UK defined benefit pension schemes are increasingly looking to sell on the secondaries market with new research showing they could sell up to £8 billion ($11 billion; €9.2 billion) of illiquid assets.

UK DB pensions could sell between £4 billion-£8 billion of illiquid assets over the next 12 months, according to the Illiquid Assets Report 2025 published by according to a joint report from pension-focused secondaries trading platform MeltX and UK pensions research and events company Mallowstreet. The report surveyed 42 advisers and trustees from 23 firms across the UK DB Market.

These expected volume figures are anecdotally in line with what’s been seen in recent years, MeltX co-founder Stuart Hanson told Secondaries Investor, although the amount of liabilities in the UK pension risk transfer market will dictate where volume lands in that range. There’s expected to be about £50 billion to £100 billion in liabilities pensions look to transfer over next year, Hanson said.

The UK pension system is shifting from DB to defined contribution pension schemes. DB schemes, which have historically been significant allocators to equities and alternatives, are shrinking. DC schemes, which have typically been more cost sensitive and cautious in their investment approach, are now the main growth engine for retirement savings as employers have shifted investment risk to individuals.

Over the next three years, illiquid asset sales on the secondaries market could be as low as £8.7 billion, or as high as £22 billion if larger schemes choose to transact, according to the report.

Most of the advisers surveyed expect DB schemes to manage their illiquid exposure through natural run-offs rather than disposal, although secondaries were the second most popular option, according to the report. About 63 percent anticipate using secondaries platforms, placing the option above others like broker-led sales, in-specie transfers to insurers and deferred buy-out premiums.

“By their nature, many of their DB clients are not immediate sellers: some remain open to accrual, others have already reduced exposure, and several are re-evaluating their endgames and considering run-off,” the report said. “Where disposals are happening, they tend to be orderly and client-specific, particularly for legacy positions or schemes preparing for buy-in or buy-out.”

Secondaries being one of the most commonly expected selling routes for these schemes shows that they are becoming more trusted and prevalent in the market, Hanson said. Pensions are “on a path” to transfer their risk to insurers, which can’t take on illiquid assets, he added, making the secondaries market more attractive.

Over the next 12 months, about 43 percent of advisers said their clients may sell up to £100 million, while 21 percent expect to sell £100 million-£500 million, according to the report. Just 19 percent anticipate no sales, while 14 percent expect £500 million-£1 billion.

Private debt and private equity were far-and-away the most popular asset classes to sell.

Some 42 percent said they’d expect private debt to be the top asset, while 32 percent named PE, according to the report. Real estate and infrastructure were far behind, seeing 18 percent and 8 percent, respectively.

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