Insurance

Big-3 Broker Organic Growth

Organic revenue growth = revenue growth from the existing business only, stripping out acquisitions and currency swings. The cleanest read on whether a broker is genuinely winning vs just buying scale. Quarterly for the Big-3 brokers (Marsh McLennan, Aon, Gallagher). Hard-market years 2022-24 (rising commercial insurance prices = bigger commissions) drove 9-12% growth; the softening cycle dropped growth into the mid-single digits.

Quarterly organic revenue growth (ex-M&A, ex-FX) for the Big-3 brokers. Growth peaked in the hard-market cycle of 2022-23 and decelerated through 2024-25 as commercial P&C rates softened. AJG's roll-up strategy keeps organic above MMC. Sources: quarterly earnings releases.

Broker M&A Timeline

Top insurance-broker acquisitions 2020-2026. AON-NFP at $13B (2024) is the largest broker deal in history. The dominant strategy is tuck-in M&A — buying small regional brokers and folding them into the parent platform. AJG runs 40+ tuck-ins per year as a core growth engine.
DateAcquirerTargetDeal ValueStatusNotes
2026-01AJGWoodruff Sawyer (announced)$1.95BPendingTech-focused West Coast broker; closing expected H1 2026
2025-09WTWTRANZACT$630MClosedSold to GTCR; WTW exiting direct-to-consumer Medicare brokerage
2025-06Brown & BrownAccession Risk Management$9.83BClosedBiggest single deal in BRO history; tripled commercial mid-market exposure
2025-02AonRisk Strategies International$2.50BClosedStrengthened middle-market post-NFP integration
2024-12AJGAssuredPartners$13.45BAnnouncedLargest broker deal ever by AJG; closed 2025 after antitrust review
2024-08AJGRTC Insurance Advisors$85MClosedProperty-condo specialty in Florida; one of ~40 AJG 2024 tuck-ins
2024-05Brown & BrownQuintes (Netherlands)$300MClosedEstablished BRO's first Continental Europe retail presence
2024-04AONNFP$13.00BClosedDoubled AON's US middle-market exposure; $1.2B in cash + stock + earnouts
2023-12MMCAC&E Group$210MClosedMarsh McLennan Agency middle-market roll-up; Houston-focused
2023-10MMCHonan Insurance (Australia)$650MClosedLargest Australian indep broker; gave Marsh top-3 ANZ commercial position
2023-07TruistTruist Insurance Holdings (divestiture)$15.50BClosed 2024Stone Point + CD&R bought from Truist Bank; the largest broker take-private ever
2023-04AJGBuck (Gallagher Re benefits arm)$660MClosedPension consulting & benefits admin; expanded Gallagher Re footprint
2022-12WTWHutton Insurance Brokers$85MClosedUK mid-market commercial broker tuck-in
2022-08AONTyche (analytics)$170MClosedCapital modelling software from Hexagon; bolstered Aon Reinsurance analytics
2022-05MMCMarsh Mclennan Agency UK launch$50MMultiple tuck-insMMA UK platform launched via Jelf, Bluefin, IFG roll-ins
2022-04AJGMyersGroup (UK)$120MClosedSurety + cyber UK mid-market specialty
2021-11AJGWillis Re$3.25BClosedReinsurance arm divested after AON-WTW deal collapsed; rebranded Gallagher Re
2021-06Hub InternationalInsureon (digital SMB)$180MClosedPE-backed Hub adding digital small-business channel
2021-02AJGBrookwater (Australia)$210MClosedMid-market Australian SME book
2020-03AONWillis Towers Watson (pulled)$30.00BTerminated 2021DOJ antitrust suit forced termination July 2021; AON paid $1B break fee

Largest insurance broker M&A deals 2020-2026. Click headers to sort. Mega-deals (AON-NFP $13B, AJG-AssuredPartners $13.45B, Truist Insurance take-private $15.5B) anchored the period; AJG ran ~40 tuck-ins per year on top. Sources: company press releases, SEC filings, PitchBook.

Commission Revenue vs Commercial P&C Pricing Cycle

Brokers earn commissions as a % of the policy premiums they place, so their revenue is leveraged to the commercial P&C pricing cycle. Pairs Marsh McLennan's commission revenue ($B) with the CIAB Commercial Rate Index — the industry-standard quarterly survey of commercial-insurance rate changes. Commissions track pricing with a 1-2 quarter lag.

Bars: Marsh McLennan Risk & Insurance Services commission/fee revenue ($B, left). Line: CIAB Commercial P&C composite rate change index (% YoY, right) — the canonical pricing-cycle benchmark. MMC revenue keeps grinding higher even as the rate cycle softens from +11.7% peak (Q3 2020) to roughly flat in early 2026, thanks to volume + acquisition + fiduciary investment income. Sources: MMC 10-Qs, CIAB Commercial P&C Market Index reports.

Note on brokers: Insurance brokers are fee-only intermediaries — they don't bear underwriting risk. The right way to read them is as a leveraged play on commercial P&C pricing + middle-market consolidation, not as insurance carriers. Combined-ratio metrics don't apply.

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Insurance - Brokers | Sterling