Annuity Sales Automation Standards Seminar on Tap

Reston, Va. — NAVA Inc., the association for insured retirement solutions, recently announced that it will be hosting, for the second year, a comprehensive seminar for insurance carriers, annuity distributors and technology solution providers that are in the process of implementing NAVA’s Straight-through Processing (STP) Standards Initiative. The STP Standards Initiative, created to help the industry meet the expected growth in the annuity market as the baby boomer generation enters retirement with more than $17 trillion in retirement assets, is an industry-backed initiative establishing an automated standardized process that streamlines the sale of annuities.

The “On the Road to STP” seminar will be held December 18-19, at the JW Marriott Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. The seminar will offer information to assist the industry in the implementation of the STP standards, including a state regulatory view of the STP Standards Initiative, and inherent consumer protections, technology updates and a review of several existing pilot programs to provide attendees with real-world guidance on deployment and integration of the STP Standards.

“The STP Standards Initiative has made great progress since its inception, and we are now at a point where annuity distributors and insurers require detailed information to begin the implementation phase,” says Deborah Tucker, VP of NAVA. “The goal of the seminar is not only to arm the industry with the tools and information to begin implementing the STP Standards, but also to educate software product and service providers on how to develop supporting STP-compliant solutions for insurers and distributors. We also hope to establish an open dialog for the exchange of STP-related data, and information to help all industry trading partners throughout the entire STP implementation process.”

At the “On the Road to STP” seminar, some of the industry’s foremost experts and active participants will offer insight and guidance on developing and implementing STP-compliant solutions. Included in the seminar will be a panel of independent broker-dealers discussing their firms’ plans to roll out STP programs, as well as a session outlining how STP and other industry efforts will help enhance industry transparency and reduce unsuitable annuity sales. In addition, NAVA and IBM will demonstrate the STP Common Reference Architecture Model, which was developed to provide a framework for implementation of the NAVA STP Standards by annuity distributors and their insurance carrier partners.

Source: NAVA