Liberty Mutual to sell European, Lloyd’s units to Hamilton Insurance

Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. will sell its Pembroke Managing Agency Ltd., Ironshore Europe operations and Visionary (Dubai) units to Hamilton Insurance Group Ltd., subject to regulatory approval.

The deal to sell the European and Lloyd’s of London units resulted from a strategic review of Liberty Mutual’s London-based Pembroke Managing Agency and Dublin-based Ironshore Europe DAC businesses, acquired through the Ironshore Inc. purchase in May 2017, the insurer said in a statement Thursday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. 

Upon closing, the transaction will almost double Hamilton’s total premium base and accelerates Hamilton’s goal of growing its position in specialty insurance and its ability to expand its reinsurance franchise, the Hamilton, Bermuda-based insurer and reinsurer said in its statement.

“Given our objective of building a global, diversified specialty insurance and reinsurance organization, our agreement with Liberty is a meaningful step towards achieving that goal,” Hamilton CEO Pina Albo said in its statement.

Liberty Specialty Markets will continue to serve the Lloyd’s market through its syndicate 4472 and other company platforms, Liberty Mutual said.

“For Liberty, the transaction supports our International specialty business by eliminating the multiple Lloyd’s syndicates and business overlap that resulted from Liberty Mutual’s acquisition of Ironshore,” Matthew Moore, president of Liberty Specialty Markets, said in the statement. “Clarifying our operations — including selling Pembroke and focusing on our Lloyd’s syndicate 4472 — makes it easier for brokers and customers to partner with us to meet their risk management needs.” 

Liberty’s syndicate 4472 is the third-largest syndicate at Lloyd’s, offering aviation, casualty, construction, contingency, cyber, marine and energy, among other coverages, according to the insurer.

The transaction is expected to close later this year, subject to the fulfilment of customary closing conditions and obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals.