Nexus Completes Acquisition of Castel’s Aerospace MGA Altitude Risk Partners

Independent specialty managing general agent Nexus Group has completed the acquisition of Altitude Risk Partners from the club-style MGA formation platform Castel Underwriting Agencies Limited in an asset purchase.

Altitude is a London-based aerospace MGA, co-founded in 2014 by David Godley, Richard Power and Tim Wright, which was the first underwriting business to launch in partnership with Castel.

Altitude will become a trading division of Nexus Underwriting Limited and the business will continue to operate as usual. The current Altitude underwriting team will join Nexus and move into the group’s London headquarters.

Godley has 20 years’ experience in the market and before co-founding Altitude held a number of senior positions at Global Aerospace. Power has also been in the market for the same length of time having worked at Catlin, Starr and Global Aerospace. Wright has 27 years of experience and before co-founding Altitude he worked at Aon and Global Aerospace.

Altitude has underwritten a portfolio across seven lines of aerospace insurance in more than 130 territories. Its gross written premium for 2018 is forecasted to be in excess of US$80 million.

Colin Thompson, founder and group CEO of Nexus, said the acquisition augments its “virtual insurer” model by adding Aviation and Space to its existing 12 classes.

The completion of this deal marks the tenth acquisition in the last three years for Nexus, making Nexus the product of 12 acquisitions and two joint ventures with subsequent buy outs.

The Nexus Group now reports US$350m in gross written premium.