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Browse thousands of words and phrases selected by Financial Times editors and suggest new terms for the glossary.

 

Term of the day

annuity

An annuity is a guarantee from an insurer that they will pay you an income for the rest of your life. In effect they insure you against a very long life and running out of income. Annuities can be structured in different ways. A person who buys an annuity (by transferring a lump sum to an insurer or by investing with an insurer over a number of years) can elect to have funds allocated to a next of kin should he or she die.  Increasingly providers are seeking to assess your life expectancy as...

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