MetLife completes longevity reinsurance transaction with PIC

MetLife announced its first United Kingdom longevity reinsurance transaction with Pension Insurance Corporation plc (“PIC”).

“This transaction marks an important milestone in MetLife’s strategy and gives us the opportunity to apply our experience managing risk to a new market,” said Graham Cox, executive vice president and head of Retirement & Income Solutions at MetLife. “With this transaction, MetLife is establishing itself as a reinsurance solution for direct insurers in the U.K. While this is MetLife’s initial step into the U.K. longevity reinsurance market, our long history and mortality expertise position us well for the future.”

Under the terms of agreement, MetLife will provide reinsurance to PIC for longevity risk associated with approximately £280 million of pension liabilities.

“In 2019, there were more than £40 billion of U.K. pension risk transfer transactions completed — this robust market presents an opportunity for reinsurers to support direct insurers by managing their longevity risk,” said Cox. “We are pleased to be working with PIC and look forward to building on this relationship.”

“It’s great to see another well-rated, global corporation complete a debut transaction within the U.K. bulk annuity market,” said Khurram Khan, Head of Longevity Risk at PIC. “This is a positive development for both PIC and for market capacity as a whole.”