Barnett Waddingham is expanding its bulk annuities team with the appointment of Nikhil Patel as senior risk transfer actuary.
Patel is an experienced risk transfer specialist, and joins from Mercer where he spent two years in the risk transfer team. He also led the risk transfer business at PwC during a 14-year stint, which also saw him advise trustees and corporate sponsors on funding, full scheme buy-outs, investment and risk management solutions.
Patel is also a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
In his new role, Patel will focus on collaborating with trustees and sponsors of DB schemes of all sizes, identifying and implementing appropriate risk transfer solutions.
During his career Patel has worked on full scheme buy-ins and buyouts, ranging from £5m to £4bn-plus. He has advised trustees on complex features, such as residual risk and single premium transactions. He has also advised corporate sponsors on the risk and costs associated with a risk transfer project and supported the decision-making process, including at board level.
Significant recent transactions for Patel include leading on the £600m buy-in for the ITV Pension Scheme, the £300m buy-in for the William Hill Pension Scheme and the £330m buy-ins for some of the Unisys’ pension schemes.
Patel says: “With buyout volumes projected to break records again in the coming years and the emergence of credible alternative solutions, I am looking forward to contributing to the growth of the team and adding to Barnett Waddingham’s strong reputation in the pensions market.”
BW advises across risk, pensions, investment, insurance and employee benefit services. The consultancy acts for a wide range of clients in both the private and public sectors – this includes 25 per cent of FTSE 100 and over 15 per cent of FTSE 350 companies.