Howden swoops for ‘significant broker’ in French insurance market

International insurance broker  Howden has acquired a “significant” broker in the French insurance market with a motor fleet platform and specialisms within property & casualty and employee benefits, in a move to expand rapidly across the Continent and establish itself as the European-focused alternative in the broking market.

The acquisition of Théorème, a family-owned corporate insurance broker headquartered in Paris, follows Howden’s recent agreement to buy CRF Conseils.

Founded in 1991 and led by Xavier de Font-Réaulx, the business services large, medium and small corporate clients across the full insurance value chain, with a multi-specialist approach and deep specialism.  Théorème currently serves 1,500 clients across its offices in Paris, Annecy and Nantes.

Upon completion of the deal, Font-Réaulx will serve as general manager of Théorème, reporting to Nicolas Aubert (pictured), CEO Howden France.

Aubert said: “Théorème offers knowledge and technical skills that will allow us to both expand and enhance our client proposition in France. The firm’s multi-specialist positioning is highly complementary to Howden’s capabilities and Théorème’s Motor Fleet platform is unmatched. Building on our acquisition of CRF, our purchase of Théorème reasserts our ambition to build a platform based on advanced experience and expertise, which will welcome the best talent in the French insurance market.”

Luigi Sturani, CEO of Howden Europe, added: “Our ambition to position ourselves as one of the leading brokers in Europe is no secret. Partnering with strong strategic and culturally aligned businesses, attracting the industry’s top talent - Théorème’s Xavier de Font-Réaulx and his team - and unlocking organic growth is enabling Howden to rapidly grow across the Continent and establish itself as the European-focused alternative in the broking market. The acquisition of Théorème brings us a step closer in fulfilling our ambition to position ourselves among the leading brokers in France and we’re looking forward to welcoming Théorème’s employees and clients to Howden.”

Font-Réaulx, president at Théorème said: “We are proud of the entrepreneurial and autonomous culture that we have developed and nurtured at Théorème over the past 30 years. When it came to thinking about the future of our family business, after many steps, we enthusiastically chose to join Howden. Joining the Howden “family” is ideal for us. We have common principles centred on expertise, collective culture, a vision for employees and a customer-centric approach.”

Etienne de Font-Réaulx, motor fleet director at Théorème, commented: “By choosing Howden, our ambition is to continue as a leader in the Motor Fleet insurance market with new digital tools and a dedicated and highly specialised team that will provide our customers with a service that adds high value every day.”

Martin de Font-Réaulx, P&C director, added: “Howden will strengthen our existing specialities and allow us to open up new ones by bringing in new technical skills. This is great news for our customers and also for our teams who will have opportunities in this growing market.”

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