Business Moves – East
USI, Lynch, Beretta and Bucci
USI Insurance Services completed the acquisition of Lynch, Beretta and Bucci Insurance, a Pawtucket, R.I.-based P/C insurance agency that specializes in a wide range of personal lines, commercial lines and specialty products, including Rhode Island contractors and restaurant insurance. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
USI said the acquisition further strengthens USI’s position as a leading insurance brokerage firm in Rhode Island.
Founded in 1994, USI is a distributor of P/C insurance and employee benefits products to businesses throughout the country. USI is headquartered in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y., and operates out of 81 offices in 24 states. It is a portfolio company of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, a private equity affiliate of Goldman Sachs & Co.
Southport Lane, Redwood Re
Southport Lane, a New York-based private equity firm, has acquired Redwood Reinsurance SPC, Ltd., a Cayman Islands-based reinsurer that provides treaty reinsurance for workers comp and general liability insurance in the U.S. Redwood Reinsurance was licensed in 2008 in the Cayman Islands.
And in May, Southport Lane reached a definitive agreement, through its subsidiary Lonestar Holdco, to acquire Dallas National Insurance Co., a Texas-based P/C insurer. Southport Lane has total capital commitments in excess of $1 billion.
Keystone, Turner & Associates
Northumberland, Penn.-headquartered Keystone Insurers Group has added Brunswick, Ga.-based agency Turner & Associates Insurance as its second franchise partner in the state. The Turner & Associates joins a network of more than 235 partners in eight states.
Turner & Associates Insurance has been serving southeast Georgia since 1950 when Albert Shelander formed the agency. Robert Turner joined the agency in 1985 and was later able to purchase the agency in 2003 and form Turner & Associates Insurance. In January of 2011, the agency joined forces with Arthur Pittman & Co. Insurance of St. Simons Island, Ga.
Keystone is owned by its franchise partners and employees in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, Indiana and Ohio. In addition, KIG conducts business in Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia. Each partner is an independent agency. The group reports P/C premiums exceeding $1.7 billion.
Hilb Group, MDM
The Richmond, Va.-headquartered Hilb Group recently announced it has completed the acquisition of MDM Covenant Insurance. Located in Nashville, Tenn., and Atlanta, Ga., MDM is a middle-market insurance agency serving the quick serve restaurant (QSR) industry with a nationwide customer base. MDM also provides general insurance brokerage services to local businesses with specialties in the higher education, professional services, real estate and financial services sectors. MDM was founded in 2008.
The Hilb Group said the deal helps strengthen the firm’s southeastern geographic presence. MDM will continue to operate in Nashville and Atlanta.
The Hilb Group is an insurance brokerage firm that provides a wide range of property/casualty, life and health and employee benefits products and services. It was founded in 2009. In addition to Richmond, Va., the firm also has offices in Simsbury, Conn., Bay Shore, N.Y., Nashville, Tenn., and Atlanta, Ga.
SIAA
The Strategic Insurance Agency Alliance (SIAA) said four new agencies in the Northeast region joined the partnership in May. The new members are: Susquehanna Valley Insurance Center of Montoursville, Penn.; Spectrum Insurance Services of Butler, Penn.; Fuller Insurance Agency of Carthage, N.Y.; and All In One of Owings, Md.
Nationwide, 30 new agencies joined the SIAA in May. Among them, 20 were former captive agents that are new to the independent agency system. SIAA members created more than $780 million in new premium growth in 2011 and reached their 4000th signed independent strategic member agency in January.
Confie Seguros
Confie Seguros, a national provider of personal lines insurance focused on the needs of Hispanic consumers, continues to acquire insurance agencies. In the Northeast region, it acquired The Chapman Agency, in Elizabeth, N.J. and Coppola Insurance, in West Seneca, N.Y., in May.
Confie Seguros, based in New York, has 300 locations across the country. The company was rated among the top 10 in revenues in Insurance Journal’s list of the Top 100 insurance agencies. Confie has acquired some 20 agencies over the past 12 year. It has retail locations in California, Arizona, Texas, Florida, Washington, Oregon, New York, New Jersey, and Nevada and plans to continue its expansion in those and other states.