Cooper Gay posts $68m underlying earnings

Cooper Gay Swett & Crawford produced underlying earnings of $68m last year and fees and commissions of $340m.

Net cash earnings were $31m.

The results were the first ones of the combined group of Cooper Gay and Swett & Crawford.

Cooper Gay bought Swett & Crawford last year to become one of the largest wholesale brokers in the world.

Chief executive Toby Esser said: “After the landmark combination of Cooper Gay and Swett & Crawford in 2010, CGSC’s inaugural results clearly demonstrate our excellent trading position. Having successfully integrated the two businesses we continue to recruit additional professionals and teams to add depth to our service offering.

"As a result the combined Group produced a turnover of $340m with underlying EBITDA of $68m and strong operating cash flow. We have continued to grow strongly in our emerging market businesses, most notably Latin America and Asia, which has offset the tough trading and economic conditions in mature markets.

“With its significant scale, global business operations and international client base, the Group has exciting prospects for the future. We are now ideally positioned to drive growth both organically and through further acquisitions and to capitalise on any future market uplift and improvement in economic conditions.

"We expect to see the real benefits of the combination moving forward as CGSC continues to drive through synergy developments whilst maintaining its emerging market focus.”