RISK MANAGEMENT
Aquiline Capital Partners | November 01, 2021
Ripe Thinking Limited ("Ripe"), a UK-based digital underwriting and insurance distribution platform, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive agreement for Aquiline Capital Partners LLC ("Aquiline") to acquire a majority stake in the company. Aquiline is a private investment firm based in New York and London with $6.9 billion in assets under management, specialising in investments at the intersection of technology and finance. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Since its founding in 1997, Ripe has grown rapidly serving a variety of customers across both personal and small commercial lines. Today, Ripe is a leading insurtech business with more than 280,000 policyholders, protecting their specialised needs across golf, boats, caravans, and cycles, as well as providing insurance to small business owners such as personal trainers, musicians, and photographers. Ripe's proprietary technology enables customers to "build their own policy", providing tailored solutions in an optimised online journey. Its first-class customer service and innovation in insurtech have seen the business win multiple industry awards and achieve continuous and impressive growth. Over the past 12 months, it saw revenue grow by 27 percent.
Following this investment, Aquiline will work closely with the company's management team to continue and accelerate the build of a market-leading digital insurance distribution platform. Ripe's management team will continue to be led by CEO Paul Williams and Founder & Managing Director John Woosey, who will retain a significant equity stake, and Marketing Director Sarah Jones.
"The way people buy insurance is changing. As more individuals turn to online platforms to purchase insurance, Ripe offers a simple process for buying policies online while still ensuring quality coverage at a good value. We believe that John, Paul, and their team have built a high-quality and scalable digital platform that can identify customer demands, and design and distribute products to address these efficiently. We are excited to partner with them through the next phase of their journey."
- Jeff Greenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aquiline
"We are excited to partner with Aquiline, whose deep understanding of the UK and global insurance markets, and their track record of supporting technology-enabled businesses will allow us to further develop our offerings to our customers and continue to build out our underwriting and distribution capabilities. This partnership is a testament to the work of our incredible team who have delivered our strong and consistent growth year after year. The investment will allow us to accelerate our ambitions for international growth while still effectively and efficiently serving our customers across the UK."
- John Woosey, Founder and Managing Director of Ripe
Closing of the investment is subject to parties obtaining relevant regulatory approval.
Houlihan Lokey provided corporate finance advice and Norton Rose Fulbright provided legal advice to Aquiline. Due diligence was performed by Deloitte (financial, tax and regulatory) and Crosslake Technologies (technology).
Keefe Bruyette & Woods provided corporate finance advice and Ernst & Young provided legal advice to Ripe. Vendor due diligence was performed by Oliver Wyman (commercial) and KPMG (financial, tax, technology, operations and regulatory).
About Ripe
Ripe is one of the UK's largest specialist insurtech companies and brings together a rare mix of insurance, digital marketing and tech expertise. It creates ultra-targeted insurance products, where customers choose what they need rather than being forced to take out a pre-bundled policy. All of its products are growing and include Golf Care, Cycleplan, Insure4Boats, Insure4Sport and Ripe Caravans. Multi-award winning, Ripe won the Insurance Times Personal Lines Broker of the Year award in both 2019 and 2020 and has recently been named in the top 100 fastest growing UK tech companies in the North.
About Aquiline Capital Partners
Aquiline Capital Partners, founded in 2005, is a private investment firm based in New York and London investing in companies across financial services and technology, business services, and healthcare industries. The firm had $6.9 billion in assets under management as of June 30, 2021.
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WORKERS COMPENSATION
BOXX Insurance | February 22, 2022
Toronto-based global insurtech BOXX Insurance announced the appointment of Phil Baker as President of BOXX Canada. Baker will also be responsible for delivering BOXX's insurance strategy globally as its Global Head of Insurance.
Prior to joining BOXX, Baker headed Beazley Canada where he was board chairman and head of broker relations. Baker joined Beazley when it acquired Creechurch Underwriters, where he was President and CEO of the highly regarded MGA that focused on insuring risks in the emerging technology space. Before joining Creechurch, Baker headed the financial and professional lines business unit for Travelers Canada.
"The rapid pace and acceleration of digitization is creating digital uncertainty of seismic proportions. Nowhere is this felt more than by everyday businesses and consumers who have historically been ill-served by insurers. The opportunity to help democratise access to both cyber insurance and digital protection through BOXX's all-in-one platform is incredibly exciting."
-Phil Baker as President of BOXX Canada.
"Phil will play an integral role in expanding relationships with the insurance brokers that fuel our business in Canada," said Vishal Kundi, BOXX's CEO and Co-Founder. "Under Phil's technical leadership, we can step up the pace to enhance and extend our insurance products to meet the demands of partners and customers we are seeing across the world."
-Phil Baker as President of BOXX Canada.
BOXX also announced the addition of Zurich Insurance and Hartford Steam Boiler as new insurance providers for BOXX. Baker will manage these relationships as well as cultivate new ones as BOXX expands into selected new markets and segments.
About BOXX Insurance
BOXX Insurance Inc. helps businesses, individuals and families insure and defend against cyber threats. BOXX Insurance Inc. is privately-held with headquarters in Toronto, Canada. BOXX's vision is to help businesses, individuals and families stay ahead of, respond to and recover from cyber threats, putting their digital safety first.
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CORE INSURANCE
Propel Insurance | June 07, 2021
Propel Insurance, one of the nation's largest privately-owned insurance agencies and a portfolio company of Flexpoint Ford, announced today it had acquired South Carolina-based South Risk Management ("SRM"), a leading construction-focused insurance consulting firm.
The acquisition of SRM expands Propel's presence into South Carolina and adds to the Company's existing Southeast footprint, which includes Knoxville, Charlotte, Atlanta, and Orlando. The SRM team will be a valuable addition to Propel's industry-leading construction risk practice.
"We are pleased to welcome SRM into the Propel family, underscoring our commitment to growing our specialties nationwide by welcoming strategic partnerships and top industry talent," said Kurt Carlson, President, and CEO of Propel. "Propel is recognized as a leader in providing creative insurance solutions for our clients. Our long-standing partnerships with many of the nation's leading carriers, combined with our valuable services, translate into a competitive edge for our clients."
"We are thrilled to be joining Propel, a highly-respected and innovative leader in the insurance industry," said Patrick McKain, a founding partner of SRM. "We have shared values and a like-minded approach to delivering unparalleled advice and solutions to our clients."
SRM founding partners David Wells, Tripp Hafner, and W.D. Morris looks forward to expanding Propel's existing construction practice with John Babson taking on a leadership role. The team will leverage the broader pool of resources available at Propel to continue providing risk management services to help their clients address complex issues and support their business growth.
In Propel's Charlotte office, Richard Todd, Regional Director, added, "This transaction will complement our footprint in the Southeast. We remain excited about our growth and will continue to provide a compelling opportunity for insurance advisors who are looking to join a national leader."
About Propel Insurance
Propel insurance is one of the nation's largest privately-owned insurance agencies. It provides a broad array of property, casualty, risk management, workers' comp, employee benefits, personal insurance, and other products across North America. Propel is dedicated to helping businesses and individuals manage their insurance needs and find their momentum.
About Flexpoint Ford
Flexpoint Ford is a private equity investment firm that has raised more than $5.0 billion in capital and specializes in privately negotiated investments in the financial services and healthcare industries. Since the firm's formation in 2005, Flexpoint Ford has completed investments in more than 30 companies across a broad range of investment sizes, structures, and asset classes. Flexpoint Ford is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, with additional offices in New York, New York.
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