Derivative Financial Instruments

Derivative transactions are generally entered into pursuant to International Swaps and Derivatives Association (“ISDA”) Master Agreements or Master Securities Forward Transaction Agreements (“MSFTA”) with approved counterparties that provide for a single net payment to be made by one party to the other on a daily basis, periodic payment dates, or at the due date, expiration, or termination of the agreement.

The ISDA Master Agreements contain provisions that would allow the counterparties to require immediate settlement of all derivative instruments in a net liability position if the Company were to default on any debt obligations over a certain threshold. The MSFTA contain provisions which do not stipulate a threshold for default and only apply to debt obligations between the Company and the specific counterparty. The aggregate fair value, inclusive of accrued income and expense, of derivative instruments with credit-risk-related contingent features that were in a net liability position was $93,761 and $38,324 as of December 31, 2017, and 2016, respectively. The Company had pledged collateral related to these derivatives of $42,750 and zero as of December 31, 2017, and 2016, respectively, in the normal course of business. If the credit-risk-related contingent features were triggered on December 31, 2017, the fair value of assets that could be required to settle the derivatives in a net liability position was $51,011.

At December 31, 2017, and 2016, the Company had pledged $52,330 and zero of unrestricted cash collateral to counterparties in the normal course of business, while other counterparties had pledged $5,490 and $103,214 of unrestricted cash collateral to the Company to satisfy collateral netting agreements, respectively.

At December 31, 2017, the Company estimated $15,415 of net derivative gains related to cash flow hedges included in AOCI will be reclassified into net income within the next twelve months. Gains and losses included in AOCI are reclassified into net income when the hedged item affects earnings.

Types of derivative instruments and derivative strategies

Interest rate contracts

Cash flow hedges

Interest rate swap agreements are used to convert the interest rate on certain debt security investments and debt obligations from a floating rate to a fixed rate. Interest rate futures are used to manage the interest rate risks of forecasted acquisitions of fixed rate maturity investments and are primarily structured to hedge interest rate risk inherent in the assumptions used to price certain liabilities.

Not designated as hedging instruments

The Company enters into certain transactions in which derivatives are hedging an economic risk but hedge accounting is not elected. These derivative instruments include: exchange-traded interest rate swap futures, OTC interest rate swaptions, OTC interest rate swaps, exchange-traded Eurodollar interest rate futures, and treasury interest rate futures. Certain of the Company’s OTC derivatives are cleared and settled through the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (“CME”) while others are bilateral contracts between the Company and a counterparty.

In 2017, the CME amended its rulebook to classify variation margin transfers as settlement payments instead of collateral. The Company adjusts the fair value by the variation margin payments on derivatives cleared through the CME.

The derivative instruments mentioned above are economic hedges and used to manage risk. These transactions are used to offset changes in liabilities including those in variable annuity products, hedge the economic effect of a large increase in interest rates, manage the potential variability in future interest payments due to a change in credited interest rates and the related change in cash flows due to increased surrenders, and manage interest rate risks of forecasted acquisitions of fixed rate maturity investments and forecasted liability pricing.

Foreign currency contracts

Cross-currency swaps and foreign currency forwards are used to manage the foreign currency exchange rate risk associated with investments denominated in other than U.S. dollars. The Company uses cross-currency swaps to convert interest and principal payments on foreign denominated debt instruments into U.S. dollars. Cross-currency swaps may be designated as cash flow hedges; however, hedge accounting is not always elected. The Company uses foreign currency forwards to reduce the risk of foreign currency exchange rate changes on proceeds received on sales of foreign denominated debt instruments; however, hedge accounting is not elected.

Equity contracts

The Company uses futures on equity indices to offset changes in guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit liabilities; however, hedge accounting is not elected.

Other forward contracts

The Company uses forward settling TBA securities to gain exposure to the investment risk and return of agency mortgage-backed securities (pass-throughs). These transactions enhance the return on the Company’s investment portfolio and provide a more liquid and cost effective method of achieving these goals than purchasing or selling individual agency mortgage-backed pools. As the Company does not regularly accept delivery of such securities, they are accounted for as derivatives but hedge accounting is not elected. The Company had no open TBA contracts at either December 31, 2017, or 2016.

The following tables summarize the notional amount and fair value of derivative financial instruments, excluding embedded derivatives:



	December 31, 2017
			Net derivatives			Asset derivatives		Liability derivatives
	Notional amount		Fair value			Fair value ⁽¹⁾		Fair value ⁽¹⁾
Hedge designation/derivative type:
Derivatives designated as hedges:
Cash flow hedges:
Interest rate swaps	$	388,800	$	7,476		$	7,476	$	—
Cross-currency swaps	800,060		(31,358		)	19,958		51,316
Total cash flow hedges	1,188,860		(23,882		)	27,434		51,316

Total derivatives designated as hedges	1,188,860		(23,882		)	27,434		51,316

Derivatives not designated as hedges:
Interest rate swaps	519,100		1,902			3,530		1,628
Futures on equity indices	22,074		—			—		—
Interest rate futures	60,700		—			—		—
Interest rate swaptions	164,522		75			75		—
Cross-currency swaps	612,733		(21,279		)	20,320		41,599
Total derivatives not designated as hedges	1,379,129		(19,302		)	23,925		43,227
Total derivative financial instruments	$	2,567,989	$	(43,184	)	$	51,359	$	94,543

⁽¹⁾ The estimated fair value excludes accrued income and expense. The estimated fair value of all derivatives in an asset position is reported within other assets and the estimated fair value of all derivatives in a liability position is reported within other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets.



	December 31, 2016
			Net derivatives			Asset derivatives		Liability derivatives
	Notional amount		Fair value			Fair value ⁽¹⁾		Fair value ⁽¹⁾
Hedge designation/derivative type:
Derivatives designated as hedges:
Cash flow hedges:
Interest rate swaps	$	419,800	$	33,390		$	33,390	$	—
Cross-currency swaps	614,208		45,347			53,641		8,294
Total cash flow hedges	1,034,008		78,737			87,031		8,294

Total derivatives designated as hedges	1,034,008		78,737			87,031		8,294

Derivatives not designated as hedges:
Interest rate swaps	468,100		(4,358		)	8,982		13,340
Futures on equity indices	34,422		—			—		—
Interest rate futures	81,500		—			—		—
Interest rate swaptions	165,534		354			354		—
Cross-currency swaps	612,733		33,371			50,018		16,647
Total derivatives not designated as hedges	1,362,289		29,367			59,354		29,987
Total derivative financial instruments	$	2,396,297	$	108,104		$	146,385	$	38,281

⁽¹⁾The estimated fair value excludes accrued income and expense. The estimated fair value of all derivatives in an asset position is reported within other assets and the estimated fair value of all derivatives in a liability position is reported within other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets.

Notional amounts are used to express the extent of the Company’s involvement in derivative transactions and represent a standard measurement of the volume of its derivative activity. Notional amounts represent those amounts used to calculate contractual flows to be exchanged and are not paid or received. The average notional outstanding during the year ended December 31, 2017, was $905,977, $1,323,398, $108,438, $162,896, and $2,231,196 for interest rate swaps, cross-currency swaps, futures, swaptions, and other forward contracts, respectively. The average notional outstanding during the year ended December 31, 2016, was $784,900, $1,141,967, $145,658, $156,632, and $2,230,167 for interest rate swaps, cross-currency swaps, futures, swaptions, and other forward contracts, respectively.

The following tables present the effect of derivative instruments in the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income reported by cash flow hedges and derivatives not designated as hedges, excluding embedded derivatives:



	Gain (loss) recognized in OCI on derivatives (Effective portion)							Gain (loss) reclassified from OCI into net income (Effective portion)
	Year Ended December 31,							Year Ended December 31,
	2017			2016		2015		2017			2016			2015
Cash flow hedges:
Interest rate swaps	$	486		$	810	$	2,228	$	5,920		$	5,437		$	6,779		(A)
Interest rate swaps	—			—		—		59			—			3,634			(B)
Interest rate swaps	(5,590		)	21,228		—		(2,954		)	(2,657		)	—			(C)
Cross-currency swaps	(68,622		)	22,738		28,833		1,473			8,469			2,101			(A)
Interest rate futures	—			—		—		—			—			(134		)	(A)
Total cash flow hedges	$	(73,726	)	$	44,776	$	31,061	$	4,498		$	11,249		$	12,380

(A) Net investment income.

(B) Represents realized gains (losses) on closed positions recorded in realized investment gains (losses), net.



	Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in net income
	Year Ended December 31,
	2017				2016				2015
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments:
Futures on equity indices	$	(559	)	(A)	$	817		(A)	$	(284	)	(A)
Futures on equity indices	(5,829		)	(B)	(7,930		)	(B)	(527		)	(B)
Interest rate swaps	3,280			(A)	(4,541		)	(A)	(1,094		)	(A)
Interest rate futures	75			(A)	(57		)	(A)	(65		)	(A)
Interest rate futures	(307		)	(B)	(164		)	(B)	1			(B)
Interest rate swaptions	(83		)	(A)	302			(A)	2,868			(A)
Interest rate swaptions	(280		)	(B)	(313		)	(B)	(3,115		)	(B)
Currency forwards	—			(A)	111			(A)	—			(A)
Other forward contracts	15,326			(B)	4,690			(B)	5,074			(B)
Cross-currency swaps	(56,018		)	(A)	85,746			(A)	69,819			(A)
Cross-currency swaps	—			(B)	(1,601		)	(B)	—			(B)
Total derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	$	(44,395	)		$	77,060			$	72,677

(A) Net investment income.

(B) Represents realized gains (losses) on closed positions recorded in realized investment gains (losses), net.

Embedded derivative - GLWB

The Company offers GLWB through a variable annuity or a contingent deferred annuity. The GLWB is deemed to be an embedded derivative. The GLWB is recorded at fair value within future policy benefits on the consolidated balance sheets. Changes in fair value of GLWB are recorded in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

The estimated fair value of the GLWB was $11,095 and $5,712 at December 31, 2017, and 2016, respectively. The changes in fair value of the GLWB were $5,383 and $(5,545) for the years ended December 31, 2017, and 2016, respectively.