5. Investments

AFS Securities

Pursuant to the Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures Topic of the FASB ASC, we have categorized AFS securities into a three-level hierarchy, based on the priority of the inputs to the respective valuation technique. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3), as described in Note 1, which also includes additional disclosures regarding our fair value measurements.

The amortized cost, gross unrealized gains, losses and OTTI and fair value of AFS securities (in millions) were as follows:



	As of December 31, 2014
	Amortized		Gross Unrealized						Fair
	Cost		Gains		Losses		OTTI		Value
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	67,153	$	6,714	$	409	$	42	$	73,416
ABS		1,087		86		1		42		1,130
U.S. government bonds		379		56		-		-		435
Foreign government bonds		473		68		-		-		541
RMBS		3,979		268		3		18		4,226
CMBS		554		27		-		11		570
CLOs		375		2		2		-		375
State and municipal bonds		3,723		874		4		-		4,593
Hybrid and redeemable preferred securities		886		108		40		-		954
VIEs' fixed maturity securities		587		11		-		-		598
Total fixed maturity securities		79,196		8,214		459		113		86,838
Equity securities		216		16		1		-		231
Total AFS securities	$	79,412	$	8,230	$	460	$	113	$	87,069



	As of December 31, 2013
	Amortized		Gross Unrealized						Fair
	Cost		Gains		Losses		OTTI		Value
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	64,591	$	4,312	$	1,125	$	42	$	67,736
ABS		1,217		62		32		48		1,199
U.S. government bonds		355		26		14		-		367
Foreign government bonds		505		45		1		-		549
RMBS		4,135		256		10		31		4,350
CMBS		713		36		4		17		728
CLOs		232		-		1		6		225
State and municipal bonds		3,638		308		27		-		3,919
Hybrid and redeemable preferred securities		967		89		51		-		1,005
VIEs' fixed maturity securities		682		15		-		-		697
Total fixed maturity securities		77,035		5,149		1,265		144		80,775
Equity securities		182		19		-		-		201
Total AFS securities	$	77,217	$	5,168	$	1,265	$	144	$	80,976

The amortized cost and fair value of fixed maturity AFS securities by contractual maturities (in millions) as of December 31, 2014, were as follows:



	Amortized		Fair
	Cost		Value
Due in one year or less	$	2,258	$	2,309
Due after one year through five years		17,221		18,584
Due after five years through ten years		22,179		23,117
Due after ten years		32,630		37,657
Subtotal		74,288		81,667
MBS		4,533		4,796
CLOs		375		375
Total fixed maturity AFS securities	$	79,196	$	86,838

Actual maturities may differ from contractual maturities because issuers may have the right to call or pre-pay obligations.

The fair value and gross unrealized losses, including the portion of OTTI recognized in OCI, of AFS securities (dollars in millions), aggregated by investment category and length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous unrealized loss position, were as follows:



	As of December 31, 2014
	Less Than or Equal					Greater Than
	to Twelve Months					Twelve Months					Total
				Gross					Gross					Gross
			Unrealized					Unrealized					Unrealized
	Fair		Losses and			Fair		Losses and			Fair		Losses and
	Value			OTTI		Value			OTTI		Value			OTTI
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	4,799		$	207	$	4,465		$	244	$	9,264		$	451
ABS		91			2		323			41		414			43
RMBS		447			7		241			14		688			21
CMBS		121			1		19			10		140			11
CLOs		110			1		70			1		180			2
State and municipal bonds		6			-		26			4		32			4
Hybrid and redeemable
preferred securities		31			-		176			40		207			40
Total fixed maturity securities		5,605			218		5,320			354		10,925			572
Equity securities		37			1		-			-		37			1
Total AFS securities	$	5,642		$	219	$	5,320		$	354	$	10,962		$	573

Total number of AFS securities in an unrealized loss position															1,019



	As of December 31, 2013
	Less Than or Equal					Greater Than
	to Twelve Months					Twelve Months					Total
				Gross					Gross					Gross
			Unrealized					Unrealized					Unrealized
	Fair		Losses and			Fair		Losses and			Fair		Losses and
	Value			OTTI		Value			OTTI		Value			OTTI
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	16,753		$	1,011	$	925		$	156	$	17,678		$	1,167
ABS		165			7		333			73		498			80
U.S. government bonds		163			14		-			-		163			14
Foreign government bonds		69			1		-			-		69			1
RMBS		488			17		267			24		755			41
CMBS		109			7		43			14		152			21
CLOs		136			2		50			5		186			7
State and municipal bonds		377			20		24			7		401			27
Hybrid and redeemable
preferred securities		62			6		197			45		259			51
Total fixed maturity securities		18,322			1,085		1,839			324		20,161			1,409
Equity securities		-			-		-			-		-			-
Total AFS securities	$	18,322		$	1,085	$	1,839		$	324	$	20,161		$	1,409

Total number of AFS securities in an unrealized loss position															1,484

For information regarding our investments in VIEs, see Note 4.

We perform detailed analysis on the AFS securities backed by pools of residential and commercial mortgages that are most at risk of impairment based on factors discussed in Note 1. Selected information for these securities in a gross unrealized loss position (in millions) was as follows:



	As of December 31, 2014
	Amortized		Fair		Unrealized
	Cost		Value		Loss
Total
AFS securities backed by pools of residential mortgages	$	1,113	$	1,050	$	63
AFS securities backed by pools of commercial mortgages		151		140		11
Total	$	1,264	$	1,190	$	74

Subject to Detailed Analysis
AFS securities backed by pools of residential mortgages	$	985	$	924	$	61
AFS securities backed by pools of commercial mortgages		13		12		1
Total	$	998	$	936	$	62



	As of December 31, 2013
	Amortized		Fair		Unrealized
	Cost		Value		Loss
Total
AFS securities backed by pools of residential mortgages	$	1,261	$	1,146	$	115
AFS securities backed by pools of commercial mortgages		193		169		24
Total	$	1,454	$	1,315	$	139

Subject to Detailed Analysis
AFS securities backed by pools of residential mortgages	$	933	$	833	$	100
AFS securities backed by pools of commercial mortgages		29		24		5
Total	$	962	$	857	$	105

The fair value, gross unrealized losses, the portion of OTTI recognized in OCI (in millions) and number of AFS securities where the fair value had declined and remained below amortized cost by greater than 20% were as follows:



	As of December 31, 2014
								Number
	Fair		Gross Unrealized					of
	Value		Losses		OTTI		Securities (1)
Less than six months	$	48	$	19	$	-			12
Six months or greater, but less than nine months		8		7		-			3
Twelve months or greater		242		72		59			82
Total	$	298	$	98	$	59			97



	As of December 31, 2013
								Number
	Fair		Gross Unrealized					of
	Value		Losses		OTTI		Securities (1)
Less than six months	$	1	$	1	$	-			4
Six months or greater, but less than nine months		7		3		-			1
Nine months or greater, but less than twelve months		59		19		-			4
Twelve months or greater		349		92		81			92
Total	$	416	$	115	$	81			101

⁽¹⁾

We may reflect a security in more than one aging category based on various purchase dates.

We regularly review our investment holdings for OTTI. Our gross unrealized losses, including the portion of OTTI recognized in OCI, on AFS securities decreased $836 million for the year ended December 31, 2014. As discussed further below, we believe the unrealized loss position as of December 31, 2014, did not represent OTTI as (i) we did not intend to sell these fixed maturity AFS securities; (ii) it is not more likely than not that we will be required to sell the fixed maturity AFS securities before recovery of their amortized cost basis; (iii) the estimated future cash flows were equal to or greater than the amortized cost basis of the debt securities; and (iv) we had the ability and intent to hold the equity AFS securities for a period of time sufficient for recovery.

Based upon this evaluation as of December 31, 2014, management believes we have the ability to generate adequate amounts of cash from our normal operations (e.g., insurance premiums and fees and investment income) to meet cash requirements with a prudent margin of safety without requiring the sale of our temporarily-impaired securities.

As of December 31, 2014, the unrealized losses associated with our corporate bond securities were attributable primarily to widening credit spreads and rising interest rates since purchase. We performed a detailed analysis of the financial performance of the underlying issuers and determined that we expected to recover the entire amortized cost for each security.

As of December 31, 2014, the unrealized losses associated with our MBS and ABS were attributable primarily to collateral losses and credit spreads. We assessed for credit impairment using a cash flow model that incorporates key assumptions including default rates, severities and prepayment rates. We estimated losses for a security by forecasting the underlying loans in each transaction. The forecasted loan performance was used to project cash flows to the various tranches in the structure, as applicable. Our forecasted cash flows also considered, as applicable, independent industry analyst reports and forecasts, sector credit ratings and other independent market data. Based upon our assessment of the expected credit losses of the security given the performance of the underlying collateral compared to our subordination or other credit enhancement, we expected to recover the entire amortized cost basis of each temporarily impaired security.

As of December 31, 2014, the unrealized losses associated with our hybrid and redeemable preferred securities were attributable primarily to wider credit spreads caused by illiquidity in the market and subordination within the capital structure, as well as credit risk of underlying issuers. For our hybrid and redeemable preferred securities, we evaluated the financial performance of the underlying issuers based upon credit performance and investment ratings and determined that we expected to recover the entire amortized cost of each security.

Changes in the amount of credit loss of OTTI recognized in net income (loss) where the portion related to other factors was recognized in OCI (in millions) on fixed maturity AFS securities were as follows:



	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012
Balance as of beginning-of-year	$	404		$	424		$	390
Increases attributable to:
Credit losses on securities for which an OTTI was not previously recognized		4			39			108
Credit losses on securities for which an OTTI was previously recognized		16			43			62
Decreases attributable to:
Securities sold, paid down or matured		(44	)		(102	)		(136	)
Balance as of end-of-year	$	380		$	404		$	424

During 2014, 2013 and 2012, we recorded credit losses on securities for which an OTTI was not previously recognized as we determined the cash flows expected to be collected would not be sufficient to recover the entire amortized cost basis of the debt security. The credit losses we recorded on securities for which an OTTI was not previously recognized were attributable primarily to one or a combination of the following reasons:

Failure of the issuer of the security to make scheduled payments;

Deterioration of creditworthiness of the issuer;

Deterioration of conditions specifically related to the security;

Deterioration of fundamentals of the industry in which the issuer operates; and

Deterioration of the rating of the security by a rating agency.

We recognize the OTTI attributed to the noncredit portion as a separate component in OCI referred to as unrealized OTTI on AFS securities.

Details of the amount of credit loss of OTTI recognized in net income (loss) for which a portion related to other factors was recognized in OCI (in millions), were as follows:



	As of December 31, 2014
			Gross Unrealized						OTTI in
	Amortized				Losses and		Fair		Credit
	Cost		Gains		OTTI		Value		Losses
Corporate bonds	$	38	$	5	$	9	$	34	$	20
ABS		232		32		23		241		108
RMBS		447		26		7		466		190
CMBS		46		4		10		40		62
Total	$	763	$	67	$	49	$	781	$	380



	As of December 31, 2013
			Gross Unrealized						OTTI in
	Amortized				Losses and		Fair		Credit
	Cost		Gains		OTTI		Value		Losses
Corporate bonds	$	54	$	-	$	16	$	38	$	32
ABS		211		18		33		196		101
RMBS		550		18		18		550		184
CMBS		35		4		12		27		87
Total	$	850	$	40	$	79	$	811	$	404

Trading Securities

Trading securities at fair value (in millions) consisted of the following:



	As of December 31,
	2014		2013
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	1,528	$	1,738
ABS		32		33
U.S. government bonds		278		272
Foreign government bonds		25		24
RMBS		135		155
CMBS		4		7
CLOs		9		2
State and municipal bonds		22		21
Hybrid and redeemable preferred securities		32		30
Total trading securities	$	2,065	$	2,282

The portion of the market adjustment for gains (losses) that relate to trading securities still held as of December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, was $45 million, $(172) million and $53 million, respectively.

Mortgage Loans on Real Estate

Mortgage loans on real estate principally involve commercial real estate. The commercial loans are geographically diversified throughout the U.S. with the largest concentrations in California and Texas, which accounted for 23% and 9%, respectively, of mortgage loans on real estate as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

The following provides the current and past due composition of our mortgage loans on real estate (in millions):




	As of December 31,
	2014			2013
Current	$	7,565		$	7,200
60 to 90 days past due		-			4
Greater than 90 days past due		8			3
Valuation allowance associated with impaired mortgage loans on real estate		(3	)		(3	)
Unamortized premium (discount)		4			6
Total carrying value	$	7,574		$	7,210

The number of impaired mortgage loans on real estate, each of which had an associated specific valuation allowance, and the carrying value of impaired mortgage loans on real estate (dollars in millions) were as follows:



	As of December 31,
	2014			2013
Number of impaired mortgage loans on real estate	3			3

Principal balance of impaired mortgage loans on real estate	$	26		$	27
Valuation allowance associated with impaired mortgage loans on real estate		(3	)		(3	)
Carrying value of impaired mortgage loans on real estate	$	23		$	24

The changes in the valuation allowance associated with impaired mortgage loans on real estate (in millions) were as follows:



	As of December 31,
	2014		2013			2012
Balance as of beginning-of-year	$	3	$	21		$	31
Additions		-		3			14
Charge-offs, net of recoveries		-		(21	)		(24	)
Balance as of end-of-year	$	3	$	3		$	21

The average carrying value on the impaired mortgage loans on real estate (in millions) was as follows:


	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014		2013		2012
Average carrying value for impaired mortgage loans on real estate	$	24	$	34	$	51
Interest income recognized on impaired mortgage loans on real estate		2		2		1
Interest income collected on impaired mortgage loans on real estate		2		2		1

As described in Note 1, we use the loan-to-value and debt-service coverage ratios as credit quality indicators for our mortgage loans, which were as follows (dollars in millions):



	As of December 31, 2014				As of December 31, 2013
				Debt-				Debt-
				Service				Service
	Carrying		% of	Coverage	Carrying		% of	Coverage
	Value		Total	Ratio	Value		Total	Ratio
Less than 65%	$	6,596	87.1%	1.90	$	6,032	83.7%	1.78
65% to 74%		631	8.3%	1.55		745	10.3%	1.42
75% to 100%		316	4.2%	0.77		402	5.6%	0.83
Greater than 100%		31	0.4%	0.77		31	0.4%	0.78
Total mortgage loans on real estate	$	7,574	100.0%		$	7,210	100.0%

Alternative Investments

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, alternative investments included investments in 156 and 121 different partnerships, respectively, and the portfolio represented approximately 1% of our overall invested assets.

Net Investment Income

The major categories of net investment income (in millions) on our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) were as follows:



	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012
Fixed maturity AFS securities	$	4,041		$	3,976		$	3,910
Equity AFS securities		9			6			6
Trading securities		125			137			147
Mortgage loans on real estate		378			388			397
Real estate		7			13			16
Policy loans		155			155			163
Invested cash		2			3			4
Commercial mortgage loan prepayment and bond make-whole premiums		138			117			48
Alternative investments		130			86			125
Consent fees		2			4			4
Other investments		(11	)		(9	)		(19	)
Investment income		4,976			4,876			4,801
Investment expense		(117	)		(122	)		(103	)
Net investment income	$	4,859		$	4,754		$	4,698

Realized Gain (Loss) Related to Certain Investments

The detail of the realized gain (loss) related to certain investments (in millions) was as follows:



	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012
Fixed maturity AFS securities:
Gross gains	$	29		$	21		$	16
Gross losses		(23	)		(94	)		(202	)
Equity AFS securities:
Gross gains		5			8			1
Gross losses		-			(2	)		(9	)
Gain (loss) on other investments		3			(3	)		2
Associated amortization of DAC, VOBA, DSI and DFEL
and changes in other contract holder funds		(32	)		(28	)		2
Total realized gain (loss) related to certain investments, pre-tax	$	(18	)	$	(98	)	$	(190	)

Details underlying write-downs taken as a result of OTTI (in millions) that were recognized in net income (loss) and included in realized gain (loss) on AFS securities above, and the portion of OTTI recognized in OCI (in millions) were as follows:



	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012
OTTI Recognized in Net Income (Loss)
Fixed maturity securities:
Corporate bonds	$	(1	)	$	(16	)	$	(27	)
ABS		(10	)		(20	)		(40	)
RMBS		(8	)		(31	)		(53	)
CMBS		(1	)		(15	)		(55	)
Total fixed maturity securities		(20	)		(82	)		(175	)
Equity securities		-			(1	)		(8	)
Gross OTTI recognized in net income (loss)		(20	)		(83	)		(183	)
Associated amortization of DAC, VOBA, DSI and DFEL		4			13			30
Net OTTI recognized in net income (loss), pre-tax	$	(16	)	$	(70	)	$	(153	)

Portion of OTTI Recognized in OCI
Gross OTTI recognized in OCI	$	12		$	11		$	121
Change in DAC, VOBA, DSI and DFEL		(2	)		(1	)		(15	)
Net portion of OTTI recognized in OCI, pre-tax	$	10		$	10		$	106

Determination of Credit Losses on Corporate Bonds and ABS

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, we reviewed our corporate bond and ABS portfolios for potential shortfall in contractual principal and interest based on numerous subjective and objective inputs. The factors used to determine the amount of credit loss for each individual security, include, but are not limited to, near term risk, substantial discrepancy between book and market value, sector or company-specific volatility, negative operating trends and trading levels wider than peers.

Credit ratings express opinions about the credit quality of a security. Securities rated investment grade, that is those rated BBB- or higher by Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) Rating Services or Baa3 or higher by Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”), are generally considered by the rating agencies and market participants to be low credit risk. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, 96% of the fair value of our corporate bond portfolio was rated investment grade. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, the portion of our corporate bond portfolio rated below investment grade had an amortized cost of $3.3 billion and $2.7 billion, respectively, and a fair value of $3.2 billion and $2.7 billion, respectively. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, 88% and 84%, respectively, of the fair value of our ABS portfolio was rated investment grade. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, the portion of our ABS portfolio rated below investment grade had an amortized cost of $193 million and $273 million, respectively, and a fair value of $176 million and $226 million, respectively. Based upon the analysis discussed above, we believed as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, that we would recover the amortized cost of each investment grade corporate bond and ABS security.

Determination of Credit Losses on MBS

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, default rates were projected by considering underlying MBS loan performance and collateral type. Projected default rates on existing delinquencies vary between 10% to 100% depending on loan type and severity of delinquency status. In addition, we estimate the potential contributions of currently performing loans that may become delinquent in the future based on the change in delinquencies and loan liquidations experienced in the recent history. Finally, we develop a default rate timing curve by aggregating the defaults for all loans in the pool (delinquent loans, foreclosure and real estate owned and new delinquencies from currently performing loans) and the associated loan-level loss severities.

We use certain available loan characteristics such as lien status, loan sizes and occupancy to estimate the loss severity of loans. Second lien loans are assigned 100% severity, if defaulted. For first lien loans, we assume a minimum of 30% severity with higher severity assumed for investor properties and further adjusted by housing price assumptions. With the default rate timing curve and loan-level severity, we derive the future expected credit losses.

Payables for Collateral on Investments

The carrying value of the payables for collateral on investments (in millions) included on our Consolidated Balance Sheets and the fair value of the related investments or collateral consisted of the following:



	As of December 31, 2014				As of December 31, 2013
	Carrying		Fair		Carrying		Fair
	Value		Value		Value		Value
Collateral payable for derivative investments (1)	$	1,673	$	1,673	$	638	$	638
Securities pledged under securities lending agreements (2)		204		196		184		178
Securities pledged under repurchase agreements (3)		607		666		530		553
Securities pledged for Term ABS Loan Facility (“TALF”) (4)		-		-		36		49
Investments pledged for Federal Home Loan Bank of
Indianapolis (“FHLBI”) (5)		1,925		3,151		1,850		3,127
Total payables for collateral on investments	$	4,409	$	5,686	$	3,238	$	4,545

(1) We obtain collateral based upon contractual provisions with our counterparties. These agreements take into consideration the counterparties’ credit rating as compared to ours, the fair value of the derivative investments and specified thresholds that if exceeded result in the receipt of cash that is typically invested in cash and invested cash. See Note 6 for additional information.

(2) Our pledged securities under securities lending agreements are included in fixed maturity AFS securities on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. We generally obtain collateral in an amount equal to 102% and 105% of the fair value of the domestic and foreign securities, respectively. We value collateral daily and obtain additional collateral when deemed appropriate. The cash received in our securities lending program is typically invested in cash and invested cash or fixed maturity AFS securities.

(3) Our pledged securities under repurchase agreements are included in fixed maturity AFS securities on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. We obtain collateral in an amount equal to 95% of the fair value of the securities, and our agreements with third parties contain contractual provisions to allow for additional collateral to be obtained when necessary. The cash received in our repurchase program is typically invested in fixed maturity AFS securities.

(4) Our pledged securities for TALF are included in fixed maturity AFS securities on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. We obtain collateral in an amount that has typically averaged 90% of the fair value of the TALF securities. The cash received in these transactions is invested in fixed maturity AFS securities.

(5) Our pledged investments for FHLBI are included in fixed maturity AFS securities and mortgage loans on real estate on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The collateral requirements are generally 105% to 115% of the fair value for fixed maturity AFS securities and 155% to 175% of the fair value for mortgage loans on real estate. The cash received in these transactions is primarily invested in cash and invested cash or fixed maturity AFS securities.

Increase (decrease) in payables for collateral on investments (in millions) consisted of the following:



	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2014			2013			2012
Collateral payable for derivative investments	$	1,035		$	(1,929	)	$	(413	)
Securities pledged under securities lending agreements		20			(13	)		(3	)
Securities pledged under repurchase agreements		77			250			-
Securities pledged for TALF		(36	)		(1	)		(136	)
Investments pledged for FHLBI		75			750			1,000
Total increase (decrease) in payables for collateral on investments	$	1,171		$	(943	)	$	448

Investment Commitments

As of December 31, 2014, our investment commitments were $1.4 billion, which included $615 million of LPs, $388 million of private placement securities and $372 million of mortgage loans on real estate.

Concentrations of Financial Instruments

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, our most significant investments in one issuer were our investments in securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation with a fair value of $2.2 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively, or 2% and 3% of our invested assets portfolio, respectively, and our investments in securities issued by Fannie Mae with a fair value of $1.4 billion and $1.7 billion, respectively, or 1% and 2%, respectively, of our invested assets portfolio. These investments are included in corporate bonds in the tables above.

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, our most significant investments in one industry were our investment securities in the utilities industry with a fair value of $12.8 billion and $10.9 billion, respectively, or 13% and 12%, respectively, of our invested assets portfolio, and our investment securities in the consumer non-cyclical industry with a fair value of $11.7 billion and $10.7 billion, respectively, or 11% of our invested assets portfolio. These concentrations include both AFS and trading securities.