Collegia

What Collegia does

Collegia Partners Limited is a UK FCA-authorised pension provider founded in 2018 by Eduardo Chazan and Riccardo Gasparini, headquartered in Oxford with a secondary office in London. The company operates a digital pension platform anchored by the Collegia Pension, which is the first UK scheme authorised by the FCA to combine Auto Enrolment workplace pension and Personal Pension within a single portable product that follows the member across employers and self-employment. The platform is delivered through a web dashboard and native iOS and Android applications, with integrations to HMRC via FreePayroll (an HMRC-recognised payroll product bundled free to employers), Open Banking for contributions, the PAPDIS standard for payroll data exchange, and the Origo protocol for digital transfer-out requests. Investment management is delivered exclusively through AllianceBernstein (managing approximately $750bn globally), offering both a five-fund Pathway to Retirement Strategy that automatically de-risks as retirement approaches and a UN SDG-aligned Sustainable Target Date Fund range with industry exclusions, plus a Shariah-compliant HSBC Islamic Global Equity Index option. An independent Governance Advisory Arrangement, run by Zedra, publishes annual Value for Money assessments.

Collegia serves three primary customer segments: individual employees enrolled via their employers, self-employed individuals and side-hustlers without employer contributions, and UK employers fulfilling Auto Enrolment duties, with a secondary channel through business advisors and payroll bureaus. The revenue model combines a £25 annual flat fee per member (waived if it would reduce the pot below £100), a 0.4% annual percentage charge on assets under management (compared to a stated typical market rate of 0.75% AMC), a £25 transfer-in fee on transfers below £5,000, and a £25 transfer-out fee for Origo-based transfers; employer-side services are free. The product is regulated under FCA (FRN 922214), HMRC-registered as a pension scheme (PSTR 20004161RJ), and offers 100% FSCS protection without an upper limit.

The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors, four disclosed funding rounds between 2019 and 2024 totalling approximately $1.66M, a headcount in the 11-50 range, and a stated customer base of 'thousands' spanning the UK. Distribution relies on direct-to-consumer digital sign-up via app.collegia.co.uk and the mobile apps, an employer portal at employer.collegia.co.uk, a dedicated advisor portal at advisor.collegia.co.uk, and a referral programme channelling members to in-house sales. Collegia is restricted to UK residents and is positioned around transparency on fees, ESG-aligned investing, and consolidation of fragmented pension pots accumulated through job changes.

Name

Collegia

Legal name

Collegia Partners Limited

Website

https://collegia.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Collegia Partners Limited is a UK FCA-authorised digital pension provider offering the first combined Auto Enrolment and Personal Pension product via mobile app and web platform, serving UK employees, self-employed individuals, employers, and payroll bureaus with transparent fees and ESG-aligned investments managed by AllianceBernstein.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pension Services

NAICS

Pension Funds (525110), Payroll Services (541214)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Employer Retirement Plan Advisory (401(k)/Pension) (FSAEABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate & Public Pension Funds (DB/DC Sponsors) (FSAAAGAA), Embedded Payroll, Earned Wage Access & Benefits Finance (FSAGALAI)

Keywords

• Pension management
• Auto enrolment
• Workplace pensions
• Personal pension
• Pension consolidation

Headquarters

HQ city

Oxford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Annual Flat Fee: Annual flat fee of £25 (£2.08/month) charged to pension members. Not applied if it would reduce pension pot value below £100.
2. Annual Percentage Charge: 0.4% annual charge on the value of pension funds, applied to all selected funds.
3. Transfer In Fee: £25 fee for each transfer received from another DC pension scheme where individual transfer value is less than £5,000, using enhanced digital transfer process.
4. Transfer Out Fee: £25 fee for transfer out requests processed via Origo, deducted from pension pot.
5. Employer Services: Free of charge for employers regardless of company size, bundled with FreePayroll offering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Collegia provides the Collegia Pension, the first UK FCA-authorised hybrid Auto Enrolment and personal pension scheme, allowing UK employees, the self-employed, and side-hustlers to hold a single portable pension pot across jobs. The offering is delivered through a mobile and web app and is supported by FreePayroll (free HMRC-recognised payroll software bundled for employers) and an advisor portal for payroll bureaus and accountants to manage AE compliance for their clients.

Product overview

Collegia offers a unified digital pension platform anchored by the Collegia Pension, which is the first UK-authorised hybrid Auto Enrolment and personal pension product. The platform provides two main investment strategies: the Collegia Pathway To Retirement Strategy (using five risk-based funds) and the Collegia Sustainable Target Date Fund Range (ESG-focused). An optional FreePayroll add-on enables employers to manage payroll and pension in one place. The Collegia Mobile App (iOS/Android) serves as the primary interface for members to access, contribute to, and manage their retirement savings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Collegia Pension Combined Auto Enrolment workplace pension and personal pension offered as a single FCA-authorised portable product for UK employees, the self-employed, and side-hustlers, supporting multiple simultaneous employers, top-ups, and consolidation of old pots.
• FreePayroll HMRC-recognised payroll software offered free of charge to UK employers using the Collegia Pension, integrating payroll and pension management to deliver 100% Automatic Enrolment compliance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Lower fees than typical market rate (0.4% vs 0.75% AMC)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• AllianceBernsteincoreTechnology or IntegrationAllianceBernstein is the exclusive investment manager for all Collegia pension funds. They manage around $750bn globally and have 50+ years of experience in investment management. They provide the Collegia Sustainable Target Date Fund range and Pathway to Retirement Strategy funds with ESG integration.
• ZedracoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZedra is a specialist in monitoring pension schemes who set up the independent Governance Advisory Arrangement (GAA) committee for Collegia. The GAA judges how well Collegia serves its members and publishes annual Value for Money reports. Zedra is legally obligated to act on GAA recommendations.
• FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme)coreOthersCollegia is a member of FSCS, providing 100% protection without upper limit for customer pension pots in case of default.
• The Pensions RegulatorcoreOthersCollegia operates as a qualifying pension scheme under The Pensions Regulator guidelines for Auto Enrolment compliance.
• HMRCcoreOthersCollegia is HMRC-registered pension scheme (PSTR 20004161RJ) and HMRC-authorised pension administrator (ID A2001642). Handles 25% tax relief top-ups automatically.
• FCA (Financial Conduct Authority)coreOthersCollegia is authorised and regulated by FCA under registration number 922214. Went through rigorous authorisation process.
• OrigocoreTechnology or IntegrationOrigo is the transfer protocol platform used for processing pension transfer-out requests from Collegia to receiving pension schemes.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Penfold: UK digital pension provider targeting employees, self-employed and side-hustlers through an app-based platform. Closest direct competitor to Collegia in positioning, pricing (low flat fees + low AMC), and ESG-led proposition.
• PensionBee: UK-listed pension consolidation specialist with a consumer-facing app that aggregates old workplace and personal pension pots. Directly comparable in the pension consolidation, app-first, low-fee value proposition for UK consumers.
• Smart Pension: UK workplace Auto Enrolment pension platform serving thousands of employers and millions of members. Direct competitor in the B2B2C AE market, including via payroll bureau and accountant integrations.
• NOW: Pensions: One of the UK's largest AE workplace pension providers, owned by Railpen. Competes head-to-head with Collegia for employer AE mandates and offers a similar low-cost DC proposition.
• The People's Pension: Independent UK master trust AE scheme used by employers of all sizes. Directly comparable in serving the same AE compliance and employer-advisor distribution model.
• Cushon: UK workplace pension and savings platform with a strong ESG/sustainable investing angle and employer payroll integrations. Closely aligned with Collegia's ESG-led, employer-bundled proposition.

Broad incumbents

• NEST (National Employment Savings Trust): Government-backed UK AE scheme and the default provider for auto-enrolled workers. Largest AE scheme by membership; sets the benchmark low-cost benchmark that Collegia must undercut or differentiate against.
• Aviva (Workplace Pensions): One of the UK's largest incumbent workplace pension providers with broad product range. Represents the legacy higher-fee competitor that Collegia's 0.4% AMC and ESG positioning is designed to disrupt.
• Scottish Widows: Major UK incumbent with deep workplace and personal pension offerings including AE solutions. Competes for the same employer and advisor relationships, but at higher fees and with a less differentiated digital experience.

Emerging players

• Moneybox: UK app-based savings and investment platform that includes a personal pension product. Overlaps with Collegia on the consumer-facing, app-first, low-fee UK retirement proposition, particularly for younger savers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/collegia-pensions

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Collegia