Heath Lambert has sold a number of its Latin American offices to Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT).
JLT will acquire controlling interests in Heath Lambert's operations in Colombia, Peru, Mexico and Venezuela, in partnership with various minority shareholders.
JLT will initially pay $27m in cash for the businesses, with further performance related payments over the next three years capped at $96m.
The net assets of the acquired business is approximately $6m, said JLT, with the aggregate pro forma brokerage for 2003 reaching $32.6m for 2003.
The deal follows recent management buy-outs of the broker's Canadian operations, and Bahrain-based Heath Lambert Middle East.
The company said it had been reviewing its global operations since the appointment of a new group management team at the end of 2003.
Heath Lambert said the deal with JLT represented the final stage of the review process, resulting in a simplified and refocused group.
Heath Lambert executive chairman Ian Martin, said: “Heath Lambert has excellent skills and market positions in a significant number of areas of the global insurance broking market.
“In order to achieve strong future growth we are focusing our financial and staff resources on these areas of strength that also contribute to the continued profitable development of the group.
“While we are selling some of our Latin American offices to JLT, we will retain operations in the region and continue to be active in placing Latin American wholesale business into the London market.”
