Global Atlantic SecureFore 5 – A Fixed Annuity with Guaranteed Growth and Flexibility

Global Atlantic’s rate competitiveness is structural, not coincidental. As a wholly owned KKR subsidiary since January 2024, Global Atlantic benefits from KKR’s alternative asset management platform — one of the world’s largest, with over $500 billion in assets under management. KKR places Global Atlantic’s policyholder reserves into private credit, infrastructure debt, and other alternative assets that generate higher yields than the investment-grade public corporate bonds that traditional insurance carriers rely on. The additional yield from that investment approach flows through to the declared rates Global Atlantic can offer on the SecureFore 5 and its other MYGA products, which is why Global Atlantic’s 5-year MYGA rates regularly appear near the top of A-rated carrier rate tables. The parallel model: Apollo-backed Athene uses the same strategy to offer A+-rated rate leadership. The trade-off worth understanding: buyers are accepting the investment complexity of KKR’s alternative credit strategy as the backing for their guaranteed rate, rather than a more traditional bond portfolio. AM Best’s A (rather than A+ or A++) rating reflects that complexity premium. For buyers comparing the SecureFore 5 against Athene (A+, Apollo-backed, similar business model) or Nationwide (A+, traditional carrier model) at the same 5-year term, reviewing current 5-year MYGA rates with carrier ratings side by side provides the full context for the rate-vs.-rating evaluation.

The optional Return of Premium (ROP) feature guarantees that upon full surrender at any time during the contract, the owner receives no less than the original premium paid less all prior withdrawals — regardless of what the Market Value Adjustment or surrender charge schedule would otherwise produce. Without ROP: on a full surrender during the surrender period, the combination of surrender charges and a negative MVA (in rising rate environments) could theoretically reduce the surrender value below original premium — though the contractual minimum guaranteed value also provides some protection. The ROP eliminates that scenario entirely and provides an absolute principal floor on full surrender at any time. The cost: electing ROP at issue typically results in a slightly lower declared rate. Confirm the current rate differential at application — on a $100,000 5-year contract, even 15 basis points of reduced rate equals approximately $750 in foregone accumulated interest over 5 years. Whether the ROP is worth that cost depends on the buyer’s actual probability of needing to fully surrender during the term. For buyers who have strong confirmed liquidity reserves outside the annuity and are genuinely committed to holding the full 5 years, the ROP may not be worth the rate cost. For buyers who have any meaningful probability of needing to fully exit the contract — particularly in an environment where interest rates might rise significantly, creating a sizable negative MVA — the ROP provides meaningful protection at a modest rate cost. Understanding how surrender charges and MVAs interact before evaluating the ROP election provides the analytical foundation for this decision.

The SecureFore 5 and ForeAccumulation II are both Global Atlantic (Forethought Life) products in the fixed accumulation space, but they serve different objectives. The SecureFore 5 is a pure MYGA: declared fixed rate locked for 5 years, no index exposure, maximum simplicity, no annual fees. The ForeAccumulation II is a fixed indexed annuity — it offers multiple index crediting strategies tied to external benchmarks (S&P 500, proprietary volatility-controlled indices), a zero floor protecting against market losses, and optional enhanced death benefit features. In a strong index year, the ForeAccumulation II may credit meaningfully more than the SecureFore 5’s declared rate. In a flat or negative index year, the ForeAccumulation II credits zero while the SecureFore 5 continues at its declared rate regardless of any index performance. The SecureFore 5 is right when the buyer wants maximum certainty about the accumulated value at maturity — no variability, no index exposure, predictable outcome from day one. The ForeAccumulation II is right when the buyer wants index-linked upside potential within a principal-protected structure and is comfortable with variable annual credits. The ForeAccumulation II also offers optional death benefit enhancements not available on the SecureFore 5. Within the Global Atlantic family, the Forethought Income 150 SE FIA addresses buyers whose primary objective is guaranteed lifetime income from the same carrier family.

At the end of the 5-year guarantee period, a 30-day penalty-free window opens during which the full accumulated value is accessible without surrender charges or MVA. Multiple conflicting sources exist on whether the SecureFore 5 auto-renews — one credible source states the policy does not automatically renew for a new multi-year term and instead declares a new one-year rate; another source indicates it does auto-renew. Confirm the specific renewal behavior at application before purchasing. What is confirmed: after the 5-year guarantee period, the rate transitions to an annually declared structure, never falling below the Minimum Guaranteed Interest Rate (MGIR) established in the contract. During the 30-day penalty-free window, four options are available: (1) Withdraw the full accumulated value as a lump sum without any penalties; (2) Keep funds in the contract at the then-current annually declared rate; (3) 1035-exchange penalty-free into a new annuity — either another Global Atlantic product or a competing carrier’s product with a new multi-year rate lock; (4) Annuitize into a guaranteed income stream (annuitization waiver included at no cost). The critical planning step: before the 30-day window opens, compare Global Atlantic’s renewal rate offer against the best MYGA rates currently available across all carriers. In many cases, a 1035-exchange into a new 5-year MYGA at a competing carrier may capture a better rate than renewing with Global Atlantic — and the 1035-exchange eliminates any immediate tax consequence on the transfer. Diversified Insurance Brokers can run that comparison at no cost ahead of your maturity window.

Yes — the SecureFore 5 explicitly accommodates required minimum distributions through a dedicated RMD waiver. In any year when the IRS-required minimum distribution from the contract exceeds the standard 10% annual free withdrawal limit, the excess RMD amount is still distributed without surrender charges. This means the mandatory distribution obligation does not create a penalty exposure regardless of the RMD amount relative to the contract value. The only exception: in the year of a full surrender, the full contract value liquidation includes surrender charges in the normal manner — the RMD waiver does not waive surrender charges on a complete contract liquidation in the same year. For qualified IRA account holders subject to RMDs, this waiver makes the SecureFore 5 compatible with ongoing distribution obligations during the 5-year guarantee period — no need to choose between RMD compliance and avoiding surrender charges. This waiver is meaningfully above the standard provision at many competing MYGAs where RMDs above the free withdrawal amount trigger partial surrender charges. Carriers like Nationwide (Secure Growth) and United of Omaha (Ultra-Secure Plus) similarly include RMD accommodations, but the specific mechanics vary — confirm the exact RMD waiver terms in the SecureFore 5 contract disclosure at application.