Hub and Bold Penguin to acquire Insureon in three-way deal

US broker  Hub International has partnered with insurtech firm  Bold Penguin to buy for small-business-focussed digital broker  Insureon Holdings and its affiliates in a three-way deal.

Hub will acquire Insureon's digital insurance agency and brand while Bold Penguin will acquire its technology platform. Additionally, Hub will enter into an enterprise agreement with Bold Penguin to license the Insureon technology platform.

Headquartered in Chicago, Insureon is the "largest independent agency" in the US for the digital delivery of commercial insurance to small and medium-sized businesses. The company is licensed in all 50 states and specialises in numerous industries.

Following the deal, subject to closings of two separate transactions, Jeff Kroeger, Insureon’s chief commercial officer, will join Hub along with the digital agency and front-end ecommerce technology and product teams.  Insureon’s platform technology, carrier integration and enterprise/SaaS teams will join Bold Penguin.

At Hub, the Insureon operations will be part of Specialty Program Group LLC (SPG), a fully licensed holding company Hub established to acquire and scale insurance underwriting facilities and specialty businesses. The Insureon acquisition further solidifies SPG’s digital underwriting capabilities. The team will report to Chris Treanor, SPG president & CEO.

“Today’s announcement substantially increases the scale and depth of Hub’s digital capabilities. Our unwavering commitment to solving the challenges our clients face is made stronger with tech-enabled solutions that allow us to meet customers where they are and how they want to secure insurance,” said Marc Cohen (pictured), Hub president and CEO.

“The addition of Insureon and our partnership with Bold Penguin – leaders in insurtech innovation – not only strengthens our unique market position but accelerates our digital capabilities.”

Ben Clarke, chief data officer and co-founder of Bold Penguin, added: “ Bold Penguin shares Hub’s passion for innovation and making small commercial insurance easier and more efficient to access. We have a tremendous future together delivering a digitally transformative experience for Hub’s clients and prospects as we leverage Insureon’s innovative solutions to extend the market-leading capabilities of Bold Penguin’s commercial insurance exchange.”

Dan Kazan, CEO of Insureon, who will join both companies to help them continue to grow and innovate, said: “For more than a decade, Insureon has built the industry leading insurance technology platform for small business. By combining Insureon’s leading technology, Hub’s investment and pulse on customer expectations, and Bold Penguin’s commitment to serving small businesses, we are helping to create the future of the small commercial marketplace.”

Did you get value from this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.