Abstract

Pension reforms normally focus on the accumulation phase, plus term insurance that provides benefits for the disabled and for dependent survivors, all of which are immediate concerns. Decumulation of the capital in workers' retirement savings accounts appears to be far off in the future. But in the second generation of reforms, countries have begun to pay attention to eventual decumulation, either through gradual withdrawals or through annuitization which provides longevity insurance. At this point, it becomes important to learn whether annuity markets exist and how they operate.