Joint venture results in new Canadian insurance brokerage Moore-McLean Gateway Insurance Group Ltd.

Toronto-based Moore-McLean Insurance Group Ltd. and Gateway Insurance Group of Halifax, N.S. announced on Tuesday the formation of a new joint venture company, Moore-McLean Gateway Insurance Group.

With offices in Halifax and Toronto, Moore-McLean Gateway (MMG) will leverage the “considerable expertise and market clout of Moore-McLean with Gateway’s deep business and community relationships to target large commercial accounts in Nova Scotia and throughout Atlantic Canada,” Moore-McLean Insurance Group said in a press release. Collaborating on business opportunities since early 2013, Moore-McLean and Gateway “determined to build on their early successes by formally creating a new company, which will be jointly owned, to mutually pursue specific major client opportunities,” the release noted.

Daryn McLean will serve as chairman and CEO of Moore-McLean Gateway and Keith Dexter will be president. The joint venture will be fully operational by Oct. 15. In the meantime, both Moore-McLean and Gateway continue their individual growth strategies within their own independent brokerages operating in existing markets.

“We are thrilled to partner with Moore-McLean to target major regional businesses in Atlantic Canada,” Dexter said in the release. “We’re impressed with the significant experience and expertise they bring in numerous sectors including transportation, manufacturing and professional liability. Combining this with our deep roots in the local community will make us a formidable force.”

McLean noted that the two companies are “very similar in terms of culture, business philosophy and marketing approach. We’re looking forward to building a substantial brokerage that leverages the best of what Moore-McLean and Gateway have to offer,” he added.

Moore-Mclean was founded in 1975 and is an independent insurance brokerage with more than 65 employees working out of its downtown Toronto and Mississauga, Ont. offices. Moore-McLean focuses on several niches, including moving and logistics, new car dealers, commercial surety and marine, as well as group and high net worth personal lines.

Gateway’s roots in Halifax date back more than forty years. The commercial insurance brokerage has affiliated offices in two other Nova Scotia locations and one in Newfoundland. The company provides professional insurance risk assessment and insurance products for small to mid-market commercial clients, and for personal lines clients.