Clara Pensions has signed the UK’s first superfund pension deal after reaching an agreement with the trustees of the Sears Retail Pension Scheme.
Under the agreement 9,600 members of Sears’ pension fund will be transferred to Clara Pensions after clearance was agreed by the UK’s Pensions Regulator (TPR). The transfer process is expected to start this month.
The deal includes an additional £30m of ring-fenced funding to support the pension scheme in the absence of an ongoing employer covenant.
The superfund concept was introduced in 2018 and Clara Pensions was the first entity to receive approval from TPR.
Superfunds are analogous to insurance buyouts but are subject to less onerous capital requirements and regulation and are intended for pension schemes which can’t afford a full buyout, or as an intermediary step towards an insurance solution.
In comments released when the deal was announced, the chair of Sears pension scheme said that the deal with Clara was intended as a move towards a full insurance buyout at some point in the future.
Isio will remain as the Sears pension fund’s administrator.