UK-based specialist insurance and reinsurance broker BMS Group has acquired Australian managing general agent (MGA) GARD Insurance.
The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
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GARD Insurance, which also includes ALE underwriting, was established in 2015.
Offering public and products liability & associated professional indemnity insurance, GARD caters to a wide range of businesses right from small to medium enterprises (SMEs) to multinational firms.
It has offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, where it offers products to all licensed brokers.
A leading MGA for hospitality in Australia, ALE offers property and casualty covers for licensed clubs, bars, restaurants, hotels and pubs, caravan parks, backpackers, alpine accommodation, short-term accommodation, boarding houses and one-off events.
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GARD non-executive chairman Craig Patterson will join BMS as executive chairman of GARD.
An industry veteran, Patterson has experience from senior roles at Austagencies, AON Benfield, Aviva in the UK and CGU/NZI.
This is the latest in a host of recent acquisitions by BMS in Australia, including the acquisition of West Australian specialist broker Western United Financial Services (WUFS) last month. It is, however, the first one involving an MGA.
BMS’ Australian business chief executive Andrew Godden said: “Buying an MGA in Australia is aligned with our global strategy to diversify our international retail operations.
“Both GARD and ALE have excellent underwriting capabilities and a stellar leadership team in Craig Patterson, Craig Walker, Dean Fiddes and Janelle Cox. We share the same vision on growth, and I am excited to work with them to take our business to the next level.”
Patterson said: “ALE and GARD share similar cultural DNA with BMS, which is what makes this an exciting milestone. We look forward to being part of a global speciality organisation with extensive risk expertise and market knowledge, and to the added capital that will allow us to expand into more technical, niche segments that complement our current offering.”
