Competitive insurance market ‘great’ for trustees, says Standard Life

So far this year, Brookfield and Utmost Group have emerged as the newest insurance providers seeking to take on DB scheme assets and liabilities, following Royal London and M&G conducting their first deals over the past 12 months.

Kunal Sood, managing director of DB solutions at Standard Life, told Pensions Expert that this increased competition was good for the pensions sector.

“It has been very competitive and continues to be more competitive and that is a sign of how much demand there is out there for buy-ins and buyouts,” he said.

“It’s a reflection of understanding at the trustee level that there is a lot of benefit to be had in securing the members’ long-term benefits.

“Wo have seen an increase in competition, which is great for schemes and trustees and the market more generally. Firstly, because it is delivering more value, but secondly, there’s a lot of innovation happening behind the scenes and targeting more of the recent scheme problems.

“This means we are all on our toes, trying to do the best for schemes and their members – who ultimately become our policy holders.”

There have been at least 55 deals announced this year, according to data collated by Pensions Expert, including some completed in the fourth quarter of 2023. These total more than £10bn of assets and liabilities and cover more than 66,000 members.

Prospects for the new government

Sood also echoed comments from elsewhere in the industry expressing optimism for the new government’s plans for the pensions sector. Standard Life has written to government ministers on related topics, he said.

“It is really early days,” Sood explained. “We haven’t heard much from them on the topics we care about, but we have written to them on what we think would be good.

“It would be great if they put in place a national transition plan with sector specific policies around climate change. It could be quite broad, from energy and infrastructure policies. But the goal at the end of the day is net zero.

“I have high expectations as always. It’s a majority government and is in a position to make some good decisions that can benefit us all. We are very optimistic about what is coming down the line.”

Further reading

New kids on the block: Brookfield and Utmost to enter bulk annuity market (8 July 2024)

Election 2024: The pensions industry reacts (5 July 2024)

Standard Life completes £880m buy-in of Rolls-Royce-Bentley scheme (27 June 2024)