All Defined benefit articles
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OpinionCovenant comes of age: A journey from crisis to confidence
The importance of the employer covenant has helped shape UK pensions regulation, writes Arabella Slinger of the Society of Pension Professionals. The Pension Schemes Bill shows there is no sign of its importance reducing.
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NewsBritish Heart Foundation completes £37m buy-in with Royal London
The charity has insured the benefits of more than 200 members through a transaction that was completed in just 14 working days.
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NewsEngineering organisation secures £40m buy-in with PIC
The transaction secures the benefits of all 200 members of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ defined benefit pension scheme.
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NewsM&G backs £205m buy-in for Huntsman Pension Scheme
The deal insures the pensions of more than 660 retirees and deferred pensioners and was completed in the first quarter of 2025.
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FeaturesFive Questions For… Morten Nilsson, Brightwell
Pensions Expert spoke to Brightwell chief executive Morten Nilsson about the government’s surplus release plans, and how he envisages sharing the BT Pension Scheme’s experiences with the wider market.
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NewsChurch scheme secures £4m buy-in as smaller deals set to increase
New endgame options and macroeconomic conditions have slowed the bulk annuity market, according to Broadstone, but deals for smaller pension schemes are expected to continue to grow.
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OpinionWhy you should attend the Pensions Expert DB Strategic Summit
Dawn Turner, former chief executive of the Brunel Pensions Partnership, looks back on a busy year so far as she prepares to chair Pensions Expert’s Defined Benefit Strategic Summit in September.
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NewsHonda steers £800m buy-in with L&G for DB pension scheme
The £800m transaction secures the retirement benefits of more than 1,700 retirees and 3,000 deferred members, and included a deferred premium element to help the trustees manage illiquid assets.
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NewsDB schemes ride out Q2 volatility to retain strong funding position
Ongoing tariff negotiations and the Autumn Budget are among the risks trustees must navigate over the coming months, as well as ongoing discussions around surplus release.
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OpinionThe Friday Takeaway: We’ve got bills, they’re multiplying
Defined benefit pension schemes have been left rather upset by an unexpected bill, but could be rescued by a different Bill, as Pensions Expert editor Nick Reeve explores.
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NewsEuropean insurance giant acquires Pension Insurance Corporation in £5.7bn deal
Pension Insurance Corporation, the specialist bulk annuity provider, has been acquired by European insurance giant Athora in a deal worth an estimated £5.7bn.
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NewsCall for levy reform as pension schemes hit with ‘surprise’ £15m PPF bill [updated]
Pensions UK is calling for urgent government action after DB pension schemes were unexpectedly billed for an administration levy connected to the PPF, with the largest schemes facing bills of hundreds of thousands of pounds.
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NewsPLSA rebrands to Pensions UK as part of fresh five-year strategy
The pensions industry’s trade body has rebranded itself as Pensions UK following a detailed review of its strategy, and set out a plan to expand its reach and influence over the next five years.
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NewsNew mortality model signals first rise in pensioner life expectancy since pandemic
The latest update to the Continuous Mortality Investigation model has shown an increase in reported life expectancies for retirees for the first time in several years.
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NewsBus company scheme exits PPF assessment with buy-in
Insurance company Just Group has helped a pension scheme exit the Pension Protection Fund’s assessment period through a £5m buy-in.
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OpinionSPP: How the government’s proposed DB surplus release rules will work
In one of the biggest changes to the rules for defined benefit schemes in years, trustees will soon be allowed to relax rules around releasing surpluses. Bina Mistry of the Society of Pension Professionals explains how this could work.
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OpinionThe Friday Takeaway: Mulling over the road to reform
We’re all geared up for pension reform after the publication of the Pension Schemes Bill, but we’re going to have to wait a while, as Pensions Expert editor Nick Reeve finds out.
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NewsClara takes on church scheme in ‘connected covenant’ first
In the first superfund transaction involving a non-profit sponsor, Clara has introduced a model allowing the retention of a sponsor link, which it says adds to member security.
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OpinionRailpen chief: Lessons from six months in pensions – and where we go next
The new chief executive of the railway sector’s industry-wide pension scheme highlights four key priorities as Railpen prepares for the changes and challenges ahead.
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NewsMcGregor Construction scheme secures £7m buy-in with Just Group
The buy-in secured members’ benefits at or above those provided by the Pension Protection Fund, after the sponsor went into insolvency in 2022.