LONDON: 14 March 2011– Howden Broking Group is pleased to announce that its Israeli broking subsidiary has reached agreement to acquire the broking activity of Davidoff.
Davidoff Insurance Brokers was founded in 1963 as a family-owned businessand is one of the leading general insurance brokers in Israel, with retail and wholesale capabilities principally in commercial lines, with some personal lines business as well. It is a registered Lloyd’s broker. Howden’s Israeli business is already the largest Directors & Officers (D&O) and Professional Indemnity (PI) broker in Israel and the combined business will rank the firm as one of the top five non-life insurance brokers in the Israeli market.
Hyperion's chief executive, David Howden, said: “Our Group and Davidoff have had a very close business and personal relationship since 1995, and actually our business in Israel was born out of Davidoff Insurance Brokers in 2003. We have always worked very closely together, so this acquisition makes strategic and cultural sense. With 3i’s backing Hyperion has identified and continues to look for suitable acquisition targets and Israel is a very important market for us.”
Danny Sever, executive chairman of Howden Insurance Brokers in Israel, added: “It was a natural move for us to go into the property and casualty insurance arena. With more than 1,600 clients from all the leading industries we can now combine the two firms' expertise, service reputation and excellent teams of people to create a genuine one-stop-shop. Following the acquisition we will be a leading operator in Israel and, with access to Howden's global network of 26 offices around the world, Davidoff's clients and our clients will benefit from a new level of service and professionalism.”
Chairman of Davidoff Insurance Brokers, Rony Davidoff, said: "This is the latest and most exciting chapter in the Howden/Davidoff story, and it’s still only the beginning. The insurance world is led nowadays by international top tier brands, and it is only natural that the next phase for the company I founded is to be part of one of the fastest growing international insurance businesses.”