IFA Magazine’s Post

It seems that the markets are unimpressed by insurance company's success in swallowing DB pension schemes through “buy-out” and by price-fixing future buy-outs through “buy-ins”.

Aon has said that with activity in the UK risk settlement market showing no signs of slowing down. Smaller pension schemes need to make the right preparations to get the best attention for their proposed transaction. This year, Aon has already completed six deals – across five different insurers – with schemes of less than £150 million and is currently advising on transactions with more than 20 others of similar size. In all these cases, ‘Pathway’, Aon’s proposition for taking smaller transactions to market, has been utilised to gain insurer traction, to identify the approach to market that would deliver the best outcome for each scheme, and to drive the transaction as efficiently as possible. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dkfrd_xi #pensions #RiskSettlement #DefinedBenefit #DB Joe Hathaway

M&G plc has launched a Value Share Bulk Purchase Annuity proposition by completing a £500 million transaction with a private Corporate Sponsor and its UK Pension Scheme, insuring around 3,200 pensioner and deferred members.

HMRC have just released a new service to check and fill in any gaps in your national insurance records and see your forecasted pension. You will need a Government Gateway account. Links to set up are included. #HMRC #Statepension #NationalInsurance #Checkitout

As the market for pension risk transfers grows, so does the chatter and scrutiny around these involved transactions. In this final installment of a three-part series on transferring risk from defined benefit pension plans, we highlight the ongoing discussions in the marketplace around these complex but increasingly popular transactions. Read now: https://hubs.ly/Q02stdK10

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵? This is something that I strongly advise all clients do. If you don’t have an up-to-date beneficiary nomination form in place, your assets may be distributed in a way that is very different from what you had in mind. Making a beneficiary nomination puts you in control and gives you certainty over where your money will go. It can be particularly useful if you have a more complex family situation, such as an ex-partner or children of current and former relationships. 𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄❓ A will doesn’t address how your pension funds are distributed on death. The reason for this is that pension assets do not form part of your estate. This is why it is so important to make sure that your pension provider knows what your wishes are. 𝗙𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 You can read more about the importance of properly nominating beneficiaries here: https://lnkd.in/ew-pw_pN

Schemes over £500m are now in the minority if they target full insurance. Let that sink in. Results from LCP’s latest pension scheme survey showed that for schemes £500m+ in size, more are now running-on than are targeting full insurance. Yes – usual caveats apply in that it’s one survey etc etc etc, but the general trends across this and other industry surveys show an increasing shift in strategy and a giant leap in mindset. The results of the DB options consultation should bring additional positive news increasing the attractiveness of non-insurance options pushing results even further towards run-on too. Lots for Trustees and pension scheme sponsors to think about – particularly if the target strategy has not been reviewed for some time. Please do get in touch if you want to hear more about the full range of different strategies we are implementing for clients. #lcp #endgame #pensionschemes

With around $45bn of transactions, 2023 was the second busiest year on record for PRT deals in the US, and that pace was sustained during the first quarter of 2024. But many of the deals so far have been for plans that only feature retirees. By contrast, most of the plans now coming to market have large numbers of deferred lives – employees or former employees yet to begin taking their benefits. This adds significant uncertainty for insurers, as Caitlynn Greenfield, Director, Insurance Consulting and Technology, Justin Bevan, Associate Director, Insurance Consulting and Technology, and Stan Roberts, Associate Director, Insurance Consulting and Technology at WTW explain in Making Sense of Pension Risk Transfer Deals for Deferred Lives, a guest article this month. #BulkPurchaseAnnuity #GroupAnnuity #PensionRiskTransfer

Some Basic Questions for TPR, PPF and ONS from Clacher and Keating https://lnkd.in/ea99hcPu Is @TPRgovuk guidance on investment strategy based on an over-estimation of DB pension scheme assets?

Have you heard? The Department of Labor has updated the scope of what constitutes fiduciary advice under ERISA. This new rule could affect how you serve clients. Learn more about how this might impact you or your business with a full breakdown from ThinkAdvisor: https://loom.ly/ER75fQA #fiduciaryrule #retirement