Pension scheme funding dips in March amid market volatility – Broadstone

Defined benefit (DB) pension scheme funding levels fell back slightly in March as market volatility linked to Middle East tensions impacted performance, according to the latest update from Broadstone.

The firm’s Sirius Index, which tracks pension schemes’ progress towards low dependency, showed that both “growth focused” and “matching focused” strategies reversed gains made earlier in the year, although overall funding levels remain relatively robust.

Broadstone has also rebased the index for 2026, with both strategies starting the year at 90% funded.

By the end of February, the growth-focused approach had improved to 90.8% before falling back to 89.0% in March.

The more conservative matching-focused strategy rose to 90.3% before declining to 88.6% over the same period.

The data indicated that while schemes experienced some deterioration during March, this largely offset gains seen in January and February rather than signalling a broader downturn.

Chris Rice, head of trustee services at Broadstone, said: “The last few years have been incredibly strong for the health of defined benefit schemes, allowing many investment strategies to be derisked to protect scheme funding positions.

“Most schemes shouldn’t be experiencing a significant change in funding in the first quarter of 2026, with the deterioration in March generally reversing January and February’s gains.