I had a question to the CEO of Standard Life’s retail annuity business – “where’s Tom Ground”. I’ve found out since that meeting.

Tom’s on gardening leave awaiting his departure because the cupboard is bare. Tom is CDO of the bulk annuity business at Standard Life.

The last publicised deal Standard has done was a buy-in to Sedgwick’s, the core of Mercer’s DB pension

It would seem the only way you can compete to get large schemes.

It now seems that Standard cannot let go of a place at the BPA table and – if the FT are right – talking with the usual set of American private equity houses to get some cheap money to do deals with.

I am no fan. L&G did the Ford deal recently using Blackstone money. Here’s the FT, referring to Phoenix…

The UK’s largest savings and retirement business had held talks with firms including Blackstone, Sixth Street and KKR about a possible deal that would enable it to bid for more and larger buyouts of pension pots, according to people familiar with the matter.

Another insurer boating UK pension funds down the river before they’re shipped off to America (most likely reinsured and packed off to Bermuda).

Is that what it’s come to? Rachel Reeves congratulated Broomfield for buying Just in the summer, Apollo did the same with PIC, L&G are partnering with Blackstone. What’s the secret?

The PRA don’t seem to be quite as happy as our Chancellor of the Exchequer. They are not quite sure that the capital requirements for offshore reinsurance quite match the standards of British led deals. Neither am I – but I lead it to our PFA to be the Bank of England’s regulator of the insurance deals in question.

I am a big fan of Standard Life, particularly of Tom Ground who I thought had a lot to say for the member in all this. I am not so sure I see the new direction of Standard Life as one I wanted. I would rather see Standard Life doing good things using what we are good at in the UK , especially in life and pensions for ordinary people.

Phoenix may wish to sit at the same table as L&G and what it considers its peers but is the price of a sell out to American private capital worth it?

I prefer to hear rumours in the FT of Standard/Phoenix returning to asset management

A final transaction could lead to Phoenix partnering with an asset manager to source and manage some assets, the people added. The new funds will allow the insurer to compete for more pension liabilities and the assets backing them.

This sounds the kind of thing that I hear from M&G (Prudential to you and me).  If we see capital retained in the UK and pension schemes managed so that Britain can benefit, I would be a lot happier.

My voice doesn’t count for much, but I’d like to think I speak to many readers of this blog in encouraging Standard to stay clear of the Bermudian Triangle of  Capital through Reinsurance.