AUB CEO declares Tysers deal “exceptionally positive” for Lloyd’s

Lloyd’s and the wider London insurance market will benefit substantially from AUB Group’s £500mn+ (A$880mn) agreed acquisition of Tysers, the CEO of the Australian group has said in an exclusive interview with The Insurer TV.

Speaking alongside Tysers CEO Clive Buesnel, AUB Group head Mike Emmett said the move is “exceptionally positive” for London market (re)insurers.

“It gives a new source of not only premium to be placed into Lloyd’s but also a new opportunity for additional creativity in design and product innovation,” Emmett told The Insurer in the latest Leading Voices episode.

The former Cover-More CEO – who has built ASX-listed AUB into one of Australia’s largest independent intermediaries controlling ~A$4.3bn in annual gross written premium (GWP) – estimates an additional A$500mn-A$600mn GWP could be funnelled to London in the medium term.

Currently, only around A$200mn is channelled into London via different London wholesale brokers, AUB disclosed on 9 May when the drawn-out sale process finally came to an end.

Speaking after the deal was announced, Emmett said AUB’s Australia and New Zealand businesses “will be a significant partner” to Tysers, using it as the primary platform to both place business and structure new products to support AUB’s retail operations.

“As we scale those businesses and grow, there’s a sizeable portion of premium being placed into the London market, and so this now gives Tysers additional stream of revenue and a source of additional work,” Emmett explained.

Buesnel reinforced this message, adding the transaction was “undoubtedly” a positive for the London market because it will bring “more capacity options” and “innovative product thinking”.

Speaking from AUB’s Sydney headquarters as part of a flying two-day visit, Buesnel remarked:  “If we put this all together I think this is really good for clients, employees and the market.”

The messaging will also be well-received by Lloyd’s chief executive John Neal, who was previously CEO of Australia-based international (re)insurer QBE. Since returning to Lloyd’s in late 2018, Neal has repeatedly stressed the need for the London market to encourage innovation to attract new business to Lime Street.

Buesnel also welcomed the long-term strategic clarity that has come from the change of ownership after US private equity firm Odyssey Investment Partners put the 200-year-old business up for sale a year ago.

“There’s a lot of private equity-owned businesses, we have a different model now. We’ve got a clear strategy: business coming into London, capitalising on what London’s great at in terms of product innovation and serving clients and markets. So for me, you could only describe it [the deal] as a positive,” he concluded.