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Washington, D.C. 20549

For the fiscal year ended                                        December 31, 2000                                                                          

or

For the transition period from ___________________________ to __________________________________________

Commission file numbers 33-3630, 333-1783, and 333-13609

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

     Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. [X] Yes [ ] No

     Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. / /

     There were 2,412,000 shares of the registrant's Common Stock, $1.25 par value, outstanding as of March 16, 2001.

Keyport Life Insurance Company ("Keyport") is a specialty insurance company providing a diversified line of fixed, indexed and variable annuity products designed to serve the growing retirement savings market. The Company sells its products through multiple distribution channels, including banks, agents and brokerage firms. Keyport seeks to (i) maintain its presence in the fixed annuity market while expanding its sales of variable and equity-indexed annuities, (ii) achieve a broader market presence through the use of diversified distribution channels and (iii) maintain a conservative approach to investment and liability management.

Keyport's wholly owned insurance subsidiaries are Independence Life and Annuity Company ("Independence Life"), Keyport Ltd. and Keyport Benefit Life Insurance Company ("Keyport Benefit"). Other wholly owned subsidiaries are Liberty Advisory Services Corp., an investment advisory company, and Keyport Financial Services Corp., a broker-dealer (collectively the "Company").

The Company is licensed to sell insurance in all states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Bermuda.

The Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Financial Companies, Inc. ("Liberty Financial"), which is a publicly traded holding company. Liberty Financial is an indirect majority owned subsidiary of Liberty Mutual Insurance Company ("Liberty Mutual"), a multi-line insurance company.

Liberty Financial is an asset accumulation and management company providing investment management and retirement-oriented insurance products through multiple distribution channels. Keyport issues and underwrites substantially all of Liberty Financial's retirement-oriented insurance products. Liberty Financial's primary investment advisor, asset management and bank distribution operating units are Liberty Funds Group LLC ("LFG"), Colonial Management Associates, Inc. ("Colonial"), Stein Roe & Farnham Incorporated ("Stein Roe"), Newport Pacific Management, Inc. ("Newport"), Crabbe Huson Group, Inc., Progress Investment Management Company, Liberty Asset Management Company, Liberty Wanger Asset Management ("Wanger"), and Independent Financial Marketing Group, Inc. ("Independent"). Colonial, Stein Roe and Newport manage certain underlying mutual funds and other invested assets of Keyport's separate accounts. Stein Roe also provides asset management services for a substantial portion of Keyport's general account. Independent, through its subsidiary, markets Keyport's products through the bank distribution channel.

Keyport's executive and administrative offices are located at 125 High Street, Boston Massachusetts 02110, and its home office is at 695 George Washington Highway, Lincoln, Rhode Island 02865.

The Company (primarily Keyport and Keyport Benefit) sells a full range of retirement-oriented insurance products that provide fixed, indexed or variable returns to policyholders. Annuities are insurance products designed to offer individuals protection against the risk of outliving their financial assets during retirement. Annuities offer a tax-deferred means of accumulating savings for retirement needs and provide a tax-efficient source of income in the payout period. The Company earns spread income from fixed and indexed annuities; variable annuities primarily produce fee income. The Company's primary financial objectives are to increase policyholder balances through new sales and asset retention and to earn acceptable investment spreads on its fixed and indexed return products and fee income on its variable annuities.

The Company's principal retirement-oriented insurance products are categorized as follows:

Fixed Annuities. Fixed annuity products are principally single premium deferred annuities ("SPDAs"). A SPDA policyholder typically makes a single premium payment at the time of issuance. The Company obligates itself to credit interest to the policyholder's account at a rate that is guaranteed for an initial term (typically one year) and is reset annually thereafter, subject to a guaranteed minimum rate. Interest crediting continues until the policy is surrendered, upon policyholder death, or when the policyholder turns age 90.

Equity-Indexed Annuities. Equity-indexed annuities are an innovative product first introduced to the marketplace in 1995 by the Company when it began selling its KeyIndex product. The Company's equity-indexed annuities credit interest to the policyholder at a "participation rate" equal to a portion (ranging for existing policies from 25% to 100%) of the change in value of a specified equity index. KeyIndex is currently offered for one, five, seven, and ten-year terms with interest earnings based on a percentage of the increase in the Standard & Poor's 500 Composite Stock Price Index ("S&P 500 Index") ("S&P", "S&P 500", and "Standard & Poor's" are trademarks of The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc. and have been licensed for use by the Company). With the five, seven and ten-year terms, the interest earnings are based on the highest policy anniversary date value of the S&P 500 Index during the term. KeyIndex also provides a guarantee of principal at the end of the term. Thus, unlike a direct equity investment, even if the S&P 500 Index declines, there is no market risk to the policyholder's principal. The Company's market value adjusted ("MVA") annuity product, KeySelect, offers a choice between a fixed and equity-indexed account similar to KeyIndex and a fixed annuity type interest account. KeySelect offers terms for each equity-indexed account of one, three, five, six and seven years, as well as a ten-year term for the fixed interest account. KeySelect shifts some investment risk to the policyholder, since surrender of the policy before the end of the product term will result in increased or decreased account values based on the change in rates of designated U.S. Treasury securities since the beginning of the term.

Variable Annuities. Variable annuities offer a selection of underlying investment alternatives that may satisfy a variety of policyholder risk/return objectives. Under a variable annuity, the policyholder has the opportunity to select separate account investment options (consisting of underlying mutual funds) which pass the investment risk directly to the policyholder in return for the potential of higher returns. Variable annuities also include guaranteed fixed interest options. The Company has several different variable annuity products that currently offer 18 to 24 separate account investment choices, depending on the product, and four guaranteed fixed interest options.

While the Company currently does not offer traditional life insurance products, it manages a closed block of single premium whole life insurance policies ("SPWLs"), a retirement-oriented tax-advantaged life insurance product. The Company discontinued sales of SPWLs in response to certain tax law changes in the 1980s. The Company had SPWL policyholder balances of $1.9 billion as of December 31, 2000.

Under the Internal Revenue Code, returns credited on annuities and life insurance policies during the accumulation period (the period during which interest or other returns are credited) are not subject to federal or state income tax. Proceeds payable on death from a life insurance policy are also free from such taxes. At the maturity or payment date of an annuity policy, the policyholder is entitled to receive the original deposit plus accumulated returns. The policyholder may elect to take this amount in either a lump sum or an annuitized series of payments over time. The return component of such payments is taxed at the time of receipt as ordinary income at the recipient's then applicable tax rate. The demand for the Company's retirement-oriented insurance products could be adversely affected by changes in this tax law.

Institutional Annuities. Institutional annuity products are principally single premium deposits made by institutions that provide fixed or variable returns over a fixed period.

The following table sets forth certain information regarding the Company's retirement-oriented insurance business for the periods indicated.

Product sales are influenced primarily by overall market conditions impacting the attractiveness of the Company's retirement-oriented insurance products, and by product features, including interest crediting and participation rates, and innovations and services that distinguish the Company's products from those of its competitors.

The Company's mix of annuity products is designed to include products in demand under a variety of economic and market conditions. Sales of SPDAs tend to be sensitive to prevailing interest rates. Sales can be expected to increase and surrenders to decrease in interest rate environments when SPDA rates are higher than rates offered by competing conservative fixed return investments, such as bank certificates of deposit. SPDA sales can be expected to decline and surrenders to increase in interest rate environments when this differential in rates is not present. SPDA sales also can be adversely affected by low interest rates. Conversely, sales of variable annuities can be expected to increase and surrenders of such products to decrease in a rising equity market, low interest rate environment. Similarly sales of equity-indexed annuities can be expected to increase and surrenders to decrease in a rising equity market, low interest rate environment. While sales of equity-indexed annuities can be expected to increase and surrenders to decrease in a rising equity market, low interest rate environment, sales of these products can be affected by the participation rate credited by the Company, which may be reduced in a rising but relatively volatile equity market.

The Company's insurance products include important features designed to promote both sales and asset retention, including crediting rates and surrender charges. Initial interest crediting and participation rates on fixed and equity-indexed products significantly influence the sale of new policies. Resetting of rates on SPDAs impacts retention of SPDA assets, particularly on policies where surrender penalties have expired. At December 31, 2000, crediting rates on 78.0% of the Company's in force SPDA policy liabilities were subject to reset during the succeeding 12 months. In setting crediting and participation rates, the Company takes into account yield characteristics on its investment portfolio, surrender rate assumptions and competitive industry pricing. Interest crediting rates on the Company's in force SPDAs ranged from 4.0% to 8.2% at December 31, 2000. Such policies had guaranteed minimum rates ranging from 3.0% to 4.5% as of such date. Initial interest crediting rates on new policies issued in 2000 ranged from 4.35% to 8.2%. Guaranteed minimum rates on new policies issued during 2000 ranged from 3.0% to 4.5%.

Substantially all of the Company's annuities permit the policyholder at anytime to withdraw all or part of the accumulated policy value. Premature termination of an annuity policy results in the loss by the Company of anticipated future earnings related to the premium deposit and the accelerated recognition of the expenses related to policy acquisition (principally commissions), which otherwise are deferred and amortized over the expected life of the policy. Surrender charges provide a measure of protection against premature withdrawal of policy values. Substantially all of the Company's insurance products currently are issued with surrender charges or similar penalties. Such surrender charges for all policies, except KeyIndex, typically start at 7% of the policy premium and then decline to zero over a five to seven year period. KeyIndex imposes a penalty on surrender of up to 10% of the premium deposit for the life of the policy. At December 31, 2000, 75.4% of the Company's fixed annuity policyholder balances were subject to surrender charges or restrictions. Surrender charges generally do not apply to withdrawals by policyowners of, depending on the policy, either up to 10% per year of the then accumulated value or the accumulated returns. In addition, certain policies may provide for charge-free withdrawals in certain circumstances and at certain times. All policies, except for certain variable annuities, are also subject to "free look" risk (the legal right of a policyholder to cancel the policy and receive back the premium deposit, without interest, for a period ranging from ten days to one year, depending upon the policy). To the extent a policyholder exercises the "free look" option, the Company may realize a loss as a result of any investment losses on the underlying assets during the free look period, as well as the commissions paid on the sale of the policy. While SPWLs also permit withdrawal, it generally would produce significant adverse tax consequences to the policyholder.

Keyport's strong financial ratings are important to its ability to accumulate and retain assets. Keyport is rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best, "AA-" (Strong) by Standard & Poor's ("S&P"), "A2" (Good) by Moody's and "AA-" (very high claims-paying ability) by Duff & Phelps. Rating agencies periodically review the ratings they issue. In December 1999, S&P reduced Keyport's rating from "AA" (Strong) to "AA-" (Strong) as a result of a rating adjustment to Liberty Mutual. In January 1999, A.M. Best reduced Keyport's rating from "A+" (Superior) to "A" (Excellent). These ratings reflect the opinion of the rating agency as to the relative financial strength of Keyport and Keyport's ability to meet its contractual obligations to its policyholders. Such ratings are not "market" ratings or recommendations to use or invest in Keyport and should not be relied upon when making a decision to invest in the Company. Many financial institutions and broker-dealers focus on the claims-paying ability of an insurer in determining whether to market the insurer's annuities. If any of Keyport's ratings were downgraded from their current levels or if the ratings of Keyport's competitors improved and Keyport's did not, sales of Keyport's products, the level of surrenders on existing policies and the Company's relationships with distributors could be materially adversely affected. No assurances can be given that Keyport will be able to maintain its financial ratings.

Customer service is essential to asset accumulation and retention. The Company believes it has a reputation for excellent service to its distributors and its policyholders. The Company has developed advanced technology systems for immediate response to customer inquiries, and rapid processing of policy issuance and commission payments (often at the point of sale). These systems also play an important role in controlling costs. The Company's operating expense ratio for 2000 and 1999 was 0.54% and 0.40% of assets, respectively, which reflects the Company's low cost operations.

Premium deposits on fixed and indexed annuities are credited to the Company's general account and certain separate account investments (which at December 31, 2000 totaled $15.1 billion). Total general account and certain separate account investments include cash and cash equivalents. To maintain its investment spread at acceptable levels, the Company must earn returns on its general account sufficiently in excess of the fixed or indexed returns credited to policyholders. The key element of this investment process is asset/liability management. Successful asset/liability management requires both a quantitative assessment of overall policy liabilities (including maturities, surrenders and crediting of interest) and prudent investment of general and certain separate account assets. The two most important tools in managing policy liabilities are setting crediting rates and establishing surrender periods. The investment process requires portfolio techniques that earn acceptable yields while effectively managing both interest rate risk and credit risk. The Company emphasizes a conservative approach to asset/liability management, which is oriented toward reducing downside risk in adverse markets, as opposed to maximizing spread in favorable markets. The approach is also designed to reduce earnings volatility. Various factors can impact the Company's investment spread, including changes in interest rates and other factors affecting the Company's general account and certain separate account investments.

The bulk of the Company's general account and certain separate account investments are invested in fixed maturity securities (76.4% at December 31, 2000). The Company's principal strategy for managing interest rate risk is to closely match the duration of its general account investment portfolio to its policyholder balances. The Company also employs hedging strategies to manage this risk, including interest rate swaps and caps. In the case of equity-indexed products, the Company purchases S&P 500 Index call options and futures to hedge its obligations to provide participation rate returns. Credit risk is managed by careful credit analysis and monitoring. A portion of the general account and certain separate account investments (8.3% at December 31, 2000) are invested in below investment grade fixed maturity securities to enhance overall portfolio yield. Below investment grade securities pose greater risks than investment grade securities. The Company actively manages its below investment grade portfolio to optimize its risk/return profile. At December 31, 2000, the carrying value of fixed maturity investments that were non-income producing was $24.4 million, which constituted 0.2% of the Company's general account and certain separate account investments.

As of December 31, 2000, the Company owned approximately $3.3 billion of mortgage-backed securities (21.8% of its general and certain separate account investments), 98.8% of which were investment grade. Mortgage-backed securities are subject to prepayment and extension risks, since the underlying mortgages may be repaid more or less rapidly than scheduled.

As of December 31, 2000, approximately $3.3 billion (21.8% of the Company's general and certain separate account investments) were invested in securities that were sold without registration under the Securities Act and were not freely tradable under the Securities Act or which were otherwise illiquid. These securities may be resold pursuant to an exemption from registration under the Securities Act. If the Company sought to sell such securities, it might be unable to do so at the then current carrying values and might have to dispose of such securities over extended periods of time at uncertain levels.

Keyport's sales strategy is to use multiple distribution channels to achieve broader market presence. During 2000, the bank channel represented approximately 50.1% of Keyport's annuity sales, and the brokerage channel represented approximately 12.5%. The sale of insurance and investment products through the bank distribution channel is highly regulated. Sales through other distributors of insurance products, such as financial planners, insurance agents and an institutional channel represented approximately 37.4% of total annuity sales.

The following table presents sales information in Keyport's distribution channels for the periods indicated (in millions).

(1) Includes institutional annuities.

The Company's business activities are extensively regulated. The following briefly summarizes the principal regulatory requirements and certain related matters.

Keyport's retirement-oriented insurance products generally are issued to individuals. The policy is a contract between the issuing insurance company and the policyholder. State law regulates policy forms, including all principal contract terms. In most cases, the policy form must be approved by the insurance department or similar agency of a state in order for the policy to be sold in that state.

Keyport and Independence Life are chartered in Rhode Island and the State of Rhode Island Insurance Department is their primary oversight regulator. Keyport Benefit is chartered in the State of New York and the New York Department of Insurance is its primary oversight regulator. Keyport Benefit operates exclusively in New York. Keyport and Independence Life also must be licensed by the state insurance regulators in each other jurisdiction in which they conduct business. They currently are licensed to conduct business in 49 states (the exception being New York), and in the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands. State insurance laws generally provide regulators with broad powers related to issuing licenses to transact business, regulating marketing and other trade practices, operating guaranty associations, regulating certain premium rates, regulating insurance holding company systems, establishing reserve requirements, prescribing the form and content of required financial statements and reports, performing financial and other examinations, determining the reasonableness and adequacy of statutory capital and surplus, regulating the type and amount of investments permitted, limiting the amount of dividends that can be paid and the size of transactions that can be consummated without first obtaining regulatory approval, and other related matters. The regulators also make periodic examinations of individual companies and review annual and other reports on the financial conditions of all companies operating within their respective jurisdictions.

Keyport and Independence Life prepare their statutory-basis financial statements in accordance with accounting practices prescribed or permitted by the Insurance Department of the State of Rhode Island. Keyport Benefit prepares its statutory-basis financial statements in accordance with accounting practices prescribed or permitted by the New York Department of Insurance. State laws prescribe certain statutory accounting practices. Permitted statutory accounting practices encompass all accounting practices that are not proscribed; such practices may differ between the states and companies within a state. In 1998, the NAIC adopted codified statutory accounting principles ("Codification"). Codification will likely change, to some extent, prescribed statutory accounting practices and may result in changes to the accounting practices that the Company uses to prepare its statutory-based financial statements. Codification will require adoption by the various states before it becomes the prescribed statutory basis of accounting for insurance companies domesticated within those states. Accordingly, before Codification becomes effective for the Company, the State of Rhode Island and New York must adopt Codification as the prescribed basis of accounting on which domestic insurers must report their statutory-basis results to the Insurance Department. The State of Rhode Island and New York (with modification) have adopted Codification. The adoption of Codification on the Company's statutory-basis financial statements in Rhode Island will reduce statutory surplus at January 1, 2001 by approximately $20 million.

Risk-Based Capital Requirements. In recent years, various states have adopted new quantitative standards promulgated by the NAIC. These standards are designed to reduce the risk of insurance company insolvencies, in part by providing an early warning of financial or other difficulties. These standards include the NAIC's risk-based capital ("RBC") requirements. RBC requirements attempt to measure statutory capital and surplus needs based on the risks in a company's mix of products and investment portfolio. The requirements provide for four different levels of regulatory attention which implement increasing levels of regulatory control (ranging from development of an action plan to mandatory receivership). As of December 31, 2000, Keyport's capital and surplus exceeded the level at which the least severe of these regulatory attention levels would be triggered.

Guaranty Fund Assessments. Under the insurance guaranty fund laws existing in each state, insurers can be assessed for certain obligations of insolvent insurance companies to policyholders and claimants. Because assessments typically are not made for several years after an insurer fails, Keyport cannot accurately determine the precise amount or timing of its exposure to known insurance company insolvencies at this time. For certain information regarding the Company's historical and estimated future assessments, see Note 11 to the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements. The insolvency of large life insurance companies in future years could result in material assessments to Keyport by state guaranty funds. No assurance can be given that such assessments would not have a material adverse effect on the Company.

Insurance Holding Company Regulation. Current Rhode Island insurance law permits the payment of dividends or distributions from the Company to Liberty Financial, which, together with dividends and distributions paid during the preceding 12 months, do not exceed the lesser of (i) 10% of statutory surplus as of the preceding December 31 or (ii) the net gain from operations for the preceding fiscal year. Any proposed dividend in excess of this amount is called an "extraordinary dividend" and may not be paid until it is approved by the Commissioner of Insurance of the State of Rhode Island. The Company paid $10.0 million and $30.0 million in dividends to Liberty Financial during 2000 and 1999, respectively. As of December 31, 2000, the amount of additional dividends that the Company could pay without such approval was $51.3 million. In addition, no person or group may acquire, directly or indirectly, 10% or more of the voting stock or voting power of Keyport unless such person has provided certain required information to the Rhode Island and New York Departments of Business Regulation and such acquisition is approved by the Departments.

Although the federal government generally does not directly regulate the insurance business, federal initiatives often have an impact on the business in a variety of ways. Current and proposed federal measures that may significantly affect the insurance business include limitations on antitrust immunity, minimum solvency requirements and the removal of barriers restricting banks from engaging in the insurance business. In particular, several proposals to repeal or modify the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 (which prohibits banks from being affiliated with insurance companies) have been made by members of Congress. Moreover, the United States Supreme Court held in 1995 in NationsBank of North Carolina v. Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company that annuities are not insurance for purposes of the National Bank Act. In addition, the Supreme Court also held in 1995 in Barnett Bank of Marion City v. Nelson that state laws prohibiting national banks from selling insurance in small town locations are preempted by federal law. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency adopted a ruling in November 1996 that permits national banks, under certain circumstances, to expand into other financial services, thereby increasing competition for the Company. At present, the extent to which banks can sell insurance and annuities without regulation by state insurance departments is being litigated in various courts in the United States. Although the effect of these recent developments on the Company and its competitors is uncertain, there can be no assurance that such developments would not have a material adverse effect on the Company.

On November 12, 1999, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 was signed into law. The major provisions of this new law became effective on November 13, 2000. While the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act eliminates legal barriers to affiliates among banks, insurance companies and other financial services companies and therefore effectively repeals the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 (which restricted banks from engaging in securities-related businesses), the effect on the Company and its competitors is uncertain.

The Company's business activities are conducted in extremely competitive markets. Keyport competes with a large number of life insurance companies, some of which are larger and more highly capitalized and have higher ratings than Keyport. No one company dominates the industry. In addition, Keyport's products compete with alternative investment vehicles available through financial institutions, brokerage firms and investment managers. Management believes that Keyport competes principally with respect to product features, pricing, ratings and service; management also believes that Keyport can continue to compete successfully in this market by offering innovative products and superior services. In addition, financial institutions and broker-dealers focus on the insurer's ratings for financial strength or claims-paying ability in determining whether to market the insurer's annuities.

As of December 31, 2000, the Company had 384 full-time employees. The Company provides its employees with a broad range of employee benefit programs. The Company believes that its relations with its employees are excellent.

As of December 31, 2000, the Company maintained its executive, administrative and sales offices in leased facilities. The Company leases approximately 96,500 square feet in two facilities in downtown Boston pursuant to leases that expire in 2008. The Company also leases approximately 19,800 square feet in a single facility in Lincoln, Rhode Island, which expires in 2007. The Company sub-leases approximately 600 square feet from Independent in Purchase, New York under a lease which expires in 2007.

The Company is from time to time involved in litigation incidental to its business. In the opinion of Keyport's management, the resolution of such litigation is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition or results of operations.

Not applicable.

The following are the principal officers and directors of the Company:

Not applicable.

Net income was $142.6 million, $94.7 million and $108.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively. The increase in the year ended December 31, 2000 primarily related to the net change in unrealized and undistributed gains in private equity limited partnerships, coupled with increases in net investment spread, fee income, and decreases in net realized investment gains (losses). These increases were offset by increases in operating expenses, policy benefits, amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs and income taxes. The decrease in the year ended December 31, 1999 compared to December 31, 1998 was primarily attributable to decreases in net realized investment gains.

Income from operations (income before income taxes, net change in unrealized and undistributed gains in private equity limited partnerships, and net realized gains (losses)) was $203.9 million, $182.1 million and $160.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively. The increase in 2000 compared to 1999 was primarily attributable to increases in net spread and fee income offset by an increase in operating expense. The increase in 1999 compared to 1998 was primarily attributable to the increase in net investment spread.

Investment spread is the amount by which investment income earned on the Company's investments exceeds interest credited to policyholder balances. Investment spread was $317.2 million, $278.6 million and $253.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The amount by which the average yield on investments exceeds the average interest credited rate on policyholder balances is the investment spread percentage. The investment spread percentage was 2.26%, 1.97% and 1.78% for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively.

Investment income was $856.8 million, $805.2 million and $815.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively. The increase of $51.6 million in 2000 compared to 1999 is the result of a higher average investment yield ($62.2 million) offset by a decrease in average invested assets ($10.6 million). The average investment yield was 6.74% in 2000 compared to 6.25% in 1999. Investment income decreased in 1999 compared to 1998 as a result of a lower average investment yield offset by an increase in average invested assets. The average investment yield was 6.25% in 1999 compared to 6.36% in 1998. Net investment income included option amortization related to the Company's equity-indexed annuities of $79.7 million, $77.2 million and $70.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively.

Interest credited to policyholders totaled $539.6 million, $526.6 million and $562.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The increase of $13.0 million in 2000 compared to 1999 is the result of a higher average interest credited rate ($24.1 million) offset by lower average policyholder balances ($11.1 million). Policyholder balances averaged $12.0 billion ($9.7 billion of fixed products and $2.3 billion of equity-indexed annuities) in 2000 compared to $12.3 billion ($10.1 billion of fixed products and $2.2 billion of equity-indexed annuities) in 1999. The average interest credited rate was 4.48% (5.27% on fixed products and 0.85% on equity-indexed annuities) in 2000 compared to 4.28% (5.00% on fixed products and 0.85% on equity-indexed annuities) in 1999. The Company's equity-indexed annuities credit interest to the policyholder at a "participation rate" equal to a portion (ranging for existing policies from 25% to 100%) of the change in value of the S&P 500 Index. The Company's equity-indexed annuities also provide a full guarantee of principal if held to term, plus interest at 0.85% annually. For each of the periods presented, the interest credited to equity-indexed policyholders related to the participation rate was offset by investment income recognized on S&P 500 Index call options and futures, resulting in an 0.85% net interest credited rate. Interest credited to policyholders decreased in 1999 compared to 1998 as a result of a lower average interest credited. Policyholder balances averaged $12.3 billion in 1999 and 1998. The average interest credited rate was 4.28% in 1999 compared to 4.58% in 1998.

Average investments (computed without giving effect to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115), including a portion of the Company's cash and cash equivalents, were $12.7 billion and $12.9 billion for the year ended December 31, 2000 and 1999, respectively.

Net realized investment (losses) gains were $(35.8) million, $(41.5) million and $0.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The net realized investment losses in 2000 and 1999 included losses of $16.7 million and $18.3 million, respectively, for certain fixed maturity investments where the decline in value was determined to be other than temporary.

Net change in unrealized and undistributed gains in private equity limited partnerships is accounted for on the equity method and represents primarily increases in the fair value of the underlying investments of the private equity limited partnerships for which the Company has ownership interests in excess of 3%. This change in unrealized and undistributed gains is recorded net of the related amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs of $58.8 million and net of the amounts realized, which are recognized in investment income, of $13.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2000. The financial information for these investments is obtained directly from the private equity limited partnerships on a periodic basis. The corresponding amounts in 1999 and 1998 were immaterial. There can be no assurance that any unrealized and undistributed gains will ultimately be realized or that the Company not incur losses in the future on such investments.

Surrender charges are revenues earned on the early withdrawal of fixed, equity-indexed and variable annuity policyholder balances. Surrender charges on fixed, equity-indexed and variable annuity withdrawals generally are assessed at declining rates applied to policyholder withdrawals during the first five to seven years of the contract. Total surrender charges were $24.3 million, $17.7 million and $17.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively.

Total annuity withdrawals represented 16.2% 14.7% and 13.2% of the total average annuity policyholder and separate account balances during 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. Higher surrenders are primarily due to increased competition from other investment products and a declining interest rate environment.

Separate account income is primarily mortality and expense charges earned on variable annuity and variable life policyholder balances and net spread from institutional business. Mortality and expense charges, which are based on the market values of the assets in the separate accounts supporting the contracts, were $39.3 million, $29.1 million and $20.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. Variable product fees represented 1.40%, 1.45% and 1.44% of average variable annuity and variable life separate account balances in 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. Net spread from institutional contracts was $4.2 million and $4.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2000 and 1999 respectively.

Management fees are primarily investment advisory fees related to the separate account assets. The fees are based on the levels of assets under management, which are affected by product sales, redemptions and changes in the market values of the investments managed. Management fees were $11.9 million, $8.9 million and $4.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The increases reflect a higher level of average separate account assets under management. Average separate account assets were $3.7 billion, $2.6 billion and $1.5 billion for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively.

Operating expenses primarily represent compensation, general and administrative expenses. These expenses were $70.5 million, $54.4 million and $53.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The increases during 2000 were due to higher employee related expenses and information technology costs.

Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs relates to the amortization of the costs of acquiring new business, which vary with, and are primarily related to, the production of new annuity business. Such acquisition costs included commissions, costs of policy issuance, underwriting and selling expenses.

Amortization was $116.1 million, $97.4 million, and $77.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999 and 1998, respectively. The $18.7 million increase in amortization in 2000 compared to 1999 was primarily related to the increase in investment spread from the growth of business in force associated with fixed and equity-indexed annuities. The $20.0 increase in amortization in 1999 compared to 1998 was primarily related to the increase in investment spread from the growth of business in force associated with fixed and equity-indexed products and the increased sales of variable annuity products during 1999. Amortization expense represented 28.3%, 31.2% and 27.7% of investment spread and separate account fees for 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively.

Income tax expense was $57.1 million, $46.0 million and $52.9 million or 28.61%, 32.69% and 32.76% of pretax income for the years ended December 31, 2000, 1999, and 1998, respectively. The decrease in the effective tax rate in 2000 compared to 1999 primarily reflects a reduction to the valuation allowance established for unrealized capital losses in the "available for sale" investment portfolio.

Stockholder's Equity was $1.280 billion and $1.013 billion at December 31, 2000 and 1999, respectively. The $266.8 million increase in stockholder's equity consist of a $276.8 million increase in comprehensive income ($134.2 million of net unrealized investment gains combined with net income of $142.6) offset by $10.0 million in dividends paid to the parent company.

Investments (computed without giving effect to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115), including a portion of the Company's cash and cash equivalents, were $12.6 billion and $12.8 billion at December 31, 2000 and 1999, respectively.

The Company's general investment policy is to hold fixed maturity investments for long-term investment and, accordingly, the Company does not have a trading portfolio. To provide for maximum portfolio flexibility and appropriate tax planning, the Company classifies its entire fixed maturity portfolio as "available for sale" and carries such investments at fair value. Gross unrealized losses at December 31, 2000 and 1999 were $60.2 million and $330.3 million, respectively.

Approximately $11.6 billion, or 76.5%, of the Company's general account and certain separate account investments at December 31, 2000, were rated by Standard & Poor's Corporation, Moody's Investors Service or under comparable statutory rating guidelines established by the NAIC. At December 31, 2000, the carrying value of investments in below investment grade securities totaled $1.3 billion, or 8.3% of general account and certain separate account investments of $15.1 billion. Below investment grade securities generally provide higher yields and involve greater risks than investment grade securities because their issuers typically are more highly leveraged and more vulnerable to adverse economic conditions than investment grade issuers. In addition, the trading market for these securities may be more limited than for investment grade securities.

The Company routinely reviews its portfolio of investment securities. The Company identifies any investments that require additional monitoring on a monthly basis, and carefully reviews the carrying value of such investments at least quarterly to determine whether specific investments should be placed on a nonaccrual basis and to determine declines in value that may be other than temporary. In making these reviews, the Company principally considers the adequacy of collateral (if any), compliance with contractual covenants, the borrower's recent financial performance, news reports and other externally generated information concerning the creditor's affairs. In the case of publicly traded investments, management also considers market value quotations, if available. As of December 31, 2000 and 1999, the carrying value of fixed maturity investments that were non-income producing was $24.4 million and $22.6 million, respectively, which constitutes 0.16% of general account and certain separate account investments.

Market risk is the risk that the Company will incur losses due to adverse changes in market rates and prices. The Company's primary market risk exposures are to changes in interest rates and equity prices.

The active management of market risk is integral to the Company's operations. The Company may use the following approaches to manage its exposure to market risk within defined tolerance ranges: rebalance its existing asset or liability portfolios, change the character of future investment purchases, or use derivative instruments to modify the market risk characteristics of existing assets and liabilities or assets expected to be purchased.

The Company generates substantial investable funds from its annuity operations. The Company believes that its fixed and indexed policyholder balances should be backed by investments, principally comprised of fixed maturities, which generate predictable rates of return. The Company does not have a specific target rate of return. Instead, its rates of return vary over time depending on the current interest rates, the slope of the yield curve and the excess at which fixed maturities are priced over the yield curve. The Company's portfolio strategy is designed to achieve acceptable risk-adjusted returns by effectively managing portfolio liquidity and credit quality.

The Company administers and oversees the investment risk management processes primarily through its Investment Committee, its Board of Directors, and the Board of Directors of Liberty Financial. The Investment Committee and Board of Directors provide executive oversight of investment activities. The Investment Committee is a senior management committee consisting of the Chief Investment Officer, Chief Financial Officer, President, Chief Operating Officer and members of senior management of Liberty Financial. The Investment Committee meets monthly to provide detailed oversight of investment risk, including market risk.

The Company has investment guidelines that define the overall framework for managing market and other investment risks, including the accountabilities and controls over these activities. In addition, the Company has specific investment policies that delineate the investment limits and strategies that are appropriate given the Company's liquidity, surplus, product and regulatory requirements.

The Company monitors and manages its exposure to market risk through asset allocation limits, duration limits, and stress tests. Asset allocation limits place restrictions on the aggregate fair value which may be invested within an asset class. Duration limits on the aggregate investment portfolio, and, as appropriate, on individual components of the portfolio, place restrictions on the amount of interest rate risk that may be taken. Stress tests measure downside risk to fair value and earnings over longer time intervals and for adverse market scenarios.

The day-to-day management of market risk within defined tolerance ranges occurs as portfolio managers buy and sell within their respective markets based upon the acceptable boundaries established by asset allocation, duration and other limits, including but not limited to credit and liquidity.

Interest rate risk is the risk that the Company will incur economic losses due to adverse changes in interest rates. This risk arises from the Company's primary activities, as the Company invests substantial funds in interest-sensitive assets and also has interest-sensitive liabilities. The Company's asset/liability management emphasizes a conservative approach, which is oriented toward reducing downside risk in adverse markets, as opposed to maximizing spread in favorable markets.

The Company manages the interest rate risk inherent in its assets relative to the interest rate risk inherent in its liabilities. One of the measures the Company uses to quantify this exposure is effective duration. Effective duration is a common measure for the price sensitivity of assets and liabilities to changes in interest rates. It measures the approximate percentage change in the fair value of assets and liabilities when interest rates change by 100 basis points. This measure includes the impact of estimated changes in portfolio cash flows from features such as prepayments and bond calls. The effective duration of assets and related liabilities are produced using standard financial valuation techniques. At December 31, 2000 and 1999, the estimated difference between the Company's asset and liability duration was approximately 0.8 and 1.8, respectively. This positive duration gap indicates that the fair value of the Company's assets is somewhat more sensitive to interest rate movements than the fair value of its liabilities.

The Company seeks to invest premiums and deposits to create future cash flows that will fund future benefits, claims, and expenses, and earn stable margins across a wide variety of interest rate and economic scenarios. In order to achieve this objective and limit its exposure to interest rate risk, the Company adheres to a philosophy of managing the effective duration of assets and related liabilities. The Company uses interest rate swaps, futures and caps to reduce the interest rate risk resulting from effective duration mismatches between assets and liabilities. To the extent that actual results differ from the assumptions utilized, the Company's effective duration could be significantly impacted. Important assumptions include the timing of cash flows on mortgage-related assets and liabilities subject to policyholder surrenders. Additionally, the Company's calculation assumes that the current relationship between short-term and long-term interest rates (the term structure of interest rates) will remain constant over time. As a result, these calculations may not fully capture the impact of non-parallel changes in the term structure of interest rates and/or large changes in interest rates.

The Company's potential exposure due to a 10% increase in prevailing interest rates from their December 31, 2000 and 1999 levels was a loss of $79.2 million and $146.3 million, respectively, in fair value of its fixed-rate assets that were not offset by a decrease in the fair value of its fixed-rate liabilities. The decrease in potential exposure is primarily due to higher prevailing market interest rates and the decrease in positive duration gap. The Company expects that its exposure to loss as interest rate changes occur will be minimized and that actual losses will be less than the estimated potential loss due to the combination of asset/liability management strategies and flexibility in adjusting crediting rate levels.

Equity price risk is the risk that the Company will incur economic losses due to adverse changes in a particular stock or stock index. At December 31, 2000 and 1999, the Company had approximately $76.4 million and $37.9 million, respectively, in common stocks and $337.7 million and $701.1 million, respectively, in call options.

At December 31, 2000 and 1999, the Company had $2.3 billion and $2.2 billion, respectively, in equity-indexed annuity liabilities that provide customers with contractually guaranteed participation in price appreciation of the Standard & Poor's 500 Composite Price Index ("S&P 500 Index"). The Company purchases equity-indexed options and futures to hedge the risk associated with the price appreciation component of equity-indexed annuity liabilities.

The Company manages the equity risk inherent in its assets relative to the equity risk inherent in its liabilities by conducting detailed computer simulations that model its S&P 500 Index derivatives and its equity-indexed annuity liabilities under stress-test scenarios in which both the index level and the index option implied volatility are varied through a wide range. Implied volatility is a value derived from standard option valuation models representing an implicit forecast of the standard deviation of the returns on the underlying asset over the life of the option or future. The fair values of S&P 500 Index linked securities, derivatives, and annuities are produced using standard derivative valuation techniques. The derivative portfolios are constructed to maintain acceptable interest margins under a variety of possible future S&P 500 Index levels and option or future cost environments. In order to achieve this objective and limit its exposure to equity price risk, the Company measures and manages these exposures using methods based on the fair value of assets and the price appreciation component of related liabilities. The Company uses derivatives, including futures, options and total return swaps to modify its net exposure to fluctuations in the S&P 500 Index.

Based upon the information and assumptions the Company uses in its stress-test scenarios at December 31, 2000 and 1999, management estimates that if the S&P 500 Index increases by 10%, the net fair value of its assets and liabilities described above would increase (decrease) by approximately $(5.7) million and $1.5 million, respectively. If the S&P 500 Index decreases by 10%, management estimates that the net fair value of its assets and liabilities will decrease by approximately $7.2 million and $0.2 million, respectively. If option implied volatilities increase by 100 basis points, management estimates that the net fair value of its assets and liabilities will decrease by approximately $1.4 million and $5.2 million, respectively.

The simulations do not consider the effects of other changes in market conditions that could accompany changes in the equity option and futures markets including the effects of changes in implied dividend yields, interest rates, and equity-indexed annuity policy surrenders.

As a component of its investment strategy and to reduce its exposure to interest rate risk, the Company utilizes interest rate and total return swap agreements and interest rate cap agreements to match assets more closely to liabilities. Interest rate swap agreements are agreements to exchange with counterparty interest rate payments of differing character (e.g., fixed-rate payments exchanged for variable-rate payments) based on an underlying principal balance (notional principal) to hedge against interest rate changes. The Company currently utilizes interest rate swap agreements to reduce asset duration and to better match interest earned on longer-term fixed-rate assets with interest credited to policyholders. A total return swap agreement is an agreement to exchange payments based upon an underlying notional balance and changes in variable rate and total return indices. The Company utilizes total return swap agreements to hedge its obligations related to certain separate account liabilities. The Company had 69 and 67 outstanding swap agreements with an aggregate notional principal amount of $3.8 billion and $3.4 billion as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, respectively.

Cap agreements are agreements with a counterparty that require the payment of a premium for the right to receive payments for the difference between the cap interest rate and a market interest rate on specified future dates based on an underlying principal balance (notional principal) to hedge against rising interest rates. The Company had interest rate cap agreements with an aggregate notional amount of $50.0 million at December 31, 1999. The Company had no outstanding interest rate cap agreements as of December 31, 2000.

With respect to the Company's equity-indexed annuities and certain separate account liabilities, the Company buys call options, futures and certain total return swap agreements on the S&P 500 Index to hedge its obligations to provide returns based upon this index. The Company had total return swap agreements with a carrying value of $23.9 million and $37.8 million as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, respectively.

There are risks associated with some of the techniques the Company uses to match its assets and liabilities. The primary risk associated with swap, cap and call option agreements is counterparty nonperformance. The Company believes that the counterparties to its swap, cap and call option agreements are financially responsible and that the counterparty risk associated with these transactions is minimal. Future contracts trade on organized exchanges and, therefore, have minimal credit risk. In addition, swap and cap agreements have interest rate risk and call options, futures and certain total return swap agreements have stock market risk. These swap and cap agreements hedge fixed-rate assets and the Company expects that any interest rate movements that adversely affect the market value of swap agreements would be offset by changes in the market values of such fixed-rate assets. However, there can be no assurance that these hedges will be effective in offsetting the potential adverse effects of changes in interest rates. Similarly, the call options, futures and certain total return swap agreements hedge the Company's obligations to provide returns on equity-indexed annuities and certain separate account liabilities based upon the S&P 500 Index, and the Company believes that any stock market movements that adversely affect the market value of S&P 500 Index call options, futures and certain total return swap agreements would be substantially offset by a reduction in policyholder and certain separate account liabilities. However, there can be no assurance that these hedges will be effective in offsetting the potentially adverse effects of changes in S&P 500 Index levels. The Company's profitability could be adversely affected if the value of its swap and cap agreements increase less than (or decrease more than) the change in the market value of its fixed rate assets and/or if the value of its S&P Index 500 call options, futures and certain total return swap agreements increase less than (or decrease more than) the value of the guarantees made to equity-indexed and certain separate account policyholders.

In June 1998, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards ("SFAS") No. 133 "Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities." In June 1999, the FASB issued SFAS No. 137 "Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities - Deferral of the Effective Date of FASB Statement No. 133." This statement amended SFAS No. 133 to defer its effective date one year to fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2000. In June 2000, the FASB issued SFAS No. 138, "Accounting for Certain Derivative Instruments and Certain Hedging Activities" - an amendment of SFAS No. 133. This statement makes certain changes in the hedging provisions of SFAS No. 133 and is effective concurrent with SFAS No. 133 (collectively hereafter referred to as the "Statement"). The Statement will require the Company to recognize all derivatives on the balance sheet at fair value. Derivatives that are not hedges must be adjusted to fair value through income. If the derivative is a hedge, depending on the nature of the hedge, changes in the fair value of derivatives will either be offset by the change in fair value of the hedged assets, liabilities, or firm commitments through earnings or recognized in other comprehensive income until the hedged item is recognized in earnings. The ineffective portion of a derivative's change in fair value will be immediately recognized in earnings. Upon adoption, the Company will be required to record a cumulative effect adjustment to reflect this accounting change.

The Company estimates that the cumulative effect, reported after tax and net of related effects of deferred policy acquisition costs, upon adoption at January 1, 2001 will decrease net income and stockholder's equity by approximately $55.0 million. The adoption of the Statement may increase volatility in reported income due to the requirement to mark all derivatives to fair value and the definition of an effective hedging relationship under the Statement as opposed to certain hedges the Company believes are effective economic hedges. The Company believes that it will continue to utilize its current risk management philosophy, which includes the use of derivative instruments.

The Company's liquidity needs and financial resources pertain to the management of the general account assets and policyholder balances. The Company uses cash for the payment of annuity and life insurance benefits, operating expenses, policy acquisition costs, and investment purchases. The Company generates cash from annuity premiums, deposits, net investment income, and from maturities and sales of its investments. Annuity premiums, maturing investments and net investment income have historically been sufficient to meet the Company's cash requirements. The Company monitors cash and cash equivalents in an effort to maintain sufficient liquidity and has strategies in place to maintain sufficient liquidity in changing interest rate environments. Consistent with the nature of its obligations, the Company has invested a substantial amount of its general account assets in readily marketable securities. At December 31, 2000, $11.0 billion, or 79.2%, of the Company's general account investments are considered readily marketable.

To the extent that unanticipated surrenders cause the Company to sell for liquidity purposes a material amount of securities prior to their maturity, such surrenders could have a material adverse effect on the Company. Although no assurance can be given, the Company believes that liquidity to fund withdrawals would be available through incoming cash flow, the sale of short-term or floating-rate instruments, thereby precluding the sale of fixed maturity investments in a potentially unfavorable market. In addition, the Company's fixed-rate products incorporate surrender charges to encourage persistency and make the cost of its policyholder balances more predictable. Approximately 75% of the Company's fixed annuity policyholder balances were subject to surrender charges or restrictions at December 31, 2000.

Current Rhode Island insurance law permits the payment of dividends or distributions from the Company to Liberty Financial, which, together with dividends and distributions paid during the preceding 12 months, do not exceed the lesser of (i) 10% of statutory surplus as of the preceding December 31 or (ii) t