Jensten Group Limited (“Jensten”, “the Group”), a leading UK broking and insurance group, has received regulatory approval to acquire 100% of the share capital of Senior Wright Limited (“Senior Wright”). The acquisition is effective from the 1st of July 2020.
Senior Wright is a wholesale and retail broker placing in excess of £20 million of Gross Written Premium in the Lloyd’s and company markets. The business serves clients in a number of sectors and operates from offices in London, Edinburgh, Leeds and Dudley. It will continue to function as a standalone brand within Jensten’s Wholesale division. All members of the team, including the Managing Director Michael Griffin, will remain in the business following completion, with Michael remaining as Managing Director.
The acquisition sees Jensten continue its proven strategy of acquiring high quality, entrepreneurial businesses which have significant growth potential and are led by teams who are passionate about the clients they serve. The deal is the second acquisition that Jensten has signed since lockdown.
The second deal has received regulatory approval but has not been announced.
Managing Director of Jensten Wholesale, Simon Taylor said:
“I am delighted to announce this exciting acquisition that marks an important step in the evolution of the Jensten Group and our commitment to our buy and build strategy. From the outset we knew that Senior Wright would make a good strategic and cultural fit: Mike has built a successful, specialist construction and liability business with a great reputation in the market. This is going to be a powerful addition to the Jensten Wholesale armoury – taking wholesale GWP to over £80 million – and will be of great benefit to our partner brokers and their clients.
The Jensten Group has a strong track record of supporting entrepreneurial, community and client focused brokers in the UK and working in partnership with management teams. I know I speak for the entire Group when I welcome Mike and his team to the Jensten family.”
Group CFO of Jensten, Ed Hannan added:
“Senior Wright is an extremely desirable business with a strong track record and an attractive client base and we look forward to supporting the team in unlocking further potential in the business.
As a management team, one of our primary missions is to grow through targeted acquisition of good quality, niche and non-commoditised insurance businesses. We have strong operational and financial support from our backers, Livingbridge, in the execution of our ever-accelerating buy and build strategy._
That we are able to execute on our strategy and sign deals in the current economic environment is testament to the determined ambition of our Group, management and shareholders. We have a strong M&A pipeline, excellent funding in place and a great proposition to potential vendors. We look forward to announcing further acquisitions in the near future.”
Managing Director of Senior Wright, Mike Griffin commented:
“After many years of being an independent broker, it is time to look to the long-term future of Senior Wright and make a decision which will be the best for the clients and the staff. From my early dealings with Simon and the team at Jensten it was clear that their philosophy matches that of Senior Wright and we have a common vision and ambition for the business.
I am delighted to be continuing in the business as Managing Director and look forward to the loyal and talented team we’ve built at Senior Wright becoming part of Jensten at such an interesting time in its development.”
About the Jensten Group
The Group is a leading UK insurance distribution platform, providing and enabling high quality advice and insurance products to small and medium enterprises and private customers with specialist personal lines insurance needs. The Group is headquartered in London with major operations in Huntingdon, Manchester and Nottingham.
The Group has its roots in the Coversure franchise network, first established over 30 years ago, and has evolved into a leading insurance broker serving clients representing £200m+ GWP and employing over 210 people. We provide essential, high quality broking services including marketing, HR, client money and IT support to around 100 Coversure franchises nationwide. Through our Wholesale division, comprised of Policyfast and City Underwriters, we develop bespoke products for our broker partners.
The Group’s long-term strategic mission is to support entrepreneurial, community-based brokers, which it intends to achieve through a combination of organic growth and targeted acquisition of businesses, portfolios and teams that have specialty and non-commoditised propositions.
The Group is led by a management team who are focused on growth, following an MBO in 2018 which was supported by Livingbridge, one of the most highly respected mid-market PE houses in the UK. The Group is also delighted to be working with Springboard Corporate Finance and Shoosmiths LLP who advised on this acquisition.