McManus is set to join PIB on 1 July as chief executive

chris giles and brendan mcmanus

Former Giles chief executive and ex-Arthur J Gallagher retail boss Brendan McManus is set to join the Chris Giles-backed start-up PIB on the 1 July as chief executive, Insurance Times can reveal.

McManus told Insurance Times that the broker was currently seeking private equity backing to support PIB’s acquisition plans.

McManus will also be an investor in the company.

He said: “We are currently engaged with a small number of PE investors for acquisition funding and expect to be recruiting for organic growth aggressively.”

McManus resigned as chief executive of Gallagher UK retail in January 2015.

The former Giles chief executive was appointed in November 2013, following Gallagher’s £233m takeover of the retail broker.

Back in October Insurance Times reported that Gallagher had taken out a High Court Order against former Giles staff who were part of PIB.

It prevented them from taking any Gallagher staff or clients to their new company until May 2015.

The foursome, Jonathan Cook, Jason Mole, Martin Hall and Chris Price, worked at Giles’ Birmingham professional indemnity (PI) branch when the company was bought by Gallagher.

Acquisitions market firing up

McManus and Giles are the latest seasoned insurance entrepreneurs to return to market with acquisition plans.

Last month, Insurance Times revealed that former Towergate chief executive Andy Homer is joining Peter Cullum and David Margrett at new consolidator Global Risk Partners (GRP) as it looks to start buying retail brokers.

Former Oval boss and ex-Gallagher UK head of retail Peter Blanc is also plotting an acquisition strategy, following the private equity-backed management buy-out at Aston Scott, that has seen him become executive chairman of the Insurance Times Top 50 broker.

In personal lines, private backed Brightside is also understood to be close to agreeing a deal for broker Autonet.