U.S. annuity sales remained robust in 2023, but life insurers struggled to grow their share of the retirement asset market. Annuity reserves held by life insurers rose 8.9% to $4.2 trillion, slightly lagging the 9% growth rate for total retirement assets. 

Employer-sponsored pension and retirement plans saw a 10.3% increase, reaching $13 trillion, while individual retirement account (IRA) assets grew 13.4% to $13.6 trillion. Annuities maintained a 9.3% share of total retirement assets, unchanged from 2022, despite record sales and strong investment returns.

 IRA assets allocated to annuities grew 9.6% to $614 billion, but their share within IRAs declined to 4.5% due to even greater growth in mutual funds and other investments. 

Finsum: Overall, we believe annuities will continue to play a stable yet relatively modest role in the broader retirement landscape.

Category: Annuities

Tags: annuities, fixed annuities, variable annuities