Celebrating 50 Years of Leadership in
Institutional Income Annuities
For 50 years, MetLife has partnered with plan sponsors to help their employees retire with confidence, with guaranteed lifetime income solutions available through employer-sponsored retirement plans.
As we trace the 50-year evolution of our Institutional Income Annuities (IIA) business, we look back at milestones in the journey to more secure retirement outcomes.
50 Years of Milestones: Institutional Income Annuities
1974
The landmark Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) is signed into law.
1978
The Revenue Act of 1978 makes it possible to establish simple, tax-advantaged savings accounts for employees, ultimately allowing 401(k) plans to be offered.
1986
MetLife is selected by the Federal Government as the first and only annuity provider for its Thrift Savings Plan, the largest defined contribution (DC) plan in the world with 7 million participants.1
1996
The Retirement Protection Act amends ERISA to simplify rules relating to retirement plans and increase access to retirement plans.
2004
MetLife is the first to introduce longevity insurance, a deferred income annuity, to the institutional market with its Retirement Income Insurance.
2006
The Pension Protection Act strengthens protections for workers in both DB and DC plans, improving their management and security.
2015
MetLife launches the first institutional Qualifying Longevity Annuity Contract, or QLAC, a deferred income annuity for 401(k) plans with the benefit starting later in life, such as age 85.
2019
MetLife plays an instrumental role in advocating for the lifetime income provisions of the landmark SECURE Act of 2019, which created a fiduciary safe harbor to select an annuity provider and lifetime income disclosure requirements.
2022
SECURE Act 2.0 paves the way for QLACs to be more accessible for DC plan participants, eliminating the 25% threshold and increasing the dollar limit to $210,000, indexed for inflation.
2023
MetLife introduces the Retirement Income Tool to help employees create a financial snapshot of expected monthly cash flow in retirement and understand if they have a retirement income gap to address.
2023
MetLife teams up with Fidelity Investments® to offer the Guaranteed Income Program, a fixed immediate income annuity that enables plan participants at all savings levels to annuitize any portion of their savings for retirement income.
2024
In collaboration with Micruity, MetLife’s Retirement Income Center offers a simple solution for plan sponsors who want to offer income annuities. It supports participants with robust retirement planning resources, including an annuity purchasing tool that seamlessly connects to employee benefit, third-party administrator and recordkeeping systems.
MetLife Ranks 1st in IIA Sales and Assets
The MetLife enterprise ranks #1 in sales and assets of institutional income annuities, according to Life Insurance Marketing and Research Association (LIMRA) reported data.2
MetLife has held the #1 market position in IIA sales for over 20 years3, building on decades of experience and intent listening to plan sponsor needs.
A Simplified Approach to Income Annuity Solutions
Over that time, our IIA team has developed and refined a simplified approach to providing innovative guaranteed lifetime income solutions.
The insurer plan sponsors select as the income annuity provider for their DC plan is vital to ensuring positive financial outcomes for retirees. After all, with people living longer today, they could require steady income for a retirement that lasts up to 20 to 30 years or more.
MetLife’s 2023 Retirement Income Pulse Check surveyed DC plan consultants to learn what they look for in recommending an insurer for an annuity option:
It’s important for plan participants to be supported by a company with financial strength and a history of delivering on its promises through many market cycles. Our financial strength ratings consistently rank among the highest in the industry.
Over half a century, MetLife has led the way in defining the DC landscape, demonstrating time and again the ability to innovate, inform groundbreaking federal legislation, anticipate shifts in the marketplace and successfully navigate them.
Our solutions are designed to integrate seamlessly into existing retirement income plans and strategies and are compatible with any recordkeeper or platform, with the flexibility of limited to no build required.
A Commitment to Customer Support
MetLife supports employees and retirees with industry-leading educational programs, enhanced digital tools and customer support that responds to 415,000 phone calls annually.4 We are proud that our Retirement & Income Solutions Call Center has earned recognition from J.D. Power for Outstanding Customer Service Experience in Phone Support for the 6th straight year.5
Learn more about ensuring successful retirement outcomes for plan participants with MetLife guaranteed lifetime income distribution options for your DC plan.