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Broker mergers hit another record high in 2018

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Broker mergers hit another record high in 2018

Mergers and acquisitions among insurance brokers in the United States and Canada reached record levels in 2018, with 626 deals announced compared with then-record 611 in 2017, according to a report released Friday by Optis Partners LLC.

The second half of 2018 saw 330 transactions, with 148 announced in the fourth quarter, the Chicago-based investment banking and financial services firm said in the report.

“This M&A market for insurance agents-brokers continues to surprise and exceed expectations,” said Timothy J. Cunningham, managing director of Optis, in a statement.

Private equity/hybrid buyers, which includes private-equity backed buyers and privately owned buyers with material internal or external acquisition financial support, was the biggest group of buyers accounting for 67% of the deals, compared with 63% of deals in 2017.

“The concentration of PE/hybrid buyers has grown steadily since we began tracking deals in 2008 when only 21% of the transactions involved private equity buyers,” Mr. Cunningham said.

The top five buyers were: Acrisure LLC with 101 transactions, Hub International Ltd. with 59, AssuredPartners Inc. with 37, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. with 36 and BroadStreet Partners Inc. with 34.

More than half the deals involved property/casualty brokers and agents, the report said.

 

 

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