M&A II: AmWINS/Colemont AmWINS expands its reach within Texas by picking up one of its bigger competitors.


“We may be in 25 cities but it’s still a people business in every one of those cities with every one of those accounts, with every one of those insureds.”


Steven DeCarlo, AmWINS


In April 2010, AmWINS acquired Colemont, based in Dallas, Texas. According to some industry lists, Colemont ranked as the fi fth-largest E&S broker, with offi ces in seven locations.


“What we’ve tried to do is build a diversifi ed business model, not dissimilar to what Lexington has done and other companies have done, so we can weather any insurance cycle or economic environment by offering a variety of specialty solutions for our clients and their insureds ranging from catastrophic property coverage to group benefi t plans and inland marine coverage, to underground storage tanks,” Steven DeCarlo of Amwins said.


DeCarlo said the urge to merge is a natural outcome of a diffi cult economic environment, as companies remain challenged to grow premium despite an overall premium recession.


One of the major advantages of getting larger is that it enables companies to grow even larger by making it easier for them to raise capital.


“But it’s still a transaction business,” DeCarlo said. “It’s still a people business. It’s not going to change. It’s never going to change.”


Copyright © 2010 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means; electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise.


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