Annuity sales post strong Q2, led by MYGAs and structured products
Annuity sales appear to be settling into a level the industry can sustain, with second-quarter sales reaching $112.7 billion, according to Wink’s Sales & Market Report.
Sales were down slightly from $115.5 billion in the second quarter of 2025 but increased from $99.4 billion in the first quarter of 2026.
Multi-year guaranteed annuities led all product categories with $37.6 billion in sales. MYGA sales rose nearly 17% from the first quarter but fell more than 18% from a year earlier.
Indexed annuity sales totaled $30.1 billion, up more than 16% from the first quarter and down nearly 4% from the second quarter of 2025. Athene Annuity & Life Co. was the leading seller in both the MYGA and indexed annuity categories.
Athene's three-year MYGA with a market value adjustment was the most popular product in the former category, while its Ascent Pro 10 was the most popular indexed annuity during the quarter.
Index-linked sales
Structured annuity sales reached $22.1 billion, an increase of more than 8% from the first quarter and more than 21% from a year earlier.
The quarter was a record for structured annuities, also known as registered index-linked annuities, surpassing the previous record set in the fourth quarter of 2025 by 3.51%.
The results show continued demand for products offering varying combinations of guaranteed income, interest-crediting potential and protection from market losses, even as overall annuity sales have remained relatively stable.
Income annuity sales
Immediate income annuities accounted for $2.8 billion in Q2 sales, up more than 28% from the previous quarter and more than 8% from the same period last year.
Deferred income annuity sales for the second quarter were $821 million, up nearly 55% from the previous quarter and more than 17% from the same period last year.