The pipeline for buy-ins looking to complete during the months ahead is very strong, with 2026 expected to be a record year for the market and likely to exceed £50 billion for the first time, according to Hymans Robertson’s 2026 Risk Transfer Report.
The report noted that insurers have sufficient capacity to meet this demand, which is good news for pension schemes.
Hymans Robertson said market strength is set to continue, with insurer appetite growing across all pension scheme sizes. It expects at least eight of the 10 insurers to be regularly quoting on transactions for schemes smaller than £100 million.
At the same time, Hymans Robertson said it “wouldn’t be surprised if 2026 breaks records for the number of multibillion-pound buy-ins.”
The report also revealed that pension scheme risk transfer has reached a historic milestone, with more than £500 billion of transactions completed in just under two decades, following a record number of buy-ins and longevity swaps in 2025.
In 2025, there were 380 risk transfer transactions, up 25% compared to 2024 (which was the previous record year).
Nearly 140 buy-ins under £100 million were completed during the year, the second-highest figure ever. Hymans Robertson noted that smaller scheme transactions are not only increasing in number but are also accounting for a larger share of the overall market.
Buy-ins now total more than £370 billion, while longevity swaps amount to around £170 billion. More than half of this activity has taken place in just the past five years, highlighting the rapid growth of the risk transfer market since it began in 2007.
Hymans Robertson expects £1 trillion of pension scheme liabilities will have been insured by 2035.
James Mullins, Partner and Risk Transfer Specialist at Hymans Robertson, said, “Pension scheme risk transfer has reached a historic milestone with over £500bn of transactions completed in under two decades, and with half of the volume completed in just the last five years. It’s a clear sign of how attractive and resilient the market has become and it shows the scale of confidence that pension scheme trustees and sponsoring employers place in this endgame. We’re seeing record levels of activity from pension schemes of every size and the momentum is only growing as more capital, and investment supply, comes into the UK market from global asset managers.
“DB pension schemes now have more options than ever before. The superfund market is now firmly proven as Clara continues to demonstrate its value as a credible and trusted solution and with the entrance of TPT’s new superfund. We’ve also seen innovation with bespoke alternatives emerging, like the Stagecoach and Aberdeen arrangement, that show how creative and flexible endgame planning has become.
“Given the large recent and projected future volumes, the UK buy-in market is attracting global attention. With PIC’s acquisition by Athora (owned by Apollo) and Just’s acquisition by Brookfield, we’re seeing large international asset managers committing significant capital to the UK buy-in market. These transactions signal growing international interest in UK pension risk transfer and are expected to drive fresh capacity and sustained appetite in the years ahead. That kind of backing increases insurer capacity and broadens the investment universe, opening up new opportunities for insurers to source assets and ultimately helping to support competitive pricing for pension schemes.”
