FINRA is the group that  that regulates stockbrokers and all the securites firms.   I believe it used to be called the NASDAQ.  It's a great website and publishes alerts to help investors avoid potential bad investments and scams.  Recently they looked at Equity-Index Annuities.  These are complicated annuity products and FINRA provides helpful information.  Also here's a link to the FINRA Investor Alert page.

Sales of equity-indexed annuities (EIAs) have grown considerably in recent years. Although one insurance company at one time included the word "simple" in the name of its product, EIAs are anything but easy to understand. One of the most confusing features of an EIA is the method used to calculate the gain in the index to which the annuity is linked. To make matters worse, there is not one, but several different indexing methods. Because of the variety and complexity of the methods used to credit interest, investors will find it difficult to compare one EIA to another.

If You Have Questions

If you have questions about EIAs, you can contact your state insurance commissioner. You can check out whether the person selling an EIA is registered with FINRA. Check FINRA BrokerCheck or call our hotline at (800) 289-9999.

Before you buy an EIA, you should understand the various features of this investment and be prepared to ask your insurance agent, broker, financial planner, or other financial professional lots of questions about whether an EIA is right for you.