Hamilton Insurance Group said today that it has entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire Sportscover Underwriting Limited, a Lloyd’s managing agent which manages Syndicate 3334, and Kinetic Insurance Brokers Limited, a Lloyd’s insurance broker.
Details on financial terms aren’t being disclosed. The deals require the approval of Lloyd’s, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority.
Hamilton, together with Wild Goose Holdings, the Australian-based holding company for the Sportscover group, will provide Funds at Lloyd’s for the 2015 year of account.
The deal announcement comes just about two months after a Sept. 10 announcement stating that Hamilton had entered into exclusive discussions with Wild Goose Holdings.
Hamilton Insurance Group is the Bermuda-based holding company for property/casualty reinsurer Hamilton Re and insurer Hamilton USA.
Syndicate 3334 writes sports and leisure policies for clients in over 20 countries.
Kinetic Insurance Brokers, which was also owned by Wild Goose, is an independent broker that has been providing insurance and reinsurance broking expertise to clients, according to the broker website. The website also says that the broker teams specializes in nontraditional, nonconventional, ecommerce, speciality schemes and contingency risks while also having the expertise to handle more traditional classes of insurance and reinsurance.
In April, Hamilton Insurance Group CEO Brian Duperreault told Carrier Management that he was on the hunt for vehicles to grow the insurance side of the business—in either the United States or in London.
In early October, Hamilton announced a deal for two shell companies in the United States—Valiant Insurance Company and Valiant Specialty Insurance Company.
“It’s been in Brian Duperreault’s plan all along to establish a presence at Lloyd’s,” Hamilton Re CEO Kathleen Reardon, told Carrier Management in a late September interview. “He respects the institution—all that it represents and the global platform it provides. Sportscover will give us those things,” she said.
In today’s media statement, Duperreault said: “Pending regulatory approvals, our company will gain a presence at Lloyd’s. This, along with our operations in Bermuda and the U.S., will provide us with a solid platform to achieve profitable growth.
“Syndicate 3334 will be well capitalized for the 2015 year of account, and Peter will rest secure in the knowledge that the innovative niche business established by him will form the basis for the development of an expanded book of business.
“This is a win for everyone involved in these discussions.”
Peter Nash also said he was pleased to conclude a deal that would be of great benefit to both organizations.
As for the U.S., Hamilton USA CEO Conan Ward revealed some of the plans for the Valiant companies in an October interview during the PCI annual meeting in Scottsdale, noting that the first area of focus will be small business. “No one carrier has more than 5 percent of the [small-business] marketplace,” Ward said.