Products March 14, 2008

Advisor Resources Introduces New Rider for its Variable Annuity

Monumental Life Insurance Company has introduced the Architect Rider, an optional guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit (GLWB), available on the no up-front sales load Advisor’s Edge Variable Annuity.
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The Architect Rider offers registered investment advisers (RIAs) an income planning solution with guaranteed withdrawals regardless of policy value or investment performance. The guarantees are based on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company, the company said.

Although most variable annuities require the policy holder to choose from only a handful of predetermined investment option models when withdrawal benefits are added, Monumental noted that the Architect Rider is available with a wide variety of non-equity and equity investment choices, within limits, including DFA and Vanguard. The rider must be issued with a maximum equity percentage of 50%, 60%, or 70% and the percentage of subaccount values allocated to the equity designated funds may not be more than the maximum equity percentage chosen.

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The Architect Rider is an optional living benefit rider available for purchase on the Advisor’s Edge Variable Annuity issued by Monumental Life Insurance Company (Monumental Life), and the Advisor’s Edge NY Variable Annuity, issued by Transamerica Financial Life Insurance Company (Transamerica). Underwritten and distributed by Transamerica Capital, Inc.

“We are extremely excited to announce the availability of the Architect Rider to RIAs and their clients,’ said Gavin Lodge, Advisor Resources’ Director, in a company press release. “Its straightforward and flexible design gives advisers a unique tool for clients’ retirement planning needs. The Architect Rider allows advisers to select investment options specific to their clients’ long-term objectives, unlike many GLWB solutions available today.’

The Architect Rider is available through Monumental’s Advisor Resources unit, which provides annuity support and service to fee-only and fee-based advisers. For more information about Advisor Resources and the Architect Rider visit www.advisorresources.com.

The Markets March 13, 2008

S&P Slates Two Real-Time Currency Indexes

Standard&Poor’s has announced the launch of two real-time currency indices that provide investors with exposure to emerging economic superpowers that currently lack a liquid currency futures market.
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The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are the first in what will be a series of real-time currency indices launched by Standard & Poor’s in 2008.

“China and India are both important markets in global trade, but currently lack a liquid and accessible currency futures market,” says David Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “The launch of these two new indices will provide investors with access to the currencies of two emerging economic superpowers, China and India, while also serving as a reliable and relative benchmark for currency performance. In the S&P Chinese Renminbi Index, this represents the first instance where U.S. investors will have access to a local Chinese asset.’

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The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are designed to replicate the performance of the Chinese Renminbi and the Indian Rupee versus the U.S. Dollar respectively. The indices represent the performance of a rolling investment in three-month, non-deliverable, forward currency contracts.

The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are rebalanced every three months on the valuation date of the previous three-month contract. The Indices have an excess return version which reflect changes in forwards prices, as well as a total return version which adds a risk-free rate to the excess return index.

For more information on the indices, please visit www.standardandpoors.com/indices.

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