Here are resources relating to buying and selling existing life insurance policies as investments.

Canada

• Viaticals are high risk (Investment Executive, Sep 2005)
• Life, death, taxes, profit (GlobeAdvisor, Jan 2008)
• Viatical settlements ... what? (CCH, Jan 2008)
• Life settlements market readies for new blood (Investment Executive, Jan 2008)
• Trading in life insurance policies (Financial Post, undated)
• Life settlements -- too good to be true? (Gordon Pape, undated)

Insurers

• Trading in policies is not permitted (Sun Life's position, Jun 2012)
• Compassionate assistance (viatical settlement) (Manulife website)

US

• Profiting from mortality (Businessweek, Jul 2007)
• Wall Street pursues profits in bundles of life insurance (New York Times, Sep 2009)
• The growing trade in life insurance policies (Mackrill.com, Oct 2008)
• The trade-offs of selling your life insurance (SmartMoney, Nov 2009)
• Should you sell your life insurance policy? (US News, Jan 2011)
• The deal on life settlements (CBS News, Feb 2009)
• Investing in death? (Christian Money, May 2010) [includes video]
• Manulife (John Hancock) battles US life settlement industry (Globe & Mail, Mar 2011)
• Key points when evaluating a life settlement (Yahoo Voices, Jul 2, 2012)

Betty White

• Trusted Betty White now promoting risky investments (Daily Finance, Sep 2011)
• Betty White ad shows life settlement industry's attempt to buck niche status (insurancenewsnet.com, Feb 2012)

Stranger Originated Life Insurance (STOLI)

Sometimes life settlements are associated with Stranger Originated Life Insurance (STOLI) in which investors buy new policies on the lives of strangers. The investors pay the premiums and receive the death benefits.

• Wikipedia
• STOLI policies: buyer beware (Investor Protection, Jun 20120
• Insurance agents charged in $100 million fraud scheme (Forbes, Mar 2012)
• STOLI policies: insurance companies hate them, should you? (The Life Insurance Lawyer, Mar 2012)
• Elder abuse: The story behind STOLI (Learn About Fraud, Apr 2012)

UK

• Financial Services Authority warns over traded investments in life policies (Guardian, Feb 2012)