Rounding up the latest activity in the bulk annuity market, including Rothesay’s double buy-in for a manufacturing company and two sub-£5m pension schemes insured by Just Group.
Royal London, one of the newest entrants to the UK bulk annuity market, has completed its 10th transaction of the year with a buy-in for the Pandrol Group Pension Scheme.
The £45m transaction covers around 200 members of the pension scheme, which is sponsored by railway engineering specialist Pandrol.
Barnett Waddingham provided risk transfer advice to the trustees, while CMS was the legal adviser. PwC and Gunnercooke provided advice to Pandrol.
Richard Gibson, risk transfer partner at Barnett Waddingham, said the Pandrol Group Pension Scheme was a longstanding client, which meant Barnett Waddingham was able to help the trustees move quickly on the transaction when the opportunity arose.
Royal London’s previous transactions in 2025 include a £120m triple buy-in for three pension schemes sponsored by German airline Lufthansa, as well as a £37m buy-in with the British Heart Foundation’s pension scheme. Its biggest deal to date was a £275m buy-in with law firm Grant Thornton’s pension scheme, completed in the first half of this year.
Materials manufacturer insures two schemes with Rothesay
Rothesay has completed a buy-in worth a combined £105m with two pension schemes sponsored by subsidiaries of Mativ Holdings, a materials manufacturing company.
The bulk of the transaction relates to the Scapa Group Limited Pension Scheme and was priced at £100m, insuring 1,256 deferred and pensioner members.
The smaller £5m transaction relates to the Fibermark UK Pension Plan, and covers 85 members.
Mercer was the lead risk transfer adviser on the deal, with Pinsent Masons providing legal advice to the trustees. Rothesay received legal advice from Eversheds Sutherland.
“The pensions de-risking market remains highly competitive, yet this transaction demonstrates that there is capacity for all well-prepared schemes to secure the future for their members – even complex ones.”
John Martin, Mercer
Vidett’s Rebecca Wood, chair of trustees for both pension schemes, said: “Completing this buy-in is an important step for the schemes in providing pension security for all of our members. Rothesay’s proven execution capabilities and ability to innovate enabled a smooth transaction despite the more complex multi-scheme arrangement.”
John Martin, principal at Mercer, added: “The pensions de-risking market remains highly competitive, yet this transaction demonstrates that there is capacity for all well-prepared schemes to secure the future for their members – even complex ones.”
Just insures micro schemes for bank and aviation company
Earlier this month, Just Group completed a pair of unrelated buy-ins for pension schemes with less than £5m in liabilities.
It has insured the Philippine National Bank Retirement Benefits Scheme in a £1m deal, securing the benefits of all members of the bank’s retirement fund. The Philippine National Bank’s UK subsidiary was set up to serve the Filipino community in the UK.
Mercer was the lead adviser on the deal, with DLA Piper providing legal advice. Just Group was advised by its in-house legal team.
Alma Goyanes-Payne, deal manager at Just Group, said the deal showed that “even the smallest schemes can secure their members’ benefits through the insurance market”.
Separately, Just Group has also insured the pension scheme of an unnamed aviation industry firm for £3.8m.
K3 Advisory was the lead adviser on the deal, with investment advice and other services provided by Cartwright. Burges Salmon was the legal adviser to PAN Trustees, acting as sole trustee.
The buy-in was complicated by some pensioners having partial benefits already insured, which K3 Advisory said required “robust project management and close collaboration” between all parties.
PAN Trustees’ Lynne Stewart said: “Securing a binding quote and completing the buy-in transaction swiftly and efficiently was a significant achievement for all parties involved. A key factor in this success was the proactive approach to resolving data issues as they emerged – challenges were identified early, addressed collaboratively, and resolved quickly.”
Sam Roberts, director of investment consulting at Cartwright, added: “We took over the scheme with a clear instruction to secure a buy-in within a relatively short timeframe. There were some legacy complexities to navigate, alongside challenges presented where a sizeable number of the members had existing annuities, but we were very pleased to secure a binding quote within five months of starting and transact within six – an extremely strong outcome.”
