Marsh Completes Acquisition of Bluefin Insurance from AXA

Marsh, the wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Cos., said it has completed the previously announced acquisition of Bluefin Insurance Group Ltd., a subsidiary of AXA UK plc, from AXA Group.

Founded in 2008, Bluefin has approximately 1,500 colleagues based in 45 locations around the UK, providing guidance on creating insurance solutions to over 150,000 businesses and individuals. It also operates an extensive broker network and growing managing general agent business.

Marsh will combine Bluefin and Jelf into a single business, led by Phil Barton, CEO of Jelf, and a management team drawn from both firms. The combined unit brings together two leading community brokers with complementary regional offices across the UK, now serving over 250,000 clients in 80 locations. It also includes around 400 network broker members as well as a strong affinity and digital offering.

“In today’s increasingly uncertain environment, businesses want the very best advice that enables them to manage the risks they face,” said Mark Weil, Marsh’s CEO for UK & Ireland. “By bringing Jelf and Bluefin together, we will be creating one of the UK’s leading insurance brokers for mid-size and SME companies, offering them market-leading services and solutions, delivered locally. We are delighted to welcome the Bluefin team to the firm.”

AXA said the sale of Bluefin resulted in an exceptional negative impact of €82 million ($86.2 million), which will be accounted for in its 2016 net income.

Source: Marsh and AXA