Insurance broker Arthur J Gallagher & Co said on Friday it had agreed to buy the treaty reinsurance brokerage business of Willis Towers Watson for an initial consideration of $3.25 billion.
The deal comes weeks after Willis and rival Aon called off their $30bn merger that would have created the world's largest insurance broker following opposition from the US Department of Justice.
As part of approving the merger, European regulators had demanded the sale of Willis Re, the broker's reinsurance arm, to preserve competition, and Gallagher had agreed to buy it and other assets for about $3.6bn.
Reports earlier this month suggested Gallagher was close to clinching a deal for Willis Re, but Willis chief executive John Haley at the time said he was considering wider possibilities.
The latest deal, which includes a potential additional consideration of $750 million, is expected to close in the fourth quarter.
Treaty reinsurance involves reinsuring the whole of an insurer's book of business, rather than individual projects or risks.
Willis Re's treaty reinsurance business operates in 24 countries, places over $10bn of premium annually and represents more than 750 insurance and reinsurance company clients, according to the company.
Morgan Stanley is the financial adviser to Gallagher on the deal.
Fixture and table
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UAE Premiership – final standings
- Dubai Exiles
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- Jebel Ali Dragons
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
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ANALYSTS’ TOP PICKS OF SAUDI BANKS IN 2019
Analyst: Aqib Mehboob of Saudi Fransi Capital
Top pick: National Commercial Bank
Reason: It will be at the forefront of project financing for government-led projects
Analyst: Shabbir Malik of EFG-Hermes
Top pick: Al Rajhi Bank
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Analyst: Chiradeep Ghosh of Sico Bank
Top pick: Arab National Bank
Reason: Attractive valuation and good growth potential in terms of both balance sheet and dividends
