According to a spokesperson for the Chicago-based broker, Aon said combining Benfield, with its existing reinsurance operations would create a global, diverse franchise. Benfield is a leading independent reinsurance intermediary.
Said an Aon spokesperson, "The acquisition is expected to enhance Aon's capabilities in the significant Florida and South East US property-catastrophe markets as well as in the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific and Latin American regions.
"In addition, the combination offers the opportunity to capitalize on the significant investment both businesses have made in risk modeling and analytics to create a global market leading capability in this key area.”
Terms of the deal include a cash payment by Aon of 3.50 pounds ($6.55) per share for each share of Benfield stock, a 29 percent premium over Benfield's recent closing price.
Aon will also take over 91 million pounds ($170 million) of Benfield net debt in the deal, boosting the overall value of the transaction to about 935 million pounds ($1.75 billion).