NSM Insurance acquired by PE giant Carlyle for whopping $1.8bn

Global private equity firm Carlyle is to acquire  White Mountains’ managing general agent (MGA) programme administrator for specialty property & casualty insurance, NSM, for almost $1.8 billion in cash.

White Mountains Insurance Group has signed a definitive agreement to sell NSM Insurance Group, which places insurance in niche sectors such as specialty transportation, social services, real estate and pet.  On behalf of its insurance carrier partners, NSM manages all aspects of the placement process, including product development, marketing, underwriting, policy issuance and claims.

White Mountains expects the deal to result in a gain of approximately $280 to its adjusted book value per share and will increase undeployed capital from approximately $0.4 billion to approximately $1.7 billion.

The transaction is expected to close during the second half of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.  The closing is not subject to a financing condition.

"The NSM team has done a tremendous job building a market-leading specialty insurance distribution platform.  It has been our pleasure to partner with them along the way," said Manning Rountree (pictured), chief executive officer of  White Mountains.

"This transaction is a win for both  White Mountains shareholders and NSM management and employees.  We want to thank Geof, Bill, Marc, Jonathan and the entire NSM team for all of their hard work.  NSM is well positioned going forward, and we wish them continued success."

Geof McKernan, chief executive officer of NSM, said: "We thank Manning, Morgan, Chris and the rest of the  White Mountains team for their valuable contributions and support throughout our partnership. Together, we achieved strong organic growth, completed six strategic acquisitions, added high quality talent and built a specialized, diversified and scaled insurance distribution platform.  We could not be happier with this outcome and are excited to partner with Carlyle as we embark on NSM's next stage of growth."

John Redett, head of global financial services at Carlyle, commented: "Leveraging Carlyle's deep experience supporting companies in the insurance services sector, we are thrilled to partner with NSM's exceptional founder-led management team to help the business execute numerous upside growth drivers, including continued operational improvement, accretive M&A opportunities, and strategic investments in technology and data & analytics."

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