A division of BB&T Corp. plans to purchase the U.S. premium finance operations of Aon Corp. brokerage. Financial terms were not released.
Winston-Salem, N.C.-based bank BB&T's AFCO Credit Corp. said it plans to buy the U.S. operations of Cananwill, an international premium finance business owned by Chicago-based Aon. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter, AFCO said.
AFCO is the primary insurance premium finance subsidiary of BB&T, which also owns BB&T Insurance Services, an insurance brokerage firm based in Raleigh, N.C.
BB&T said it is the second largest provider of insurance premium financing in the United States and the largest in Canada. The premium finance unit is part of BB&T's Specialized Lending division.
"We are strongly committed to insurance premium finance loans and this acquisition will significantly strengthen our franchise in the United States," said Tol Broome, manager of BB&T Specialized Lending. "Cananwill employees share our values and our common goals of providing outstanding client service and helping clients achieve financial success."
BB&T said its insurance premium finance operation is made up of Pittsburgh-based AFCO Credit Corp. and AFCO Acceptance Corp. that operates nine offices across the United States; AFCO's affiliate CAFO, which maintains three offices in Canada; and Prime Rate Premium Finance of Florence, S.C.
In an e-mail statement, David Prosperi, vice president, global public relations for Aon said, "The decision to sell Cananwill is part of Aon's ongoing effort to focus on its core strengths of risk brokerage and human capital consulting."
In its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Aon said third-quarter losses in 2008 in its Cananwill business, along with soft market conditions, offset revenue gains in the Americas operation.
Yesterday, Aon said it completed its deal to sell its AIS Management Group unit to Mercury Insurance Group for $120 million. The deal, announced in October, was an all cash transaction that closed Friday.
(This story was updated at 11 a.m. on Jan. 8)
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