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Latest DB news
Small scheme insurance boom drives record number of buy-in deals in 2025
Legal & General dominated 2025’s pension insurance market in terms of new business volumes, but data from LCP shows that sub-£100m transactions are driving competition and “exceptional” pricing.
Bulk annuities latest: Rothesay reports on 2025; PIC parent to relocate to London
Plus: Just Group ties up a £32m full scheme buy-in with the Reebok UK Retirement Benefits Scheme, insuring the benefits of 452 members.
Virgin Media ruling: TPR says work can start now on remediation
Trustees do not need to wait for the Pension Schemes Bill to become law before instructing actuaries to begin work on section 37 remediation, the regulator has said.
Bulk annuities update: Buy-ins for Panasonic and Essentra schemes
M&G reports on £140m Panasonic scheme deal, while Aviva ties up a £104m buy-in with Essentra.
Bulk annuities news in association with Canada Life
Bulk annuities latest: Brookfield approved for Just acquisition
Plus: Canada Life insures a pharmaceutical distribution company’s defined benefit pension scheme for £30m.
Insurer competition means more work for small DB schemes, Hymans warns
Defined benefit pension schemes as small as £5m are now attracting interest from multiple insurers, according to Hymans Robertson’s latest annual report on the bulk annuity sector.
DB liabilities set to rise as life expectancy climbs
Defined benefit pension schemes could see their liabilities rise by around 0.5% depending on demographics after new mortality data was released.
Bulk annuities roundup: Athora completes PIC acquisition
Plus: Aviva and Royal London release 2025 business results; Canada Life’s £80m buy-in with Safeway Pension Scheme.
Features and analysis
A Christmas wishlist for the pensions industry
With the festive break upon us, it’s time to find out what the pensions industry really wants for Christmas this year. Pensions Expert asked representatives of 21 organisations from across the UK retirement industry to come up with one ‘Christmas wish’ – something they would like to see over the next 12 months.
Outlook 2026: The changing face of DB endgame options
Defined benefit experts give their views on the challenges and opportunities presented by the Pension Schemes Bill and other industry developments.
The unknown cost of pre-97 indexation to DB schemes
Potential changes to the way the PPF’s compensation is calculated and paid could have an impact on its 7800 index and some schemes in its assessment period, as Nick Reeve reports.
The PPF Purple Book: Six key charts for the corporate DB sector
The 20th edition of the Pension Protection Fund’s Purple Book shows a gradual but consistent decline in the number of defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. But below the surface, the sector remains dynamic with millions of people’s retirements at stake.
Five Questions For… Morten Nilsson, Brightwell
Pensions Expert spoke to Brightwell chief executive Morten Nilsson about the government’s surplus release plans, and how he envisages sharing the BT Pension Scheme’s experiences with the wider market.
A Christmas wishlist for the pensions industry
Outlook 2026: The changing face of DB endgame options
The unknown cost of pre-97 indexation to DB schemes
The PPF Purple Book: Six key charts for the corporate DB sector
Five Questions For… Morten Nilsson, Brightwell
More defined benefit news
Industry wants formal processes for pro trustee appointments
Safeguards are needed for sole trustee appointments and to address conflicts of interest where professional trustee firms offer additional services such as administration or investment advice.
TPR’s predictions for the DB run-on market
The regulator has published a major forecasting exercise exploring the potential evolution of the DB sector under different scenarios, including growing appetite for run-on approaches and a successful superfund market.
Vigilance needed as geopolitical tensions drive DB sponsor profit warnings
More than a quarter of UK-listed companies with a DB scheme have issued at least one profit warning in the past 12 months, according to new analysis by EY.
‘Landmark moment’ as PPF confirms zero levy for 2026-27
The vast majority of the almost 5,000 DB schemes eligible for PPF protection won’t pay a conventional levy next year – the second year in a row this has happened.
How a hybrid DC scheme tapped into the bulk annuity market
A £13m DC pension scheme with a DB underpin has derisked through an “innovative” deal involving insurer Just Group and master trust Smart Pension.
Moving from buy-in to buyout: How fast can schemes go?
The pensions industry seems split over how quickly insurers can convert the huge number of buy-ins completed in recent years to full buyouts.
Bulk annuities latest: Mirror publisher locks in £270m buy-in with M&G
A round-up of the latest bulk annuity announcements, including a £60m deal for Bodycote’s UK pension scheme and a £7m deal for financing and leasing company Black Arrow’s retirement fund.
What AI is telling your members about their pension scheme
PensionBee has flagged the increasing prevalence of ‘zero click’ searches that rely on AI-generated content, while consultancy Quietroom warns on serious flaws in how large language models summarise pension scheme information.
Smiths News faces TPR action over collapsed firm’s DB scheme
The media distribution company could receive a bill from the regulator related to the DB scheme of a former subsidiary, which entered administration after being sold in 2020.
Technology giants download pension risk through buy-ins
Technology companies IBM and Sopra Steria have insured defined benefit liabilities through buy-ins announced today, as the flurry of bulk annuity announcements continues.
Comment & opinion
AMNT: Looking to the past for the future of trusteeship
Is running on DB schemes a bridge to stronger DC outcomes?
Trusteeship and administration: Preparing for a consolidated future
PMI: Investing in admin skills to protect savers as outsourcing increases
The Friday Takeaway: DB isn’t dead, it’s just resting