Lincoln Financial, another big annuities carrier, is "encouraged by the best-interest standard presented by the SEC," said Will Fuller, president of annuity solutions for Lincoln Financial Distributors and Lincoln Financial Network, two units of the Lincoln Financial Group.
Fuller noted that annuities often fit well with clients' best interests. After all, he said, annuities can offer "protected lifetime income that lives as long as they do, and ensures their retirement is as rewarding as they’ve planned for.”
If some industry leaders seemed unperturbed by the demise of the DOL rule, that's partly because it's already "changed the terms of the discussion and affected the way leading players modified their practices," said Wagner. It's unlikely, she added, that they will undo what's been done.
Yet it's also possible that the new SEC rules, when finalized (the proposal is open to public comment through August 7th), will in some sense go farther than the DOL rule. "There was a large group of consumers who were totally unaffected by the DOL rule because it addressed only ERISA pension plans and certain types of pension-type arrangements under the Internal Revenue Code," said Wagner. "These individuals will be protected to some degree under the proposed SEC regulation."
Wagner anticipated a range of proposals and counterproposals before the dust settles. "Until the fiduciary rule sorts itself out at the federal level, states may try to enact their own protective legislation," she said.
At this point, the possibilities seem limitless. "On balance, the DOL fiduciary rule made it more difficult and expensive for consumers to access advice and solutions, including annuities, especially on a commission basis," said Jackson's Stowe. "We look forward to working with the SEC on its recent proposals, which are intended to enhance standards of conduct while preserving access to advice and a broad range of solutions offered on a commission and fee basis."
Nationwide's Hawley, meanwhile, reiterated his firm's dedication to the fiduciary ideal. "Investors rate a fiduciary standard among the top three factors for choosing an advisor," he said. "When you put consumers first, everyone wins."