JLT is today pleased to announce the acquisition of Alexander Forbes Consultants & Actuaries Limited (AFCA) for a cash consideration of £17m, subject to regulatory approval.
AFCA will become part of JLT's Employee Benefits (EB) business, strengthening its leading market position and adding to its expertise and capabilities, particularly in the Health and Wellness, Risk, Annuity and Investment areas. This move further enhances JLT's ability to respond to the changing demands of the UK employee benefits market and to drive the sustained growth of its EB business.
Duncan Howorth, CEO, JLT UK Employee Benefits, said "This acquisition brings together two employee benefits businesses with highly complementary client offerings that share a similar culture and level of ambition. As a combined business we will have a stronger UK geographical footprint and AFCA will boost JLT's Health and Wellness, Risk, Annuity and Investment propositions. AFCA's employees will add to JLT's depth of expertise in several key disciplines and are a very welcome addition to the Group."
Mark Wood, Chairman, JLT UK Employee Benefits, said "We see increased opportunities for JLT's market leading online offerings and our combined clients will benefit from the enhanced auto-enrolment technology and consultancy solutions, stronger administration capabilities and broader range of Wealth Management services that we will now be able to offer to them. Together, these will help underpin the next phase of our growth in the UK."
AFCA provides a comprehensive range of employee benefits and services to trustees and employers and is part of the Alexander Forbes Group, an international financial services organisation. It employs over 300 people in the UK and has offices in Croydon, Edinburgh, London, Solihull, Manchester and Southampton. The business generated £27.8m of revenue in the year to 31 March 2012. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.
Tony Gusmao, CEO, AFCA, said, "We are focused on ensuring that our customers continue to benefit from high quality service and financial solutions. JLT Employee Benefits is a market leader in the provision of pension and wider employee benefits and we are working together to ensure that all of our existing customers will benefit seamlessly from our combined expertise."
Dominic Burke, Chief Executive, JLT Group said, "The acquisition fits squarely with our stated strategy of accretive acquisitions to deepen our capabilities in our specialist areas. It underlines JLT's commitment to its Employee Benefits business, which will represent some 25% of the Group's revenues following this transaction, consolidating our position as a leading full service employee benefits consultancy. On behalf of everyone at JLT, I welcome Tony Gusmao and his team."
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