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Variable annuities and the option to seek risk: Why should you diversify?

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  • Mahayni, Antje
  • Schneider, Judith C.

Abstract

We analyze the impacts of an additional rider incorporated in recent retirement products. The payoff is linked to the performance of a multi asset investment strategy and includes a minimum interest rate guarantee. In addition, the buyer receives the option to decide on the investments dynamically. Prominent examples are so called variable annuities. Due to the embedded guarantee, these products are interesting for risk averse investors who benefit from diversification. However, the price setting of the provider takes into account the most risky strategy. This implies that the investor mitigates optimally between the diversification and the worst case strategy. We analyze the distortion and utility effects caused by the additional rider in the presence of background risk and borrowing constraints. A simulation analysis sheds light on the question if the additional rider is worth its costs.

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  • Mahayni, Antje & Schneider, Judith C., 2012. "Variable annuities and the option to seek risk: Why should you diversify?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(9), pages 2417-2428.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbfina:v:36:y:2012:i:9:p:2417-2428
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbankfin.2012.04.024
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    Cited by:

    1. Horneff, Vanya & Maurer, Raimond & Mitchell, Olivia S. & Rogalla, Ralph, 2015. "Optimal life cycle portfolio choice with variable annuities offering liquidity and investment downside protection," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 91-107.
    2. Steinorth, Petra & Mitchell, Olivia S., 2015. "Valuing variable annuities with guaranteed minimum lifetime withdrawal benefits," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 246-258.
    3. Christian Knoller & Gunther Kraut & Pascal Schoenmaekers, 2016. "On the Propensity to Surrender a Variable Annuity Contract: An Empirical Analysis of Dynamic Policyholder Behavior," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 83(4), pages 979-1006, December.
    4. Alserda, Gosse A.G. & Dellaert, Benedict G.C. & Swinkels, Laurens & van der Lecq, Fieke S.G., 2019. "Individual pension risk preference elicitation and collective asset allocation with heterogeneity," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 206-225.
    5. Thai Nguyen & Mitja Stadje, 2018. "Optimal investment for participating insurance contracts under VaR-Regulation," Papers 1805.09068, arXiv.org, revised Jul 2019.
    6. Chen, An & Hieber, Peter & Nguyen, Thai, 2019. "Constrained non-concave utility maximization: An application to life insurance contracts with guarantees," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 273(3), pages 1119-1135.
    7. Moenig, Thorsten, 2021. "Variable annuities: Market incompleteness and policyholder behavior," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 63-78.
    8. Antje Mahayni & Judith C. Schneider, 2016. "Minimum return guarantees, investment caps, and investment flexibility," Review of Derivatives Research, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 85-111, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Guaranteed accumulation benefits; Feasible contracts; Optimal portfolio choice; Non-market wealth; Utility losses;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G22 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Insurance; Insurance Companies; Actuarial Studies

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