Donnelley Completes Pension Plan Termination

Risk and compliance firm Donnelley Financial Solutions Inc. announced on Thursday the completion of the termination of its defined benefit pension plan. The company settled its obligations by providing lump sum payments to some plan participants and purchasing annuity contracts to offload its remaining obligations to an unnamed insurer.

The company’s DB plan had been frozen to new participants since 2011. The company will recognize a settlement charge in its third quarter results, scheduled to be released next week, due to unrealized accumulated plan losses being recognized. 

According to the company’s 2024 annual report, the pension fund’s target asset allocation was 100% fixed-income investments, and the expected long-term rate-of-return assumption used to calculate pension income for the year ending on December 31 is 5.3%, “reflecting the effective discount rate required to settle the plan’s benefit obligations.”

Total pension and other post-retirement benefits plans liabilities were listed at $23.3 million, as of December 31, 2024. Fair value of the plan assets was listed at $189.5 million, also as of December 31, 2024.

During the third quarter of 2025, Donnelley made a $12.5 million cash contribution to fully fund the plan. The plan termination will remove $10 million in liabilities from the company’s balance sheet—approximately $190 million in plan assets and $200 million in liabilities.

“This transaction reflects our continued commitment to prudent financial management and delivering long-term value to our shareholders,” said Dave Gardella, Donnelley’s CFO, in a statement. “By fully funding the Plan and partnering with a trusted insurer, we’ve secured future benefits for Plan participants while reducing risk and further enhancing our financial flexibility.”

In August 2024, Donnelley began the process of terminating the plan, scheduling it for the second half of this year, according to the company’s form 10-Q for the second quarter 2025.