(Reuters) -Lloyds, Britain's biggest mortgage lender, is exploring the sale of some assets from its pension provider Scottish Widows worth 6 billion pounds ($7.3 billion), Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The bank is in talks with advisers Fenchurch Advisory Partners and Morgan Stanley for the sale of the portfolio of bulk annuities, the report said.
Morgan Stanley declined to comment, while Lloyds (LON:LLOY) and Fenchurch did not immediately respond to Reuters emails seeking comment.
Bulk annuities, which have grown in popularity in the UK among pension scheme trustees, are a form of insurance whereby a company's pension plan offloads liabilities to an insurer.
Close to 30 billion pounds of pension liabilities were transferred to the insurance industry in the UK last year, according to data by broker Aon (NYSE:AON).
Scottish Widows offers products including life cover, critical illness, income protection, workplace and individual pensions annuities among others to about 6 million customers in the UK, according to Lloyds' website.
($1 = 0.8245 pounds)