National Grid agrees £1.6bn buy-in with L&G in second deal this year
The National Grid UK Pension Scheme has agreed its second buy-in this year, transferring £1.6bn of pension risk to Legal & General (L&G).
The transaction relates to Section B of the £20bn gas industry scheme and covers benefits for around 6,000 pensioner members.
Funding was secured using £1.6bn of the scheme's UK fixed interest securities. The scheme has an ongoing mandate for asset management with Legal & General Investment Management, enabling a smoother transfer of assets.
Just last month the scheme agreed a separate £2.8bn buy-in with Rothesay Life, insuring the benefits of around 8,000 members in Section A of the scheme.
Trustee Donald Simpson, who is also funding and investment committee chairman, said: "We are pleased to take another step in our de-risking journey. All parties have worked collaboratively to reach this positive outcome, which further protects the security of our members' benefits."
L&G Retirement Institutional chief executive Laura Mason added: "We are delighted to have been able to work with the trustees to complete this transaction. We were pleased to have been able to leverage our existing asset management mandate with the scheme to ensure a smooth process and provide further security to the scheme members."
The scheme was advised by Aon, Sackers, and Willis Towers Watson, while L&G was supported by Macfarlanes.
Aon senior partner Martin Bird said: "We are proud to continue supporting the trustees and National Grid in navigating through a busy bulk annuity market. This transaction further underlines the importance of having a robust trustee decision-making framework and ability to move quickly when opportunities arise."
The bulk annuity deal means at least £46.1bn of pension risk has now been insured this year, including a £7bn longevity swap by the HSBC Bank (UK) Pension Scheme and Pension Insurance Company of America.
Of the remaining £39.1bn of bulk annuity transactions, L&G has insured £9.1bn.
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