CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, February 24, 2025 – NSM Insurance Group (“NSM”), a global specialty insurance provider, announced today it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its U.S. commercial insurance division to New Mountain Capital (“New Mountain”), a leading growth-oriented investment firm with over $55 billion in assets under management. The transaction is expected to close in the next 45 days. The closing is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. NSM is a portfolio company of global investment firm Carlyle.

The agreement encompasses NSM’s diverse portfolio of 15 market-leading niche insurance programs across Property & Casualty, Accident & Health and Reinsurance — as well as its retail agency, NSM Insurance Brokers. These programs will form a new independent business entity, which will continue to be marketed as NSM until a new brand is established.

“Today, we are excited for this milestone and for New Mountain to help lead the next stage of growth for these well-established specialty insurance brands. We are extremely proud of the unique portfolio of programs we have built over the last 35 years that provide a profitable and diversified position in today’s competitive marketplace,” said Geof McKernan, CEO of NSM Insurance Group. “New Mountain has an impressive track record and we have the utmost confidence in their expertise, integrity and commitment to drive NSM forward. We want to thank the entire NSM team for their hard work — this transaction is a win for our team members and all stakeholders involved.”

“The NSM team has done a tremendous job building an unparalleled specialty insurance distribution platform. The business has a 35-year track record of market-leading performance and we are delighted to partner to further build the business into the leading independent commercial insurance MGA business in the U.S.,” said Robert Mulcare, Managing Director at New Mountain Capital.

Sean Donovan, Director at New Mountain Capital added, “As a new independent business, we’re excited by the potential to further accelerate growth through focused investment in the business, the team and technology, which will drive continued, long-term success.”

Since the company’s founding in 1990, NSM has grown and evolved into a global specialty insurance provider with more than $2 billion in premium across 30+ niche insurance programs. NSM has developed a winning formula for building the industry’s most successful and sustainable insurance brands, consistently outperforming competitors and driving industry-leading growth and profitability. More than 20,000 agents nationwide rely on NSM’s specialized insurance programs to meet the unique needs of their clients.

“Carlyle is proud to have supported NSM’s significant growth over the last three years through operational improvement, accretive M&A opportunities and strategic investments in technology, data and analytics,” said Jim Burr, Co-Head of Financial Services at Carlyle and Jitij Dwivedi, a Partner focused on private equity investments in financial services at Carlyle. “This is a positive outcome for everyone involved, and we believe these specialty insurance programs are well positioned for continued success. We look forward to continuing to work with Geof McKernan and the NSM team to grow the company’s remaining direct-to-consumer insurance brands and pursue future strategic acquisitions.”

Geof McKernan and Bill McKernan will join the board of directors upon closing of the acquisition to ensure continuity and a smooth transition. Aaron Miller, Chief Commercial Lines Officer at NSM, will become the Chief Executive Officer of the new entity backed by New Mountain.

Miller has over 20 years of experience in the P&C commercial lines industry and has held various management and leadership roles throughout his career. Since joining NSM in 2021, Miller has been instrumental in driving the continued growth and transformation of the B2B programs by enhancing the product offerings, improving operational efficiency and strengthening carrier relationships.

“I look forward to partnering with the New Mountain team and working with my B2B colleagues to propel us toward unprecedented success,” said Miller. “Today’s announcement signals a new and exciting chapter not just for our team but for our carrier partners, agents and customers. Through this transaction, we are poised to become an even more formidable industry leader while creating greater value for our team members and key partners.”

Houlihan Lokey acted as exclusive financial advisor to Carlyle and NSM. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz acted as legal counsel to Carlyle and NSM. Polsinelli acted as legal counsel to NSM. Ardea Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP served as legal counsel to New Mountain.

For more information about NSM’s cutting-edge specialty insurance programs, visit novacore.com.

The post NSM Announces Definitive Agreement for New Mountain to Acquire Its U.S. Commercial Insurance Division appeared first on Novacore.

New singular brand spotlights innovative employer stop loss and managed care offerings that are stronger by design

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, August 28, 2024 – Sequoia Reinsurance Services, IOA Re and Rockport Benefits — subsidiaries of NSM Insurance Group — today announced they are uniting under a new brand, Carbon Stop Loss Solutions (“Carbon”), to deliver the industry’s leading reinsurance and stop loss solutions.

NSM acquired all three entities in March 2023 and strategically merged them to create a unified sales and service platform to deliver increased value and enhanced resources to brokers, TPA partners and clients. Carbon is now an even stronger organization by combining the best-in-class offerings, world-class carriers and decades of stop loss and managed care expertise from industry leaders Sequoia, IOA Re and Rockport.

“By uniting the cutting-edge risk solutions and expertise of three trusted legacy organizations, we are now formally joining forces as the singular leader for employer stop loss and managed care solutions that deliver financial security,” said Dan Bolgar, CEO of Carbon Stop Loss Solutions. “Like the essential element, Carbon represents the critical solutions that we deliver for brokers and their clients that embodies the strength, resilience and innovation that we are known for across the reinsurance industry.”

With a focus on lowering costs, managing medical risks and providing best-in-class coverage for catastrophic losses, Carbon enables self-insured employer groups, HMOs, physician groups and other healthcare providers to navigate an extremely complex healthcare environment and protect their organizations.

Bolgar added, “Our partners and clients can rely on us for the same market-leading solutions, expertise and service they always have received from us. Our combined teams will allow us to deliver even faster service, competitive pricing and a broader portfolio of solutions for a wide range of clients.”

To learn more about Carbon’s innovative employer stop loss and managed care offerings, visit carbonstoploss.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is a global specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.8 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands around the world focused on collector cars; student health and travel; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; community associations; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for architects, engineers and lawyers; habitational; commercial and residential contractors; medical stop loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

The post Sequoia Reinsurance Services, IOA Re and Rockport Benefits Form Carbon Stop Loss Solutions appeared first on Novacore.

Company adds to its growing travel insurance portfolio with two leading U.K. brands

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, August 16, 2024 – NSM Insurance Group, a global specialty insurance provider with more than $1.8B in premium across 25+ niche insurance programs, today announced it has completed the acquisition of InsurEVO, which includes AllClear Travel insurance and InsureandGo — two of the most trusted and dominant travel insurance brands in the U.K.

NSM will bring the full power of its capacity, resources and technology to further grow these brands and position them as the world’s most in-demand travel insurance platforms.

“We are thrilled to officially welcome AllClear and InsureandGo to the NSM family,” said Geof McKernan, CEO & Founder of NSM Insurance Group. “NSM is committed to the travel and student health insurance space and building out a robust portfolio of leading travel brands around the world. We are excited to partner with Chris Rolland to drive exceptional innovation and growth for AllClear and InsureandGo. We have tremendous confidence in his ability to lead these businesses and capitalize on competitive advantages.”

Since 2000, millions of customers have relied on AllClear and InsureandGo for their travel insurance needs. These leading travel brands are committed to providing a seamless and effortless insurance journey for customers while maintaining award-winning customer service.

“Joining forces with NSM will bring significant value to our business and our customers,” said Chris Rolland, Group CEO of AllClear and InsureandGo. “NSM will enable us to expand our offerings and leading-edge technology platforms to achieve our number one priority — delivering the best possible experience for our customers to meet their unique needs and to provide peace of mind.”

For more information about NSM or for investment opportunities, please visit novacore.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is a global specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.8 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands around the world focused on collector cars; student health and travel; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; community associations; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for architects, engineers and lawyers; habitational; commercial and residential contractors; medical stop loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

About The InsurEvo Group

InsurEvo comprises three key consumer brands, InsureandGo, AllClear and JustCover trading across U.K., Australia and Ireland. For more than 20 years, award-winning travel insurance specialist AllClear has helped cover more than three million policyholders — with customers across the U.K., Ireland and Australia. AllClear is passionate about enabling people to obtain specialist travel insurance whatever their medical condition or age. AllClear offers quality insurance with 5 Star Defaqto rated products and best-in-class service evidenced by 97% of 150,000+ Trustpilot reviews rating the team ‘Great’ or ‘Excellent.’ AllClear provides products, technology platforms and services for many national charities and household brands including Aviva, Direct Line, Diabetes U.K. and Motability. AllClear is the selected Travel Insurance Specialist scheme provider for the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) since 2011.

The post NSM Insurance Group Completes Acquisition of AllClear and InsureandGo appeared first on Novacore.

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, August 2, 2024 – NSM Insurance Group, a global specialty insurance provider with more than $1.8B in premium across 25+ niche insurance programs, today announced it has acquired GIG Insurance Group (GIG). Based in Fort Lauderdale, FL, GIG is one of the leading MGAs in the community association management liability and lawyers’ professional liability markets. As part of the transaction, NSM also acquired Gifford Wells Insurance (GWI) — an independent insurance broker specializing in professional liability insurance primarily for lawyers, CPAs, doctors and architects and engineers.

“We are thrilled to announce our latest strategic acquisitions in the D&O, crime and professional liability space,” said Bill McKernan, President of NSM Insurance Group. “Dave Villari and Eric Gifford have built a tremendous business positioning GIG as the clear leader in the D&O and crime insurance market for community associations. Additionally, they have built a premier agency in GWI with a stellar reputation for delivering unmatched expertise to their clients. We look forward to partnering with Eric as the next president of GIG and GWI to grow these businesses, especially through cross-sell opportunities with NSM’s existing niche insurance programs.”

Established in 2006, GIG offers director and officers (D&O) liability insurance and crime insurance coverages through a cutting-edge technology platform, which allows agents and brokers to quote, bind and issue policies. The number of community associations in the U.S. has experienced significant growth from 2000 to 2023 — leading to increased demand for D&O and crime insurance for community association board members driven by regulatory requirements, litigation trends and growing awareness of the associated risks. In 2015, GIG Professional Programs (a dba of GIG Insurance Group) was established to deliver professional liability and risk management services to lawyers in Florida.

Established in 2003, GWI provides professional liability insurance solutions for professionals to help them navigate the complex nature of protecting and insuring their practices. The agency’s niche specialties include lawyers’ professional liability, medical malpractice, CPA professional liability and other miscellaneous professional liability.

“I have the utmost respect for Bill McKernan and the NSM leadership team and we are truly excited to join forces to take our business to the next level of success,” said Dave Villari, President of GIG Insurance Group. “Over the past 18+ years, we have established GIG and GWI as go-to solutions in the liability marketplace based on our competitive coverages and ease of agents doing business with us. NSM has the resources, capacity and industry relationships to open new doors to grow our business.”

Eric Gifford, who will be assuming the role of President of GIG Insurance Group and Gifford Wells Insurance as part of the transaction added, “For the past two decades, our mission has been simple — to deliver unparalleled liability insurance solutions and top-notch service to our valued agent partners and clients. NSM is well respected in the industry as the leader in specialty, niche insurance on both the program and retail side — and we’re truly excited to combine our expertise to grow our business and expand our footprint.”

Over the past 34 years, NSM has developed a winning formula for building the industry’s most successful and sustainable insurance programs, consistently outperforming competitors and driving industry-leading growth and profitability. This latest acquisition complements NSM’s robust portfolio of specialty insurance programs and brands for the commercial P&C industry and consumer insurance — backed by the company’s state-of-the-art resources, including IT, data and analytics, operations, marketing, HR and finance.

For more information about NSM or for investment opportunities, please visit novacore.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is a global specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.8 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands around the world focused on collector cars; student health and travel; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for contractors, architects and engineers; habitational; commercial and residential contractors; medical stop-loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

About GIG Insurance Group

GIG Insurance Group was formed to meet the needs of independent agents and brokers in placing Community Association Business. GIG provides quality service to its agents and brokers by working with high quality insurance carriers and investing in people, technology and business relationships. GIG strives to provide agents with the highest quality D&O insurance products and service. For more information on GIG, visit gigins.com.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires GIG Insurance Group and Gifford Wells Insurance appeared first on Novacore.

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, July 30, 2024 – NSM Insurance Group, a global specialty insurance provider with more than $1.8B in premium across 25+ niche insurance programs, today announced that it has acquired ISO Student Health Insurance. Since 1958, ISO has offered accident and sickness insurance plans specifically designed for international students and scholars studying outside of their home country and traveling to the United States.

“We are thrilled to welcome ISO to our growing family of travel insurance brands,” said Bill McKernan, President of NSM Insurance Group. “ISO is the market leader in student travel insurance and has established an amazing direct-to-consumer distribution strategy. Jacob and his team have built a tremendous business and operating model and we look forward to supporting their continued growth by leveraging our cutting-edge resources and technology and global distribution channels. The future is certainly bright for ISO and NSM.”

ISO delivers affordable and accessible international insurance to more than 3 million students in over 200 countries. ISO has also partnered with over 2,600 top universities to enroll students in ISO products and maintains strong relationships with international student advisors and risk managers. Through a digital enrollment platform, ISO delivers a seamless purchasing experience, multilingual services and robust plan options for its customers.

“We’re energized to become a part of NSM’s burgeoning portfolio of leading travel insurance brands. For over 60 years, we have remained laser focused on serving a target demographic no other provider can match and building a highly reputable brand based on deep industry relationships, a range of product offerings and fast and reliable customer service,” said Jacob Harel, Chairman of ISO. “I am confident NSM has the capacity and resources to enable ISO’s continued growth through product development and geographic expansion.”

“The ISO team is delighted to join forces with NSM and build on our legacy of delivering the best health insurance offerings for international students — pioneered and managed by current and former international students,” added Stephanie Lin, CEO of ISO.

Over the past 34 years, NSM has developed a winning formula for building the industry’s most successful and sustainable insurance programs in niche sectors, consistently outperforming competitors and driving industry-leading growth and profitability. This acquisition marks NSM’s fourth acquisition in the travel space over the last nine months. In October 2023, NSM acquired Envisage International, a leading provider of global health and travel insurance for international students and cultural exchange participants. In May 2024, NSM signed a definitive agreement to purchase two travel insurance brands, AllClear Travel Insurance and InsureandGo. NSM remains committed to pursuing strong-performing companies in the travel insurance space as the company looks to become a dominant player in the industry.

For more information about NSM or for investment opportunities, please visit novacore.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is a global specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.8 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands around the world focused on collector cars; student health and travel; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for contractors, architects and engineers; habitational; commercial and residential contractors; medical stop-loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

About ISO Student Health Insurance

ISO Student Health Insurance (ISO), founded in 1958 and headquartered in New York City, is an insurance brokerage specializing in health insurance solutions for international students. As such, ISO acts as plan administrator, broker and manager of the high-quality insurance products available for international students, scholars and their dependents during their course of study in the U.S. For more information, visit isoa.org.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires ISO Student Health Insurance appeared first on Novacore.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires Strategic Underwriters International appeared first on Novacore.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires Two Leading U.K. Travel Insurance Brands appeared first on Novacore.

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, October 24, 2023 – Sequoia Reinsurance Services and IOA Re are pleased to announce a collaboration with Everest Reinsurance Company (“Everest”) and/or its affiliates to expand their product offerings in the personal accident reinsurance space. Sequoia and IOA are best-in-class managed care and stop loss underwriting managers under the ownership of NSM Insurance Group.

By expanding their relationship, Everest, Sequoia and IOA will bring their A+ rated paper to the accident reinsurance market with new product offerings to better serve producers and clients.

“The Sequoia and IOA teams are delighted to expand our product offerings with Everest,” commented Dan Bolgar, CEO of Sequoia Reinsurance Services. “We continue to consider ways in which we can serve the broader accident and health market.”

This new capacity includes:

• Life and accident catastrophe programs
• Risk excess/per person excess of loss accident programs
• Accidental death carve-out programs

“As a trusted accident and health reinsurance market for nearly three decades, Everest is pleased to expand our partnership with Sequoia and IOA Re into the personal accident reinsurance space,” said Shawn Austin, Everest Senior Vice President and Head of Accident and Health for North America. “Given the current supply and demand imbalance of personal accident capacity, Everest is proud to be able to re-enter this important sector and provide the A&H market with the additional capacity needed to support their risk management needs.”

About Sequoia Reinsurance Services, LLC

Sequoia Reinsurance Services, LLC is an entrepreneurial health reinsurance underwriting and risk management organization with a spirit of responsiveness and creativity to support our customers through quality reinsurance solutions, both from a financial and service perspective. We offer health reinsurance solutions to health plans, HMOs, insurance companies, at-risk healthcare providers, self-insured employers and captive insurance programs. Sequoia’s team leads the industry as experienced, managed care reinsurance experts providing tailored risk solutions, best-in-class client engagement, comprehensive clinical and cost management programs and superior claim services. For more information, visit elmcgroup.com/sequoia.

About IOA Re

IOA Re is the recognized leader in reinsurance for the self-funded market, offering innovative solutions for medical stop loss, provider excess loss insurance and HMO reinsurance for groups of all sizes. With a highly expe­rienced team of underwriters, claims administrators and clinicians, IOA Re is committed to delivering smart, creative stop-loss solutions to its partners. For more information on IOA Re, visit ioare.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is a global specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.6 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands around the world focused on collector cars; pets; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for contractors, architects and engineers; habitational; contractors; leased equipment; medical stop loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

The post Sequoia and IOA Re Announce Expansion into Personal Accident Reinsurance Sector appeared first on Novacore.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires Envisage International appeared first on Novacore.

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, July 10, 2023 – NSM Insurance Group, the nation’s leading specialty insurance provider with more than $1.5B in premium across 25+ niche insurance programs in the U.S. and U.K., today announced the completion of its acquisition of Shield Commercial Insurance Services. Based in Palm Desert, CA, Shield specializes in insurance solutions for the general contractor and construction liability space.

“We are energized to continue our series of strategic acquisitions in the U.S. and U.K. with Shield,” said Bill McKernan, President of NSM Insurance Group. “Shield is a fast-growing and best-in-class business with exceptional underwriting and a profitable track record. They are a perfect fit for our B2B portfolio of dynamic, specialized businesses. We will accelerate their growth by expanding their geographic footprint and national distribution with our robust network of 15,000+ agent partners across the country.”

Shield is exclusively focused on underwriting business for small and mid-sized contractors, offering coverages for General Liability, Excess Liability, Workers’ Compensation, Inland Marine and Contractors Professional & Pollution Liability.

“We’re thrilled to join the NSM family of specialty insurance brands and further enhance and bolster our offerings to meet the unique needs of contractors,” said Robert Anderson, President and Co-Founder of Shield Commercial Insurance Services. “Over the last two decades, we have delivered innovative products for this niche segment and have built a tremendous reputation with agents and carriers alike — which has fueled our explosive organic growth over the last five years.”

Over the past 33 years, NSM has developed a winning formula for building the industry’s most successful and sustainable programs, consistently outperforming competitors and driving industry-leading growth and profitability over the last four years. This latest acquisition complements  NSM’s robust portfolio of specialty insurance programs and brands for the commercial P&C industry and consumer insurance — backed by the company’s state-of-the-art resources, including IT, operations, marketing, HR and finance.

For more information about NSM or for investment opportunities, please visit novacore.com.

About NSM Insurance Group

NSM Insurance Group is the nation’s leading specialty insurance provider, exclusively focused on building successful insurance programs. For more than 30 years, NSM has been committed to delivering industry-specific insurance programs that help agents meet the unique needs of their customers and fuel market growth through innovative development, underwriting, distribution and claims expertise. The company has built more than $1.5 billion in premium across 25+ specialty insurance programs and brands in the U.S. and U.K. focused on collector cars; pets; social services and behavioral health; addiction treatment; coastal condominiums; towing and garage; trucking; sports and fitness; professional liability for contractors, architects and engineers; habitational; medical stop loss and managed care; staffing; and workers’ compensation. For more information on NSM, visit novacore.com.

The post NSM Insurance Group Acquires Shield Commercial Insurance Services appeared first on Novacore.