AXIS Capital’s $611.5M Acquisition of Novae Approved in Shareholder Vote

AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. announced that shareholders of Novae Group have approved the company’s acquisition by AXIS.

Approximately 99.97 percent of shareholder votes were cast in favor of the deal.

AXIS announced last week it had substantially sweetened its offer for Novae Group plc, a Lloyd’s of London specialty insurer and reinsurer.

AXIS, a Bermuda-based specialty insurer and reinsurer, will now pay $611.5 million in cash for Novae, up from its $604 million offer first announced in July.

Based on 2016 actual results, the combination of the two companies creates a global specialty re/insurer with gross written premiums in excess of $6 billion.

Albert Benchimol, president and CEO of AXIS, commented: “The acquisition of Novae accelerates the growth strategy of our international insurance business, creating a $2 billion insurer in the London specialty market, while significantly scaling up our capabilities and enabling AXIS to even better serve our clients and brokers. We are excited by the possibilities this presents and look forward to welcoming the Novae team as we work together to achieve our shared ambitions.”

Matthew Fosh, CEO of Novae, said: “We are pleased that Novae shareholders supported the transaction. We strongly believe that the combined company will be superbly positioned to compete in the international specialty insurance marketplace.”

The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year. Credit Suisse International and Fenchurch Advisory Partners are acting as financial advisors to AXIS Capital.

Source: AXIS Capital