United Risk completes acquisition of specialty reinsurance MGA Pinnacle Underwriting
United Risk, a global property and casualty insurance underwriting and distribution platform, has completed the acquisition of Pinnacle Underwriting Pty Ltd. and its affiliate Pinnacle Holdings Group Pty Ltd. (collectively, Pinnacle Underwriting).
Headquartered in Sydney with offices in Melbourne, Singapore, and Dubai, Pinnacle Underwriting is a specialty facultative reinsurance MGA managing a substantial book of business—70% of which originates in the Asia-Pacific region, with the remainder primarily in the Middle East and North Africa.
Pinnacle Underwriting specialises in facultative reinsurance across lines including Property, Power Generation & Utilities, Onshore Oil & Gas, and Political Violence & Terrorism. It underwrites and adjusts claims on behalf of a panel of ‘A’ and ‘AA’ rated carriers, distributing through all major reinsurance brokerages. Its client base includes a broad range of insurance company cedants, including most major global insurance groups active in the region.
Hayden Smith, Regional CEO of United Risk, commented, “The acquisition of Pinnacle puts United Risk squarely within the top five largest MGAs in the world. United Risk has consistently produced solid, profitable results all across its many divisions while expanding and strengthening its MGA platforms. Now, United Risk has achieved a diversified scale and geographic reach matched by few, if any, of its peers.
“On a global scale the entire premium base for the regions covered by Pinnacle is relatively small making it challenging for a primary insurer to accumulate significant premium. Gaining meaningful market exposure through reinsurance makes a lot of sense to us as we work to diversify globally.”
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Smith also highlighted the value of Pinnacle Underwriting’s property portfolio, which accounts for nearly 80% of its writings: “Together with our strategic partners, we have methodically divested of nearly all property exposure in the US, such that the addition now of Pinnacle’s worldwide property business, which has been quite profitable for many years performing well through catastrophe events, immediately rounds out United Risk’s portfolio by line.”
Jon Gilliott, founder and CEO of Pinnacle Underwriting, and now a partner at United Risk, added, “Pinnacle has a nurtured, entrepreneurial culture, yet, ours is a highly technical business: we will benefit from this strategic partnership – one in which our values and the level of underwriting sophistication are shared. As its founder, I am enthusiastic to continue to lead Pinnacle’s advancement and progress to a new level.”
Insurance Advisory Partners and Ashurst LLP served as exclusive financial and legal advisors, respectively, to Pinnacle Underwriting. United Risk was advised by Clyde & Co.
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