TI Group Pension Scheme, London, purchased a bulk annuity contract from Rothesay Life to complete a £640 million ($783 million) buy-in transaction, sponsoring employee Smiths Group announced in a news release Thursday.
It is the seventh and final bulk annuity transaction for the pension fund, which now has all £1.4 billion of its liabilities fully insured, the news release said. This final buy-in transaction has also been secured with a commitment to fully buy out the pension fund over the next few years.
The most recent of the prior six buy-in deals was a £142 million transaction with Aviva completed in September 2020.
"This transaction represents an excellent outcome for scheme members, Smiths and our shareholders. We have supported the scheme over many decades and made significant cash contributions. That funding, combined with excellent stewardship by the scheme's trustee, has meant that the scheme can now be fully derisked for the benefit of members and the group," Smiths Group CEO Paul Keel said in the news release.
Spokeswoman Stephanie Heathers said in an email that as of Jan. 31, the TI pension fund's assets totaled £1.6 billion and Smith Group's pension fund assets as of that date totaled £4.2 billion.
