Annexus, Athene and Barclays Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Shiller Barclays CAPE Series of Indices

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Feb 26, 2024, 06:00 ET

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Feb. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Annexus, one of the nation's leading independent developers of financial and insurance products, along with Athene, a leading provider of index-linked annuities, and Barclays, a global corporate and investment bank, are excited to announce the 10^thanniversary of the Shiller Barclays CAPE^®indices: the Shiller Barclays CAPE^® US Sector Risk Controlled 10% USD Total Return Index (Shiller Barclays CAPE^® 10 Index), the Shiller Barclays CAPE^® Allocator 6 Index, and the Shiller Barclays Global Index.

Annexus, Athene and Barclays brought the Shiller Barclays CAPE^® 10 Index to the fixed indexed annuity market on Feb. 5, 2014. Designed by Yale professor Robert Shiller, one of the world's most influential economists, these indices are available exclusively with the Athene^®BCA^® Suite of Fixed Indexed Annuities (FIAs).

The indices are designed to provide exposure to undervalued equities, identified by a filtering process that uses the Cyclically Adjusted Price to Earnings (or CAPE) ratio. The CAPE^®ratio, created by Prof. Shiller, is a statistical tool used to find stocks that are well-established, with a long history of earnings but underpriced in the market.

"In 2018 the CAPE ratio forecasted significantly higher 10-year expected returns for the international equities vs. the U.S. large caps," says Prof. Shiller. "This led to the expansion of our suite of indices and the creation of the Shiller Barclays Global Index, which has performed well through the turbulent markets over the last few years."

"We're focused on bringing indices to the FIA market that are deeply rooted in academic research and that we believe have a very good chance of working going forward," said Ron Shurts, CEO and co-founder of Annexus. "We are proud to celebrate this milestone with Prof. Shiller, Barclays, and Athene. It is a testament to our partnership and the success of the index over the last decade."

"The partnership between Athene, Barclays and Annexus set the standard for how innovative indices can be used inside retirement products to strengthen outcomes," said Mike Downing, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Athene. "Over the last 10 years, Professor Shiller's methodology has helped thousands of policyholders plan for a financially secure retirement."

Ronnie Wexler, global head of equities sales at Barclays, echoes the positive sentiments.

"We are extremely proud of the decade-long partnership we have built with Annexus and Athene," Wexler says. "Our collective innovation has helped Americans save for retirement with differentiated risk-adjusted returns and the added comfort of principal protection. We look forward to continuing to develop market-leading retirement savings products together."

Since the launch of the Shiller Barclays CAPE^® 10 Index, $6.2 billion in account value has been allocated to the three Shiller Barclays CAPE^® indices.¹ The Shiller Barclays CAPE^® 10 Index, one of the first smart beta indices available in a fixed indexed annuity, returned an 8.81% annualized return over the last decade.²

¹ Source: Athene. As of 1/31/2024.
² Source: Barclays. Calculated from 2/5/2014-2/5/2024.

About Annexus

Annexus designs solutions to help Americans grow and protect their retirement savings. For almost 20 years, Annexus has developed market-leading fixed indexed annuities and indexed universal life insurance products. Annexus has forged relationships with many of the industry's leading insurance carriers and the world's largest investment banks. Find out more about Annexus and its products.

About Robert Shiller

Shiller is an American economist, best-selling author and Sterling Professor of Economics, Professor of Finance and Fellow at the International Centre for Finance at Yale University. Professor Shiller is ranked among the 100 most influential economists in the world.

About Barclays

Barclays is a consumer and wholesale bank, supporting businesses and institutions through its Corporate and Investment Bank. The bank provides money managers, financial institutions, governments, supranational organizations and corporate clients with services and advice for their funding, financing, strategic and risk management needs. For further information about Barclays Corporate and Investment Bank, visit cib.barclays.

About Athene

Athene is a leading retirement services company with $300 billion of total assets as of December 31, 2023, and operations in the United States, Bermuda, Canada, and Japan. Athene is focused on providing financial security to individuals by offering an attractive suite of retirement income and savings products and also serves as a solutions provider to corporations. For more information, please visit www.athene.com.

The Shiller Barclays CAPE^® US Sector Risk Controlled 10% USD Total Return Index, the Shiller Barclays CAPE^® Allocator 6 Index and the Shiller Barclays Global Index (collectively, the "Indices") have been developed in part by RSBB-I, LLC, the research principal of which is Robert J. Shiller. RSBB-I, LLC is not an investment advisor, and does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the Indices, or any data or methodology either included therein or upon which they are based. Neither RSBB-I, LLC nor Robert J. Shiller or any of their respective partners, employees, subcontractors, agents, suppliers and vendors (collectively, the "Protected Parties") shall have any liability whether caused by the negligence of a Protected Party or otherwise, for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, and make no warranties, express or implied, as to performance or results experienced by any party from the use of any information included therein or upon which it is based, and expressly disclaim all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose with respect thereto, and shall not be liable for any claims or losses of any nature in connection with the use of such information, including but not limited to, lost profits or punitive or consequential damages, even if RSBB-I, LLC, Robert J. Shiller or any Protected Party is advised of the possibility of same.

Neither Barclays Bank PLC ("BB PLC") nor any of its affiliates (collectively "Barclays") is the issuer or producer of Athene Annuity and Life Company's ("Athene") fixed index annuities (the "Products") and Barclays has no responsibilities, obligations or duties to purchasers of the Products. The Indices, together with any Barclays indices that are components of the Indices, are trademarks owned by Barclays and, together with any component indices and index data, are licensed for use by Athene as the issuer or producer of the Products (the "Issuer").

Barclays' only relationship with the Issuer in respect of the Indices is the licensing of the Indices, which are administered, compiled and published by BB PLC in its role as the index sponsor (the "Index Sponsor") without regard to the Issuer or the Products or purchasers of the Products. Additionally, Athene as issuer or producer of the Products may for itself execute transaction(s) with Barclays in or relating to the Indices in connection with the Products. Consumers acquire the Products from Athene and neither acquire any interest in the Indices nor enter into any relationship of any kind whatsoever with Barclays upon purchasing the Products. The Products are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Barclays and Barclays makes no representation regarding the advisability of the Products or use of the Indices or any data included therein. Barclays shall not be liable in any way to the Issuer, purchasers of the Products or to other third parties in respect of the use or accuracy of the Indices or any data included therein.

The Athene BCA 2.0 ANN19 (01/19), ANN19CS06 (01/19), ANN19CS08 (01/19), ANN19CS10 (01/19), ANN19CS12 (01/19); The Athene Velocity ANN19 (01/19), ASP19CS (01/19); the Athene Velocity Income Rider ASPIR (01/19), ASPIRRS (01/19); the Family Endowment Rider PBEDB (01/19), PBEDBRS (01/19); the Balanced Allocation Lifetime Income Rider ANNIRS (01/19), ANNIRSRS (01/19), ANNIRF (01/19), ANNIRFRS (01/19) or state variations are issued by Athene Annuity and Life Company, West Des Moines, IA. Product features, limitations and availability vary; see Certificate of Disclosure for full details. Products not available in all states.

Indexed annuities are not stock market investments and do not directly participate in any stock or equity investments. Market indices may not include dividends paid on the underlying stocks, and therefore may not reflect the total return of the underlying stocks; neither an index nor any market-indexed annuity is comparable to a direct investment in the equity markets.

This material is a general description intended for general public use. Athene Annuity and Life Company (61689), headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa, and issuing annuities in 49 states (excluding NY) and D.C., and Athene Annuity & Life Assurance Company of New York (68039), headquartered in Pearl River, NY, and issuing annuities in New York, are not undertaking to provide investment advice for any individual or in any individual situation, and therefore nothing in this should be read as investment advice. Please reach out to your insurance professional if you have any questions about Athene products or their features. Products not available in all states.

ATHENE ANNUITIES ARE PRODUCTS OF THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY AND NOT GUARANTEED BY ANY BANK NOR INSURED BY FDIC OR NCUA/NCUSIF. MAY LOSE VALUE. NO BANK/CREDIT UNION GUARANTEE. NOT A DEPOSIT. NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY. MAY ONLY BE OFFERED BY A LICENSED INSURANCE AGENT.

SOURCE Annexus