The Life Settlements Report - April 3, 2008

Legislature Passes 5-Year Ban, Prison for Consumers

The West Virginia insurance commissioner shut out the life settlement industry from participating in drafting legislation regulating the market and instead turned to the industry's chief adversary, according to life settlement representatives and the insurance department's own internal emails. Full Story

Some Say They Mask STOLI, Others Consider Them Legitimate

A broad review of the premium financing of life insurance policies shows the practice, which has increased considerably in the past few years, is murky, controversial, and contentious. Opponents, chiefly insurance companies and associations, and regulatory-minded legislators, claim that premium finance is essentially a "disguise" for stranger-originated life insurance (STOLI). Advocates maintain that premium finance provides choices for consumers and does not necessarily indicate STOLI. Full Story

A much-debated proposal to regulate life settlements in New York was introduced in the state Assembly on March 27, and just like a previous draft version, it is generating controversy. Full Story

• Phoenix Enters Life Settlement Business
• New Mortality Table Released by Actuarial Group
• A.M. Best Revises Methods for Rating Life Settlement Securitizations
• Life Partners Profit Rises Fivefold
• GWG Life Settlements Announces $250M Credit Facility, Hirings
• Portfolio Price Reduced in Kingsmill Deal
• Indiana Governor Signs Anti-STOLI Law
• Kentucky Legislature Passes Bill Based on NCOIL Model
• Kansas Senate Committee Approves Bill Based on NCOIL Proposal
• New Jersey Regulators Accuse Man of Life Settlement Scam