Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
F&G Secure MYGA MVA 5 is a straightforward five-year MYGA with a credible carrier, a competitive locked rate, and a 10% annual free-withdrawal provision that handles most routine income needs. The MVA feature is the main reason I stop short of a higher rating — it adds a layer of interest-rate risk that a pure fixed-penalty MYGA doesn't carry, and that tradeoff matters for buyers who prioritize predictable exit costs above all else.
The short version
This is a five-year guaranteed-rate annuity for people who want a CD-style commitment with tax deferral, a real insurer behind it, and a death benefit that won't leave heirs with less than the floor. The fixed rate is locked for the full five years, interest credits daily, and the minimum guaranteed surrender value protects against a worst-case scenario. The wrinkle is the MVA: if interest rates have risen by the time you need to exit early, the adjustment could meaningfully increase your effective penalty. For buyers who are genuinely committed to the five-year term, that risk is manageable. For buyers who think they might need a larger withdrawal before maturity, this product asks them to absorb more exit uncertainty than a non-MVA MYGA would.
Key facts
The full review
Is F&G Secure MYGA MVA 5 a Good Annuity?
It depends on why you're shopping. For a buyer who genuinely intends to hold for five years, this is a solid MYGA with a competitive rate, strong issue-age flexibility, and a credible A-rated carrier. For a buyer who is uncertain about their liquidity needs and values the predictability of knowing exactly what leaving early will cost, a non-MVA MYGA is the cleaner fit. The product itself is not a problem — the MVA is just a feature that narrows the right audience.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The rational case is simple: you want a guaranteed rate for five years, you don't need a living benefit rider, and you can comfortably cover routine income needs inside the 10% free-withdrawal provision. The long-term care waiver also matters here — if something unexpected happens medically before maturity, there may be relief available on the surrender structure. For buyers who want a plain-vanilla fixed rate with none of the crediting-method complexity of an FIA, this delivers that cleanly.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think this product fits best for someone in their late 50s through mid-70s who has a clear five-year time horizon on the money — perhaps part of a retirement ladder, a qualified rollover parked for growth ahead of required minimum distribution age, or non-qualified savings they want to compound without the income-tax drag of a CD. The wide issue-age window (0–90 for non-qualified accounts) also makes it workable for custodial or legacy-planning situations that most MYGAs don't accommodate. It is less appealing for someone who may need access to more than 10% of the principal within the term, or who wants to avoid any MVA exposure.
What You're Really Buying Here
This is a single-premium deferred annuity with a fixed crediting rate — not a CD, but functionally similar in purpose. You hand the insurer a lump sum, they guarantee a specific rate for five years, interest compounds tax-deferred, and at maturity you can take the full value. What makes it an insurance product rather than a bank product is the insurer's backing (the claims-paying strength of Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company), the minimum guaranteed surrender value floor, the death benefit, and the long-term care waiver. In exchange for those protections, you accept the surrender schedule and the MVA as exit costs if you leave early.
How the Core Feature Works
The fixed rate is the only crediting mechanism here. The rate is locked at issue and credited daily for the full five-year term. As of the brochure date, F&G was quoting 4.70% to 4.90% depending on premium tier — these are guaranteed rates, not current declared rates subject to annual reset. That distinction matters. A traditional fixed annuity's declared rate can be changed annually; this MYGA commits to the quoted rate through maturity.
The MVA adjusts the surrender value based on the movement of interest rates between the time you bought the contract and the time you surrender. If rates have risen since issue, the MVA typically reduces your surrender value beyond the stated charge. If rates have fallen, it can work in your favor. The mechanics vary by state, but the essential idea is that early surrender transfers some duration risk to you rather than absorbing it entirely on the carrier's balance sheet.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The long-term care waiver is worth noting even though it doesn't change the investment structure. If you become confined to a nursing home or similar care facility after the first year of the contract (terms vary — confirm with the carrier), the surrender charge and potentially the MVA may be waived on withdrawals. For buyers in their 60s and 70s who are placing a meaningful chunk of retirement savings here, that waiver is real financial protection. It does not make this product a long-term care policy, but it reduces the scenario where a medical event forces a costly early exit.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
The surrender schedule runs 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5% over the five contract years, dropping to zero after year five. Those percentages are applied to amounts above the free-withdrawal provision — so routine access of up to 10% of beginning-of-year account value each year is penalty-free. The $500 minimum withdrawal and the $2,000 minimum remaining balance are operational limits rather than material constraints for most buyers.
The MVA — Market Value Adjustment — is a separate layer on top of the surrender charge for amounts above the free-withdrawal provision during the charge period. This is the feature that makes F&G Secure MYGA MVA 5 meaningfully different from a non-MVA competitor. In a rising rate environment, the MVA can make early exits more expensive than the stated schedule suggests. In a falling rate environment, the MVA can partially offset the surrender charge. Buyers should treat the stated surrender percentages as a floor for exit costs, not a ceiling.
Required minimum distributions from qualified accounts are handled cleanly — the 10% free-withdrawal provision is typically sufficient for most IRA RMD amounts, and the product's RMD-friendly classification reflects that. Death of the contract holder triggers a lump-sum payout of the greater of account value or minimum guaranteed surrender value, which protects heirs from a scenario where an early surrender would have penalized the estate.
| Contract Year | Surrender Charge |
|---|---|
| 1 | 9% |
| 2 | 8% |
| 3 | 7% |
| 4 | 6% |
| 5 | 5% |
| 6 | 0% |
Fees and Tradeoffs
There are no rider fees and no base contract fees disclosed in the available materials. The MYGA earns margin for the carrier through the spread between what they earn on the invested assets and the rate credited to you — that spread is structural, not itemized, and it is why the guaranteed rate is not equal to what the insurer earns on your premium.
The main tradeoff is the MVA on early surrender. Beyond that, the product has no equity upside and no income rider option. If rates rise significantly during the term and you need early access above the free-withdrawal amount, you could face a materially worse outcome than a non-MVA product would deliver. That is not a flaw in the product design — it is the deliberate structure — but it is the honest cost of the competitive rate the product offers.
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Product Type | Fixed Annuity |
| Surrender Period | 5 years |
| Issue Ages | Non-qualified: 0-90; Qualified: 18-90 |
| Minimum Premium | $20,000 |
| Crediting Methods | Fixed rate |
| Free Withdrawal | 10% of beginning of year account value annually during the surrender charge period; any amount after the surrender charge period ends |
| MGSV | 87.5% of premiums at 1-3% |
| Death Benefit | Paid as a lump sum, greater of account value or minimum guaranteed surrender value |
| Income Rider | Not available |
| Premium Bonus | None |
| Availability | Not available in NY |
Carrier snapshot
Legal Entity: Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company
Parent: FGL Holdings
A.M. Best Rating: A
Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company (F&G) is a mid-tier carrier that has been in the fixed annuity market for decades. FGL Holdings is its current parent. The A.M. Best A rating indicates financial strength sufficient for a fixed annuity commitment — not a household name like Athene or Allianz, but a credible insurer for this product type and term length.
Final take
F&G Secure MYGA MVA 5 is a clean product for the right buyer. If you are placing money you will not need for five years, want a guaranteed rate without FIA complexity, and can work comfortably within the 10% free-withdrawal provision, this is a reasonable place to park that capital. The locked rate, daily crediting, and A-rated carrier back-up a simple value proposition.
The product is not the right fit for someone who wants to preserve predictable exit costs if plans change. The MVA is a real feature with real consequences in rising-rate environments. If that uncertainty bothers you, a non-MVA MYGA — including potentially a different F&G product — is worth comparing directly. But for buyers who are genuinely committed to the term, the MVA ceases to matter at maturity, and the rate you locked is the rate you get.