Intact bullish on brokerage M&A in Canada

Opportunities abound for Intact’s merger and acquisition (M&A) plan in Canada and beyond, Ken Anderson, Intact Financial Corporation’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, said in a Wednesday fireside chat with National Bank Financial.  

The country’s P&C industry can expect to see more acquisitions by Intact’s Canadian distribution subsidiary BrokerLink, Anderson said at the Canadian Financial Services Conference in Montreal. 

“We’re ready, I would say, in pretty much all segments of the business, maybe leaving that Direct Line, domestic UK market to the side — we probably have 12 months or so of work there,” Anderson said, referring to Intact’s recent U.K. acquisition.  

“But beyond that, Canada performance [is] really good. The integration muscle is very strong in Canada. It’s really a question of actionability,” he said. “We don’t control that, but we’re certainly ready.” 

Anderson was responding to a question about whether the M&A market is conducive to a transaction today, and whether certain markets are more attractive to Intact. 

“We’re continuing to roll up on the distribution side in Canada — in particular, with BrokerLink — but also, in the U.S., [we’re] now starting to move on the [managing general agent] MGA front in the U.S.” 

Intact’s Canadian broker consolidator BrokerLink has announced six acquisitions in 2025 thus far, including expansion into new territory.  

BrokerLink announced the acquisition of Schill Insurance Brokers in February, marking its first purchase in British Columbia. That was followed by the acquisitions of Armour Insurance Group Ltd. and Northgate Insurance Centre, both in Alberta. In March, BrokerLink announced three more acquisitions: Bankers and Traders Insurance in Edmonton, Aspen Insurance Brokers Ltd. in Calgary and SeaLand Insurance Corp. in St. John’s. 

“Consolidation and scale in distribution are also key ingredients to expanding our leadership position,” Intact’s CEO Charles Brindamour wrote in a letter regarding the company’s Annual Report 2024. “BrokerLink has continued to be an important driver of growth, with premiums up by 21% over last year. That’s, in part, because of acquisitions  —  25 in 2024, representing nearly $500 million in premiums.”

The broker subsidiary announced 20 deals in 2023.  

BrokerLink is on track to achieving $5 billion of direct premiums written in 2025, Brindamour wrote.

Specialty is also an area of interest for Intact, Anderson noted. He cited a 90% or better combined ratio “in all segments of specialty.” Intact’s global specialty lines business spans Canada, U.S. UK and Europe markets.  

“Leaving aside current tensions, the U.S., mid-to long-term, is a great opportunity for specialty lines growth. So, too, is the U.K. and potentially Europe as well. So I think all options are open on the specialty lines side.” 

Feature image by iStock.com/PrathanChorruangsak