Buy-ins and buy-outs: How to secure your obligations with an insurer in an increasingly competitive market

Covered in this session

Join Buck and Standard Life to review the market trends seen in 2022, and discuss what we expect to see next year. We'll provide insights into the implications of the mini-budget and the impact it had on transactions at the time, as well as what it means going forward. More generally, we'll look to the future and discuss the 'race to the finish,' ways to get schemes of all sizes prioritised over others, and what increased demand means for smaller schemes, rounding off with some forecasts for 2023.

Speakers 

Mark van den Berghen | Head of Risk Transfer at Buck
Mark van den Berghen has over 20 years’ experience in the pensions industry, advising trustees and sponsors, and therefore understands the objectives of both stakeholders. He leads Buck’s risk transfer team, comprised of 18 experts advising across all pension scheme de-risking activities including buy-ins, buy-outs, liability management, and DB consolidation.

Mark’s first bulk purchase annuity transaction was over ten years ago; he is now responsible for providing the necessary regulated advice to clients, along with being ultimately responsible for the smooth running of transactions and securing best pricing. He really enjoys the problem-solving aspect of projects - whether it be unpicking underpins, working with the insurer to structure a deal in a way that benefits all parties, or mitigating the risks that can arise at the true-up stage.   

Callum Slattery | Risk Transfer Actuary at Buck
Callum has over seven years’ experience in the pensions consulting industry.  He studied mathematics at the University of Bristol and qualified as an actuary in 2020. Callum is a project manager and actuary in Buck's risk transfer team and advises trustee and corporate clients on a range of pension initiatives targeted at de-risking and cost control. Callum is a keen climber and the only thing he enjoys more than a good crag is making sure buy-in, buy-out and liability management projects run smoothly, with all stakeholders’ needs and objectives met at every stage.

Matt Richards | Senior BPA Business Development Manager at Standard Life
Matt has over 14 years’ experience in the occupational pensions market.  Following a joint honours degree in chemistry and biology from Durham University, Matt began his training as a pensions consultant, gaining exposure to a range of clients, both corporate and trustee. In 2011 he moved to the bulk annuity market when he joined Pension Insurance Corporation. As of July 2021, he has been with Standard Life as a Senior Business Development Manager, helping them expand their bulk annuity offering. Matt's experience in bulk annuities includes all stages of insurance transactions from origination to pricing to contract negotiation and reinsurance. He has been instrumental in securing transactions for a wide range of clients, with values from £15m to over £3.4bn and covering buy-ins, buy-outs, captive reinsurance arrangements, and longevity swap conversions.