Mercer Launches the Mercer Pension Risk ExchangeSM – Innovative Solution to Streamline and Support Buyout Process
June 09 2015 - 10:12AM
Business Wire
First-of-its-kind platform to provide
enhanced price transparency and liquidity to group annuity
market
Mercer, a global consulting leader in advancing health, wealth
and careers, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan
Companies (NYSE: MMC), today announced the launch of the Mercer
Pension Risk ExchangeSM (the “exchange”).The exchange is a
groundbreaking solution that helps plan sponsors execute group
annuity buyouts in a shorter timeframe and in a more competitive
pricing environment. As the first platform of its kind, the
exchange increases liquidity and price transparency by enabling
plan sponsors to continuously monitor pricing and contract terms
available in the group annuity market. The exchange also provides
sponsors with greater exposure to a wider array of insurers that
could potentially act as transactional counterparts for a
buyout.
“Market pricing changes continuously based on interest rates and
insurers’ needs. The way to really know when the market is moving
in a direction favorable to the sponsor is to monitor prices
specifically for their plan. The exchange creates the platform for
sponsors to do exactly this,” said Jacques Goulet, President of
Mercer's Retirement, Health, and Benefits business.
The exchange provides real-time online annuity pricing and
trigger monitoring, combining a suite of buyout advisory and
execution services. These include:
- Deal
readiness: streamlining the process by creating an industry
standard for data preparation and document specification.
- Dynamic
monitoring: monitoring prices and metrics in real time to
identify when conditions are optimal to execute.
- Execution
support: providing comprehensive support to sponsors and
fiduciaries to help navigate the complexities of the buyout
execution – ranging from insurer due diligence and asset
preparation through to contract negotiation.
“Though sponsors’ appetite to transfer pension risk is high,
they face some barriers to execution. Lack of clear information
about the true cost of a buyout, limited transparency and the
fluctuation of market rates and plan dynamics are all major
challenges,” said Phil de Cristo, president and group executive of
Mercer’s investment business. “We wanted to empower plan sponsors
to be more strategic and sophisticated in their approach and to
execute buyouts at the best times and at competitive prices. The
exchange offers a significant advantage to sponsors considering a
buyout.”
Notes for editors:
Mercer will conduct a webcast on Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 2pm
EDT/1pm CDT/12pm MDT/11am PDT. Link to register for the webcast can
be found here: http://ow.ly/NVKAT
About Mercer
Mercer is a global consulting leader in talent, health,
retirement and investments. Mercer helps clients around the world
advance the health, wealth and performance of their most vital
asset – their people. Mercer’s more than 20,000 employees are based
in more than 40 countries and the firm operates in over 130
countries. Mercer is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh &
McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC), a global professional services firm
offering clients advice and solutions in the areas of risk,
strategy and people. With 57,000 employees worldwide and annual
revenue exceeding $13 billion, Marsh & McLennan Companies is
also the parent company of Marsh, a leader in insurance broking and
risk management; Guy Carpenter, a leader in providing risk and
reinsurance intermediary services; and Oliver Wyman, a leader in
management consulting. For more information, visit www.mercer.com.
Follow Mercer on Twitter @MercerInsights.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150609006132/en/
MercerAlayna Francis,
212-345-1315Alayna.Francis@mercer.comFollow Mercer on Twitter:
@MercerInsights
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