All Annuities articles – Page 3
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NewsDC market proves resilient during pandemic but challenges remain
A continuation of positive trends alongside the benefits of auto-enrolment has shaped the defined contribution pensions space over the past year, but complications surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic have brought the need to mitigate future risks to the fore.
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NewsPearl Group pension fund completes further buy-in
On the go: The £2.9bn Pearl Group Staff Pension Scheme, one of Phoenix Group’s main pension schemes, has completed a second £998m buy-in with the group’s life assurance company, Phoenix Life.
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NewsLadbrokes Pension Plan agrees £420m buyout with Rothesay Life
On the go: The Ladbrokes Pension Plan has agreed a full buyout worth £420m with Rothesay Life, the scheme confirmed to Pensions Expert’s sister publication MandateWire.
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NewsRushing DC consolidation could hurt member outcomes
The Department for Work and Pensions wants to speed up consolidation among schemes with less than £5bn in assets. Although the initiative was broadly welcomed, experts have warned that rushing its implementation could worsen member outcomes.
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NewsMore advice needed on ‘fiendishly complicated’ pension freedoms
Pension freedoms have presented members with “fiendishly complicated” choices and providers are being stymied by the blurred line between guidance and advice, a hearing of the Work and Pensions Committee has heard.
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NewsMorrisons’ pension schemes complete buy-ins
On the go: The £5.1bn Morrison and Safeway Care Schemes, which include the Wm Morrison 1967 Section of the Morrisons Retirement Saver Plan and the Safeway Pension Scheme, entered into two new buy-in policies during the year to January 2021.
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NewsMPs urged to tweak 25% tax-free cash rules
On the go: Pensions consultancy LCP has proposed new rules that would allow pension savers to access tax-free cash at a normal minimum pension age while leaving the remaining balance behind.
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NewsAviation scheme spared material detriment in sponsor’s acquisition
On the go: The trustee of the Signature Aviation Income and Protection Fund has been left satisfied after the pension scheme escaped any material detriment arising from its sponsor acquisition by Brown Bidco.
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NewsReuters Pension Fund incorporates ESG factors to improve returns
The £2.8bn Reuters Pension Fund is integrating environmental, social and governance factors into its portfolio in order to improve risk-adjusted returns, while achieving a funding level above 100 per cent in 2020.
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Shepherd Foods completes £3m buyout with Aviva
On the go: The Shepherd Foods (London) Limited defined benefit pension scheme has completed a £3m buyout with Aviva Group.
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Guidance brings ‘welcome clarity’ for trustees over financial advice
On the go: New guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator has clarified what constitutes unregulated financial advice, allowing schemes to offer cash equivalent transfer value quotations and annuity estimates, but banning drawdown illustrations.
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AkzoNobel transfers assets to master trust
On the go: The AkzoNobel Benefit Builder, which closed to future contributions in October last year, has transferred the majority of its assets to a defined contribution master trust with Mercer.
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PodcastsPodcast: Budget 2021 - ‘Reckless conservatism’ in DB landscape
Podcast: Wednesday’s budget did not go far enough to counter the “reckless conservatism” in the defined benefit landscape when it comes to risk and growth assets, hampering the government’s drive to unleash pensions on the post-pandemic recovery, according to Conservative party peer baroness Ros Altmann. She is joined by Isio partner Mike Smedley, in a discussion that also includes the lifetime allowance freeze and what was missing from the chancellor’s statement.
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One-year contribution holidays could spur economic recovery
On the go: Conservative peer Baroness Ros Altmann has recommended that the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announces a year-long contribution freeze for defined benefit scheme sponsors to boost business recovery.
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MPs to examine savers’ options when accessing pensions
On the go: The Work and Pensions Committee will examine the options available to savers when they come to access their pensions, which is the second part of its inquiry into pension freedoms.
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Bulk annuity deals drive insurers to sustainable investments
On the go: UK life insurers could allocate up to £170bn to illiquid investments over the next decade, with a substantial portion focusing on new sustainable assets, according to Fitch Ratings.
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NewsEngineering group speeds up derisking as market nears £30bn
At the tail end of what has been the second biggest year ever for derisking transactions, engineering services group Renew Holdings completed a £110m buy-in with Rothesay Life for its Lovell Pension Scheme.
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NewsWeekly roundup: It’s not easy being Green
Welcome to Pensions Expert’s roundup of a week in which we bade farewell to a few of the high street’s better-known names, and the Pension Protection Fund brightened everyone’s mood with its new doomsday scenario.
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Court of Appeal gives green light to Pru annuity sale
On the go: The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court ruling that blocked the transfer of £12bn of annuities from Prudential, now M&G, to Rothesay Life.
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OpinionGuidance needs stronger nudges to prevent future disaster
We are fond of a good nudge in this country.