Is your DB pension scheme a burden to get rid of? Or an asset to keep?

For decades, defined benefit pension schemes have represented a burden to both trustees and sponsors, often leading to difficult funding discussions and the need to increase contributions to close unexpected deficit gaps. This has led many to consider buy-outs as the endgame target so that the burden could be eliminated. There are indeed very valid reasons for this approach, primarily around: - removal of exposure to potential liability risks, poor investment performance, and sponsor default - a view that the sponsor is not in the business of running pension schemes - a perception that the trustee’s primary job is to secure only the obligated member benefits However, with improvements in pension funding levels in recent years, and advancements in pension risk management techniques, have the concerns above become less relevant? In thinking through these issues, we ask whether pension schemes could offer an opportunity to benefit both members and sponsors – potentially to the tune of hundreds of millions, or in some case billions, of pounds. This training session will consider each of these issue in more detail and share some of the latest developments in pension fund risk management to help inform your decision making about your endgame goals.