(Bloomberg) – MetLife Inc. agreed to pay $25 million to settle a probe of abuses tied to variable annuities, the highest-ever penalty for those products by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
The sum includes a $20 million fine and $5 million to be paid to customers for "negligent" misrepresentation and omissions, according to a statement Tuesday from FINRA, a brokerage regulator funded by the finance industry. The largest U.S. life insurer neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing.
"Variable annuities are complex and expensive products that are routinely pitched to vulnerable investors as a key component of their retirement planning," Brad Bennett, FINRA's chief of enforcement, said in the statement. "Firms engaging in this business must ensure that the information on the costs and benefits of these products provided to customers is accurate."
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