Risk Management and Financial Reporting

The Data Science and Analytics Committee (DSAC) released an issue brief, Big Data and Algorithms in Actuarial Modeling and Consumer Impacts. It outlines big data issues confronting actuaries and initiates discussion on how big data and artificial intelligence impact the consumer insurance experience, and covers how insurers and regulators can collaborate to resolve potential issues. The issue brief follows an issue paper of the same name released in November 2021.

The Long-Duration Contracts Work Group of the Academy’s Risk Management and Financial Reporting Council released the practice note exposure draft Application of ASU 2018-12 to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts under U.S. GAAP, which covers aspects of the application of Accounting Standards Update 2018-12, Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts, published in August 2018 by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The comment deadline for this exposure draft is November 21, 2022.

The Academy’s Climate Change Joint Task Force (CCJTF) submitted comments to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) on their Exposure Draft IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures. The draft builds upon the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

The Data Science and Analytics Committee, in partnership with the Racial Equity Task Force, released a major issue brief, An Actuarial View of Correlation and Causation - From Interpretation to Practice to Implications. The issue brief provides a discussion of key questions that actuaries may encounter as they work in the risk classification domain; actuarial practices surrounding data, predictive modeling, and risk classification that are also key considerations for public policymaking and regulatory efforts aimed at ensuring that insurance practices are not “unfairly discriminatory.”

The Academy’s Climate Change Joint Task Force (CCJTF) submitted comments to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on their request for public input on the proposed rule, the “Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors.”

The IFRS 17 Work Group of the Financial Reporting Committee submitted comments to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation Interpretations Committee Chairperson Bruce Mackenzie on the foundation’s tentative agenda decision Transfer of Insurance Coverage under a Group of Annuity Contracts (IFRS 17).

The Academy’s Climate Change Joint Task Force (CCJTF) submitted comments to the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) on their Request for Information on Possible Agency Actions to Protect Life Savings and Pensions from Threats of Climate Related Financial Risk.

The Academy’s Data Science and Analytics Committee (DSAC) presented to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Casualty Actuarial and Statistical (C) Task Force (CASTF) Book Club on their recent major issue paper, Big Data and Algorithms in Actuarial Modeling and Consumer Impacts.

The ERM/ORSA Committee's comments submitted to the IAIS as part of the association's Public Consultation on the Development of Liquidity Metrics: Phase 2. 

The Climate Change Joint Task Force sent comments to the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Federal Insurance Office's (FIO) request for information regarding FIO's future work related to the insurance sector and climate-related financial risks. 

The Data Science and Analytics Committee released a major issue paper, Big Data and Algorithms in Actuarial Modeling and Consumer Impacts. The paper provides a framing for understanding how developments in big data and artificial intelligence (AI) may impact insurance offerings and their oversight; education for actuaries, regulators, legislators, and other interested stakeholders on the evolving impacts of big data and AI technologies on the oversight, accessibility, and sustainability of insurance since the publication of the Big Data and the Role of the Actuary monograph; and education for a framework on algorithmic accountability and considerations specific across different lines of insurance.

The Long-Duration Contracts Work Group of the Financial Reporting Committee released an exposure draft of a public policy practice note on the Application of Accounting Standards Update 2018-12, Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Long-Duration Contracts. The exposure draft is Part I: Traditional and Limited-Payment Contracts – Basic Considerations Related to the Liability for Future Policy Benefits. Due to the number of areas of practice impacted by this accounting standard, the white paper is being exposed for comment in sections, of which this is the first. Please send comments to rmfrcanalyst@actuary.org by September 30.

RMFRC’s Data Science and Analytics Committee (DSAC) submitted comments in response to a joint request for information and comment from several federal agencies regarding financial institutions’ use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. The DSAC letter provided actuarial insights into the use of AI in the insurance sector. The agencies making the request are the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and the National Credit Union Administration.

The Climate-Related Financial Disclosures Work Group and the Actuaries Climate Index/Actuaries Climate Risk Index Work Group submitted comments to the New York State Department of Financial Services on financial risks related to climate change.

The Climate-Related Financial Disclosures Work Group and the Actuaries Climate Index/Actuaries Climate Risk Index Work Group jointly submitted comments to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s request for public input on climate change disclosures.