Phoenix Group has entered into a strategic partnership with Wipro under a business process outsourcing (BPO) agreement, aligning with its revised IT strategy and long-term operational goals.
As part of this collaboration, Wipro will oversee life and pension administration services for the ReAssure business while assuming management of the ALPHA platform. The agreement, valued at £500 million (approximately US$645 million), extends over a 10-year period.
This partnership is expected to facilitate the transformation of ReAssure by streamlining operations and allowing Phoenix to concentrate on core strategic initiatives. Additionally, Wipro has committed to enhancing the ALPHA platform and related services to support Phoenix’s customer experience objectives.
Phoenix’s long-term platform strategy anticipates the management of over 8 million existing policies on TCS’s BaNCS platform.
Developments in the UK Life and Pensions Market
The collaboration occurs amid significant changes within the UK life and pensions industry.
Industry analysis by IBISWorld estimates revenue for the sector at £37.0 billion for the 2024-2025 period, despite experiencing a compound annual decline of 3.6% over the past five years.
Conversely, GlobalData reported that the UK’s life insurance market recorded a gross written premium of £216.3 billion (US$267.2 billion) in 2023. Forecasts indicate a compound annual growth rate exceeding 2% between 2024 and 2028.
Additionally, the pension risk transfer market has continued its strong growth trajectory in 2024. Fitch Ratings noted that the UK life insurance sector was the only one in Europe with an improving outlook for 2024, largely driven by sustained, profitable growth in pension risk transfers.
