Banks sold a total of $4.2 billion in annuities in October, up 24% from the October 2006 total.
Fixed annuity sales rose to $1.9 billion in October, from $1.6 billion a year earlier, while variable annuities climbed to $2.3 billion, from $1.8 billion, according to Kehrer-LIMRA, a division of LIMRA International, Windsor, Conn.