NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary of MetLife, Inc. (“MetLife”), announced today 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, Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company 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.”
About MetLife
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 countries globally and holds leading positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.
Reinsurance contracts are issued by Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company (“Met Tower”), Lincoln NE, a wholly owned subsidiary of MetLife. Met Tower is solely responsible for its financial condition and contractual obligations. Met Tower is not licensed or regulated by the U.K. Prudential Regulation Authority as an insurer or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, nor does it conduct business in the United Kingdom or provide direct insurance to any individual or entity therein.
About Pension Insurance Corporation
The purpose of PIC is to pay the pensions of its current and future policyholders. PIC provides secure and stable retirement incomes through leading customer service, comprehensive risk management and excellence in asset and liability management. At 31 December 2019, PIC had insured 225,100 pension scheme members and had £40.9 billion in financial investments, accumulated through the provision of tailored pension insurance buyouts and buy-ins to the trustees and sponsors of U.K. defined benefit pension schemes. Clients include FTSE 100 companies, multinationals and the public sector. PIC is authorised by the U.K. Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 454345). For further information please visit www.pensioncorporation.com.
The forward-looking statements in this news release, such as “position,” “will,” and “look forward,” are based on assumptions and expectations that involve risks and uncertainties, including the “Risk Factors” MetLife, Inc. describes in its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings. MetLife’s future results could differ, and it has no obligation to correct or update any of these statements.