Marsh & McLennan's chief executive, whose firm has stopped accepting contingent commissions, predicted today at an industry conference that big brokers that continue to accept them will face a disadvantage.

Coming the day after reporting MMC's fourth quarter returns, Michael G. Cherkasky, MMC's president and chief executive officer, said the fact that Marsh, MMC's insurance brokerage arm, no longer takes contingent commissions means the broker will be forced to market its services on a value-added basis to grow its business.

He said clients will come to view brokers who accept contingents negatively, and Marsh will work to take advantage of that view.