Apax Partners’ eighth fund, Apax VIII LP, has agreed to sell its equity interest in AssuredPartners, a US insurance brokerage, to GTCR. GTCR previously owned AssuredPartners from its inception in 2011 until its sale to Apax VIII in October 2015. Apax is not completely exiting this investment as Apax IX LP, a $9 billion fund which closed in December 2016, will co-invest in the transaction alongside GTCR and have a significant minority stake in AssuredPartners.
AssuredPartners acquires and invests in insurance brokerage businesses (property and casualty, employee benefits, surety, and managing general agencies) across the United States and in the UK. From its founding in 2011, AssuredPartners has acquired hundreds of insurance brokerages and today is one of the largest insurance brokers in the United States with approximately $1.1 billion in annual revenue and more than 200 offices in 30 states. The company, led by CEO Jim Henderson and COO Tom Riley, is headquartered north of Orlando in Lake Mary, FL (www.assuredpartners.com). The AssuredPartners’ management team continues to hold a significant minority stake in the business.
“Apax has been a superb partner for Assured over the last three years and we are delighted to be renewing this successful partnership,” said Mr. Henderson. “At the same time, we are excited to welcome back the GTCR team who we know very well and value their expertise and insight. We look forward to working with both firms who share our vision and commitment to scaling the business further.”
GTCR formed AssuredPartners in July 2011, in partnership with Mr. Henderson and Mr. Riley, to consolidate the independent insurance brokerage industry and sold the company to Apax Partners in October 2015. Over the course of GTCR’s four-year ownership, the company completed 112 acquisitions and grew annual revenues to more than $500 million.
During Apax’s ownership (through Apax VIII), the company completed 124 acquisitions, added new senior executive positions including a chief information officer and chief organic growth officer, executed numerous operational improvements, and made investments in information technology, salesforce and infrastructure. The result of these initiatives has seen revenue and EBITDA more than double during Apax VIII’s ownership.
“Three and half years ago, we backed Jim Henderson and his team on an ambitious journey to build the preeminent US middle market insurance brokerage firm,” said Ashish Karandikar, a partner at Apax. “Since then, AssuredPartners has charted an impressive growth trajectory through organic investments in sales and technology and through acquisitions to create a scaled product and service proposition to carriers and customers. We believe there continues to be exceptional opportunities for AssuredPartners and it’s over 5,000 talented and entrepreneurial insurance professionals and are excited to be continuing our journey.”
“We had an incredible experience working with the Assured team and have watched with admiration their continued success over the last three years,” said Aaron Cohen, a GTCR managing director. “We are thrilled to be partners with Jim Henderson, Tom Riley and the team once again and look forward to the continued expansion of the AssuredPartners platform.”
GTCR pioneered the investment strategy of identifying and partnering with executives to acquire and build companies through a combination of acquisitions and internal growth. Sectors of interest include business services; technology, media & telecommunications; healthcare, and financial services & technology. Since its inception in 1980, GTCR has invested more than $15 billion in over 200 companies. The firm is based in Chicago (www.gtcr.com).
Apax invests in the technology and telecom; services; healthcare; and consumer sectors. The firm has offices in London, New York, São Paulo, Munich, Tel Aviv, Mumbai, Hong Kong and Shanghai (www.apax.com).
AssuredPartners and Apax VIII were advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Kirkland & Ellis provided legal services. Harris Williams and Barclays also provided financial advice to Apax VIII. GTCR was advised by Morgan Stanley & Co. and Latham & Watkins provided legal services. Katten Muchin Rosenman was the legal advisor to the management team of AssuredPartners.
The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019.
© 2019 Private Equity Professional | February 21, 2019