30 Jul, 2024
North American insurance underwriter M&A activity rebounds in Q2
By Tyler Hammel and Noor Ul Ain Adeel
North American insurance underwriter deal activity rose significantly during the second quarter of 2024, recovering from a first quarter marred by inflationary pressures and a difficult M&A environment.
Both the frequency and aggregate value of transactions involving insurance underwriters increased sequentially in the second quarter, bucking the trend in the broader M&A market in the US and Canada, which slowed due to relatively high interest rates and financing challenges.
The number of insurance underwriter transactions climbed by nearly 38% to 22, aligning with totals in 2023. Aggregate transaction value increased by about 829% to $4.80 billion quarter over quarter, a notable increase from the first quarter's recent low of approximately $520 million.
– In Play Today highlights potential mergers and acquisitions in the global insurance sector, while M&A Replay presents a summary of recently announced deals.
– Discover the latest trends in insurance M&A across Asia-Pacific and the US broker market.
– Access deep dives into insurance transactions across the globe via our Deal Profile feature.
Nippon Life enters the fray
The largest underwriter deal of the second quarter was Nippon Life Insurance Co.'s purchase of a 20% stake in Corebridge Financial Inc. for $3.8 billion.
The deal is the largest ever for Nippon Life, surpassing two 2015 acquisitions in Japan and Australia, which both exceeded a billion dollars.
Nippon Life is prioritizing expanding its revenue streams, and growing its insurance and asset management businesses will be key to this goal, a spokesperson told S&P Global Market Intelligence in an email. Asia-Pacific is one of the potential target markets for acquisitions, "although there is currently nothing decided yet," the spokesperson added.
The second-largest underwriter deal of the quarter was American Acorn Corp.'s acquisition of Ambac Assurance Corp. for $420 million, followed in third place by RiverStone International Holdings Inc.'s acquisition of Electric Insurance Co. for $333 million.
