Just Group has completed a £16m buy-in for the defined benefit (DB) pension scheme of a military veterans’ charity, Royal Star & Garter.
Royal Star & Garter runs care homes and services for veterans and their partners living with disability or dementia.
The buy-in, which was completed in November, secured the benefits of 186 pensioners and 65 deferred members of the pension scheme.
Mercer was the lead adviser on the transaction, while Mills & Reeve provided legal advice to the trustee board. Just Group was advised by its in-house legal team.
Zedra’s Alan Greenlees, a professional trustee on the Royal Star & Garter DB scheme, said: “This has been a truly collaborative effort between the trustees, charity and all of our advisers, where we served a common objective of securing the best outcome for members.
“It has been a long-term strategic objective for the trustees and charity since before Zedra was first appointed, and it is particularly rewarding to see this being achieved ahead of time.”
The transaction made use of streamlined buy-in processes offered by Mercer and Just Group.
Cara Gordon, risk transfer consultant at Mercer, said its approach meant the scheme could obtain multiple quotes from insurers, “securing a deal that met both the trustees’ and charity’s selection criteria and fully supports the scheme members”.
