Legal & General Assurance Society Limited has agreed a £430 million buy-in with the Tioxide Pensions Fund.
The transaction, which was agreed in November, secures the benefits of around 2,700 retirees and deferred members.
The sponsoring company, Venator Group, is a leading global chemical company.
Additionally, the Tioxide Pensions Fund is an existing Legal & General client, with Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) having managed a proportion of the Scheme’s assets since 1995.
While terms of the buy-in were being agreed, Legal & General was able to offer a tailored price lock solution that provided price certainty to the Trustee during a period of high market volatility.
The Trustee and Venator Group appointed re/insurance broker Aon as their specialist adviser for the transaction while legal advice was provided to the Trustee by Addleshaw Goddard.
Clifford Chance provided legal advice to Legal & General.
“At Legal & General, our clients and their peace of mind are central to everything we do. We’re delighted to have worked alongside an existing client of Legal & General to secure a transaction that protects the benefits of all members of the Fund. We would like to thank the Trustee and its advisers for their collaborative approach throughout the process. We’re looking forward to warmly welcoming the Fund’s members and supporting them in the future,” said Rachel Cutts, Director, Legal & General Retirement Institutional.
“We are very happy to have secured our members’ benefits fully through this transaction and achieve our long-term objective for the Fund. We appointed Aon as our specialist adviser for the transaction and we are grateful for the support of them and our advisers and the collaboration between the Trustee and Company to enable us to achieve this positive outcome for the Fund and our members,” commented Sally Roberts, Chair of Trustees.
“It was a pleasure to help the Tioxide Pension Fund in achieving this significant milestone. After careful consideration of a number of different factors, the Trustee and Sponsor were able to lock into the position with Legal & General and – just as work was being done to finalise the transaction – to weather the storm of the most volatile market conditions of recent years. This transaction exemplifies what can be achieved by careful stewardship and a collaborative approach,” added Charlotte Quarmby, Associate Partner, Aon.
