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The scare story and the stress test
S&P found UK annuity writers hold enough capital for a repeat of 2008. Everyone read the scary version instead. Part 3 of my private credit series.
Jul 24
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Gordon Aitken
12
2
4
The one report I'm not giving away
After a year of giving it away, this one I am charging for.
Jul 22
•
Gordon Aitken
5
The World Cup one-pager that broke the rules
Analysts were told to write long. I compressed the sector onto a single page with the World Cup fixtures on the back, and half the client list opened…
Jul 8
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Gordon Aitken
5
2
3
June 2026
Capital punishment, 24 years on
In 2002 a falling market nearly sank UK life insurers. Today the same crash would barely move them.
Jun 23
•
Gordon Aitken
11
9
4
A £21bn overreaction to a rule that isn't about insurance
The new rule bans something AIA and Prudential never did.
Jun 16
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Gordon Aitken
12
1
4
Decoding private capital’s BPA play
Public markets have been mispricing UK life insurers, and private capital has spotted the arbitrage. Full slides and transcript from my talk at the…
Jun 2
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Gordon Aitken
21
5
May 2026
I Lost Resolution in 2007. The Professional Buyer Keeps Winning.
Across five eras and 30 years, the same UK life insurers keep changing hands at a discount; only the type of buyer changes. Today it is the global asset…
May 26
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Gordon Aitken
12
3
3
27 years on: is L&G back in play?
The model has flipped: asset managers now want to own insurers. Five ways to capture the value at L&G.
May 19
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Gordon Aitken
23
12
6
The regulator doesn’t do favours, this time it did.
How PRA Consultation Paper CP8/26 reprices the Funded Re lever, ends the BPA price war it built, and gives the listed UK life insurers the discipline…
May 12
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Gordon Aitken
26
3
April 2026
Is Standard Life about to trade 20% IRRs for a re-rating?
If the FT report lands as described, Standard Life is doing what its shareholders want. The harder question is whether its shareholders want the right…
Apr 30
•
Gordon Aitken
24
8
4
Standard Life buys Aegon UK: two of Edinburgh's pensions three finally meet
Standard Life's £2.0bn acquisition of Aegon UK closes a chapter in Edinburgh's pensions story.
Apr 15
•
Gordon Aitken
13
3
3
Private capital is moving into bulk annuities: what it means for listed insurers
Two deals worth a combined £8.1bn completed in the space of a week. The question now is what this means for the listed players left standing.
Apr 14
•
Gordon Aitken
29
4
5
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