|
Thursday, November 20, 2008
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Enormous debate has erupted around the idea of optional federal chartering for insurance companies. Groups on both sides of the issue have offered numerous arguments for and against the concept.
Proponents promise a freer, more open market for insurance that would benefit consumers and the economy.
Opponents, on the other hand, believe that a new federal regulator will impose burdensome bureaucratic rules, squelch competition, and needlessly increase federal power.
This website provides a free market perspective on the idea of optional federal insurance chartering. |
|
 |
United States: Impact Of The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act And Related Developments On Insurance Companies
by: Eric A. Arnold and Stephen Roth
published: Nov 17, 2008
The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act Of 2008 Has Become Law (Originally published October 7, 2008)
On October 3, 2008, following a week of intense negotiations, the House of Representatives gathered enough votes to finally approve landmark legislation, H.R. 1424, that includes the ''Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008'' (the ''Stabilization Act'' or ''Act'').1 The Act was originally proposed by the Administration, working with U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, to enable the U.S. government to purchase $700 billion of illiquid mortgages and mortgage-related financial instruments currently held by U.S.... More... |
|
Federal charter system might be ''inevitable,'' according to some
by: NAIC NewsWire
published: Nov 13, 2008
An optional federal insurance charter probably is ''inevitable,'' according to life insurance representatives who gathered recently for an Association for Advanced Life Underwriters webcast.
''Clearly, there is going to be far-reaching financial regulatory reform that is going to occur in Congress over the next year or two,'' said Mike Hunter, chief operating officer for the American Council of Life Insurers, Washington. National Underwriter (free registration) (11/12) More... |
|
Three cheers for fed regulation, insurers cry
by: Darla Mercado
published: Nov 13, 2008
Citing better global representation and effective consumer protection, insurance executives sang the praises of federal regulation of the industry today.
''Ultimately, the consumer ought to benefit from greater regulation, provided that we heed the lesson of the current crisis,'' said Christopher ''Kip'' Condron, president and chief executive of AXA Financial Inc. in New York. More... |
|
IT Will Power Insurance Industry Response to Crisis
by: Anthony O'Donnell, Insurance & Technology
published: Nov 12, 2008
Insurance budgets will remain relatively stable as carriers see IT necessary not only for ongoing transformation but as a key tool for addressing crisis-related challenges such as the need for better underwriting results and improved risk management.
In the early stages of the current financial crisis, insurers were able to take comfort in the fact that the problems belonged to the banking industry. Even as the crisis worsened, insurers could take solace in the belief that the industry's regulatory framework, however onerous in many respects, had ensured limited exposure to bad debt. More... |
|
AIG Failure Fuels Regulatory Turf War
by: Paul Menchaca
published: Nov 10, 2008
The Federal Reserve's $123 billion bailout of American International Group (AIG) has revived the long-running debate about whether state commissions should step aside and allow the federal government to regulate insurance companies.
And, since AIG is a leading issuer of annuities in the U.S., the resolution of that controversy will have an impact on the retirement income industry. More... |
|
North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Race Down to the Wire
by: Midwest News
published: Nov 04, 2008
The race for the commissioner's spot in North Dakota has been a lively exchange from the beginning. Incumbent Adam Hamm, a Republican, is running for his first four-year term as insurance commissioner. He was appointed by the Governor Hoeven earlier this year to replace Jim Poolman who resigned 17 months early to launch his own business.
Insurance Journal did an indepth interview with Commissioner Hamm during the National Association of Insurance Commissioners' meeting in late September. At that time he said he is a staunch supporter of state regulation of insurance and cited the AIG and economic failures as proof state insurance regulation is effective because the insurance sector of AIG remained solvent. He opposed to the optional federal charter version of federal oversight of insurance, which he says is most strongly supported on the life side of the industry. More... |
|
Financial Services Industry Bracing for a Shake-Up on the Hill
by: Stacy Kaper, American Banker
published: Oct 31, 2008
The vast majority of attention regarding Tuesday's election has gone to the presidential campaign, but congressional races are likely to have as much impact on the future of the financial services industry.
A number of veteran banking lawmakers are in jeopardy, and Democrats could pick up enough seats in the Senate to dramatically improve their chances to pass bills that would rein in credit card practices and allow judges to rework mortgages. A bigger Democratic majority could also tilt Congress in a more liberal direction as it undertakes a massive rewrite of financial services oversight. More... |
|
FDIC Chief Bair Says Agency May Expand to Regulate Insurers
published: Oct 29, 2008
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair said the agency may expand to offer protection and regulation for more types of financial institutions, including insurers.
Congress is interested in a federal mechanism to regulate insurers with a U.S. guarantee similar to deposit insurance, she said today at a conference of international deposit insurers in Arlington, Virginia. ''That might be a direction where our abilities would be expanded,'' Bair said. More... |
|
Bair says FDIC's powers could extend to insurers
by: Karey Wutkowski
published: Oct 29, 2008
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp's powers could be expanded if Congress decides to shift insurance companies from state regulation to federal regulation, FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said on Wednesday.
The FDIC could start providing guarantees for insurance companies, much like it already guarantees the deposits of most U.S. banks, if the insurance industry comes under federal regulation, Bair said. Insurance companies are currently regulated by individual states. More... |
|
How the US presidential elections will affect the industry
published: Oct 28, 2008
On November 4, Americans will vote on who they want to become the country's 44th president. But while almost all polls have the Democrat candidate Barack Obama edging ahead of his Republican counterpart John McCain, it looks as though the insurance industry's wishes for who they want to succeed George Bush may be at odds with the majority of the population.
At the start of last month McCain had managed to raise $1.62m for his campaign through insurance-related contributions compared with Obama's $1.19m. McCain's 57.6% of the market is, perhaps, a sign that the industry is throwing the bulk of its weight behind him. More... |
|
Beware the socialisation of risk, warns PCI CEO
published: Oct 28, 2008
The global financial crisis, future regulation of the insurance industry, and the inadequacy of US state wind pools will be just some of the talking points at this year's Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) conference that starts today, according to David Sampson, president and CEO of PCI.
One of the biggest areas of concern will be how the US government's overhaul of the financial services industry is going to affect insurers. ''It has been exclusively said by the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee that what he plans on producing out of the House next year will be the greatest overhaul of the financial services regulation since the 1933 and 1934 reforms that were put in place in the midst of the Great Depression,'' says Sampson. More... |
|
Insurance cops face off over turf
by: Beth Braverman
published: Oct 26, 2008
AIG's troubles reinvigorate debate over replacing oversight by the states with federal regulation
As the insurance industry negotiates the aftermath of the bailout of American International Group, legislators, regulators and industry executives have renewed the decades-old debate over state vs. federal insurance regulation. More... |
|
The Future of Insurance Regulation as Fuzzy as Ever
published: Oct 25, 2008
Insurance regulation popped up its head again. This time it was during an Oct. 21 U.S. House Financial Services Committee by the ambitious name of The Future of Financial Services Regulation.
The drumbeat is building again for federal regulation. The focus of Tuesday’s hearing was on banking and securities but several witnesses put in a plug for the optional federal charter. More... |
|
Bailout expanding to insurers
by: David Cho, Binyamin Appelbaum and Zachary A. Goldfarb, Washington Post
published: Oct 25, 2008
Treasury to take stakes in firms as distress spreads beyond banks
(From Page A01 of the Washington Post on Saturday, October 25, 2008)
take ownership stakes in the nation's insurance companies, signaling new concerns about a sector of the economy whose troubles until now have been overshadowed by the banking industry, government and industry sources said. More... |
|
Influential lawmaker seeks to cap AIG exec comp
by: Mark A. Hofmann
published: Oct 22, 2008
A key congressman plans to introduce legislation limiting the compensation of American International Group executives if the federal government does not do so.
''I must rebuke the greed of some AIG executives and agents,'' said Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, during a Tuesday hearing on financial industry regulation. He said if federal authorities do not take steps to rein in AIG executive compensation, ''I will do it legislatively.'' More... |
|
Wisconsin Commissioner: NAIC Opposed to Federal Insurance Regulator Despite OII Support
by: BestWire Services
published: Oct 22, 2008
As the American Council of Life Insurers pushes for a federal insurance regulator, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners remains steadfastly opposed despite its support for a federal Office of Insurance Information, according to the insurance commissioner of Wisconsin.
When it comes to an optional federal charter, the NAIC is ''very much opposed,'' said Commissioner Sean Dilweg. More... |
|
Influential lawmaker seeks to cap AIG exec comp
by: Mark A. Hofmann
published: Oct 22, 2008
A key congressman plans to introduce legislation limiting the compensation of American International Group executives if the federal government does not do so.
''I must rebuke the greed of some AIG executives and agents,'' said Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, during a Tuesday hearing on financial industry regulation. He said if federal authorities do not take steps to rein in AIG executive compensation, ''I will do it legislatively.'' More... |
|
ACLI Chief Makes Case for Federal Insurance Regulator
by: Fran Matso Lysiak, senior associate editor BestWeek
published: Oct 21, 2008
The chief of the American Council of Life Insurers said he believes an optional federal charter is needed now more than ever.
''ACLI has made progress over the years educating policymakers about why we need a federal regulatory presence,'' Gov. Frank Keating, the group’s president and chief executive officer, said at ACLI''s annual conference in Boston. ''In the wake of this financial crisis, the need is urgent. The nation cannot afford a regulatory system in which the federal government is walled off from a $5 trillion industry that helps secure the financial and retirement savings needs of our fellow citizens.'' More... |
|
Guest column: Federal oversight of insurance industry wrong route to take
by: Bob Skow
published: Oct 21, 2008
Essays in the Oct. 5 Des Moines Register Opinion section asked, ''How to Build Better Financial Regulation?'' I was disappointed to see some were calling for federal regulation of the insurance industry as the solution.
These proponents of a new regulatory regime for the insurance industry have called for an optional federal charter (OFC) for big insurance companies. More... |
|
The Era of Re-Regulation is Upon Us
by: Lawrence A. Hunter, Ph.D.
published: Oct 20, 2008
Although the nation's attention is focused on the financial crisis it is worth thinking about how this mess will affect attitudes toward government intervention.
The July issue of The Atlantic magazine, published before the meltdown began, looks at the ''11½ Biggest Ideas of the Year.'' The return of regulation is one of them. After nearly three decades of growth-enhancing deregulation and regulatory reform, The Atlantic observes, ''a major rethink is underway. ... Regulation is back.'' More... |
|
Regulating Insurance
by: Marc Racicot
published: Oct 18, 2008
Letter to the Editor RE: Re “Both Sides of the Aisle See More Regulation, and Not Just of Banks” (New York Times news article, Oct. 14)
The entire insurance industry does not believe that the current patchwork system of state regulation is the best way to regulate the industry. In fact, our members would welcome a more focused and efficient regulation of insurance companies at the federal level. More... |
|
Florida, nation need federal insurance regulator
by: Eli Lehrer
published: Oct 18, 2008
Much of the turmoil in America's financial markets involves exotic investments that most Americans never have heard of and never will get near.
However, with that turmoil now spreading to the insurance sector and, in particular, the AIG Group - the world's largest insurance company - it's time to look at what the consequences could be for Florida's own troubled property insurance market. More... |
|
Insurance regulatory reform is now or never, former New York commissioner says
by: Bob Graham
published: Oct 14, 2008
If the federal government is going to take over insurance regulation, it has to happen in the next year, says a former insurance commissioner from New York.
''If we don’t address the problems now, with all that’s going on,'' said Howard D. Mills III, a former New York insurance commissioner who now is chief advisor of the insurance industry group at Deloitte & Touche USA, ''when will we do it?'' More... |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
You are Visitor #2205082 Since 2007 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
