German insurance provider Munich Re has acquired the Bell & Clements Group, an underwriter in the UK and the US. Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.
Munich Re and Bell & Clements have enjoyed a profitable business relationship for a number of years. Bell & Clements handles approximately $300 million of business, which it has successfully written and managed on behalf of Munich Re Group companies and other insurers. The lines of business written on behalf of the Munich Re Group are primarily property fire and selective short-tail small commercial packaged business.
Georg Daschner, a member of Munich Re’s board of management, said: The acquisition of Bell & Clements is a first response to Munich Re’s recently announced strategy to achieve bottom-line growth. We are leveraging our combined insurance and reinsurance capabilities in order to exploit broader business possibilities. This is where we achieve substantial synergies.
Having already established a joint venture company, Three Lions Underwriting Limited, a Birmingham- and London-based underwriting manager that writes regional UK business on behalf of Munich Re Group companies, the acquisition of Bell & Clements represents the next step in this successful strategic relationship.
The acquisition will allow Munich Re to fulfill its objective to access a select and well-controlled primary insurance portfolio with strategic, long-term partners, combine its financial strength and underwriting capabilities with Bell & Clements’ brand, management and technical insurance expertise to create a unique selling proposition for current and future customers and to secure a book of business with a profitable track record, while at the same time providing the operational platform to consolidate and expand this business for Munich Re.
Under the terms of the deal, Bell & Clements will continue to operate its business as in the past.