A lot has been written about how to achieve good outcomes for members of defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. A strong employer covenant, well-managed investments...
Read article “Good administration, the backbone of pensions”5 minutes

Today (10 January 2025) the government announced that it will take forward secondary legislation to ensure that the pension fund clearing exemption does not expire on 18 June 2025 as currently scheduled and to remove any further time limit on the exemption.
Commenting on the announcement, Wyn Francis, CIO, Brightwell said: “The government’s announcement to maintain the pension fund clearing exemption for the longer-term will be welcome news for pension schemes and their sponsors.
“The industry has consistently made the case for a permanent exemption and having greater certainty is good news.
“An expiration of the exemption would have required pension schemes to hold more cash which would have reduced pension schemes’ investment options and impacted investment returns. It would also have increased costs due to the direct costs involved in clearing trades.”

Head of Communications and External Relations
In this edition we celebrate our reaccreditation to PASA for Excellence in Pension Administration, Chris Threadgold explores outsourcing scheme services, and we release a special live edition of Pensions Unpacked, with Ian Mills, Head of DB Endgame Strategy at Barnett Waddingham, Morten Nilsson, CEO at Brightwell, and financial journalist Georgie Frost.
Find out more about “Bright Insight – Q3 2025”08/10/2025
In this special live edition of Pensions Unpacked, Ian Mills, Head of DB Endgame Strategy at Barnett Waddingham, and Morten Nilsson, CEO at Brightwell, talk to Georgie Frost about the future of the UK’s defined benefit pensions sector.
Find out more about “Pensions Unpacked Live Episode 3: UK DB landscape – where are we now & where are we going?”08/10/2025
For information on how we use your personal data read our terms & conditions and privacy statement.