Aspen agrees three-way deal with Amynta & Fairfax unit to sell surety business

Amynta Group, a provider of property & casualty and warranty protection products, has acquired the surety operations of Aspen Insurance, the insurance segment of Aspen Insurance Holdings. The business will now operate as Amynta Surety Solutions.

As part of the transaction, Amynta has entered into a strategic partnership with Crum & Forster, a national property and casualty insurance company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Fairfax Financial.

Crum & Forster will provide the underwriting capacity for the business and assume Aspen’s in-force surety portfolio. Amynta Surety Solutions will be the exclusive writer of large commercial surety bonds for Crum & Forster.

Amynta Surety Solutions will be headquartered in Glastonbury, Connecticut, and will continue under the leadership of Michael Toppi, chief executive officer of Amynta Surety Solutions.

“We are very excited to welcome Michael Toppi and the entire surety team to Amynta, forming the foundation of our surety practice. The business brings a well-established surety team with a proven underwriting track record and culture of delivering creative solutions for clients,” said Robert Giammarco, chairman and CEO of Amynta Group. “We are thrilled to be partnering with Crum & Forster to support the growth of Amynta Surety Solutions. Crum & Forster has a strong surety practice and offers excellent security to our clients.”

Toppi added: “The team and I are excited about the opportunities ahead with Amytna. This transaction provides us with a great opportunity to continue delivering innovative solutions and the highest quality of service to our broker partners and clients with the support of Crum & Forster, our “A” rated carrier partner.”

Mark Cloutier, Aspen chairman and CEO, said: “We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Amynta and Crum & Forster. As we continue to seek ways to achieve our long-term value creation objectives through actions including reviewing our product set, reducing complexity and improving efficiency, we always strive to solve the needs of our trading partners and our people. Our surety business has enjoyed strong underwriting performance and delivered profits to Aspen, creating strong valuation in a competitive marketplace that includes a quota share arrangement as part of our ongoing relationship. This agreement facilitates continuity for both our clients and colleagues with a strong partnership in place that is focused on strategic growth, which was a key consideration in our decision. More than that, this agreement creates a lasting trading relationship of shared benefit and value-add for all three organizations involved.”

Anthony Slimowicz, COO and division president at Crum & Forster, commented: “We look forward to the long-term opportunities anticipated from this strategic partnership with Amynta. The team’s expertise and respected reputation in the commercial surety space are keys to its success, and we are proud to support the growth of this operation.”