Brokerage expands nationally with latest deal

Large independent brokerage Acera Insurance Services Ltd. has officially expanded nationwide with its first location in Atlantic Canada.

Acera Insurance announced its acquisition of Nova Scotia-based Jacobi Brien Insurance last Thursday.

“This deal marks Acera Insurance’s first location in Atlantic Canada, officially expanding the independent brokerage’s footprint from coast to coast to coast,” Acera said in a press release. “Acera Insurance has more than 60 locations across the country, from Victoria, B.C., to Whitehorse, YT, and now to the greater Halifax area.”

When asked why Acera Insurance decided to expand into Atlantic Canada, the brokerage’s chief operating officer, Bruce Rabik, told Canadian Underwriter, “Acera Insurance’s ambitions have always been national.

“Halifax is a great city with a great future. It has an incredible quality of life,” he says. “But our main determinant is always the quality of people that we are partnering with, and we are bringing in the very best with this new partnership.”

Jacobi Brien Insurance first opened in Lower Sackville, N.S. in 2016, but co-founders Colin Brien and Donald Jacobi have more than 50 years of combined experience in personal and commercial insurance. The brokerage has a large concentration in commercial insurance and specializes in construction, hospitality, golf courses and realty.

“We proudly built our local business from the ground up, so we value that Acera Insurance has been growing organically without insurance carrier or foreign ownership,” says Brien.

The partnership closed on June 24, and the firm will be transitioning to Acera Insurance over the coming months.

CU asked if Acera Insurance is considering or planning to expand into other areas of Atlantic Canada.

Rabik says the brokerage is always looking for new partners — “people that do not want to just sell their brokerage for a quick buck but who want to continue working and growing with all the tools a big brokerage can offer.

“We are looking for people that know an employee-controlled brokerage is simply better for staff and for clients,” he says. “We are looking for people with ambition. And we believe there are people like that in Atlantic Canada….”

He reiterated the brokerage’s “overriding interest is getting the highest quality of new partners in terms of integrity, view of the future, and service and sales orientation.”

Acera Insurance has $1.3 billion in gross written premiums, nearly $1 billion in group retirement savings assets under management and more than 650 employee-owners. It has 1,200 employees in more than 60 offices across Canada.

Acera has been active in the M&A space recently.

Last month, it partnered with Kingston, Ont.-based Dorey & Tolgyesi Insurance Brokers Ltd., an auto, property, commercial and group insurance brokerage. It also closed a deal with Surrey, B.C.-based Janzen Insurance Brokers Ltd., which has been providing home, auto and commercial insurance since 2017.

Other deals for Acera this year include Dominion Group Benefits, Green Benefits Group, M.E.F. Services Ltd. and KRS Insurance Brokers Inc.

 

Feature image by iStock.com/ipopba