An Agent s Guide To Understanding American Equity s Indexed Annuities.

An Agent s Guide To Understanding American Equity s Indexed Annuities.

2 An American Success Story Corporate mission statements are nice, but what really matters is having every agent of American Equity truly know and understand the company with which they choose to do business. We don t take this lightly because we desire to earn a lasting relationship, and believe the better you know us, the longer we ll be working together. American Equity is the third largest carrier of indexed annuities.* We are an American-owned and operated company traded on the NYSE with assets over $21.1 billion.** Our driving passion is world-class service, and providing straightforward products that deliver true value and safety. We fondly refer to this as sleep insurance. Over 10 years ago I retired on a Friday, and on the following Monday started American Equity from scratch, with a business plan written on a legal pad, and a proven management team. However, before anyone came on board, they were instructed to arrive with a check in hand to ensure their vested interest, or what I commonly refer to as having skin in the game. Today, we are recognized industry-wide as a pioneer of Indexed Annuities with over 37,000 licensed agents in 49 states. While independent, it s important to note these agents have rated us #1 in overall service through an independent study,*** and we continue to set ourselves apart from other companies by providing world-class service to our policyholders. Unlike any other company in the insurance industry, American Equity achieved in a decade what others took a century to do. We invite you to take a moment to learn why American Equity is the Smart Choice among indexed annuity carriers, and we look forward to demonstrating our commitment to value and service in a way that you can experience it first hand. D.J. Noble Executive Chairman *Source: AnnuitySpecs.com **As of 12/31/10. Liabilities as of 12/31/10 are $19.7 Billion. ***Conducted by The Advantage Group in August and September 2003. FOR AGENT USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN SOLICITATION OR ADVERTISING TO THE PUBLIC.

Introduction At American Equity we believe in training our agents on all aspects of our products. The more knowledge you as an agent have the better you can service your clients. The following information will help you get a complete picture of how our Indexed Annuity products work. About the Company Providing Sleep Insurance to our contract owners is a key principle of American Equity. Minimum guarantees ensure that contract owners cannot lose premium due to index volatility. Additionally, our contract owners and beneficiaries are not required to annuitize their Contract to receive their Contract Value at death or at the end of the Surrender Charge Period. A Leader in Indexed Annuities American Equity strives to be a leader and innovator in Indexed Annuities. American Equity was the first company to introduce the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index on an Indexed Annuity. We also are the third largest carrier of indexed annuities. * *Source: AnnuitySpecs.com Agent Product Training American Equity offers two agent webconferences each month. We choose from a broad range of topics to discuss. Along with our webconferences we have an Agent Training page on our Interactive Agent Website. This provides product training and application training along with other resources. Superior Service Policies issued 24-48 hours from time cash is received. Commissions are paid daily by EFT. Online supplies are available 24 hours a day. We answer the phones! Safety Continually maintain an exceptionally high quality asset portfolio. 97% Investment Grade Bond Portfolio, as of December 31, 2010. About the Company 3 CALL US AT 888-647-1371 OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.AMERICAN-EQUITY.COM.

True Asset Preservation 4 TRUE Liquidity & Accessibility American Equity understands that your cli ents access to their money is very important. Our annuities do not force annuitization at surrender or death payouts. While most financial vehicles charge penalties for Withdrawals before maturity, our annuities offer an annual Penalty-free Withdrawal of up to 10% after the first Contract Anniversary with no cap over the life of the contract. In the first year, your client may receive interest income from the fixed interest account as quickly as 30 days after their contract is issued with systematic withdrawals. We also allow for required minimum distributions of qualified money 30 days after Contract Issue. (However, interest and minimum distribution systematic withdrawals are available only from the Fixed Value.)* Withdrawals prior to age 59½ may be subject to IRS penalties. Our Special Feature Riders (NCR-100 and TIR-100)**, are for annuitants under age 75 at issue. The NCR-100 allows you to take a 100% Penalty-free Withdrawal after the 3rd Contract Anniversary if confinement in a Qualified Nursing Care Center occurs after the end of the 3rd Contract Year and continuing for at least 90 consecutive days. If confinement occurs in the 2nd or 3rd Contract Year then an annual 20% Penalty-free Withdrawal is allowed. The TIR-100 allows you to take an additional Penalty-free Withdrawal of up to 100% of the Contract Value if the diagnosis of a terminal illness by a qualified physician occurs after the first Contract Year, and is expected to result in death within one year. The proceeds may be used however you choose. The Lifetime Income Benefit Rider is available on many of our Indexed Products.** This rider allows the owner/annuitant to receive guaranteed income for life without annuitization. The income amount is a percentage of the Income Account Value based on the owner/annuitant s (O/A) age at time of election. There are two accumulation options, 5% or 8%, to choose from. There may be a fee charged annually based on the accumulation option selected. This rider is added to all contracts only if Owner & Annuitant are the same person. Availability may vary by issue age. If the Income Account Value is less than the Contract Value, the Income Account Value will step up to equal the Contract Value. See Lifetime Income Benefit Rider (LIBR) brochure (Form #1127) for more details. Please Note: IAV only used to calculate lifetime payments. Not part of underlying contract or available in a lump sum. *Benefit not guaranteed and subject to change. **Not available on all products. Please see Product Profile (Form #1031) and State Approval chart (From #1025) for availability. FOR AGENT USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN SOLICITATION OR ADVERTISING TO THE PUBLIC.

TRUE Choices & Flexibility American Equity offers TRUE Choices through many available interest crediting methods: Equity-Indexed Interest Crediting Methods - S&P 500 Monthly Point to Point - Dow Monthly Average - S&P 500 Monthly Average - Dow Annual Point to Point - S&P 500 Annual Point to Point Bond-Indexed Interest Crediting Methods - 10-year U.S.Treasury Bond Fixed Interest Other annuity providers may offer several indexed interest crediting methods, but that doesn t necessarily result in true flexibility. American Equity is the only company offering both bond and equity-indexed interest crediting methods in most of our Indexed Annuities. The product illustrated below allowed annual reallocation of premiums to respond to changing market conditions. Because you are not participants in the Market, Index Credits can never be lost due to index volatility once credited. True Flexibility Bonus Gold (Index-1-05) Contract Year End Fixed S&P Point to Point w/ S&P Monthly Avg. w/ S&P Monthly Point to Point w/ Dow Jones Monthly Avg w/ Dow Jones Point to Point w/ Bond S&P Monthly Avg w/ PR S&P Point to Point w/ PR 7/1/05 3.25% 4.43% 1.84% 4.05% 0% 0% 5% N/A N/A 7/1/06 3.25% 6.62% 5.59% 6.04% 5.68% 8% 0% 4.19% 3.31% 7/1/07 3.25% 6% 8% 13.94% 8% 6% 5% 8.13% 9.18% 7/1/08 3.15% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 4.5% 0% 0% 7/1/09 3.15% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 4.5% 0% 0% 7/1/10 3.15% 6% 7% 0% 7% 6% 4% 10.09% 3.94% Minimum Guaranteed Interest Rate applies. Asset Fees, s and/or Participation Rates may apply. Surrender Charges apply. The above information reflects past activity of actual credited rate on previous product and is not intended to represent guarantees or projections of future results. This is not an illustration of potential results and should not be construed as such. *This graph is based on actual credited rates for periods shown on the INDEX-1-05 product, which is no longer available for sale. Contract form numbers may vary by state. 5 CALL US AT 888-647-1371 OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.AMERICAN-EQUITY.COM.

Choices & Flexibility 6 TRUE Choices & Flexibility (Cont d) Our Indexed Annuities allow annual reallocation between values. Agents and clients receive a Transfer of Values (TOV) letter at the 11th-month anniversary. The clients may notify us by mailing or faxing the TOV form, or by speaking with one of the service representatives in our Policy Service Department. If we don t receive notification, the allocations will remain the same. TRUE Death Benefit The Death Benefit is equal to the greater of Contract Value or Minimum Guaranteed Surrender Value (MGSV), with no surrender charges, at first to die of Owner or Annuitant. For Joint Annuitants, it is paid at the second death, unless Annuitant was one of the Owners. Beneficiaries may elect to take the Death Benefit as a lump sum, a 5-year or lifetime payout. If the spouse is listed as beneficiary on a contract, s/he is permitted to continue the contract as new Owner after Owner/ Annuitant s death without surrender charges and s/he is free to walk away at any time. Standard & Poor s, S&P, S&P 500, Standard & Poor s 500, and 500 are trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. and have been licensed for use by American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company. This product is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Standard & Poor s, and Standard & Poor s makes no representation regarding the advisability of purchasing this product.s&p 500 Index does not include Dividends. Dow Jones, Dow Jones Industrial Averagesm and DJIAsm are service marks of Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and have been licensed for use for certain purposes by American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company. This product is linked to Dow Jones Industrial Averagesm, and is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Dow Jones; and Dow Jones makes no representation regarding the advisability of purchasing this product. DJIAsm does not include dividends. FOR AGENT USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE IN SOLICITATION OR ADVERTISING TO THE PUBLIC.

Annual Reset Indexed Interest, if any, is determined each contract year. The calculation methods used will depend on which interest crediting method(s) clients have chosen to allocate their money. The example below shows the history of American Equity s INDEX-5 Annuity, demonstrating the powerful benefits of indexed annuities with the annual reset interest crediting design. The Index-5 did exactly what it was supposed to do... gave the Contract Owner the opportunity to accumulate and lock in value based on the appreciation of the S&P 500 Index, without the risk of loss of Premium in years when the S&P 500 was negative. All of this is supported by a Minimum Guarantee. These results should not be an indication that indexed annuities will beat the S&P 500 every time. Annual Reset Example $170,000 $160,747 $160,000 $150,000 $140,000 $130,000 $120,000 $110,000 $100,000 $90,000 $80,000 $120,909 $100,000 $136,937 $70,000 1998 1999 (09/30/98) $115,090 2000 American Equity s INDEX-5 (09-30-98) through (09-30-10)) $125,080 $125,080 2001 $99,228 $78,869 $134,091 2002 Annual Monthly Average (INDEX-5) $125,155 $140,930 2003 $95,952 $145,749 $117,033 2004 S&P 500 American Equity s INDEX-5 is not available for sale. Past performance not an indication of future results. $106,268 $149,160 2005 $156,857 $127,344 2006 2007 Minimum Guaranteed Contract Value $156,857 $145,542 $111,033 $156,857 $100,770 $142,576 $108,789 2008 2009 2010 7Annual Reset CALL US AT 888-647-1371 OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.AMERICAN-EQUITY.COM.

1086 06.06.11 po box 71216 Des Moines, Iowa 50325 www.american-equity.com 888-647-1371