Global insurance brokerage Hub International (Hub) in July 2017 acquired HR technology consultants MillsonJames for an undisclosed sum. Based in Florida, USA, MillsonJames advises brokers and employers on HR and benefits technology.  MillsonJames principal Scott Millson now reports to Chris Gardner, President and CEO, Hub Florida.

U.S. banking group Wells Fargo in June 2017 announced that it had sold Wells Fargo Insurance Services USA (WFIS) to USI Insurance Services. Wells Fargo group is refocusing on core banking products and services. Wells Fargo’s Personal Insurance business remains with Wells Fargo group and will report to its Consumer Lending division. WFIS provides small business, middle market, large corporate and high net worth clients with property and casualty,

FWD Group in May 2017 announced it had completed the acquisition of American International Group (AIG)’s Japanese subsidiary AIG Fuji Life Insurance Company. The acquired business intends to trade as FWD Fuji Life Insurance Company. It is to be led by current AIG Fuji Life CEO Norio Tomono, reporting to Huynh Thanh Phong, FWD Group’s CEO. AIG Fuji Life Insurance Company is the AIG Global Benefits Network partner in

Arthur J. Gallagher in June 2017 announced the acquisition of Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Armstrong/Robitaille/Riegle and Ann Arbor Business Advisors. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Brokerage Armstrong/Robitaille/Riegle offers employee benefits, retirement planning, life insurance and human resource consulting, as well as commercial and personal property/casualty coverages, to clients primarily in Michigan and in California. Ann Arbor Business Advisors provides retirement plan services for institutional clients. Laurie E. Riegle,

Arthur J. Gallagher in May 2017 announced the acquisition of Zuber Insurance Agency in Houston, Texas. Zuber Insurance, a full-service insurance agency offering employee benefits, commercial and personal property/casualty insurance, and life insurance in Texas, was founded in 1934 by J.L. Zuber. Alan Zuber and his associates will continue to operate from Houston. As far as employee benefits are concerned, they will report to Robby White, head of Gallagher’s South

Global insurance brokerage Hub International in June 2017 announced that it has acquired Brady Insurance Planning, an East Norwich, New York-based employee benefits advisor. Matthew Brady, the principal, will join Hub Northeast. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Headquartered in Chicago, IL and with offices throughout North America, Hub International provides P&C, life and health, employee benefits, investment and risk management products and services. Only one day earlier,

Zurich Eurolife in June 2017 announced the acquisition of an existing book of international pension plans from AG2R La Mondiale’s (AG2R) Luxembourg-based subsidiary La Mondiale Europartner. The transaction is expected to close during the second half of 2017, after regulatory approval. The new agreement with La Mondiale Europartner will see their existing customers transfer to Zurich’s international pension plans. AG2R and Zurich have enjoyed close relationships for many years,

International insurance brokerage and risk management services firm Arthur J. Gallagher in June 2017 announced the acquisition of Total Reward Group in Kent, England. Founded in 2005, Total Reward Group is a U.K. consultancy offering remuneration support, executive search, interim placement and corporate training for reward professionals throughout the world. Based in Kent, its consultants work with global brands, mid-size firms, public and third sector organizations across a range

Swedish alternative investments firm EQT in May 2017 sold Bureau van Dijk to Moody’s for EUR 3.0 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017. Bureau van Dijk, with headquarters in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, captures, processes, standardizes, and distributes a dataset about private companies around the world, with coverage of more than 220 million companies. It aggregates approximately 160 different information sources. EQT had

Lemonade, the New York City-based insurtech company in April 2017 announced a strategic investment by Allianz, the world’s largest insurance company. Details of the investment have not been disclosed. Solmaz Altin, Chief Digital Officer at Allianz, cited the company’s commitment to staying at the cutting edge of insurance and to helping Lemonade expand throughout the U.S. and internationally. Allianz already had invested in several thought leadership initiatives, such as

Global Bankers Insurance Group, the insurance and reinsurance division of Eli Global, in April 2017 acquired Luxembourg insurance company NN Life Luxembourg, a subsidiary of NN Group of The Netherlands. According to George Luecke, Vice Chairman and Co‐Chief Executive Officer of Global Bankers, the deal is part of their strategic expansion in Europe and follows on the acquisition of a portfolio of in‐force life and annuity insurance policies from

Aon in February 2017 sold its human resources business process outsourcing (BPO) platform and operations to private equity firm and alternative asset manager Blackstone for $4.3 billion plus an additional $500 million earn-out based on future performance. Closing is expected by the end of the second quarter of 2017. The sale, according to Aon’s website, is a “natural extension of the strategy the firm has pursued over the last

The U.S. district court for the District of Columbia in February 2017 has blocked health insurer Anthem’s proposed merger with Cigna, citing antitrust concerns in respect of large national employers. Anthem announced it will appeal the decision, whilst Cigna “evaluates its options”. U.S. district judge Amy Berman Jackson found that “the merger is likely to result in higher prices”. Earlier in 2017, the same U.S. district court had found

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in January 2017 found that Aetna’s proposed merger with Humana fell afoul of antitrust laws and ordered it to stop. According to Judge John Bates, the efficiencies generated by the merger will not be sufficient to mitigate the anti-competitive effects for consumers, specifically in respect of individual Medicare Advantage plans and of individual commercial insurance on the public exchanges in

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC (MMA) has acquired J. Smith Lanier (JSL), a group of middle market insurance agencies. JSL will operate as MMA’s Southeast Region hub with D. Gaines Lanier, JSL’s chief executive, and Gary Ivey of MMA at the helm. MMA will absorb all of JSL’s over 600 employees. JSL, founded in 1868 and which has annual revenues of approximately $130 million, is a provider of insurance,

After Aetna and Humana in December 2016 extended the deadline of their proposed merger to mid-February 2017 ( see here ), Anthem in January 2017 extended to April 30, 2017 its own deadline for completing its proposed merger with Cigna. All four healthcare providers await U.S. federal court rulings to decide the legality of their respective deals.

U.S. health insurance providers Aetna and Humana in December 2016 announced they had come to an agreement to extend the deadline for their proposed merger from December 31, 2016 to February 15, 2017, as U.S. federal courts are poised to decide whether to allow the merger to proceed. The decision is expected by mid-January. The deal was first announced in August 2015.

According to a December 2016 Reuters report, Aon is in the process of selling its employee benefits TPA business unit for $5 billion. Aon had in 2010 acquired most of this unit as Hewitt Associates for $4.9 billion. The negotiations with potential buyers, who are understood to include several private-equity firms, are expected to take more time. The unit’s EBITDA is estimated at close to $500 million, implying a

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., an international insurance brokerage and risk management services firm headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, in November 2016 announced the acquisition of Argentis, a financial planning and employee benefits firm based in London, England. Founded in 2005, Argentis is a financial planning and employee benefits consultant, specializing in corporate employee benefits consulting and individual wealth management services to private and corporate clients throughout the United Kingdom. Their

Connecture, an IT company that provides web-based solutions to the health insurance industry, in June 2016 acquired its Chicago-based competitor ConnectedHealth, a benefits technology company that offers an e-commerce platform that helps businesses control costs and ease the process of shopping for personalized insurance benefits online. ConnectedHealth is a private company and was founded in 2009. Based in Brookfield, Wisconsin, Connecture is a provider of a web-based consumer shopping,

AJG (Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.), global brokerage for commercial insurance, employee benefits and risk management solutions, in June 2016 acquired The Buchholz Planning Corp. for undisclosed terms. Buchholz Planning, a Madison, Wisconsin-based provider of employee benefits consulting and brokerage services for middle market and large health care businesses in the US, has over 10,000 physicians, staff, clinics, and hospitals as clients, and has been in business since 1968.

Modern Survey, a Minneapolis, U.S.A.-based employee survey and talent analytics solutions provider, has been acquired by Aon Hewitt in February 2016. In search of new sources of revenues, large employee benefits consulting firms are diversifying into and/or expanding employee engagement services. Modern Survey is responsible for software solutions in the areas of talent analytics, onboarding, 360o feedback, engagement, retention, performance, and measurement. Modern Survey’s current offerings are visible at

Willis and Towers Watson completed their merger in early January 2016 and became Willis Towers Watson (WTW). The go-ahead decision on the USD 18 billion deal was made by shareholders in an early December 2015 vote, after the terms were changed in several increments during the preceding five months as Towers Watson shareholders were unhappy with the terms offered. Driven by both firms’ management, the deal had been announced

From the October 2015 Baden-Baden Reinsurance Meeting. The consolidation of the reinsurance industry that is being observed in 2015 apparently is driven by capacity overload, successive years of rate declines and persistently falling profitability. But are mergers and acquisitions (M&As) the right answer? Of course, sheer scale matters but the upside of better mutualization hits its limits fairly quickly and unmanaged diversification is fraught with dangers. In fact, new

Rick Jelinek joined Aetna in October 2015 as executive vice president in charge of the Aetna-Humana integration, as well as of Aetna’s enterprise strategy. In July 2015, Aetna announced plans to acquire Humana, which would approximately double its size. Jelinek reports to Aetna’s Chairman and CEO Mark T. Bertolini and joins Aetna’s Executive Committee. Prior to Aetna, Jelinek was an operating partner with Advent International, a private equity firm.

In a August 5, 2015 press release, New York-based insurance brokerage Integro said it has reached an agreement to be acquired by PE firm Odyssey Investment Partners. Odyssey re-enters the insurance industry after previous investments in Montpelier Re, OneCall Medical and York Insurance Services.  

INTEGRO TO BE ACQUIRED BY ODYSSEY INVESTMENT PARTNERS Investment Strongly Endorses Specialty Growth Strategy New York, NY (August 5, 2015) – Integro Ltd., an international insurance brokerage and risk management firm, today announced that it has reached an agreement to be acquired by entities affiliated with Odyssey Investment Partners, LLC, positioning Integro for continued growth. Financial details of the investment were not disclosed. Founded in 2005, Integro has evolved