Pension risk transfers in vogue in 2019

Through the first 10 months of 2019, $59 billion in pension assets have been derisked from global pension plans. Buy-ins have been the most popular method of derisking this year, totaling $29.8 billion. 2018's buyout-heavy trend, which totaled $17.4 billion, showed little growth this year. Buyouts were likely made less attractive as falling interest rates pushed pension liability values higher, making them less attractive to plan sponsors.

The largest deals so far in 2019 were HSBC's $8.5 longevity swap, followed by British telecommunication company Telent's $5.8 billion buyout. Among the largest U.S. deals were Baxter International's $2.4 buyout and Lockheed Martin's $1.8 billion buyout.