MINET BURN & ROCHE COMPLETES MBO

SYDNEY, Australia-A management buyout at Sydney-based Minet Burn & Roche Pty. Ltd. has created Australia's largest Australian-owned reinsurance intermediary.

The new company, MBR Reinsurance Pty. Ltd., now is owned by its board of directors, said Brendan J. Roche, MBR's new chairman.

Other senior employees soon will be offered the opportunity to buy shares, he said.

Minet Burn & Roche's parent company was Chicago-based Aon Corp., which acquired the company in May through its purchase of Minet Group (BI, April 14).

Mr. Roche, who previously was managing director of Minet Burn & Roche, said the management buyout had been in progress before Aon's purchase of Minet, and MBR's management team then reached agreement with Aon. A confidentiality clause in the sale agreement prevents disclosure of the price, Mr. Roche said.

Paul Allison, previously executive director-international, now is managing director of MBR.

The company plans to increase its staff and services, and MBR's insurer clients will benefit from streamlined service the company can provide because it no longer is controlled by an overseas company, he said.

Much of MBR's $500 million Australian ($376.9 million) of premium volume for the fiscal year that ended June 30 comes from domestic business, as Australia has developed a strong reinsurance market over the past decade (BI, April 7; Sept. 2, 1996).

According to Mr. Allison, MBR also has receiving a representative license to operate in Beijing.