The pension scheme for an unnamed manufacturing business has agreed a £53m buyout with Standard Life, covering 235 pensioners and 163 deferred members.

The trustee board was chaired by Capita Cranfield professional independent trustee, John Nestor, and actuarial advice on the buyout was provided by Quantum LLP, while legal advice was provided by DLA Piper.

Commenting on the deal, K3 Advisory managing director, Adam Davis, highlighted the level of insurer interest as having been "particularly pleasing", revealing that five out of the eight main insurers chose to bid, with Standard Life subsequently winning out.

"This level of interest would not have been achieved just a few years ago," he stated, continuing: "Then, small schemes were routinely overlooked and locked out of transacting due to their size.

"Now, due to the hard work and tireless innovation of the team, we are regularly bringing together insurers and small schemes in a way that works for everyone.

"Smaller schemes, even as small as one million, are now drawing lots of attention from, and becoming very attractive to, insurers.

“2023 is widely predicted to be a record year for the buyout market. Our rough estimate shows that around 3,000 schemes in the UK might be getting close to a buyout position – that is about 60 per cent.

"So, if you are a scheme of £1m, £53m or considerably bigger, the same rules apply – get ready!”

Adding to this, Standard Life senior business development manager, Matt Richards, stated: “Our focus is always on ensuring good outcomes for both the pension scheme and its members, regardless of size.

"In this case, by working closely with the plan’s trustees and taking advantage of favourable pricing conditions, we are pleased to have secured the benefits for 398 members.

"We are currently seeing a trend towards more full scheme buy-ins as a result of stronger funding positions, and this is something we expect to see more of as the year progresses.”

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