Specialist insurance and reinsurance broker BMS Group has launched its Asia broking operations, headquartered in Singapore and with proposed operations in Hong Kong pending regulatory approval. BMS Asia will initially focus on mergers and acquisitions (M&A) insurance broking, aiming to enhance the group’s existing capabilities in that class of business in London, Canada and Australia. As part of the office opening, Sandra Lee will be CEO of BMS Asia. Lee has more than 16 years of legal and insurance experience, mostly spent advising leading international private equity and corporate investors on the legal aspects of their M&A transactions as well as placement of various M&A insurance solutions. Elsewhere, Martijn de Lange and Aris Wong will both be managing directors in the regional private equity, M&A and taxation (PEMAT) operation. Leading the tax liability insurance practice, de Lange has over 12 years of combined insurance, legal and tax experience, with a focus on tax and M&A, having advised private equity and corporate investors on tax and transactional risk insurance solutions in the region. Wong leads the M&A insurance practice in Singapore and the southeast Asian region. She has more than 10 years of legal and insurance experience, most recently in advising investors on various transaction risk insurance solutions across the broader Asian region. Amy Fu, who will serve as executive director in Singapore, will help drive the strategy and growth of the broker operation, working with diverse corporate and public stakeholders, and reinsurance. Most recently, Fu led the distribution strategy and stakeholder engagement for Lloyd's Asia, having established an international marine portfolio for Pioneer Underwriting and worked for Swiss Re across the region. Commenting on the expansion, Nick Cook, CEO of BMS Group, said: “This is the latest stage in our strategy to provide our clients with a competitive and diverse, globally integrated offering by establishing scalable hubs in the key insurance markets around the world. The M&A insurance market in Asia is evolving and maturing at pace, and we are delighted that Sandra and the team will be driving our initial offering in the region.” “We will look to expand out from M&A insurance into additional specialisms, extending our existing areas of expertise into other sectors, potentially including reinsurance, renewable energy, marine, and capital markets. We hope our ambition and entrepreneurial culture will continue to attract the very best talent in the market,” he added. Lee noted: “The creation of BMS Asia is a really exciting development for insurance buyers in the region. As a leading independent broker, we can offer a genuine alternative to the world’s largest intermediaries and our independence gives us the freedom to be innovative and entrepreneurial and thus pursue the very best solutions for our clients.” “Growth in the Asian M&A insurance market is accelerating and we expect a robust increase in deal flow in 2021, with buyers looking for ways to protect their investments and sellers seeking the best solutions to reduce their liability post closing,” she concluded.
