On the go: The circa £446.9m Wyeth Group Pension and Life Assurance Scheme, which includes both defined benefit and defined contribution sections, has completed a £190m annuity buy-in transaction with Aviva.
Aviva will insure the liabilities of around 2,000 of the scheme’s DB members.
Debbie Berney, chair of trustees of the Wyeth Group Pension and Life Assurance Scheme, welcomed the transaction — which follows a 2018 buy-in with Just Retirement — as the “second phase in ensuring the scheme is able to meet the full costs of its future pension payments to all members”.
Patrick McKenna, senior director of international pensions at Pfizer, which owns scheme sponsor John Wyeth & Brother, added: “This is another important step for the scheme and wider group as we seek to secure members’ benefits and reduce the risk exposures of our pension arrangements.
“Aviva put forward attractive pricing and innovative proposals to address a complex set of benefits, and we are pleased to partner with them on this transaction.”
Mercer Investment Consulting advised the trustees on the transaction, with Allen & Overy providing legal advice.
Separately, the scheme began its latest triennial actuarial valuation at the end of last year.
The last full valuation, conducted as at December 31 2017, found a funding level of 105 per cent for the DB and DC sections, equating to a surplus of around £28.4m.
This article originally appeared on MandateWire.com
