Days after reporting a 43% increase in profits for the year to June 2008, personal lines broking group BGL has been telling anyone who will listen this week about its plans to acquire other firms again following a seven-year hiatus.
Chief Executive Peter Winslow told Insurance Times that he is close to completing two “very significant” deals involving high-street brands. These would apparently come under the wing of BGL’s affinity-focused “partnership division” Junction. He confided to Post Magazine, however, that Hastings Direct was not a target. He told the paper’s editor Jonathan Swift that now is “a good time to be looking for businesses because the multiples are coming down and there will be forced sellers. It is something we will be focusing on next year and we will even be setting up an acquisitions team, which is something we have never done before.” BGL’s other brands include Bennetts, Budget, comparethemarket.com and Fusion.
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