Enstar to sell Starstone Lloyd’s business to re/insurance start-up Inigo

Enstar Group and Stone Point Capital have agreed to sell Lloyd’s managing agency StarStone Underwriting (SUL) to a newly-launched venture Inigo, which is led by Richard Watson, Russell Merrett and Stuart Bridges.

Specialty re/insurance start-up Inigo will also acquire the right to operate Lloyd’s Syndicate 1301, while Enstar, Stone Point and Dowling will receive $30 million in Inigo shares from the transaction.

In conjunction with the transaction, Enstar, Stone Point and Dowling Capital will retain the economics of Syndicate 1301’s 2020 and prior years’ underwriting portfolios as the business runs off.

Inigo will operate as a Lloyd’s specialty insurer writing a streamlined portfolio of insurance and reinsurance risks and will receive certain transitional services and staff from Enstar.

The Inigo investment is expected to close in late 2020 and the SUL sale is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

The SUL sale follows Enstar and Stone Point's decision to place StarStone’s International business into an orderly run-off and review strategic alternatives for the business. In addition to the SUL sale, Enstar and Stone Point recently agreed to a renewal rights transaction for StarStone’s European financial lines business, as well as the sale of Belgian-based underwriting agent Vander Haeghen, part of the StarStone International Group.

Dominic Silvester, Enstar’s chief executive officer, said: “This transaction optimises and capitalises on StarStone International’s assets at Lloyd’s and provides an opportunity to participate in a new venture with proven leadership at a time of favourable market conditions. This is a positive outcome for SUL, and we look forward to working with the Inigo management team as they launch this new business.”