The Bakkavor Pension Scheme has completed a £160m full buy-in for 2,216 members.  The scheme is backed by food manufacturer Bakkavor Foods , which was acquired by Greencore Group in January. 

The transaction with Rothesay was completed in March 2026 and insures the benefits of 1,108 pensioners and 1,108 deferred members.  

The buy-in is “a significant step in the scheme’s derisking journey and secures our members’ pensions for the future”, said trustee chair Jane Scriven.   

Katie Overton, business development at Rothesay, noted that the pension risk transfer market continues to be fast moving, “which is creating an active pipeline of new business opportunities ahead”. 

This is only the second transaction Rothesay has revealed this year, following a buy-in of the KLM scheme. However, in March it had completed or was exclusive on a further £2bn of transactions since the start of the year. Rothesay insured 17 pension schemes last year, booking premiums of £5.2bn in the process.  

WTW acted as the lead adviser to the trustee and scheme actuary, while CMS and Squire Patton Boggs gave legal advice to the trustees. Bakkavor was advised by Isio, and Greencore had advice from PwC and Slaughter & May. Rothesay received legal advice from Sackers.  

Gemma Millington, a managing director in the WTW transactions team, said the deal demonstrates the benefits of considered preparation.  

“In particular, readiness activity previously undertaken by the trustee working in partnership with the scheme actuary and its other advisers, enabled an approach to market within a month of agreeing to move forward with a buy-in,” she said. “Against the backdrop of the sponsor acquisition, we worked with the trustee and other stakeholders to support an effective decision-making process and capitalise on the opportunity to meet the long-term objectives of the trustee and sponsor.” 

The buy-in and buyout market has been going strong amid high funding levels, with WTW predicting that bulk annuities alone could exceed £50bn in volume this year. This activity has attracted interest from new market entrants buying existing providers; Athora has bought Pension Insurance Corporation, Brookfield is taking over Just Group and merging it with Blumont, and JAB Insurance is set to buy Utmost’s life and pension business.  
 

While excess funding is driving the market, it may also be slowing it down in some respects, as well funded large schemes are increasingly thought to be looking towards run-on in the short and medium term.   

Other headwinds for the buyout market are coming in the form of regulatory scrutiny of funded reinsurance models. The Prudential Regulation Authority is currently consulting on increasing capital requirements for these deals over concerns of regulatory arbitrage and recapture risk.