Executives at Jackson National Life Insurance Co. credit growing annuity sales through banks to an ongoing reorganization of the Prudential PLC unit's distribution force and say there is room for further expansion.
"The momentum in the bank channel shows that it's made a difference," said Paul Fitzgerald, senior vice president of national accounts for the Lansing, Mich., insurer's Jackson National Life Distributors LLC.
Jackson National's third-quarter share of variable annuities within the bank channel grew by nearly half from the first quarter, to 4.4%, according to Kehrer-Limra.
As a result, the insurer rose from 11th to eighth place among annuity providers selling through banks. At the same time, weaker sales of fixed annuities caused it to drop from ninth to 12th in overall annuity sales through banks. A spokesman for Jackson National said it would not give specific sales goals, because of legal concerns.
Carmen Effron, the president of C.F. Effron Co. LLC, a bank and insurance consulting firm in Weston, Conn., said there is "not a lot of precedent" for an insurer dramatically raising its market share through banks, because it is an increasingly mature channel.
Mr. Fitzgerald said Jackson National has plenty of room to grow, and to do that it has to convince banks that it can help them increase their overall sales. "We want to help get banks a bigger pie, not just move pieces of the pie around." That means offering sales reps and platform bankers extra support and training to boost sales, he said.
Ms. Effron said that the key to making a big move in the channel would be to "get five to 10 more people in each bank selling."
As part of its effort to boost sales, last month Jackson National announced a realignment within its distribution arm. The insurer said the changes will allow it to "identify additional avenues for growth in the bank and regional broker-dealer channels, and expand Jackson's presence among the company's existing accounts."
Mr. Fitzgerald said Jackson National has been deploying bank wholesalers more effectively by using lots of internal analysis to see if it has overlooked opportunities in the areas they serve.
"We're taking a hard look at the channel structure and bringing bank relationships on in the right places," he said.
The initiatives are focused more heavily on the West Coast than the East Coast, Mr. Fitzgerald said, though there are pockets all over the country where Jackson National could be doing more business. Last month it announced the formation of a business development team to recruit banks and regional broker-dealers to sell its annuities and mutual funds.
Doug Mantelli, who had been vice president of marketing strategy for Jackson National Life Distributors, was put in charge of the development team.
Also last year, Jackson National created a dedicated team of bank wholesalers to focus on variable annuities and another to focus on fixed and equity index annuities. A spokesman for the insurer said that it plans to add wholesalers steadily this year across all channels.
Its fixed annuity sales through banks have softened, because interest rates have made the products a tougher sell, the spokesman said, but the wholesaling force can "pivot" to other products.
Along with its annuities, Jackson National is expanding the retail fund family it launched a year ago. Last week it said it had added two funds to give the proprietary Jackson Perspective Funds seven portfolios. The Jackson Perspective VIP Fund uses a total return strategy, while the Jackson Perspective S&P 4 Fund uses a capital appreciation strategy.
