Marsh & McLennan to sell Jardine Lloyds Thompson’s aerospace business for £190m

Marsh & McLennan Companies (MMC) is to sell Jardine Lloyds Thompson’s (JLT) aerospace insurance business in order to ease regulatory concern over their planned merger.

Insurance broker giant MMC is the process of buying smaller British rival JLT in a deal worth £4.3 billion.

The companies have agreed to sell the aerospace business, including the transfer of staff, to US peer Arthur J Gallagher & Co. for £190 million in order to “address a potential overlap” of services, with the deal subject to approval from the European Commission.

MMC’s takeover of JLT is currently being reviewed by the EC and the company said this deal is still on track to close by the spring.

MMC previously indicated that an overlap between the two firms could result in up to 3,750 job losses across the combined business.

An initial review identified some likely duplication between the two firms “particularly in functional support areas and plans to take a “best of both” approach to the integration.

JLT operates in over 40 territories with over 10,000 staff, while MMC’s 65,000 employees serve clients in over 130 countries.

MMC plans to maintain its headquarters in New York following the deal, and there may be plans to combine certain offices and functions.

The takeover deal agreed last September saw JLT shareholders offered £19.15 per share, which valued the entirety of JLT at around £4.9 billion.