Cinven, La Caisse buy Optio, £460mn premium managing general agent
Cinven and La Caisse today agreed to jointly acquire a majority stake in Optio from Preservation Capital Partners in a deal whose financial terms were not disclosed. The capital is coming from the Cinven Funds and from La Caisse’s investment platform, according to the buyers’ statements on the transaction.
The deal gives Cinven, the international private equity firm, and La Caisse, the global investment group formerly known as CDPQ, control of a specialty insurance managing general agent platform writing more than £460 million in annual premiums.
Optio, founded in 2018 and headquartered in London, originates, underwrites and manages specialty risk for more than 60 third-party capacity providers. That structure means the platform earns its place in the specialty market through underwriting and distribution rather than by deploying its own underwriting balance sheet, a distinction the public announcement left unchanged.
The business writes a diversified portfolio across six lines — Profession & Specialty, Transportation, Property & Energy, Healthcare, Transactional Liability, and Surety & Credit — spanning more than 30 products. Cinven’s announcement also describes Optio as a leading specialty insurance managing general agent platform with an established European core and 18 offices across 15 countries in the UK, Europe, the US, the Middle East and Asia.
The buyers said the transaction is intended to support an expansion of Optio’s specialist underwriting capabilities, a broader product offering, and further international growth. Optio’s current management team will remain in place after completion, preserving continuity as ownership changes.
Optio said it had built its platform under Preservation Capital Partners through investment in teams and acquisitions of specialist managing general agents. Cinven added that both incoming owners had tracked the business for a long time and had experience in the specialty underwriting segment.
The transaction remains subject to customary regulatory approvals and other closing conditions. The public announcement did not set out the purchase price, valuation, earn-out terms, financing mechanics, any planned capital injection into Optio, or any expected effect on the platform’s regulatory capital or solvency metrics.
--- Sources: https://www.cinven.com/news-insights/optio-acquisition/ https://www.cinven.com/news-and-insights/cinven-together-with-la-caisse-acquire-optio/
Sources: cinven.com · cinven.com
