Top insurance brokers, No. 10: Howden Insurance Brokers Ltd.

2024 brokerage revenue: $3.77B (BI estimate)
Percent increase: 26.3%

Howden Insurance Brokers Ltd. increased its revenue by more than 25% last year through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth, ranking among the world’s 10 largest brokerages for the first time.

The company, founded in London in 1994 by CEO David Howden, places commercial retail and specialty insurance, reinsurance and personal lines, and operates a managing general agent.

In its 31-year history it has evolved from a specialty brokerage with a handful of employees into a multiline intermediary with offices worldwide.

The company reported £3.01 billion ($3.85 billion) in gross revenue for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2024. Business Insurance estimates its brokerage revenue at $3.77 billion for the period, a 26.3% increase over 2023.

Organic revenue increased 15% in fiscal 2024, Howden said in its results statement. Insurance broking organic revenue increased 14%, reinsurance broking 30%, and its MGA business 6%.

In addition, the company completed 65 acquisitions, including 28 in Europe. A senior Howden executive was unavailable for an interview in time for this article, but a company spokesman said in an email that its 22,000 staff operate in 55 countries.

New hires accounted for 30% of Howden’s organic growth last year, or about $50 million in revenue from 1,800 staff, he said. The number of specialty clients grew by 28%.

Howden aims to grow to £10 billion ($12.8 billion) in revenue and 40,000 staff by 2030, according to the spokesman.

The company’s ownership has diversified over the years, but it remains about 30% held by employees. Other long-term investors include New York-based private-equity firm General Atlantic Partners LP, London-based private-equity firm Hg Capital LLP and Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.

Last year Howden completed a $6.4 billion refinancing.

While it has reported double-digit organic growth for the past four years, acquisitions have accounted for a significant portion of Howden’s revenue increase. It made its first acquisition in 1997, and its largest insurance brokerage acquisitions since then include London-based R.K. Harrison Insurance Brokers Ltd. in 2014, U.K. personal lines and small business insurance broker A Plan in 2020 and U.K. specialty broker Aston Lark Ltd. in 2021.

In 2022 Howden made a significant move in the U.S. and global reinsurance broking market with the $1.6 billion purchase of TigerRisk Partners LLC.

TigerRisk was established in 2008 by industry veterans Rod Fox and Jim Stanard. At the time of the deal, Howden and TigerRisk were ranked as the world’s fourth- and fifth-largest reinsurance brokers, respectively. Last year Howden maintained its fourth position, according to Business Insurance, based on 2023 figures, but its reinsurance revenue was over 2.5 times its revenue prior to the TigerRisk acquisition.

Notable acquisitions over the past two years include Dutch insurance brokerage VLC & Partners Holding B.V. and Danish brokerage North Risk A/S, both of which Howden bought in December 2023, and AGEO Group, a Paris-based employee benefits intermediary that Howden acquired in July 2024.

In June this year, Howden announced the acquisitions of Innova Re S.A., a reinsurance brokerage in Lima, Peru, and Ureta & Fernandez Corredores de Seguros Limitada, an insurance brokerage in Santiago, Chile. Howden said its Latin American strategy includes investing in five key countries: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.

Last year, Howden entered the Japanese market with the launch of Howden Re Japan Ltd. and an insurance-linked securities partnership with Keystone ILS Capital. It appointed Kentaro Tada as CEO of the unit. It also entered the Japanese retail broking and captive management market with the acquisition of Foresight Holdings Co. Ltd. and appointed former Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. executive Takuya Aibe as CEO.

Howden’s MGA, Dual, was formed in Madrid in 1998 and now has offices globally. It reported $3.5 billion in gross written premium last year.

Key Howden hires announced over the past 18 months include David Shalders, who joined as group chief operating officer in February 2024. Previously he was chief operating officer and head of integration at London Stock Exchange Group.

Rohan Bhappu, a Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. executive, is slated to join Howden on Oct. 1 as CEO of Howden Asia.