Apax sells AssuredPartners to original owner GTCR Group

London-based private equity firm Apax Partners is selling its entire stake in property/casualty broker AssuredPartners to an investor group led by Chicago-based PE firm GTCR.

GTCR previously owned AssuredPartners when it was first set up in 2011, until its sale in 2015 to Apax VIII, a fund advised by Apax Partners. AssuredPartners has grown to more than $1 billion in annualised revenue in the last eight years.

Apax IX, a separate fund advised by Apax Partners, will co-invest in the transaction alongside GTCR taking a significant minority stake in AssuredPartners. AssuredPartners’ management team will retain its significant minority stake in the business.

The transaction is expected to complete in the second quarter of 2019.

Jim Henderson, co-founder and CEO of AssuredPartners, said: “Apax has been a superb partner for Assured over the last three years and we are delighted to be renewing this successful partnership. At the same time, we are excited to welcome back the GTCR team who we know very well and value their expertise and insight. We look forward to working with both firms who share our vision and commitment to scaling the business further.”

Tom Riley, co-founder, president and COO of AssuredPartners, added: “We have formed a partnership with agencies throughout the country and beyond through the partnership and support of GTCR and Apax Partners. Our acquisition strategy has allowed us to create something truly unique in our industry. The union of our two supporting entities joining forces makes for a very exciting future for AssuredPartners. We look forward to our continued success with Aaron Cohen and Ashish Karandikar and their respective winning teams.”

Ashish Karandikar, partner at Apax Partners, said: “Three and half years ago, we backed Jim Henderson and his team on an ambitious journey to build the preeminent US middle market insurance brokerage firm. Since then, AssuredPartners has charted an impressive growth trajectory through organic investments in sales and technology and through acquisitions to create a scaled product and service proposition to carriers and customers. We believe there continues to be exceptional opportunities for AssuredPartners and its over 5,000 talented and entrepreneurial insurance professionals and are excited to be continuing our journey.”

Aaron Cohen, GTCR managing director, said: “We had an incredible experience working with the Assured team and have watched with admiration their continued success over the last three years. We want to congratulate the entire Assured organization on building a leading insurance broker with over $1 billion of revenue in just eight years. AssuredPartners is a trusted advisor to its customers, offering unique capabilities to assist leading companies in all of their insurance and risk management needs. We are thrilled to be partners with Jim Henderson, Tom Riley and the team once again and look forward to the continued expansion of the AssuredPartners platform.”

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