Insurer Default Swaps Climb Amid Renewed Bank-Sector Angst (1)

The cost to protect the debt of Lincoln National Corp., MetLife Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc. from default jumped Friday as concerns about financial-sector stability weighed on insurance firms.

Five-year credit-default swaps tied Lincoln National’s senior debt climbed as much as 29 basis points Friday to 299 basis points, according to ICE Data Services. That’s up from 185 basis points earlier this month. Similar contracts for MetLife rose up to 33 basis points to 160 basis points.

Markets are once again on edge as growing signs of an economic slump weighed again on banks. The lenders were already battered ...