Mergers and acquisitions of insurance agencies fell in 2013,reports OPTIS Partners' new semi-annual survey. With 248 reportedtransactions in the United States in Canada in 2013, the number isdown from the 299 transactions in 2012, a record high.

Private-equity backed agencies were the biggest buyers in 2013,making 94 acquisitions in 2013, compared to 88 in 2012, with HubInternational being the top PE-buyer with 25 acquisitions.

“Last year marked a return to normal levels as buyersassimilated all their 2012 deals and began to refill the pipelineof potential target sellers,” said Timothy J. Cunningham, managingdirector of OPTIS. “It was a seminal shift in landscape, asPE-backed acquirers topped the chart or the largest number oftransactions for the first time.”

Property and casualty-focused agencies were most frequentlysold, at 42% of all transactions. Deals for agencies selling bothP&C and employee benefits accounted for 22% of acquisitions,and employee benefits accounted for 24%.

Prospects are high for 2014, as January was one of the mostactive months for closed deals on record. Although there is noindication that 2014 will be another blockbuster year, the momentumhas influenced the strong surge of mergers and acquisitions inJanuary of 2014.

“Such momentum seems to indicate that 2014 will be a very activeyear,” Cunningham said.

OPTIS Partners' full report, “Agent-Broker Mergers &Acquisitions Statistics 2013 – A Year in Transition” can be readhere.