DARAG seals ‘beyond expectations’ captive book acquisition

Legacy specialist DARAG Group will pick up a run-off book of mostly workers’ compensation coverage from an undisclosed captive that will be structured as a novation of 2003-06 and 2015-16 policy year covers of primarily workers’ compensation reserves written to DARAG’s Bermuda unit.

DARAG said the roughly $30 million transaction is part of a long and growing line of expected deals with small-to-mid-cap captive counterparties.

DARAG Group CEO Tom Booth said DARAG had developed an excellent track record in this core niche of small to mid-sized captive and self-insured portfolios in North America.

“Our appetite to continue growth in this area is therefore stronger than ever. We expect to announce another similar sized transaction shortly and the pipeline for the remainder of the year is beyond expectations,” he said.

DARAG North America’s VP of M&A Joel Neal added there was a continued need for improved operational efficiency in the North American market.

“Transactions such as these enable our clients to achieve this, while simultaneously freeing up trapped capital. We look forward to announcing further transactions in the future,” he said.

The DARAG Group says it has completed 55 run-off transactions in 21 countries with a value in excess of €1.7 billion.