Brown & Brown has agreed to purchase Beecher Carlson.
The deal, which is expected to close in July, will net Beecher Carlson owners Austin Ventures, FSPM and a group of individual employee and non-employee equity holders $336.5 million.
In Beecher Carlson, Florida-based US retail broker Brown & Brown is buying an insurance and risk management broker with operations that include captive and programme management.
As a part of the deal, Beecher Carlson president Steve Denton will be named a regional vice president at Brown & Brown.
He will also serve as the CEO of Beecher Carlson. Dan Donovan, the firm’s current CEO, will become its executive chairman.
Both Denton and Donovan will actively participate in the day-to-day operations of Beecher Carlson. They will also join Brown & Brown’s leadership council.
In a statement, Powell Brown, CEO and president of Brown & Brown said: “This transaction brings many exciting opportunities to Brown & Brown. Beecher Carlson enjoys an enviable position in the industry segments in which it operates, especially in the large account space. We are bringing together great people and a shared customer service and sales culture.”
Speaking during a conference call to confirm the deal, Donovan said: “[Everyone shares] excitement for the new platform that Beecher Carlson will operate under.”
Jason Flaxbeard, who leads the Beecher Carlson hospitality practice and captive/alternative risk transfer operations throughout the US, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, said that his firm's "marriage to Brown & Brown will be a good one".
"I don't expect anything to change for captive management—there will be a lot of opportunities in the future."
He went on to say that he will work on the firm's captive proposition in the coming weeks so that the potential for investment and growth can be assessed.
Beecher Carlson earned $105 million in revenue last year.
