U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR) issued a release on 21 September 2022 regarding his continued investigation into the use of private placement life insurance schemes by the wealthiest Americans to avoid and evade taxes, including letters seeking additional information from Prudential Financial, Zurich Insurance Group, and American Council of Life Insurers.

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Wyden Continues Investigation Into Private Placement Life Insurance Schemes

Letters to Prudential, Zurich, American Council of Life Insurers follow letter to Lombard International

Washington, D.C. – Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today continued his investigation into the growing use of private placement life insurance by the wealthiest Americans to avoid and evade taxes with letters to Prudential Financial, Zurich Insurance Group, and the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI). Wyden began the investigation with a letter to Lombard International.

In his letters, Wyden wrote, "I am concerned that these insurance vehicles are being used, without a genuine insurance purpose, to invest in hedge funds and other investments while avoiding billions of dollars in federal taxes. According to public reports, the bare minimum required to invest in a PPLI policy is $2 million. However, experts indicate that it is much more common for investors to devote at least $5 million for the strategy to be worthwhile. By definition, these policies are only available to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans and offer a myriad of tax advantages not available to most working Americans."