At the 2025 Biba Conference in May, rumours were circulating that Gallagher could be closing in on a deal for PIB Group
Gallagher’s UK and Ireland chief executive Michael Rea has provided further insight over why talks to acquire PIB Group fell through.
At the 2025 Biba Conference in May, rumours were circulating that Gallagher could be closing in on a deal for PIB Group.
Insurance Times understood from market participants that agreeing on the financials was the blocker on the deal going through.
And in July 2025, PIB Group ended interest in acquisition talks, drawing a line under the sale process.
Rea told Insurance Times that PIB Group has a “significant European presence” and that it was “one of the strategic things that we looked at that was hugely attractive”.
He added: “The reality is, PIB Group, we really liked the business and we really liked the people, but we just couldn’t quite agree on a few things.
“But those talks [were] left in a very amicable way.”
AssuredPartners deal
Rea made the comments following Gallagher completing its major acquisition of AssuredPartners yesterday (18 August 2025).
Read: Gallagher completes major $12.45bn acquisition
Read: ‘Mind blowing’ AssuredPartners and Gallagher deal could cause M&A ripple effect – Mike Latham
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The transaction was announced in December 2024, with Gallagher making the swoop to scale its UK and Ireland arm and expand its retail middle-market property and casualty offerings across the US.
Rea said: “[AssuredPartners has] got a very strong presence in the mid-market, they’re strong in SME. So, they have some businesses that are exclusively setup in that small business segment.
“They’re strong in mid net worth, high net worth, personal lines insurance. So, I think across all of the segments where we play, they play as well.
“So, from a complementary perspective, its incredibly strong.”
He added: “It’s a huge transaction and it’s a really meaningful transaction in the UK.
“AssuredPartners has built a really enviable business [and] we should congratulate the local management team on what they’ve done over the last five or six years to build the franchise and the distribution power that they have done.
“We’re really looking forward to welcoming them into Gallagher and making them feel part of the family.”
His career began in 2019, when he joined a local north London newspaper after graduating from the University of Sheffield with a first-class honours degree in journalism.
He took up the position of deputy news editor at Insurance Times in March 2023, before being promoted to his current role in May 2024.View full Profile
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