Nine in 10 (89 per cent) U.S. defined benefit pension plan sponsors say they’re expecting to completely divest their plan liabilities in roughly four years, according to a new survey by MetLife Inc. The survey, which polled 250 DB plan sponsors, found nearly all (94 per cent) said the financial impacts of volatility and related risks […]
Canada’s pension de-risking market saw a record-breaking year in 2022, with $7.8 billion in transferred liabilities and 155 transactions, according to a new report by Eckler Ltd. Mary Kate Archibald, pension principal at the consultancy, says the increase in the total sum for the year wasn’t a surprise due to the interest rate environment. To […]
Canadian annuity prices have an asymmetrical response to changing interest rates, making it more expensive to de-risk defined benefit pension plans shortly after rates rise, according to new research. “In Canada, annuity providers are prompt when it comes to raising prices when interest rates go down and slower when interest rates go up,” says Mark […]
An increase in the protection limit for defined benefit pension plan members’ assets invested in annuities is making it easier for plan sponsors to de-risk, says Mary Kate Archibald, a principal at Eckler Ltd. Assuris, the not-for-profit organization that protects a portion of retirement benefits from annuities in the event of an insurer’s insolvency, now covers up to $5,000 […]
Stelco Inc. is de-risking one of its defined benefit pension plans with a $1.3 billion annuity buy-in. The deal, which covers more than 7,000 United Steelworkers members and beneficiaries employed at the company’s Hamilton, Ont.-based plant, was completed in May with Brookfield Annuity Co. and Sun Life Financial Inc. Read: Stelco workers, retirees learn fate […]
After navigating the unpredictable markets of the past two decades, some defined benefit pension plan sponsors could be forgiven for wanting to seek out some certainty. But a new threat has emerged in the form of rapidly rising inflation and the possibility of rate increases after decades of persistent lows. The consumer price index increased […]
Last year was a strong year for the Canadian annuity market and the start of 2019 is looking promising as well, said Marie Desrochers, director of client relationships and defined benefit solutions at Sun Life Financial, speaking at a CI Institutional Investment Management event this week. While official year-end numbers aren’t out for 2018, Sun […]