International private equity firm Cinven is pleased to announce that it has entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire the Finaxy group (‘Finaxy’ or ‘the Company’), a leading French multi-specialist insurance broker, from Ardian, a world-leading private investment house. The management team, led by Founder and CEO Erick Berville, will significantly reinvest alongside Cinven. Financial details of the transaction are confidential.
Established in 2009 and headquartered in Paris, Finaxy is a leading player in the French insurance brokerage market with over 330 employees, having delivered strong organic growth and executed a successful buy-and-build strategy, including more than 30 acquisitions in France. The Company has established a strategic position across its three specialised divisions: “Enterprise” that is focused on the insurance of major Property and Casualty (‘P&C’) and Health and Protection risks for businesses; “Affinities” that specialises in niche insurances; and “Solutions” that manages and develops the group’s major strategic and institutional partnerships.
Since Ardian’s majority acquisition in 2020, Finaxy has invested significantly to accelerate the development of its multi-specialist broker model with the addition of new niche verticals and continued regional expansion. This strategy has strengthened Finaxy's leadership in the SME / mid-size enterprise segment and has translated into a path of continued strong revenue growth. Finaxy also continued its industry diversification and acquisition strategy through, amongst others, the acquisition of Xplorassur in its Affinities division.
Cinven would be investing out of its Strategic Financials Fund that specialises in the financial services industry and brings substantial experience of investing in and growing insurance brokers. Cinven will look to work closely with the Finaxy management team and contribute significant resources and capital to further accelerate strategic value-enhancing M&A across the fragmented French market, and to drive further growth by attracting new team hires, while upholding Finaxy’s commitment to long-term client-focused delivery.
Juan Monge, Partner at Cinven commented:
“We are delighted to partner with Erick Berville, Philippe Guetta, Cyril Chazarain and the rest of the team and we look forward to supporting them in their growth ambitions. The Company has a differentiated position in a resilient and expanding market, and we see a tremendous opportunity to accelerate Finaxy’s current growth momentum.”
Luigi Sbrozzi, Partner and Head of the Strategic Financials Fund at Cinven, said:
“Finaxy is a unique opportunity for Cinven funds to invest in a French multi-specialist broker of scale. Drawing on Cinven’s significant experience in insurance brokerage and Cinven’s strong presence in France and across Europe, we believe Cinven will be the perfect partner to lead Finaxy in its next stage of growth.”
David Giroflier, Senior Principal at Cinven, added:
“The acquisition of Finaxy is the result of Cinven's considerable track-record in financial services combined with our strong presence in the French market. We look forward to supporting the Finaxy team in their next phase of development.”
Erick Berville, Founder and CEO of Finaxy stated:
“The Executive Board: Philippe Guetta, Cyril Chazarain and I, together with the Group's management, would like to thank François Jerphagnon, Alexis Lavaillote and all the Ardian Expansion teams for the 4 years we have spent together and for their unfailing support for the Finaxy group. This close collaboration has enabled us to achieve our growth objectives and keep to our development plan with an excellent atmosphere of cooperation.”
“15 years after its creation in 2009, the Finaxy group is now one of the top 10 brokers in France, with more than 700 million premiums collected, mainly in insurance for small and medium-sized businesses, and a strengthened position as a multi-specialist broker, particularly following the creation in 2023 of Xplorassur, number 1 in travel insurance and assistance.”
“We have chosen to continue our adventure with Cinven in order to pursue and significantly accelerate our organic and external growth. Having already established a foothold abroad, we now have a shared desire to focus on a new major area of international development.”
Alexis Lavaillote, Managing Director Expansion at Ardian noted:
“We were proud to work alongside the Finaxy teams. They have developed the group both organically and through a series of strategic acquisitions. The growth potential is still very significant. Management's focus on digital, ESG and human capital issues has also been a powerful driver of value creation.”
Centerview Partners acted as financial advisor to Cinven on the transaction.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.