MetLife to Provide Annuity Benefits to Nearly 5,200 Weyerhaeuser Retirees and Beneficiaries
January 25 2021 - 5:24PM
Business Wire
~ Pension risk transfer agreement covers
approximately $765 million in pension obligations ~
MetLife, Inc. announced today that its subsidiary, Metropolitan
Tower Life Insurance Company, has entered into an agreement with
Weyerhaeuser Company (Weyerhaeuser) to provide annuity benefits to
nearly 5,200 retirees and beneficiaries in Weyerhaeuser’s defined
benefit (DB) pension plan, representing pension obligations of
approximately $765 million.
“We are pleased to have been selected to provide guaranteed
lifetime income to these Weyerhaeuser retirees and beneficiaries,”
says Graham Cox, executive vice president and head of Retirement
& Income Solutions at MetLife. “In 2021, MetLife is celebrating
its 100th year offering group annuity contracts; our expertise in
managing transferred pension liabilities allows our clients to
reduce the risk associated with managing their pension plan and
know their participants’ benefits are protected.”
Weyerhaeuser’s group annuity contract purchase from Metropolitan
Tower Life Insurance Company closed in December 2020. The
transaction will not change the amount of the monthly pension
benefit received by Weyerhaeuser’s retirees and beneficiaries. No
action is needed by retirees or beneficiaries. Weyerhaeuser and
MetLife will provide details to those Weyerhaeuser retired
participants and beneficiaries whose ongoing payments will be made
by Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company.
“This pension risk transfer agreement allows Weyerhaeuser to
focus on its core mission and lessen our plan’s exposure to market
volatility, while knowing that MetLife’s expertise in guaranteed
lifetime income ensures a seamless transition for transferred
retirees and beneficiaries,” said Russell Hagen, senior vice
president and chief financial officer of Weyerhaeuser.
Plan sponsors are looking to pursue pension risk transfer
transactions sooner rather than later. MetLife’s 2020 Pension Risk
Transfer Poll found that among plan sponsors interested in a
buyout, the majority (81%) said they would transact within five
years, including 24% who said they would secure a buyout within two
years.
MetLife, through Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and
Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company, is a market leader in
the pension risk transfer industry, managing benefit payments of
approximately $3 billion a year for about 720,000 annuitants.
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company issued its first group annuity
contract in 1921 to fund a defined benefit plan. MetLife’s
Retirement & Income Solutions Customer Solutions Center team
has been recognized by J.D. Power for providing "An Outstanding
Customer Service Experience" for the Live Phone Channel. MetLife's
Retirement & Income Solutions (RIS) business includes U.S.
Pensions, Institutional Income Annuities, and Structured
Settlements in addition to other institutional products.
About MetLife
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and
affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial
services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee
benefits and asset management to help its individual and
institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in
1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 markets globally and
holds leading positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America,
Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit
www.metlife.com.
About Weyerhaeuser Company
Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest private owners
of timberlands, began operations in 1900. The company owns or
controls approximately 11 million acres of timberlands in the U.S.
and manages additional timberlands under long-term licenses in
Canada. Weyerhaeuser manages these timberlands on a sustainable
basis in compliance with internationally recognized forestry
standards, and the company is also one of the largest manufacturers
of wood products in North America. Weyerhaeuser is a real estate
investment trust and in 2019 generated $6.6 billion in net sales
and employed approximately 9,400 people who serve customers
worldwide. The company is listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability
North America Index. Its common stock trades on the New York Stock
Exchange under the symbol WY. Learn more at
www.weyerhaeuser.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
The forward-looking statements in this news release, such as
those using words that include, without limitation, “will” and
other statements or phrases that directly or indirectly imply the
occurrence of future or ongoing events, are forward- looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, as amended. These forward-looking statements
are based on current assumptions and expectations and are not
guarantees that the events described or suggested in the statements
will occur within the time frame indicated, or at all. The accuracy
of these assumptions and expectations is subject to a number of
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events to differ
materially from those described or suggested in the forward-looking
statements including, but not limited to, those described in the
“Risk Factors” MetLife, Inc. and Weyerhaeuser each describes in
their respective U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
Future results could differ, and neither MetLife nor Weyerhaeuser
undertakes any obligation to correct or update any of these
forward-looking statements.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210125005896/en/
MetLife Contact: Judi Mahaney jmahaney@metlife.com
212-578-7977
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