Abbey Bond Lovis (ABL), GRP’s retail broking hub in Northern Ireland, has acquired a majority share in Digney Grant Ltd for an undisclosed fee. The deal has received regulatory approval.
This is the second transaction that ABL has completed as it accelerates its ambitious growth plans in Northern Ireland. Digney Grant, which has offices in Newry and Banbridge, transacts commercial and personal lines business. The deal is the third transaction for GRP in the last month, bringing the total number of acquisitions to 33, and Gross Written Premium to in excess of £700m.
Maurice Boyd, MD of ABL, said: “We are delighted with this deal and look forward to welcoming Digney Grant’s three directors, Anthony Boden, Sean Grant and Paul Grant and their 21 strong team to the group. We are looking forward to working in partnership with them and helping Digney Grant’s significant growth plans.”
“Digney Grant is a high quality business with a strong reputation for excellent client service built up over 40 years of trading in its local marketplace. I am confident their clients will see further benefits from new products and services from ABL/GRP and our relationships with our blue chip insurer partners.”
Paul Grant, Director in Digney Grant, said all three directors and the staff would be staying with the business. “We are all truly excited by the opportunity to grow Digney Grant in partnership with ABL. The added firepower supplied by the group will enable us to accelerate our development plans in Northern Ireland.”
Mike Bruce, CEO Broking for GRP, welcomed the deal and said the acquisition “once again illustrated the effectiveness of GRP’s hub strategy in encouraging ABL to pursue acquisitions in its local markets where it has a wealth of experience and connectivity.”
He added: “GRP has a strong acquisition pipeline across the UK. Our unique proposition continues to be highly attractive to broking entrepreneurs looking to crystallise value from their work, while maintaining an ongoing and active role in driving business growth. ”