Brighthouse Financial annuities

Overview

Brighthouse Financial is the Charlotte, North Carolina, company that took over most of MetLife's U.S. retail annuity and life business in a 2017 spin-off. Annuities are its main business. The Brighthouse Holdings group ranked #16 among U.S. groups by 2024 individual annuity direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with $9.96 billion in premiums and a 2.36% share. Contracts are issued by Brighthouse Life Insurance Company and, in New York, by Brighthouse Life Insurance Company of NY.

Brighthouse has no agents of its own. Its annuities can only be bought through a financial professional at a broker-dealer, bank or other distribution partner. It is best known for its Shield annuities, Registered index-linked annuities (RILAs): buffers, caps and risk that link growth to a market index with a set level of downside protection, and it also carries a large book of older variable annuities with living-benefit guarantees sold under the MetLife name. For its life insurance, history and service numbers for legacy policies, see the Brighthouse Financial profile.

The biggest change ahead is ownership. In November 2025 Brighthouse agreed to be acquired by an affiliate of Aquarian Holdings for $70 a share in cash, a deal valued at about $4.1 billion. As of its August 2026 filings, the sale was still awaiting insurance regulators' approval.

Annuities it sells

Brighthouse's current annuity lineup, as listed on its website in October 2026:

• Shield Level II Annuities. Index-linked annuities (RILAs) that credit part of an index's gain, up to a cap or other limit, while absorbing some losses up to a chosen protection level. They come in 6-year and 3-year versions and an Advisory version for fee-based accounts. Unlike a fixed indexed annuity, you can lose money if the index falls by more than the protection level. RILAs are registered securities, so they are sold with a prospectus.
• Shield Level Pay Plus II Annuities. A Shield index-linked annuity that adds an optional guaranteed lifetime income benefit. The income lasts for life only if withdrawals stay within the rider's rules.
• Brighthouse Series VA with FlexChoice Access. Variable annuities with investment subaccounts whose value rises and falls with the markets. The optional FlexChoice Access rider, a guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit riders, can turn part of the savings into guaranteed lifetime income for an extra annual charge.
• Brighthouse SecureKey Fixed Indexed Annuity. A fixed indexed annuity with 5-, 7- and 10-year withdrawal charge periods and an Advisory version. Brighthouse says the purchase payment is protected from market losses, though withdrawals reduce it and early withdrawals can bring withdrawal charges and a market value adjustment. An optional ReadyPay rider provides guaranteed lifetime withdrawals. SecureKey is not available in New York.
• Brighthouse Fixed Rate Annuity and Fixed Rate Annuity MVA. Fixed-rate deferred annuities with 3-, 5- or 7-year guarantee periods, which work much like a multi-year guaranteed annuity. After the initial period the contract renews in one-year periods with no withdrawal charge. The MVA version can adjust the value of large early withdrawals up or down with interest rates. Both allow 10% free withdrawals a year and waive charges for nursing home confinement, terminal illness and required minimum distributions, with limits.
• Brighthouse Income Annuity. A Single premium immediate annuities (SPIAs): how they work that turns a lump sum into income for life or a set period, with an optional yearly increase and an Early Access Option for some contracts.

Brighthouse has stopped selling its Guaranteed Income Builder deferred income annuity and its SecureAdvantage 6-year fixed indexed annuity, though existing contracts are still serviced.

The trade-offs are the usual ones for these products. Shield and SecureKey contracts have multi-year withdrawal charge periods; index-crediting formulas are complex and can be reset by the company at renewal; and income riders add cost while limiting how freely you can withdraw. See annuity fees, explained before comparing contracts.

Ownership and reinsurance

Brighthouse Financial, Inc. trades on Nasdaq under the ticker BHF. Under its merger agreement, an Aquarian Holdings affiliate would take it private. Founded in 2017, Aquarian describes itself as a diversified holding company with insurance and asset management businesses. As part of the deal, an Aquarian affiliate would also enter investment management agreements with Brighthouse's Delaware and Massachusetts insurers, meaning it would manage the investments backing their annuities and policies.

The parties filed for approval with the Delaware, New York and Massachusetts insurance regulators in December 2025, and Brighthouse also needs FINRA approval for a change of control of its broker-dealer. Brighthouse said in August 2026 that its shareholders had approved the deal and that the merger agreement extends automatically to December 6, 2026 if regulatory approvals are the only conditions left.

Why it matters to a buyer: an ownership change does not alter the terms of an existing contract, but the new owner decides the investment strategy, renewal rates and future product lineup. Our private equity's push into life insurance and when your life insurance policy is sold to another company guides explain what to watch.

Financial strength

As of March 2026, Brighthouse listed these financial strength ratings for its main operating companies: A (Excellent) from AM Best, A (Strong) from S&P, A3 (Good) from Moody's and A- (Strong) from Fitch. S&P lowered its rating from A+ in July 2025, and Fitch cut its rating from A on November 10, 2025, after the merger announcement. That November, S&P placed the companies on CreditWatch negative, Moody's placed them on review for downgrade and AM Best placed them under review with negative implications. They were still listed that way in the February 2026 annual report. See AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch ratings explained for how the grades compare.

If an insurer fails, the state guaranty association where you live covers annuity values up to a set limit, commonly $250,000 per person per insurer. Check your state's limit with our state guaranty association coverage lookup.

Who it suits

Brighthouse suits someone working with an advisor who wants a Shield index-linked annuity, with partial market upside and a defined buffer against losses, or a variable annuity with a lifetime withdrawal rider. Owners of older MetLife Investors and Brighthouse contracts also need to know it services their annuity. It is a weaker fit for buyers who want to put rating strength first, who cannot tie up money for several years, or who would rather wait until the pending sale to Aquarian is settled before committing to a long contract.

• Strengths: a long record and large scale in index-linked annuities; a full product range from fixed-rate and immediate annuities to RILAs and variable annuities; fixed-rate contracts with nursing home and terminal illness waivers; a separate New York company.
• Weaknesses: a pending sale to a privately held owner awaiting regulators in 2026; ratings in the single-A range and under review after downgrades by S&P and Fitch in 2025; sold only through financial professionals; index-linked products with complex crediting and multi-year withdrawal charges.

How to contact Brighthouse Financial