PenCom approves consolidation of ARM Pension, Access Pensions into single entity

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has approved the merger between two industry players: ARM Pension Managers (PFA) Limited and Access Pensions Limited.

The resulting entity, christened Access ARM Pensions Limited, promises to leverage the strengths and expertise of both ARM and Access Pensions to provide enhanced retirement savings and investment services to their combined customer base.

PenCom announced in a statement issued on Tuesday, that the merger of ARM Pension Managers (PFA) Limited and Access Pensions Limited is anticipated to lead to significant operational efficiencies and economies of scale for the newly formed entity.

“The merger is expected to result in the achievement of economies of scale, improved operational efficiency of the new entity as well as improved service delivery to Retirement Savings Account (RSA) Holders,” PenCom stated.

As the PenCom statement revealed, with the recent consolidation of ARM Pension Managers Limited and Access Pensions Limited, the total number of pension fund administrators (PFAs) in the country now stands at 18.

On January 24, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) made an announcement that Access Pensions Limited would merge with ARM Pension Managers Limited to provide an enhanced service offering.

The FCCPC stated that the merger was a consequence of Access Pension’s acquisition of an 81.82 percent majority stake in ARM Pension, a subsidiary of ARM Traditional Asset Management Limited.

The commission also disclosed that the merger between ARM Pension and Access Pensions would be finalised through a scheme of merger between the two companies.

ARM Pension, as part of the merger process, will transfer all of its assets, liabilities, and undertakings to Access Pensions, the FCCPC stated.

Furthermore, FCCPC revealed that the merger will create a pension fund administrator with an estimated asset under management (AUM) of N2.22 trillion.