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Certain Long-Duration Contracts With Guarantees
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019
Long-Duration Contracts, Assumptions Supporting Guarantee Obligations [Abstract]  
Certain Long-Duration Contracts With Guarantees CERTAIN LONG-DURATION CONTRACTS WITH GUARANTEES

The Company issued variable annuity contracts through its separate accounts for which investment income and investment gains and losses accrue directly to, and investment risk is borne by, the contractholder. The Company also issued variable annuity contracts with general and separate account options where the Company contractually guarantees to the contractholder a return of no less than total deposits made to the contract adjusted for any partial withdrawals ("return of net deposits"). In certain of these variable annuity contracts, the Company also contractually guarantees to the contractholder a return of no less than (1) total deposits made to the contract adjusted for any partial withdrawals plus a minimum return ('minimum return"), and/or (2) the highest contract value on a specified date adjusted for any withdrawals (“contract value”). These guarantees include benefits that are payable in the event of death, annuitization or at specified dates during the accumulation period and withdrawal and income benefits payable during specified periods. The Company also issued annuity contracts with market value adjusted investment options (“MVAs”), which provide for a return of principal plus a fixed-rate of return if held to maturity, or, alternatively, a “market adjusted value” if surrendered prior to maturity or if funds are reallocated to other investment options. The market value adjustment may result in a gain or loss to the Company, depending on crediting rates or an indexed rate at surrender, as applicable. The Company also issued fixed deferred annuity contracts without MVA that have a guaranteed credited rate and annuity benefit.
The assets supporting the variable portion of all variable annuities are carried at fair value and reported as “Separate account assets” with an equivalent amount reported as “Separate account liabilities.” Amounts assessed against the contractholders for mortality, administration, and other services are included within revenue in “Policy charges and fee income” and changes in liabilities for minimum guarantees are generally included in “Policyholders’ benefits” or "Realized investment gains (losses), net".
For those guarantees of benefits that are payable in the event of death, the net amount at risk is generally defined as the current guaranteed minimum death benefit in excess of the current account balance at the balance sheet date. The Company’s primary risk exposures for these contracts relates to actual deviations from, or changes to, the assumptions used in the original pricing of these products, including fixed income and equity market returns, contract lapses and contractholder mortality.
For guarantees of benefits that are payable at annuitization, the net amount at risk is generally defined as the present value of the minimum guaranteed annuity payments available to the contractholder determined in accordance with the terms of the contract in excess of the current account balance. The Company’s primary risk exposures for these contracts relates to actual deviations from, or changes to, the assumptions used in the original pricing of these products, including fixed income and equity market returns, timing of annuitization, contract lapses and contractholder mortality.
For guarantees of benefits that are payable at withdrawal, the net amount at risk is generally defined as the present value of the minimum guaranteed withdrawal payments available to the contractholder determined in accordance with the terms of the contract in excess of the current account balance. For guarantees of accumulation balances, the net amount at risk is generally defined as the guaranteed minimum accumulation balance minus the current account balance. The Company’s primary risk exposures for these contracts relates to actual deviations from, or changes to, the assumptions used in the original pricing of these products, including equity market returns, interest rates, market volatility and contractholder behavior.
The Company’s contracts with guarantees may offer more than one type of guarantee in each contract; therefore, the amounts listed may not be mutually exclusive. The liabilities related to the net amount at risk are reflected within “Future policy benefits.” As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the Company had the following guarantees associated with these contracts, by product and guarantee type:
 
December 31, 2019
 
December 31, 2018
 
In the Event of
Death(1)
 
At Annuitization/
Accumulation(1)(2)
 
In the Event of
Death(1)
 
At Annuitization/
Accumulation (1)(2)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annuity Contracts
(in thousands)
Return of net deposits
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Account value
$
120,240,930

 
N/A

 
$
106,779,202

 
N/A

Net amount at risk
$
229,080

 
N/A

 
$
843,419

 
N/A

Average attained age of contractholders
68 years

 
N/A

 
67 years

 
N/A

Minimum return or contract value
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Account value
$
23,563,604

 
$
129,812,105

 
$
22,184,537

 
$
115,822,894

Net amount at risk
$
2,254,621

 
$
3,989,437

 
$
4,322,406

 
$
7,252,486

Average attained age of contractholders
70 years

 
69 years

 
70 years

 
68 years

Average period remaining until earliest expected annuitization
N/A

 
0 years

 
N/A

 
0 years



(1)
Amounts include assumed reinsurance business.
(2)
Includes income and withdrawal benefits.

Account balances of variable annuity contracts with guarantees were invested in separate account investment options as follows:
 
December 31, 2019(1)
 
December 31, 2018(1)
 
 
 
 
 
(in thousands)
Equity funds
$
82,506,787

 
$
69,686,791

Bond funds
53,763,563

 
51,855,361

Money market funds
2,877,135

 
2,542,219

Total
$
139,147,485

 
$
124,084,371


(1)
Amounts include assumed reinsurance business.
In addition to the amounts invested in separate account investment options above, $4.7 billion at December 31, 2019 and $4.9 billion at December 31, 2018 of account balances of variable annuity contracts with guarantees, inclusive of contracts with MVA features, were invested in general account investment options. For the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, there were no transfers of assets, other than cash, from the general account to any separate account, and accordingly no gains or losses recorded.
Liabilities for Guarantee Benefits
The table below summarizes the changes in general account liabilities for guarantees. The liabilities for GMDB and GMIB are included in “Future policy benefits” and the related changes in the liabilities are included in “Policyholders’ benefits.” GMAB, GMWB and GMIWB are accounted for as embedded derivatives and are recorded at fair value within “Future policy benefits.” Changes in the fair value of these derivatives, including changes in the Company’s own risk of non-performance, along with any fees attributed or payments made relating to the derivative are recorded in “Realized investment gains (losses), net.” See Note 5 for additional information regarding the methodology used in determining the fair value of these embedded derivatives. The Company maintains a portfolio of derivative investments that serve as a partial hedge of the risks associated with these products, for which the changes in fair value are also recorded in “Realized investment gains (losses), net.” This portfolio of derivative investments does not qualify for hedge accounting treatment under U.S. GAAP.
 
GMDB
 
GMAB/GMWB/
GMIWB
 
GMIB
 
Totals
Variable Annuity
(in thousands)
Balance at December 31, 2016
$
637,319

 
$
7,707,333

 
$
37,893

 
$
8,382,545

Incurred guarantee benefits(1)(2)
29,605

 
444,569

 
(11,686
)
 
462,488

Paid guarantee benefits(2)
(57,053
)
 
0

 
(3,798
)
 
(60,851
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses(2)
12,931

 
0

 
117

 
13,048

Balance at December 31, 2017
622,802

 
8,151,902

 
22,526

 
8,797,230

Incurred guarantee benefits(1)(2)
103,596

 
180,572

 
2,679

 
286,847

Paid guarantee benefits(2)
(67,887
)
 
0

 
(2,915
)
 
(70,802
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses(2)
(20,108
)
 
0

 
(230
)
 
(20,338
)
Balance at December 31, 2018
638,403

 
8,332,474

 
22,060

 
8,992,937

Incurred guarantee benefits(1)(2)
68,142

 
3,490,524

 
3,539

 
3,562,205

Paid guarantee benefits(2)
(51,418
)
 
0

 
(3,477
)
 
(54,895
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses(2)
26,377

 
0

 
274

 
26,651

Balance at December 31, 2019
$
681,504

 
$
11,822,998

 
$
22,396

 
$
12,526,898


(1)
Incurred guarantee benefits include the portion of assessments established as additions to reserves as well as changes in estimates affecting the reserves. Also includes changes in the fair value of features considered to be derivatives.
(2)
Amounts include assumed reinsurance business.

The GMDB and GMIB liability are established when associated assessments (which include all policy charges including charges for administration, mortality, expense, surrender, and other, regardless of how characterized) are recognized. This liability is established using current best estimate assumptions and is based on the ratio of the present value of total expected excess payments (e.g., payments in excess of account value) over the life of the contract divided by the present value of total expected assessments (i.e., benefit ratio). The liability equals the current benefit ratio multiplied by cumulative assessments recognized to date, plus interest, less cumulative excess payments to date. Similar to as described above for DAC, the reserves are subject to adjustments based on annual reviews of assumptions and quarterly adjustments for experience, including market performance. These adjustments reflect the impact on the benefit ratio of using actual historical experience from the issuance date to the balance sheet date plus updated estimates of future experience. The updated benefit ratio is then applied to all prior periods’ assessments to derive an adjustment to the reserve recognized through a benefit or charge to current period earnings.
The GMAB features provide the contractholder with a guaranteed return of initial account value or an enhanced value if applicable. The most significant of the Company’s GMAB features are the guaranteed return option features, which includes an automatic rebalancing element that reduces the Company’s exposure to these guarantees. The GMAB liability is calculated as the present value of future expected payments in excess of the account balance less the present value of future expected rider fees attributable to the embedded derivative feature.
The GMWB features provide the contractholder with access to a guaranteed remaining balance if the account value is reduced to zero through a combination of market declines and withdrawals. The guaranteed remaining balance is generally equal to the protected value under the contract, which is initially established as the greater of the account value or cumulative deposits when withdrawals commence, less cumulative withdrawals. The contractholder also has the option, after a specified time period, to reset the guaranteed remaining balance to the then-current account value, if greater. The contractholder accesses the guaranteed remaining balance through payments over time, subject to maximum annual limits. The GMWB liability is calculated as the present value of future expected payments to customers less the present value of future expected rider fees attributable to the embedded derivative feature.
The GMIWB features, taken collectively, provide a contractholder two optional methods to receive guaranteed minimum payments over time, a “withdrawal” option or an “income” option. The withdrawal option (which was available under only one of the GMIWBs and is no longer offered) guarantees that a contractholder can withdraw an amount each year until the cumulative withdrawals reach a total guaranteed balance. The income option (which varies among the Company’s GMIWBs) in general guarantees the contractholder the ability to withdraw an amount each year for life (or for joint lives, in the case of any spousal version of the benefit) where such amount is equal to a percentage of a protected value under the benefit. The contractholder also has the potential to increase this annual amount, based on certain subsequent increases in account value that may occur. The GMIWB can be elected by the contractholder upon issuance of an appropriate deferred variable annuity contract or at any time following contract issue prior to annuitization. Certain GMIWB features include an automatic rebalancing element that reduces the Company’s exposure to these guarantees. The GMIWB liability is calculated as the present value of future expected payments to customers less the present value of future expected rider fees attributable to the embedded derivative feature.
Sales Inducements
The Company defers sales inducements and amortizes them over the anticipated life of the policy using the same methodology and assumptions used to amortize DAC. DSI is included in “Deferred sales inducements”. The Company has offered various types of sales inducements, including: (1) a bonus whereby the policyholder’s initial account balance is increased by an amount equal to a specified percentage of the customer’s initial deposit and (2) additional credits after a certain number of years a contract is held. Changes in DSI, reported as “Interest credited to policyholders’ account balances”, are as follows: 
 
Sales Inducements
 
(in thousands)    
Balance at December 31, 2016
$
978,823

Capitalization
1,551

Amortization - Impact of assumption and experience unlocking and true-ups
145,141

Amortization - All other
(94,014
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses
(10,715
)
Balance at December 31, 2017
1,020,786

Capitalization
2,888

Amortization - Impact of assumption and experience unlocking and true-ups
(5,713
)
Amortization - All other
(149,236
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses
20,873

Balance at December 31, 2018
889,598

Capitalization
797

Amortization - Impact of assumption and experience unlocking and true-ups
100,222

Amortization - All other
(146,620
)
Change in unrealized investment gains and losses
(31,273
)
Balance at December 31, 2019
$
812,724