December 2020

28Dec

Companies end year by shipping off pension liabilities

Pension funds on both sides of the Atlantic offloaded $14.5 billion in liabilities through pension risk transfer deals this month alone, including two huge longevity swap announcements. Most of the action took place with U.K.-based plans, but in the U.S., General Electric Co., Boston, announced it transferred $1.7 billion of its U.S. GE Pension Plan obligations to retirement services firm Athene Holding Ltd. through an annuity buyout. As part of the transfer, Athene will provide payments to roughly 70,000...

December 28, 2020
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23Dec

Personal data leak in one of Britain’s largest pension providers

Workplace pension provider NOW: Pensions has emailed a number of UK customers to warn about a data leakage caused by contractor error. The email, seen by this publication, claims a service provider "unintentionally" posted user data to an unnamed "public software forum". These records include biographical data (names, email addresses, and dates of birth) as well as National Insurance numbers. According to the pension provider, the data was obtained by "a small number" of third parties. NOW: Pensions said...

December 23, 2020
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21Dec

UK. Longevity risk transfer nears record. 2021 to be busy again despite pandemic: WTW

The market for longevity swaps and longevity risk transfer has hit forecasted volumes in 2020 despite the implications of the global COVID1-9 pandemic and Willis Towers Watson believes another busy year is ahead in 2021. Read also Personal data leak in one of Britain’s largest pension providers The longevity de-risking market, where pensions transfer their longevity risk to global reinsurance markets, has proven resilient in 2020 and despite the “turmoil” broker Willis Towers Watson (WTW) notes that more than UK...

December 21, 2020
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17Dec

UK. Canadian pension fund takes control of Trafford Centre

A pension fund has taken control of the Trafford Centre after administrators received "no viable bids" for it. The shopping centre, which attracts about 30 million visitors a year, went up for sale in August after owner Intu Properties (IP) entered administration. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), a key lender to IP, has taken ownership as the principal creditor. CPPIB's Geoff Souter said despite "challenging" retail conditons, the centre still had "strong prospects". The Canadian fund had provided...

December 17, 2020
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16Dec

UK. BBC presses play on $4 billion longevity swap

BBC Pension Scheme, London, completed a £3 billion ($4 billion) longevity swap with Zurich and Canada Life Reinsurance. Read also Ireland. A new model for pensions required The deal provides the pension fund and sponsoring employer British Broadcasting Corp. "with more certainty over future funding costs, and improves the security of all members' benefits," a notice posted on the pension fund's website said. Read also UK. Canadian pension fund takes control of Trafford Centre The fund had £17.3 billion in assets...

December 16, 2020
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10Dec

UK. Pension risk transfer market to hit up to £60bn in 2021

The UK pension risk transfer market could reach up to £60bn in 2021 through bulk annuities, longevity swaps and new risk transfer solutions, according to forecasts from Mercer. The firm has predicted continued growth in risk transfers during 2021, stating that increased activity will likely be driven by an increase in demand and innovative and streamlined processes, and could lead to the "busiest year on record". In particular, it predicted that there would be better affordability as more schemes...

December 10, 2020
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09Dec

Nearly Half Of UK Pension Savers Unaware They Are Saving Into Pension

EQ research shows that under half (48%) of full-time workers believe they are saving into a pension However, official statistics finds 88% of eligible employees are saving into an occupational pension scheme Findings demonstrate the success of auto-enrolment in pushing savers into later-life saving but need for further engagement Analysis from EQ (Equiniti Group plc), one of the largest providers of outsourced pension administration in the UK, suggests that nearly half of the UK's full-time workers don't realise that...

December 9, 2020
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03Dec

UK. Majority of employers oppose multiple pensions dashboards

The majority (82 per cent) of employers are opposed to multiple dashboards and dashboards that do not include state pensions, research from the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) has revealed. It also found that less than half of employers have cleaned their data in readiness for pensions dashboards. The ACA's survey revealed "strong support" for elements of the Pension Schemes Bill, although a quarter of employers remain opposed to the regulator's direction of travel. In particular, the research found...

December 3, 2020
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02Dec

UK. Following Arcadia, Debenhams set to close putting 12,000 jobs at risk

Debenhams stores are set to close after the failure of last-ditch efforts to rescue the ailing store chain. It means all 12,000 employees are likely to lose their jobs when the chain's 124 shops cease trading. The news comes just hours after Topshop owner Arcadia fell into administration, putting 13,000 jobs at risk. Debenhams itself had been in administration since April. Hopes of a rescue were crushed after the last remaining bidder, JD Sports, withdrew. Staff were told the...

December 2, 2020
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