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Willis Re to Acquire BMS Re US
Willis Re has agreed to acquire the US reinsurance division of BMS Group, in a deal it describes as transformational for its international growth strategy, establishing an operational presence in the world’s largest insurance market for the first time.
24 August 2026 • Page 3 • Reinsurance & Transactions
The Transaction
Announced on 18 August 2026, the deal covers BMS Re US in its entirety — including BMS Intermediaries Inc., BMS Capital Advisory LLC, and the associated US reinsurance broking team based in London. Financial terms have not been disclosed, and the transaction remains subject to regulatory approval and other closing conditions.
The agreement excludes BMS Group’s UK, Latin America, Bermuda, and Global Facultative businesses, which the group retains as core operations. Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP advised Willis Re on the deal.
BMS Re US focuses on property and casualty reinsurance, with particular expertise in complex lines including property catastrophe, medical malpractice and workers’ compensation, serving regional and super-regional carriers, MGAs and programmes. Notably, the deal also brings Willis Re its first capital markets capability — BMS Capital Advisory’s team works on catastrophe bonds, reinsurance sidecars and other insurance-linked securities placements, an area Willis Re had not previously held since it sold its original Willis Re Securities unit to Gallagher in 2021.
24 August 2026 • Page 3 • Reinsurance & Transactions
Market Context
This is Willis Re’s first major acquisition since its 2024 relaunch as a joint venture between WTW and Bain Capital — two years after WTW sold its original reinsurance arm to Arthur J. Gallagher for $3.25 billion. Since relaunching, Willis Re’s growth has come primarily through recruitment, drawing approximately 80 professionals from rival Guy Carpenter since mid-2025 across property retrocession, specialty lines and analytics. That hiring campaign was not without friction: a UK High Court judgment in February 2026 found that two departing Guy Carpenter executives had improperly assisted Willis Re’s hiring push before resigning, with financial damages yet to be determined.
For BMS Group, the sale represents a voluntary exit from the US market specifically, rather than a broader retreat from reinsurance broking — the group retains its UK, Latin America, Bermuda and global facultative businesses as its core operations. BMS Re US ranked as the world’s seventh-largest reinsurance broker in 2024, with gross revenue of $173.99 million and 325 employees. WTW has indicated the Willis Re venture is expected to be a $0.30-per-share headwind to its adjusted 2026 earnings.
“This transaction marks an important step in BMS’s ongoing evolution. BMS Re, US has built an excellent reputation as one of the largest independent specialist reinsurance platforms in the region, underpinned by deep expertise across complex risk classes and long-standing relationships with a diverse client base.”
— Nick Cook, Chief Executive Officer, BMS Group
24 August 2026 • Page 3 • Reinsurance & Transactions
JDCC View
The most interesting element here isn’t the acquisition itself but the method behind Willis Re’s build-out: an aggressive, recruitment-led expansion — 80 hires from a single rival in just over a year — followed by a first acquisition that fills the one gap recruitment alone couldn’t: a US operational base and a capital markets/ILS capability. Worth watching whether the litigation around the Guy Carpenter hiring campaign becomes a recurring cost of this strategy as Willis Re continues to build out aggressively.
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