Merseyside Pension Fund, Liverpool, England, completed a £200 million ($262 million) buy-in with insurance firm Aviva, covering participants employed by bus service provider Arriva Merseyside.
The deal covers 2,500 participants. Arriva is the biggest non-public sector constituent employer in the Merseyside Pension Fund, which had £10.8 billion in assets as of March 31.
"We are delighted to have expanded our risk management strategy to achieve greater certainty of cost for the fund’s biggest non-public sector constituent employer, Arriva Merseyside, whilst simultaneously improving governance and reducing risk across the employer base with Aviva," Peter Wallach, director of pensions at administering authority Wirral Borough Council, said in a news release.
Aviva's focus on environmental, social and governance factors was a draw for Wirral Borough Council, the release said. The insurer is a founding signatory to the Sustainability Principles Charter for bulk purchase annuities, and Merseyside has now become a charter signatory, Wallach added.
Mercer was lead adviser on the transaction, while Eversheds Sutherland provided legal advice.
