The UK's Heywood Pension Technologies has reached an agreement to be acquired by the Dutch-headquartered Keylane, for an undisclosed amount, marking a significant expansion of the provider's presence in the UK, the US, and the Asia-Pacific markets.

Heywood, which provides administration, data, and member engagement technology to more than 180 schemes and over eight million members, will continue to operate with a “high degree of autonomy” once the transaction is complete.

Its existing management team will remain in place, with CEO, Sian Jones, set to join the Keylane leadership team.

The firm’s strategic focus on supporting UK pension schemes and North American pension plans will remain unchanged.

It follows a report from Sky News in July, which suggested that BlackRock's long term private capital (LTPC) vehicle was working with bankers on the sale of Heywood, for which it paid about £350m in 2021.

Heywood confirmed today to European Pensions that the process had taken "most of the year" and claimed that the acquisition would expand Keylane’s established technology footprint, currently serving pension and insurance organisations across North-West Europe, into the UK, the US and the Asia-Pacific markets.

Commenting on the agreement, Jones said the deal marked “an important next step” in Heywood’s growth journey.

“Joining Keylane strengthens our ability to deliver market-leading pension technology while continuing to operate with the focus and autonomy our customers value,” she continued.

“Our commitment to providing excellent service and robust, future-ready solutions remains firmly in place, and we look forward to the opportunities this partnership will bring for our clients and colleagues.”

Also commenting on the deal, Keylane Group CEO, John Reynders, said the firm had been “highly impressed” with Heywood’s development and saw strong potential in combining the two businesses.

“They’ve built a range of robust, future-ready solutions with satisfied customers, an engaged team and a very professional way of running the business," he said.

“We see that Heywood is the future of technology solutions for pension schemes in the UK and pension plans in North America.

"We couldn’t miss this opportunity to join forces with such a strong partner,” Reynders added.

The deal represents Keylane’s first acquisition since partnering with private equity firm Pollen Street in 2024.

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