Athora Acquires Pension Insurance Corp in $7.78 Billion Deal
Europe’s insurance sector witnessed a mega merger with Pension Insurance Corporation Group Limited (PICG), ultimate parent company of Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC), the specialist insurer of UK defined benefit pension schemes, announcing on Thursday that Athora Holding Limited has agreed to acquire PICG for approximately $7.78 billion.
Athora is a leading pan-European savings and retirement services group with $89.46 billion of assets under management and administration, on behalf of 2.8 million policyholders. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close in early 2026.
The acquisition reinforces PIC’s strategy of providing very high customer service levels and increases its ability to invest in UK housing and infrastructure as Athora supports PIC through the next phase of its growth. This will allow PIC to provide its best pricing across a larger number of pension risk transfer deals.
The transaction means that for the first time in its 20-year history, PIC will be held by a single strategic owner and will become the UK insurance business of Athora and continue operating under the PIC (and penguin) brand.
Athora has existing insurance businesses in the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium and Germany and is backed by permanent capital owners, including a strategic minority investment by Apollo Global Management and Athene Holding Limited, and long-term institutional investors such as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
The transaction creates a total Group with assets of over $153.02 billion, backing the pensions of more than three million savers and retirees across Europe. PIC will be 45% of Athora’s total assets under management and administration, and will be the largest and fastest growing business in the Group.
PIC has a portfolio of $69.52 billion backing the pensions of 400,000 people and it has invested $40.97 billion in the UK. To date PIC has invested $18.85 billion in the UK housing and infrastructure, which help provide the secure, inflation-linked cashflows which match its pension liabilities over future decades. PIC has so far paid more than $21.85 billion in pensions, with a 99% customer satisfaction rating.
UK’s Top Pension Business
PIC CEO Tracy Blackwell said that PIC has had an amazing growth story over the past two decades and is now one of Britain’s preeminent pension businesses. This success has been based on a simple purpose, which is to pay the pensions of their current and future policyholders.
“With Athora backing us through our next phase of growth as their UK insurance business, we will be able to provide more options to the trustees of defined benefit pension schemes and invest more in the UK housing and infrastructure. The pension risk transfer market is vital to the wellbeing of millions of the UK pensioners and the allocation of tens of billions of pounds of investment into the UK’s economy,” he said.
This acquisition and the potential for growth that it represents is the strongest possible recognition of the value and importance of the pension risk transfer market, the sector that PIC helped to create and continues to lead, he added.
Athora CEO Mike Wells said that they have been following PIC’s progress for several years and been consistently impressed by the very high-quality business its team has built.
“As our UK subsidiary, PIC will be the largest business within the Athora Group and we intend to invest in the business and its people to support that growth in the UK pension risk transfer market. We have great confidence in the long-term strengths of the UK: its retirement market, regulatory and policy framework, and economic prospects,” he added.
Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, Executive Director of the Private Equities Department at ADIA, said that as a shareholder in PICG since 2018, their investment supported the growth of the company as it strengthened its position as one of the leading players in the UK pension risk transfer market.
