Business

Abbey Insurance parent firm Prestige in US investment boost

Abbey Insurance's parent company Prestige could benefit from a multi-million pound investment by US firm Capital Z
Abbey Insurance's parent company Prestige could benefit from a multi-million pound investment by US firm Capital Z Abbey Insurance's parent company Prestige could benefit from a multi-million pound investment by US firm Capital Z

PRESTIGE Insurance Holdings, parent company of Northern Ireland’s largest privately-owned insurance broker Abbey Insurance, has signed a deal with US-based investor Capital Z Partners Management which would see a multi-million pound investment into the company by the global equity firm.

No deals on the price of the deal were revealed, and as it is now subject to final regulatory clearance, the company says it will not be providing any further details until that has been concluded in the next six weeks.

The deal will mean Capital Z will acquire the shares of a number of retiring shareholders of Prestige, which employs 519 people at its operations in Ireland and Britain.

The company was founded by George Storey in 1973, and under the proposed deal, he and the existing management team would remain on the board and have reassured staff that their jobs would not be at risk.

In February 2016 Abbey - which provides home, car, travel and van insurance and operates 23 branches in the north - acquired Open + Direct from the UK-based Swinton Insurance Group.

New York-based Capital Z has invested more than $2.9 billion in over 40 transactions since 1990, of which more than $2 billion has been in the insurance sector alone.