Modeling Actuary

***THIS JOB IS AVAILABLE TO CANDIDATES IN GREENWICH, CT / CHARLOTTE, NC / NEW YORK, NY***

About Knighthead Life

Knighthead Life is a service and technology-oriented insurance company providing retirement solutions. With a focus on intentional innovation, ease of use, and partnership, we collaborate with our financial professional partners to develop competitive products and efficient processes to serve clients seamlessly.

Knighthead Life is a member of the Knighthead Holdings (“KHH”) group of insurance companies, which also includes Knighthead Annuity & Life Assurance Company (“KHAL”), based in the Cayman Islands. KHAL is a well-rated insurance and reinsurance company established to serve global clients seeking principal protection and guaranteed financial products, as well as reinsurance of similar products from US insurers. KHAL has established itself as the market leader of fixed and fixed indexed annuity offerings for global clients. Since its inception in 2014, it has focused on helping clients preserve and grow accumulated wealth by providing fixed annuities with attractive guaranteed rates, generous liquidity features and a choice of payout options to provide predictable future income. It backs its commitment with superior financial strength and a commitment to the highest levels of client service.

Job Description

Knighthead Life is looking for an ambitious and high-achieving candidate to join the insurance team as a Modeling Actuary, reporting directly to the Chief Actuary & CFO, with an initial focus on annuity model development. Knighthead Life has significant capital committed to launching and growing its fixed annuity platform, and this role will lead the actuarial modeling that will support the business. The role will interact regularly with other functional areas across the company, including accounting, operations, product development, and marketing. Since this will only be the second actuarial hire at the company, this candidate will be able to make significant contributions to the overall success of the business and will have meaningful opportunities for career growth. This is a rare opportunity to contribute to the development, launch and growth of an insurance carrier with the backing of a seasoned insurance management team and the resources of a successful offshore sister company.

Responsibilities

1. Lead internal actuarial model development as it relates to valuation, cash-flow testing, and pricing for fixed and indexed annuity products.
2. Develop modeling techniques and outputs that will feed company financial planning/analysis and ultimately drive executive decision-making.
3. Create model control processes to govern assumption updates, model enhancements, and programming updates.
4. Work closely and build relationships with key stakeholders across the functional areas of the company.
5. Communicate technical actuarial concepts in a clear and concise manner to non-actuarial audiences, in both verbal and written form.

Qualifications

1. Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, economics, actuarial science, mathematics, engineering, computer science, or related field with 4+ years of actuarial experience. Strong academic performance is a plus.
2. ASA/FSA designation. Life/Annuity track preferred but not required.
3. Expert proficiency with MS Office suite and Moody’s AXIS.
4. Experience with life and/or annuity products and relevant actuarial work (valuation, CFT, pricing, etc.). US-specific experience (Stat and/or GAAP) preferred. Experience with reinsurance is a plus.
5. Strong organizational skills.
6. Comfort with a steep learning curve and motivation to work in a start-up environment.