Abacus Global Management is making the case that the most important number in retirement is not how much a client has saved, but how long that money needs to last. In a recent Fox Business interview, Chairman and CEO Jay Jackson said individualized lifespan data should be the leading factor in asset allocation, and that most plans today barely account for it.
Jay illustrated the problem with a familiar scenario. Two 65-year-olds with similar savings often receive nearly identical plans from their advisors, even though their health profiles, and therefore their lifespans, may look very different. According to Jay, that gap is not a failure of judgment but a data problem, one that Abacus built its AI-powered LifeARC™ platform to solve.
The stakes are considerable. Jay noted that more than $124 trillion in assets is expected to pass to the next generation in the coming years, with roughly $40 trillion of it going to women, who tend to live longer. He argued that many retirees shift to conservative allocations too early, and that staying appropriately invested can meaningfully increase retirement income and, in some cases, leave 20 to 30% more to heirs, based on historical returns.
Central to Jay’s argument is the idea that a lifespan is not a straight line but an arc of probabilities shaped by an individual’s health and history. Launched in June, LifeARC™ builds a personalized model of how long a client is likely to be in retirement, giving advisors a clearer basis for allocation and estate planning.
The platform draws on two decades of proprietary data, including millions of pages of medical records that Abacus can now review and model far faster than traditional methods allow. Jay said the company also verifies mortality across the United States at the source, often within 48 hours and at close to 100% accuracy, keeping the models grounded in current outcomes.
For advisors, the implications extend to in-force life insurance policies. Because a policy’s value is tied directly to lifespan, a more precise view of longevity helps advisors assess what a policy is worth today and identify when a life settlement is a better option than letting coverage lapse.
For the past 5 years, Abacus Life has consistently paid the most on average per face value when compared against the industry average.
To learn how Abacus Life and LifeARC™ can support your planning and life settlement conversations, reach out to your Abacus Life National Account representative.
