Australian broking group acquires UK broker in £23.5m deal

Australian broking network Steadfast Group has acquired HW Wood to expand its presence in the London market.

HW Wood, which is part of the HW International Group, is a Lloyd’s broker that provides wholesale, retail and reinsurance propositions to a range of clients.

This includes those in the international marine and cargo, property and fine art sectors.

The business is headquartered in London and led by managing director Steve Rudduck, who will continue to lead the business as part of the deal.

Steadfast Group also said the acquisition would see its placement team, which services hard-to-place risks in London that come from Australasia brokers, “will integrate into the new entity”.

“The expanded scale of our London presence will also support the management of our binders in [the city], which will all be brought in-house over the next two years,” the group added.

Second acquisition

It is not the only business Steadfast Group has acquired, with it also snapping up fellow HW International Group firm HWI France.

Combined with HW Wood, the two business have more than 75 staff located in the UK, France and Greece.

They have been acquired in a deal worth £23.5m. The expected date of settlement is 2 December 2024.

Steadfast Group managing director and chief executive Robert Kelly said: “We have been investigating options to expand further into the London market to substantially increase our ability to support our network brokers and agencies and provide a runway of additional international growth opportunities.”