AQA Education, one of the main providers of GCSE and A-level exam services, has insured its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme with Rothesay.
The buy-in, which was completed in January, is worth £120m and covers all 869 members of the pension scheme, including 471 pensioners and 398 deferred members.
WTW was the lead adviser, scheme actuary and investment adviser for the pension scheme, while Mayer Brown provided legal advice to the AQA Pension Scheme’s trustees and Gowling advised Rothesay.
“Given the buoyancy of the pensions insurance market, we knew it was important to plan and invest in our scheme to ensure it was well-prepared.”
Nick Stevens, AQA
Nick Stevens, chief finance and corporate services officer at AQA, said: “Given the buoyancy of the pensions insurance market, we knew it was important to plan and invest in our scheme to ensure it was well-prepared. To secure the pensions of all scheme members with Rothesay represents a really positive outcome for the scheme’s members and AQA.”
Bruce Guthrie, chair of the trustee board, added: “The quick execution of this transaction is testament to the excellent preparation undertaken by the trustees and the expertise of our advisers, alongside the execution certainty delivered by Rothesay’s proven offering.”
Shelly Beard, managing director at WTW, said small and mid-sized pension schemes were still able to access competitive insurance pricing despite high demand and strong pipeline of transactions in progress this year.
