The trustees of the European Metal Recycling Limited Pension and Life Assurance Scheme have completed a £33m buy-in with Aviva, covering the defined benefit (DB) pension liabilities of 217 deferred and pensioner members.

Isio acted as a key broker on the deal, which completed in May, while Eversheds provided legal advice and Goldman Sachs provided investment advice to the trustees.

Marking the scheme’s first transaction, the deal was completed without any contribution from the sponsor, European Metal Recycling Limited, as the scheme was already in surplus.

Members will see no change in the amount of their benefits or the way they are paid as a result of the buy-in.

Commenting on the deal, chair of the trustees, Neil Stinson, said: “We are very pleased to have partnered with Aviva to secure our members’ benefits, and in doing so providing added protection to our members’ long-term benefits.

“We are grateful to our advisors, who worked seamlessly in providing clear advice and guidance in reaching this positive outcome for our members and whose combined efforts ensured a smooth transaction process. We look forward to continuing to work with Aviva in the future.”

Isio senior manager, Diane Cadden, also highlighted the deal as a “significant milestone" in the scheme's history, explaining that “by prioritising clear communication and collaboration between advisors, we were able to streamline the transaction and ensure the deal went according to plan”.

“It has been a pleasure for Isio to support the trustees in delivering on their objectives and protecting the benefits of all scheme members,” she stated.

Aviva senior deal manager, Toby Holmes, added: “We are proud to have been selected to partner with the trustees to secure the benefits of the scheme members and we look forward to welcoming them as individual Aviva customers in due course.

“This transaction demonstrates our ongoing commitment to schemes of all sizes in today’s bulk purchase annuity market and our ability to offer flexible solutions to well-prepared schemes.”

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