Travelers buys Simply Business for £400m in digital push
US insurer The Travelers Companies has purchased UK insurtech Simply Business for $490m. The deal comes as established insurers buy up insurtech firms to ensure they aren't left behind by digital transformation, reported Oliver Ralph in the Financial Times.
US-based The Travelers Companies, Inc. has announced that it will acquire UK-based Simply Business from Aquiline Capital Partners LLC for approximately $490 million. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017. Simply Business is a leading distributor of small business insurance policies in the United Kingdom.

Simply Business has more than 425,000 microbusiness customers, across more than 1,000 classes of businesses. Over the past three years, insurance premiums placed by Simply Business grew at a compound annual rate of approximately 17.5 percent to £93 million (approx. $113 million) in 2016.

The Travelers Companies, Inc. is a provider of auto, home, and business insurance. Travelers has approximately 30,000 employees and generated revenues of approximately $28 billion in 2016.

“We are very pleased to be partnering with Simply Business, a dynamic and innovative company that has recently established early stage operations in the United States,” said Greg Toczydlowski, Executive Vice President and President of Business Insurance at Travelers. “Over time, we expect it will provide us with efficient access to serve the substantial microbusiness market in the United States and potentially other geographies.”

“Simply Business is a profitable and growing technology company with impressive strategic digital capabilities, leading digital commerce talent and proven small business insurance expertise,” said Alan Schnitzer, Chief Executive Officer of Travelers, in a statement. “With technology and innovation driving customer preferences and expectations, advancing our digital agenda to best serve our customers and the marketplace is a key strategic priority. As an important part of that agenda, we also look forward to working with our agent and broker partners as we seek to deploy Simply Business’ capabilities with them to make the small commercial insurance transaction easier, faster and more efficient.”

“This is a tremendous opportunity for our company and employees, as well as a strong validation of our business model," added Jason Stockwood, Chief Executive Officer of Simply Business, in a statement. "I am excited about Simply Business benefiting from Travelers’ extensive knowledge of the US market as we develop our approach there, as well as the resources it has to support potential expansion into additional markets. Our shared values and commitment to innovation make this transaction a perfect fit.”

Read more: Business Wire (Press release)