Marsh McLennan reports 20% higher revenue as staff move over from Aon-WTW

Marsh & McLennan reported a nearly 20% jump in revenue during the second quarter as economies continued to reopen after going into lockdown ahead of the comparable reporting period last year. The world’s largest brokerage also added about 2,000 staff in the first half of this year, which included a significant increase in its rate of hiring from rivals Aon and Willis Towers Watson (WTW) since they announced merger plans last year, Marsh McLennan’s senior executive said. As first reported in Business Insurance, the company’s insurance and reinsurance broking units continued to benefit from higher insurance pricing pushing up commissions and fees, but price increases are moderating, said Dan Glaser, president and CEO of Marsh McLennan, in a conference call with analysts. Marsh McLennan reported $5.02bn in revenue for the second quarter, a 19.8% increase over the same period last year and up 13% on an underlying basis, which excludes the effect of foreign exchange fluctuations, mergers and acquisitions, and other factors. “We are benefiting from what may be the strongest economic rebound in nearly four decades, led by our largest region, the US,” Mr. Glaser said. Net income for the second quarter was $820m, up 43.4%. The company’s risk and insurance services division, which includes its insurance and reinsurance broking units, reported Q2 revenue of $3.14bn, up 20.7% and a 13% increase on an underlying basis. Marsh, its main insurance broking unit, reported revenue of $2.65bn, up 22.6% and a 14% increase on an underlying basis. Marsh reported $796m in revenue for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, up 33.3%. In the US and Canada, Marsh reported underlying revenue growth of 15%. Asia-Pacific revenue was $347m, up 16.4%, and Latin America revenue was $103m, up 4%. Guy Carpenter & Co, its reinsurance broking unit, reported $488m in revenue, up 12.7% and 12% on an underlying basis. For the first six months of 2021, Marsh McLennan reported $10.1bn in revenue, a 14% increase over the same period last year and up 9% on an underlying basis. Net income was $1.8bn, up 36%. Marsh McLennan added nearly 2,000 staff in the first half of 2021, Mr Glaser said. This includes about 700 employees from Missoula, Montana-based PayneWest Insurance, which Marsh bought in April. Marsh also increased its rate of hiring from Aon and WTW, whose merger has been delayed over antitrust concerns. Since the announcement of the Aon-WTW deal in March 2020, Marsh’s hiring from its two main rivals has been “three times higher on a net basis than it was in the 15 months prior to the announcement”, said Mr Glaser. “That’s not going to run forever, but ultimately we’re doing our best to continue to build talent and capabilities,” he said. Aon and WTW declined to comment on Mr Glaser’s remarks. While the pandemic remains a concern, Marsh McLennan is “focused on resurgence and expansion”, Mr Glaser said. Two major areas where the company seeks to help its clients are cyber risk and climate change. Cyberattacks on supply chains and ransomware incidents continue to rise and are affecting organisations across all sectors, said Mr Glaser. But he did not comment during the call on the April cyber breach affecting Marsh McLennan, and a spokeswoman said the company did not have any additional comments on the attack, which was disclosed earlier this month. For further news from Business Insurance, please click here.

Marsh McLennan reports 20% higher revenue as staff move over from Aon-WTW

Want to read this article?

Read Next

Marsh tracks slowdown in global Q1 rate hikes

Markel names head of terrorism in London

Insurers defend Nord Stream’s €400m lawsuit as act of war

Allstate posts nat cat loss of $343m for March

UAE flash flood losses manageable as insurers adapt to changing weather

Marsh tracks slowdown in global Q1 rate hikes

Markel names head of terrorism in London

Insurers defend Nord Stream’s €400m lawsuit as act of war

Allstate posts nat cat loss of $343m for March

UAE flash flood losses manageable as insurers adapt to changing weather

Want to read this article?

Read Next

Marsh tracks slowdown in global Q1 rate hikes

Markel names head of terrorism in London

Insurers defend Nord Stream’s €400m lawsuit as act of war

Allstate posts nat cat loss of $343m for March

UAE flash flood losses manageable as insurers adapt to changing weather

Related Articles