Hartford Seeking To Sell Variable Annuities in Japan

Hartford Financial Services Group has applied for permission from the Financial Services Administration for permission to begin marketing variable annuity products through its Japanese subsidiary.

As in the U.S., flexible pension products are a fast growing market sector in Japan, and have attracted several foreign companies. More are expected, as Japan’s troubled insurance industry seeks foreign help to overcome its problems.

Reuters News Agency quoted Hartford’s vice-chairman Lon Smith as saying, “We believe that Japan will experience a growing demand for alternative pensions in the future and that the Japanese variable annuity market could develop into the second largest in the world after the U.S.”