Mutual pensions firm and life insurer Royal London has today confirmed its entry into the bulk purchase annuity (BPA) market.

The company said it will focus on working with trustees and advisers on BPA transactions of up to £500m.

It said it has set up a team of 40 experts, led by its director of BPA solutions Paul Bowker.

Royal London said the team has been involved in hundreds of buy-ins and buyouts from small to multi-billion-pound deals, with experience across a range of bulk annuity providers and consultancies.

The move is the latest stage in the development of Royal London’s BPA proposition, which has included transacting a £250m full scheme buy-in policy with the trustee of the Royal Liver UK Pension Scheme in November 2023 and a further £350m buy-in policy in January this year to insure a subset of members in the Royal London Group Pension Scheme.

In July the group transacted with its first external pension scheme, securing a £30m full scheme buy-in, followed by a further £100m transaction with another external pension scheme in September. The transactions underscore the group’s readiness for entering the BPA market and supporting trustees, the business said.

Barry O’Dwyer, group chief executive said: “With an increasing number of pension schemes looking to meet their de-risking objectives, it’s an important time to be providing a mutual choice. We’re off to a strong start as we continue to focus on establishing a reputation as an insurer of choice for trustees and their advisers.”

Paul Bowker, director of BPA solutions at Royal London, said: “We have invested significantly to build a bulk annuity offering for trustees and their members. We will be building on our customer service credentials and delivering our BPA administration in-house to ensure we deliver the highest standards of service.”

Last month the mutual rebranded the Responsible Lending equity release business it acquired earlier in the year as Royal London Equity Release.

The rebrand followed the completion of the company's acquisition of the later life lending and product specialists Responsible Life and Responsible Lending at the end of January.