The Dutch market for longevity reinsurance seems to be gearing up. After several years with few deals, Prudential Financial entered the Dutch market for reinsurance in 2023, concluding a $9.2bn deal with NN Life & Pensions. Last month, Prudential announced another €4bn longevity risk transfer deal with the Dutch insurance company. It covers around 96,000 policyholders and was arranged through PFI’s primary US insurance subsidiary, representing another step in the group’s expansion of its institutional retirement strategies business in the Netherlands.
Several weeks later, another Dutch insurer also said it is looking at the possibility to reinsure its pension fund buyouts against longevity risk. ASR saw its solvency ratio reduced by four percentage points following four buyout deals it concluded in the past few years, with a total value of €2.9bn. The firm’s solvency would increase again if it reinsures some of these deals, according to ASR’s CFO Ewout Hollegien.
Dow Chemical scheme eyes buyout
Meanwhile, the next Dutch pension fund preparing for a buyout in the run-up to the Dutch transition to defined contribution (DC) arrangements is the Dutch pension scheme of Dow Chemical. It is currently investigating the first quotes it has received from insurers.
If the outcome is positive, the fund intends to submit an application to regulator DNB for a collective value transfer before the end of this year. The fund, which has been closed for new members since 2014, will stop accruals in 2028 when the fund will shift to a new defined-contribution arrangement.
Fossil fuels
In other news, the Dutch pension fund for self-employed medical specialists (SPMS) announced it will only invest in oil and gas companies that have signed up to the goals of the Paris Agreement or commit at least 20% of their annual capital expenditure to renewable energy projects.
The new policy follows from a survey among participants about their sustainability preferences. This showed that only a minority of 22% want to exclude fossil fuels altogether, although 62% want their pension to be invested sustainably.
The new fossil fuel policy only applies to the pension fund’s actively managed equity portfolios for European equities and emerging market equities, as well as to European and US corporate bonds. It will not be applied to the fund’s passively managed assets, which include US equities. The fund has already implemented a Climate Transition Benchmark for these portfolios.
Items to note:
- The IPE Real Assets Infrastructure & Natural Capital Global Conference & Awards 2025 is taking place on Tuesday 16 to Wednesday 17 September at the Mainport Hotel in Rotterdam
Tjibbe Hoekstra
IPE Netherlands Correspondent
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