RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Parties are considered to be related if one party has the ability to control or exercise significant influence over the other party in making financial or operating decisions. The Company has entered into related party transactions that are described herein.

On May 14, 2021, the Company transferred its investment in AB to its parent EFS as a non-cash dividend (non-cash financing activity for purposes of cash flow), which subsequently distributed such units to Holdings. The units were transferred at their carrying value of $61 million.

Under Equitable America’s service agreement with Equitable Financial, personnel services, employee benefits, facilities, supplies and equipment are provided to Equitable America to conduct its business. The associated costs related to the service agreement are allocated to Equitable America based on methods that management believes are reasonable, including a review of the nature of such costs and activities performed to support Equitable America. As a result of such allocations, Equitable America incurred expenses of $132 million, $133 million, and $133 million during 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively.

Equitable America incurred distribution fee charges from Equitable Network, LLC of $136 million, $90 million, and $106 million in 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively, and from Equitable Distributors, LLC of $59 million, $55 million, and $52 million in 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively, for distributing Equitable America’s products.

In addition to the Equitable Financial service agreement, Equitable America has various other service and investment advisory agreements with AB. The amount of expenses incurred by Equitable America related to these agreements were $2 million, $2 million, and $2 million for 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively.

Equitable America cedes a portion of its life business through excess of retention treaties to Equitable Financial on a yearly renewal term basis and reinsured the no-lapse guarantee riders through EQ AZ Life Re Company on a 90% first dollar quota share basis. The letter of credit amount as of December 31, 2021 was $45 million and is guaranteed by Holdings. Premiums earned from the above mentioned affiliated reinsurance transactions during 2021, 2020 and 2019, were $7 million, $6 million and $5 million, respectively. There were no claims ceded for any of the years.