Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has announced the acquisition of all of the property and commercial businesses within the Barbon Insurance Group (BIG), for an undisclosed consideration.
The acquisition includes the purchase of four specialist insurance broking brands: Deacon, Farr, Cadogan Keelan Westall and Keelan Westall. In a related transaction OIM, (OIM Underwriting Limited), Arthur J. Gallagher International’s Managing General Agent, has purchased Zennor Limited., a specialist managing general agency (MGA), and wholly-owned subsidiary of BIG.
David Ross, CEO of AJG International, said: “This is a truly significant deal for us. Since our purchase of Heath Lambert in 2011, we have worked hard to enhance our distribution platform in the UK retail market. We made selective acquisitions in 2012, of IDL, Intasure, Acumus and Contego – and now a unique opportunity has presented itself within Barbon. Its property and commercial businesses are highly complementary to our current operations, adding depth and breadth to our existing network and providing further opportunity for our claims Third Party Administrator Gallagher Bassett.
“We have a tight focus on managing our markets – selecting fields we want to lead – while providing a full service offering to clients and underwriters. This deal fits perfectly into our strategy and structure and we’re planning a national roll-out of Barbon’s property products, to drive our regional network growth strategy. We’ll inject our domain expertise into the mix and, with the support of our clients and our markets, ensure these businesses remain undisputed leaders in their field while expanding their reach.”
Mark Armitage, who will be joining from Barbon as Director of Mergers and Acquisitions said: “This is a game-changing deal for the UK retail market. Our property and commercial businesses will benefit enormously from access to the Gallagher platform and its robust growth strategy.”
