Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage

What Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage does

Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage is a privately held insurance wholesaler founded in 1984 and headquartered in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, operating under founder and CEO John M. Bulbrook. The firm brokers life insurance and annuity products on behalf of more than 40 insurance and annuity carriers, serving as an intermediary between carriers and a national network of insurance agents, financial planners, and brokers. Since inception, the company reports cumulative life insurance and annuity placements exceeding $12 billion and operates with an estimated 11–50 employees.

The company's product platform is built around three pillars: traditional life insurance and annuity wholesale brokerage; the IN-FORCE™ Fixed Term Annuity line, which packages secondary-market (already-issued, in-force) annuities into structured fixed-term offerings currently described in the 4–7% yield range; and ancillary services including InForce™ Payments and Pre-Owned Annuities™. Bulbrook Drislane was an early mover in introducing secondary-market annuities—previously accessible primarily to hedge funds and institutional buyers—into the retail distribution channel. The firm runs no proprietary technology platform, mobile application, or AI components, relying instead on relationship-driven sales supported by content marketing, email, social media, and educational seminars.

Bulbrook Drislane generates revenue primarily through commissions paid by the more than 40 carriers it represents, with each placement earning a percentage of premium. End consumers are typically middle-class investors aged 55 and older seeking yield or income-oriented annuity products, while the B2B channel of agents, planners, and brokers functions as the principal customer interface. CEO John M. Bulbrook served as an industry liaison to the U.S. House Financial Services Committee during the 2009–2010 review of SEC Section 151A, providing the firm with regulatory visibility but not constituting a separately monetized business line. The company has not disclosed any funding rounds, M&A activity, institutional partnerships, or executive additions beyond the founder/CEO.

Name

Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage

Legal name

Bulbrook Drislane

Website

https://bulbrookdrislane.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage is a privately held insurance wholesaler founded in 1984, brokering life insurance and annuity products from 40+ carriers to a national network of agents, financial planners, and middle-class retail investors aged 55 and older.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Insurance Brokerage

NAICS

Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (52421), Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (524210), Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities (5242)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411), Life Insurance (6311)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSAEADAJ

Specialty Insurance Brokerage (Marine, Aviation, Cyber, Professional Lines)

Financial & Insurance/Financial Advisory, Brokerage & Intermediation/Insurance Brokerage & Risk Advisory

Keywords

• Annuity brokerage services
• Life insurance distribution
• Secondary market annuities
• Fixed term annuities
• Structured settlement annuities

Headquarters

HQ city

Wellesley Hills

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Insurance and Annuity Product Distribution: The company earns commissions from insurance and annuity companies for placing their products through their agent network. Bulbrook/Drislane acts as a wholesaler, earning revenue by connecting insurance agents with annuity and life insurance products from over 40 provider companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage is a wholesale distributor of life insurance and annuity products, representing more than 40 carriers and making their products available to insurance agents, financial planners, and independent brokers. The firm is best known for pioneering the IN-FORCE™ secondary-market annuity program, which brings existing (already-issued) fixed term, structured settlement, equity-indexed, and other annuities to the retail producer market, supplementing a broader line of fixed deferred, SPIA, variable, deferred income, lottery, and life insurance offerings.

Product overview

Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage is a financial services firm offering a comprehensive suite of annuity and structured settlement products. The core offerings center on IN-FORCE™ Fixed Term Annuities (their proprietary secondary market product), InForce™ Payments, and Pre-Owned Annuities™ — all representing previously-owned annuity payment streams available for purchase at discounts. Beyond these secondary market products, the company offers traditional annuity types including Fixed Deferred Annuities, Equity-Index Annuities, Single Premium Immediate Annuities (SPIA), Fixed Index Annuities, Deferred Income Annuities, Variable Annuities, and various life/joint survivor structures. The company serves insurance agents and financial planners, facilitating access to over 40 insurance and annuity provider relationships. Their differentiated offering lies in the secondary market annuity segment, where buyers can acquire existing annuity payment rights at wholesale discounts, achieving yields of 4-7% compared to 2-3% on new products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• InForce™ Payments: Proprietary product offering for previously-owned annuity payment streams
• Pre-Owned Annuity™

Products and services

• IN-FORCE™ Fixed Term Annuities A wholesale brokerage product line built around in-force (secondary market) fixed term annuities, marketed to insurance agents, financial planners, and brokers for placement with their retail clients and yielding higher rates than typical retail offerings.
• Pre-Owned Annuities™ A secondary-market annuity offering under the company's Pre-Owned Annuities™ brand, aggregating existing annuity contracts from multiple carriers so producers can offer in-force products to their clients.
• InForce™ Payments A branded service supporting the placement, payment processing, and servicing of in-force and secondary-market annuity business distributed through the brokerage.
• Life Insurance Distribution Wholesale brokerage of life insurance products from more than 40 carriers, made available to independent insurance agents and financial planners for placement with their retail clients.
• Annuity Distribution (Fixed Deferred, Equity-Index, SPIA, Fixed Index, Deferred Income, Structured Settlement, Lottery, Variable) Wholesale brokerage service distributing multiple annuity categories — fixed deferred, equity-indexed, single-premium immediate (SPIA), fixed index, deferred income, structured settlement, lottery, and variable annuities — from the firm's carrier panel to independent producers.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Stone Street Capital: Stone Street Capital purchases structured settlements, annuity payments, and lottery payouts at a discount across the secondary market, directly overlapping with Bulbrook Drislane's Pre-Owned Annuities™ and InForce™ Payments offerings. Both source and distribute previously-owned payment streams to retail and institutional buyers.
• Brokers International (transamerica wholesale): Brokers International is a multi-carrier life insurance, annuity, and long-term care wholesaler serving independent agents — directly comparable to Bulbrook Drislane's wholesaler model with 40+ carrier relationships, similar product breadth, and similar agent-channel distribution.
• Annexus Retirement Solutions: Annexus develops and distributes fixed indexed annuities, multi-year guaranteed annuities, and registered index-linked annuities through independent advisors — overlapping directly with Bulbrook Drislane's annuity distribution focus and its intermediary role between carriers and insurance agents.
• Peachtree Settlement Funding: Peachtree Settlement Funding purchases structured settlements, lottery annuities, and other future-payment rights at a discount, competing directly in the secondary annuity market where Bulbrook Drislane originated via its wholesale distribution model. Both serve payees seeking lump-sum liquidity and ultimate investors purchasing discounted payment streams.
• Novation Settlement Solutions: Novation Settlement Solutions purchases structured settlements, lottery annuities, and secondary market annuity payment streams — directly competing in the same secondary-annuity cash-flow purchase category where Bulbrook Drislane's IN-FORCE™ product operates. Both serve financial advisors and structured-settlement payees across the US.
• J.G. Wentworth: J.G. Wentworth is one of the most recognized purchasers of structured settlements and secondary market annuities, purchasing future payment streams from payees at a discount — directly overlapping with Bulbrook Drislane's IN-FORCE™ and Pre-Owned Annuities™ product category. Both operate in the secondary annuity market connecting sellers of payment streams to ultimate investors.
• Ash Brokerage: Ash Brokerage is a leading independent life insurance and annuity wholesaler representing dozens of carriers to independent agents and financial advisors — directly comparable in business model, channel, and product mix to Bulbrook Drislane's wholesaler/distributor operation across 40+ carrier relationships.

Broad incumbents

• FGL Holdings (Fidelity & Guaranty Life): FGL Holdings underwrites and distributes indexed annuities, fixed-rate annuities, and life insurance through independent agents and IMO channels — directly comparable to Bulbrook Drislane's annuity wholesaler role, though FGL is also a carrier rather than pure intermediary.
• Security Benefit Group: Security Benefit is an established diversified retirement and insurance carrier and distributor offering fixed, fixed-indexed, and variable annuities along with mutual funds — broadly competing with Bulbrook Drislane's annuity distribution role at much larger scale, while also acting as a manufacturer Bulbrook Drislane could carry.
• American Equity Investment Life Holding: American Equity is a leading US fixed indexed and multi-year guaranteed annuity carrier and distributor with broad independent agent distribution — operating one of the larger incumbent channels that competes for agent mindshare against smaller wholesalers like Bulbrook Drislane.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/preownedannuity
• Facebookfacebook.com/bulbrookdrislane
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bulbrook-drislane-brokerage

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Bulbrook Drislane Brokerage