Business Moves
Markel, Hiscox
Insurer Markel has acquired the rights to American Live Stock, the animal mortality business of Hiscox Insurance Co. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction, which includes the rights to the American Live Stock and Harding & Harding names, and calls for Markel to assist Hiscox with its run-off. Several key members of the Hiscox team are expected to join Markel as part of their Equine & Livestock division. Markel’s Livestock team will be based in Geneva, Illinois, but the equine business acquired from Hiscox will be handled by Markel’s divisions in Richmond, Virginia and Lexington, Kentucky.
Ace, Rain and Hail
Insurer Ace will pay $1.1 billion to acquire the outstanding common stock of Iowa-based Rain and Hail Insurance Service Inc., the second-largest crop insurance underwriter in the U.S. and Canada.
Ace already owns roughly 20 percent of Rain and Hail’s stock. Upon completion of the deal, Rain and Hail will operate as a separate and distinct franchise within Ace Westchester.
The transaction is subject to regulatory and shareholder approval and is expected to be completed by the end of 2010.
Majestic Capital, Bayside Capital
Workers’ compensation provider Majestic Capital Ltd. will be acquired by Bermuda-based Bayside Capital Partners for $0.45 per share in cash, or approximately $7.8 million. Bayside Capital Partners is a holding company, the principal members of which are Lancer Financial Group Inc., David and Timothy Delaney, and individuals who are, in some cases, shareholders of Lancer Financial.Completion of the transaction, is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2011.
PMA Capital, Old Republic
Shareholders of Pennsylvania-based PMA Capital Corp. have approved the company’s acquisition by Old Republic International Corp.
PMA Capital also announced that President and CEO Vincent T. Donnelly, and all other current PMA officers have agreed to terminate their severance agreements upon the closing of the merger. All of these officers expect to continue in similar executive positions under the company’s new ownership.
PMA is the holding company for several subsidiaries that specialize in property/casualty insurance, third-party administration and other fee-based services.
The merger is a stock-swap transaction valued at around $365 million.
Abbate, Lydon & Murphy, A.H. Rist, Renaissance Alliance
Insurance network Renaissance Alliance Insurance Services said three New England agencies have joined its ranks.
The new agencies are New Haven, Connecticut-based Abbate Insurance Associates Inc., Norwood, Massachusetts-based Lydon & Murphy Insurance and Turner Falls, Massachusetts-based A.H. Rist Insurance Agency. The three represent a combined $20 million in premium and bring Massachusetts-based Renaissance Alliance’s total membership to 85 agencies and 100 locations.
Gremesco, PRS
New Jersey-based Professional Risk Solutions (PRS), a wholesale insurance broker, has purchased the assets of Gremesco of Florida one of seven offices of wholesaler Gremesco.
All off the other offices of Gremesco in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts remain in business and are not affected by the Florida transaction
The acquisition expands Professional Risk Solutions’ presence within the southern U.S. marketplace.
Chris Goettelmann, who headed the Gremesco of Florida operation, will join PRS as an executive vice president and will serve as the manager for the firm’s new Palm Beach Gardens office. Goettelmann brings decades of experience in the wholesale insurance marketplace, focusing on E&O insurance lines.
Dana Molina also joins PRS as an assistant broker. Molina also has experience in professional liability. PRS is headquartered in Warren, New Jersey, with branch offices in Florida and Pennsylvania.
SIAA
N.H.-based Strategic Independent Agents Alliance has added R.A. Edlund & Associates of Westminster, Maryland and Potomac Insurance Network of Baltimore to its list of member agencies.