Carvill confirms talks
Lloyds broker RK Carvill has confirmed it is in discussions with US private equity house Stone Point Capital with a view to selling a stake in the business.
It is not known how much the deal could be worth, but Carvill confirmed it had been in talks with the buy-out specialist for several months.
In a statement, Carvill said: “In continuing to expand the professional services we offer to our clients and in response to the interest shown in our business by potential strategic partners in the area of convergence, we have been working closely for a couple of months with Stone Point Capital to evaluate options for the firm. No decision has been made."
In October, Stone Point acquired 51% of a new holding company that owns the operating businesses of Cunningham Lindsey, for approximately $80m (£41m).
Last month it bought a 51% stake in US IT provider Fiserve's insurance businesses for $501m. It also owns Bermuda reinsurer Harbor Point.
Marsh job cuts
Marsh has refused to comment on speculation that it is set to axe 2,000 jobs as part of a massive restructure of the global business.
The broker was expected to announce wide-scale changes to its operation alongside its second quarter results, announced on Wednesday after Insurance Times went to press.
Two senior managers, Brian Duperreault and Dan Glaser, who joined the firm in January 2008 and December 2007 respectively, are expected to unveil a huge shake-up at the company which could result in job losses.
In June, Marsh finally signed a deal with outsourcing firm Capita that saw 600 staff transferred in a 10-year deal worth £187m, as part of a transformation of the company’s UK business at its Norwich headquarters.
In its first quarter results, Marsh reported a revenue increase of 7% to £1.23bn – up from £1.14bn the previous year.
