Pension Insurance Corporation plc

A round-up of schemes that launched/completed in Q3 2024: Built by Midgard Ltd, Packaged Living and CDL Hospitality Trusts opened its doors at The Castings scheme in Manchester: https://lnkd.in/eghk-m5h Greystar completed its first scheme in Paris, managed by its Canvas brand: https://lnkd.in/egPEXMTV Peel Waters celebrated practical completion on the first 150 homes at Millers Quay, built by GRAHAM Group: https://lnkd.in/eejTzQEY Apo Group Ltd and Invesco Ltd. completed the first phase of The Holloway, built by Winvic Construction Ltd: https://lnkd.in/eUMdN4k3 Moda opened its doors to Moda, Holland Park in Glasgow, which includes 433 homes: https://lnkd.in/ecnnyrGn Grainger PLC completed its £63m Millwrights Place scheme in Bristol, which includes 231 homes: https://lnkd.in/eF5sJDfe The Lincoln Property Company and MGT Investment Management JV completed the ‘Flow’ building at its Ebb&Flow scheme: https://lnkd.in/ePu7Dm-W Cityheart launched its Stopford Park scheme in Stockport, which includes 442 apartments: https://lnkd.in/eQCgApJQ Native Communities launched The Blossoms scheme in Croydon, which includes 338 larger than average homes with state-of-the-art kitchens: https://lnkd.in/eNdhrwxJ With a finance facility from Secure Trust Bank to deliver the scheme, Edmond de Rothschild REIM celebrated completion at Lace Market Quarter in Nottingham: https://lnkd.in/eZbBm2ry Delivered on behalf of Get Living, Watkin Jones Group competed the first phase of Sherlock Quarter: https://lnkd.in/eHN6JDXu British Land celebrated the launch of the Alma scheme in London's zone 1, which includes 159 homes: https://lnkd.in/eFmwUVTW Placefirst launched its Bay Mill scheme in Lancashire, a £4.5m transformation of 0.27 hectares of brownfield land: https://lnkd.in/dm8EYGzv The final phase of Placefirst's Welsh Street SFH BTR scheme completed: https://lnkd.in/dMpf3seR Developed by HG Living with HG Construction, Pension Insurance Corporation plc practically completed Arbour, designed by rg+p: https://lnkd.in/eqjqz4J9 Casa by Moda launched its first two SFH BTR schemes in Leeds and Doncaster: https://lnkd.in/ewVtA5GQ #btrnews #btr #buildtorent #singlefamily #sfh #residential #builtenvironment #sfr

Amazing to be part of the New Office GoLive for PIC. They have adopted the ServiceNow platform to deliver multiple business and workplace services at their new home in 22 Ropemaker Street. An amazing working space overlooking the city. Congratulations to Philip Conroy and Paul Lockwood and their wider team to what they achieved in the last 12 months. Francis Nartey well done on an amazing cake to match the occasion! Pension Insurance Corporation plc ServiceNow

It’s been a week of celebration for us at RedSTART Educate and a fantastic end to the year, after an intense and impactful 2024. Our brilliant strategic funding partners, Manulife | CQS Investment Management put us up in their fabulous offices on Trafalgar Square, so we had the best view of the sun setting over Nelson’s column, the sparkly Christmas market and the slightly underwhelming tree. We were also treated to some wonderful breakfast pastries that fuelled a very productive day as we looked at planning and efficiency and how that supports our scaling objective in 2025. Huge thanks to Victoria Simmons and Soraya Chabarek who have been supporters of ours from the start of #ChangetheGame. We also had some fantastic news from Pension Insurance Corporation plc who agreed to renew our strategic funding partnership for another 3 years and from Schroders who have extended their strategic funding partnership with us into 2025. We are so grateful to both organisations and are looking forward to working with you to deliver on our strategy in the coming years. We wish all our wonderful volunteers, teachers, funders, supporters and the 28,000 children who are now part of the #ChangetheGame programme, a very merry Christmas and a peaceful and joy filled New Year. We would not be where we are without you! Thank you so much. Here we are at the CQS office, about to head off for our Christmas meal and farewell drinks for our Christina Lartey, who leaves us at the end of the month to set up her own business, and a photo of our CEO, Sarah Marks, with a yellow, 13 foot penguin, at the brand new offices of PIC.

We’re excited to announce that Pension Insurance Corporation plc has signed its second deal with CUR8 to help address their operational emissions. Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC), a specialist insurer, has purchased +800 tonne carbon removal portfolio, neutralising the fit-out of their new 22 Ropemaker Street offices in London. PIC has taken a proactive approach to managing their net zero risk by designing a highly energy-efficient building that minimises operational carbon emissions. This portfolio of carbon removals aligns with emerging best practices for net-zero offsetting of embodied carbon in the real estate sector by the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) and the newly revised Oxford Offsetting Principles (by Oxford Net Zero). CUR8 will manage a diverse portfolio of removal credits that consists of five leading global projects across the spectrum of nature-based to human-engineered, such as: 1PointFive, a global direct air capture (DAC) leader set to have the world’s first plant capable of reaching megatonne scale; and Carboneers, an Indian biochar initiative with strong social and community co-benefits. Alongside this, they will use CUR8's proprietary Credit Management Platform to ensure that their portfolio delivers on PIC’s sustainability goals. PIC first purchased carbon removal credits earlier in 2024 to remove business travel emissions from previous years. Cléo Fitzsimons Cameron Scott Dominique Airey

Every year we are delighted to welcome thousands of policyholders to our hugely popular, free-of-charge policyholder events, which are designed to give them the opportunity to meet the people who are responsible for looking after their pensions.   This year, held in nine different locations across the UK, our event before Christmas was held at the Balmoral Hotel, in Edinburgh. Over lunch 300 policyholders and their guests also heard from celebrity speaker and TV doctor, Dr Sarah Jarvis, MBE. As well as finding out about how we are managing their pensions, many of our policyholders also use the occasion to reconnect with former colleagues or friends.   #policyholders #pensions #directbenefitpensions #investments #socialvalue #purpose

Very excited to announce a second deal with CUR8 for the purchase of a diversified portfolio of high integrity carbon removal credits. A carbon removal credit represents 1 tonne of CO₂ removed from the atmosphere which is physically stored for hundreds to thousands of years. Unlike carbon offsets that pay for the avoidance of emissions or protection of natural carbon sinks (eg, forests), carbon removal is a new asset class that is universally recognised by scientists to be critical, alongside deep decarbonisation, to stopping climate change. CUR8 will manage our portfolio of removal credits which consists of five leading global projects across the spectrum of nature-based to human-engineered, such as: 1PointFive, a global direct air capture (DAC) leader set to have the world’s first plant capable of reaching megatonne scale; and Carboneers, an Indian biochar initiative with strong social and community co-benefits. Alongside this, they will use CUR8's proprietary Credit Management Platform to ensure that their portfolio delivers on PIC’s sustainability goals. 

Today we announced that PIC has concluded its first full scheme buy-in within Mosaic, PIC’s streamlined service for pension schemes with assets under £100 million. The £20 million transaction covers the benefits of 103 members of the General Council of the Bar (“GCB”) Pension and Life Assurance Fund (“the Fund”). The buy-in was completed and signed within 10 weeks of PIC receiving the Fund data: https://lnkd.in/eMuNuJiJ   Mosaic was launched by PIC in April 2024 in order to offer price monitoring and standardised processes and contracts to give small schemes a straightforward, efficient way of securing their members’ benefits with PIC. Mosaic includes dedicated resources to support schemes through all stages of the transaction and post-buyout transition, ensuring excellent levels of customer service in line with service levels for PIC all other schemes. PIC expects to complete one further transaction with a different sponsor under Mosaic by year end.   Malcolm Cree CBE, Chief Executive of the GCB, said: “The General Council of the Bar is pleased to have supported the Trustee in securing this buy-in policy, which demonstrates our commitment to the Fund and members’ security. This transaction is a major step in our cooperative approach with the Trustee to reduce risk over the years. We would like to acknowledge the hard work of PIC, the Trustee and all the advisers for their effective teamwork in completing the transaction.”   Pavan Bhardwaj, Chair of Trustees for the Fund said: “PIC’s Mosaic framework allowed us to work through the process efficiently as sole corporate trustee in order to capitalise on an improved funding position and achieve an excellent result for members.”   Louise Nash, Senior Origination Actuary at PIC, said: “We’re delighted to have concluded this deal with the General Counsel of the Bar Fund, our first within the Mosaic framework. Mosaic is an innovative offering which provides capacity and brings efficiencies in a market segment where demand for streamlined risk transfer options is increasing.” Matthew Plail, Partner at XPS Group, said: “As Scheme Actuary to the Fund it has been a pleasure to help the XPS Risk Settlement team conclude the first ever Mosaic transaction.”   David Barratt, Senior Consultant from XPS Risk Settlement added, “The framework enables a professional and efficient process evidenced by the short time frame taken to transaction. We look forward to seeing more clients benefiting from Mosaic in the near future.”   Andy Simpson, Risk Transfer Partner at Mercer, said: “As advisers to the GCB, we are delighted to have worked with the Trustee to achieve such a successful outcome for the long-term security of the members’ benefits. The Mosaic process delivered by PIC meant that the Fund was able to achieve this important milestone within a set timeframe.”   #policyholders #pensions #mosaic

Senior Living Investment Partners ('SLIP'), a partnership between PIC, and specialist real estate lender and investor Octopus Real Estate ('Octopus'), has announced another investment via its joint venture with Elysian Residences Ltd: https://lnkd.in/ef4f-D3t The 100-unit Integrated Retirement Community will be located in Henley-on-Thames, a picturesque town in Oxfordshire, known for its scenic beauty, vibrant community and the world-famous annual Henley Royal Regatta. The development is part of a wider strategic partnership with Elysian Residences and is funded through the SLIP JV with Elysian. This is the third Elysian site that SLIP has invested in and the fifth site overall with Elysian across the Octopus-managed Retirement Living funds. Max Cawthorn, Head of Strategy, PIC Capital, added: “Our latest IRC investment marks our third development in collaboration with Elysian. This partnership is crucial in addressing the longstanding underfunding in the senior living sector. The Henley development, like our other projects, exemplifies our commitment to high-quality, purpose-driven investments. We aim to deliver an unparalleled experience that significantly enhances the quality of life for residents.” Mathilde Guittard, Investment Director at Octopus Real Estate, commented: “As ever, we are thrilled to work with Elysian Residences to deliver this new IRC in Henley-on-Thames. Through our partnership with PIC, we aim to deliver some of the highest quality developments the later living sector has seen, with a drive towards both carbon efficiency and significant health and wellbeing benefits for the UK’s older population. This investment aligns with our commitment to providing high-quality, sustainable homes for all stages of a person’s life. The new community will offer residents a vibrant community with access to excellent amenities and services.” Gavin Stein, CEO, Elysian Residences, concluded: “The demand for retirement communities continues to grow, and we are delighted to partner with Octopus Real Estate and PIC to meet the high demand in Henley-on-Thames. Our partnership puts customers at the heart of what we do, allowing us to continue to innovate for the benefit of both customers and society, and work hard to serve all key stakeholders, including the local community of Henley-On-Thames, which we are proud to become part of.” This transaction builds on growing investment momentum in the retirement living sector. The addition of the scheme to the Octopus portfolio means the two Octopus institutional retirement living Funds are now fully committed across 11 properties, delivering over 2,400 much-needed beds to the sector. #retirementcommunity #seniorliving #investments #policyholders #pensions #uk #socialvalue Bryony Harrap, Hayley Rees, Rob Groves

Today we announced that PIC has entered into a strategic partnership with SEI® to allow trustees the ability to transfer Defined Contribution (“DC”) pension benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (“AVC”) into the SEI Master Trust in bulk, as part of their buyout arrangements: https://lnkd.in/e62-BEud     For the trustees of Defined Benefit (“DB”) schemes considering buyout this collaboration is important. It gives DB scheme members who also have DC pension arrangements and AVC’s the opportunity to access the SEI Master Trust, with its market-leading investment default fund and broad array of investment options, before entering the buyout arrangement.   Traditionally, DB pension scheme members may look to exchange some of their guaranteed pension income in order to take a tax-free pension commencement lump sum as well as a lower guaranteed pension income.   Founded in 1968, SEI is a global provider of solutions across investment processing, operations, and investment management. As of September 30, 2024, SEI manages, advises, or administers approximately US $1.6 trillion in assets. Employing approximately 5,000 employees, SEI is headquartered in Oaks, Pennsylvania, US, and has offices around the world, including London.   Matt Richards, Head of Origination Structuring at PIC, said: “This new partnership between PIC and SEI allows the trustees of DB schemes looking to enter into a buyout the ability to offer their members improved outcomes. We are very pleased with the outcome and look forward to continuing to work closely with SEI on this exciting partnership.”   Steve Charlton, SEI Managing Director, DC and Solutions, EMEA and Asia, said: “I’m delighted to launch our strategic partnership with PIC, as we work together to deliver stability to members and help build their confidence that their financial futures are secure. In joining forces I believe we have an opportunity to further our commitment to the institutional market and shape member outcomes for the better.” #pensions #bulkannuity #policyholders #investments #socialvalue

Given the focus this week on how to meet the Government's 1.5m milestone and deliver the homes that are needed, this is a really well timed report and it was great to hear from our local government colleagues while offering the housing association perspective. There are huge opportunities in regeneration, and watch this space for more from SNG (Sovereign Network Group) coming up. Thanks to Martin George, Melissa Theo, and the whole team at Local Government Chronicle and Pension Insurance Corporation plc for bringing us together.