Markerstudy and Ardonagh Retail in merger talks

The deal would see Ardonagh’s personal lines business, which includes brand names Swinton, Autonet and Carole Nash, join together with the Markerstudy Group. 

According to one source, Markerstudy’s private equity investors Pollen Street were keen on the deal, and are exploring funding options for the acquisition.

The two parties would still need to thrash out a final structure of the deal.

One possible option is for Ardonagh Retail and Markerstudy to merge with a joint shareholder structure. It would mean Ardonagh’s shareholders, which includes Madison Dearborn Partners and HPS Investment Partners, taking a shareholding in the combined company. 

The deal would create a large UK personal lines company, also potentially opening the door for MDP and HPS-owned premium finance firm Premfina to access millions more customers. 

Ardonagh and Markerstudy size 

In 2021, Ardonagh’s retail income stood at £265.6m as Ebitda rose £7m to £97.7m. During the year, it snapped up the likes of Marmalade and Be Wiser.

In May 2022, Markerstudy completed the deal for BGL Insurance.

Following the announcement, CEO Kevin Spencer said the group had six million customers. 

If the suggested deal completes, it would happen not long after Ardonagh acquired the renewals for RSA’s private motor book. 

In March, RSA confirmed pulling out of the UK personal lines motor market, worth £120m in gross written premium, and signing up with Atlanta-owned Swinton.

Company restructure

In November 2022, Insurance Age revealed that Ardonagh had reorganised its UK commercial and retail managing general agents, with businesses and brands aligned by client type across its platforms. 

The restructure meant that Ardonagh’s UK commercial and SME MGAs under Geo Underwriting would sit within Ardonagh Advisory, which is led by Rob Worrell.

The offering continues to be independently led by UK commercial MGA CEO Jaime Swindle, who moved into the post in July 2022, having joined the Geo leadership team in December 2021. 

For all the latest industry news direct to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.