Retirement Cornerstone®

Growth potential and retirement income protection

The Retirement Cornerstone® variable annuity with guaranteed benefit riders offers the ability to accumulate and protect retirement income. The product is a single tax-deferred annuity comprised of two separate accounts that help address different goals.  

A deferred variable annuity is a long-term financial product designed for retirement purposes. In essence, an annuity is a contractual agreement in which payment(s) are made to an insurance company, which agrees to pay out an income or a lump sum amount at a later date. Typically, variable annuities have mortality and expense charges, account fees, investment management fees, administrative fees, and charges for special contract features. In addition, annuity contracts have exclusions and limitations.

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All ratings and reviews are voluntarily submitted by existing customers and are pre-screened for acceptance or rejection prior to publication in accordance with established Moderation Guidelines, which consider applicable regulatory parameters for retail communications (i.e., advertising and sales literature) and company standards for appropriate content. Customers' ratings and reviews reflect individual opinions and are not intended as indications of suitability or as predictions of any product/investment performance, may not represent the experience of any other customer, and should not be relied upon as bases for any purchase decision. NOTE:  On June 15, 2020, AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company became Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company.  Any reviews herein containing “AXA” in any form should be considered to mean “Equitable”.  Equitable is the brand name of the retirement and protection subsidiaries of Equitable Holdings, Inc. Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (Equitable Financial) and its affiliates do not guarantee the accuracy or applicability of the information included in any customer review. Ratings and Reviews are powered by Bazaarvoice, a 3rd party vendor not affiliated with Equitable Financial or its affiliates. For questions or concerns about the ratings and reviews presented here, please call 800-628-6673.* 

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Important Note
As a reminder, this information is not intended as, and does not constitute, investment advice. Your needs, goals, circumstances and tolerance for investment risk are unique to you, and you should work with your financial professional and consider these together before deciding whether any of the annuity product discussed here or any other particular financial product or service is right for you. 

A deferred variable annuity, such as Retirement Cornerstone®, is a long-term financial product designed for retirement purposes. It is a contractual agreement in which payment(s) are made to an insurance company, which agrees to pay out an income or a lump sum amount at a later date. Variable annuity contracts offer tax-deferred growth potential and optional features such as living and death benefits. Guarantees are based on the claims-paying ability of the issuing company. 

Withdrawals from an annuity contract are taxable as ordinary income and, if made prior to age 59½, may be subject to an additional 10% federal tax. Withdrawals may also be subject to withdrawal charges. Amounts invested in an annuity’s portfolios are subject to fluctuation in value and market risk, including loss of principal. There are fees and charges associated with a variable annuity contract, which include, but are not limited to, operations charges, sales and withdrawal charges, administrative fees, and additional charges for optional benefits. See the prospectus for complete details. 

If you are purchasing an annuity contract to fund an Individual Retirement Annuity (IRA) or employer-sponsored retirement plan, you should be aware that such annuities do not provide tax-deferral benefits beyond those already provided by the Internal Revenue Code. Before purchasing one of these annuities, you should consider whether its features and benefits beyond tax deferral meet your needs and goals. You may also want to consider the relative features, benefits and costs of these annuities with any other investment that you may use in connection with your retirement plan or arrangement. 

The contingent withdrawal charge declines from 7% over a seven-year period for the Series B product. Please see the prospectus for the withdrawal charge scale for other annuities in the Retirement Cornerstone® Series. This content is not a complete description of all material provisions of the variable annuity contract. The prospectus contains more complete information, including investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, limitations and restrictions. Please read the prospectus and any applicable supplements, and consider this information carefully before purchasing a contract. 

There are certain contract limitations and restrictions associated with the Retirement Cornerstone® contract, which include, but are not limited to, a contract fee and additional charges for optional benefits. In addition, the underlying investment portfolios charge management fees and have other expenses. Certain types of contracts, features and benefits may not be available in all jurisdictions. Equitable offers other variable annuity contracts with different fees, charges and features. Not every contract is available through the same selling broker/dealer. Equitable may discontinue contributions and transfers among investment options or make other changes in contribution and transfer requirements and limitations. If we discontinue contributions and transfers into the Protected Benefit Account, you will no longer be able to fund your guaranteed benefits. 

When distributed outside of New York State by Equitable Advisors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC) (Equitable Financial Advisors in MI and TN) through Equitable Advisors Financial Professionals who do not have an office in New York State, Retirement Cornerstone® 19 is issued by Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company of America (Equitable America), an AZ stock company.  When offered by Equitable Advisors Financial Professionals who do have an office in New York State or when distributed by Equitable Distributors, LLC through financial professionals of unaffiliated broker-dealers, Retirement Cornerstone® 19 is issued by Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (Equitable Financial) (NY, NY).The obligations of Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company and Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company of America are backed solely by their own claims-paying abilities.

Equitable is the brand name of the retirement and protection subsidiaries of Equitable Holdings, Inc. including Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (NY, NY); Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company of America, an AZ stock company; and Equitable Distributors, LLC. Equitable Advisors is the brand name of Equitable Advisors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC) (Equitable Financial Advisors in MI & TN).

Contract form #s: ICC12BASE4 and ICC12BASE3 and any state variations.

GE-5453955.1 (03/2023) (Exp. 03/2025)