By Matt Toledo
Source: Chief Investment Officer
The largest U.S. corporate pension funds had a collective funding surplus last year for the first time since 2007, according to Milliman’s 2025 Corporate Pension Funding Study. Funding ratios of the Milliman 100 rose to 101.1% in fiscal year 2024, up from 98.5% in 2023.
This is the first time these companies have had an average funding surplus since 2007, when that figure stood at 106%, before falling to 79% during the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009. In fiscal 24, the funding surplus rose to $13.8 billion, improving from a $19.9 billion deficit in 2023.
Out of the 100 plans Milliman tracked, more than half are in surplus, with 12 plans reporting a funding ratio greater than 125%. Only one plan reported having a funding ratio of less than 80%.