Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. (Western & Southern) generated more than $337 million in pension risk transfer (PRT) premium in 2017, greatly outpacing the $15 million in premium produced in 2015 and 2016 combined.
PRT is offered through Western & Southern’s institutional markets business unit. In September 2017, the business unit was established to expand Western & Southern capabilities with corporate and business clients. In addition to PRT, the business unit also offers bank-owned life insurance solutions and a cobranded direct-to-consumer digital insurance platform built specifically for banks, wealth management firms and finance companies. The business unit is also evaluating opportunities to create retirement and protection solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Our customers have an appreciation for our exceptionally high credit ratings.“Our strong beginning is a recognition that our customers have an appreciation for our exceptionally high credit ratings, our collaborative approach to working with industry partners, and our long-term approach in serving our clients and running our business,” says John Bultema, senior vice president of institutional markets.
Western & Southern serves pension risk transfer needs with a guaranteed single-premium group annuity called PensionAssist® from subsidiary Western-Southern Life Assurance Company (Western & Southern Life). PensionAssist, launched in 2015, allows plan sponsors to replace pension benefits paid to pension participants with annuity payments from Western & Southern Life.
PensionAssist clients have provided positive feedback. “I’m very pleased with how Western & Southern made the process of transitioning our pension benefits to PensionAssist easy,” said Jeff Herman, vice president and CFO of Cincinnati Incorporated. “I look forward to another opportunity to work together in the future.”
With Western & Southern’s PensionAssist, plan sponsors:
- Reduce or eliminate the uncertainty and impact of plan volatility on the company balance sheet.
- Free up plan time so the participating company can focus more on its core business activities.
- Reduce the need for additional resources as the complexity of regulation increases.
- Provide guaranteed cash flows for pension participants.
For more information about PensionAssist, please contact Dave DiMartino at 513-361-6769 or email david.dimartino@westernsouthern.com.
About Western & Southern Life
The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, and its wholly owned subsidiary Western-Southern Life Assurance Company (both known as Western & Southern Life), are members of Western & Southern Financial Group (Western & Southern) and offer life insurance, interest-sensitive life insurance, fixed annuities, retirement strategies and personalized needs analysis for individuals, families and businesses in the middle-income market. It serves customers through 148 field offices nationwide, plus www.westernsouthern.com/wslife and a call center known as the Client Relationship Center at the company’s headquarters in Cincinnati. The company is a 2018 Top 100 Military Friendly® Employer and Military Friendly® Spouse Employer. For financial tools, career opportunities and product information, visit www.westernsouthern.com/wslife.
About Western & Southern Financial Group
Founded in Cincinnati in 1888 as The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, and celebrating 130 years this year, Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. (Western & Southern), a Fortune 500 company, is now the parent company of a group of diversified financial services businesses. Its assets owned ($48 billion) and managed ($27 billion) total $75 billion as of Dec. 31, 2017. Western & Southern is one of the strongest life insurance groups in the world. Its six life insurance subsidiaries (The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, Western-Southern Life Assurance Company, Columbus Life Insurance Company, Integrity Life Insurance Company, The Lafayette Life Insurance Company and National Integrity Life Insurance Company) maintain very strong financial ratings and a Comdex Ranking of 96. Other member companies include Eagle Realty Group, LLC; Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.;1 IFS Financial Services, Inc.; Peppertree Partners LLC;1 Touchstone Advisors, Inc.;1 Touchstone Securities, Inc.;2 W&S Brokerage Services, Inc.;2 and W&S Financial Group Distributors, Inc. For more information on the Western & Southern family of companies, visit www.westernsouthern.com. Western & Southern is the title sponsor of six major community events every year, including the Western & Southern Open (wsopen.com), a premier event in the U.S. Open Series played each August by the world’s top-ranked professional male and female tennis players.
1 A registered investment advisor.
2 A registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC.
For current ratings, please visit www.westernsouthern.com/about/financial-information/financial-ratings.
The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, operates in DC and all states except AK, CT, ME, MA, NH, NY and VT. Western-Southern Life Assurance Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, operates in DC and all states except AK, ME, NH, NY and RI. Group Annuity Contract ENT-02 1406, Group Annuity Certificate ENT-02 1406 ICERT, Group Annuity Certificate ENT-02 1406 DCERT.
Western & Southern Life’s PensionAssist is a group annuity issued by Western-Southern Life Assurance Company. Amounts contributed are deposited in the general account. The underwriting risks, financial and contractual obligations and support functions associated with the annuities issued by Western-Southern Life Assurance Company are the issuing insurer’s responsibility. Any payment obligations or guarantees are contingent on the claims-paying ability of the insurer. Product features may vary by state. Not available in Massachusetts. Information provided regarding products and services is not intended to take the place of any agreements governing such products or services. Western & Southern Life does not provide tax or legal advice. Please contact your tax or legal advisor regarding your situation.
