strategic audit of allianz life insurance of north america

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University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Honors eses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Honors Program Spring 2019 Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America Jacob Rosebaugh University of Nebraska - Lincoln Follow this and additional works at: hps://digitalcommons.unl.edu/honorstheses Part of the Strategic Management Policy Commons is esis is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors Program at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors eses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Rosebaugh, Jacob, "Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America" (2019). Honors eses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. 145. hps://digitalcommons.unl.edu/honorstheses/145

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Page 1: Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America

University of Nebraska - LincolnDigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Honors Theses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Honors Program

Spring 2019

Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of NorthAmericaJacob RosebaughUniversity of Nebraska - Lincoln

Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/honorstheses

Part of the Strategic Management Policy Commons

This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Honors Program at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has beenaccepted for inclusion in Honors Theses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska- Lincoln.

Rosebaugh, Jacob, "Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America" (2019). Honors Theses, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.145.https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/honorstheses/145

Page 2: Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America

Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North

America

An Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Submitted in Partial fulfillment of

University Honors Program Requirements

University of Nebraska-Lincoln

By

Jacob Rosebaugh, BS

Actuarial Science

College of Business

April 2019

Faculty Mentor:

Samuel Nelson, Business

Page 3: Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America

Abstract

This report investigates the history and current situation of Allianz Life Insurance Company of

North America, an annuity provider located in Minneapolis, MN. The company faces several

challenges going forward, including determining how to best compete with large companies in

the same market such as Amazon. This report looks at Allianz Life’s current standing using tools

such as SWOT and PEST analyses and examines the company’s competitive analysis. Allianz

Life is recommended to continue with their current strategy because while it doesn’t make them

the best in the industry, Allianz Life adherence to its vision statement makes up for the decrease

in profits.

Key Words: Raikes School, business, strategic audit, strategy

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Strategic Audit of

Allianz Life

Insurance of North

America

An Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Written by Jacob Rosebaugh, BS

Actuarial Science

College of Business

April 2019

Faculty Mentor:

Sam Nelson, Ph.D., Management

Page 5: Strategic Audit of Allianz Life Insurance of North America

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Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 0

Background ................................................................................................................................................... 3

Allianz SE ................................................................................................................................................... 3

Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America ................................................................................... 4

Industry Events ............................................................................................................................................. 4

Death of the Fiduciary Rule....................................................................................................................... 5

Decline of Social Security .......................................................................................................................... 5

Low Interest Rates and Declining Returns ................................................................................................ 6

Vision ............................................................................................................................................................. 6

Situational Analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 7

Business Model ......................................................................................................................................... 7

Annuities ............................................................................................................................................... 7

Life Insurance ........................................................................................................................................ 8

Allianz Life Ventures .............................................................................................................................. 8

External Analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 8

The State of Annuities ........................................................................................................................... 8

Competitors ........................................................................................................................................ 11

Competitive Advantage and Success Factors...................................................................................... 12

Internal Assessment ................................................................................................................................ 13

Strengths ............................................................................................................................................. 13

Weaknesses ........................................................................................................................................ 14

Leadership ........................................................................................................................................... 15

Recommendation ........................................................................................................................................ 16

Alternative Strategies ............................................................................................................................. 16

Tontine Products ................................................................................................................................. 16

Less Focus on Annuities ...................................................................................................................... 17

Invest in Insurtech ............................................................................................................................... 17

Formal Recommendation ....................................................................................................................... 17

Word Citied ................................................................................................................................................. 19

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Background

Allianz SE

Until the 1930s, Annuities constitutes only a small portion of the insurance market in the United

States. The group annuity market didn’t start growing until then. This growth was aided by

concerns about the stability of the financial situation within the United States. Due to the

concern, investors began taking advantage of the products offered by insurance companies,

which were seen as more stable institutions. Flexible payment deferred annuities grew rapidly

during this period, due to their ability to allow investors to accumulate and save asset as well as

draw down principal. The annuity grew rapidly in the years following World War II. During the

1990s, variable annuities began seeing rapid growth as well. These annuities combined the

investment features of mutual funds with the tax deferral available for life insurance products1.

Since then, annuities have become a major part of the insurance and investment world. Today,

most annuities are typically bought by middle-aged upper-middle class who want a way to

supplement their retirement income due to the declining nature of social security2. Many

insurance companies today offer annuities as part of their product selection, but the companies

that do the best are companies like the Allianz (ahh-lee-ahnz) Life Insurance Company of North

America. Today, thanks to the death of the fiduciary rule3 many investors have begun looking at

companies like Allianz Life for ways to fill out their portfolios and help provide for them during

retirement.

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Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America

Allianz SE was founded in Berlin, Germany in 1890 originating as a transport and accident

insurer. In the hundred years, Allianz SE expanded its products lines to include property

insurance, life insurance, and asset management. It has expanded internationally and opened

offices around Europe and North America.4 Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America

was created in 1993. Allianz Life was originally founded in 1896 as North American Casualty.

It merged with North American Life and Casualty and was eventually acquired by Allianz SE

(Allianz AG of Munich at the time). Located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Allianz Life was one

of the fastest growing companies in the industry. In 2003, Allianz Life had a total premium

income of $9.7 billion, making it one of the top three providers of fixed annuities and within the

top 20 providers of variable annuities in North America5. In 2018, Allianz Life total premium

income was $12.7 billion, which was a 16% increase from the year before.6 While its premium

income has increased by an average of 13% over the last three years, the operating profit has

remained constant at just over $1 billion.6, 7, 8 Allianz Life accounts for 7% of Allianz SE’s total

global operating profit and over 20% of Allianz Life’s global operating profit in the life/health

sector.

Industry Events

The annuity industry as a whole has seen sustain growth over the last few years, mainly in the

fixed annuity market. Sales reached their highest total in nearly 10 years.9 The leading causes of

this are the death of the fiduciary rule, the decline of social security, and the decreasing returns in

traditional markets.

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Death of the Fiduciary Rule

One of the biggest impacts to the annuity market is the death of the fiduciary rule. The fiduciary

rule was a law that required advisers to act in their clients best interests when it came to

managing retirement accounts.3, 10 This rule was originally implemented to ensure that advisors

would give their clients advice based on fact instead of based on the highest compensation

bonus. With the death of this rule, many people have lost trust in financial advisors and have

begun looking for alternative options to traditional investment. Annuities offer a wide range of

options for investors. Fixed annuities have a set guaranteed return. This means that people can

invest in annuities and guaranteed they will see a 3% return over the next 20 years. Variable

annuities allow investors to take part in the stock market and see returns based on the market. In

both cases, annuities seem more trusting that financial advisors who might only be suggesting

options based on compensation. Annuities give investors more direct control on their retirement

than traditional options.

Decline of Social Security

The unfortunate truth about social security is that it won’t be around forever. Current benefits

are expected to be payable in full on a timely basis until 2037 when the trust fund reserves are

expected to run out.11 As the Baby Boomers continue to retire, social security will continue to

stretch thinner and thinner. In order to supplement this missing income, many people have

looked to annuities as a way to help increase their income during their retirement years.

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Low Interest Rates and Declining Returns

Interests have been following a downward trend since 1983, and they haven’t recovered much

since the recession in 2008.12 Because of this, returns on traditional, safer investments have

decreased. Most annuities company are able to guaranteed fix returns by investing these

premiums in various options to generate both profit and the money needed to cover the fixed

return on a policy. With safer investments (such as bonds and banks) producing less money,

many companies will have to start looking into risky markets or start investing in options they

don’t quite understand.13 These risky investments could lead to larger losses on the market,

requiring companies to substantially increase their reserves to cover these losses, which could

lead to other issues.

Vision

Allianz Life’s vision to insure that every American will have the opportunity to live out their life

with financial independence.14 Allianz Life promotes financial literacy through grants that focus

on giving seniors financial independence.9 It also wants to promote positive change within the

Twin Cities through community involvement in numerous charities throughout the Twin Cities

Areas. Allianz Life gives every employee paid time off to volunteer at local charities. They

hold charities drives such as their annual golf tournament, that have generated millions of dollars

over the last few tears for cancer resource, the Alzheimer Association, and many other good

causes.15

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Situational Analysis

Business Model

Primary an annuity provider, Allianz Life’s business model also includes a slowly growing life

insurance program and Allianz Life Ventures, an in-house investment team that invests in

companies that align with Allianz Life’s vision and goals. Allianz Life sells its brand through

high customer satisfaction, community involvement, and public presence. Allianz Life’s

customer satisfaction is one of its competitive advantages and will be detailed in a later section.

Allianz Life’s community involvement includes numerous charity drives throughout the year

such as its Annual Charity Golf Tournament and encouraging employee involvement. It also

maintains a very public presence through its “Allianz is pronounced” campaign and the recent

funding of Allianz Fields.

Annuities

Allianz Life sells insurance through brokers who help clients find the right annuity to fit their

needs. This is the largest and most profitable division of Allianz Life. Their most popular

product is the Allianz 222 Annuity, a fixed annuity that offers premium and interest bonuses over

the life of the contract as well as a death benefit for a client’s beneficiaries should the

policyholder die before the life of the contract is over.16 This product is so popular that other

companies have begun selling copycat products in order to compete with Allianz Life. This

product is so popular that even though Allianz Life is the fifth highest annuity provider in 2018,

Allianz 222 Annuity has been the number one selling fixed index Annuity for 18 straight

quarters.14

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Life Insurance

In addition to annuities, Allianz Life also sells life insurance as a well to hedge the risks it

accrues from annuities. Life Insurance isn’t is growing as rapidly as annuities are, but it has seen

some growth in the last few years. This is the only other product that Allianz Life offers.

Allianz Life Ventures

Allianz Life Ventures is a investment team that looks for companies that “embrace creativity and

passionate leadership, and drive innovation in the financial services industry”.17 Allianz Life

Venture focuses on finding companies that can help Allianz improve customer experience, are

involved in social good or offer innovation to the retirement and insurance market. Allianz Life

has seen numerous success with this program, and Allianz Life Ventures has become a major

part in innovating Allianz Life’s business model.

External Analysis

The State of Annuities

Currently, annuities sales are on the rise due to a number of factors outside of any company’s

control. But the same events that are causing annuities to increase in popularity are the same

factors that are currently hurting annuity providers. Some of these factors include the death of

the fiduciary rule, the declining market and interest rates, and increasing life span of the primary

purchasers of annuities. A PEST (Political, Economic, Social, and Technological) analysis

shows that Allianz Life faces many of the same issues and threats as its competitors, as well as

some specific threats.

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With the death of the fiduciary rule in the US, people have less trust in Wall Street and financial

advisors. This means that many people are looking for ways to invest and easily keep track of

their investments. Fixed index annuities and variable annuities are being used as a replacement

for more traditional investments. Fixed index annuities allow investors to get a guaranteed

return on investment, which is especially beneficial who when investors are close to retiring and

don’t want to risk as much money on the stock market. Variable annuities are used as a safer

way to play the stock market as variable annuities give returns based on how well the stock

market is doing. While investors might not see as large as returns in an upward swinging market

as they would by investing traditionally, they also don’t see as big a loss when the market isn’t

performing as well. In addition to the fiduciary rule helping annuities sales, the decline of social

security has also left many retirees looking for a way to increase their retirement income.

Allianz Life also has to make sure that all of its annuities mean strict legal requirements enacted

to make sure that customers are getting actual value from their annuities. Some of these

requirements include an intense legal review of all new products, making sure that all products

comply with annuities laws in all 50 states, and the creation of an Allianz office in New York to

sell annuities in New York.

While many of the political factors are helping companies like Allianz Life, Economic and

Social changes are putting many annuity companies at risk. The primary market for annuities is

the middle and upper-middle class. This is because annuities can be expensive and often times

the only people with enough money to purchase an annuity are already well off to begin with.

Currently, the United States is seeing a decrease in life expectancy.18 Despite this decreasing life

expectancy, the middle and upper-middle class have seen life expectancy increase.19 This means

they are living longer and therefore get longer payouts from lifetime annuities. This means that

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companies face increasing longevity risk (the potential risk attached to the increasing life

expectancy of pensioners and policyholders, which can eventually result in higher payout ratios

than expected for many pension funds and insurance companies). Because Allianz is primarily

product is annuities, they have a much hirer longevity risk than most companies as they have no

other products to help offset their liability. Companies have to find more money to cover these

increasing risks, which is difficult due to the current state of the market.

For most annuity companies, the primary method of raising capital to cover annuities is investing

premiums in the market. Traditionally, companies like Allianz Life stick to equity markets such

as long-term government bonds, T-bills, and market portfolios. December ended up being the

worst month for equity markets since the Great Depression, with the S&P 500® Index down over

9%.20 In addition, the yield for 10 and 30-year treasuries drop nearly 70 basis points. These

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decreases mean that companies had to cover fixed annuity rates with drastically decreased

returns. This will eventually cut into profits and other areas of the company.

The biggest threat to traditional annuity markets is the rise of insurtech companies. Insurtech

refers to the use of technology innovations to create a more efficient insurance model. The goal

of these startups is to disrupt the insurance and annuity market and take market share from

companies that have lasted for over a hundred years. Insurtech hasn’t succeeded in taking over

the market yet, but as more and more start-up pop up, traditional insurance companies have to

remain cautious of this growing threat.

Competitors

Allianz Life competes primarily with other annuities providers. It doesn’t compete with life

insurance companies even though they sell life insurance. Allianz Life sees life insurance as an

extension of an annuity, a feature that customers can add on to their original annuity plan.

According to a study by the Life Insurance and Market Research Association (LIMRA) Allianz

Life had the fifth highest total sales last year. Despite Allianz Life only capturing 6.1% of the

market, Allianz 222 Annuity dominated the fixed index annuity market for the 18th quarter

straight.9 Allianz 222 was so popular that last year, Aetna introduced a copycat product to

compete with Allianz 222. For Allianz Life, it needs to keep a hold of the fixed index annuity

market. It can’t compete with companies like AIG in variable annuities, but it can hold onto their

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competitive advantage in the fixed index annuity market.

Competitive Advantage and Success Factors

High Customer Satisfaction

Annuities aren’t bought, they’re sold. Most people don’t actively look to buy annuities. The

best way to sell annuities is through word of mouth from satisfied customers. According to the

CEO of Allianz SE, 95 percent of all Allianz Life’s customers are satisfied with its service.21

Allianz Life achieves high satisfaction by putting the customers’ needs front and center. Allianz

Life agents are able to advise customers via webcam. It has a help desk manned to answer any

questions customers might have about their accounts and to explain any intricacies in their

monthly annuity report. It is this satisfaction that helped Allianz Life increase its gross premium

income over the last three years.

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Allianz 222 Annuity

This is Allianz Life’s top-selling product and one of the top-selling products in the industry as a

whole. This annuity is one of the main reasons that Allianz Life held the fifth highest total sales

in 2018. Allianz has run numerous promotion in order to keep Allianz 222 as successful as it is,

including their more recent ApplyNow Campaign, which was enacted in response to Aetna’s

copycat product.

Allianz Life Ventures

Allianz Life Ventures is about finding companies to help Allianz improve. Since its creature,

Allianz Life Ventures has provided numerous partnerships such as blooom, Ladder, HALO, and

tomorrow.17 All of these companies have helped Allianz Life improve its products and customer

experience. Allianz Life Ventures has become a major part of Allianz Life and these

partnerships allow Allianz Life to remain ahead of advances in the insurance and annuity

industry.

Internal Assessment

Strengths

Community

Allianz Life is a strong brand in the Twin City Area, and that has helped is flourish. People

associate Allianz Life with a brand they can trust. A brand that gives back to the community. A

brand that can help them achieve their retirement roles.

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Easy Application and Understandable Products

It’s easy to apply for an Allianz Life annuity. One of the biggest hurdles to selling annuities is

the application. If an application is too long or too hard, many people will quite halfway through

and never purchase an annuity. Allianz Life has help desks designed to help clients quickly and

easily fill out their applications. They have also begun pushing the use on online applications to

help clients get an annuity.

Striving for Innovation

Allianz Life Ventures allow Allianz Life to remain ahead in an industry that is struggling to

innovate. In addition to Allianz Life Ventures, Allianz Life holds a yearly pitch competition

within the company for employees to create and pitch ideas that will have Allianz Life innovate.

Weaknesses

Localized Market

While Allianz Life has a large community presence in the Twin Cities, it doesn’t have much of a

presence in the United States. This Allianz isn’t as trusted a name elsewhere which is hurting its

opportunity for growth in the future. Instead of focusing on being a local company, Allianz Life

should try to be more of a national presence.

Lagging Life Insurance

Allianz Life is currently facing rapidly increasing longevity risk. With a client base that is living

longer and longer, Allianz Life needs ways to cover the increasing number of payouts that it

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faces with its growing annuity sales. Life Insurance is a great way to cover this risk because life

insurance is the opposite of an annuity, the longer a life insurance policy lasts, the better the

returns are for the insurer. Allianz is currently too focused on annuities and needs to grow life

insurance much faster.

Limited Products

Allianz Life has two products: annuities and life insurance. Allianz SE, Allianz Life’s parent

company, issues automobile, property, health, etc. insurance across Europe. Allianz Life is

missing on potential clients who already trust the Allianz Life brand who would buy other forms

of insurance from Allianz.

Leadership

Current CEO Walter White has done a lot for Allianz Life during his time at Allianz. Hired in

2009 as Chief Administrative Officer, White has grown into the position of CEO, giving more

focus to Allianz’s involvement in the community. Walter himself is a local figurehead in the

Twin Cities due to his involvement in the area. He is a board member of the Minnesota Business

Partnership, a director and member of the Executive Committee of Senior Community Services,

a member of the Advisory Board of the American College Center for Ethics in Financial

Services, and a director and member of the Audit Committee of the YMCA of The Greater Twin

Cities.22 This has helped Allianz Life gain brand recognition as the cooperation with the

approachable CEO. White speaks to employees frequency, giving updates about Allianz or

sometimes just on his opinion of various events going on in the world of insurance and annuities.

As of now, White fulfills the role that Allianz Life needs to fulfill its mission statement.

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Recommendation

Alternative Strategies

Tontine Products

With clients living longer and traditional investments returns decreasing Allianz Life needs a

way to alter rates to better fit they mortality and return tables. One answer to this problem is

tontines. Tontines are a death pool where investors get returns based on the number of

individuals alive in a pool. The Society of Actuaries and many others have looked into the

viable of “tontine annuities.” 23, 24, 25 Tontines offer Allianz Life a way to help control its

longevity risk by basing payouts on the actual mortality rates instead of the expected mortality

rates like it does with traditional annuities. Tontines also pay will people’s natural love of

gambling and their tendency to always bet in their favor. Tontine annuities would give

participants returns that they couldn’t see with traditional fixed annuities. Tontines come with

their own set of issues, such as transparency regarding participant deaths, as well as the fact that

tontines are illegal in most states.

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Less Focus on Annuities

Another alternative is for Allianz Life to focus less on annuities and focus more on its life

insurance. By slowing the growth of its annuity sales, and increasing its life insurance sales,

Allianz will be able to decrease its growing longevity risk. Life insurance also gives Allianz Life

access to a market it hasn’t tapped into yet. While this doesn’t align with Allianz Life’s mission

of helping with retirement, it will help increase profits by increasing the premiums and lowing

the amount of payout Allianz Life is liable for. To increase life insurance sales, Allianz Life

would have to limit the growth of annuities which would mean giving up one of its competitive

advantages. This is not a viable solution and could hurt Allianz Life in the long run.

Invest in Insurtech

Allianz Life Ventures is about finding companies that will help innovate the insurance industry.

Insurtech could be the solution to fixing this stagnant industry and Allianz Life could help be a

part of this innovation. This alternative aligns with Allianz Life’s goal of innovating annuities

and improving customer experience. Unfortunately, the insurtech industry seems to be on a

downward swing.26 Insurtech has too many unknowns at this time to be a viable solution.

Formal Recommendation

While all of these solutions have benefits, it is currently in Allianz Life’s best interest to not

change its strategy or products. Allianz Life is primary an annuity provider. They don’t want to

limit the growth of its annuity sales to limit longevity risk. If Allianz Life was to slow its growth

in that area, it would be giving up one of its biggest competitive advantages. Tontines are not an

answer due to the stigma surrounding anything that resembles a tontine are well as the legal

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hurdles that Allianz would have to overcome to pursue a tontine style product. While insurtech

seems like a promising area, new insurtech companies have stopped appearing in recent years

and many insurtech companies have begun to fail.26, 27 The insurance industry is well-

established and it is hard to innovate an industry that has remained fairly stagnant over the last

100 years. Allianz Life should continue its current strategy and focus on being a local presence

and a company that someone can trust their retirement too.

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Word Citied

[1] Poterba, James M. “A History of Annuities in the United States.” NBER Working Paper Series, Apr.

1997. NBER, www.nber.org/papers/w6001.pdf

[2] Butrica, Barbara A, et al. “The Changing Impact of Social Security on Retirement Income in the

United States.” Social Security Administration Research, Statistics, and Policy Analysis, 1 Jan.

2005, www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/ssb/v65n3/v65n3p1.html

[3] Malito, Alessandra. “The Fiduciary Rule Is Officially Dead. What Its Fate Means to You.”

MarketWatch, 25 June 2018, www.marketwatch.com/story/is-the-fiduciary-rule-dead-or-alive-

what-its-fate-means-to-you-2018-03-16

[4] “Allianz Company History.” Pacific Prime, www.pacificprime.com/insurers/allianz/company-history/

[5] “Allianz Life.” Wayback Machine, 1 Mar. 2012,

web.archive.org/web/20120301202620/http://www.long-term-care-insurance-

planners.com/agents/allianz1.pdf

[6] “Allianz Life Reports Solid 2018 Financial Results.” Allianz Life, 15 Feb. 2019.

https://www.allianzlife.com/about/news-and-events/news-releases/Allianz-Life-Reports-Solid-

2018-Financial-Results

[7] “Allianz Life Reports Strong 2017 Financial Results.” Allianz Life, 16 Feb. 2018.

https://www.allianzlife.com/about/news-and-events/news-releases/2017-Earnings

[8] “Allianz Life Reports Strong 2016 Financial Results.” Allianz Life, 17 Feb. 2017.

https://www.allianzlife.com/about/news-and-events/news-releases/2016-Earnings-press-

release?linkId=34613248

[9] Salinger, Tobias, and Graison Dangor. “Record Sales Yield New Leading Annuity Issuers.” Financial

Planning, 28 Mar. 2019, 12:07 pm, www.financial-planning.com/news/aig-jackson-national-

new-york-life-lead-annuity-sales

[10] Ure, Chris. “Death of Fiduciary Rule Means Death of Trust.” Financial Planning, 22 June 2018,

1:13 pm, www.financial-planning.com/opinion/death-of-fiduciary-rule-hurts-investors-and-wall-

street-but-good-for-fiduciary-advisors

[11] Goss, Stephen C. “The Future Financial Status of the Social Security Program.” Social Security

Administration Research, Statistics, and Policy Analysis, 1 Aug. 2010,

www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/ssb/v70n3/v70n3p111.html

[12] “United States Fed Funds Rate.” United States Fed Funds Rate | 2019 | Data | Chart | Calendar |

Forecast, tradingeconomics.com/united-states/interest-rate

[13] Rudolph, Max. “Interest Rates.” ACTS 475, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, 2 Apr. 2019.

Lecture.

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[14] “Apply for an Allianz Life Grant.” Allianz Life, www.allianzlife.com/about/community-

outreach/apply-for-a-grant

[15] Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America. “Allianz Life Charity Golf Tournament Raises

$225,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association MN-ND.” Allianz Life,

www.allianzlife.com/about/news-and-events/news-releases/Driving-to-Donate-Golf-Tournament-

2017

[16] Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America. “How Allianz 222 Annuity Works.” Allianz

Life, www.allianzlife.com/annuities/fixed-index-annuities/222/how-the-product-works

[17] “Allianz Life Ventures.” Allianz Life Ventures, www.allianzlifeventures.com/

[18] Solly, Meilan. “U.S. Life Expectancy Drops for Third Year in a Row, Reflecting Rising Drug

Overdoses, Suicides.” Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 3 Dec. 2018,

www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/us-life-expectancy-drops-third-year-row-reflecting-

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