Millions of Royal London customers are set to receive a cut of a £181million profit share payout. The payments will be distributed in April to 2.3 million eligible customers with pensions and life policies.

This marks an increase from last year’s £163 million distribution. As a mutual organisation, Royal London is owned by its customers, allowing it to return profits directly to those with policies rather than external shareholders. The £181 million payout follows a strong financial performance, with Royal London reporting a pre-tax operating profit of £277 million for the year – up around 10% from 2023.

Barry O’Dwyer, Royal London’s chief executive, said: “Royal London is customer-owned and is run for the benefit of customers, not shareholders.

“We share our profits with eligible customers, and our ProfitShare scheme will distribute £181 million to 2.3 million customers in April.

“This was underpinned by the business delivering an 11% increase in operating profit to £277 million in 2024.”

The company also saw a 39% year-on-year increase in workplace pension transfers and added nearly 1,000 new employer workplace schemes, many of which moved from shareholder-owned competitors.

Employees receiving pay rises and a relatively high employment rate helped grow the UK pension market last year, Royal London said.

However, the company also noted an uptick in pension withdrawals as many customers faced ongoing cost-of-living pressures.

Speculation over potential changes to tax-free cash access in the October autumn Budget further contributed to the higher withdrawal levels.