Products April 22, 2008

Combined Retirement/Life Insurance Plan Introduced for Small Businesses

The Hartford and Plan Administrators, Inc. (PAi) have created Solo db Life, a defined benefit retirement plan designed for business owners with less than 10 employees who need both life insurance and a retirement plan.
Reported by

According to the companies, part of the employer’s contribution to the plan is allocated to traditional investments and the other part is used to purchase life insurance. The life insurance policy embedded in Solo db Life is Hartford Extraordinary Whole Life, a new permanent life insurance product that offers guaranteed level premiums, cash values, and a death benefit, a press release said.

The plan offers clients the ability to invest in The Hartford’s family of mutual funds. The mutual funds and the cash value portion of the life insurance provide the funding for the future defined benefit. The announcement noted that since it is a qualified plan, contributions are generally tax-deductible, including the portion allocated to the purchase of the life insurance policy.

Solo db Life is a turnkey product that includes a plan document, annual maintenance, statements showing each participant’s accrued benefit, and signature-ready forms for government compliance. The plan is administered by PAi, and is available in all states, except New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

For more information, visit www.thehartford.com.

Products April 22, 2008

Market Vectors Launches Solar Energy ETF

Asset manager Van Eck Global today launched an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in hopes of profiting from the growth of solar power.
Reported by

The company says the fund, Market Vectors – Solar Energy ETF (KWT), listed on the American Stock Exchange, is among the first solar ETFs listed in the U.S.

KWT seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Ardour Solar Energy Index (SOLRX).

SOLRX includes only those companies that generate at least 66% of their revenues from solar energy. On an index-weighted basis, the companies in SOLRX derive well over 90% of their revenues from solar energy. Currently, the four top holdings are First Solar, Q-Cells, Renewable Energy and Solarworld, with weightings of 10% each.

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Worldwide, the solar industry’s revenues are expected to grow 30% to 35% annually over the next three years, and its earnings are projected to hit $5.6 billion in 2010, versus an estimated $3.3 billion in 2008, according to Ardour Capital Investments.

“Solar power has become an increasingly popular source of energy around the world, with demand exploding against a backdrop of steadily declining costs and prices that reflect economies of scale and technological and manufacturing advancements,’ said Jan van Eck, principal at Van Eck Global, which manages more than $10.8 billion in assets. “With more countries seeking to mitigate rising energy prices and the threat of global warming by implementing solar-friendly policies, the global solar industry appears poised to enter a period of remarkable growth.’

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