Rothesay (formerly Rothesay Life) is a United Kingdom pension insurer that writes bulk annuities for defined benefit pension schemes and acquires in-force annuity portfolios. It was founded in 2007 as a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs.[1] In 2020, existing shareholders GIC and MassMutual acquired Blackstone's stake in the group.[6]
As of 31 December 2024, Rothesay reported £70.7 billion of assets under management and a group Solvency Capital Requirement coverage ratio of 261 percent.[5] In the same update, Rothesay reported that GIC held 50.2 percent of the company and MassMutual held 47.6 percent, with the remainder held by management and employees.[5]
History
Rothesay was founded in 2007 as a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs as a specialist annuity insurer.[7] In 2008 it completed its first pension buy-out transaction, covering the defined benefit pension scheme of The Rank Group.[8]
In 2010, Rothesay agreed to acquire specialist bulk annuity insurer Paternoster, and completed the deal in January 2011, adding a large in-force annuity book.[9][10]
In 2013, Goldman Sachs agreed to sell a majority stake in Rothesay to funds managed by Blackstone and GIC, with MassMutual acquiring a minority holding, the transaction completed in December 2013.[1] Goldman exited in 2017, then Blackstone sold its interest in 2020 which left GIC and MassMutual as shareholders.[11][12][1][6]
In 2014 the European Commission approved Rothesay's acquisition of MetLife Assurance Limited in the United Kingdom.[13][14] Rothesay later reported that the acquisition completed in May 2014.[10]
In 2016 Rothesay agreed to acquire a portfolio of annuities from Aegon's UK business.[15] In August 2017, Austria's Financial Market Authority said that Zurich Assurance Ltd had transferred some life insurance contracts to Rothesay Life plc.[16]
In 2019, a proposed transfer of about £12 billion of Prudential UK annuities was initially refused by the High Court. [17] The Court of Appeal set that decision aside in 2020 and the High Court sanctioned the transfer on 24 November 2021 with an effective date of 15 December 2021.[18][19]
In 2020 the company rebranded from Rothesay Life to Rothesay.[20] In September 2022, co-founder Tom Pearce became chief executive, succeeding Addy Loudiadis.[3]
In March 2024 Rothesay agreed to acquire Scottish Widows’ in-force bulk annuity portfolio from Lloyds Banking Group.[21]. The High Court approved the transfer on 14 May 2025 and completion took effect on 11 June 2025.[22]
Operations
Rothesay focuses on pension risk transfer in the United Kingdom. Its activities include bulk purchase annuities written as buy-ins and buy-outs, the acquisition of in-force annuity portfolios from insurers, and occasional acquisitions of insurance companies. The group reinsures a high proportion of longevity risk and invests mainly in government securities, corporate credit, infrastructure lending and secured lending.[23]
Independent market reporting described strong demand for UK bulk annuities in 2024 and 2025, with record annual volumes in 2024. Trade press ranked Rothesay among the largest writers by new premium in 2024, supported by large transactions with NatWest Group and other schemes.[24][25][26]
UK regulatory materials set expectations for annuity writers on areas such as the Solvency UK matching adjustment, funded reinsurance and risk management. The PRA has updated its supervisory statements and consulted on reforms in 2024 and 2025 that are relevant to firms active in the bulk annuity market.[29][30][31]
Financials
As at 31 December 2024 the group reported assets under management of £70.7 billion and a group Solvency Capital Requirement coverage ratio of 261 percent.[32] For the six months to 30 June 2025 Rothesay Life plc reported assets under management of £69.5 billion, adjusted operating profit of £347 million and an SCR coverage ratio of 266 percent.[23]
Independent commentary linked stronger solvency ratios across the sector to higher gilt yields which reduced the present value of annuity liabilities. The Bank of England also noted measures to support market functioning for insurers and pension schemes during periods of gilt market stress.[33][34]
Ownership and structure
Rothesay Limited is the group holding company and Rothesay Life plc is the principal regulated insurance subsidiary. [35][6]
As at 31 December 2024, Rothesay reported that GIC held 50.2% of the company and Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company held 47.6%, with the remaining shares held by management and employees.[5][35] Rothesay has stated that GIC and MassMutual retain equal governance rights, including an equal number of board director positions.[5]
In 2020, GIC and MassMutual agreed to acquire Blackstone's shareholding in the group, becoming equal 49% shareholders at that time.[6]
Credit ratings
As of 2025 Rothesay Life plc is rated A+ for Insurer Financial Strength by Fitch and A2 for Insurance Financial Strength by Moody’s.[36][37]
Notable transactions
The company has completed a number of large transactions in the UK bulk annuity market. Industry data reported record annual volumes in 2024 and identified Rothesay among the largest writers of new premiums that year.[25][24]
2008: Buy-out of the Rank Group pension scheme worth about £700million.[8]
2011: Acquisition of Paternoster, adding a large back-book of annuities to the group.[9][10]
2014–2015: Acquisition of MetLife Assurance Limited and subsequent integration following EU merger clearance.[38][39]
2015–2017: Zurich UK immediate annuities. Reinsurance of about £1.2billion followed by a 2017 Part VII transfer.[40][41]
2016–2017: Aegon UK annuity book. Part VII transfer approved in 2017 for about 187,000 policyholders with liabilities of roughly £6.4billion.[42][43]
2019: National Grid UK Pension Scheme buy-in of £2.8billion, followed by a further £800million buy-in in 2020.[44][45]
2019: Asda Group Pension Scheme buy-in of £3.8billion covering about 12,000 members.[46]
2019: Allied Domecq Pension Fund buy-in of £3.8billion.[47]
2019: GEC 1972 Pension Scheme buy-out of £4.7billion for the Telent-sponsored scheme, then the largest UK buy-out to date.[48]
2021: Part VII transfer of approximately £12billion of annuities from The Prudential Assurance Company to Rothesay, effective 15 December 2021.[49][50]
2025: High Court approval of the Part VII transfer of Scottish Widows’ annuity portfolio to Rothesay in May 2025. Completion followed on 11 June 2025.[51][52]
Rothesay has also undertaken smaller portfolio actions, including the disposal of an Irish annuity portfolio to Monument Re that was expected to transfer to Laguna Life following reinsurance and court approval processes.[53]
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