Insurance and reinsurance broker Howden has signed an agreement to acquire broker firm CRF.
The firm said in a statement that this was its first acquisition in France since appointing Nicolas Aubert as CEO of Howden France. CRF was founded in 1999 and focuses on financial lines.
Aubert said in a statement: “This acquisition is the best way to launch ourselves in France as a credible and differentiating alternative.
“The CRF team have best-in-class backgrounds and reputations in the market and their decision to join Howden is a signal to the market of our commitment to build a new broker in France, which is founded on expertise and quality of talent and that brings value to all of our stakeholders, including entrepreneurial talent, clients and insurance partners.”
It was in February that Aubert joined the firm, moving over from his role of head of Great Britain at Willis Towers Watson. Prior to joining Howden, he held leadership roles at AIG, as COO EMEA and had been Managing Director of different geographies, including the UK, Southern Europe and France.
Howden first opened an office in France in 2019 launching a Warranty and Indemnity business, Howden M&A France. The team is made up of former M&A corporate and tax lawyers who advise clients across the entire spectrum of M&A insurance.
In 2021, the team saw growth of almost 45%, by policy count, acting on more than 30 transactions with an aggregate value exceeding €12bn.
Upon completion and subject to regulatory approval, Didier Arminjon will remain CEO of CRF and Didier Seigneur as deputy CEO of CRF who will also assume the title of director of financial lines, Howden France. Recently, Eric Demange, Adrien Laplane, and Delphine Voltolini have joined Howden France as commercial director and deputy CEO, CFO, and director of operations respectively.
