Aon, a professional services firm specialising in risk, retirement, and health solutions, has reported that the UK bulk annuity market remained active in the first half of 2025, despite a modest slowdown in overall volumes compared with the latter half of 2024.
While the total number of transactions is unlikely to match the 167 deals completed in the second half of 2024, Aon emphasises that insurer capacity remains robust and competition is strong across schemes of all sizes.
Aon highlights that buyouts have remained financially accessible for many pension schemes. Smaller deals, typically under £100 million, have dominated market activity, continuing the trend observed in 2024 when such transactions accounted for 78% of all deals.
Aon notes that smaller schemes now benefit from a wider range of insurer bids, in contrast to earlier years when limited options or exclusive negotiations were common.
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The entry of new providers alongside established players has supported this trend, though Aviva and Just continue to lead in this segment, completing 37 and 57 sub-£100 million transactions respectively in the first half of 2025, representing more than 70% of deals in this size range.
According to Aon, many transactions have been executed without requiring additional funding, demonstrating that full scheme buyouts can remain affordable.
Increased competition has been a key factor, driven by both new entrants such as Royal London and Utmost and established insurers seeking to expand their market share. Royal London alone completed eight deals worth £658 million in H1 2025, including a £275 million buy-in for Grant Thornton, which was its largest external deal to date and attracted proposals from nine insurers.
Looking forward, Aon expects the remainder of 2025 to be particularly active, with several large schemes set to complete.
Notably, Pension Insurance Corporation announced a £4.3 billion transaction with Rolls-Royce in August 2025, marking the largest deal of the year to date. Aon projects that total market volumes for 2025 will exceed £40 billion for the third consecutive year, supported by several billion-pound transactions due to conclude by year-end.
Aon also points out that recent market consolidation is unlikely to reduce appetite for bulk annuities. July 2025 saw the announcement of Athora’s planned acquisition of Pension Insurance Corporation and Brookfield’s proposed purchase of Just Group.
While the latter is expected to reduce the number of active insurers to ten, Aon notes that both transactions may enhance market capacity and access to capital, supporting insurers in writing new UK bulk annuity business.
In Aon’s view, the UK bulk annuity market remains competitive and resilient, offering affordable options for smaller schemes while preparing for high-value deals to shape activity in the closing months of 2025.
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