TRW completes £2.5-billion pension buyout

The Legal & General Assurance Society has bought out a portion of TRW Automotive’s pension plan in the United Kingdom for £2.5 billion ($4.5 billion).

It’s the largest buyout in the U.K. ever.

The transaction is part of TRW’s overall plan to permanently reduce a significant portion of its pension liabilities in the U.K.

Mercer was lead trustee advisor on the risk transfer project and also acted as strategic corporate advisor on the wider de-risking of TRW’s U.K., U.S. and Canadian pension arrangements.

The full U.K. risk transfer project, which was designed to remove the financial risk posed by TRW’s U.K. pension scheme, included a variety of pension risk management exercises, which ran concurrently, including a pension increase exchange, an enhanced transfer value exercise, winding up lump sums, and equalization of guaranteed minimum pensions and a pensioner buyout.

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