Segment Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Segment Information [Text Block]

Segment Information

During the third quarter of 2020, as the Company continued to reposition its business and implement strategies focusing on product features and sales, the composition of its reportable segments changed from five to four segments. The Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”) manages the annuities and protection business as one operating segment, referred to as Retirement & Protection Solutions. The Retirement & Protection Solutions segment includes Retirement Solutions (Variable Annuities and Payout Annuities) and Protection Solutions (Life and Disability Insurance). In addition, the Company moved the Fixed Annuities and Fixed Indexed Annuities business to the Corporate & Other segment as a closed block. These segment reporting changes align with the way the CODM began assessing the performance of the Company’s reportable segments and other business activities effective in the third quarter of 2020. Certain prior period amounts have been revised to conform to the current presentation. The Company’s four reporting segments are Advice & Wealth Management, Asset Management, Retirement & Protection Solutions and Corporate & Other.

The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those of the Company, except for operating adjustments defined below, the method of capital allocation, the accounting for gains (losses) from intercompany revenues and expenses and not providing for income taxes on a segment basis.

The largest source of intersegment revenues and expenses is retail distribution services, where segments are charged transfer pricing rates that approximate arm’s length market prices for distribution through the Advice & Wealth Management segment. The Advice & Wealth Management segment provides distribution services for affiliated and non-affiliated products and services. The Asset Management segment provides investment management services for the Company’s owned assets and client assets, and accordingly charges investment and advisory management fees to the other segments. All intersegment activity is eliminated in the Company’s consolidated results.

All costs related to shared services are allocated to the segments based on a rate times volume or fixed basis.

The Advice & Wealth Management segment provides financial planning and advice, as well as full-service brokerage services, primarily to retail clients through the Company’s advisors. These services are centered on long-term, personal relationships between the Company’s advisors and its clients and focus on helping clients achieve their financial goals. The Company’s advisors provide a distinctive approach to financial planning and have access to a broad selection of both affiliated and non-affiliated products to help clients meet their financial needs and goals. A significant portion of revenues in this segment are fee-based and driven by the level of client assets, which is impacted by both market movements and net asset flows. The Company also earns net investment income on owned assets primarily from certificate and banking products. This segment earns revenues (distribution fees) for distributing non-affiliated products and intersegment revenues (distribution fees) for distributing the Company’s affiliated products and services provided to its retail clients. Intersegment expenses for this segment include expenses for investment management services provided by the Asset Management segment.

The Asset Management segment provides investment management, advice and products to retail, high net worth and institutional clients on a global scale through the Columbia Threadneedle Investments® brand, which represents the combined capabilities, resources and reach of Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (“Columbia Management”) and Threadneedle. Columbia Management primarily provides products and services in the U.S. and Threadneedle primarily provides products and services internationally. Additional subsidiaries are also included in our Asset Management segment such as Lionstone Partners, LLC, the U.S. investment adviser for certain private funds and investment products focused on real estate. The Company offers U.S. retail clients with a range of products through both unaffiliated third party financial institutions and the Advice & Wealth Management segment. The Company provides institutional products and services through its institutional sales force. Retail products for non-U.S. investors are primarily distributed through third-party financial institutions and unaffiliated financial advisors. Retail products include U.S. mutual funds and their non-U.S. equivalents, exchange-traded funds and variable product funds underlying insurance and annuity separate accounts. Institutional asset management services are designed to meet specific client objectives and may involve a range of products, including those that focus on traditional asset classes, separately managed accounts, individually managed accounts, CLOs, hedge fund or alternative strategies, collective funds and property and infrastructure funds. CLOs, hedge fund or alternative strategies and certain private funds are often classified as alternative assets. Revenues in this segment are primarily earned as fees based on managed asset balances, which are impacted by market movements, net asset flows, asset allocation and product mix. The Company may also earn performance fees from certain accounts where investment performance meets or exceeds certain pre-identified targets. The Asset Management segment also provides intercompany asset management services for Ameriprise Financial subsidiaries. The fees for all such services are reflected within the Asset Management segment results through intersegment transfer pricing. Intersegment expenses for this segment include distribution expenses for services provided by the Advice & Wealth Management and Annuities and Protection segments.

The Retirement & Protection Solutions segment includes Retirement Solutions (variable annuities and payout annuities) and Protection Solutions (life and disability insurance). Retirement Solutions provides variable annuity products of RiverSource Life companies to individual clients. The Company provides variable annuity products through its advisors. Revenues for the Company’s variable annuity products are primarily earned as fees based on underlying account balances, which are impacted by both market movements and net asset flows. The Company also earns net investment income on general account assets supporting reserves for immediate annuities with a non-life contingent feature and for certain guaranteed benefits offered with variable annuities and on

capital supporting the business. Revenues for the Company’s immediate annuities with a life contingent feature are earned as premium revenue. Protection Solutions offers a variety of products to address the protection and risk management needs of the Company’s retail clients including life and DI insurance. Life and DI products are primarily provided through the Company’s advisors. The Company issues insurance policies through its RiverSource life insurance subsidiaries. The primary sources of revenues for Protection Solutions are premiums, fees and charges that the Company receives to assume insurance-related risk. The Company earns net investment income on owned assets supporting insurance reserves and capital supporting the business. The Company also receives fees based on the level of the RiverSource Life companies’ separate account assets supporting VUL investment options. Intersegment revenues for this segment reflect fees paid by the Asset Management segment for marketing support and other services provided in connection with the availability of variable insurance trust funds (“VIT Funds”) under the variable annuity contracts and VUL contracts. Intersegment expenses for this segment include distribution expenses for services provided by the Advice & Wealth Management segment, as well as expenses for investment management services provided by the Asset Management segment.

The Corporate & Other segment consists of net investment income or loss on corporate level assets, including excess capital held in the Company’s subsidiaries and other unallocated equity and other revenues as well as unallocated corporate expenses. The Corporate & Other segment also includes the results of the Company’s closed block long term care business. The Corporate & Other segment also includes revenues and expenses of consolidated investment entities, which are excluded on an operating basis. Beginning in the first quarter of 2019, the results of AAH, which had been reported as part of the Protection segment, were reflected in the Corporate & Other segment. Prior periods presented have been restated to reflect the change. The Company sold AAH on October 1, 2019. Beginning in the third quarter of 2020, the Company moved the fixed annuities and fixed indexed annuities business to the Corporate & Other segment as a closed block. Revenues for the Company’s fixed deferred annuity products are primarily earned as net investment income on the RiverSource Life companies’ general account assets supporting fixed account balances, with profitability significantly impacted by the spread between net investment income earned and interest credited on the fixed account balances. Prior periods presented have been restated to reflect the changes from the sale of AAH and the segment restructuring.

Management uses segment adjusted operating measures in goal setting, as a basis for determining employee compensation and in evaluating performance on a basis comparable to that used by some securities analysts and investors. Consistent with GAAP accounting guidance for segment reporting, adjusted operating earnings is the Company’s measure of segment performance. Adjusted operating earnings should not be viewed as a substitute for GAAP pretax income. The Company believes the presentation of segment adjusted operating earnings, as the Company measures it for management purposes, enhances the understanding of its business by reflecting the underlying performance of its core operations and facilitating a more meaningful trend analysis.

Effective first quarter of 2019, management has excluded mean reversion related impacts from the Company’s adjusted operating measures. Prior periods have been updated to reflect this change to be consistent with the current period presentation. The mean reversion related impact is defined as the impact on variable annuity and VUL products for the difference between assumed and updated separate account investment performance on DAC, DSIC, unearned revenue amortization, reinsurance accrual and additional insurance benefit reserves.

Adjusted operating earnings is defined as adjusted operating net revenues less adjusted operating expenses. Adjusted operating net revenues and adjusted operating expenses exclude net realized investment gains or losses (net of unearned revenue amortization and the reinsurance accrual); the market impact on non-traditional long-duration products (including variable and fixed deferred annuity contracts and UL insurance contracts), net of hedges and the related DSIC and DAC amortization, unearned revenue amortization, and the reinsurance accrual; mean reversion related impacts (the impact on variable annuity and VUL products for the difference between assumed and updated separate account investment performance on DAC, DSIC, unearned revenue amortization, reinsurance accrual and additional insurance benefit reserves); the market impact of hedges to offset interest rate changes on unrealized gains or losses for certain investments; gain or loss on disposal of a business that is not considered discontinued operations; integration and restructuring charges; income (loss) from discontinued operations; and the impact of consolidating CIEs. The market impact on non-traditional long-duration products includes changes in embedded derivative values caused by changes in financial market conditions, net of changes in economic hedge values and unhedged items including the difference between assumed and actual underlying separate account investment performance, fixed income credit exposures, transaction costs and certain policyholder contract elections, net of related impacts on DAC and DSIC amortization. The market impact also includes certain valuation adjustments made in accordance with FASB Accounting Standards Codification 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, including the impact on embedded derivative values of discounting projected benefits to reflect a current estimate of the Company’s life insurance subsidiary’s nonperformance spread.

The following tables summarize selected financial information by segment and reconcile segment totals to those reported on the consolidated financial statements:

	December 31,
	2020		2019
	(in millions)
Advice & Wealth Management	$	21,266	$	17,607
Asset Management	8,406		8,226
Retirement & Protection Solutions	114,850		104,227
Corporate & Other	21,361		21,768
Total assets	$	165,883	$	151,828

	Years Ended December 31,
	2020		2019		2018
	(in millions)
Adjusted operating net revenues:
Advice & Wealth Management	$	6,675	$	6,599	$	6,189
Asset Management	2,891		2,913		3,011
Retirement & Protection Solutions	3,094		3,123		3,167
Corporate & Other	546		1,477		1,741
Less: Eliminations (1)	1,377		1,402		1,414
Total segment adjusted operating net revenues	11,829		12,710		12,694
Net realized gains (losses)	(11)		(6)		10
Revenue attributable to consolidated investment entities	71		88		127
Market impact on non-traditional long-duration products, net	10		—		(7)
Market impact of hedges on investments	—		(35)		11
Integration and restructuring charges	—		(3)		—
Gain on disposal of business	—		213		—
Total net revenues per consolidated statements of operations	$	11,899	$	12,967	$	12,835

(1) Represents the elimination of intersegment revenues recognized for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 in each segment as follows: Advice and Wealth Management ($893, $924 and $952, respectively); Asset Management ($53, $55 and $50, respectively); Retirement & Protection Solutions ($433, $429 and $417, respectively); and Corporate & Other ($(2), $(6) and $(5), respectively).

	Years Ended December 31,
	2020		2019		2018
	(in millions)
Adjusted operating earnings:
Advice & Wealth Management	$	1,321	$	1,509	$	1,389
Asset Management	697		661		728
Retirement & Protection Solutions	480		724		721
Corporate & Other	(369)		(286)		(274)
Total segment adjusted operating earnings	2,129		2,608		2,564
Net realized gains (losses)	(10)		(4)		9
Net income (loss) attributable to consolidated investment entities	4		1		(1)
Market impact on non-traditional long-duration products, net	(375)		(591)		(47)
Mean reversion related impacts	87		57		(33)
Market impact of hedges on investments	—		(35)		11
Integration and restructuring charges	(4)		(17)		(19)
Gain on disposal of business	—		213		—
Pretax income per consolidated statements of operations	$	1,831	$	2,232	$	2,484