Beazley boosts US presence with First State

Beazley Group plc has completed the acquisition of the entire share capital and all renewal rights of First State Management Group Inc, a US underwriting manager specialising in surplus lines commercial property insurance, from the Hartford Financial Services Group. Beazley said the acquisition significantly increases its presence in the US as an insurer of mid-sized commercial property business, which does not normally come to the Lloyd’s market. First State plans to underwrite gross premiums of around $150mn in 2009, which will balance Beazley’s specialty lines business, including professional and management liability, that it has been writing locally in the US. “Beazley has been underwriting mid-sized excess and surplus lines commercial property business locally in the US since 2007, but the acquisition of First State represents a step change in the scale of Beazley’s activity in this market,” it said. New policies issued by First State will be backed by Beazley’s Lloyd’s syndicates 2623 and 623. Beazley Group has added £27mn in capital to its Lloyd’s syndicates to support First State’s underwriting in 2009.