Monetizing Mortal Decline: Betting on the Terminally Ill

In the darkest corners of alternative investing, Wall Street has engineered a product where the payout is directly tied to the speed of someone's death. The market for viatical settlements, or "e;Death Bonds,"e; allows investors to purchase the life insurance policies of the terminally ill at a discount, paying the premiums until the original owner passes away. Born during the AIDS epidemic as a...