SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2016
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Significant Accounting Policies	SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Accounting for Variable Annuities with GMDB and GMIB Features Future claims exposure on products with guaranteed minimum death benefit (“GMDB”) and guaranteed minimum income benefit (“GMIB”) features are sensitive to movements in the equity markets and interest rates. The Company has in place various hedging programs utilizing derivatives that are designed to mitigate the impact of movements in equity markets and interest rates. The accounting for these various hedging programs does not qualify for hedge accounting treatment. As a result, changes in the value of the derivatives will be recognized in the period in which they occur while offsetting changes in reserves and deferred policy acquisition costs (“DAC”) will be recognized over time in accordance with policies described in the Company’s Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2015, under “Policyholders’ Account Balances and Future Policy Benefits” and “DAC”. These differences in recognition contribute to earnings volatility. GMIB reinsurance contracts are used to cede to affiliated and non-affiliated reinsurers a portion of the exposure on variable annuity products that offer the GMIB feature. The GMIB reinsurance contracts are accounted for as derivatives and are reported at fair value. Gross reserves for GMIB are calculated on the basis of assumptions related to projected benefits and related contract charges over the lives of the contracts and therefore will not immediately reflect the offsetting impact on future claims exposure resulting from the same capital market and/or interest rate fluctuations that cause gains or losses on the fair value of the GMIB reinsurance contracts. The changes in the fair value of the GMIB reinsurance contracts are recorded in the period in which they occur while offsetting changes in gross reserves and DAC for GMIB are recognized over time in accordance with policies described in the Company’s Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2015 under “Policyholders’ Account Balances and Future Policy Benefits” and “DAC”. These differences in recognition contribute to earnings volatility. Adoption of New Accounting Pronouncements In February 2015, the FASB issued a new consolidation standard that makes targeted amendments to the VIE assessment, including guidance specific to the analysis of fee arrangements and related party relationships, modifies the guidance for the evaluation of limited partnerships and similar entities for consolidation to eliminate the presumption of general partner control, and ends the deferral that had been granted to certain investment companies for applying previous VIE guidance. The Company adopted this new standard beginning January 1, 2016, having elected not to early-adopt in previous interim periods, and applied the guidance using a modified retrospective approach, thereby not requiring the restatement of prior year periods. The Company’s reevaluation of all legal entities under the new standard resulted in identification of additional VIEs and consolidation of certain investment products of the Investment Management segment that were not consolidated in accordance with previous guidance. “See Consolidation of VIEs” below. In May 2015, the FASB issued new guidance related to disclosures for investments in certain entities that calculate net asset value (“NAV”) per share (or its equivalent). Under the new guidance, investments measured at NAV, as a practical expedient for fair value, are excluded from the fair value hierarchy. Removing investments measured using the practical expedient from the fair value hierarchy was intended to eliminate the diversity in practice with respect to the categorization of these investments. The only criterion for categorizing investments in the fair value hierarchy is now the observability of the inputs. The amendment was effective retrospectively for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. In April 2015, the FASB issued new guidance, simplifying the presentation of debt issuance costs, which requires debt issuance costs to be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying value of the associated debt liability, consistent with the presentation of a debt discount. The new guidance is effective retrospectively for interim or annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. In June 2014, the FASB issued new guidance for accounting for share-based payments when the terms of an award provide that a performance target could be achieved after the requisite service period. The new guidance is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Future Adoption of New Accounting Pronouncements In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance simplifying the transition to the equity method of accounting. The amendment eliminates the requirement that when an investment qualifies for use of the equity method as a result of an increase in the level of ownership interest or degree of influence, an investor must adjust the investment, results of operations and retained earnings retroactively on a step-by-step basis as if the equity method had been in effect during all previous periods that the investments had been held. The amendment requires that the equity method investor add the cost of acquiring the additional interest in the investee to the current basis of the investor's previously held interest and adopt the equity method of accounting as of the date the investment becomes qualified for equity method accounting. Therefore, upon qualifying for the equity method of accounting, no retroactive adjustment of the investment is required. Additionally, the amendment requires that an entity that has an available-for-sale equity security that becomes qualified for the equity method of accounting recognize through earnings the unrealized holding gain (loss) in AOCI at the date the investment becomes qualified for use of the equity method. The amendment is effective for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2016 and should be applied prospectively upon their effective date to increases in the level of ownership interest or degree of influence that result in the adoption of the equity method. The amendment is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on improvements to employee share-based payment accounting. The amendment includes provisions intended to simplify various aspects related to how share-based payments are accounted for and presented in the financial statements including: income tax effects of share-based payments, minimum statutory tax withholding requirements and forfeitures. The amendment is effective for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2016. The provisions will be applied using various transition approaches (prospective, retrospective and modified retrospective). Management is currently evaluating the impact that the adoption of this standard will have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. In May 2014, the FASB issued new revenue recognition guidance that is intended to improve and converge the financial reporting requirements for revenue from contracts with customers with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). The new guidance applies to contracts that deliver goods or services to a customer, except when those contracts are for: insurance, leases, rights and obligations that are in the scope of certain financial instruments (i.e., derivative contracts) and guarantees other than product or service warranties. The new guidance is effective for interim and annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2016. Management is currently evaluating the impact that adoption of this guidance will have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Consolidation of VIEs A VIE must be consolidated by its primary beneficiary, which generally is defined as the party who has a controlling financial interest in the VIE. The Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VIE if it has (i) the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly affect the VIE’s economic performance, and (ii) the obligation to absorb losses of the VIE or the right to receive income from the VIE that potentially could be significant to the VIE. For purposes of evaluating (ii) above, fees paid to the Company as a decision maker or service provider are excluded if the fees are compensation for services provided commensurate with the level of effort required to be performed and the arrangement includes only customary terms, conditions or amounts present in arrangements for similar services negotiated at arm’s length. If the Company has a variable interest in an entity that is determined not to be a VIE, the entity then is evaluated for consolidation under the voting interest entity (“VOE”) model. For limited partnerships and similar entities, the Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VOE, and would be required to consolidate the entity, if the Company owns a majority of the entity’s kick-out rights through voting limited partnership interests and other limited partners do not hold substantive participating rights (or other rights that would indicate that the Company does not control the entity). For entities other than limited partnerships, the Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VOE if it owns a majority voting interest in the entity. The analysis performed to identify variable interests held, determine whether entities are VIEs or VOEs, and evaluate whether the Company has a controlling financial interest in such entities require the exercise of judgment and are updated on a continuous basis as circumstances change or new entities are developed. The primary beneficiary evaluation generally is performed qualitatively based on all facts and circumstances, including consideration of economic interests in the VIE held directly and indirectly through related parties and entities under common control, as well as quantitatively, as appropriate. At March 31, 2016, the Insurance segment’s General Account held approximately $1,202 million of investment assets in the form of equity interests issued by non-corporate legal entities determined under the new guidance to be Variable Interest Entities (“VIEs”), such as limited partnerships and limited liability companies, including hedge funds, private equity funds, and real estate-related funds. As an equity investor, the Insurance segment is considered to have a “variable interest” in each of these VIEs as a result of its participation in the risks and/or rewards these funds were designed to create by their defined portfolio objectives and strategies. Primarily through qualitative assessment, including consideration of related party interests and/or other financial arrangements, if any, the Insurance segment was not identified as primary beneficiary of any of these VIEs, largely due to its inability to direct the activities that most significantly impact their economic performance. Consequently, the Company continues to reflect these equity interests in the consolidated balance sheet as “Other equity investments” and to apply the equity method of accounting for these positions. The net assets of these non-consolidated VIEs are approximately $136,440 million, and the Company’s maximum exposure to loss from its direct involvement with these VIEs is the carrying value of its investment or $1,202 million at March 31, 2016. Except for approximately $585 million of unfunded commitments at March 31, 2016, the Company has no further economic interest in these VIEs in the form of guarantees, derivatives, credit enhancements or similar instruments and obligations. As a result of adopting the new guidance, the Company identified for consolidation under the VIE model three investment funds sponsored by AB. In addition, the Company identified as a VIE an AB private equity fund previously consolidated at December 31, 2015 under the VOE model. The assets and liabilities of these consolidated VIEs are presented separately on the face of the Company’s consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2016; ownership interests not held by the Company relating to these consolidated VIEs are presented either as redeemable or non-redeemable non-controlling interest, as appropriate. As of March 31, 2016, the net assets of investment products sponsored by AB that are non-consolidated VIEs are approximately $36.6 billion, and the Company’s maximum exposure to loss from its direct involvement with these VIEs is its investment of $6 million at March 31, 2016. The Company has no further commitments to or economic interest in these VIEs.

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Accounting for Variable Annuities with GMDB and GMIB Features

Future claims exposure on products with guaranteed minimum death benefit (“GMDB”) and guaranteed minimum income benefit (“GMIB”) features are sensitive to movements in the equity markets and interest rates. The Company has in place various hedging programs utilizing derivatives that are designed to mitigate the impact of movements in equity markets and interest rates. The accounting for these various hedging programs does not qualify for hedge accounting treatment. As a result, changes in the value of the derivatives will be recognized in the period in which they occur while offsetting changes in reserves and deferred policy acquisition costs (“DAC”) will be recognized over time in accordance with policies described in the Company’s Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2015, under “Policyholders’ Account Balances and Future Policy Benefits” and “DAC”. These differences in recognition contribute to earnings volatility.

GMIB reinsurance contracts are used to cede to affiliated and non-affiliated reinsurers a portion of the exposure on variable annuity products that offer the GMIB feature. The GMIB reinsurance contracts are accounted for as derivatives and are reported at fair value. Gross reserves for GMIB are calculated on the basis of assumptions related to projected benefits and related contract charges over the lives of the contracts and therefore will not immediately reflect the offsetting impact on future claims exposure resulting from the same capital market and/or interest rate fluctuations that cause gains or losses on the fair value of the GMIB reinsurance contracts. The changes in the fair value of the GMIB reinsurance contracts are recorded in the period in which they occur while offsetting changes in gross reserves and DAC for GMIB are recognized over time in accordance with policies described in the Company’s Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2015 under “Policyholders’ Account Balances and Future Policy Benefits” and “DAC”. These differences in recognition contribute to earnings volatility.

Adoption of New Accounting Pronouncements

In February 2015, the FASB issued a new consolidation standard that makes targeted amendments to the VIE assessment, including guidance specific to the analysis of fee arrangements and related party relationships, modifies the guidance for the evaluation of limited partnerships and similar entities for consolidation to eliminate the presumption of general partner control, and ends the deferral that had been granted to certain investment companies for applying previous VIE guidance. The Company adopted this new standard beginning January 1, 2016, having elected not to early-adopt in previous interim periods, and applied the guidance using a modified retrospective approach, thereby not requiring the restatement of prior year periods. The Company’s reevaluation of all legal entities under the new standard resulted in identification of additional VIEs and consolidation of certain investment products of the Investment Management segment that were not consolidated in accordance with previous guidance. “See Consolidation of VIEs” below.

In May 2015, the FASB issued new guidance related to disclosures for investments in certain entities that calculate net asset value (“NAV”) per share (or its equivalent). Under the new guidance, investments measured at NAV, as a practical expedient for fair value, are excluded from the fair value hierarchy. Removing investments measured using the practical expedient from the fair value hierarchy was intended to eliminate the diversity in practice with respect to the categorization of these investments. The only criterion for categorizing investments in the fair value hierarchy is now the observability of the inputs. The amendment was effective retrospectively for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In April 2015, the FASB issued new guidance, simplifying the presentation of debt issuance costs, which requires debt issuance costs to be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying value of the associated debt liability, consistent with the presentation of a debt discount. The new guidance is effective retrospectively for interim or annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In June 2014, the FASB issued new guidance for accounting for share-based payments when the terms of an award provide that a performance target could be achieved after the requisite service period. The new guidance is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. Implementation of this guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Future Adoption of New Accounting Pronouncements

In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance simplifying the transition to the equity method of accounting. The amendment eliminates the requirement that when an investment qualifies for use of the equity method as a result of an increase in the level of ownership interest or degree of influence, an investor must adjust the investment, results of operations and retained earnings retroactively on a step-by-step basis as if the equity method had been in effect during all previous periods that the investments had been held. The amendment requires that the equity method investor add the cost of acquiring the additional interest in the investee to the current basis of the investor's previously held interest and adopt the equity method of accounting as of the date the investment becomes qualified for equity method accounting. Therefore, upon qualifying for the equity method of accounting, no retroactive adjustment of the investment is required. Additionally, the amendment requires that an entity that has an available-for-sale equity security that becomes qualified for the equity method of accounting recognize through earnings the unrealized holding gain (loss) in AOCI at the date the investment becomes qualified for use of the equity method. The amendment is effective for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2016 and should be applied prospectively upon their effective date to increases in the level of ownership interest or degree of influence that result in the adoption of the equity method. The amendment is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on improvements to employee share-based payment accounting. The amendment includes provisions intended to simplify various aspects related to how share-based payments are accounted for and presented in the financial statements including: income tax effects of share-based payments, minimum statutory tax withholding requirements and forfeitures. The amendment is effective for fiscal years (and interim periods within those years) beginning after December 15, 2016. The provisions will be applied using various transition approaches (prospective, retrospective and modified retrospective). Management is currently evaluating the impact that the adoption of this standard will have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In May 2014, the FASB issued new revenue recognition guidance that is intended to improve and converge the financial reporting requirements for revenue from contracts with customers with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). The new guidance applies to contracts that deliver goods or services to a customer, except when those contracts are for: insurance, leases, rights and obligations that are in the scope of certain financial instruments (i.e., derivative contracts) and guarantees other than product or service warranties. The new guidance is effective for interim and annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2016. Management is currently evaluating the impact that adoption of this guidance will have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Consolidation of VIEs

A VIE must be consolidated by its primary beneficiary, which generally is defined as the party who has a controlling financial interest in the VIE. The Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VIE if it has (i) the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly affect the VIE’s economic performance, and (ii) the obligation to absorb losses of the VIE or the right to receive income from the VIE that potentially could be significant to the VIE. For purposes of evaluating (ii) above, fees paid to the Company as a decision maker or service provider are excluded if the fees are compensation for services provided commensurate with the level of effort required to be performed and the arrangement includes only customary terms, conditions or amounts present in arrangements for similar services negotiated at arm’s length.

If the Company has a variable interest in an entity that is determined not to be a VIE, the entity then is evaluated for consolidation under the voting interest entity (“VOE”) model. For limited partnerships and similar entities, the Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VOE, and would be required to consolidate the entity, if the Company owns a majority of the entity’s kick-out rights through voting limited partnership interests and other limited partners do not hold substantive participating rights (or other rights that would indicate that the Company does not control the entity). For entities other than limited partnerships, the Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest in a VOE if it owns a majority voting interest in the entity.

The analysis performed to identify variable interests held, determine whether entities are VIEs or VOEs, and evaluate whether the Company has a controlling financial interest in such entities require the exercise of judgment and are updated on a continuous basis as circumstances change or new entities are developed. The primary beneficiary evaluation generally is performed qualitatively based on all facts and circumstances, including consideration of economic interests in the VIE held directly and indirectly through related parties and entities under common control, as well as quantitatively, as appropriate.

At March 31, 2016, the Insurance segment’s General Account held approximately $1,202 million of investment assets in the form of equity interests issued by non-corporate legal entities determined under the new guidance to be Variable Interest Entities (“VIEs”), such as limited partnerships and limited liability companies, including hedge funds, private equity funds, and real estate-related funds. As an equity investor, the Insurance segment is considered to have a “variable interest” in each of these VIEs as a result of its participation in the risks and/or rewards these funds were designed to create by their defined portfolio objectives and strategies. Primarily through qualitative assessment, including consideration of related party interests and/or other financial arrangements, if any, the Insurance segment was not identified as primary beneficiary of any of these VIEs, largely due to its inability to direct the activities that most significantly impact their economic performance. Consequently, the Company continues to reflect these equity interests in the consolidated balance sheet as “Other equity investments” and to apply the equity method of accounting for these positions. The net assets of these non-consolidated VIEs are approximately $136,440 million, and the Company’s maximum exposure to loss from its direct involvement with these VIEs is the carrying value of its investment or $1,202 million at March 31, 2016. Except for approximately $585 million of unfunded commitments at March 31, 2016, the Company has no further economic interest in these VIEs in the form of guarantees, derivatives, credit enhancements or similar instruments and obligations.

As a result of adopting the new guidance, the Company identified for consolidation under the VIE model three investment funds sponsored by AB. In addition, the Company identified as a VIE an AB private equity fund previously consolidated at December 31, 2015 under the VOE model. The assets and liabilities of these consolidated VIEs are presented separately on the face of the Company’s consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2016; ownership interests not held by the Company relating to these consolidated VIEs are presented either as redeemable or non-redeemable non-controlling interest, as appropriate. As of March 31, 2016, the net assets of investment products sponsored by AB that are non-consolidated VIEs are approximately $36.6 billion, and the Company’s maximum exposure to loss from its direct involvement with these VIEs is its investment of $6 million at March 31, 2016. The Company has no further commitments to or economic interest in these VIEs.