Which insurance company is required by the SEC to publish an annual report, Stardust or Moonbeam, and why?

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulates securities. Insurance products are generally regulated by state insurance departments. However, certain insurance products that have an investment component and are not guaranteed are considered securities and fall under SEC jurisdiction.

• Stardust Mutual Insurance Company sells both fixed and variable insurance products. Variable insurance products (like variable life insurance and variable annuities) are considered securities because their value fluctuates based on underlying investments. Therefore, companies selling variable products are subject to SEC regulation and are required to publish annual reports. So, Stardust is required to publish.
• Moonbeam Mutual Insurance Company sells only guaranteed products, such as whole life insurance and fixed annuities. These products offer guaranteed benefits or returns and are not considered securities. They are primarily regulated by state insurance departments, not the SEC. Therefore, Moonbeam is not required by the SEC to publish an annual report.

Based on this, Stardust is required to publish, and Moonbeam is not.

The correct choice is:
Stardust required to publish? yes
Moonbeam required to publish? no

The final answer is $\text{yes, no}$