left), president, U.S. life insurance distribution and marketing for Genworth, to get insight on their bullishness about annuities, specifically fixed indexed annuities (FIAs).
LifeHealthPro: What was the impetus for jumping back into the annuity world because it looks like some players are vacating the annuity space?
Pat Foley: From a general perspective we're focused on serving Main Street America. We're the industry leader with long-term care and have a significant place with life insurance. It made sense from overall product perspective to build a strong presence in FIAs, since so many of our distributors work on that product line. And, with Main Street America, people want security and we believe our role is to help with security.
LifeHealthPro: What are the thoughts on hybrid products? They've been a hot topic lately.
Foley: We have a linked benefit product tied to life insurance and we believe that market will continue to grow. And, we are looking to enhance our products in that line. Our customers are saying they'd like to see us have more presence there.
