Rothesay Life signs two multi-billion pension transfer deals in one week

Written by David Adams

27/09/2019

Rothesay Life has unveiled the UK’s largest pension scheme transfer deal, a bulk annuity deal worth £4.7 billion, with the telecoms firm telent. Rothesay Life will now be responsible for paying pensions to about 28,000 pensioners and 11,000 deferred members of the GEC 1972 Plan. It has also signed a £3.8 billion deal for a buy-in of Allied Domecq’s Pension Fund.

The buy-in phase of the telent deal will see the GEC 1972 Plan’s assets transferred to Rothesay in return for the funds needed to pay the pensions. The second phase, the buy-out, will see Rothesay take on full responsibility for paying the pensions directly. This is due to be completed before 2022. All current terms and benefits will be replicated for all scheme members.

“At every stage of the process all parties have worked constructively to achieve this landmark settlement and we are delighted to be providing a secure, long term home for the 39,000 GEC Plan pensions,” said Sammy Cooper-Smith, business development, Rothesay Life.

telent CFO Heather Green praised the scheme’s trustees. “The Trustee of the GEC 1972 Plan has done a fantastic job to eliminate the significant funding deficit that existed in the Plan only ten years ago and get the scheme to a position where it can benefit from the hugely more secure future that this transaction provides,” she said. “For telent, being the sponsor of a scheme many times larger than our business was not ideal.”

Rothesay Life has also announced a £3.8 billion buy-in deal with Allied Domecq, worth £3.8 billion and covering 27,000 members, including 10,000 deferred members.

Lisa Arnold, chairman of trustees of the Allied Domecq Pension Fund, said: “This buy-in is a key step on a long journey of de-risking taken by the Fund, with strong support along the way from the sponsoring company. It represents a major achievement, improving security for all our members.”

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