Smith and Nephew completes £260m pensions buy-in

DB pensions still misunderstood by members

Smith and Nephew UK Pension Fund has completed a £260 million buy-in deal.

The transaction with Rothesay, which secures the benefits of 1,885 pensioners and dependants, as well as 2,315 deferred members, is the final transaction securing the fund’s objective of insuring all of its members’ benefits. The fund is sponsored by portfolio medical technology firm Smith and Nephew.

This latest transaction follows previous buy-in deals in 2013, 2017 and 2022.

LCP acted for the trustee as the lead broker on the transaction, while Travers Smith provided legal advice for the trustee. Eversheds Sutherland and DLA Piper provided legal advice to Rothesay.

Sarah Boon, pensions consultant at Travers Smith, said: “"We are delighted to have advised the trustee on the final key step of the journey towards securing full scheme benefits. With the trustee holding two previous buy-ins with Rothesay, this final transaction was a great example of a strategic partnership in action, which should provide positive member outcomes in the years to come."

Debbie Lovewell-TuckDebbie Lovewell-Tuck is a business journalist with 20 years’ experience specialising in pay, reward and HR. She joined Employee Benefits as a reporter in 2003, before becoming editor in 2015. Debbie is also responsible for editorial content across Employee’ Benefits events, including Employee Benefits Live and the Employee Benefits Awards, as well as hosting Employee Benefits’ webinars.View full profile