Annuity Markets

The Pension Crisis concerns the changing demographic profile of the economy: an increasing number of elderly persons supported by fewer young people. Governments around the world are responding to this impending crisis by shifting their pension policies away from pay-as-you-go systems towards individual savings schemes. These savings need to be converted into a pension at retirement, and annuities provide this function. This book is a comprehensive study of annuity markets. The book starts by outlining the context of public policy towards pensions, and explains the different types of annuities available, focusing on the UK which has the largest annuity market in the world. It examines how annuities are priced, and describes the techniques of mortality measurement. As a background, it provides a history of annuities, and the experience of annuity markets in a number of other countries. The book outlines the economic theory behind annuities, and explains how annuities insure consumers against longevity risks. It goes on to describes how annuities markets function: how they work, and whether they are efficient, leading onto a discussion of the annuity puzzle. The book concludes by discussing the regulatory framework, assets available to back annuity liabilities, and recent developments in annuity markets.

Dr Edmund Cannon is a Senior Lecturer in Economics at the University of Bristol. His research includes work on pension economics the effect of demographic change on the macroeconomy endogenous growth theory and the rôle of financial markets and transport in economic development. He has published in leading economics and economic history journals. He teaches macroeconomics and econometrics, is Deputy Director of the Economics Network of the Higher Education Academy and has taught at the University of Oxford and the University of Verona. He has acted as a consultant to the UK water industry and advised the Department of Work and Pensions. Professor Ian Tonks is Director of Xfi Centre for Finance and Investment at the University of Exeter. During the academic year 2006/07 he is Senior Houblon-Norman Fellow at the Bank of England. His research focuses on pension economics fund manager performance market microstructure and the organisation of stock exchanges directors' trading and the new issue market. He has published in leading finance and economics journals, and teaches across all areas of financial economics including asset pricing, corporate finance, market efficiency and performance measurement. He is a consultant to the Financial Markets Group, and the Centre for Market and Public Organisation. He has acted as a consultant to a number of commercial and regulatory organisations including the London Stock Exchange, the Competition Commission, and the Financial Services Authority, and has advised the Department of Work and Pensions, and the House of Commons Select Committee on issues in pensions.