Envest Group (Envest), an insurance investment group that is part of The Ardonagh Group, has continued its acquisition spree this month by acquiring a majority stake in London Australia Underwriting (LAUW).
Established in 2005 by Steve Walker and Declan Rye, LAUW is an underwriting agency that specialises in professional indemnity, directors and officers, management liability, tech, fintech, and financial institutions insurance.
LAUW writes over $35 million in gross written premium (GWP) in professional and financial lines exclusively on behalf of Lloyd’s of London syndicates. Since its establishment, the agency has grown through its solid broker support, deep sector specialisation, and a team committed to personalised service.
“We feel fortunate that Steve and Declan are joining us on our journey and entrust us to help them continue into the next phase of building their business,” said Envest CEO Greg Mullins. “We are also happy to see London and other insurance markets actively looking to support MGAs as they continue to build market share. With a broker network placing $1.3 billion into the market, our focus on agency acquisitions is to bring our customers new products and services to market in niche areas that deliver value for them and insurance partners.”
Envest CEO of agencies Richard Heilig said the group has been looking to invest in financial and professional lines.
“We don’t currently have a financial and professional risk agency in our group,” he said. “LAUW is already a preferred supplier with an excellent reputation in the market. Declan and Steve have been with the business since day one and will continue to have material ownership to drive the agency’s growth.”
LAUW directors Steve Walker and Declan Rye said they look forward to leveraging Envest’s capital, support, relationship, and scale to grow the agency’s distribution service.
“We see a strong cultural alignment with Envest, and the opportunity to use the group’s strength to continue our growth story, including the release of new products soon,” they said.
Envest also recently acquired a majority stake in Insuret, a specialist underwriting agency in the rental car fleet insurance and emerging “mobility fleet” markets.
