What Milliman Financial Risk Management does

Milliman Financial Risk Management (FRM), founded in 1998 and headquartered in Chicago, is a SEC-registered investment advisor and wholly-owned subsidiary of Milliman, Inc. The firm provides end-to-end financial risk management, investment advisory, hedging, execution, financial reporting, and ETF sub-advisory services to institutional clients — primarily life insurance and annuity providers, asset managers, pension funds, superannuation funds, and ETF issuers — across offices in Chicago, Sydney, and London. As of March 31, 2026, Milliman FRM advised on approximately $261.2 billion in global assets, with more than $49 billion tracking its Milliman Managed Risk Strategy (MMRS), described as the largest dynamic equity risk management strategy in the world.

The firm's product surface rests on four proprietary software platforms: MG-Hedge, the industry-standard variable annuity financial and risk management system used for statutory/GAAP valuation and dynamic hedging; the Milliman Trading System (MTS) for order management and execution; GridStep, a distributed high-performance computing layer for simulation and analytics; and the RISE Score, a retirement income security evaluation tool. On top of these platforms sit three investment strategies — MMRS, the Milliman Managed Risk Parity (MMRP), and Milliman Defined Outcome Strategies — plus a six-pillar service offering covering life and annuity risk management, hedging and overlay, financial reporting, global 24/5 multi-asset execution, software licensing, and ETF sub-advisory and IP. In March 2026, the firm introduced InnovatIV, a forward-looking, option-implied volatility control methodology intended to replace backward-looking EWMA models used in index-linked annuity and defined outcome products.

Milliman FRM generates revenue through three primary streams: (1) investment advisory and hedging fees, billed as a recurring fee on assets under management or advisement; (2) ETF sub-advisory fees from issuers such as Innovator Capital Management and Defiance ETFs, structured as managed services tied to AUM in the underlying funds; and (3) software and technology licensing, including implementation and support for the MG-Hedge, MTS, and GridStep platforms. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is engagement-based, tied to scope, AUM, and the regulatory regime (e.g., AG43, RBC C3 Phase II, IFRS-17, LDTI). Distribution is exclusively B2B and institutional: direct advisory relationships, sub-advisory mandates embedded inside ETF and insurance trust products, and exchange-distributed products listed on venues such as Cboe BZX. The firm is supported by a four-pillar leadership team spanning capital markets trading, quantitative development, strategy research, and financial technology.

Name

Milliman Financial Risk Management

Legal name

Milliman Financial Risk Management LLC

Website

https://frm.milliman.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Milliman Financial Risk Management is a SEC-registered investment advisor and subsidiary of Milliman, Inc. that provides hedging, advisory, financial reporting, execution, and ETF sub-advisory services to life insurers, asset managers, pension funds, and ETF issuers, advising on ~$261.2B in global assets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Institutional Financial Risk Management and Investment Advisory

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Systematic Portfolio Construction & Risk Control (Risk Parity, Vol Target, Dynamic Allocation) (FSAHAEAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Multi-Strategy — Quant/Systematic Multi-Strategy (FSAHAFAH)

Keywords

• Variable annuity hedging
• Investment advisory services
• Risk management software
• ETF sub-advisory
• Financial risk consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Investment Advisory and Hedging Fees: Milliman FRM provides investment advisory, hedging, and consulting services to life insurers, financial institutions, asset managers, and pension funds, generating fees based on assets under management or advisement. As of March 31, 2026, the firm advises on approximately $261.2 billion in global assets.
2. ETF Sub-Advisory Services: Milliman FRM serves as sub-adviser to ETF issuers, providing end-to-end ETF sub-advisory services including portfolio management, trading, IP development, and sales/marketing support, generating fees from ETF issuers based on assets under management in ETF structures.
3. Software and Technology Licensing: Milliman FRM offers its proprietary software platforms (MG-Hedge, Milliman Trading System) and technology solutions to clients, including implementation and support services for in-house hedging programs.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Milliman Financial Risk Management is a SEC-registered investment advisor that provides investment advisory, hedging, consulting, and execution services to institutional clients in the life insurance and financial services industries, advising on approximately $261.2 billion in global assets as of March 31, 2026. The firm offers an end-to-end platform spanning variable annuity risk management, derivatives execution, financial reporting, ETF sub-advisory, and proprietary software (MG-Hedge, MTS, GridStep, RISE Score), delivered from trading desks in Chicago, London, and Sydney. It also distributes proprietary investment strategies including the Milliman Managed Risk Strategy, Defined Outcome Strategies, and Milliman Managed Risk Parity.

Product overview

Milliman Financial Risk Management (FRM) is a subsidiary of Milliman, Inc. and a SEC-registered investment advisor providing a multi-layered suite of investment advisory, hedging, consulting, and technology services to institutional clients in the life insurance and financial services industries. The offering is organized into six service pillars — Life & Annuity Risk Management, Hedging & Overlay Services, Financial Reporting, Execution Services, Software, and ETF Sub-advisory & IP — supplemented by three investment strategies (Milliman Managed Risk Strategy, Milliman Managed Risk Parity, and Defined Outcome Strategies). Core software products include MG-Hedge (variable annuity financial and risk management platform), the Milliman Trading System (proprietary trading and order management), GridStep (distributed/high-performance computing), and the RISE Score (retirement income security evaluation tool). These products and services are delivered through a global trading platform with offices in Chicago, London, and Sydney, managing approximately $261.2 billion in global assets as of March 31, 2026.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Milliman Managed Risk Strategy (MMRS): An intelligent portfolio risk management technique that seeks to prevent portfolio volatility from exceeding a designated threshold, capture growth in up markets, and defend against losses during sustained market declines. More than $49 billion tracks this strategy, making it the largest dynamic equity risk management strategy in the world.
• Milliman Managed Risk Parity Strategy (MMRP)
• Milliman Defined Outcome Strategies

Products and services

• MG-Hedge Integrated data-driven platform for variable annuity financial and risk management, supporting statutory and tax valuations, GAAP/IFRS earnings calculations, dynamic hedging results, and risk analytics including earnings-at-risk, capital-at-risk, performance attribution, and balance sheet projections. Used by life insurers and reinsurers.
• Milliman Trading System (MTS) Proprietary trading system covering risk calculations and order management, enabling real-time execution and portfolio management across equity, fixed income, FX, credit, and other traded markets.
• GridStep Distributed high-performance computing platform enabling seamless model execution across thousands of CPUs to speed hedging calculations and produce richer, more robust data sets for financial risk management.
• The RISE Score (Retirement Income Security Evaluation) Single intuitive measure of an individual's income security and retirement readiness, assessing whether a person is on track with their retirement income plans by measuring an array of risks related to living expenses, health care, and other post-workforce costs.
• Milliman Managed Risk Strategy (MMRS) Intelligent portfolio risk management technique that seeks to prevent portfolio volatility from exceeding a designated threshold, capture growth in up markets, and defend against losses during sustained market declines. Over $49 billion tracks the strategy, making it the largest dynamic equity risk management strategy in the world, used in more than 80 variable insurance trusts, mutual funds, ETFs, and collective investment trusts.
• Milliman Managed Risk Parity (MMRP) Combines the dynamic asset allocation approach of risk parity with the risk mitigating features of volatility management. Portfolio capital is allocated so that each asset contributes the same amount of risk, and a volatility control mechanism seeks to stabilize risk and reduce drawdowns.
• Milliman Defined Outcome Strategies Strategies designed to create clearly defined investment outcomes across broad asset classes and through multiple product structures, offering exposure to major equity indexes with known outcome periods and defined downside protection levels.
• Life & Annuity Risk Management End-to-end annuity risk management service spanning seriatim inforce data, liability risk exposure calculations, derivatives execution, and performance attribution, covering variable annuities, fixed indexed annuities, registered index linked annuities, and variable and indexed universal life products.
• Hedging & Overlay Services Customized hedging and overlay solutions including cash securitization, portfolio rebalancing, transition management, liability driven investing (LDI) and completion management, and currency and interest rate risk management.
• Financial Reporting Financial reporting leveraging MG-Hedge for statutory and tax valuations, GAAP/IFRS earnings, dynamic hedging results, statutory reporting (AG43, RBC C3 Phase II, AG33, AG34, Rating Agency), and risk analytics including earnings-at-risk and capital-at-risk.
• Execution Services Global 24/5 multi-asset trading by industry experts in Chicago, London, and Sydney, including order processing, settlement, back office reporting, and collateral management, with extensive trading relationships with banks, brokers, exchanges, FCMs, and market makers globally.
• ETF Sub-advisory & IP End-to-end ETF sub-advisory services including IP and strategy development, outsourced trading and portfolio management on over $50 billion in 1940 Act investment products, sales and marketing support, and liquidity and derivatives risk management program support for ETF issuers.

Quantifiable outcome

• $261.2 billion in global assets advised upon as of March 31, 2026
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Innovator Capital ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 January 2026Milliman FRM serves as sub-adviser to Innovator Capital Management for the Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF – January (PJAN). The fund employs a defined outcome strategy seeking to match S&P 500 performance up to a 12.30% gross upside cap while providing a buffer against the first 15% of underlying ETF losses. Milliman FRM provides the portfolio management and options overlay strategy expertise.
• Defiance ETFscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 November 2025Milliman FRM partnered with Defiance ETFs to launch the YBMN ETF, the first ETF targeting weekly income through an options overlay strategy on Bitmine Immersion Technologies. The fund employs a multi-engine options strategy to generate income and manage risk amid volatile digital assets.
• Alliance for Lifetime IncomeminorOthersThe Alliance for Lifetime Income is a nonprofit consumer education organization whose mission is to help Americans understand the benefits of protected lifetime income when planning for retirement. Milliman is a member of the Alliance and contributes research and content on lifetime income solutions.
• Foreside Fund ServicesminorOthersForeside Fund Services serves as the distributor for certain ETF products where Milliman FRM acts as sub-adviser, including the Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF series.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Conning & Company: Conning provides insurance-focused investment management, risk modeling, and asset allocation services to life insurers and pension funds globally. It is the closest direct competitor to Milliman FRM in outsourced insurance asset management and hedging advisory.
• New England Asset Management (NEAM): NEAM manages investment portfolios for insurance companies with a focus on fixed income, derivatives overlays, and customized risk solutions — directly comparable to Milliman FRM's institutional insurance client base and hedging services.
• Logan Circle Partners: Logan Circle Partners is a specialist fixed income and credit manager serving insurance company general accounts — directly comparable to Milliman FRM's insurance-focused asset management and overlay mandates.
• Income Research + Management (IR+M): IR+M is a fixed income manager focused on liability-driven investing for insurance and pension clients. It competes with Milliman FRM in insurance asset management and customized portfolio solutions.
• Pacific Asset Management: Pacific Asset Management specializes in liability-driven investment solutions for insurance company balance sheets. Its focus on insurance clients with risk-managed solutions is directly comparable to Milliman FRM's hedging and overlay practice.
• Gresham Investment Management: Gresham provides fixed income, derivatives, and alternative investment solutions to insurance and other institutional clients — a closely comparable niche peer to Milliman FRM in insurance-focused risk management.

Broad incumbents

• Voya Investment Management: Voya IM manages hundreds of billions for insurance general accounts, pension plans, and institutional clients, offering fixed income, derivatives overlays, and structured solutions. It is a broader incumbent with overlapping insurance capabilities to Milliman FRM.
• Manulife Investment Management: Manulife IM manages a large global multi-asset platform with a strong insurance and retirement focus, including fixed income, real estate, and alternative solutions — overlapping with Milliman FRM in insurance asset management and risk-managed strategies.
• PIMCO: PIMCO is a global fixed income and multi-asset manager serving insurance, pension, and sovereign clients with active risk-managed strategies. It competes with Milliman FRM for large institutional insurance mandates and risk-managed allocations.

Others

• Aon: Aon provides actuarial consulting, reinsurance brokerage, and risk advisory to life insurers globally — adjacent peer to Milliman FRM's parent Milliman, Inc., with overlapping actuarial and risk management consulting capabilities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/MillimanFRM

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Milliman Financial Risk Management