Traditionally known for its presence in the GPP market, Aegon’s acquisition of BlackRock’s DC pension platform in 2016 underlined the provider’s commitment to being a major workplace pension provider. The BlackRock deal brought 350,000 customers and £12bn of assets at the time, and has given Aegon a significant footprint amongst larger schemes it had previously lacked. Aegon was no stranger to master trusts however, having been one of three providers used by Mercer as the administration platform for its master trust offering.
Its contract-based business, the Aegon Master Trust default contains £627m of assets for 16 employers. The master trust default has a relatively high equity exposure in the accumulation phase, with no cash and just 4 per cent in bonds for a saver 30 years from state pension age, although it is early days for performance, with three-year figures not yet available.
Derisking starts 10 years out, and master trust members are offered a combination of education and guidance services including online modellers, paper based communications, presentations in the workplace, delivered face to face or via webex, a helpline and the Aegon Assist guidance service.
