In an undisclosed transaction, private equity firm Brera Partners has acquired 70% of the shares in Italian insurance broker GBSAPRI Group.
According to the announcement, the firm has made this acquisition with the strategy to drive consolidation in Italy’s fragmented insurance broking sector.
Established in 1951 with headquarters in Rome and nine offices across Italy, GBSAPRI Group was created to service SMEs, corporates and the public sector.
Since its launch, the brokerage has grown its specialist expertise via acquiring local insurance intermediaries across different verticals and sectors, covering: marine, cargo, aviation, financial institutions, employee benefits and affinity groups, reinsurance, risk management and claims management.
The acquisition, according to Brera, will enable GBSAPRI Group to continue its aggregator business model and acquire a series of businesses currently in the pipeline to grow its presence on the Italian market.
As the transaction is completed, GBSAPRI Managing Director Carlo Maria Bassi will transition to the CEO role. He commented: “Our ambition is to become Italy’s premier insurance broker, and we are delighted to be able to work with Brera Partners to achieve that goal.
“With Brera’s financial support and partnership, we will be able to significantly strengthen our position in the Italian insurance market, whilst guaranteeing the highest standards of work quality and customer satisfaction that we have maintained for the past 70 years.”
“When we started this process, we never imagined meeting a company like Brera. Their partners Andrew Borda and Tin Radosevic have been instrumental in turning this ambitious project into a reality,” added current CEO Guilio Spagnoli who will transition to Chairman as part of the transaction.
He added: “GBSAPRI now has the means to become a true insurance hub, with significant M&A ambitions, but will still maintain its values as a service-focussed broker managed by partners.”
Andrew Borda, Partner at Brera Partners, stated: “Brera Partners is excited to support GBSAPRI and the management team on their growth journey to become the leading Italian insurance broker for businesses and the public sector.
“GBSAPRI has earned a reputation as a leader in several non-life insurance product lines and in recent years has successfully built its position through constant organic growth and M&A transactions, acquiring leading specialist brokers such as marine intermediary Poliass and corporate and industries expert Rodinò & Partners. We look forward to supporting Carlo Bassi and Giulio Spagnoli in building GBSAPRI into the main aggregator broker in Italy.”
The GBSAPRI Group was assisted by financial advisors Kitra Advisory, KPMG, and by law firms Lener & Partners, Lexia and Andpartners.
Brera Partners was backed by Headway Capital Partners with equity financing to facilitate the transaction.
Chiomenti supported the firm on Legal DD and transaction documentation, while PWC on Financial and Tax DD and tax structuring, LEK Consulting on Commercial Due Diligence and Rosedge Capital as debt advisor. Eurazeo, advised by Ahsurst, provided the acquisition financing for the transaction.
