DOL Fiduciary News: December 28, 2016
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The Big Chill For Annuities In 2017
Financial Advisor; December 26, 2016
With the Department of Labor's 1,000-page fiduciary regulations due to take effect in April 2017, and a new anti-regulatory administration about to take office in Washington, insurance carriers are facing a double whammy of uncertainty.
"Going forward, there just won't be as many developments of new financial products simply because the insurance companies aren't sure what exactly fits in and what doesn't," says John Rodgers, chief operating officer, financial services and retail, at New York-based SSA & Co. "They might think about trying to design products, but with these barriers in the way they are mostly going to wait and see what happens."
The DOL ruling impacts many types of annuities and the distribution of insurance policies. But Rodgers foresees a chilling effect on the industry as a whole. In fact, he anticipates there will be fewer insurance products on the market in the year ahead. "The products may not go away, but the number sold will likely be scaled back," he predicts.
(http://www.fa-mag.com)