The BBC Pension Scheme has continued to offload the risk of its members living longer than anticipated, transferring a further UK £6 billion of risk through a new longevity swap arrangement with the help of global insurance firm Zurich and reinsurance capacity from MetLife.
Previously, the BBC Pension Scheme had secured UK £3 billion of longevity swap protection in December 2020, with the assistance again of Zurich and reinsurance provided by Canada Life Re.
This new longevity swap arrangement covers approximately £6 billion of pensioner liabilities for the BBC pension, representing longevity risk associated with around 21,000 members.
The BBC Pension entered into the longevity swap arrangement with Zurich Assurance Ltd, a Zurich UK entity, who in turn passes on the risk to reinsurance capital provided by MetLife enity Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.
It protects the pension scheme against the risk of rising costs due to its members living longer than currently expected and combined with the 2020 deal, the now UK £9 billion of longevity transactions hedge the risk associated with nearly all of its pensioner and dependant liabilities.
Broker Aon acted as sole transaction adviser and negotiated the intermediation terms with Zurich while brokering the reinsurance with MetLife.
The Trustee took legal advice from A&O Shearman, while Slaughter and May acted for Zurich and Eversheds Sutherland and Debevoise & Plimpton for MetLife.
Catherine Claydon, Chair of the BBC Pension Scheme Trustee Board, commented, “The Trustee is pleased to have further mitigated the Scheme’s exposure to longevity risk, through a second transaction on highly attractive terms for the Scheme. Many thanks to our advisers, Zurich and MetLife for achieving this important milestone.”
Greg Wenzerul, Zurich’s Head of Longevity Risk Transfer, added, “We’re privileged to have partnered with the Scheme Trustee and their advisers on this important phase of their de-risking strategy. Supporting our clients through each step of their journey-planning in this manner reflects our commitment to putting customers first, an ethos Zurich applies across its broad customer base. Zurich UK’s status as a UK-regulated life insurer provides the Trustee with the highest bar of governance assurance, reinforcing confidence in long-term best practice.”
Angela Li, MetLife’s Head of UK Reinsurance, stated, “MetLife is proud to support the BBC Pension Scheme in this important step of its de-risking journey. Our financial strength, expertise, and commitment to innovation enables us to deliver certainty and flexibility for pension schemes managing longevity risk. This transaction underscores our dedication to the UK market and our ability to partner on complex, large-scale longevity swaps, providing tailored solutions that meet the evolving needs of pension schemes and the broader retirement market.”
Tom Scott, Risk Settlement Partner at Aon, further explained, “This transaction is further evidence of the vibrant longevity insurance and reinsurance markets which continue to offer attractively priced and structured solutions in various forms to UK pension schemes, in this case in the form of a ‘longevity swap’ which means the Scheme retains investment control and flexibility.”
Longevity swap activity has picked up in 2025, with now over £20 billion of UK deals and a further EUR 6 billion of transactions in the Netherlands.
View details of many longevity swaps and longevity reinsurance deals in our longevity risk transfer deal directory.
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