JM Glendinning in management buyout deal

Specialist commercial lines broker JM Glendinning Group Limited (JMG) is in a management buyout backed by growth investor Synova Capital (Synova).

Synova will support the buyout of the broker alongside incumbent chief executive Nick Houghton, the company said in a media release.

The deal will see Synova provide funding and work with the broker’s team to support its support plans.

It hopes to grow the business four-fold over the next five years by enhancing the broker’s ”strong organic growth with a series of complementary and strategic acquisitions”.

As part of the transaction Stackhouse Poland’s chief executive Tim Johnson has joined the JMG board as executive chairman.

Meanwhile Stackhouse Poland’s founder Jeremy Cary has joined the board as advisor.

Houghton, group chief executive at JMG said: “Our agenda has always been to retain control of the company through a buy-out while facilitating the desires of the Glendinning family.

”Synova have committed to providing JMG with the level of future funding to maintain, and even increase, the level of momentum we have enjoyed in recent years. With Synova, Johnson and Cary we have a team that have done this before, and we are ready for this moment.

“I am delighted that with the support of our new partners at Synova we have been able to allow John Glendinning to realise the value of what he and his late wife created nearly 50 years ago, as well as securing an independent future for the JMG team.”

Significant gap

Following Synova’s successful exit in 2019 of specialist insurance broker Stackhouse Poland, David Menton, a managing partner at Synova and a director at JMG, said: “We have continued to track the sector with interest.

”We believe a significant gap continues to exist in the mid-market for a high-quality specialist platform and have been incredibly impressed by Nick Houghton and his team, and with JMG’s remarkable growth story.

“We are delighted to be partnering with Nick and his team, as well as to work once again with Johnson and Cary.

”Houghton and the wider team have ambitious plans and we are looking forward to supporting them as they continue to grow JMG into a platform of significant scale.”

Synova previously partnered with Johnson and Cary between 2014-2019 in specialist broker, Stackhouse Poland, which was later acquired by Gallagher.

Key differentiator 

Meanwhile Johnson, executive chairman at JMG, added: “Houghton and his team have built an impressive platform, generating market-leading levels of organic growth.

”With Synova’s investment, combined with the partnership-orientated culture of JMG, we are extremely well-positioned to acquire a series of attractive and complementary brokers across the UK.

“I believe this combination truly differentiates us from our peers, and I’m really looking forward to helping the team develop.”

JM Glendinning was founded in 1972 by John and Joan Glendinning and it now operates six offices across the UK. The broker currently places approximately £45m of premium annually.

The family appointed Houghton in 2013 to roll out the next phase of the broker’s growth.

Houghton began his career at Zurich and Marsh, he spent seven years at Towergate, and was formerly as managing director at Broker Network. He has also served on Biba’s large broker advisory board.