Investors in agreement to acquire MGA UK General and Precision Partnership

MGA-UK-General-and-Precision-Partnership

Leading private equity investor Rcapital Partners LLP has agreed to acquire a majority stake in UK General Insurance Ltd (UKG) and Precision Partnership Limited (PPL).

Under the terms of the deal, Montague Investment Group will also take a minority stake, in a transaction led by the joint UKG and PPL management team of CEO Tim Smyth and CFO Ryan Gill.

UKG is a personal lines MGA, based in Leeds. It underwrites a wide range of personal lines schemes including property, leisure and lifestyle (such as gadget and cycle).

PPL acts as the support function for a number of MGAs: One Commercial (commercial combined, contractors and property owners), Binnacle (the UK’s largest insurer of holiday parks), Provego (haulage and other transportation risks), as well as One Commercial Specialty and One Commercial Private Clients.

London-based Rcapital provides private investment, commercial expertise and hands-on support to transform and grow businesses. The business has made over 70 investments since it was founded in 2004, but this is its first investment in an upstream insurance asset.

Montague was founded by Donald Harrell in December 2021 and provides private investment into insurance MGAs and other insurance related businesses.  Montague is also building in-house Specialty MGAs, combining underwriting talent with technology, data & analytics to deliver superior returns to risk capital partners and equity investors.

Jamie Constable, founder of Rcapital said that, following completion, UKG and PPL will come together under the leadership of Tim Smyth, UK General’s chief executive. Lord Marland, one of the founding directors of Jardine Lloyd Thomson plc, and founder of Lloyd’s insurer Jubilee, is to become chairman, subject to FCA approval, of the acquired business.

He said: “These are businesses with huge potential. Bringing them together under our ownership will enable the combined personal and commercial lines business to scale up significantly and build on a business already controlling in excess of £100m GWP and employing 140 people.”

The combined group also benefits from long term support from two major capacity providers, including insurer Accelerant (rated by AM Best as A- excellent).

Lord Marland commented: “This deal is a major strategic opportunity for Rcapital and its investors and we are confident in the potential of the combined business. We believe the MGA sector is a great investment opportunity and, after a challenging period, UKG/PPL is poised for profitable growth with our support.”

Donald Harrell, founder of Montague Risk Capital, said: “This deal is our first acquisition since we set up Montague in 2021. We are excited by our partnership with Rcapital and look forward to supporting Tim, Ryan and their teams to deliver on their ambitious growth plans for UKG and PPL.”  

Tim Smyth said: “With this acquisition and injection of capital, we can look forward to a fresh start for UK General and PPL after a period of significant change for the business.

“We now have a fantastic platform to, make acquisitions, hire talent and grow, backed by this investment from progressive and future-focused owners. I am excited by the opportunity to model the combined group as a niche and specialist schemes player with a relentless focus on profitable, measured growth.”

Tim said that immediate priorities will be focused on bringing the two organisations together and ensuring that service and offering to customers and clients is enhanced as a result of access to broader products, capability, expertise and capacity.”

The deal is subject to regulatory approval and the consideration is undisclosed.

About Rcapital

Rcapital is a privately-owned investment business that provides both growth and turnaround funding to UK companies. Established in 2004, Rcapital uses its own capital to invest in and grow mid-market businesses in a range of sectors. Since its inception, Rcapital has worked with over 70 businesses, some with financial and operational challenges and others experiencing rapid growth.

The Rcapital team has a proven track record of transforming small and medium sized firms by providing them with a robust financial platform, forming strong partnerships with management and driving operational best practice. Rcapital typically focuses on SME businesses with turnover of between £5m and £200m, investing up to £20m.  

About Montague

Montague Investment Group LLP is a privately held investment company focused on investing into insurance and insurance related opportunities. Montague Risk Partners Ltd is a Managing General Agent (MGA) focused on building specialty, niche and insurtech MGAs combining underwriting talent with technology, data & analytics to deliver superior returns to risk capital partners and equity investors.

About UKG

UK General Insurance, is a Managing General Agent (MGA), with over twenty-five years’ experience underwriting specialist schemes in the UK market. Their product suite is focused on personal lines niche property, let property and associated complementary leisure and lifestyle products, such as caravan, cycle, mobile phone and gadget. They operate as a virtual insurer with full underwriting, pricing, reserving and governance capability and can offer Broker and Intermediary clients bespoke distribution solutions including scheme, affinity and white label website propositions.

About PPL

Established in 2018, PPL has grown through acquisitions, offering broker access to a wide range of insurance solutions through their specialist group brands. 

One Commercial is a commercial brand offering one quote to market exclusivity through three core products; Commercial Combined, Contractors and Property owners as well as Tradesman, Office and Let Property. One Commercial Private Clients is a dedicated home insurance provider for mid-high net worth individuals whilst One Commercial Speciality are experts in Professional Indemnity insurance.

Provego Underwriting specialise in liability covers for the transportation sector covering general haulage, couriers, removers, taxi, minibus and coach liability.

Binnacle Insurance Services are specialist providers to the leisure sector, offering a range of both commercial and personal lines insurance products to the holiday and residential parks industry.

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