EQT and McGill and Partners are pleased to announce that EQT X ("EQT") has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in McGill and Partners from Warburg Pincus for USD 2.0bn. Founder and Chief Executive Officer Steve McGill will continue to lead the firm, while Chairman John Lloyd will remain actively involved. Both will remain as significant shareholders alongside the firm’s wider colleague base, while Warburg Pincus will sell its equity stake in full, marking a successful conclusion to the firms’ partnership.

EQT will invest behind McGill and Partners’ ambition to drive accelerated organic growth and global expansion by continuing to attract and support specialty broking talent in key markets, invest further in technology and data capabilities, and expand the firm’s digital solutions – all while maintaining its independence, entrepreneurial culture, and colleague alignment that have been central to its success.

The firm was founded in May 2019 by industry titan, Steve McGill alongside a core senior team that included John Lloyd, Stephen Cross and Karl Hennessy, with backing from Warburg Pincus, the pioneer of global growth investing, whose cornerstone investment supported the creation of a new category of (re)insurance broker.

The agreement represents a significant milestone in the McGill and Partners’ journey and reflects the significant organic growth the firm has achieved. In just seven years, the firm has grown from its founding as an ambitious challenger into a scaled global specialty broking business, with revenues in excess of $250mn, bringing together more than 600 colleagues across seven countries and serving over 1,000 of the world’s most sophisticated insurance and reinsurance clients.

Different by design since its formation in 2019 and with an aim to be a “category of one” (re)insurance broker, the firm combines exceptional specialist talent, deep market relationships, digital first principles and a highly collaborative culture to solve increasingly complex risk challenges for sophisticated clients and distribution partners.

Steve McGill CBE, CEO, McGill and Partners, said: “Our vision was to build an independent (re)insurance broker defined by its unparalleled expertise, cutting edge technology and an absolute focus on sophisticated clients who wanted an innovative approach to their larger or more complex risk. To have turned what was merely an idea seven years ago into a $2 billion global specialty enterprise is an achievement we are all incredibly proud of. We have built our firm person-by-person and client-by-client, creating a business powered by the most exceptional talent ever assembled at scale in this industry.

“We are delighted to welcome EQT as our new partner and for our colleagues to retain a significant ownership stake in our firm. EQT’s track record of backing high-growth, best-in-class technology-enabled businesses makes them absolutely the right partner for the next stage of our journey. We are also deeply grateful for the unwavering backing and guidance of Warburg Pincus over the last seven years to help us build the leading specialty broker in the world. This milestone is a lasting reflection of a phenomenal partnership.”