Shareholders of Aon and Willis Towers Watson (WTW) have approved all proposals necessary to complete their combination announced earlier this year.
In March, Aon announced its intention to buy WTW in an all-stock transaction with an implied combined equity value of approximately $80 billion.
Earlier this month, proxy advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis & Co recommended the shareholders of both Aon and WTW to vote in favour of the proposed combination.
The deal remains subject to customary regulatory and other closing conditions, is expected to close in the first half of 2021.
Upon the closing of the combination, WTW shareholders will receive 1.08 Aon shares in exchange for each WTW share they held immediately before the closing.
Commenting on the announcement Greg Case, CEO of Aon, said: “On behalf of Aon’s board of directors and executive team, I would like to thank our shareholders for their overwhelming support of the proposed combination with WTW.”
He continued: “Our combination, which will accelerate innovation and strengthen our capability to provide more relevant solutions for clients, has only become more important through the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“The events of 2020 are illustrative of the exact type of transformative long-tail risk our new organisation will be best positioned to address, creating significant value for clients, colleagues, and shareholders,” he concluded.
John Haley, CEO of WTW, noted: “Today marks an important milestone towards completing the transaction. The vote reflects our shareholders’ confidence in this next step of our journey.”
“We are pleased with the outcome of today’s meetings and we thank all of our shareholders for their support of this combination that will bring together our complementary strengths and expand our capacity to address unmet client needs,” he added.
