A life settlement is simply the sale of an existing life insurance policy by a terminally ill or elderly person to another party. The price of the policy is negotiated and sold by the owner at a discount to the face amount. The purchaser then collects the full amount paid out under the policy.

Life settlements are attractive to policyholders because they provide a secondary market for life insurance policies that are no longer needed or wanted. Investors are attracted to life settlements because they offer the opportunity for potentially high returns that are not tied to stock or bond markets, interest rates, or business cycles.

In a recent study published by Connecticut-based insurance research company, Conning Research & Consulting Inc., they estimate the total face value of life settlement transactions completed during 2007 was $12.2 billion, almost double the amount transacted in 2006, and during 2008 the amount was $11.7 billion in face value.

Because of the large number of policies available and the diversification that life settlements provide, we believe that interest from both individual and institutional purchasers will continue to grow steadily throughout the next fiscal year.