verlingual, a French insurance group specializing in corporate protection, acquires ICB Group, leader of insurance brokers in the United Kingdom, thus tripling its presence on the Anglo-Saxon market. The move is part of the 2018 strategic plan, which foresees the development of the company in France parallel to theexpansion in Europe.
Among the next objectives of the French group, above all Italy, as stated by Frédéric Grand, Deputy General Manager and Director of the foreign branches of Verlingue: “30% of our turnover is now achieved internationally, compared to 5% in 2016. Our ambition is to reach 50% quickly thanks to our establishment in other European countries such as Germany and Italy. This acquisition and those that will follow must contribute to the construction of a more solid and more open group on the world, with positive effects for our customers".
Less than a year after the last acquisition of the Swiss group S&P, Verlingue therefore announces the new external expansion operation, effective from 1 August 2018: the acquisition of ICB Group based in London. On the occasion of the presentation of the 2018 strategic plan, Verlingue's executives had anticipated the ambition to further promote the development of the company in France, while simultaneously continuing with the expansion in Europe (Germany, Italy…).
ICB Group represents the fourth international acquisition of Verlingue after that of Finch Insurance Brokers, the first European operator in the United Kingdom (2006) and more recently of Advantis (2016) and S&P (2017) in Switzerland. Specialized in risk management consultancy, ICB Group is one of the main operators in the field of corporate risk with almost 100 million euros of premiums negotiated on behalf of its clients - mainly SMEs - and with offices in London and its immediate suburbs ( Egham and Redhill).
Éric Maumy, General Manager of Verlingue: “This acquisition in London allows us to change our dimension. Verlingue has ambitions to be one of the leading independent brokers in the UK and the ICB-FINCH partnership forms the basis of an outstanding platform to achieve this. ICB is one of the leading operators in its market, with values and a business model in line with ours. This union of companies and talents is excellent news for ICB, Finch, their respective customers and partners”.
Neil Campling, Managing Director of ICB Group: “We are well aware that to maintain our position among the leaders in the UK market and guarantee a high level of service to our customers we must continue to evolve. After all, many of our customers are expanding on an international scale and we must guarantee them our ability to meet this new need. Being part of Verlingue allows ICB to take up this challenge and gain a strong position for the future”.
